Day 2337 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.

1 John 2:16 NIV

More like Him, less like the world. More of His truth, less of our society's lies. More time spent chasing His calling, less time spent chasing after what's popular. You see, all of us have learned how to live from watching the world. We've watched what everyone else is doing and we've copied those habits ourselves. We've bought the lies, accepted the wickedness, and settled for what others say is good enough. But at some point we inevitably realize that how this world operates is not good enough. And when that truth finally breaks through, then we realize something has to change.

Basically everything we've learned from watching the world around us is just wrong. All of the greed, the lust, the pride, the selfishness, it's all a far cry from who God created us to be and how He calls us to live. A long time ago the world chose to follow a different path than the one God laid out. And so living like the world and doing as everyone else does has only led us away from our Father! This place has created so many divisive ideals and negative mindsets that it's no wonder the world's in the shape that it's in. Everyone is running so fast in the wrong direction that things are only going to keep getting worse.

So we need to learn to forget. We need to learn to forget the twisted lessons we've learned from the world around us. We need to learn to forget the petty things that so many spend their lives chasing after. We need to learn to forget the lies that the world sells as truth. We need to stop trying to fit in here and realize that we're called to something higher. We need to leave the pasts we've lived according to a broken humanity's ideals and strive to adhere to God's commands instead. We simply can't do both because they couldn't be more different. Can't walk on two diverging paths at the same time.

That's what this verse is pointing out. This world has taken it upon itself to create so many things, accept so many things, and glorify so many things that simply go against what God says is right. There will be plenty who argue against that because it goes against the lies that they've spent so long believing. But when this world passes away, and it will pass away, the arrogance and stubbornness won't matter anymore. They cannot hold up against God's truth. He will have the final word and we'd be much better off to start living according to His will for us now than to be faced with that harsh reality that we were so very wrong later on!

So as weird and uncomfortable as it may be, we have to walk away. We need to leave our old ways in the past. All of the lies that we've fallen for have stolen time that we can't get back. But we can realize the mistakes we've made and focus on not letting it happen anymore going forward. We can understand that what this world tells us is probably nonsense! Sadly that's just what most of it is. But we can also understand that God's word is truth. His plans are better. His ways are higher. This world and its ways just can't compete. So we need to stop settling for what humanity says is right and learn to find our guidance in the One who actually defines what's right!

Friends, we're being given the chance at a way of life that is better than anything we have ever experienced or even dreamed of before. The way we've lived may be acceptable according to what this world has settled for, but that never means we have to accept it ourselves. We're free to trade it in for something different. We're free to leave it all behind. We're free to walk away from what we've always known into the hope and peace of His plans and promises. And in truth, if we truly want to follow Christ, then that's exactly what we need to do.

#LeaveNoSoulUntold