The Importance of the Gospel

Life has been pretty busy.  I work 20-25 hours a week, go to school 15 hours (plus tons of papers, test, and projects)...  I was getting caught up in neglecting the Word of God and neglecting glorifying the Lord at work and in my studies.  


It wasn't until Wednesday September 28 that I had a wake up call that I was NOT expecting.  My dad called on my way after fellowship groups and had told me that my cousin, Gavin, at the age of 30 had passed away earlier that day.  Upset and confused I began to process that this is life on Earth is not our home.  I was getting caught up in going through the motions of my everyday life.  I was selfish.  I was keeping the Lord to myself, but WHY?


WHY not share what the Lord has done for you and ME??  
"Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.  But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you."  Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.  Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.  Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet he shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.  Do you believe this?"  She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world."" John 11:21-27


Praise God that we could celebrate my cousin's life on Earth because he was a believer!  But I don't want to let any day pass by where the Lord is not proclaimed in my daily life.  Life with Christ is Eternal.  These days on Earth will pass away, but life with the Lord will last FOREVER.  


Last week for my fall break I spent a couple of days in Lawrence, Kansas for the funeral then spent the last few days in Dallas, Texas with my sister.  The break was very nice, but I found myself getting caught back up in living my life getting frustrated with Earthly things.  It wasn't til this morning reading Elisabeth Elliot's Devotional that I found myself once again reminded of the importance of the Gospel.  


Here was my slap in the face this morning:
Several Ways to Make Yourself Miserable
Author: Elisabeth Elliot


1. Count your troubles, name them one by one--at the breakfast table, if anybody will listen, or as soon as possible thereafter.
2. Worry every day about something. Don't let yourself get out of practice. It won't add a cubit to your stature but it might burn a few calories.
3. Pity yourself. If you do enough of this, nobody else will have to do it for you.
4. Devise clever but decent ways to serve God and mammon. After all, a man's gotta live.
5. Make it your business to find out what the Joneses are buying this year and where they're going. Try to do them at least one better even if you have to take out another loan to do it.
6. Stay away from absolutes. It's what's right for you that matters. Be your own person and don't allow yourself to get hung up on what others expect of you.
7. Make sure you get your rights. Never mind other people's. You have your life to live, they have theirs.
8. Don't fall into any compassion traps--the sort of situation where people can walk all over you. If you get too involved in other people's troubles, you may neglect your own.
9. Don't let Bible reading and prayer get in the way of what's really relevant--things like TV and newspapers. Invisible things are eternal. You want to stick with the visible ones--they're where it's at now.
  
Wake up call...I think so! Praise God.  


God sent his son to die on the cross for my sins and yours.  Today I ask myself...Am I going to live my life proclaiming the Gospel or Neglecting the Gospel?