"No War, No Peace!"

 "A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace." (Ecclesiastes 3:8 KJV) 

  "Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what I should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NLT)

 It is pretty obvious to me that I am not on the same page as many others; as I first realized when I began to enter into this journey; but then again, my journey is already somewhat unique and out of sorts! As I said in the onset of this Book, there is the human way to observe what is being said, and then there is the spiritual way; I am leaning towards the spiritual side, because God's word is God's Word! 

 Again, much as the last few verses, this is one that blends together. As I left off yesterday, some may look at what I said and get the wrong impression, 'hating what is evil will guard your heart,' as if hate is what it takes to guard our hearts. Well, to be perfectly clear, if we don't fight for what believe to be the truth, then what good is the truth going to do with us? 

 Love and hate do have a common ground; but the actual opposite of love, as well as hate, is indifference! It is the point of not choosing to do what needs to be done, because you just don't care! Love is used to get by, and hate is the way to get even; but there is no real concern, interest, or sympathy; only a way of living from day to day, to live from day to day trying to feel good. 

 But there is no peace that comes with indifference! We must be passionate about this faith we have been given, and we must fight to protect it, with all of our heart! We are surrounded by all sorts of characters that will try to persuade us from what we believe; if it isn't people, it will be the devil; we must be willing to fight and stand for what we believe! 

 Watching the movie, "Holy Roller," the other night, Pastor Luke is sharing at the end about not reading the Roadmap, which he refers to the Bible. Sometimes we don't read the map, and we lose our way! But God, He gives us a second chance, putting on the right course and giving us hope and a fresh start! 

 This is what God does! No matter how hard you might fall, He can and will correct your path and get you back on the right path! We really need to understand how much He loves us, because that is really worth fighting for...   

"When I think of all of this, I fall on my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:14-19 NLT)