What if...?

Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.

Because of this decision we don't evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don't look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a friend with you.

How? you ask. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.

~~2 Cor. 5:14-21, MSG

Good morning, dear friend!! How are you today??? I don't know about you, but even when I'm not working, my weekends are jam-packed!!!

I want to share with you today a thought that was planted in my head and heart at church Wednesday.

What if we lived our lives like we BELIEVED that God ordained every step we took? What if we treated each contact we had with another person during the day as if it was a divine appointment?

We are called to share the message of RECONCILIATION with the world! God sent His only Son to die that we might be reconciled with Him - and that's the message we're to share with the world!

Now, before I can go any further, I have to plead: If you have ANYTHING you're holding against another brother or sister, take care of business! How can we spread the Gospel of reconciliation if we can't be reconciled in His body???

Here's the definition of this word:

1a: to restore to friendship or harmony

b: settle, resolve

2: to make consistent or congruous

3: to cause to submit to or accept something unpleasant

4 a: to check (a financial account) against another for accuracy

b: to account for

Please note that to be reconciled with someone does not mean that the relationship has to pick right up where it left off. Dear ones, many of you know the pain I went through last year with being told to leave our church. I still wish for reconciliation with a certain person, but there are two things that are true:

1. (Thanks, Amy, for helping me grab this one!!) I cannot FORCE the other person to desire to be reconciled to me. I can give all sorts of reasons why it should happen, but the fact is, I cannot change this person's heart.

2. Even if we are reconciled, the relationship will not be as it was. Between lessons learned and hearts' desires changing, things will be different.

But the fact remains that reconciliation means to restore to harmony. God is our God; we are to love as He loved us. If we can't be reconciled in Him, how can we expect the world to want reconciliation at all?

So. What if each person we met today was given a smile? A show of God's love? His mercy and grace? What if we each resolved to be a "peculiar people", not like everyone else, but to die to what our selfish nature wants and let God shine through?

Let me know your thoughts, dear ones!!! You have all been through a lot lately; you've also walked beside me while I have gone through some things. But in all and through all, GOD IS GOOD. He has our BEST in mind. How can we not bless His name today!?!?! :)