Wednesday, July 13, 2016

The 'Heart' of the Matter


Age – just a number, right?  Though outwardly we waste away, inwardly we are renewed each day through His Word, right?  You are only as old as you feel, right?  With age comes knowledge, right?

Well, when looking in the mirror lately, I begin to see the outwardly evidence of the number that continues to increase daily with each breath.  When feeling as though an oven increased to about 450 degrees out of nowhere inside my body, I feel the effects of aging.  When using the words “when I was younger,” “back in the day,” “you will understand when you get older,” etc., I hear the aging in my voice.

I often try to blame such aging on the treatment my body received for 15+ years.  I often blame such aging on stress in life.  Some may think me young, but truth is I age every minute of every day.  The minutes zoom by, some without a thought, while others contain heavy thinking.  Each minute just as valuable as the next. 

We all receive the same amount of seconds, minutes and hours within one complete day.  Do we know when the last breath shall be taken in this life?  No.  The fact remains that at this moment, breath continues to keep our body physically alive.  The physical body will continue to age, wrinkles will appear in unwanted places, bones will shrink, organs will require more energy to remain in function, weakness may arise within shorter intervals, etc.  Society works diligently to promote hiding such process through surgeries, cosmetics and miracle creams/pills. 

Guess what my friend?  Society has it all wrong.  Beauty is NOT based on appearance of skin, number on the scale, clothing on hangers or styling of hair.  Beauty, maturity and quality of life IS based on the condition of our heart.  I do not speak of the actual organ which lub-dubs all day long and determines status of physical life.  I speak about the true heart – hidden away deep inside. 

We are born with a void only Jesus can fill – our heart.  Without knowing Jesus and taking Him as Lord and Savior of our lives, we work diligently to fill such void with worldly things.  I am guilty of such for much of my time here thus far.  The amazing part of accepting Jesus – the moment you fill the void with Him, He works mightily to catch you up to speed regardless of Earthly age.  You receive the promise of Eternal life with Him and begin maturing in unexplainable ways.  Though outwardly we waste away day by day, inwardly God renews and strengthens as we look to Him for hope. 

Do we need to abandon the physical body since it wastes away in the end?  Absolutely NOT!  God provided such a vessel to carry out mighty work here on Earth.  He needs us to be healthy and treat the bodies given with respect, love, care and as temples of the Holy Spirit.  You are carrying the Holy Spirit within your heart – protect it.  Sickness occurs, illnesses arise, pain happens; but, daily we can provide what the body needs to remain at best to accomplish God’s work.  Fill your vessel with positivity, nourishment, activity and love; but, most importantly, fill your heart with Truth daily!    

One way I continue the renewal process reveals itself in the following pictures. . .











Building up the next generation, teaching them about our great and mighty God, handing them the tools for survival in this broken world and laughing till it hurts renews my heart!  Thank you God for my blessings and joy given each day through them!



Live life. . .One Day at a Time

Sheree Craig    

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