"Push Comes to Shove"

 "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." (Ecclesiastes 7:8 KJV)

  "Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord's return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen. You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near. Don't grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. For look - the Judge is standing at the door! For examples of patience in suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy." (James 5:7-11 NLT) 

 There are some things that don't require too much explaining, mostly because they all work out in the end, regardless of how hard you might try to figure them out. This is pretty easy to understand, if you are seeing it from the right perspective.

 Maybe we should start by remembering what it was like the first day of our salvation. If that isn't too hard to try and do? Mine was rather special, because I truly felt free, even though I was being held in a jail facility! When you find yourself out-of-sorts, you start to look around for the things that feel different. 

 The other special thing that happened, was for me to understand why Jesus died on that cross; something that I had never realized before, because it wasn't specific to me! If we haven't made salvation personal, as if we were on His mind when all was going down; then we haven't realized yet how much He loved us; each and every one of us, were what placed Him on that cross. 

 The most important part of my new life in Christ, was reading the Word! Prior to that day I felt as though I was reading history or someone else's story. But that all changed when Christ entered my heart; all of the sudden, I was part of the story! What a difference that changed the way I understood what I was reading...

"You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ's suffering and his great glory afterward. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preach in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen." (1 Peter 1:8-12 NLT)