"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever (1 John 2:15-17).

It is not a new thing for man to leave God out of the picture when it comes to success. Jesus told a parable about a man who was greatly blessed, but forgot that God had provided the things necessary for his success. "And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:15-21). This man forgot that God provided the rain and sunshine. He failed to realize that God gave him the mind and body to do his work so that he could prosper. Sadly too many are like this man today. They leave God out of the picture, when they should be thanking Him and praising Him for all He gives to mankind.

Not only does God provide physical blessings for man, He has provided the greatest blessing of all in giving His Son to die for the sins of all. Without this sacrifice man would have no hope of eternal life in heaven. He has provided us with his word (2 Tim. 3:16, 17), so that we can know what He desires us to do in service and worship to Him.

We all must choose which side of the battle we want to be on as we head toward eternity. Our prayer is that all will make the right choice and follow God. Study the Bible, believe in Christ as the Son of God, repent of the sins in your life, be willing to confess Jesus as the Christ before men and then be baptized for the remission of your sins. The "battle" is raging, but we can be victorious.