 I don’t know about their popularity in other cities, but in the beach city in which I live, E-Scooters are plentiful and as popular as chocolate. These 2-wheel mobility enablers have a narrow platform on which the rider stands with feet in a personal launch position which allows the occupant to travel at about 15 mph. Each scooter is designed for one person who is fully responsible for arriving at the intended destination. In like manner, each of us is accountable for the door we open and the road we travel during our life journey. Our worldly environment is always ready to open wide the door of possibilities filled with various circumstances, opportunities, relationships, sidebars, etc. Entrance through this wide door may seem to offer us a road to happiness, success, fame, fortune, beauty, love, pleasure, and other supposedly ideal visions. Any one of these directions is a reinforcement to define us as one of the majorities. On the other hand, the door of the spiritually driven is very narrow. It may be characterized by hardships, suffering, and disappointments—and who wants any of that? As hard as it is to believe, these are the characteristics that discipline us and infuse life into our souls. They bring growth into our hearts and unite us with God. Although the road behind the narrow door may not be as easy, it is the gateway to eternal life. When we discipline our children, it should be about love and not abuse. God’s love responds in the same manner toward His children. Did you ever notice when facing a potentially life-changing experience how your human devices to find a solution do not work? You feel stuck inside your door and are drawn to detour off the narrow road. Some of us will not want to wait for Divine intervention. At such a moment, we may consider giving up on life. It’s too painful and too hard. It’s as if we have let go of our faith and continue to throw stuff up against the wall that doesn’t work. (Mark 11:22) Discouragement and depression will eventually suggest that we step off the narrow road and go back through the easier wide door. This is when God shows up at exactly the right moment and applies the best solution to the problem. He has resources beyond our human capabilities and miracles are part of His nature. He has seen the end and has the answer. As the guarantee of life in Him, He offers us the Spirit of His Son, Jesus to live within us. (Galatians 2:20) His Spirit gives us power to become super conquerors. (Romans 8:31,37) Many people will cautiously go through the narrow door and carefully begin their walk along that slim road. Sadly, many will not maintain their spiritual commitment to remain on the thin, and often very difficult road; life will become a vapor. (Matthew 7:13-14) Believe that God is always there and will never leave you or forsake you (Shammah: He’s there). (Matthew 28:20) The door may be narrow that leads to the thin road and may be difficult, and you may feel squeezed like a stress ball, but in Him is eternal life. Stay within the narrow door! 
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 About six months ago I had a conversation with an acquaintance who had just had a facelift. She seemed very excited and inspired by her decision. Two months later her enthusiasm about her choice for surgery seemed diminished. She spoke as if she were disillusioned at the entire process. Sadly, she had mistakenly believed it would solve all her problems. Many of us forget that our external bodies merely permit us to function in this three-dimensional world. They are temporary and will eventually decay. Irrefutable change comes from within. We often disremember that we are humans infused by God who is Spirit. God made man and woman in His image and after His likeness. (Genesis 1:27) He has imparted to us His life-giving Spirit (breath).This is not a Casper-the-Friendly Ghost spirit! He is the Holy Spirit that brings humanity into a relationship with their Creator. But the free will of man, also purposed by God, provides opportunities for people to submit to the power of a secular direction for their spirits and souls to embrace. Once we fit into the seat of the roller coaster of this imperfect and damaged world, we become proud and foolish in spirit, forget God, and create our own merry-go-round of false wisdom with no need for God except in an emergency. Can you imagine The Divine calling such behavior as “whoredom?” (Hosea 4:12) Given the current conditions within our world system, it is more than challenging to reap the benefits of God’s gifts of prosperity, health, and abundant life without abiding in the Spirit of the Lord. (3 John:1; John 10:10). Yes, everyone has an answer, but only God has the permanent and perfect solution. (John 16:33) Abiding in His Spirit may sound like a bunch of pie-in-the-sky, but it is possible to:
We are God’s children. He loves us with an eternal love. There is no act anyone can commit that is so heinous it will strip His love from us. Even when we behave like owners of a brothel, He remains faithful to us. But the foundation of His life-giving Spirit can overcome internal death and decay, only if His Spirit continually abides in us and is wrapped safely in a relationship with His Son. Love and change outside of the Spirit of God is a fraud and eventually will lead to disillusionment and disappointment. Until we begin to abide in Him and seek Him in Spirit and truth, our efforts are like pouring water into a jug full of holes. Eternal love is part of His Spirit; choose to abide in Him.  A couple of weeks ago I was preparing for a yard sale to purge many of my dinosaur items. Some of these included silver-plated trays, bowls, and serving dishes. Much to my horror, many of these silver items were tarnished and discolored. No way could I display them at a yard sale in their dark, almost ancient-looking condition. Hoping to gain some insight on how to stumble my way through restoring them, I turned to the imperfect, “helpful in a crunch” Internet for information. I learned there are several combinations of ingredients that may free them from their exposure to the air and stimulate restoration to their original state. But no matter which ingredients I chose, I would have to put some muscle into it. Since I am kind of “old school,” I opted to begin my cleaning effort with silver polish. I applied polish to one of the silver bowls and then began to firmly rub out the darkness. After five minutes of rubbing, until my wrists were limp and my fingers numb, I realized that no matter what ingredients I used, my goal for restoration of this bowl and the other silver items was going to be trivial. They had been exposed too long to the elements of the air. Throughout our life journey, many of us have been exposed for prolonged times to the elements of the world. We suffer from physical ailments and disease, we haul around a truckload of emotional scars, and we have become tarnished and discolored (bitter, cynical, and rebellious). Man-made scrubbing tools (medical, psychological, pills, and injections), furnish us with a temporary way to assimilate in this three-dimensional world, despite a fractured spirit. But they fall exceedingly short in treating the root. Like a root-bound plant, if the roots are imprisoned, the plant will eventually begin to die. Psychological depression, bone diseases, lowered immune resistance, blood diseases, and suicide (mental, moral, spiritual) are a few examples of root-bound spirits and souls. God is unequaled, unrivaled in His power to free us from the dross (deterioration) of our damaged souls and spirits. Not only has He provided healing for physical ailments and diseases like cancer, covid, and paralysis, but His restoration includes physical/bodily healing, spiritual healing, and miraculous healing. He restores where all hope is lost.
The futility of human efforts to run our own lives without a relationship with God is a humanistic stronghold headed for darkness, discoloration, and ultimate destruction. (Romans 8:3) Put some muscle into establishing a relationship with the Father and His Son. Submit your heart and soul to the Spirit and will of God to avoid exposure to the elements of the world. Only God’s Grace through His Son can heal and restore you to your purposeful beauty. |
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