Your Life is Never Over on This Earth...Until God Says it is

There have been so many times over the past couple of years that I felt my choices had ruined my life.  I would never be able to find that "peace that passes all understanding".  I would never be able to serve in ministry again...I had ruined every ounce of witness for Christ I would ever have.  There was no hope.  My name would be forever tainted...what's the point in living?

I have always known that God chooses our time to live and our time to die.  So since my sin hadn't killed me, there was still something God had in mind for my life.  I am so undeserving of His grace and His tender compassion.  I still have a hard time grasping His forgiveness...I will never understand it completely until I reach Heaven.

A verse came up in my summer Bible study this past week that stuck out to me.  It is found in Hosea.

"But then I will win her back once again.

I will lead her into the desert

and speak tenderly to her there.

I will return her vineyards to her

and transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope.

She will give herself to me there,

as she did long ago when she was young,

when I freed her from her captivity in Egypt."

Hosea 2:14-15 (NLT)

The title for this passage is "The Lord's Love for Unfaithful Israel".  I was overwhelmed with how amazing God is.  He is patient...compassionate...gracious...longsuffering.  His kindness is what leads a heart to repentance.  Time after time, God dealt with Israel's selfish ways.  He was their Protector, Provider and Preserver.  God would clearly lead them through the valley and provide a gateway of hope...it was up to them to choose to walk through it.  The thought that He didn't leave them in the midst of their complaints, selfishness, pride, and unfaithfulness is astounding to me. 

That God is our God.  He loves us in spite of us.  Not because we deserve it or are entitled to second, third, and fourth chances...but because of grace through His Son, Jesus Christ.  I am so thankful that when we walk through valleys (whether it be because of our choices or someone else's), God offers us a gateway of hope.  He seeks for our hearts to turn to Him so that He gets the glory for what only He can do through the good, the bad and the ugly.  

My prayer for my life is that I never forget...what God has saved me from, who God has saved me from and where God has saved me from.  I am the worst of the worst...but Christ's blood covers it all.  I am thankful that my life is not over...I am thankful for the gateway of hope God provides through Jesus.  I do not know what the rest of my life holds.  I just pray that Jesus would keep me near the cross and I would live a life that is above reproach.  That may not be my past...but I can choose it to be my future.