" Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord,
to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words
of eternal life."
In a recent study on a Wednesday night, one of the pastors was teaching in Romans. At some point in the study, he was pointing out how much God loves us and is always thinking about us. He said, " If God had a refrigerator, our picture would be on it." That sparked a thought in my head that ties into this devotional. Are you on God's refrigerator, or the milk carton inside it? What do I mean by that? Well, let's look at the verse. To get a feel for it, let's back track. Jesus had just finished feeding the 5000. He was teaching on Himself being the bread of life. The multitude had followed Him and were desiring more from Him. Once he spoke about eating His flesh, and drinking His blood, (not a literal meaning) the people split. Then He asked the 12, are you going away too? Peter answered perfectly. He knew that Jesus was the Christ. Peter knew that when Jesus spoke, he felt more alive than he ever had. So then, what's with the milk carton, fridge thing? Well, you put pictures on a fridge of people you love. The milk carton is reserved for those who are missing. My question to all of us is this, which one are you/I? You see I thought about it and put myself in the place of a parent who has a child missing. The sorrow, pain, and anguish they must feel must be unbearable. I can't and don't want to imagine it. The scar that it leaves, and the damage in it's wake must be the heaviest of things. So too, this is true in God's economy. When we walk with Him, and spend time with Him, our picture is right there. If not, then we end up on the milk carton. Possibly stolen away by the things of this world. The cares, the deadlines materialism. Funny thing is, God leaves that choice up to us. He doesn't demand it. We don't have to, we get to spend time with Him. Why wouldn't we? With such a loving Father, how could we not want to seek Him out? Another funny thing is, we are never truly missing. Psalm 139 deals with this. Specifically verse 2 " thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandeth my thought afar off." God knows it all already. We are the ones who put ourselves on the milk carton. God though, wants us on His fridge. The word's of and from God are life. They hold the key to eternity. If we accept them, they lead to eternal peace and rest. If we don't, then the opposite is true. An eternity of separation from God. Pain, anguish, sorrow, hell. I know personally, I have been on the milk carton more than enough times to know, that I will see the scars it left one day. They are imprinted on His hands, feet, side, and back. Be blessed this week guys. If you've been running away or have been stolen away by something, return. If you are doing ok, then enjoy the time with Him. God's got a big fridge, and there's always room for more.
Bob.
to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words
of eternal life."
In a recent study on a Wednesday night, one of the pastors was teaching in Romans. At some point in the study, he was pointing out how much God loves us and is always thinking about us. He said, " If God had a refrigerator, our picture would be on it." That sparked a thought in my head that ties into this devotional. Are you on God's refrigerator, or the milk carton inside it? What do I mean by that? Well, let's look at the verse. To get a feel for it, let's back track. Jesus had just finished feeding the 5000. He was teaching on Himself being the bread of life. The multitude had followed Him and were desiring more from Him. Once he spoke about eating His flesh, and drinking His blood, (not a literal meaning) the people split. Then He asked the 12, are you going away too? Peter answered perfectly. He knew that Jesus was the Christ. Peter knew that when Jesus spoke, he felt more alive than he ever had. So then, what's with the milk carton, fridge thing? Well, you put pictures on a fridge of people you love. The milk carton is reserved for those who are missing. My question to all of us is this, which one are you/I? You see I thought about it and put myself in the place of a parent who has a child missing. The sorrow, pain, and anguish they must feel must be unbearable. I can't and don't want to imagine it. The scar that it leaves, and the damage in it's wake must be the heaviest of things. So too, this is true in God's economy. When we walk with Him, and spend time with Him, our picture is right there. If not, then we end up on the milk carton. Possibly stolen away by the things of this world. The cares, the deadlines materialism. Funny thing is, God leaves that choice up to us. He doesn't demand it. We don't have to, we get to spend time with Him. Why wouldn't we? With such a loving Father, how could we not want to seek Him out? Another funny thing is, we are never truly missing. Psalm 139 deals with this. Specifically verse 2 " thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandeth my thought afar off." God knows it all already. We are the ones who put ourselves on the milk carton. God though, wants us on His fridge. The word's of and from God are life. They hold the key to eternity. If we accept them, they lead to eternal peace and rest. If we don't, then the opposite is true. An eternity of separation from God. Pain, anguish, sorrow, hell. I know personally, I have been on the milk carton more than enough times to know, that I will see the scars it left one day. They are imprinted on His hands, feet, side, and back. Be blessed this week guys. If you've been running away or have been stolen away by something, return. If you are doing ok, then enjoy the time with Him. God's got a big fridge, and there's always room for more.
Bob.
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