Abundant Life

God Works It Out

“I am the door; by me if any man, enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture.  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” —John 10:9-10

I was studying this recently when it was revealed to me that there’s a deeper meaning for it in my own life. My past was pretty bad. I did all kinds of terrible things to those I love, and to those around me, and to myself.            

But, during all of that, I felt that I was living a normal life, and was trying to build something out of it. I worked and tried to save. I made plans. I chased the almighty Dollar, like everyone around me. The most important thing was to earn, earn, earn. That’s what everyone cares about. Did you take care of your stuff? Bills paid? Getting to work on time? Looking for more money?            

Nobody really cares if you’re a drunk, or addict so long as you keep taking care of business. But, when you start acting out, or failing in what society thinks you should be doing, everyone wants to stick their nose in your business. Once you are not a good slave anymore, you become a problem. But, all the while I thought I was fine.            

However, when life started to fall apart, there was nowhere else to turn but to God. And that’s a good thing, because He is the only one that can help. Others can put on a band aid, but only God can really heal.            

Jesus said “Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it” (Luke 17:33) When your life is garbage, and it’s falling apart, that is God calling you. You tried things your way, and now God is begging you to give Him a try before it’s too late. Get rid of that old life. Hate that old life and all that goes with it. If you keep clinging to that old life, and those old ways, it will drag you down. Turn to Him, and let Him work on you. He can’t do any worse than you have done. Just pray and ask God to save you. Pray that you want to make Jesus your Lord, and that He is the only Lord. Ask Him to help you and teach you. Ask Him to make you a new person and grow you.            

And that is what God does when you give yourself to Him. He starts to work, and things will start to change. It’s not immediate. Some things happen very quickly, but other things do not. That is patience being built in us. Spiritual healing, like natural healing is a growth process. It is not like man-made healing, where you pop a pill and feel better. But, it is REAL healing.            

When I look back at my life I now have an abundant life. Am I always happy? No. But, God has provided for my needs beyond anything I had before. He has moved in mighty ways to make me worth something. And most importantly He has shown me that He is real, and that He rewards those who seek Him. He, Himself is abundance. Having Him in your life creates abundance.            

You have to understand that I am not talking about great wealth. I do not have much, but He has made what I have plenty. He has made me content. Of course, this doesn’t mean I do not want to succeed more. But, I’m fine. He has me. Every time I have had need He has moved, and settled the issue in some way.            

You are not giving up anything when you turn to Him. You are gaining everything. The junk you lose is hurting you and others. He will cleanse you and re-mold you, and give you a purpose, and you will be with Him. This is life, and this is abundance.

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“ His newest book is called “The Future is Coming” and is a collection of dystopian short stories.

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

Read His Spiritual Writings on Blogger: https://chrisbunton.blogspot.com/

Follow him on Free Life Blog: https://myfreelifeblog.com/

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