“In the way of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death” (Proverbs 12:28).
Hold a man’s head under water, and he will fight you to come up for air. It’s in every person to LIVE and not die. This is how God created us… with breath in our lungs, hope in our hearts, and a desire to truly live.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, but it’s a coming-of-age, feel-good movie about four friends who go in different directions one summer but stay connected through a favorite pair of jeans. Silly, I know, but still a heartwarming story.
I’m reminded of a scene in the movie where one of the girls has befriended a much younger girl who is energetic, outgoing, full-of-life, and diagnosed with a terminal disease. The girl asks her new young friend, “Are you afraid to die?”
She said, “It’s more that I’m afraid of time. And not having enough of it. Time to figure out who I’m supposed to be and to find my place in the world before I have to leave it. I’m afraid of what I’ll miss.”
I think this is true of all of us. Even now, as a Christian, I’m not afraid to die. I agree with the Apostle Paul: “For me to live is Christ [His life in me], and to die is gain [the gain of the glory of eternity]” (Philippians 1:21, AMP).
But I would be afraid of what I’d miss.
Life is meant to be lived to the full. This means something different to different people. One may think a full life is bungee-jumping from a platform in the Amazon or meeting the President. Others may see life full if they reach 100 years of age surrounded by many children and grandchildren.
But ultimately, the writer in Proverbs meant only one thing: “In the way of righteousness [right-standing with God] is life, and in its pathway [a life with God] there is no death [no separation, no fear of an eternity without Him]”
If a person never accepts Jesus into their heart by faith, then what does it matter if you bungee-jumped in the Amazon or met the President? How is life really full at 100 years of age surrounded by children and grandchildren, if your next step is eternal separation from the One who created you and gave you life in the first place?
Jesus said, “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:10). In other words, TRUE LIFE STARTS in the heart. But it doesn’t stop there…
Do you want to travel the world?
Climb a mountain?
Write a best-selling book?
The Bible says, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4). When our heart believes on the One who saved us, righteousness is birthed. And then out of the same heart, God places dreams, goals, grand plans, hopes, and desires.
And the Psalmist tells us why we can be confident that God would do this for us: “[If you] Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, He shall bring it to pass” (verse 5).
In the way of righteousness is LIFE.
You don’t have to fear death. You don’t have to fear missing out on things in life. Build your relationship with God and He will make sure your dreams are fulfilled.
