Do you ever look around at the way unbelievers live and envy them? Come on, be honest - even a little bit? They get to party, enjoy all the "pleasures"of life, get drunk, carouse, make lots of money, be important, etc. Do you ever think, "As a Christian, what do I get to do? Live righteously, work for the Lord, not to be rewarded by men, be humble, be a servant to all, deny myself overindulgences, be wise..." It all sometimes can seem a little boring. Oh, it wouldn't be nearly so bad if, in return, we get to live carefree, always be happy, free of trouble, and live in abundance. But it seems sometimes that those of us who live to please the Lord face more trials in life. Seriously?!?!?!?
I'll admit it, I've been tempted to feel like living according to God's word is pointless.
I was meditating on Psalm 73 the other day, and realized the Psalmist is dealing with this same dilemma.(It's nice to know that people a few thousand years ago had the same problems as this 21st century girl). As I read, I realized the answer lies not in a circumstance change, but a perspective change (I've also been blessed to have wonderful Christian mentors over the years who have pointed this out to me in one way or another). Measured in terms of this life, the temporary, it appears that pure living is pointless, that the world has all the fun. Yes, those who earnestly desire to follow God will have times of trial and tribulation (2 Timothy 3:12). The devil wants the hope we have to be as unattractive to the world as possible, so he seeks to pull our focus from eternity onto our troubles. God wants us, through His strength, to rise above the trials of this life, our eternal hope shining like a beacon to the world.
For, at the end - those who don't know God die, their pleasure comes to an end and they face eternity without God. And at the end, those of us who belong to God die as well - our earthly lives come to an end, and so do our problems and pains. Temporary life gives way to glorious life everlasting - joyous eternity in the presence of God!!
The author of Hebrews wrote: "By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharoh's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. It's all about perspective - the pleasures of this life ARE attractive, and sin looks like fun (and is indeed so in the moment), but it is fleeting. To choose the fleeting pleasures of this life over the glory of eternity would be similar to a man, given the choice between $100 now, and $100 MILLON 2 years later, chosing the $100 now. We would call that man crazy, foolish, blind. So much so are we when our perspective is skewed.
In conclusion, I challenge you, beloved brothers and sisters, seek Christ and live for Him - ask God to change your perspective. Yes, those around you may not understand, but that does not matter. For in the long run, we are treasuring what seems useless but will one day prove to be of greater worth than gold. Just think of the man, ridiculed for treasuring and protecting a lump of coal buried deep, under pressure. He knows it looks worthless in the moment, but smiles knowingly in the face of the mockers and says, "Just wait and see." :)
Below is a paraphrase I wrote of Psalm 73; I encourage you to read it for yourself from Scripture as well.
Yes, God is good to His people,
to the pure in heart, who follow His ways.
But in a moment of weakness, I nearly forgot this,
I almost lost my firm foothold on the truth.
Because I looked around and saw how easy the wicked have it!
I was jealous of the prideful - I wished I could be like the world:
They are never sick, never weary, always having abundance!
They have it so easy; they enjoy life, carefree.
Because of this, they are prideful and violent;
they mock those trying to follow God,
and invent new ways to do evil.
They oppress others, claiming to be high and mighty,
speaking against heaven, and acting like they own the earth!
And - what's worse - people flock to them, want to be in their crowd, to be like them!
They say, "Who is God? What does He know? He won't do anything!"
They say these things are yet they still prosper and have easy lives.
If this is what the lives of the wicked are like, then I thought in my heart,
"I have kept my heart and life pure for nothing!
Doing what is right is pointless and futile -
because even though I live right,
I face trouble -
doubt, fear, poverty, pain - all the time!
Every morning I am punished and disciplined!"
If I had broken down and spoken this against You,
I would have betrayed Your people -
Betrayed all who have taught me, and all those I have taught!
When I tried to understand it all -
why the wicked get away with everything and yet the righteous suffer -
it was too much for me and troubled my heart,
until I entered the presence of God, and saw from His perspective.
I understood what eventually becomes of the wicked.
You place them on slippery ground and cause them to come to ruin.
They will not get away with their evil deeds - they will face destruction.
As one forgets a dream after waking, so they will be utterly gone!
When I was bitter and hurt and confused within,
I spoke without any understanding or wisdom;
I was senseless as an animal before You.
Despite all this I know:
I am always with You,
You lead me by the hand and guide me with Your wisdom,
And one day I will be with You in glory.
With this as my perspective, I see You are my supreme desire in heaven,
and how could I want anything more than all of You on earth?
My flesh and my heart are weak, and will not sustain me,
But God is my strength and all that I need.
For now I see: all who are far from you and unfaithful to You will perish
and end in destruction.
And now I understand: I choose to be near God -
it is the only good in the long run!
It is worth it all!
You will be my refuge in this life
and I will praise you for all You have done!
