"Then Jesus cried out, 'When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. 
'As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. 
'For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.'" (John 12:44-50)

 THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD by: Anna Popescu

Almost every year, wildfires plague the San Bernardino Mountains in southern California. One year the headlines read, "Thick, Dead, Dying Forest Awaited Its Fate." The article quoted a private forester as saying the fire was a "disaster waiting to happen."

That year, almost 500,000 acres of forest burned. Experts said this was because a sufficient and well-coordinated amount of tree thinning had not been done in recent years prior to that wildfire occurring. In other words, that disaster could well have been averted or at the very least, diminished in size. Some people might call this preventive maintenance. I like to think of it as a risk management program.

So it is with the state of our souls. God offers us the free gift of His salvation through the death of Jesus Christ, His only Son. Jesus willingly took on the burden of our sins so that we would not have to suffer for eternity. In my humble opinion, this free gift of salvation can also be considered as a risk management plan for God's people.

I'm sure you have seen the signs displayed at professional sports games that read: "John 3:16." These signs joyfully remind us that there is a way for us to spend eternity in heaven! According to John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." Verse 17 goes on to explain, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

I have highlighted the word "believe" in the previous verses and in the opening sentences of this devotional. To "believe" means more than agreeing that Jesus is God; it means trusting that Jesus Christ alone can save us from paying the price for our sins. Believing is to agree that what He says is trustworthy and that relying on Him gives us the power to change. If you have never trusted in Jesus Christ, let the promises in these verses be yours. All you have to do is pray the verses to God, believing them to be true. He'll take care of the rest. You can have everlasting life in heaven if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord.

I used to think at times that when I finally came face-to-face with God, I would have a list of questions I wanted to ask Him. Recently I've come to realize that when I go home to be with my Lord, I won't care about any of the "stuff" I experience down here. None of it will matter any longer because of the utter joy I will have in His presence.

Maybe if we thin out the debris and clutter in our lives, we'll make more room for God to reside with and in us. The more we rely on Him to guide our lives, the more we'll be able to know His will for us. that's when we might stop wondering what eternity holds for us and start believing in the only One Who matters. 
Now that's a risk management plan I can live with forever!

faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of this fate is to see what we believe.

Copyright © 2008 Anna M. Popescu.

You can read more of Anna’s writings @ http://www.annapopescu.com