Jesus said, "It is Finished" ... is it finished for you?

Jesus’ death is not where it all ended.

One would, one might think it so, but it is but a chapter.

In the next chapter, 3 days after his body lay buried,
Jesus arose. Up from the grave He rose.

He conquered death.

Satan, with all his pathetic promises and conniving schemes
did not, could not and cannot defeat The One who is above all.

Jesus took upon Himself all our shame and guilt, all of our sins.

“It is finished,” Jesus says. But it is not the end.

It is only the beginning; the beginning of a new life.

Jesus gave up His spirit, took upon Himself our every  sin  to bring us to The Father. Jesus became the peace offering, our peace. His blood for ours. Through Jesus we are accepted.
Through Jesus all is made right.

It is Finished.
Jesus did the will of His Father.

How about you?
Can you say the same?
Have you finished …. Have you turned away from a life that has only caused heartache and pain for yourself, for your family, for all your loved ones?

Have you turned away from misery and abuse, remembered promises that did not come true, lies?

Jesus died for you. Each and every one of you.

Can you come to Him and die to your old self?

We all have something that imprisons us or has at one time or another. Something that oppresses us, hinders us from moving on, forging ahead. We want to conquer, to destroy those walls that keep closing in tighter and tighter on our homemade prison, that bring physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual anguish.

We don’t know how.

Is it so hard?   
Or is it so easy? 
Some say it is.
Just do it.
Make the choice and do it.

God hears our cry. He hears our distress. Every day, every minute He sees what we undergo, how the prison we have built draws us into ourselves and we try to hide from our misery by finding another misery to wallow in.

We want to be free, but how?

Jesus gave His life to save yours. Why oh why do we insist on destroying the life He so lovingly yearned to be one with Him? He gave His all and we … What do we do? What do we give?

Have we accepted His love?

Do we seek His guidance?

Do we believe ….

He is Jesus Christ, Son of God, Son of Man?
Born of the the Virgin Mary?
He died for our sins?
He gave His life for ours?
He was buried?
He rose again after 3 days?
He lives?

Do we pray?

Do we ask for His forgiveness?

Are we studying His word?

Are we gathering with others who follow the teachings of Jesus -- follow and obey?

Do we friend ourselves with others who build us up, encourage us, show us how to live the life God desires for us?

Do we say NO!
to that which brings us done, which undermines our worth, drags us down into a pit of sewer mud?

Do we say NO! to online pornography?

NO! to homosexuality and promiscuity?

NO! to husbands and wives cheating on each other physically and/or emotionally?

NO! to verbal and physical abuse?

NO! to abortion and other senseless murderous acts?

NO! to relentless putdowns?

NO! to overindulgence in food and drink?

Do you think food and drink help build you up? Think again. It’s a mechanism we use to hide from our fears, but it doesn’t work. We get sick and then sicker. Our life is not going up, not improving, but going down. We are destroying ourselves and those around us.

Do you think it doesn’t matter? Does another say  “It’s okay. I still love you.”
But it’s not okay. And do you love yourself?

The decision to change lies within yourself.

You alone have to determine what is right, but remember it is not just you and your life, but those around you that factors in with your decision. 

You can’t straddle the fence. You can’t have it all. You can’t keep what you have and look for something else too.  Life on the other side of the fence is not always as green as you fathom it to be. It can be quite muddy.

So your mind wanders and then it stops and sits awhile and you remember other times with other people and you start thinking that was good and you want it again.

You can’t go back. If it was meant to be, then that chapter of your life would not have closed.

No, you can’t go back. You may stop briefly, you may remember, but you shouldn’t stay there. You need to bring yourself back to the present, back to reminding yourself what you have now and how your life is so much better.

You have a new life …  and if you open your heart to Jesus and accept His gift of eternal love, eternal salvation, He will create in you a far better life.

No one is perfect. We have all sinned. We have all wandered down paths that caused undeniable pain and heartache. But none of us have to stay on the path that leads to destruction. We can move past the thoughts that keep us captive. We can ask God to help us. We can confess our need to be rid of this agony. We can surrender our lives to Him. We can rid ourselves of the desire to sin and instead live in the way of Christ. We can follow the path Jesus chooses for us. We can be free.

You may feel a certain way and sometimes that feeling makes us think negatively, but it doesn’t  have to. We don’t have to stay in that feeling. We can change our thinking and the thinking will then change the feeling.

For example, you are hurt over something someone said … that’s a feeling …. So you start thinking you’ll resort to your usual method of dealing with pain – and that might be excessive eating of chocolate or some other sweet or drinking an alcoholic beverage – but then you remember how you feel afterward – and decide it would be better for you to do  something else less detrimental to you.  We changed the thinking of our original feeling and turned it to good. That is what we must do with every negative feeling – think positive and change the feeling. Become free.

Face forward, put one step in front of the other, search for positive ways to go forward.

“It is Finished.” Jesus’ final words before He died. But like I’ve said before, life was not over. For Jesus conquered death. He overcame the powers of evil and sin. He overcame death. Hope remained.

He said He would be back. He would return.

In the tomb 3 days, and then the tomb was empty. Jesus was alive!

Through Him you can be alive – you can overcome that which holds you back and holds you down.

Jesus lives! He sits at the right hand of The Father. He is our mediator. He lives within us – as Spirit when we accept Him as Lord and Savior.

Unhappiness comes because we forget where we are and what we have. We become remorseful over a past life that seemed so promising yet was going nowhere. We miss what we had. What did we have? What indeed? Was it better than what you have now? Is your life today lacking something that you had before – whether it be a person or an activity?

Have you allowed the feeling of happiness you thought you had in a previous life supersede what you have now? Is what you have now not better, not more filling, not more loving, not more satisfying?

God will help you. He is not a cop out. His love is eternal. He will help you. He seeks only your best, never your worst. He offers you calmness, quietness, peace.

Only the enemy – the mindless wandering – beats on you, berates you, makes you think you can do better, have better. You are already there. You have better. You are better.

Come to Jesus. His love endures forever. His love is perfect. His love is sufficient.

Come to Jesus. And if you have come and wandered off (again), return to Jesus. Listen for His voice. Return to His word. Return to His fellowship of believers. Return to His promises. Live in His promises.

He saves us. He heals us. He rescues us. He revives us. He loves us.

Don’t go back to selfishness, to the pit of deep despair.

Lift your head, lift your eyes, your soul, your heart, give your all to Jesus, who will fill all the empty places, all the unmet needs.

It is not easy. Nothing in life that is worthwhile is easy. It takes work, perseverance. Focus on Him. Believe and Trust in Him, Meditate, study, consider His word. Pray, ask for answers He alone can give you. He is there. Always. He will never leave you.

We must surrender all parts of our lives to Him. That does not always come all at once. Sometimes it takes many years. But the end result is very much worth it.

Invite God into your heart – invite Him to fill the empty places. Do not listen to the reasoning that you need others to fulfill you or that you need their approval.

Jesus
is
the
answer.
Jesus
Come to Jesus
and Be Free.

In conclusion, I give you this poem I wrote Oct. 29, 2012, titled “Choose … Believe … His Love”

failure to thrive

we die

failure to believe God's unfailing love

we die

death surrounds us

within and out

There is death

We don't know how to live!

it is sin

it is sickness

it is disturbing

we feel it

we think about it

yet we don't understand it

we don't recognize the problem

for what it truly is

we remain burdened

trapped within our bodies

and our minds

unable to break free

and get past

our hurts, our anxieties,

our unbelief

For God so loved the world

the world of you and me

the world of people burdened

and lost, roaming here

and there, seeking,

searching for love

It is there, here

in our midst

God has said it

We must turn away from all

that comes against us and

turn to The One who brings us

truth and hope and love

and believe.

The freshness of life

and goodness

cascading upon us

Christ overcame the darkness

to bring us to the light

because of God's love

given

today

tomorrow

and forevermore

Choose to accept

Choose to believe

Choose to be His child

Choose to be loved

Choose to know His love

or

Choose not

and remain shackled

in the chains

of unbelief.

 

(c) Cathy Orrick Luders

The world may collapse, but the work of Christ will endure

The world around us is falling apart. Jesus said it would be so. Why do we seem so surprised, so worried?

Yet even so and still, we, His followers, are to go on, to endure, to continue His work, until Jesus returns. And He will return.

"And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet." (Matthew 24:6)

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come." (Matthew 24:14)

The gospel will be preached to every nation ... and then the end will come.

You have been called. Do not be discouraged. God has called you to Him to do His will, to be His hands, His feet, His mouth.

Do not be misled into thinking there are no opportunities here. You are here, in this place, at this time, because this is where the Lord God has placed you. Do not think another place would be better. There would be more opportunities. Opportunities exist everywhere. You cannot sit back and say to yourself, "No, there is nothing. I am not asked to come." Jesus was not asked to come. He just went, everywhere and wherever. So go. Don't become complacent.

The end will come. And when it does, when you face your Maker, will all you have to say for yourself be "I tried. I tried Lord. But no one asked me."

Bull.

To try means to go out and do, to speak, to share, to give, everywhere, anywhere,, always. The opportunities are around us. The opportunities do not limit us. Our fears do.

The Lord tells us not to fear. Fear is not of God.

Do not retreat.

"Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Revelation 2:10)

The challenging times are upon us and more is yet to come. They are but the beginning of much sorrow. We must not give in nor give up. We must press on.

God's message is just as relevant today

II Chronicles 36:16 states, "But they (citizens) mocked the messengers of God, and despised His words and misused (scoffed at) His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people till there was no remedy!" 

But thanks be to God! He has provided a way! And that is through His Son Jesus! This is the word that must be proclaimed - yet far too many scoff at this wonderful message. God is patient. I just wonder how long He will wait - my God is loving, but yet He is the final judge.

America needs to wake up. God's message is just as relevant today as in the past.

~ Jim Luders