Matthew 6:13b “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and; the glory forever. Amen.” Psalm 23:6b And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
What does forever mean to you? Ask the husband and wife who promised to love, trust and stand by as long as they both shall live and are now battling through a nasty divorce. Even a marriage that lasts a life time will end in death of a spouse.
ETERNITY = FOREVER; WITHOUT END
Ask the family whose young mom just died with breast cancer. The children thought they would have their mom forever. Ask the employer whose employee signed a non compete clause, saying he would not quit and go to work for another competitor. Although not forever, the employer thought he could trust the employee’s signature written down in a covenant. A promise broken.
Can we finite humans even begin to grasp the meaning of forever? Both the twenty third Psalm and the Lord’s Prayer end with forever and ever. Amen.
Our thoughts are consumed with the temporal things of this world. It’s hard for us to have the “forever mode” of thinking. We are finite. We know there was a first breath to our lives and there will be a last. We desperately try to cram everything possible into our lives; from our birth date until our death date. Most of us honestly live like we have forever on this earth. What are we doing to invest in eternity?
Psalm Twenty Three ends with: “And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” We’ve never been to the house of the Lord. However; if we are going to dwell there with the Lord forever; should we not be making some sort of daily preparation for our souls?
Jesus speaks of eternity in heaven in John 14:2-3: “In My Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, i would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”
The Lord’s prayer ends with, “Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” Our earthly kingdom belongs to Christ as does our heavenly kingdom. His kingdom shall reign forever and ever.
I would encourage you to begin to pray these two passages as part of your daily devotion. The Lord’s Prayer and the Twenty Third Psalm. Pray them. Don’t just say them. You will be amazed at what will transpire in your walk with God. Your “forever” perspective will be changed “forever”; until you go to be with the Lord, “forever.”
Prayer in Motion:
Pray these two passages I have written out for you. I personalized the Lord’s prayer using My and me… Matthew 6:9-13
My Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your Name. Your Kingdom come. Your will be done. In earth as it is in heaven. Give me this day, my daily bread. And forgive me my debts as I forgive my debtors. And lead me not into temptation. But deliver me from evil. For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory. Forever. Amen
Now pray the 23 Psalm already personalized.
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. Yeah, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death; I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and your staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies and You anoint my head with oil. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen
