WHY PUT OFF LIVING TIL LATER?

One of my favorite sayings by one of my favorite people (me) (well...I'm in the office alone and somebody around here needs to be funny) is, Don't you love right now?  I say it all of the time for two reasons: (1) I do love right now, and (2) we tend to become so numb to social pressures we miss the moment of wonder.

Even the religious speak as if we will one day begin to live when Jesus returns, when heaven begins, and when permission from God is distributed.  That's all wrong.

Our citizenship is in heaven...now.  Our perception of God is to see His rich glory...today.  We are to be filled to the fullness of God later, someday far away?  No. Right now.  Why do we think the good stuff only starts later?

Mankind's senses are deadened.  Period.  We are deadened to both joy and sorrow. John Eldridge makes strong cases for both.  We dismiss the whispers of joy with a cynical "Been there, done that, bought the T-shirt."  We deaden our sorrows with cynicism as well, sporting a bumper sticker that says, "Life sucks.  Then you die."

What I love about being in the kingdom of God is the dare-angel attitude (well...I hated to use the words dare-devil) where we know for certain our lives a backed as well as indwelt by the living God that never met a sea He couldn't part nor an opponent He couldn't love.

As some Italian might want to say, Wake-a up-a church-a!  You have-a much-a life-a to treasure-a!  (Don't you love the accent?)

When we struggle to note the fabulosity of life we are destined for mundane misery. We replace awe with being moody.  We throw regular pity-parties; but who can tolerate the sour-pusses that choose to attend these things?

No.  No.  No.  We are designed by More than this for More than this.  God is the More!

For too long I lived pouting the short-straw syndrome.  Never good enough.  Never bright enough.  Never...something enough.  Well....poor, poor miserable Terry.

God didn't convert us to put off living til later!  He has inserted the Holy Spirit of Himself into our very being. We are free to imagine beyond imagination (Eph. 3:20) and He promises to trump it every time.

So don't put off living til you die and go to heaven.  Die by being buried into Jesus in baptism and be raised to walk in something so new that God calls it.... new L-I-F-E.