How long do you want to live? Most people would say they want to live a long and healthy life,probably till 70 or 80 years old. Experts would say the stuff of long life is eating right,exercising and avoiding stress. True.
But do you want to live a long and happy life? Life spent in happiness is the desire of all.The art of truly and joyfully living,all day everyday, is the aim of most religion.
1.Psalm 34:12-14
David asked a similar question in Psalm 34:12..Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days?Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.Turn from evil and do good good;seek peace and pursue it.
This is quite straight forward.To live a long life,avoid lies.There is nothing like a little white lie.There is no grading system for lies.A lie is a lie. Also keep your tongue from saying any semblance of evil.
Let there be a great chasm between you and those temptations that easily cause you to sin with your tongue,body or even mind.Joyce Meyer often says,'think about what you are thinking about'.If your thoughts are not pure,your words won't be pure..Clean and honest conversation ,free from deceit promotes happiness.
To do good, we are to perform delibrate acts of kindness. Seek Peace.Nothing can effectually promote our own happiness more than peace.A person with a peaceable character will strive not to offend others,and also won't take offence easily. Don't sweat the small stuff.We are to pursue and chase after peace with eager desire.Thank God for Jesus Christ who has given us peace. John 14:27, Peace,i leave with you,my peace i give you.I do not give you as the world gives.Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.By spending time with God daily,we can ask for a renewal of His peace in our existence.
2. Ephesians 6:2-3
Ephesians 6:2-3, Honour your Father and Mother,- which is the first commandement with a promise- that it may go well with you and you may enjoy long life on the earth.
In John Gills words,'Parents are not only to be loved,but they are to be honoured in thought,word,and gesture;they are to be highly thought of and estemmed;they are to be spoken to,and of,very honourably, and to be behaved to in a very respectable manner,and they are to be relieved,assisted and maintained in a comfortable way when aged.
3.Proverb 3:1-2
My son,do not forget my teachings,but keep my commands in your heart,for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.
4. 1 Kings 3:14
This says,'and if you walk in my ways and obey my statutes and commands as David your father did,i will give you long life'.
In this scripture,God said this to Solomon when he asked for wisdom and consequently to mankind.
This may cause a lot of questions of why many good christians still die young,or die violent deaths?The typical Christian answer is, 'we will know more when we get to heaven'. I am human and my understanding is limited.God is eternal ,infinite,omniscient ,omnipotent and omnipresent.I really cannot answer as this is perphaps one of the most difficult questions in Christianity,and its scope is far beyond this post. One thing i shall always declare is, psalm 118:17 which says I (including my entire family) will not die young,we will live and declare the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Action Plan
Pray these prayers;
Heavenly Father,i commit my life and that of my entire family into your able hands,teach us Lord to fear you all the days of our lives.Bless us dear Lord with good health,prosperity and let your word prolong our lives.Give us the grace to care for and honour our parents.Almighty God,draw us nearer to you daily,and may we experience the richness of the peace you bestow freely on us in Jesus name. I come against any plan of the enemy to shorten our life right now in the name of Jesus.I declare now that we shall not die young,but live long in happiness and prosperity giving thanks to God always. Thank you awesome God for answered prayers in Jesus name i pray,amen
I look forward to your comments on this post.
God bless you all.
Happy New Month of May.
Photo credit the odysey online
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