Thriving in Babylon…
No, I don’t think God is asking any of us to move to Iraq this week. Although it is supposed to be partly sunny and 70 on Sunday there! This week we will begin looking at how we can do more than just survive the times in which we live. There is a man in the Old Testament who was captured and taken into exile at the prime of his life. He had done nothing wrong. His people, his nation had forgotten God and he found himself caught up in the aftermath. Thankfully, very few of us have ever been forced into captivity. God has blessed us with an incredible nation, an incredible free nation. However, if you are a follower of Jesus and you are striving to become more and more like Him, then the world around you is beginning to look more and more like a foreign land. As we watch the decisions that are being made, the agendas and ideals that are being promoted, we are seeing the differences between man’s ways and God’s.
But God has chosen this time, this culture, this location for you and I to live. So many people talk about the “good old days” or spend their time worrying about the future. Neither of which we have any control over. We have this moment, this day, this time to live. But God did not call us just to exist in these times. If we are followers of Jesus, then God has given us access to abundant life! How do we tap into that with everything that is going on around us? How do we keep from getting discouraged? How do we fight in a way that brings glory and honor to God? How can we TRIVE in modern-day Babylon?
