The need to believe

The Lord is good and His mercy endures forever. I think this is a beautiful thought for us to have as we face the beginning of each and every day. However, I think it should be more than just a thought but it should be the thing that gives us hope and helps us make it through each and every day, to help us understand the wonders of God?s love. The supreme example of God?s love is giving His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus to die on the Cross to pay the penalty for the sins of mankind.

When we speak of sin, a lot of times we think of things that seem to be bad or wrong to us while in reality sin is anything that is contrary and opposite of the nature and desire of God. He created all things and the masterpiece of His creation was man whom He made in His likeness and His image. He made mankind to have a close relationship with Him. He gave mankind the ability to make choices and to choose which way he should go in life. Adam had the privilege of obeying God and enjoying the blessings of a beautiful life in the presence of the Lord but he chose to listen to another voice, went contrary to God?s will and rebelled against His Creator; and as we all are descendants of Adam, we all have that same nature within us. Many who read this article will question whether God is real or not, whether the Bible is the Word of God, whether Jesus is who He said He is; there will be those who absolutely deny Him; there will be those who want to completely erase the thought of Him; and then there will be those who take Him at His Word and wholeheartedly believe in Him. Which are you?

The Bible tells us of the people of Israel whom God ordained and brought into existence to be a people for Him who would show His glory. He brought them out of Egypt and made them a great nation who enjoyed riches and prosperity that reached its peak when Solomon became the king of Israel. Then they turned from God and started going after other gods, fulfilling their lust and desires contrary to the way God had designed for mankind to live and came to the point of actually putting God out of all things. God sent judgments upon them to try to get them to see where they were going, but they would not listen or turn from their gross sin and God just lifted His hand of protection off of them and their enemies came in and completely destroyed them as a nation.

Today I see a parallel between the people of Israel and this nation that we live in. We started out as a nation who believed in the god of all Creation and set their standards and their laws according to His ways. We have come down through time and became one of the richest and blessed nations in the world. Then we, as Israel did, started putting God out, going our own way instead of His, relying on our own power and strength, we put Him out of our classrooms, out of our courthouses, out of public parks and institutions, and we reap the harvest. Today we probably owe more money than any other nation in the world, losing out as the most powerful nation in the world, becoming one of the most immoral countries in the world.

Some who read this article will think God has nothing to do with the way our country is and brush it aside. They will say, ?We will make it by our own hands and ways.? For me, I believe it is time we turned back to God and His ways. He is always there, when we come to Him with sincere hearts. Jesus said, ?Come unto me all of you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.? We need to believe Him. Thank you!