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Forever and Ever

Have you ever wondered how long forever is?  Can you even measure the length of
forever?  Is it longer than working in
the field on a hot July day?  Is it
longer than sitting by the bedside of a very ill loved one through the
night?  Is it longer than a long walk
home on an icy night?
That kind of ‘earthly forever’ carries pain and angst
and need, there is another forever that is eternal.  The first forever has the promise of answered
prayer and learning to love and trust the eternal forever. 
We look at the number of days, weeks, months and years
we have to live – and when we are young we are deluded into thinking we are
invincible and can continue forever.  The
reality is that we will live for a brief period of time on this earth.  As old age creeps on us, we have difficulty
in seeing ourselves turn from a vibrant life to a guarded life of less
movement, from the top of our gray or bald heads to our aching feet, we are
becoming old.
What hope is there? 
Is this all there is?  It doesn’t
take long to find out the part of a person that never grows old is his inner
spirit.  The inner spirit can differ
depending on what one takes value in. 
When there is value found in truth and love and faith, that person
becomes a new creature in Christ Jesus. The spirit of that person becomes a ‘forever more’ soul, destined for Heaven
for a life with God.
Abraham is a hero of faith.  He believed in God and his life changed.  For the Scriptures tell
us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous
because of his faith.
  Romans 4:3. 
Although it may seem a mystery – just what did Abraham do?  He listened, he believed, he trusted, he
worshiped and he obeyed without question.
Moses, another man of faith, led the children of
Israel from Egypt, the land of slavery. 
When the people of Israel saw the mighty power
that the Lord had unleashed
against the Egyptians, they were filled with awe before him. They put
their faith in
the Lord and in his
servant Moses. Exodus 14:31
  Later God tested
their faith. 
Then the people
complained and turned against Moses. “What are we going to drink?” they
demanded.   So
Moses cried out to the
 Lord for help, and the Lord showed
him a piece of wood. Moses threw it into the water, and this made the water
good to drink.
It was there at Marah that the Lord set before them the
following decree as a standard to test their faithfulness to him.
 He said, “If you will
listen carefully to the voice of the
 Lord your God and do what
is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I
will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am
the
 Lord who heals you.”
Exodus 15:23-25
For
forty years the Israelites wandered in the wilderness.  Their trek lengthened into forty years
because they did not heed God’s Words. 
It was their pain and angst, and it seemed as if it lasted forever and
ever, placing one foot ahead of another, day after day.  Moses, their caretaker, a man of faith, was
faithful to care for these obstinate people. 
Did he become impatient?  Yes, but
he continued to faithfully obey God.  He
felt the earthly ‘forever complex’.
There is one thing that lasts for an eternity – that is what Abraham did
 He
listened, he believed, he trusted, he worshiped and he obeyed without question.
So how
long is eternity, really?  Forever and
ever?  We have guarantees on cars and
appliances – and they are guaranteed for 2 years to 5 years.  But there is one thing that is guaranteed
even when time is outmoded.  In Psalms we
find…
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. Give
thanks to the God of gods. 
His faithful love endures forever. Give
thanks to the Lord of lords. 
His faithful love endures forever. … 
Psalm 136:1
His
faithful LOVE endures forever.  Not hate,
not war, not anger, not revenge – but Love.
– This
verse refers to God’s Forever –
Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and
love—and the greatest of these is love. 
I Corinthians 13:13
Allelujah
and Amen and Amen!

– The Lord is king forever and ever! The
godless nations will vanish from the land.  Psalm 10:16


– You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and
the pleasures of living with you
forever Psalm 16:11
– Surely your goodness and
unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the
house of the Lord 
forever.  Psalm 23:6

– Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they
will receive an inheritance that lasts 
forever.  Psalm 37:18
– I am the living one. I died, but
look—I am alive
forever and
ever
! And I hold the keys
of death and the grave.
Revelation 1:18
– They sang, “Amen! Blessing and
glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to
our God 
forever and
ever!
Amen.” 
Revelation 7:12

– He will wipe every tear from
their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All
these things are gone forever.”
Revelation 21:4
These verses bring me a sense of God’s forever and
ever.  These verses bring me the hope
that is in Christ Jesus.  These verses
tell the time of the future that travels into the infinity.  Then there is one more verse that ‘lightens
my life with hope to carry on…”.
 No
longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the
Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 
 And
they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads.
 And there will be no night there—no need for
lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.  Revelation 22:3-5





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