Romans 14:7-8 For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

This is another very important passage that many people want to ignore or outright deny. We want everything to be all about us, when it simply isn’t. Those who commit suicide are in a way the ultimate expression of this, but probably even more people live in totally self-centered fashion. We want to be independent of our Creator, and it just doesn’t work that way. The only way to total peace and joy is to be in right relationship with our Creator, knowing that He loves us and loving Him obediently in return. When we get that settled in our hearts and minds, all kinds of conflict just go out the window. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians about the issue of sexual immorality, “You are not your own; you were bought at a price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) We belong to God not only by right of creation, but because He purchased us at the cost of His Son. We had sold ourselves to sin, receiving little to nothing in the exchange, but God bought us back for Himself, out of sheer love and grace. The better and more consistently we remember that, the more peace and joy we will have.

This is something I have known for a long time, but I still need reminders. Every time things fail to go the way I want them to, I need to remind myself of this. Every time things do go in ways I don’t want them to, I need to remind myself of this. Opportunities for that abound! Already this morning I have been frustrated and a little depressed, when that is meaningless in the light of this truth. I need to keep my eyes on my Lord and trust Him with every detail, knowing what a good thing it is that I belong to Him and not just to myself. He has plans for me, not just for today, or even for the rest of my life on this earth, but for eternity, and those plans are very good indeed. As He famously told Jeremiah, His plans are indeed to give me hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11) That is true even when we have things along the way that we don’t desire, like Jeremiah getting stoned to death in Egypt. I don’t see the whole picture, and I need to trust the One who does.

Father, thank You for this reminder. When I wrote on Joy a few days ago somebody wrote to ask me how I deal with times when I feel less than joyful. I responded that praise songs are a big help. I need to remember that all the time! Help me indeed rest, relax, and rejoice in You, just as You have told me to do, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!