The Permanence of Permanent

“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says the Lord God, “‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” Revelation 1:8.

It seems every time I turn around sin and death are lurking. Like many of you in your circle of influence, prayers are requested for so many things that it is difficult to keep up. The original fall from grace ushered in so much devastation that we can barely catch our breath from one heartbreak to another. As God wants to speak eternity in our hearts, Satan tempts us to believe that the temporary is the ultimate goal. The author of She Reads Truth cuts through the lies and reminds us there are only 4 things that are truly permanent…God…His word…our souls…His church. In a culture that wishes to confuse us about truth, Raechel Myers writes truth in her book saying that ‘everything other than these 4 things are all ashes and dust…it will all pass away…Breath is temporary, but life is valuable. Years are limited, but each life has an eternal weight to it. We can hope for people, but we cannot hope in people.” P. 149.

With Thanksgiving this week, it is easy to focus on the good things and people we have in our lives… these are our temporary pleasures given by God. Unfortunately, sometimes we forget that the good things are still temporary things. Money will go away, jobs will end, relationships get fractured, and bodies wear out. Traumas and tragedies strike the very core of our hearts, and they should. God created us to feel deeply and to love relentlessly like He loves us. There is nothing wrong with loving and grieving our temporary things, but when we make it our ultimate thing is when it becomes an idol. Sometimes something very important like our job, spouse, children or grandchildren becomes more valuable to us than the One who is permanent. It’s why we can’t draw boundaries …it’s the reason we strain to have control over things that end up having control over us. We are trying to hold on tight to ashes and dust instead of the Creator who used it to create us.  While God intends us to love the life He designed for us, we are to hold our lives loosely as we seek God tightly. He was there in the beginning of our lives, He is with us in the present, and He will be there in the end with His arms opened wide.

We must remember that true contentment and joy can only come through keeping our eyes on the Permanent, and enjoying the temporary with a surrendered heart. Our temporary things…our ashes and dust…are incredible blessings from God. Let’s keep them where they belong…held loosely with deep gratitude for the time we have to enjoy them.

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” Eccl 3:11.