Pastor Larson’s Corner: I’ve never been better

Whenever I ask a certain friend of mine how he is doing, I can count on his reply. He always says, “I’ve never been better.” Like all of us, he no doubt has his good days and his bad days. Perhaps his reply indicates something that runs deeper than the ups and downs of everyday life.

Jesus once said, “A wise man builds his house on a rock.” When He said this, He wasn’t really talking about building houses. Rather, He was talking about building one’s life upon something strong and eternal. Jesus was calling His followers to build a life of faith upon God and God’s eternal promises. When we do this, our joy and happiness can be found in something much greater than the events of daily living.

As we live out each day, we can easily be controlled by how things are going for us at a particular moment. We can easily lose track of the “big picture” and allow ourselves to ride the roller coaster of emotional ups and downs. When this happens to us, we need to remember that in God we have a source of joy and peace that is steady and always available.

All of us know people who have a special sense of serenity and peace in their lives. The little things that bother most of us don’t seem to get them down. They go through each day taking things as they come. I believe that the source of this kind of serenity can be found in a strong life of faith. When we build our life upon the promises of God, joy and peace follow. As we are filled with this joy and peace, it enables us to say in truth, “Life has never been better.”

Pastor Larson’s Corner is written by Jerry Larson and appears weekly in the Norwegian American Weekly.

Pastor Jerry Larson retired to his cabin in Zimmerman, Minn., after 39 years in parish ministry for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In 2011 he published a book entitled “Speaking the Word Freely: Writing with purpose, preaching with power.” Contact him at jerlarson@visi.com

This article originally appeared in the Jan. 29, 2016, issue of the Norwegian American Weekly. To subscribe, visit SUBSCRIBE or call us at (206) 784-4617.