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Better Things For You
One of the qualities of a loving parent is to provide for their children that are better for them than what they have experienced. Many believe that the adage "leave the world in better shape than when you entered it" is a just and noble cause. Can we say things are better today than when we entered this world? In some ways we are better off, but in many ways, this world is not better than a few decades ago. This is nothing unusual about our times, as each generation and culture has experienced the same problems.
In our country, even our poorest of society live a much more lavish lifestyle than some of the richest in other nations. Our blessings have become so common place that we take for granted the fact that many people in the world go hungry every day. We play on our cellphones without thinking how great it is to have one, while many wish they had a way to communicate with family and loved ones. We drive around in cars, while many in the world only walk or ride an animal or a cart drawn by an animal.
We take all these things for granted, and fail to realize just how blessed we are to be living in this country. But more than the material things we have and deal with, we really need to concentrate upon making our spiritual lives better. This is something that all men are allowed to share in. It does not matter how rich they are or how poor they are. When their mind is focused upon spiritual matters, their outlook on life is better.
That is why the Hebrews writer wrote in chapter 6:9: "Beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way." No matter what this world has to offer, the things concerning salvation are much better. For this world and everything in it are temporal and will not endure. Our soul is eternal and will exist even into the next realm which is past death. Many people live life only worried about their death and it all being over. The Bible teaches that there is a life after death, and we should be focused upon our eternal destiny. If we realize our destiny is Hell, we need to take measures to correct our behavior and change our course towards heaven. If we see heaven in our future, we need to maintain our course and not stray away from it.
God has given us everything we need to know how to get to heaven. His word was brought to us through the work of the Holy Spirit, and He gives us the mind and will of God in written form that is simple to understand if we apply ourselves to learning it. We read in 2 Peter 1:3: "seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence."
The Hebrew writer continues in verse 10: "For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown towards His name", in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints." God does not forget all the good we do. About the only thing that God forgets is our past sins, as long as we are repenting, confessing, and ceasing those iniquities. God has given each of us the duty to minister to others in whatever ways are needed. We may not be able to give someone money who is suffering, but we can do something. Provide a meal, share some clothing, or provide a place to rest. The list goes on and on of the many ways we can provide goodness for others. Look at the great judgment scene in Matthew 25. Do you see how Jesus commended those who assisted others, and how He condemned those who refused to help others. These are the better ways that God has shown to us.
Just because we may have assisted someone in the past does not mean we have done our full duty. There are people in need everywhere around us. Perhaps they do not need food or shelter, but there is a need for their soul's salvation. We should care about their souls so as to help them find the salvation God offers.
In verse 11, we read: "And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end,". Applying all diligence means to make every effort possible in our pursuit of this hope. We must be faithful until death, and we cannot slack off. Verse 12 starts off: "that you may not be sluggish..." We do not need to be slacking off in our duty towards serving God or each other. And it is certain that Jesus needs us to be active in the spread of the Gospel message that can provide salvation to those who hear and obey.
If we are not sure how to accomplish this, the Hebrew writer continues in verse 12: "...but imitators of those who though faith and patience inherit the promises." Yes, some people have figured out what God wants from them, and we all can learn from those good examples. Truly it will be better to go to heaven than to hell. Keeping a spiritual mindset will help us get there.
By Carey Scott

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