Commandments for Abundant Life Part 5, How can the Commandments of Christ help in this life?

Why are people interested in religion, in spirituality, in God? 

A good number are probably interested out of concern for what may happen in the next life...but what about this life? Can the Commandments of Christ help us to find a happier more fulfilling life right here, right now?

According to major polls, over 90% of the U.S. population believes in the existence of God.  If you believe God exists, then it is logical that you believe God created the universe and everything and everyone in it.  If you believe God created the universe and everyone in it then you must believe that you are a child of God.  As a child of God, it makes sense that you are of infinite value to God and infinite potential value to this world.  As an infinitely valuable child of God you were intended to live an abundant, fulfilled life.  The still, small inner voice deep within you should be saying, “Yes, that’s true.  I am a child of God, and God intended for me to live the abundant life”.  Hopefully your head is nodding in agreement.  But your analytical mind, your intellect is saying, “Yes, all that seems to be true, but I’m not really experiencing what I would call the abundant life - I’m not nearly as fulfilled as I would like to be”.

So there is the problem this book was written to address.  We were made to be much more than we are and to have much more than we have – both spiritually and materially.  We were created as worthy, unconditionally loved, children of God; created to experience the abundant life and take dominion over the earth.  For reasons of our own making, however, we are not experiencing the promised abundant life as whole, self-realized children of God.  We are not experiencing peace, joy, and total fulfillment – “total happiness”.  Something is wrong.  Either God is withholding the abundant life from us, or we are blocking it ourselves.  It must be one or the other.  What sense would it make for an infinitely powerful, infinitely loving God to withhold the abundant life from his children?  Can you imagine yourself possessing unlimited abundance (however you want to define abundance) and allowing your children to struggle in poverty all their lives?  No chance, no way.  Well, neither could God.  God is not withholding abundance and fulfillment from us, therefore the problem must be that we are somehow blocking the flow of abundance from God.  If that’s true then maybe one of the purposes of this life and the Commandments of Christ is to overcome and remove those blocks to God’s abundance in this life. 

It would be nice to find a simple “cookbook” solution to life, a surefire recipe for abundance and fulfillment.  Unfortunately, there is no mechanical, automatic solution that says if you do a) followed by b), etc. then you will find God and the abundant life. There will never be an automatic, cookbook solution for one simple reason, and that reason is that the the abundant life can be found only within you.  “…the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21)   Therefore each person will have a unique path with unique obstacles and needs for guidance. The kingdom of God is within you RIGHT NOW.  You don’t have to go out and get it or pray for God to give it to you.  He already has given it to you.  The intent of this book is to look within the Commandments of Jesus for directions to unblock our access to the abundant life; directions that could guide us and show us how to remove the blocks that separate us and distract us from seeking and finding the kingdom of God that is already within each one of us.