Remembering the Past; So that I may live in the now:Living in the now so I can be assured of the Future

     There is a saying that goes something like this: If we fail to remember the past we are sure to live it all over again including the mistakes.  I say this in regards to Paul's letter to the Romans regarding our state of being.  Paul asserts that we who are now alive through Christ were once dead under the law because it could not offer what Christ's sacrifice finally won for us.  Grace and redemption and no longer slaves to sin and no longer under law.
   If we go back to the works state of mind, then we are under law again and fail in our attempts to please God.  We can never do that.   When we forget this then we are easily overcome and the fallen state of mind can deceive us again. Fear,worries, and the pressures of daily living can rob us of the joy we can experience in the realization that we are truly free if we can exercise our faith, almost like body builders do in the gym.   Daily, the Holy Spirit is the guiding "counselor" of our lives along with the family of Christians we get to know.  Reading the "word" which should be translated as Jesus said, "we do not live by bread alone, but by every word out of the mouth of God" this is our strength.
   Think of it as proteins for our body and our spirit.  In the world there are myriads of ways we use to build us up in our body, soul, and spirit, many of them fail. Protein shakes, for the body, meditation for the spirit, music for the soul...etc, etc.  I do not fault these but they are limited in fulfilling what Christ intended.  These in and of themselves do not add to our eternal state or change us inwardly
    Remember in Daniel, those who fasted before God because of King Nebuchadnezzars's decree were found to be healthier than those who ate.  A testament to faith and works together.
     Christians that live in the Spirit and do what Jesus said are not merely hearers, but doers and they fulfill a deeper calling than those that merely attend meetings and rely on say a Pastors' leadership to lay out the course for them.  I know, for many years I did not exercise my faith as much as I should have and relied entirely too much on others and not Christ or the leading of the Spirit.
      I have tried this week to remember the sheer joy of the initial moment of being set free in Christ and laying down my life (repentance) and living for him.  In that moment, I could realize eternity and cast aside the fear of death I had always been afraid of.  This was my moment of freedom and( Aha!) moment that I never want to lose!  God drew close to me because I drew close to him.  This is what he always wanted, a return from a foreign land.   Study the Old Testament and one can see how many times the Israelites experienced exile because of their disobedience.
     Joy often gets squashed and pressed out of our lives because there are just so many things to contend with daily.  Raising kids, college, money worries, and trying to ignore issues of  terrorism and shootings,and bombings all  tend to steal and rob us of joy.
     Focusing on a kingdom not yet attained is harder and more of a stretch to comprehend and easier to ignore.  It is for this reason that we must daily think on:
      Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 

     These things are the excellent things we should think on.  They make for life, joy and is our meat and drink as Christians.