Practice makes perfect right? If at first you don't succeed, try and try again! I have to remind myself that
this applies in my spiritual walk as well. Most of the time I may not 'feel'
God but I 'know' He's there because His word says so and He is not a
liar!
Continuing with the theme of
Obedience, I’m coming to realize that two things are at the root of being disobedient;
fear or rebellion. That’s it. All the excuses we can come up with for not doing
as we know we should falls under these two categories UNLESS you really don’t
know any better and grace and mercy have got that covered.
I’d like to go
even as far as saying that rebellion falls under fear too. No matter the circumstance(s),
I really believe that being afraid of what it may mean for there to be a ‘Higher
Power’ that is in control as opposed to you being in control of your life is
scary to most people… even for some declared Christians.
But
thanks be to God’s because in His presence is fullness of joy (Psa. 16:11), and
the joy of the Lord is our strength (Neh. 8:10) because He is our refuge and
fortress (Psa. 91:2). All He asks is for us to trust Him with all our hearts
(Prov. 3:5) and He can AND will help us overcome our fears!
Simply meditate on
His simple request and promise to:“Fear thou not; for I am with
thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen
thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness” Isaiah 41:10.
Then
take a stand and declare that: “I will fear NOTHING because NOTHING is greater
than my God. #30WordsBook” (by Jarrid Wilson)
I have
a hard time being vulnerable with just anyone. With my sisters, biological and
not, I can pretty much lay my heart out in the open but not with/to a stranger
or a mere acquaintance. How many agree with that? But see, therein lies the
problem: the Word says that we overcome “by the blood of the Lamb and the word
of [our] testimony” Rev. 12:11. I got
the “blood of the Lamb” part down pat (with the help of the Holy Ghost off course)!
I have believed and received the Lord Jesus Christ into my life as my personal
Savior but umm… do I REALLY have to share what You’ve brought me out of Lord?
Are You sure???
True
story: so I’m doing my daily devotional just a few minutes ago using Jarrid Wilson’s book 30 Words: A Devotional
for the Rest of Us (only $3.99 on Amazon.com and sooooooooooo worth it). The
challenge of the day was to HONESTLY list three sins that I am currently
struggling with AND… this is the clincher right here, AND share it with someone
close with whom we can pray together about gaining freedom in these areas. Can
we say instant PANIC ATTACK! So what you’re saying is I have to be open with
someone else while I can barely be open with myself? Hmm….
Oh, but
that’s not it!!! What was my first post on? OBEDIENCE!!!! Doing what God says WHEN He says it. Yup, I’m
right there between ‘Rock Street’ and ‘Hard Place’; I had to do it come rain or
high water. But then who am I really calling at this hour? No one! The Lord
sent me here. Yup, to more than one person… God got jokes!
My close circle already, to an extent, know my
testimony and therefore do not need it. It is those people who do not know
about Jesus; those who are going through EXACTLY what God brought me AND you
out of that need to hear about the victory we have in Jesus Christ, that can
also become their reality! It is also for those who know Jesus but STILL they
struggle in a particular area of their Christian journey. I had to ask myself
why I feel I’m too good to talk about my dirt that I wasn’t too good to do in
the first place. #RealityCheck.
Isn’t it sad that we are more ashamed of what
people will think of us than what God will think? No I won’t go into the whole “He
has a hell to put you in but man doesn’t” shpiel because we already know that and yet here
we still stand in this predicament.
So what does this mean for you and
me? Simply put, we need to start talking… being open with one another. You don’t
have to force it to happen, but don’t shy away from the opportunity to share a
vulnerable piece of you when it arises. You never know whom it may bless. And if
we can’t be open with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ then who can we be
open with? We have to put the mantra “be the change you want to see in this world” to
work, especially in our churches.
“Because of the joy awaiting Him, He
endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now He is seated in the place of
honor beside God’s throne” Heb. 12:2. Jesus saw the bigger picture. Did it hurt
Him? YES (You try wearing a crown of thorns and see how it feels - Mark 15:17).
Did he want to avoid it? Yes (Luke 22:42). But the end was greater than the
means; our salvation was worth His suffering and pain. And in this day and age,
His lost sheep’s salvation is worth OUR brief suffering too. Since to be like
Christ is to suffer like Him, let me start us off then:
1.Impure thoughts
2.Lying
3.Procrastination
What are your big three? (No you don’t have to list them so
breathe easy).
Automatically I wanted to justify my sins and you may too
but don’t fall for that trick of the enemy! Simply acknowledge them, confess
them, repent and FORGET!!! God will too… just as soon as you say amen!
For “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and
will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
Name them one by one. I really love that phrase! I’ve used
it countless times in conversation, on Facebook statuses, etc. But I think I failed
to grasp the significance of exactly what I was saying. Picture it. How long
would it take you to LITERALLY count and name your blessings? One hour? One
day? One month? One year? Five? Ten? Even longer?
It’s a new year and new years signify new beginnings! I try
not to come up with resolutions per say but a theme or two that can carry me
through the next twelve months. One of them is Gratitude. If you’re like me,
then you can relate to being able to make petitions in prayer 24/7 for everyone
and everything around you. But I can’t say the same for praise and
thanksgiving.
The Bible sates: “Be thankful in all circumstances, for this
is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thes. 5:18 (NLT).
Soooooo... in trying to practice being grateful, I started a
“memory/ thank-You box.” A jar can work too, but each and every day I have to
write something I am grateful for that took place or that I thought of that day
and drop it in the box. Big or small, I MUST write something. By small I mean “thank
you Lord for that last seat on the bus cuz I was wearing stilettos… AMEN!” I know
you are laughing but imagine the agony I would’ve been in standing for 45
minutes; possibly longer in traffic, and still having the rest of the day to
endure!! Nothing is too big or small for God, He did say “…ALL circumstance,”
right?
Anyway, I’m only a week in and I am finding myself appreciating
so many more little things and struggling over which to write down and which to
skip… Yes, I still thank God in prayer for the skipped ones (just in case you
were wondering). I can’t wait to see how full the box gets by the end of the
year. Maybe I’ll have two boxes… or more! (Check back in December :P)
That’s
the best way to describe what I have been doing lately with regard to starting
this blog; being disobedient by procrastinating. I have been searching; Youtube, Blog after blog, Google-ing,
Bing-ing, Yahoo-ing… for a Christian inspirational channel or blog that I connected
with. Yet I never took the time to listen to that still little voice telling me to
start my own… hmm.
So, now I’m listening. Not
only that, now I’m obeying. For to love God is to obey His commands (John
14:15). I have no clue how to proceed but I know He shall direct my path. “For God has not given [ME] a spirit of
fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7). Therefore I will
embark on this journey and follow Him as He leads me throughout this year and
beyond.
