Deuteronomy 31:2-3 NIV
[2] “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’ [3] The Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the Lord said.
Things that happens in a Loss:
1.) The One Leaving. (Loss of Moses to take a step on the promised Land.)
- Of all the people, why moses? Yes i could say the israelites deserved not to see the promise land because of their disobedience, but Moses? He was a leader devoted to God. I didnt find the reason why someone like moses, who had only one mistake was already forbidden to see tge promise land?! I mean come on! The israelites had more than dozen of mistakes, yet God was merciful for the new generation to see it. But Moses? No! You arent allowed to see the promise land? It might have thought provoked at first but one thing that amazed me was that Moses did not rebelled or complained to God against his punishment for the one mistake He did. But accepted it fully without complain. Moses must have seen something beyond the punishment that i did not. Yes, He has indeed have seen something. Moses have seen what was most important. And it wasnot seeing the promise land (Canaan), but finally seeing the real promise land (Being with God). Moses have seen finitely (mortality) of things this world & the infintely (immortailty) of God. And that nothing compares to the importance & the joy of being with God, in this world. That is why Moses was happy to go & happy to accept of not being able to set foot on the promise LAND because it was not the promise land he was seeing that he was going to set foot on, but the unseen PROMISED land (being with God), that he was about to go.
2.) The One Left Behind. (when the Israelites lost Moses as a leader)
- For the Israelites, loosing Moses as a leader after 40 years or so of being used of him being there go-to guy for everything from egypt going to the promised land, must have given them alot anxiety, fear, doubt, anger & who knows what every other thing they might have been feeling at that time. It’s never easy being the one left behind & having to fight yet another day alone. Well, goodnews is, we are never alone, God is always & constantly there for us. Our only job is to put our trust & love to the one who is constantly there. To the one who has never left, to the one who will never leave -God.
- Reasons for having a loss:
- (1.) REPENT. its making you sin & destroying your love & fellowship with God. Confess your sin & repent. God wants you back He always wants you.
- (2.) REPRIORITIZE. the loss was needed because the person or thing lost was consuming & destroying your relationship with God. God wants you to refocus your life to Him.
- (3.) REFINE. You are living a life already fully for God, yet you experience loss, God wants to refine/ mold you further into becoming the person He wants you to be, so that you will be more effective & empathetic in showing God’s love to the people you are about to reach out with the same experience in the near future.
Like the israelites & every person in this world have experienced a loss in their life. You are either the one leaving, or the one being left.
Like any normal being, I to have faced alot of losses in life: Lost family (2deaths), Lost home (calamity), Lost love, lost confidence, lost courage, lost studies/career, Lost life. A series of losses in a matter of 5 years or so. This showed me how finite life could get in this world, that everything i hold dear right now, could just be taken away from me in an instant.
Nothing is permanent in this world. Everything may come & go; Family, friends, love, dignity, hope, courage, career, even life. But Only One remains through it all - God. Only God is permanent. Only He is constant.
Thus,:
1.) i am nothing, i have nothing without God.
- since i am not permanent, and everything i have & hold dear in this world is not permanent. I am therefore nothing, & everything i hold dear in this world is nothing, except God. For it is God who is only permanent & it is God who has graciously given me everything i hold dear now. I have them Not because of what i did, but because of Who He is. He has given me all these wonderful things in my life; my family, my friends, my career, my love because He wants to not because i worked hard or deserve them, infact, i dont even deserve to have them in the first place. He has given me all these because of Who He is- because He loves me & He wants me to have them. therefore, using all this things for Him & His glory is the only way i can show Him my gratitude of the blessings He has given me so graciously. For it is said:
Galatians 2:20 NIV
[20] I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Therefore it is only natural for me to:
2.) invest my life on God.
Why invest on God?
A.) nothing is permanent.
B.) In an instant they could be taken away from me.
C.) God is infinite.
D.) God gave everything freely to me; my family, my friends, my career, my life, my love.
Thus, Knowing this, i will therefore, give all the finite gifts God has blessed me, for Him to make them all infinite.
Investing myself & everything i have & do to God - the eternal being who chose to love me despite all the losses this world had given me, is the only wise choice i can ever do, for if i give & do everything for Him all my losses will not be in vain but will always be put into gain for Him.
Colossians 3:2-4 NIV
[2] Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. [3] For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. [4] When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
2 Corinthians 5:14-17 NIV
[14] For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. [15] And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. [16] So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. [17] Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
How do we TREAT A LOSS? How to be free from loss?
- A.) Accept that circumstances like loss really happens no matter how full proof we might think things goes. There are no permanent things in life. Only God is constant. By Accepting that God is GOD & He is in control of everything might we be rested & assured that everything always happen for our best.
- Job 38:4 NIV[4] “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand.
- Job 36:26-32 NIV [26] How great is God—beyond our understanding! The number of his years is past finding out. [27] “He draws up the drops of water, which distill as rain to the streams ; [28] the clouds pour down their moisture and abundant showers fall on mankind. [29] Who can understand how he spreads out the clouds, how he thunders from his pavilion? [30] See how he scatters his lightning about him, bathing the depths of the sea. [31] This is the way he governs the nations and provides food in abundance. [32] He fills his hands with lightning and commands it to strike its mark.
- Job 38:18 NIV [18] Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.
- Romans 8:28-30 NIV [28] And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. [29] For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. [30] And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
- B.) Believe. by believing, meditating & claiming on His Promises from the Bible we will be comforted & set free from the bondages we have during the loss.
- Numbers 23:19 NIV [19] God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
- C.) Pray & Pour out all your fear, doubts & anxieties on God & not on people. With this we achieve peace from the loss.
- Philippians 4:6-7 NIV. [6] Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. [7] And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- D.) Obey. Obeying God while we are hurting from the loss, is the best way to treat the loss. Whenever the hurts loss gets back again. Do something for God until our focus gets away from ourselves and into God’s love. This is what we call a sacrifice of praise. That during our time of suffering we praise Him even more! We obey Him even more! Weird but this is the best therapy! This way, We erase our own selfishness, selfpity & refocus from OUR hurts & pains, to become GODs love & care! So that everytime pain comes back to haunt us, we also remember Gods love through those pain. Every cigarette burn, every whiplash of pain, is Gods kiss, God’s hug, God carrying you through that pain.
- Psalm 34:18-20 NIV [18] The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. [19] The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; [20] he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.
- 1 Peter 2:23-24 NIV [23] When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. [24] “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”
Practical ways to give my infite things (lost things) to God so that He might make them infinite (found things):
1.) people i have & love
- share to them about Jesus love (gospel) & make disciples. In this way, i will be able to see the people i have & love come to know Jesus, & when they die or i die, i will still see them afterlife with God. A way better place.
2.) things i have & love
- What are the things in my life right now that i value or prioritize first than God?
- Invest this things as tools to be used for the furtherance of Gods love.
- If its my work - being a doctor- do missions, reach out to medical colleagues, disciple medical students, share my praying skills to patients who needs prayers.
- If it is my car- use it as a bus for my friends to safely go home after a care group activity.
- If it is my home- use it as a place of study group for my friends
Always remember: nothing is too small or to big to be used for Jesus love. 😊
