Do you ever get annoyed at advertisements being continually shoved in your face … blasting at twice the volume: “You need this!!”
It drives me crazy!
I attempt to watch something interesting on YouTube … and right in the middle, an ad interrupts the video! There’s no way to fast-forward it! No … you are forced to watch it! All . the . way . to the very end of the ad!
And there’s not just 1 ad. No. There are 2 or 3 in a grouping!
And this doesn’t just happen once. Multiple times throughout your YouTube video you are interrupted and forced to watch ads which blast in your face things and services which you have no interest in whatsoever.
So, you pay for a TV streaming service which you assume will let you watch a movie without ads. But no! Ads pop up anyway! And always twice as loud as the normal volume of the program. It’s so frustrating!
What if God treated us this way? What if we were going about our daily lives, doing whatever it is we need to do … and BAM! … right in the middle of what we are doing an ad from God pops up right in our face! – all flashy-like and twice the volume of normal life:
YOU NEED THIS!!
RIGHT NOW – PEACE CAN BE YOURS!
(just like the ads which ask: “Tired of added weight around your middle?? You need this miracle-product right now! You’ll lose weight instantly! You will look terrific! Just 3 easy payments of $9.99/month!” And the ad proceeds to show you fantastic pictures of just how great you will look if you take their product!)
What if God treated us like this??
What if God blasted in our face that we need PEACE! Then proceeded to show us all the wonderful results and the many terrific things which would happen in our life if we had PEACE!
But ads always come with a price. “Just 3 easy payments of $9.99.” We have to part with our hard-earned money to receive whatever the ad is trying to sell us.
What is the “payment” for PEACE? What must we part with, in order to receive all these wonderful results and terrific things which PEACE will bring us??
* We must part with worry.
And no – there are not 3 easy payments.
To part with worry is to let go of the worry again … and again … and again … and again … etc. …
For many people, this price is just too high! Yes, those wonderful results and terrific benefits are indeed amazing. But the price is just too high! Many people simply cannot part with their worry. Their worry consumes them! Their worry is their identity! They cannot let go of their worry.
The price is too high!
The nice thing is, God doesn’t blast us in the face with ads like this. God lets us know PEACE is available. God lets us know what the cost is. But God doesn’t bombard us constantly with ads to force us into it. God gives us the free choice.
What about this ad:
YOU NEED THIS!!
RIGHT NOW – JOY CAN BE YOURS!
Shoved right up in our face! – all flashy-like and blaring twice the volume of normal life!
What is the cost?? What must we part with in order to receive this JOY?
* We’ve got to let go of bitterness.
* We’ve got to let go of unforgiveness.
* We’ve got to let go of pride.
The ad from God (just like the ads interrupting my YouTube video) might proceed to show us the amazing results of restored relationships! The joy of restored friendship! The joy of spending time together without icy cold tension! The joy of delight over not having relational pain blocking everything! The joy of no more hard feelings.
For many people, this price is just too high! The bitterness held against someone else feels so good! The unforgiveness feels so good! It’s not worth parting with.
The cost to let go of the pride is just too high! The cost to forgive is just too high!
The price is too high!
Or what about this ad:
YOU NEED THIS!!
RIGHT NOW – HAPPINESS CAN BE YOURS!
Shoved right up in our face! – all flashy-like and blaring twice the volume of normal life!
What is the cost?? What must we part with in order to receive this HAPPINESS?
* We’ve got to give up complaining … in exchange for gratitude.
* We’ve got to give up comparison … in exchange for contentment.
Is the price too high??
Thankfully, God doesn’t blast us in the face with ads like this. God lets us know all the many wonderful things which are available. The greatest of which is salvation – salvation from hell; salvation from the wrath of God. God lets us know what the cost is. In order to receive the amazing benefits of salvation we must give up our self-sufficiency; we must give up our sin.
But God doesn’t bombard us constantly with ads right in our face, to force us into it.
God gives us the free choice.
The decision is up to us.
