Everlasting Life

"And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God's Son does not have life." 1 John 5:11-13

Some people hope they will spend eternity with God. John says that we can know we will. Our certainty is based on God's promise that he has given us eternal life through his Son. This is true whether you feel close to God or distant from him. Eternal life is not based on feelings, but on facts. You can know you have eternal life if you believe God's truth. If you lack assurance about your future destination, ask yourself whether or not you've honestly committed your life to Christ as your Savior and Lord. If so, by faith you know where you'll be - with your father.

I find that so reassuring because right now in my life with God, and for most of my life, I have felt distant from God. I honestly believe that God is the truth. He is so amazing! He has unconditional love for me even when I feel like I don't deserve it. He is always by my side and will be there for me to talk to. He knows me better than myself. So how is it so easy for God to do so much for me and to love me more than anyone else will ever be able to love me but I find it hard to put Him first and to worship Him in everything I do? He is the one that deserves everything, not me.

Genesis 7:1-24 All Aboard?

If you were alive at this time, would you have been invited to the boat? Why or why not? Would you have accepted? Why or why not?


No, I wouldn't have been invited to the boat because only Noah's family was invited. If I was invited, even though now in time I would like to say yes because I know the story, in that time I sadly would probably have turned it down. I would have thought that the 600 year-old Noah was just a crazy old man building a HUGE boat for 120 years. I wouldn't think that God would wipe out all living things except for the people on Noah's boat.

Genesis 6:9-22 Noah Builds a Boat

What is the most difficult act that God has asked you to do?

The first thing that comes to mind is that God needs to be #1 in my life. I don't think I have ever put God first. I've been living my life how I want to live it and not stopping to think about how God wants it. As I think about this I feel very selfish. God has done so much for me and loves me more than anyone else ever will. I have realized that I need God in my life and I'm working on building a better relationship with Him. Honestly, I'm not sure if I can put God first right away. I could be wrong but I'm sure there needs to be a good relationship before I can put Him before my family and close friends. I will try to place God first now but once we have a strong relationship that should be a lot simpler.

Genesis 4:1-16 Cain and Abel

How do you handle anger?

I become very defensive and close minded. I either raise my voice or yell. Sometimes I even want to hit or break things. Then I might go to my room and turn my radio up loud so I can't think very well and instead listen to the music to calm down. I should listen to God and try to please Him.

Cain reacted poorly to his anger. Because God didn't accept Cain's half-hearted effort and gift but did accept Abel's gift, Cain killed his brother Abel. Cain seemed to take a shortcut but Abel fully obeyed God. In verse 7 the Lord said, "You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master."

The first step in pleasing God is to examine our motivation for doing so. Do we really want to please him, or are we going through the motions because someone told us we should.

Obedience is the second step to pleasing God. It means loving him enough to listen to what he says, then following through on what we know he tells us to do.

Through the Holy Spirit, God speaks to us as we come to him with willing hearts. He gently shows us areas in our lives that we need to examine and change according to his timetable, not someone else's.

Submitting to God's will means giving up what I want and totally giving in to what God wants as well as giving God my best instead of the least I can give.

Genesis 2:15 - 3:24 Adam and Eve

In what ways are you like those first humans?

Like Adam and Eve we often have to live with the painful consequences of accepting bad advise. But consequences are reminders of hard lessons. They are not excuses to give up or to repeat the same mistakes.

Satan's Plan

doubt - makes you question God's Word and his goodness

discouragement - makes you look at your problems rather than at God

diversion - makes the wrong things seem attractice so you want them more than the right things

defeat - makes you feel like a failure, so you don't even try

delay - makes you put off doing something, so it never gets done

I need to learn to put all my faith in God and completely trust him. He has a plan for me that is greater than anything I could do by myself. I can't let Satan get in the way. I haven't been doing a great job of relying on God and giving him my worries. Lately I've been getting discouraged because I can't seem to find the one thing that I'm great at; the thing that I'm made to do. I want to know now. There's a reason for everything though. I need to just go with the flow and trust God because He has something great planned for me.

Genesis 1:1 - 2:3 How It All Began

Why do human beings have value and worth?

We have value and worth because we were made in God's image.

God created everything there is - the heavens, earth, plants, and animals. When God finished creating the eath, he then chose to make people in his image. The phrase "Let us make human beings in our image" in verse 26 does not mean that God created us exactly like himself, especially in a physical sense. Instead, we are reflections of God's glory. We can reflect his characteristics like love, patience, forgiveness, kindness, and faithfulness.

Our worth is not defined by possessions, achievements, physical attractiveness, or popularity. Instead, it is based on knowing that God created us in his likeness. Knowing that you are a person of infinite worth gives you the freedom to love God, know him personally, and make a valuable contribution to the lives around you.

How much am I reflecting God's glory? How often do I show love, patience, forgiveness, kindness, and faithfulness? I need to work on being a clear reflection of God's glory. Other people should be able to see the reflection of God's glory in me. I feel as if right now I'm not a good reflection of God's glory. I don't know God very well and don't love him as much as I should. God isn't #1 in my life like he should be. I feel as if I can't reflect God's glory until I have a better relationship with God. That won't stop me from trying to be a good reflection but I still have much to learn.