The Good Life

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Col 3:12–17
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The Good Life
We all have the ideal picture of the good life. For some, it may be owning your own business; others, it might be retirement at a lake shore. So what is the good life? Prosperity, popularity, pleasure? For the Christian we know the answer is no. None of those things makes for a complete and good life. So what is the answer? It is the life we receive from Jesus, including gifts that we cannot make or purchase ourselves, namely forgiveness, love, peace, and thankfulness. Jesus’ life fills us with virtues rather than vices and enables us to be a blessing rather than a curse to others. There is no division between the sacred and the secular concerning what a Christian says and does. Christ should accompany us in all facets of life, and when this is reflected in our lives, we begin to see and experience the good life God has given us.