“Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.” (1 John 2:15-16)
The world has a very strong attraction for us. From the time we open our eyes after our birth, our senses are flooded with the sight, sound, feel, scent and taste of our surroundings. We cry out for the things we need; food, water, nurturing and clean diapers when we soil them. But then as we grow older, we begin to notice pretty, or interesting things and in addition to our needs we begin to want more. We begin to accumulate our favorite toys, taking possession of them. We start interacting with others, but all the while we are searching for that new toy that will make us happy and keep us occupied for a while. Without God, our whole life could be summed up as a pursuit of pleasure without ever being truly satisfied.
I was fortunate that I discovered true satisfaction when I was only eleven years old. That was when I discovered the truth of John 3:16 and began a relationship with God through the life, death and resurrection of His Son and His Holy Spirit within me; filling a void nothing on earth could do. That was not the end of the world’s attraction for me, just the beginning of my long journey through life with God as my tour guide. There have been times when I’ve been distracted by the things of this world, but my love and attraction to my Lord have always been strong enough to bring me back to Him. Through my love and relationship with God, I came to realize the value and importance of other relationships. I found the love of my life and shared fifty years of my life with her. Since her passing, I have developed deep, loving relationships with so many of my brothers and sisters in Christ and my extended family keeps growing.
I am taking you on this trip down memory lane to remind you of what really matters in life; our loving relationship with God and those around us. When the ruler of this world asks, “How can I help you?” our love of our Father will give us the will power to answer, “Just looking” as we continue on life’s journey. After all, when we leave this world, as we all will someday, love is the only thing we can take with us. All of our toys and possessions will be left behind along with our pain, sorrow and regrets. Then, as children of God, we will unite with Him for eternity when our visit here comes to an end.