What has gone wrong in your life?

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I was speaking to a young lady who had found herself homeless and was living in a hostel. She opened up a little about her life and very articulately told me about her schooling and how she did well at school. Then she said looking down at the floor, ‘Something went wrong!’ she didn’t divulge what and I wasn’t going to ask! 

'Something went wrong’, is an adage that we may well be able to apply to some aspect of our lives. Many people look back at something that went wrong, and they have moved on or corrected it and it no longer is evident in their lives, just a distant memory that may just pop up in their thinking from time to time. But for many people the incident or circumstances that impacted on them so badly have implications for the rest of their life. 

Your health and welfare

All photos courtesy of Unsplash 

Sometimes when I sit down to write this column, I find that 101 things fill my mind, and I can’t quite focus on writing. Life is busy, and we often lose our focus because we have so many things bouncing about in our heads. 

There is a little statement in the book of Psalms, and it says this ‘Be still, and know that I am God,’ Psalm 46:10. Stillness is something that many of us crave and that most of us find very difficult to achieve. It is possible to be so preoccupied with living that we forget what life is really about.

 

The Lord Jesus Christ was very aware of this, and so he would on occasion call his disciples to take a break from the busyness of life and come aside and rest for a while. So, therefore, I want to invite you as you read this article to put aside anything that will distract you and come apart from the busyness of your life and reflect, rest, and consider this most important matter of your personal welfare. 

No hiding place - do you like privacy?

Do you like a bit of privacy? I felt sorry for a famous footballer last year when I saw him, his wife and little one (no clues as to who it was for the sake of privacy) trying to fish for crabs on the Wirral. They did well to remain unobserved for so long. Their backs were to the people who were strolling along the promenade, the buggy was facing the sea, a packet of chips was on the back of the buggy and the only clue of any wealth was the pack of Tesco's Finest pancetta. They were quietly fishing for crabs when someone spotted them. You can imagine what happened next; people were queuing up for a photograph or an autograph and the peace was shattered. It wasn't long until 'the Mrs' decided that it was time to go and they moved on.

Good versus Evil!

The fact of evil in the world is a very disturbing thing and causes many people heartache and problems. It is quite right to question why evil exists, how things came to be the way they are and if there are any solutions to these big issues.

The Bible clearly teaches that God created good as well as evil. This is a puzzle to many and rightly so because we wonder how a God of holiness could create something called evil. As we read the Bible we discover this 'God is light and in him is no darkness at all'. We also discover that God is kind, compassionate, caring and loving. This is all summarised in the statement 'God is Love'. So there is no indication that God acts in an evil way despite the fact that at times we do not understand why he allows certain circumstances in our lives.

There are other very clear statements in the Bible which indicate that God expects people to obey his holy commandments and principles which are there to ensure our blessing and well being. However the Bible does state that God will judge all men according to his standard of righteousness on the day of judgment and our only hope of salvation is found in His Son, Jesus Christ. 

The Bible teaches that God created all things. He gave human beings the ability to think, act and choose certain courses of action. God established a principle in the universe of sowing and reaping. There are consequences to actions and outcomes to behaviours and the choices that we make. Bad choices end in bad outcomes and so evil is perpetuated as a result of wrong choices. To say that God wants us to make bad choices and reap evil consequences would not fit with what you read in the Bible. From the very beginning God told us what was good and what was bad. He told the first couple (Adam and Eve) that the day they disobeyed Him they would die. He warned them that breaking His law put them at a distance from him. And so it did! Since the day Adam sinned we live life without God. We hurt and suffer because of the existence of evil activity in our world. And if we end this life without seeking forgiveness and reconciliation to God we seal our fate and face eternal separation from God (bear in mind this includes all that God provides: love, joy peace, safety etc). 

It can be so different! God sent his Son (Jesus) into the world not to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved. God has taken the initiative and in the death of His Son paid the debt of sin. He offers the gift of eternal life to all who will take it.

The only condition is acceptance of our condition as guilty before God and acceptance of Jesus Christ as the exclusive means of salvation. If we turn from our sin and depend on Christ for salvation we will immediately come into the good of God's great offer of salvation.

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All posts have the aim of pointing people to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour or to aid Christian growth and development.