You may be able to fake a smile to deceive people.
You can't fake peace of heart.
you can steal anything in this world but no one can steal peace of heart.
You can even do plastic surgery to alter your physical appearance
but no surgeon can stitch up the wounds of your conscience.
Grace and peace to you all in Jesus' mighty name
and welcome to another edition of 'Take Care Of Your Heart' here on God's Heart TV.
It's a time for us to feed our souls with the Living Word of God.
Because we know the Word of God is our final authority,
settling all questions and all troubles.
So, people of God, open the door of your heart right now
and get ready to receive the Living Word of God
as you join me to watch an excerpt of a sermon titled, 'Return To Reality'.
Everything in this world has an expiry date.
Fame is fading.
Beauty is fleeting.
Position is passing.
Just take a look at history.
The President of today can be the prisoner of tomorrow.
The 'big man' in society today can be the beggar on the street tomorrow.
The star, celebrity, icon today can be the suicide victim tomorrow.
Satan can destroy in a second what you have built for years without God.
But despite this evidence, despite what's happening in our lives and society today,
it's so painful today to see people, especially young people of our generation,
spend so much of their precious time,
consume so much of their energy,
devote so much of their attention
to the pursuit of these fading things that cannot fulfil them.
I used to ask myself why.
Why do people continue to chase after, run after and seek these things?
And I believe the answer is very simple.
For many people today, their lives are based on fantasy, not reality.
This fantasy has eaten deep into the fabric of our society.
Today, people's understanding of success is often based on fantasy.
What do I mean?
They measure success by how many material possessions they gain, earn or get,
how much money you make,
how much possessions you acquire,
how much your name is known.
These seem to be a signal of success to many people of the world today.
In the same vein, their understanding of process is based on fantasy.
They feel that they can just walk on a red carpet to success.
They can reap where they have not sown.
They do not involve any pain in the process to get there.
And the danger in this fantasy is that you can never be fulfilled.
Let me ask for one volunteer for a very quick example.
Ok. Thank you very much, sir.
I just want to show to you in a very practical way
the danger of giving your life to a fantasy.
Now, sir. This is what you're looking for.
You want this. This is what you're after.
And I want you to take a step and take it from me.
Just take a step.
Keep going for it.
Stop!
This is a picture of fantasy.
Each take you step, thinking you will get what you are looking for,
seems to make the journey longer.
And before you realise it, you are back to where you started
and you still haven't got what you want.
It's like chasing shadows instead of pursuing substance.
Thank you, sir. You can take the apple. God bless you. Have your seat.
This is a picture of people pursuing fantasy.
So, I put this question to you today, people of God -
is your life based on the reality of God's Word
or the fantasy of this world?
Your marriage, business, home, finances -
are they built on the reality of God's Word or the fantasy of this world?
This is a question for you to ponder on today.
Because, people of God, if you build your life on fantasy,
you build your house on sand.
We know the parable in that Book of Matthew 7:24-27 -
the parable of the wise man who built his house upon the rock
and the parable of the foolish man who built his house upon the sand
I am going to jump straight to verse 27.
For the man who built his house on the sand, it says this:
"The rain came down, the floods came up, the winds blew and
beat against that house and it fell with a great crash."
I have some sand here today. Take a look.
This is sand.
No matter how big you build your house,
no matter how beautiful it looks,
no matter how much time and energy you've spent
on building this beautiful house,
if your foundation is sand,
when the streams, winds and waves of life hit,
the building will collapse.
Many dreams today are built on sand; that's why they crash.
When the rains of failure fall,
when the floods of disappointment rise,
when the winds of betrayal hit,
the dreams quickly turn into a nightmare.
Many marriages today are built on the sands of fantasy.
You see people marry today because
'This man is handsome; this woman is beautiful'.
Your bodies agree but your hearts don't agree.
And the marriage becomes competition instead of co-operation.
What happens?
When the rains of marital challenges come down,
when the floods of jealousy and envy come up,
when the winds of temptation beat against the marriage,
the marriage collapses and ends in divorce.
Innocent children end up being brought up in a broken home.
Many businesses today are built on the sands of fantasy.
You are doing the business not because it's what you love,
not because it's what gives you joy.
It's what you saw your friend do and succeed in.
Your business is based on imitation, not inspiration.
And what happens? The rains of failure come down
and the floods of disappointment come up
and the winds of debt blow.
The business collapses.
I put it to you again today -
is your life built on the sinking sands of fantasy
or the solid rock of God's Word?
Because in life, there are trials.
In life, there are troubles.
Challenges are part and parcel of greatness.
This doctrine of 'no challenges, no sickness, no hardship
on my journey to the throne' is fantasy.
It's not rooted in the reality of God's Word.
It's fantasy.
The Bible says, "In this world, there will be trouble."
It's only in Heaven there is no disturbance.
A mature Christian is tested by his ability
to face problems and deal with difficulties.
But if your life is based on this fantasy,
when trouble comes, disappointment strikes, failure comes - what happens?
You begin to react emotionally or intellectually to your situation.
What do I mean by 'react emotionally'?
You base your spiritual experiences on feelings and emotions.
When your prayer is not answered, you feel that God is being unfair to you.
You feel that God is being unjust to you.
You begin to look at God in a bad light.
You feel He has not heard your prayers.
You begin to compare yourself with others.
You find yourself complaining, grumbling, moaning, worrying, wondering
and before you know it, your situation misleads you.
Or you react intellectually to your challenges.
What do I mean? You respond to reason instead of the Word of God.
If you have faith in anything, it is in what man has done -
science, works, organisation.
You look for people who will give you advice -
good-intentioned people who give you advice from a human point of view.
You receive help that is not sanctioned by God.
You look for shortcuts and alternatives
to try and escape from reality.
It does not take you long to realise that these shortcuts,
these alternatives have a habit of disappointing you.
Because in the process of looking for a shortcut,
you begin to do things without reference to God
until you come to a dead end.
People of God, shortcuts do not work.
Tell your neighbour, "Shortcuts do not work".
If you see someone come to you and say,
'Follow this way - you can get money very quickly!'
If you see someone come to you and say,
'There's a way you can cheat on this exam and get the answers.'
If you see someone that comes to you and says,
'This is the easy way out - no stress, no struggle...' - run away!
If the process is not of God, the end is always bad.
Look, there is no shortcut to success
because life is a marathon, not a sprint.
You may look at me and say,
'But Brother Chris, this guy at my workplace did it and he got away with it.
What about that lady in school? She cheated and seems to have her results!
Why are you talking like this? People get away with this stuff.'
You may seem to get away with it but you cannot get away with peace.
There is a relationship between truth and peace
because what comes from God goes to Him.
What comes from truth goes to truth.
What comes from stealing goes to stealing.
What comes from destruction goes to destruction.
If your life is based on fantasy, you can never have real peace.
You can never have real joy.
You may create happiness for a moment but you can't have internal joy.
You may be able to fake a smile to deceive people.
You can't fake peace of heart.
No matter how cunning and clever you are as a thief,
you can steal anything in this world but no one can steal peace of heart.
You can even do plastic surgery to alter your physical appearance
but no surgeon can stitch up the wounds of your conscience.
Well did the Psalmist say in Psalm 84:10,
"Better is one day in the house of God than thousands elsewhere."
People of God, it's a serious question.
Is your life built on the sinking sands of fantasy
or the solid rock of the Living Word of God?
This is not a question of confession
but commitment to Christ -
commitment to His Word that springs from the heart.
And what's in the heart will be revealed when the storms strike
And on this journey of life, in this world,
the storms will strike,
the winds will blow,
the rains will come.
In this world, there will be trouble.
But Jesus said, "Take heart" for He has overcome the world.
And that's why we, as His children, must be grounded,
deeply rooted in the Living Word of God
to stand the test of time
There are no alternatives for God's Word - no shortcuts.
No shortcuts to spiritual maturity outside His Word and His Spirit.
That's the only way we can keep connected to truth,
to reality in a world that is so often dominated
by falsehood and fantasy.
We need the Living Word of God in our hearts.
Let me remind you of those words of Isaiah in the book of 1 Peter 1:24-25.
He said, "All people are like grass
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall
but the Word of God endures forever!"
Lord Jesus Christ, Your children have listened to Your Word today.
Let them possess a hearing heart,
in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!
Amen.
Well, thank you so much for joining me for today's edition of 'Take Care Of Your Heart'.
Remember, continue to seek God's heart to see life clearly,
in Jesus' mighty name. Amen!