Prayer for God to help me live life
First, welcome @yolandalindsay. Glad you are here. One, Life can be self-centered or service-oriented. How do you see yours? Life is far more than working, paying bills, and acquiring stuff. All things are temporal: Jesus said:
"Jesus left the temple and went away when his disciples came to point out the temple buildings to him. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” Matthew 24:1-2
And this one is by Paul.
“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” Philippians 3:8
I know some of you may be thinking: how can Paul make a statement like this? It is normal and even encouraged to “keep up with the Joneses,” isn’t it? Come on, he who dies with the most toys wins, right? Well?
“And he said to them, 'Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Luke 12:15
And we read this in the Word.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” 1 John 2:15-17
Jesus even instructed us not to worry about working solely to meet our needs.
“And he said to his disciples, 'Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.” Luke 12:22-23
Why should we not worry about them?
“And he said to his disciples, 'Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.” Luke 12:22-23
This is why Jesus tells us to “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21
Did you know we should not work to earn our way into Heaven? Instead, we should be motivated to do good works because we are going to Heaven through God’s salvation. By doing so, we “lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven,” knowing we have a reward waiting for us.
“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:12
We have a treasure waiting for us. Some will be larger than others. Some will receive more than others. Some, sadly, will receive judgment. Why?
“For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.” Matthew 16:27
Once again, let me clarify my point. We do not work to be saved, nor do we work merely for the treasures in Heaven. Our motivation for serving must come from the fact that we are already saved and that God loves us deeply. Even though we were sinners living in our sins, He came and died for us so that we might have life. What could be more important than serving Him?
As for all this stuff that surrounds us daily? It will one day belong to someone else. Of itself will simply cease to exist. Change your point of view, and you will reduce a lot of the anxiety that affects you daily.
Be blessed, be a blessing.
Peter