DON'T YOU LOVE RIGHT NOW?

One of the strongest, most valuable elements of life is routinely tossed overboard without thought.  And, this is precisely the problem.  Little thought is given to the fantastic wow of now.

For example, my eyes are noting with great detail that my arms lift my hands to this keyboard.  I watch with profound fascination as my mind trickles down to my finger tips letters and spaces in communicational sequence.  (Communicational?  Don't you love that...right now?)

If not attentive to now we will find ourselves perpetually in pursuit of bigger and better...and next...down the road...that's when I think I'll get happy.  While this trek in itself surely carries its own excitement (oh, the communicational is on a roll here), for ambition is such a positive matter, one must guard against wishing life away.  Greener pastures await in other places.  Yet, it is favorable to note the green pasture in which we now stand.

I love Paul's directness in Romans 5:1-5 of when you are having a good day, you are having a good day.  Yet, believers in Jesus have good days in their bad days.  And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Troubles + endurance + developed attitude = hope.  Why and how hope?  We can never figure it for it comes from the Holy Spirit of God; that Spirit we receive when baptized into Jesus.

Hopelessness doesn't love right now.  It doesn't feel good enough to try or to think about much of anything other than the present disturbances.  Hope is the light for dark paths....now....right now.

Our tender minds are bombarded with sadness, degradation, and potential fret.  If it weren't for the resurrected Jesus in Spirit form, we would all cave in one gigantic heap. But the good news is that he did rise from the dead and he has conquered death along with everything leading up to it.

We get to enjoy the good days and treasure the bad ones because our eyes are focused upon raw reason to hope.  We will never give up.  We will not cave, as strong as depression tempts, we will get out our magnifying glasses (if need be) to search for the beauty of right now.

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of the inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe (Eph. 1:18).

Toward us.  Toward us who believe.  According to what standard?  According to the fact that Jesus beat death.

These (hope, riches, surpassing greatness) are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised him from the dead...  The point?  If God can resurrect His Son from the dead, He will use that standard to work in your daily walk.  Get it?

We don't love right now because we can dissect it, figure it, and control it.  No.  We can love right now because the One who raised His Son from the dead knows how to hand us hope, riches, and surpassing greatness...day by day...like in....now.

Jesus-back-from-the-grave isn't just a thirty-minute Easter sermon.  It is the way of life for the common folk to hold on the the wonder of liking who we are, where we are, when we are...NOW.

Now!  Don't you just love it?!