Many things can cause sorrow in our lives, some examples being: the passing of a family member, friend, or pet; a serious illness in our lives or in someone close to us; a friend or family member moving away; the loss of a job or some other opportunity or promotion. Sometimes sorrow comes from simply having the blues on a rainy day!

God never promised anyone, believers included (Phil 1:29), a life without sorrow. Sorrow leads us to call upon God, whether it's to ask Him why this is happening, or to ask for His strength and comfort to see us through. God allows sorrow in our lives to teach us to rely upon Him and to enable us to endure the tough times that will inevitably come our way again. God does promise that no matter how hard things may get He will never leave us nor turn His back on us. Psalm 23 says, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."

If your sin debt has been paid by Jesus, then you will be in a place without sorrow forever! Some sorrow in our SHORT lives does not compare to ZILLIONS of years without sorrow! Rev. 21:10 says "And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain." Now that will turn any frown upside down!

HEAVEN'S FOR SAVED PEOPLE... NOT GOOD PEOPLE! - Ephesians 2:8-9: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

If you were to ask 10 people on the street, "how do you get into Heaven?" 9 out of 10 would tell you "by being a good person." Ask them if they think they're going to Heaven and most would say " Yes" or "I think so." If you ask them why they think that they will say "because I'm a good person." Here is the real deal according to God. Psalm 14:1-3: "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one." Romans 3:20: "Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

As we can clearly see here, the title "good person" cannot be achieved. Go back to Ephesians (it is the gift of God, not by works.) The only "good person" who walked the earth was Jesus Himself (2 Corinthians 5:2, Hebrews 4:15). Romans 5:9 says: "Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!" In Romans 10:9-13 we read, "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." If we could get into Heaven by being a so-called "good person," then God would not have needed to sacrifice His Son on a cross.

If it took being a "good person" PLUS believing in Jesus to get into Heaven we would then be able to say to Jesus, "We did it, You and I," which would be as Ephesians declares, "lest anyone should boast." After death, if God asks us, "Why do you think I should allow you into Heaven?" and we answer Him with anything other than, "While I was on earth I put my faith in Jesus' death on the cross to pay my sin debt in full," we would be in for an eternity of regret. Don't gamble on eternity. Make sure you're trusting in what Jesus did for you, not in what you did!

IF YOUR LIFE IS RUSTY, YOUR BIBLE IS DUSTY - Joshua 1:8: "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."

It is impossible for Christians to live the abundant life God wants us to live without reading our Bible daily. It is full of God's promises to protect us, bless us, fellowship with us, and teach us. People who own a Bible that collects dust are truly living a rusty life. They don't realize that the Bible holds great treasures that could await them not only for this life, but for the next one also.

JESUS RULES, DO YOU LIVE BY THEM? - Matthew 22:37-40: "Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment.' And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

This slogan takes the "Jesus Rules" statement one step further. Most people reading this might think that the rules list would be quite long; however, if they read the adjoining scripture they would see that there are only two. He said if you keep these two rules, you keep them all.

THE ARK SAVED NOAH, THE CROSS SAVED ME! - 1 Corinthians 1:18: "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

This slogan was created to express the importance wood has played in our spiritual lives (Ark-wood,Cross-wood). Just kidding, but it is interesting. Really now, it was created to express the importance that the cross has played in our Salvation. The apostle Paul writes in Galatians 6:14: "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." Where would we all be had it not been for Jesus dying on a cross? I don't think I have to answer that one for ya!

NEED SOME GOOD ADVICE? IT'S IN THE BIBLE! - 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."

People search for good advice from a number or sources, ie. psychiatrists, philosophers, professors, lawyers, etc.. Some even consult fortune tellers and the like, all in search of knowledge. People pay a great deal of money to get information from man when all they have to do is pick up the Bible to get information from God. The Bible is filled with information on subjects like money, marriage, children, business, health, death, your character, God's character, and most importantly Salvation (how to get into Heaven). There's a lot more there, you just have to look.