Another year of life...

New opportunities, new responsibilities, and new privileges.

There will be uncertainties, but one thing is certain.

My life will be a success to the proportion that I allow the love of God to shine through my heart...

The controversy ended...

Isaiah 65

The end is come. Justice is served.

The righteous will eat, but the wicked will be hungry. The righteous will have water to drink, but the wicked will be thirsty.

Why? Because when God called, the righteous answered, but the wicked did not answer. When God laid out a requirement, the righteous obeyed, but the wicked did not listen – instead, they went their own way and did that which was displeasing to God.

And as a result, when the servants of the Lord sing with fervent joy, the captives of Satan will howl with vexation of spirit.

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The reward of the righteous will be more wonderful than our wildest imaginations. But I wanted to point out something that I thought of recently. We’re told essentially that we can’t hurt ourselves in heaven. Now, if you couldn’t hurt yourself, no matter what you did… Imagine the things we would attempt if we knew we wouldn’t get injured. Exploring the rainforests without fear of biting insects and dangerous animals… Going into outer space without having to worry about muscle deterioration… Swimming and splashing down huge waterfalls without hurting yourself on the rocks… And my imagination takes off from there…

In other words… It’s worth all the trouble it takes to get there. If it took giving everything I have on this earth – I would do it.

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And meanwhile, what has happened to the wicked? They have been utterly destroyed. Isaiah uses the word, “consumed.” They are gone… never to live again. Their memory will live on through eternal ages. The universe will never be the same. Yet in a way, it will be better. For now, God’s justice has been vindicated. Satan’s original claim has been proven false. No one will ever challenge God’s supreme authority again. Sin will not rise a second time. And the awesome love of God has been demonstrated before the entire universe.

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And though there is another chapter of Isaiah, that I could write about, this post concludes my series of posts on Isaiah. I've learned a lot from reading through Isaiah. It was definitely worth the time. And more than ever before, the reality of the Great Controversy has burned into my heart. I've been challenged to reconsider my personal priorities, and evaluate what's really important... And maybe, just maybe, someone who read one of these posts was challenged to do the same... I hope so...