One Thing I Ask

"One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple. For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of trouble; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will lift me high upon a rock."

~Psalm 27:4-5

No matter what I do for the Lord in this life, it will never be enough to repay Him for what He has done for me. My life was a wreck. I was not just in need of salvation, I was in need of complete renovation. I was like a house that looked great from the outside but when you walk inside, you could see the deterioration and knew that house would have to be gutted and completely redone before it could be habitable. My inner self was the same way. Years of childhood sexual abuse through abuse as an adult, drugs, alcohol, depression, suicidal ideation, to name a few of my ongoing list of problems, made me inhabitable. My mind was a wreck, my emotions were out of control, and I didn't know whether I was coming or going, but whichever way it was, it was the wrong way. I had no help, no hope, no future, no vision for a better life, and at that point, death would have been the perfect answer... or so I thought. What changed my life? I met someone who cared about me, who wanted better for me than I wanted for myself, and I latched on to him. No, it wasn't God, it was my late husband, Bear. The dynamics there would take way too long to explain but he was a liferaft when I was sinking. What I didn't know, and what Bear didn't know, is that God was going to use that relationship for both of our benefits. And that's exactly what He did. That was more than 30 years ago and although Bear has gone home to the Lord, I have never forgotten where I came from or, more importantly, where I would have gone had God not intervened. I was on that wide road to hell, and so was Bear. God had answered the prayers of both our praying grandmothers even though both had gone home many years earlier. 

"Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few (Matthew 7:13-14)."

In the years since marrying Bear, since coming back to the Lord where I belonged, I have done everything I can to make sure that others know there is a better way. I have done everything I know how to do to bring the message of hope in Christ to others, and to share my life of horrors to help others see that no matter how bad your life is, Jesus is the only answer. No matter what kind of life you lead, one of hell on earth or one of palatial luxury, Jesus is still the only answer. One day this life will end and each of us will stand before God and answer for our lives. I always imagined God would ask, "Why did you do drugs? Why did you sin? Why were you such a horrible person?" But that isn't what God is going to ask. We will have to give account for our deeds and words but I think God's only question is going to be, "Why didn't you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior when you had the chance?" I think God's heart is breaking over each one that has to hear that question.

Life isn't easy, it's hard for everyone. We make mistakes, sometimes, we make huge mistakes that can't be righted by saying, "I'm sorry." Sometimes, we have to pay for our mistakes in ways we could never imagine. But no matter how big the mistakes, no matter how awful our lives may have been, or continue to be, no matter what happened to us as children that we had no control over, no matter where we came from, we can all make the determination of where we will go when this life ends. Jesus is the answer. He can heal our wounds, our minds, our bodies, and make us whole again. But we have to take the first step of accepting Him as our Lord and Savior. It doesn't mean our lives will start popping up all rosy and beautiful, but it does mean we will be on the road to healing. We may still have to answer for the deeds done prior to knowing Jesus because the laws of the universe don't change. When we choose an action, we also choose the consequences. Sometimes, society requires we pay those consequences in ways we'd rather not but regardless of how payment is garnered, Christ is still with us. 

Don't wait until it's too late. Don't wait until you stand before God and have to answer, "Why didn't you accept my Son?" Allow Jesus into your heart and life so that the healing can begin now, and when you stand in eternity before God, you will hear, "Well done, My child. Welcome to Heaven!" No matter what sins you may have committed, none are too great for God to forgive.

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness (sins) and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works (Titus 2:11-14)."

If you haven't accepted Christ, do it now, it's not difficult. Say, "Jesus, I know I've sinned and I need You to save me. I accept You as my Lord and Savior and ask You to live in my heart. Thank you Lord for dying for me so that I can live for You. In Jesus' Holy Name, Amen." Yes, it's that simple. You are now a child of the Most High God if you said that prayer and meant it. So, what's next? Find a Bible believing church, go to several and see which one makes you feel at home. I prefer small, independent churches over the larger ones because I don't feel like I get lost in the crowd. Buy a Bible or download one on your phone. There are many versions. I prefer the New King James Version (NKJV), and the English Standard Version (ESV), but read a few different ones to see what is easiest for you. And go to church every time the doors open. Read your Bible every day. Pray. Pray. Pray. Every day. Listen to Christian music and worship the Lord every day. Your life is about to change in ways you never thought possible because you are a new creation! Hallelujah!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)."

Read 1 Kings 5-7; Psalm 27

©2018 Marie McGaha