This Day in History: 0000-06-24

June 24 – John 10:10 

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. 

How often are we fooled into believing the pleasures of this world hold an appeal? It’s so easy to do! We’re tempted to look at the “fun” others seem to be having and feel left out. Or, to look at the stuff others spend their lives chasing, and believe we need those things too. Isn’t it just so easy to believe that their lives are so carefree because they can do whatever they want and don’t have to worry about living up to some impossible standard? I believe every one of us falls victim to this line of thinking every now and then, and those are the moments when verses like this one become so important. 

Our enemies, the powerful forces of darkness, want nothing more than to rob us of the abundant life God has for us. They are a host of liars and thieves, and their purpose, my friend, is not to offer us fun, or satisfaction, or fulfillment, or prosperity. No, the heartbeat of their existence is to steal, kill, and destroy. 

They want nothing more than for us to waste our time chasing the eternally worthless things of this world because then we won’t be chasing after our Lord. They long for us to throw away the righteous standards that God has called us to because if we live for ourselves we will never be satisfied. And if we’re never satisfied, we’ll never stop chasing more worthless things. 

But we belong to the Lord God Almighty! And His purpose for us is to give us LIFE! Eternal, fulfilling, wonderful life! So let’s refuse to believe the lies. Let’s memorize this short and simple verse and repeat it aloud whenever we’re tempted to chase after anything other than our Lord and Savior! Let’s claim the rich and satisfying life  God has prepared for each of us!