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From Dust to Dust from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it is easy to lose sight of the eternal. We are so busy planning for what we are going to do tomorrow that we forget we might not be here at all. I am all for working, planning, building, and saving for a rainy day, but let's be grounded in reality and not forget about eternity. Let's begin with Genesis:

(Genesis 2:7 NKJV)  And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

God literally took a pile of dirt and breathed life into it. Consider that verse and that the human body is made from common elements found in our soil, like oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, and iron. 

We usually fertilize our yard twice a year with materials that may have once been part of an Emperor, a Pharaoh, or a King, but now they just make our grass turn green. You are taken from the ground, and your body will return to it. Such is life. 

(Genesis 3:19 AMP)  In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you shall return.

Everything you gather on Earth will be left behind one day. The life we live here and the things we store up are like treasures in a video game that remain behind when we log out. That's why Jesus told us to focus on eternity, for the treasure we store in heaven will last for eternity. 

(Matthew 6:19–21 NKJV)  "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

I try to be a simple man, and the only diamonds I have are on my drill bits or grinding discs. I have never been as sanctified as I could have been, but I love the Lord, and He makes me just-if-ed never sinned. 

Trust me, the Lord can fix you. No matter what you have done in the past, no matter what your life looks like now, He can take clay back to the Potter's wheel and shape you into something better. Look at what He told Jeremiah: 

(Jeremiah 18:1–4 NKJV)  The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: "Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My words." Then I went down to the potter's house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.

(Jeremiah 18:5–6 NKJV)  Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the LORD. "Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!

The Lord is the Creator, and we are the created. His potter's wheel is the experiences of your life that shape you, and He can change them. It is never too late to get Him involved in your decisions. Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. There is nothing He can't fix when we align with Him, for He can shape our life into something better. He can create the very best version of you.

Solomon was the wisest man in Scripture, and He left us with this advice:

(Ecclesiastes 12:6–7 NKJV)  Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, Or the golden bowl is broken, Or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, Or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it.

We are a three-part being much like God: the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. We have a spirit and a soul that is housed in a body. Our spirit is like the breath of life that came from God and will return to Him. Our soul is our mind, will, and emotions that make up our personality. Our body is an organic house that we live in, and other things can live in your house as well. Jesus said it this way:

(Luke 11:24–26 NKJV)  "When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."

Notice that the demon called the man his "house" and brought in seven more friends, which, in deliverance, we might call the double-down syndrome. Typically, when someone "falls off the wagon," they pursue their bad habit even worse than before. Start and stop a few times, and soon you will have a house party going on there with forty-nine guests. 

Some day, there will be a separation of Earth and Spirit. Our fleshly bodies will return to the ground they came from, but our spirits and souls that make us who we are will be with the Lord forever, or else go to the place where baddies go: HELL. What kind of teacher would I be if I forgot to mention that little detail?

So from the beginning to the end, or from dust to dust, the Lord is with us. The amplified version captures the words of Job so well after he had lost everything and was sitting on the ground in ashes.

(Job 1:21 AMP)  And said, Naked (without possessions) came I [into this world] from my mother's womb, and naked (without possessions) shall I depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed (praised and magnified in worship) be the name of the Lord!

May we have an attitude like his.

You can pray this with me if you like: 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I am yours. Please help me focus on what matters to You and not be so distracted. I want to be ready when my time comes, but I also want more of Your presence in my life today. Please guide me, help me see life through Your eyes, and give me a clear, honest look at myself. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!