We Gotta Work for It

Ain’t nothing in life free.  No matter what it is, it costs something.  Even if it is only a decision, effort, or energy needed to achieve or obtain it.  The same goes for life, better life through better health, quality of life, and eternal life through salvation.  It ain’t free.  We have to do something.

Life is very challenging for everyone.  Do not think you are alone.  We all need to determine what we are living for.  There has to be purpose.  For the Apostle Paul,  it was Christ.  So it should be with us.  We read in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  Paul lived for Jesus, but not at first.  He was originally a persecutor of Christians until an encounter with Christ where he received two blows to his dome (bright light) and was knocked to his knees (blinded).  The bible tells us in Matthew 16:25, “If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it.  But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.”  Paul chose the latter, a very smart man. 

In fact, the bible goes further to say in Matthew 10:37, “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine.”  We have to get our priorities straight and that means God first or God over everything else.  We need to become beneficiaries of Christ as we see in 1 John 5:12 that reads, “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.”

How do we achieve better life through better health?  One way I can personally attest to is working out.  But that is not enough.  We need whole health, a holistic approach that considers all aspects of a person’s life, including physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being, not just treat illness.  We read in 1 Timothy 4:8, “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”  We need the Lord.  If we continue to live for self or the world our health is at stake.  Romans 8:6 says, “So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.”  That’s better life through better health.

A better life should enhance our quality of life.  It should improve our thought processes, enhance our goal establishment, improve our decision making, and if need be, improve our problem solving.  Putting God first makes life so much more worth living.  Proverbs 13:12 states, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.”  There is no need to defer hope or settle for a so-so quality of life.  Reach!  We see a glimpse in Psalm 119:93 where is reads, “I will never forget your commandments, for by them you give me life.”  God gives you life and you can choose the quality of it.

In my opinion, the greatest and best decision anyone can make is Salvation.  This is the beginning of our consecration, our living wholeheartedly for God.  Our attempting to be more like Paul and other heroes of the bible.  It’s a choice we have to make if we want to be with God and Christ in eternity.  John 3:36 reads, “And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.”  I don’t know about you, but I’m making the turn that leads to life.  That road doesn’t fork, it’s a one-way road.  The Apostle John tells us this in John 17:3 which states, “And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.”  We are saved by grace.   We have to believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior who died for our sins and was resurrected.  We must ask forgiveness for our sins and repent.  So, though Romans 6:23 reads,  “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” there is some light duty required on our part.  We gotta work for it.