What if?

Every day, almost without fail, I am sent a text message of a devotion. It's sent from one of my sisters at church, written by the pastor of a church that we fellowship with. Todays devotional has struck a chord within me. Please allow me some time to explain.

The passage of scripture was Psalm 124, "1 If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, Now may Israel say; 2 If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, When men rose up against us: 3  Then they had swallowed us up quick, When their wrath was kindled against us:4  Then the waters had overwhelmed us, The stream had gone over our soul:
5  Then the proud waters Had gone over our soul.
6  Blessed be the Lord, Who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.7  Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: The snare is broken, and we are escaped. 8 Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth."

This resonated within me like the vibrations of a building crescendo as an orchestra plays. My mind started filling with a million what if scenarios. I know very well what my life used to look like. I was captured in the throws of sin, chained by addiction, sick with depression and suicidal ideologies without a desire to go on in life. I was drowning and had no hope of survival. What if I still lived in my past life? What if I still had alcohol and drug issues? What if I hadn't been to scared to commit suicide? What would my life look like.

But then, the scenarios changed. What if the girl I went to high school with that was Apostolic had shared her faith with me? What if I had asked more questions when I experienced someone speaking in tongues for the first time? What if someone would have shared the Holy Ghost during that move of God at music school? What if I had found Truth sooner? What would my life look like? 

I won't ever be able to answer any of those what if questions because they never happened. That's the thing about "if," it is a question that may or may not happen for you. I have people tell me that I am wrong now for the faith that I profess through the Apostolic Doctrine, that I should just believe like I always had. My question is, but what if I'm right? 

The things that I put myself through in my younger years I would never wish on my worst enemy. For me, verses 6-8 say it best, "Blessed be the Lord, Who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.7  Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: The snare is broken, and we are escaped. 8 Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth." He made a way for my escape. The old southern gospel song asks the question "If it had not been for the Lord on my side, tell me where would I be? Where would I be?"

He is for you, not against you. What if you chose to believe that today? What if you repented of your sins? What if you were baptized in Jesus name instead of the titles? What if you received the Holy Ghost?  What would your life look like? 

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