Abundant Living in Africa

I recently returned from Mozambique, Africa. While I was there I saw poverty, sickness, disease, filth and crime. I saw the effects of a 17 year civil war. I saw all of this within 2 hours of entering the country. It's hard to explain how all of my senses were affected. I've been in many other foreign countries and I've seen similar surroundings but it's still a lot to take in. John 10:10 says that Jesus came to give us life and life more abundantly and I knew that Jesus came to give life to the people of Mozambique. It can be difficult to see life in an environment like this. As we arrived at our first stop in our journey, I was looking for life. We pulled up to Afrika wa Yesu Bible School and the students, pastors and teachers were outside waiting to greet us. They didn't greet us with the normal, "Hello". They started singing and dancing and beating on their drums. It was beautiful. And I saw it! I saw life! It was everywhere! It was in the singing, the dancing, the beating of the drums, their smiles, their eyes. Right there in all of the devastation, in all of the sickness and even in the midst of what looked like death, I saw life. The beauty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that it has power to lift people up above their circumstances and to bring light in darkness and to bring LIFE in death. Abundant life is not defined by material wealth but by the effect that the Gospel has on an individual. Wealth is a by-product of putting the principles of God's Word to use but it can't define life because wealth is subject to the perspective of the individual. Wealth in the United States might mean a nice car and a nice house. While in Mozambique, it might mean having a community water well for the whole village to have clean water. One perspective is not better or worse than the other perspective. They both have to stay subject to the perspective that Jesus' life at work in me is what has brought this wealth. As long as you stay focused on Jesus and the life that He provides, then you won't allow your life to be defined by what you have or don't have. So I encourage you to keep your eyes on what's important - Jesus - and don't get destracted by and caught up in what others call abundant life. Remember, you're God's best and God is on your side.