Everything is grace

I have a new favorite phrase that I have been saying for the past few weeks: "Keep on keepin' on!" I believe with all my heart that God is going to restore every broken heart in San Luis Obispo and heal every sickness. I also believe that God is going to use his people to bring the healing about.

At times, it can be hard to hold on to this promise. It's easy to get depressed when you try and bring Jesus to someone, and in turn they hate you for it. It's easy to get discouraged from this promise when you turn on the TV or radio and hear the voice of godless liberalism louder than the voice of God's people. It's easy to quit when you're oppressed by people around you who you hold close to your heart.

I find myself often in a place of questioning the Lord as to why I am doing what I do for Him, and how "realistic" the promise is. When I find myself in this position, I've come to realize that I am missing the heart of what it truly means to live for Christ and to bring Jesus to people.

I've found that the very essence and nature of God's heart is love. That's it. Jesus wasn't about philosophies or religion; He was about people. He healed the sick and the brokenhearted, restored families, and blessed people. He gave hope to the hopeless and comforted those who had no one else to fight for them. He loved people so much they killed Him for it.

And here is where I come back to the question: why am I doing what I do for Jesus, especially when I'm not seeing any lives changed, when it seems the world is against me?

The answer: love.

I love people because Jesus loves people. I gotta love people so much that it hurts. It's gotta hurt bad. When I see that my friends are living in death, depression, and sickness, it has to hurt from the depths of my soul. It must hurt because it hurts God.

It is my duty as a son and as an ambassador of the living God to speak life where there is death and light where there is darkness, even if my words aren't received. Because I love. Because I know that God's word over a person never ever fails. Because I know that when God speaks to a person through me, that the works of hell are completely broken off their life. Love endures all, hopes for all, and never fails.

Keep on keepin on, in faith and love.

~Justin