I am sitting in front of a nice warm fire, reflecting on this past year. For me it has been a year full of surprises, challenges, blessings, and anticipation for the future. No matter how we plan and think we know what our future holds, there are always unexpected things that happen that change our circumstances, sometimes quite significantly. That can be true both with positive results as well as negative ones.

One thing I have realized though, in the midst of whatever is going on in our everyday lives, there is another dimension that we sometimes neglect to factor in. Of course I am talking about our eternal spirit which, will live forever and ever. Sometimes when our circumstances seem overwhelming, hopeless or negative, we need to stop and reflect on that truth. Sometimes that is all we have to hold onto, but when we really have a true understanding of what that means, we can cope with things much better.

I have had a number of health issues this year — way more than I have ever experienced in such a short time span. Amazingly, it has caused me to press into the Lord even more. I have not lost my peace or joy even when things were not going like I would have liked. It has given me more empathy for others with much more serious or painful situations and also caused me to pray for them even more than I might have otherwise. It has also helped me to realize that even though I may be experiencing pain or sickness right now, these are only temporary and there will come a day when our redemption will be complete and we receive our glorified bodies, which we will have for the rest of eternity. I am also seeking the Lord as to why more of us are not experiencing healing when the scriptures plainly state that healing is part of the atonement that Jesus paid such a high price for.

So whether it is sickness, injury or handicap, or whether it is financial challenges, relationship issues or any number of other temporary problems, if we can keep things in perspective in the light of eternity, we will endure these hardships much better.

On the other end of the spectrum are all of the blessings that we experience and usually take for granted. Did you know that these blessings can distract us every bit as much or more from pursuing our eternal destiny? We in the United States are very blessed and sometimes because of all of these blessings, our relationship with the Lord takes a lesser place of importance. The Lord wants to bless us in every way, but we don’t want to be like the children of Israel. Every time He would bless and prosper them, they would backslide, go into idolatry and usually end up in bondage. They would then cry out to God, repent and turn back toward Him. He would deliver them from their oppressors and then begin the blessing process again. They were so cyclic — so are we. I certainly have been blessed over the years in so many ways, but there have been times in the past where I have gotten sidetracked pursuing the blessings rather than the One who blesses me.

However, the older I get, the more I am getting my priorities closer to what I believe is pleasing to the Lord. I think wanting to make every moment I have left on this earth count for eternity has helped me lay aside things that in the past have been a distraction. It is not outright sin that I am normally tempted by, but rather settling for less than what has eternal value. Investing in other’s lives is becoming more important because they too are eternal beings who are on the same journey as I am. 

Some of us who have been on this journey longer don’t need to retire but rather re-fire. We need to invest our experience into the lives of those who need to be encouraged and mentored. There is not a greater thrill to me than to see a younger person who is willing to listen to and learn from those who have been on this journey for a long time. We may not have the physical stamina to keep up with them (although some of us probably can even do that) we need to help them not waste so much time on useless pursuits and always have to learn things the hard, long way.

So as we prepare to enter into the New Year of 2018, may we keep our hearts in a place of remembering the past, laying aside the distractions and pressing into Him even more. I can honestly say, I have a great excitement and anticipation to see what will unfold as the time of the great Harvest is upon us. Millions of searching souls need someone to point the way, not just with our words, but with the testimony of a life that is in love with our God and mankind, a life that is full of His joy and peace in the midst of all the storms that are swirling around us in an ever increasing measure.