By: Pastor Ty Houghtaling

What if you could build your perfect life?  Where would you start?  Would you start with a piece of land?  How about the starting place philosophically?  Would you start at “you are what you eat?”  Probably not. 

For the Christian, the good life starts with 1Chronicles 29:11. Then, the Christian adds to that foundational place Proverbs 9:10.  Naturally, if a Christian begins there, they will not be able to avoid Romans 3:23.  That verse from the Bible is foundational for understanding the good life.  That verse points us to Romans 6:23. Once a person discovers the answers offered in Romans 6:23, they can start to add to their life a pursuit of Matthew 6:33. 

The good life is not for everyone. Some of us just refuse to trust and obey God’s expectations.  We think the good life comes through faster horses, older whiskey, and more money (that’s one of my favorite lines from a classic country song).

I think if we are truly honest, we know that peace and well-being do not come from a worldly pursuit.   The good life comes from God who is the giver of all good gifts (James 1:17).   

I know it seems counter intuitive to trust God with all our heart, strength, and mind.  We see the broken nature of this world and we cannot help but think belief in the unseen God is just too hard.  So, we try to fix things for ourselves as we go.  Or, we throw up our hands and give in to the pressures of culture or society.  We add to our life some faulty thinking, bad advice from untrustworthy people, and settle for less than best because it’s just easier.  That is not the good life, it is not the abundant life, it is not even a decent life; not compared to what God has for those who love Him. 

If you could start all over and build the perfect life, I bet you would want security and peace as foundational pieces.  I bet you would want love embedded in every relationship.  I bet you would want to include certain assurances about how everything will turn out in the end.  There is only one place to start the good life.  That place is with a personal relationship with Jesus.

Ty Houghtaling is the Pastor at the First Baptist Church in Artesia.