Our Encounter With God Changes Everything

We humans are focused on the "WORLD", which we believe has the potential to transform us. I'm referring to broad concepts such as money, love, fame, pleasure, and so on. In reality, the more we follow, the more pain or emptiness we feel deep inside our hearts.

Consider this scenario: your mind is constantly preoccupied with money. It's not wrong to have money, but idolatry occurs when you place a higher value on money than on God.

Many people also look for the love of others. However, human love fades over time, so if you go there seeking love from others, the issue will keep reoccurring. That's why the relationship fails, yet you are still unsatisfied with anyone, because nothing in man has infinite love.

The person believes that if you are famous, you will find fulfilment there, but the truth is that this is a deceit, which the person is unaware of. Many people are impacted by what they see in others or on social media, particularly celebrities. Even when dressed up, some people almost show off the private parts of their bodies in order to attract others' attention, or because they believe that exposing them will draw attention to their curves, sexiness, and beauty, but even if you have millions of followers, true happiness cannot be found there because true satisfaction does not come from human praise.

Many individuals believe that the only moment we can experience pleasure is when we have a party. Not all parties are wicked, but we can only be misled by that if it does not give benefit to man, especially if it does not bring glory to God. Some may argue that we enjoy travelling around the world, then discuss it on social media to encourage others to do the same and receive praise from the public, especially in the name of profit. All our efforts are futile if they do not please the Lord, especially if they do not exalt Him.

All of this is an illustration of the demons' trickery in man to cause him to turn away from the Lord. However, God's love for you and all of us is immeasurable. He does not want any of us to perish. Man can only perish as a result of ignorance. I was also in the "WORLD" or enslaved by sin, but God saved me by His grace. If our faithful God was able to transform and save me, He can do the same for you. Consider the following verse:

2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 (NLT)

 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

In fact, money does not provide actual happiness because the only true eternal happiness we may find is in the Lord, not in earthly possessions. Money is essential to man, yet it is no longer our primary focus in this world, and we utilise it for good reasons in accordance with God's will. For the love of money, after all, is the source of all evil. If you give in to that temptation, your confidence in the Lord will be shattered, and you will be wounded with many afflictions.

1 TIMOTHY 6:10 (NLT)

 For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

MATTHEW 6:19-21 (NLT)

19 “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. 21 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

COLOSSIANS 3:2 (NLT)

Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

If God is in us, we should not be concerned about anything, including money, because He is our provider. He already knows what we need before we even ask. However, we must first seek God's kingdom and live righteously, and He will provide everything we require. For God is abounding in His glorious riches.This is how we imagine how great our God is: that He can grant us whatever we desire if it is in His will.

1 TIMOTHY 6:17-19 (NLT)

17 Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. 19 By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life.

MATTHEW 6:33 (NLT)

 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

PHILIPPIANS 4:19 (NLT)

 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

MATTHEW 6:8 (NLT)

Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!

We cannot be satiated by any man's love since the ultimate love that fills us is found only in God. If we are filled with God's love, it will overflow and we will be able to share it with others. This is the kind of love that can't be bought or swapped for anything.

JOB 10:12 (NLT)

You gave me life and showed me your unfailing love. My life was preserved by your care.

ROMANS 5:8 (NLT)

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

1 JOHN 4:8 (NLT)

But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

1 JOHN 4:16 (NLT)

 We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.

So all of this is for the glory of God, not even for the acclaim we receive from men, but for the exaltation and praise of our Lord, for we are saved by God's grace through Jesus Christ. That is why we devote everything to the Lord, because He is the only One who deserves to be served, thanked, and worshipped. We can also discover great pleasure in the Lord because we can sense love, joy, and serenity in His presence.

Whom are we looking for if the Lord is already present? He fulfils all of our requests. God's love for us is unfathomable. That is why, when we establish a connection with the Lord, we must taste how precious His love is. Let us savour the Lord's favor. So what are you waiting for? If you accept him, He is prepared to receive and penetrate you. There, you will encounter exactly what He has promised in His Word, and everything will change when you meet Him. Your ways will be converted into His ways, and your thoughts will be changed into His thoughts. You can truly say that the love of God that you have been looking for is so beautiful.

MATTHEW 7:7-8 (NLT)

7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

JOHN 15:11 (NLT)

 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!

PSALM 16:11 (NLT)

You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.

EPHESIANS 3:18-19 (NLT)

18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

PSALM 34:8 (NLT)

Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!