Devotions with Nell Ritchey

“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Col. 3:2-4

Isn’t it a wonderful thing to realize that our real life is not on this earth?

I think most believers are concerned about the state of our nation – morality is scoffed at, and Christianity is an endangered species. Things just keep getting worse and worse. It is easy to become discouraged, as we worry about what is going to happen to our children and grandchildren. As I cry out to God, I wonder, “How did this happen? How did we get here?”

But God reminds me that this is no new thing. The Apostles, but for one, died the deaths of martyrs, and the one who survived did so only because God refused to let him die in a vat of boiling oil.

The morality issues we are concerned with are not new. They are as old as sin itself. It’s all right there in Romans 1:18-25. The problem is not homosexuality, or any other specific sin; the problem is that man has become his own god. When that happens, a person’s own desires become paramount and they answer to no one but themselves. And as that occurs in more and more lives, it becomes a cultural expectation that everyone should be allowed to do what they want and the rest of us should condone that.

But no matter how much people deny God, He still is, the great I AM who is eternal and who will demand an accounting from everyone. No matter how bad things get, He has always reserved a remnant and He always will. He can be depended on to protect my children and grandchildren. It’s not my job to worry about them. It’s my job to pray for them and trust Him to bring them through.
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Blessings!
Nell Ritchey