Eternal perspective or seasonal perspective…which one do you have?
I was thinking about this over the weekend. We must realize there is a huge difference in eternal perspective and seasonal or daily perspective.
For instance, if I am at a family gathering with lots of food and I choose to view it from a daily or seasonal perspective, I may eat anything and everything there. However, if I look at it from a more eternal perspective, I will choose wisely what I eat, knowing it will affect my body later.
It is the same with debt. Many people go into debt to purchase something they feel they have to have at the moment, not thinking about how it will affect them in the long run. Not thinking that they may lose their job or have a medical emergency. They have a ‘right now’ perspective instead of a long-term perspective.
Many have a live for the moment, enjoy the day, perspective and that is fine in many situations. However, as a Christian, we need an eternal perspective concerning our walk with God.
We only need to read the Bible to discover that one person’s walk with God can and will affect generations to come. What you do today, what you stand for today, will affect, not only you, but your children and grandchildren.
I realized the magnitude of an eternal perspective several months ago when I heard a minister say, ‘don’t leave behind battles for your kids to fight.’ What he was saying was that we are to overcome certain battles now, so that our kids don’t have to fight them later. Things like poverty, and debt, if we overcome it, our children will walk in the fruit of our victory. That is an eternal perspective.
Eternity is outside of time. It is timelessness, with no concept of time, therefore it is not held within the boundaries of time. So it is with God, God is eternal.
Deuteronomy 33:27 says; The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, and will say, ‘Destroy!’
God is outside of time, He is past, present and future, simultaneously. When we view things from God’s point of view, we have an eternal perspective.
And yes! It is possible to view life from His perspective. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says; He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity in our hearts.
That was the NKJV of this scripture. It is the same word for ‘eternal’ in the scripture in Deuteronomy which says, ‘the eternal God is our refuge.’ However, when I looked at this scripture in the KJV it says, ‘God has put the world in our hearts.’ This is the word ‘alam’ in the Strong’s Concordance and its root word meaning ‘He conceals Himself.’
To me, this says, God has put His eternal purposes in our hearts, He has concealed His plan without us and within our hearts…it is therefore, our job to search it out and draw it out. The eternal plan of God is within us this very day, we must draw it out and walk in it.
God’s eternal plan for us is already in place. How we respond to that will determine whether we walk in it or not.
We are not on this earth to simply live day to day and not make a difference, God put each of us here for a purpose, I don’t know about you, but I want to fulfill every bit of my purpose and I want to make a difference. Even if it is only in one life, I desire to make a difference. And I desire to make a more solid foundation for my children and grandchildren to walk upon. For that reason, I MUST keep my focus on an eternal perspective.
I want to complete a work that endures, don’t you?!
1 Corinthians 3:12-14 says; Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward.
This eternal purpose is not only for those in full time ministry, it is for every one of us. We all have an eternal purpose within us, what we do DOES and WILL make an impact, it will make a difference. Never forget that.
One day, each of us will stand before our God to determine if we did, indeed, build a work that endured, and all that begins with having an eternal perspective. God has already put eternity in our hearts, let’s begin to draw out His eternal purpose for our lives today.
Prayer for Today: Father, I thank you for the eternal purpose you have put within us. Help us to draw it out today and help us to begin to walk in it, from this day forth. This we ask in Jesus name. Amen.
