Have you ever noticed that some of the saddest words in the English language begin with the letter "D"?  Words like disappointment, doubt, disillusionment, defeat, despair and death.  Human hope is a fragile thing and when it withers away it is difficult to revive.  Hopelessness is a disease of the human spirit and it is very difficult to cure. We find signs of it everywhere.
 
Even many Christians today have lost their hope.  We see what is going in the world.  We see what is happening to our families. We see what is happening in our churches and even in our country.  We become hopeless and we give in to that feeling of hopelessness.  

The last thing that someone needs who is feeling hopeless is a brisk cheering- up talk and they do not need to be told to “snap out of it”.  Let us love them by listening to them and we can pray with them and we can pray for them and perhaps even cry with them.
 
The events unfolding around the world today are another significant step closer to the conclusion of history as described in the scriptures. I am not seeking to sensationalize the political and military actions being taken but to share with you my conviction that we must not overlook their significance to the spiritual climate of the world.  Many non-Christian people are sensing for the first time a genuine hopelessness. An anxiety as to how this escalating conflict will radically change life on this planet. A fear of increasing terrorist attacks, political fanaticism, global pandemic and social unrest.  What hope can there possibly be for a better world for our children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren?  Where can we find hope for the present, let alone our future?  Where can our friends, family, neighbors. co-workers and people turn to for hope?
 
The Bible fully understands that hope is vital to all living people.  In Proverbs 13:12 scripture tells us that Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
 
There are so many ways that HOPE is shattered in this day and age.  Through broken bodies: sickness, disease, and disasters.  Broken homes through divorces, violence, debt, and death.  Through broken lives:  drugs, alcohol, crime, desertion.  Broken dreams: ambition, failure, defeats, disappointments.  These all seem to be symptoms of our modern society and today they are affecting millions of people, depriving them of peace, happiness and ultimately hope.
 
Science tells us that “we can live forty days without food, eight days without water, four minutes without air, but only a few seconds without hope”    But what do we really mean by HOPE?

In the Bible the word used in the Greek is Elpis and means ‘a favorable and confident expectation’. It has to do with a positive vision of the unseen and the future.  Hope is not wishful thinking, or a vague ambition. Hope is not wanting things to turn out well, while remaining uncertain that they actually will.  Hope is the absolute certainty we have that God is good and that His promises are true and amen. Hope is actually personalized in Jesus himself, He is our hope!
 
Colossians 1:27 27 tell us To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:…….Christ in you, the hope of glory.
 
If you read the New Testament,  you will be challenged by those historical figures who are prominent in the New Testament.  You see that their hope, even in the midst of gloom and doom, is unbelievable!   They had more reasons to be hopeless than we do in this generation.  When the Church first began the social, political and economic conditions were unbearable.  Half of the people were slaves.  Most of the people were hungry.  They were paying more than half of whatever income they made to Imperial Rome.  There were continuous rebellions, uprisings, protests of all kinds.  History tells us that during the reign of Emperor Nero, Christians were executed by the thousands.  Nero is reported to have smeared the bodies of Christians with pitch and set them on fire as torches for his garden parties.  This is documented in history but the Christians did not let that stop them from maintaining.  They radiated HOPE even in the midst of adversity!  They talked about their hope in Jesus and they sang of their hope in Jesus.  They experienced the love of God through His Son Jesus Christ.  They had experienced His resurrection Power which was always transforming despair into hope, and death into life.  They counted themselves fortunate to have suffered for the cause of Christ.
 
This world needs people with a confident hope. Not a misplaced, weak and fragile hope but a secure hope. The words of Jesus himself teach us that things are going to get worse before they get better, especially for the Christian.
 
Matthew 24:6 - 8 says And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.   All these are the beginning of sorrows.
 
Our Lord is trying to warn us so that we may be prepared.  HE is saying -- see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must and will happen.  (All the prophecies in the Old Testament were fulfilled).  You see the reasons the world around us has for hopelessness are our very reasons for HOPE!  We see these happenings as distressing as everybody else, yet we see a reason to them and what they are pointing towards.  To convince others that there is hope we need ourselves to be convinced. God’s people are not expected to live dictated by world circumstances but by the principles and promises of God’s kingdom.  We have the greatest hope of all … and HIS NAME IS JESUS!!!!
 
Remember, "We wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." (Titus 2:13)
 
Keep looking up!

I remember the first time I saw that quote I said to myself what a great concept!  We usually gripe and complain when things happen to us that we did not expect but sometimes it is good to look at things differently.  I believe that quote is attributed to Dale Carnegie who used it in his 1948 book entitled: How To Stop Worrying and Start Living.  Lemons suggest sourness/tartness or difficulties in life; making lemonade is turning them into something sweeter, positive or desirable.

When things do not turn out as we expected, especially for Christians or Believers we feel as though God has abandoned us; but sometimes we need a different perspective. There is a hymn we used to sing in our churches many years ago it was titled: No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus.  The writer of that song spent most of his life as an itinerant evangelist and gospel songwriter.  The composer says that after returning home from an evangelistic crusade he found a note left by his wife of many years.  The note said she had enough of the evangelistic life and she left him.  The composer said that he became very despondent during the next several years. There were even times when he contemplated suicide.  Yes, there was the terrible despair he experienced because he believed that no one really cared for him any more.  But he said that gradually his spiritual faith was restored and he once again became active in Christian ministry.  Soon he felt compelled to write a song that became a summary of his past tragic experience.  From his broken heart came the words to the hymn:
                               No on ever cared for me like Jesus.
                               There’s no other friend so kind and true. 
                               No one else could take the sin and darkness from me. 
                               O  how much He Cared for me
 
Even in our darkest moments, much like the times we are seeing around us today, God has promised to care for us!
 
In Psalm 22 we see the words spoken by Jesus when HE was on the cross, those same words which many of us have said over the years:
                        "My God, my God…why have You forsaken Me?"
It was the most gut-wrenching cry of loneliness in history, and it came not from a prisoner or a widow or a patient. It came from a hill, from a cross, from the Messiah: "My God, my God," he cried out , "why did you abandon me!"
 
Never have words carried such hurt and anguish. Never has one BEING been so lonely. The despair is darker than the sky. The two who had been one are now two.  Jesus knows your pain and your isolations and He is there with you which means you are not as alone as you might think or feel you are! Keep your focus on Jesus and pray to feel His embrace in your life.
 
Perhaps this story will help you.  After an accident in which she lost her arm, a girl named Jamie refused to go to school or church for an entire year. Finally the young teen thought she could face her peers. In preparation, her mother called her Sunday school teacher and asked that he not call attention to Jamie. The teacher promised, but when he got sick on Sunday morning and had to call a substitute, he forgot to tell the second teacher.  At the conclusion of the lesson that day, which was about inviting friends to church, the substitute led the class in doing the hand motions to the familiar children’s poem:
 
Here’s the church,  Here are the people, Open the door, See all the people.
Jamie’s eyes filled with tears she only had one arm. However, a young boy realized how she might be feeling. He knelt beside her. With one hand apiece, they supported each other, making the church, steeple, and people. Together they illustrated what the real church is all about.

The devil wants you isolated and in despair, But Jesus wants you connected to Him and to His people. You may not see Him, you may not feel Him, but standing right beside you at every moment is your loving Heavenly Father.  He is there He will always be there, Jesus said I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU OR FORSAKE YOU! I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU!

Jesus is given many titles in the Bible. Perhaps none is as endearing as Emmanuel (God with us). It speaks of his constant, continual presence in our lives. May you be encouraged as you think upon that title.  You may be worn out. You may be beat down. You may be discouraged. You may feel like nothing is going right in your life. You may feel like a failure. But I am here to tell you today: Whether you are on the mountain top or in the valley…you can trust God…He is faithful.

When we look back at the Crucifixion of Jesus. I believe that the betrayal of Judas was worse than the beatings for Jesus.  Yes, there was the desertion of the disciples, the humiliation of the crucifixion, being spit upon, the crown of thorns, the nails in His hands, the mocking, the emotional torment, and even the mental torment. None of these compared to what He was facing at that moment on the Cross.  This was the worst moment of the Crucifixion. Jesus is all alone at this moment in His life. Not even the Father is with Him.  He cries out to God.  That is what we need to do when life is handing us lemons, we need to take it to the Lord in prayer because He knows what that is like.  He loves and cares for us.  Do you believe it?  Trust HIM.  JESUS can turn things around!

There has never been a time when you were unloved by God.  I know many, many people do not believe that statement, but it is true.  God’s love is perfect, faithful, unconditional, forgiving, all-encompassing, pure, lasting, sacrificial, strong, enduring, refreshing, redeeming, everlasting, lavish, full, inspiring, hope-filled, gracious, and so much more. It’s never based on us, our abilities, or striving to ever be good enough. It’s found in Him, His character, and a huge capacity to give. It knows no boundaries and has no limits. There’s no place too deep that His love can’t reach us still. As the old hymn says:  “He can reach way down to pick us up.”
 
Over the years, He has cared for us, thought about us on a moment-by-moment basis, and never resisted the idea of loving us.  He has been willing to laugh with us, cry with us, and listen to us describe every detail of our lives.  When the world rejects you, God is your constant Friend who accepts you just as you are.   I know many times people see and think of God as an ogre with a heavy hand ready to knock us down but that is not the God of the Bible.
 
The problem we face is not God loving us, but how we love Him.  Do we truly know how to experience the love He has for us?  Can we accept the fact that He loves us unconditionally, and that the plans He has for our lives are ones that overflow with goodness and mercy and grace?  Think about this:  God does not withhold anything in loving us.  He gave everything He had to give when He extended His love to us through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.  His love is a free gift of grace.  All that we need to do in order to have this love is to accept it, claim it and cling to it.

So how do you perceive God?  Several years ago, a student in seminary class stood to his feet and announced to the professor, "I don't believe in God!" The professor, unraveled, replied, "Describe this God you don't believe in?" After the student had described an unlovely and vengeful God, the professor confessed, "I don't believe in that God either. My God is a God of love."

It is so difficult to describe God’s love. How do you describe a rose to a blind person? How do you describe Handle's Hallelujah Chorus to a deaf person? How do you describe the thrill of down hill skiing to one who has never walked? How do you describe the impeccable, infinite love of God to impure, finite human beings?
One of the most vivid characteristics of God is that He is a God of love. The Psalmist was descriptive in recording the love-nature of God. He stated that he was "abounding in love" (Psalm 103:8 NIV), "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His  love for those who fear Him" (Psalm 103:11 NIV), "As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him" (Psalm 103:13 NIV),  "But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’S love is with those who fear Him (Psalm 103:17).  (The word fear as used here means to respect, to honor and to worship Him!)

The point is not simply that God "loves," but that He is love itself. Love is not merely one of His attributes, but His very nature. The Scripture says, "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. (1 John 4:16 NIV). To say that God is love is not to imply that love is God. God is love means that God wants the very best for you. God has your best interest in mind. He wants to give you good gifts and provide you with "all His benefits" (Psalm 103:2, NIV).

God's love touches every part of our life. Nothing - no calling or circumstance, no adversity or advancement, no pain or promotion, no status or station - escapes the brush strokes of God's love. God's love bleeds into every fabric and fiber of our lives.  The number of times the three-lettered word "all" is used in Psalm 103 reminds us that God's love is all consuming. His love touches every area of our lives. There is nowhere we can go to escape His love. There is no problem that we will encounter that is not touched by His love. There is no advancement that we will make where God is not already there. Even when our world falls apart, we can say, "God, I don't know why this is happening. I don't understand it, but I'm sure glad to know you love me."

The Bible cuts through all the philosophical ideas and declares that God is a Person. As a personal being God is capable of loving and being loved. And as a personal being he loves each one of us intensely and personally. God's love is not simply for mankind as a mass. It is not a sentimental, vague, diffused feeling - something like Charlie Brown's attitude when he says, "I love mankind; it's people I can't stand." God really likes individual people.

When Karl Barth, the famed German theologian, visited the United States, a reporter at a dedication service asked: "Dr. Barth, what is the single most important truth you have learned as a theologian?"  Barth replied, "The most important thing I have learned is this: 'Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.'"

"Jesus loves me" is the central pronouncement of the Christian faith and the cornerstone of the nature of God.  When God says I love you, He is saying that you matter to Him!

You are a person of worth. 

You are valuable to Him.

Regardless of what others think, in His eyes you are wonderful.

Have a Great Day and Remember...God Has Always Loved You!

The TV remote, as we have come to know it, came into existence for one simple reason – one man’s desire to mute the commercials he felt were ruining his TV watching.  In America, during the 1950s, Zenith Electronics president Eugene F. McDonald gave the company’s engineers a challenge: he hated having to sit through commercials because they were ruining his TV watching.  He wanted a device that could let him mute them, or skip to another channel …where hopefully something other than commercials were playing. So, the remote control as we know it was born. McDonald’s desire became a revolution, changing the way we watch television.  We moved from a passive observer, to more of a ruthless overseer. If we didn’t like what we saw, a new channel was a click away.
 
Remote controls are one of the most universal symbols of our modern technologies. Some electronics enthusiasts might have a dozen remotes scattered on their coffee tables for their electronic equipment; even your friends who are not fans of electronics most likely have a handful of remotes at their disposal, controlling everything from TVs, air conditioners, security systems, car door locks, etc...and of course, all of us probably have at least one or two remotes permanently lost under the cushions of our couch.
 
In today's modern world, we can set our television to record from across the globe through a smartphone app.  We hardly have to lift a finger from the comfort of our chairs to control any home electronic device. We forget that people once had to get up to change the channel.  We tend to take the remote control for granted. It allows us to command our devices efficiently and reliably. Remote controls have come a long way—there are even wireless ones now!
 
BUT, as Americans we tend to take a good idea and run with it and we start treating everyone and everything the way we treat our electronics.  We mute them, and whenever we try to program people to think like us and when we can’t---we get frustrated! We shut them out, we can raise the volume when we do not like what we hear and then we close them down.  Look at all the ones who are trying to shut down people who have a different opinion or belief system than they do today.
 
Have you noticed we have done the same thing to God?  We treat God the way we treat our remote control.  We stiffen under the thought that someone else might be controlling us. In fact, many of us, if we’re honest, are control freaks. How many of you have issues of control when it comes to your personal life? This idea of control is deeply imbedded in our culture, our value of freedom and the American dream. The American Dream states that anyone can succeed through hard work and has the potential to lead a happy, successful life.  That is what the world teaches us.
 
For those of us who call ourselves Christians or Believers, Jesus is ALWAYS our best example.  Rather than choosing to control His own life, Jesus instead chose to surrender everything to the will of God, His Father.  When Jesus went into the wilderness and was tempted, it was an exercise over control of His life. Would He be in control or would He surrender it to God?  When Jesus was on the cross, He was tempted to take back control first by the passersby who cried out, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God! And second by the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders who mocked Him. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! If He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.’” (Matthew 27:40)
 
But Jesus,  “humbled himself by becoming obedient to death- even death on a cross!” Jesus would go on to confess, "I can do nothing on my own".(John 5:30)  And He calls those who follow him to do the same, “If anyone would come after me, let him DENY himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” ( Matthew16:24-25)
 
Jesus’ answer to our control problems: Surrender. We are called to surrender but we often harden our hearts and minds at the very idea. The last thing we want to do is give up control. Many of us still live under the illusion that we are in control of our lives, when in fact nothing could be further from the truth. Times when we have taken control and messed up our own life is proof enough.  Still, letting go of control and giving it over to someone else, even God, is a frightening prospect. Maybe it's the word "surrender" which we usually associate with defeat, humiliation, and losing. Our world never considers surrender a good thing. No one wants to lose, and no one wants to admit defeat. We are taught instead never to give up and never give in. If winning is everything, surrendering is unthinkable.
 
But when we surrender to God it is a different story. To surrender means to relinquish possession or control to another.  Surrendering isn’t losing or admitting defeat. It’s about victory in Jesus Christ because He calls us to surrender. It’s about becoming who we are called to be. Author and theologian C.S. Lewis was right when he said, “The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become- because He made us.”  
 
How do you know when you have surrendered yourself to Jesus?

You've surrendered to God when you rely on Him to work things out instead of trying to manipulate and force your agenda to control the situation and people. You let go and let God work. You let Him be in charge. Instead of trying harder, you trust more. When faced with a difficult trial, temptation or tribulation, you don’t ask, “What am I going to do now?" Instead you ask, "Lord, what are you going to do?” You don't rely on your own abilities and resources but God’s power and His provision. You place complete faith and trust in Christ, knowing that God is in control and that no matter what you face, with “God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)
 
You have done it your way for so many years, how about you hand over the Remote Control to God in this New Year.

Recently, I was cleaning out a desk drawer and I came across something I had saved from many. many years ago.  This is a great allegory for our times.  An allegory is a story with two levels of meaning.  First, there's the external layer of the story; the characters and plot and all the obvious things that are instantly visible.  Secondly, there's the symbolic level, or the deeper meaning that represents all the things on the surface and what they represent symbolically.  This is a parable of faith and hope.
 
I tried to find out who wrote the article originally and I found out that this article has been circulating the internet for years.  Some claim it as an old French story, others credit it to the great inspirational write J.W.Nouwen,  still others list several other possibilities.  But I believe it is too good to let it not be printed for the times we are living in.  It not only represents birth but it also represents death all in the same article.  So to who ever wrote it, “Thank You.”
 
The title of the article is In A Mother’s Womb

In a mother’s womb were two babies.  One asked the other: “Do you believe in life after delivery?”

The other replied, “Why, of course. There has to be something after delivery. Maybe we are here to prepare ourselves for what we will be later.”

“Nonsense,” said the first. “There is no life after delivery. What kind of life would that be?”

The second said, “I don’t know, but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouths.  Maybe we will have other senses that we can’t understand now.”

The first replied, “That is absurd! Walking is impossible! And eating with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition and everything we need.   But the umbilical cord is so short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.“

The second one insisted, “Well, I think there is something and maybe it’s different than it is here.  Maybe we won’t need this physical cord anymore.”

The first replied, “Nonsense.  And moreover if there is life, then why has no one ever come back from there? Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery there is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion.  It takes us nowhere.”

“Well, I don’t know,” said the second, “but certainly we will meet mother and she will take care of us.”
The first replied “Mother?!” You actually believe in mother?  That is laughable. If mother exists where is she now?”

The second said, “She is all around us. We are surrounded by her.  We are of her. It is in her that we live. Without her this world would not and could not exist.”

Said the first, “Well I don’t see her, so it’s only logical that she doesn’t exist.”

To which the second replied, “Right, but sometimes, when we are silent you can hear her singing or feel her caressing our world.  You know, I think there’s a real life waiting for us and now we are only preparing for that.”

And so the last days in the womb were filled with deep questioning and fear and finally the moment of birth arrived.  When the twins had passed from their world, they opened their eyes and cried, but what they saw exceeded their fondest dreams.  What they saw was the beautiful eyes of their mother, as they were cradled lovingly in her arms.  They saw the biggest smile of their father.  They were home!!!!

                                                                        #######


We hardly understand the birth process and we hardly understand about life after death. But they are very similar.  Our modern snobbishness, condescension and attitudes of self-importance have infiltrated our churches, our country and the world.  We now worship our own intelligence,  the “we know it all” attitude is now permeating all cultures.  We have been caught in the “snare of the fowler.”  Never have our egos been so big.  Satan has penetrated the church to change it, to change its message, to change its purpose, to distort the gospel and to wear down the saints.   There is nothing new under the sun.  When the first church began Satan put all of these same obstacles in the way; BUT GOD had the church grow.

When you are out and friends begin to speak listen to what they say about birth and life after death.  It will really amaze you.  If we would truly read the Bible and stop fighting God’s will for our lives; if we could just have the faith and humility to break free of our own self-importance we’d see quite plainly that we were made for so much more.

In 1 Corinthians 2:9, scripture says:  But as it is written:  “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

Do you really believe in the power of prayer?   I know there are many Believers, many Christians who go out of their way to go to church.  They go out of their way to worship; but they have just a little relationship with the LORD throughout the week. 
 
We all go through difficulties day after day but only when we come to the end of our rope and our strength then we ask for God’s help.  However, we have the power of God at our disposal all the time; twenty-four/seven.  Yet, we attempt to get by on our own strength everyday.
 
Many people believe that it doesn’t really matter whether they pray or not.  They  believe that God’s going to do, what God’s going to do –so why bother?

Today, people regard prayer as a last resort after all of their other efforts have failed; sort of like a “Hail Mary” pass in football.  They throw it up in the air and hope it reaches the desired destination.  Yes, we pray a little but in our heart of hearts we don’t view prayer as making that big an impact on the decisions we make daily.  We do not include our LORD into our lives.  We need to include His presence into our lives so that we can experience His power.
 
Are you aware that through prayer we can impact the world?  We can secure destinies, and effect eternity because there is power in prayer.  I have been in church my entire life.  My dad was a pastor and then I was the pastor of my home church.  I have seen and heard people pray with tears and brokenness and the LORD answered. I have witnessed evil spirits come out of people.  I have seen marriages healed, emotional and spiritual problems resolved; drug addicts and alcoholics lives changed around.  I have seen and heard people pray over our nation and the LORD answered.
 
I Thessalonians 5:17 says Pray without ceasing.  We Christians need to plug into our power source.  We need to plead, to pray to God for this country for this world.  Look at this world, man has tried every which way to solve the problems we face, but the word of God says we must plead for the souls of this world. 
 
Some of you may be saying I can’t go on a mission trip --that’s OK.  Can you get down on your knees and pray?  Someone may tell me they can’t get down on their knees because of pain or age, but you can still pray. You can pray on your knees, you can pray standing up, you can pray flat on your back, you can pray with your face to the ground, you can pray sitting in your favorite chair, you can pray walking around, you can pray lying in bed.   No limitations to the positions for prayer.
 
Either we are going to plead to our Lord or we are going to perish.  It is either Pentecost or it is going to be holocaust.  It is either going to be revival or the wrath of God.  We are to pray to God fervently to pour our whole hearts and our total beings out to God to share with God, both thanksgivings and petitions.
 
Our best example is always JESUS.  Let me remind you when Jesus was on this earth
He was totally dependent upon God not upon the crowds. The crowds could give Jesus nothing,  But God could give Jesus everything. That is why He depended on His Father.   We need to depend on our LORD also.
 
Let me give you an illustration that might help you understand the power of prayer.  Five ministerial students were visiting in London on a hot Sunday in July.  While they were waiting for the doors of the church to open, a man approached and asked them “Gentlemen, would you like to see the heating apparatus of the church?”  They thought, “How weird that this man wants to show us the heating system of the church on a hot day in July.”
 
But, they were curious so they all followed him.  They came to a door.  He quietly opened it and whispered: “There sirs, is our heating apparatus!”  Some seven hundred intercessors were kneeling in prayer, seeking an outpouring of God’s Spirit upon the service which was soon to begin in the Tabernacle.  That unknown guide was Charles Spurgeon the great pastor of the pulpit himself.
 
What is fueling the fire in our churches today in the life of those of us who call ourselves Christians?   Our churches are filled with powerless programs when they should be filled with praying people!

In 2018, Forbes magazine listed a record 2,208 billionaires from 72 countries.   This elite group is worth $9.1 trillion, up 18% since last year.  Their average net worth is a record $4.1 billion. Americans lead the way with a record 585 billionaires, followed by mainland China with 373. Centi-billionaire Jeff Bezos secures the list’s top spot for the first time, becoming the only person to appear in the Forbes ranks with a 12-figure fortune. Bezos’s fortune increased more than $39 billion last year.  Even in such a strong year, 121 dropped out due to falling fortunes. These people possess material wealth that staggers the imagination of most of us.  However, in spite of their financial prosperity they are not truly the richest people in the land.  You see fortunes are made and lost.  Material wealth does not make anyone truly rich.
 
The richest people in the world are those who know Jesus.  Those who have seen the kingdom of God and have come to understand the true value of their souls.  Jesus said that your soul is worth more than the rest of the world put together. He asked, “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Mark 8:36). We have difficulty trying to get our minds around what is meant by “the whole world.” For this is not only the physical world or the geographical world, but it includes the business world, the scientific world, the intellectual world, etc. Jesus said that the soul is worth more than ALL the world put together.

Why is your soul so valuable? You see, the value of your soul is measured by its eternal quality. It will never die. You are going to live forever. Your body will die, but your soul, the part of you that is made in the image of God, will never die. Your soul—your spirit—will live forever. It is that part of you that has understanding and wisdom.  Many people have knowledge, but they do not have wisdom. They have head knowledge not heart knowledge.  The Bible says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10).”
Knowledge without God and without wisdom is very dangerous. That’s one of the problems in the world today. We have a lot of knowledge; we have a lot of learning, but we lack the wisdom to use our knowledge- our application ability is very low.

Your soul is that part of you that has judgment. It makes decisions—moral decisions—what is good and what is bad. Your soul also involves your will. Your will chooses or rejects things that are brought before it. Your soul is that part of you that has emotion, like love and fear. It has memory—the mental capacity for storing up knowledge of ideas and events. There is something down inside us that is beyond the science to know. The Bible calls it our soul, our spirit.

We tend to put all of our emphasis on the body with its pleasures and its physical appetites. But the soul also has appetites. The soul longs for God. Down deep inside every person’s heart is a cry for something, but he doesn’t quite know what it is. Man is a worshiping creature. He instinctively knows that there is something out there somewhere, and he longs to know that something or someone. Your soul longs for vital contact with God. Your soul is valuable because it is eternal—it is forever.
Suppose you had all the gold in the world and all the things you could ever dream of owning.  Suppose it was all yours, but you lost your soul. Jesus said it would be a poor bargain. Even if you could get everything you wanted, it wouldn’t give you peace. You would still be searching. Great riches and much pleasure cannot make you happy. Only the peace of God coming into your heart through Jesus Christ can bring peace, joy and happiness.

Make sure of your relationship with Christ. Christ demands more than just churchgoing, more than just baptism, more than just being good. He demands your total surrender—the surrender of your mind, your heart, your body, every part of you—to the Lordship of Christ. If you have a doubt in your heart that you have totally surrendered to Christ, do it now. Make sure of your salvation. Make certain that you know Christ.
Is anything worth more than a soul? The answer, obviously, is no. God values the human soul and so should we.  Once you know and understand what your soul is worth; once you know how much God really thinks about you and how much He really loves you; then you will know that you can pile all the wealth of the earth on one side of God’s balance scale and you can stand on the other side and the balance would always tip in your favor.  You and I and every one of us individually are more valuable to God than all the wealth and treasures of the world put together.  Remember…. God owns it ALL -  not even the richest people in the world own that much!

We are living in difficult and hateful times and we are all witnessing the viciousness, evil and cruelty that is going on in this world.  It is a good time for each of us to ask, am I being influenced by the culture?  Am I becoming an encourager or a discourager? 

Discouragers cause walls of division between people; but we forget that we need the support of one another. 

Do we major in encouragement (building people up) or in discouragement (tearing people down)? 

Do we nag and harass our family and friends about their weaknesses or do we praise them for their strengths?  

When you enter a room or people see you at the shopping mall;  do they avoid you because they know you have an ever ready list of the faults of everyone and anyone?  Or do people cheer because you are a bright light of sunshine...one of those gracious gifts of God who sees the good in people...even in some people where something good is hard to find.  Well, are you an encourager or a discourager?

I remember reading a true story when Lou Gehrig, the great baseball hero, was starting his baseball career.  He went into a slump and grew so discouraged he was thinking of quitting.   After several bad games, he doubted his talent and ability, and his spirits collapsed.  A friend heard that he was in a slump, and he took a train to Hartford, Connecticut, and invited Lou to join him for a steak dinner.  During that dinner Lou poured out his frustrations, and his friend could see that the player’s confidence was shot.  So his friend spent the evening telling Lou that all hitters go through slumps, that even Ty Cobb failed to get hits six or seven times out of every ten tries.  But he told him that eventually good hitters start hitting again, and his friend reminded him that he was a good hitter.  After dinner Gehrig walked with his friend to the train station and thanked him for coming.  The next day, Lou started blasting the ball again, and over the next eleven games he came through with twenty-two hits, including six home runs-and his career took off.  He decided not to quit after all.
 
Yes, we are all entitled to our own opinions but remember what Grandma used to say?  “If you don’t have anything nice to say, Don’t say anything at all?”    Be the hand that lifts someone up when they have fallen.   Be the hug or the smile that someone needs when they have no one else. Lend a listening ear when someone needs to talk. You never know YOU just might be that person who keeps someone from committing suicide or doing something that they really shouldn’t be doing! Be someone’s blessing.
 
 
Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will never forget you. - William Arthur Ward