Don’t forget your present

Sometimes I struggle with depression and frustration. All of us do; Some of us admit it. But it usually doesn’t last so very long and the things in this chapter are for those of you who are now having this problem or will have it in the future.

What causes my depression is usually when some grand scheme that I have devised doesn’t work out or when someone I wish to teach about Christ is not responsive. But I suspect that the cause of depression, whether similar to my causes or totally different from them, falls back to one thing. Things at present are not the way we wish them to be.

The answer would then seem obvious that we need to change our present. We need to begin to bring about changes that will create the type of situations and experiences we desire. Isn’t this, after all, the true meaning of life? One would certainly think so considering all the figuring we do to bring about the present that we desire by planning and manipulating things so that when the future becomes the present it will contain the wants and desires of our hearts.

Perhaps, however, there is another answer and a different approach to the problem altogether. Maybe this is the time when we should stop and consider the abundance of the life we have already in the present we are now experiencing.

Lets pause just a moment and consider Paul. He certainly had trials and depressions equal to those we experience and probably greater than most of us will ever know. He was confronted on the road to Damascus by the very Lord he was persecuting and the amazing thing was he was trying to further God’s cause with all his heart when he was in reality one of God’s greatest enemies because of his practices. How depressing this realization must have been and how many nights the faces of the christians he had persecuted must have entered his mind causing tears to fill his eyes. How many times he must have reflected on the lives of those he had been successful in causing to renounce Christ because of his intense persecution. The personal suffering he did over this must have been sometimes overwhelming.

But what did Paul do about this? Did he live a wasted life in self pity? Did he decide he could be of no service to Christ because of his past? Did he go out and hang himself? We find the answer in Acts 9:20. In verse eighteen he becomes christian and in verse twenty we read, “And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.” Paul did something about his past; He didn’t live in it!

But this was not the end of his depression. We need to remember that Paul was a Jewish rabbi. He was an honored member of the Jewish society. He quite probably would one day have been on the Sanhedrin. He was a Pharisee’s Pharisee. His entire future was solid and promising. But because of his commitment to Christ, all of this changed. In verse twenty-three we read, “And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him: Paul went from persecutor to persecuted. He lost all he had: Social standing, future, friends, everything. How difficult this must have been in spite of his newly found relationship to Christ.

After having experienced all the Jews (and others) could do to him, Paul set about to record by inspiration his thoughts and experiences for the benefit of others. Among those reflections he recorded the following. “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:11-13.) Paul understood about the abundant life.

I believe the abundant life is available to us now. But in order to obtain it, we must first recognize it for what it is. Too often we are tied to the things of this world. We consider them to be representative of the abundant life. We must remember that we are not citizens of this world but our citizenship is in Heaven where we will ultimately live with Christ for time without end. Our abundant life is tied to things spiritual and eternal and not to things worldly and temporary. To enjoy the abundant life we must “think on these things”. (Philippians 4:6-8.)

Space will not permit me to discuss all the factors of the abundant life available to us in this life. That is a book in itself. But consider with me just a few aspects of the abundant life available to every christian and on every occasion.

PEACE:

The world is a mess. I mean a bonified collection of confusion, disappointment, and failure. Even those who seem to have all life has to offer seldom have peace. I judge this to be true in part because those that are not Christians are always trying to justify why they are not and try to show the foolishness of Christianity. Their denial often seems to be for the purpose of soothing their own consciences. They are not at peace with their decision.

Such is not the case with the Christian. No matter what this world puts in his path, no matter what traps Satan sets, no matter what losses are sustained, he can pass over them and continue on, knowing that his hope is grounded in the unshakable fact of Christ as the Savior. He doesn’t worry about the world events because he knows this is not where he plans to stay. What a great peace the Christian can have in his package we call the abundant life with the proper understanding and acceptance of his relationship to the things of this world.

CONTENTMENT:

This peace in Christ brings about contentment. All my true valuables are in the hands of Jesus for safekeeping until I arrive home and need them. They cannot be stolen, damaged, or lost. They are mine and they are guarded with a vigil by the Father Himself. Realizing this, my abundant life becomes more meaningful and fulfilling.

HOPE:

Christian hope is something many do not understand. It is not Webster’s hope. It is not wishful thinking. It is the belief that one day I will be with Christ and that belief is grounded solidly on the promises of Christ and sealed by His blood. Christian hope is anchored in assurance. Christian hope is void of any doubt because it is founded on the promise of God. Christian hope offers no room for doubt and is never compromised by life’s events.

LOVE:

The term means many things to many people. But one idea derived from love is the absence of hate. This love helps me pray for those that abuse me; It helps me teach those that hate me; It helps me forgive those that wrong me; It helps me better appreciate myself. Love eliminates fear and doubt. Love is the foundation stone of Christianity.

One of the greatest horrors of Hell is the absence of love. All the greatest haters that have ever lived will be there. What a horrible thought for one to consider – eternal existence with all that is evil. What a thing of splendor to be meditated upon – eternal life in a kingdom of love where hate is a feeling never experienced. This love, available to all Christians, is such a great part of the abundant life.

FORGIVENESS:

Forgiveness is the offspring of this love. God’s love for us brought Christ from Heaven to Earth to save us. This forgiveness helps me relate to others on the level of Christ. I can forgive them in spite of who they are and in spite of what they have done. A forgiving spirit is part of the abundant life I may presently experience and enjoy.

JOY IN SORROW:

Anyone can have joy when things are just the way they want them. But the Christian can have joy even in sorrow. At midnight Paul and Silas sang while in chains; Paul gloried in his sufferings for Christ; Stephen saw Heaven opened to receive him as he was being murdered. Only the Christian has available the experience of joy in sorrow.

Some years ago I attended a congregation where a good brother who served as an elder had just passed from this world to the next. Someone expressed to me how sad it was that he was gone. I reminded him that the day a Christian dies is the day he has spent his whole life trying to attain. He has gone home to his Father and ours should be joy and not sorrow; Perhaps joy in sorrow, but never sorrow alone. What an abundant life we have because of our joy in Christ.

COMFORT:

One of the names given by prophecy in Isaiah 9:6 concerning Christ is Counsellor. No one has given more comfort to this world than has Jesus. John 14:1 records the following words of the Savior: “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.” Many is the funeral at which these words were read. I have used them myself. There is no greater comfort to the Christian than that of the promise that Christ will not forget us. He knows us by name and one day will call us home to be with him.

There are so many other things that contribute to the abundant life of the Christian. I wish I had more space to discuss them. But take a little time and reflect upon them yourself. We, as Christians, truly have the abundant life. I am sure that Christians have a greater appreciation for nature, proper pleasures, and the zest of life than do those outside Christ. Our life is abundant in this world and certainly in the world to come.

“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalm 118:24