Eternity Starts Now
Is the idea of living for eternity now a crazy one? For a few months, I have felt inclined to view life in this way.
I don't think we live life waiting for the day we can go to heaven. Like most people, I live life thinking about today, tomorrow, and the future. Don't get me wrong, I want to go to heaven and spend eternity in paradise. But I don't wish to leave now. I love my life, family, friends, and the things I enjoy here on earth.
And I think it's a good thing. I believe God wants us to love life. But, in the middle of all that, we have this mission here on earth: to love God and love people. When Jesus was asked, of all the commands which is the most important? Jesus answered, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." (Matthew 12:28-31)
Loving God is the easy part (for most I think); the loving people part is more challenging. And the reality is that we can't do one and not the other. 1 John 4:19 says, "We love because he loved us first." That alone convicts me to be better at loving. Verses 20 &21 says: "Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister."
So what does loving Jesus and loving people have to do with eternity?
The call to love starts here on earth before heading up. We kinda have to get this down now. It's here and now where we put into practice this significant command. Love is demonstrated in everything we do here and now and shown to the people God has commanded us to love.
I realized I needed to be more intentional about this.
A few days ago, I was having one of those days where every little thing was annoying me. Cue the bad attitude, the short temper, and the self-pity. After running my afternoon errands and being annoyed the whole time, I decided I would still go do my dreaded workout. (Even after having a bad day). I took some deep breaths and powered through. I listened to music and started to calm down. I could feel my mind-clearing, and I realized that I gave those insignificant things too much control. I need to be better.
Why be better? Well, it's all part of our big job here on earth- to love people. How could I possibly be loving if I was the center of my day? Love doesn't depend on my circumstances, but it does depend on my obedience. It was hard to see Jesus when all I was doing was complaining. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 says: "Love is patient, Love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."
Our mission to love is now, while on earth, to be and do all the things from 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. We have this gift and freedom to demonstrate the love of God here on earth with our family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, and everybody in between. Your obedience of love has the ability and power to be what someone needed that day. It allows for opportunities to be used by God. We remove ourselves from the center and put God; it's God-centered love.
As a longtime follower & believer of Christ, it can sometimes feel like if I'm not doing something "big" and "impactful," then I must not be doing enough or missing something. But the truth is that we could be winning the whole world, and if we don't have love, it means nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 says: "1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have Love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have Love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have Love, I gain nothing."
This has helped me put my obedience to love into perspective; my eternity depends on it.