By Lary P. Stover

The Selma Times-Journal

Can you imagine what life would be like if every one of your friends were a “saint?”  It would make everything much better on the journey of life.  They would always tell the truth.  Everything that came out of their mouth would be encouraging, helpful, and very positive.  Words and phrases like “please,”  “thank you,” “God bless you,” and “have a great day” would be commonplace when you were with them.

Can you imagine how much lower your stress level would be in such a utopian existence?  You wouldn’t have to worry about people getting mad at you, screaming at you, or, simply making your life miserable.

Well, we all know that such a reality hardly exists.  We all know that traveling this road of life is hardly perfect.  Even our closest friends have tough days.  We all get discouraged and disheartened from time to time.  Some get disillusioned and depressed with the struggles of life.  Before long, we realize that life can be very disappointing at times.

When we take a look into the mirror, we are reminded of our physical imperfections.  A study of our inner self makes us aware of our shortcomings, flaws, and weaknesses.  We are all definitely a “work in progress!”

In the midst of all our shortcomings, our God of love and mercy opens the windows of heaven and pours out a flood of his grace that is always sufficient.

One of the greatest challenges we Christians face in 2014 is to reach the conclusion that we need continual “fresh encounters with God.” The stresses of life deplete our energy, fracture our emotions, and strain our spiritual vitality. We need to continually remind ourselves that God will supply our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus; He will never leave us nor forsake us; and most off all, His grace is always sufficient.

If life has you down, I want to encourage you to look up.  Jesus Christ is still reaching out to all creation with arms of love.  He continues to beckon us to come to him if we are tired, worn out, and weary knowing that He will give you rest.  That is physical rest, emotional rest, mental rest, and spiritual rest.

It would be great if we lived in a perfect world with perfect family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors. But, the reality is that we don’t. Even the best of us have bad days.

We have to believe that there is nothing too hard for God, and that through Jesus Christ we can have a life that is “simply beautiful.”  It’s our choice.