I recently read a story about an Army veteran who had been receiving benefits from the government. Evidently he had been wounded in Vietnam and was now on permanent disability. One day, out of the blue, he received an official notification from the government of his own death. Needless to say, this was quite a shock!
Mr. Crabtree wrote the government a letter stating that he was indeed very much alive and would like to continue receiving his benefits. The letter did no good. He then tried calling the government. (Have you ever tried to call the government? This required the patience of Job and the persistence of Noah!) The phone calls didn't change the situation either. Finally, as a last resort, the veteran contacted a local television station, which ran a human-interest story about his situation.
During the interview, the reporter asked him, "How do you feel about this whole ordeal?" The veteran chuckled and said, "Well, I feel a little frustrated by it. After all, have you ever tried to prove that you're alive?"
That's a pretty good question for all of us. Could you prove that you are alive? Really, genuinely, deep-down alive? When was the last time you had an alive moment? Not the last time you took a breath or had your heart beat inside your chest, but the last time you felt yourself alive to your living, alive to your loving, deeply present with the gift of life itself?" I believe that so many today live in this world, but they do not live it with Joy in their souls. God promises that he would give us great joy and fullness in our life. Notice how God describes our relationship with him, 1Pe 1:8 "Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." This kind of joy only comes through allowing God to be Number one in our lives. Sometimes we begin our walk with God with this kind of joy, but somewhere along the way we loose this closeness, this joy, the fellowship that we once had with God. Then like the old saying says, " The thrill is gone" . Somewhere along the way things starting getting in the way and then coming before God. Jesus tells us a parable of this in Mr 4:19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. This is what can happen to us, we can become unfruitful. This is when we may realize that we are not alive in Christ. I have found out that there can be a closer walk with God each day. The Bible tells us in Ge 5:24 "And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him." Noah walked with God, Ge 6:9 These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. The Bible promises that you and I can also walk with God, and when we walk with God , we become alive. In 1kings ch.19 we read how that Elijah found God in a still small voice and became alive once again. He felt that stirring once again in his soul. We need this today! Yes God is real, and we can feel him deep within our souls. David tells us in Ps 23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. We also read in Ps 35:9 And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation. In Acts ch.16 how could Paul and Silas be joyful while thrown in prison? Ac 16:25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. How could they sing praises unto God? They were Alive in Christ! They did not just say that they were Christians, they felt it in their souls. They was alive with the joy of God. Do you know that you are alive in Jesus Christ today? Can you feel him stirring in your soul? If you can not answer yes to any of these questions, then you need to go to God in prayer and ask him to come into your heart today. Remember what he tells us in Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. You can feel alive today!