1 Peter 4:1–6 - Living the Rest of Your Life for the Lor

This message hits especially close to home for me because it ties directly into my personal story. While some of you have heard my testimony before, others may not have. I grew up in the church... Yet by my senior year of high school, my desire to attend church had completely vanished, I didn’t see the point. The reason was simple: I lacked a genuine relationship with Jesus and I just didn't understand it. I'd be happy to share more details later if anyone is interested, but after high school, I attended an intensive one-year Bible college in Montana. Two months before graduating, (catch that I was at bible school for 6 months) I committed my life to Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Within five months, a deep passion for Jesus was ignited in my heart, which eventually led me onto the mission field. However, after enduring several years of difficult trials, that initial fire began to fade, leaving me feeling disappointed, discouraged, and depressed. Bad things kept coming to me. Ultimately, overwhelmed by hardship and pain, I strayed from obeying Jesus and began to do things my way and chose to follow the ways of the world instead. What had happened?   SCRIPTURE READING: Read 1 Peter 4:1–6 from the NIV. Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. (2) As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. (3) For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. (4) They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. (5) But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. (6) For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. How are you preparing for the road ahead? Peter’s message in this passage is to–Prepare Your Mind according to the will of God. I thought I was doing that for those 5 years, but I was not prepared for suffering.