REVELATION 22:1-5 – Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

THEME OF THE DAY. FACE-TO-FACE WITH JESUS. It is the longing in every Christian. It is what makes us live another day fighting the good fight of faith. It is our hope in a hopeless world. And it is something so easily forgotten as we slug it out in the trenches of life with the daily grinds of work, responsibilities and demands upon us. Yet it is the one thing keeping our walk with the Lord fresh and Biblical. This one thing? The theme of today’s nugget – being face-to-face with our Lord Jesus.

Right now, attempt to discipline our thinking on that day; the day we are face-to-face with Jesus. Fight hard to not let our minds drift. And don’t just lightly acknowledge the time when we are looking into Jesus’ eyes. Really sit down and ponder this encounter. What will such thinking do for us? At least two things . . .

First, we will be reminded how radical is the experience of being a Christian. We are not following a concept, a religion, a code of conduct, or trying to adhere to some rules passed down through history. We walk with Someone who is alive. Someone whom we will see upfront and personal. And to think on that personal day makes each day till we get there personal too. Remembering Christ is alive, and we are heading to a face-to-face meeting with Him, keeps everything about our Christianity personal; our Bible reading, praying, church attendance, and service are personal encounters and experiences with the Living Lord Jesus. Forget this, and religious we may be, but spiritual we will not be. We will be missing the inward reality of the Living Christ in our profession of faith.

Another impact in our lives by thinking on seeing our Lord Jesus face-to-face will be an increased diligence and watchfulness of that meeting. Jesus tells us of His coming, “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:34-36). The unwatchful Christian will be a worldly Christian. And look what Jesus says of His coming. It will be sudden. Learn to live each day with the thought that today may very well be the day we see Jesus. Such thinking always produces zealous Christianity pursuing holiness and intimacy with Him we will be seeing soon – face-to-face.

PRAYER: “Father, help me keep a clear view of Your Son by faith now, looking to the day of sight soon.”

QUOTE: “Think often of the day we see Jesus. It will drive away the darkest of clouds in this life.”