2 for 1 Day!

Hey everyone! I hope you are all living with joy today. If you are happy, that’s great! If not, that’s okay. Let’s be real. There is suffering and pain in this life as well as blessing. We are never going to be happy 100% of the time, but we can always live with joy if we are in Christ! The title of today’s post might confuse you a little bit. Let me explain. I was thinking of a new concept in which I will write on two different topics. They will both be short and that way you can read both or just one if you don’t have a lot of time. If it goes well, I might do this more often. Let’s get started!

Christ in Your Life

Do you notice Christ in your life? Have you set your focus on Him? Are you aware when others talk to you and something just doesn’t seem right because Jesus is missing? I recently had a conversation with an unbeliever about some issues of life. As we were communicating, something just didn’t feel right to me. I realized that Christ was not in his life. I already knew that before talking with him. However, as we talked, I could sense it. It was evident. He would talk about areas in his life where he finds his fulfillment and joy. I then expressed that my joy and fulfillment is found in Christ. Wherever the conversation would go, I found that for me it was always leading back to Christ. It helped me to understand and more fully realize just how valuable Christ is in my life. He is everything to me. Without Him, I’d be lost and life would have no meaning or purpose to it at all. I thanked God for helping me see just how valuable my relationship is with Him. He used this conversation with an unbeliever to reveal this truth to me. To be honest, life isn’t easy and there are times when I just feel like giving up, but then I realize just how much I have in my salvation and relationship with God. All of a sudden, there is a lot of value and purpose in life. I want to leave you with a couple questions:

1. Do you understand the value of your relationship with Christ? Is it evident with the way that you live your life?
2. Is Christ in every situation and circumstance of your life? Do your decisions and choices revolve around Him?

Food, Food, Food!

I hope that you like food! I know that I do. 🙂 For one thing, I get to eat delicious food everyday because there are two amazing people here at Word of Life who do the cooking. (Shout out to chef Kevin and my roomie Allan! You guys do an amazing job!) Food is a big part of our lives. We need it for nourishment and to sustain our physical bodies. We fellowship around a table filled with food. We crave food. We talk about food. Some of us even dream about food. 😉 Yes, food is good. Can I get an Amen? Sometimes, however, I think that food can become a distraction in our lives. I was talking with a friend about this the other day. We talked about how much we enjoy food, and yet, sometimes Christians can have a tendency to talk more about food than about God. We focus on the physical side of things so much that we sometimes forget about spiritual matters. If we aren’t careful, physical food can become the focus instead of spiritual food. Jesus addressed this matter. Carefully read the passages from Scripture below.

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. – John 4:34

Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” – John 6:27

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. – John 6:35

But he answered, “It is written,

“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” – Matt. 4:4

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. – Matt.5:6

I encourage you to meditate on these passages and what they mean. I’m not at all saying that we shouldn’t enjoy our physical food. It is a wonderful blessing from God and often quite tasty I might add. 😉 However, the next time you are preparing or eating a meal, I encourage you to remember and think about the truth that only Jesus can provide the food that satisfies your soul forever. Therefore, we should have a greater focus on the Bread of Life. I have included a practical thought below that you might want to try implementing in your life.

If you are a person that enjoys food, which is almost everyone, then I encourage you to enjoy your physical food, but realize that you will get hungry again after eating. Make it a habit to use your physical food as a reminder to give thanks to God for the complete satisfaction found in the Bread of Life, Who is Christ.

Have a wonderful day everyone and remember to focus on Christ!