Crazy, Peaceful Thoughts

A long time ago, men and women were experiencing a lot of stress. The leader of their religion had been tortured to death on a cross. The ruling superpower was persecuting them across the Globe. And economic opportunities were not in abundance, particularly if your family was not already wealthy.

In this environment, the writer of 2 Corinthians said, "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."

Doesn't that sound kind of crazy?

Is it any more crazy to think about these words in the context of our own World. Most of the people reading this blog are living in the United States. While very comfortable by the World's standards, our Country seems to be in turmoil. Young African American men are getting shot by police and riots are breaking out in response. The election process so far has offered two less than ideal candidates (my opinion.) The economy isn't exactly humming along on all cylinders and most of us aren't seeing jumps in income.

Even so, Christians are told that we have grace with us. The implication is that our lives are good because we don't have to suffer the eternal consequences of our mistakes. There may be some short-term consequences, such as the credit card bills coming due. Our lives are still pretty good because grace is with us.

Secondly, God's love is with us. Everywhere we go, the love of God is right there for our comfort, joy, peace and freedom. The Creator of the whole ball of wax is pouring down love on each of us right now. Can you feel the warmth of His love. I pray that you do as you read these words.

Thirdly, the Holy Spirit is with us. Do you have decisions that need to be made? He can help. Do you feel lonely? He will comfort you. Do you have to walk through some difficult circumstances (like illness or losing a job?) The Holy Spirit is by your side and wants to help.

We can access all of these benefits and more through prayer. All we have to do is quiet ourselves for a few minutes. Go into our prayer closets and we will find God right there with us. It sounds crazy to the non-believer, but we know God is right there.