As I was doing my quiet time tonight, two words stuck out to me: no condemnation.
Immediately they hit me with full force. How can a big God Who deserves nothing but honor and glory forgive all the wrongs I've done? How can He look past them all like I never did them?
You may be carrying something around that you feel terribly guilty about. You may feel like this guilt comes from God to remind you, or punish you, for what you have done. But that is simply not the case. Jesus forgives us of our sins and takes them from us. When Jesus went to the cross He paid the price for your sins, once and for all. You don't have to keep paying for your sins through guilt. You don't have to carry them around anymore. You don't have to live with shame anymore. If you are in Christ, you are forgiven. (excerpt from Transformed)
I will never understand how God can love me enough to send His Son for me, but I will always be grateful. As I was thinking about this, however, I realized, do I live like I'm forgiven? Do we live like we're forgiven? If a debtor is forgiven his debt, does he go out and obtain another one? If a beggar is given a home, does he leave and go back to the streets to beg? The challenge for those of us who have experienced God's forgiveness is to live like we've been forgiven.
I think sometimes we hold onto the guilt because we're afraid if we let go then it'll be erased from our memory. Or if we let go then God is gonna smash us over the head. Or if we hold on long enough then the wrong will go away. Whatever the reason is, don't live with guilt. Trust me, it'll weigh you down and steal your joy. Romans 8:1 says, Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Perhaps you're reading this, and you've never experienced God's forgiveness. Perhaps you're looking back over your life and feeling discouraged because of all you've done. Please don't be. All God wants you to do is just accept His gift. You don't have to understand why He would offer it. I never will. All I know is that the Maker of the universe desired to have a relationship with us so much that instead of turning us into robots, He sent His Son to die, conquer sin, and come back to life to give us freedom so that we can have fellowship with Him. We have a choice to make. Who wants to live with guilt? You don't have to be fancy, just talk to God like you would a friend and ask Him to forgive you and cleanse you. He's waiting for you!
We all have a past. We all have things we wish we could fix or just things we regret happening. One of my favorite verses that I have seen lived out so many times is Romans 8:28, And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. One of the sayings in the Transformed study that has really stuck out to me is Your greatest ministry will come from your deepest pain. God uses what we go through to help others, but we can't help them if we're still living in guilt. We'll never be transformed if we aren't emotionally healthy. Don't let Satan win by being burdened by guilt. Embrace God's forgiveness today and live a life full of joy!
No condemnation. Two words with a powerful meaning.
Friday, May 23, 2014
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Broken Hallelujah
I heard this song for the first time today while listening to K-Love radio in the Starbucks drive-thru.
Let me back up.
The past 3 weeks have been an absolute struggle for me. I have felt lower than I have in months. It's like I've been crashing from a high- the school year. I loved being at Mercer. Each day flew by because I was so busy doing things. Well, now it's summer...and it has not gone at all the way I planned. I'm away from my friends, and I don't have a set schedule. Thankfully I have an internship that takes up 2 days a week, but it's still been a struggle, especially since I need to find a paid job. THAT has been so stressful and discouraging. I may have one, but I still don't know for sure yet. The past week I have felt so discouraged, stressed out, and depressed. I felt so distant from God. I prayed, I did my quiet time, and yet He still felt so far away. I cried many times. I took my frustration out on others. I tossed and turned at night. I'm not saying all this to play a pity card. I'm being real and honest. I've been trying to fill my mind with positive things the past week, especially with music. This morning, I got in my car and almost didn't turn on my radio because I was just so discouraged.
My break through came at the Starbucks drive-thru.
I am so glad I turned on the radio. This song fit me so perfectly. I instantly identified with the first lines.
I can barely stand right now,
Everything is crashing down,
And I wonder where You are.
I try to find the words to pray,
I don't always know what to say,
But You're the One who can hear my heart.
Wow! I love music so much. There's always a song that describes how I feel. I'm not gonna write the rest of the lyrics because I want you to listen to the song yourself.
I didn't blog to get pity. I didn't share for sympathy. I'm sharing to show God's wonders. He works even when you think He's far away. Yeah, my summer is not what I thought it'd be. But it's also not over. It's definitely a hard adjustment going from steady schedule and income to almost nothing. But God's not done. Today I began to make more friends at my church. A light is beginning to shine through the clouds.
Storms are going to happen in life. It's the only way we grow. It's so painful to be molded by God. It's not fun, but the results are worth it. God strips me of everything when He wants me to focus back on Him and continue to mold me, and that's exactly what He's been doing. If you're in a storm right now, don't give up. God may feel far away, but if you look for Him, you will find Him.
Here's my broken hallelujah!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo3DudOzV4k&feature=kp
Let me back up.
The past 3 weeks have been an absolute struggle for me. I have felt lower than I have in months. It's like I've been crashing from a high- the school year. I loved being at Mercer. Each day flew by because I was so busy doing things. Well, now it's summer...and it has not gone at all the way I planned. I'm away from my friends, and I don't have a set schedule. Thankfully I have an internship that takes up 2 days a week, but it's still been a struggle, especially since I need to find a paid job. THAT has been so stressful and discouraging. I may have one, but I still don't know for sure yet. The past week I have felt so discouraged, stressed out, and depressed. I felt so distant from God. I prayed, I did my quiet time, and yet He still felt so far away. I cried many times. I took my frustration out on others. I tossed and turned at night. I'm not saying all this to play a pity card. I'm being real and honest. I've been trying to fill my mind with positive things the past week, especially with music. This morning, I got in my car and almost didn't turn on my radio because I was just so discouraged.
My break through came at the Starbucks drive-thru.
I am so glad I turned on the radio. This song fit me so perfectly. I instantly identified with the first lines.
I can barely stand right now,
Everything is crashing down,
And I wonder where You are.
I try to find the words to pray,
I don't always know what to say,
But You're the One who can hear my heart.
Wow! I love music so much. There's always a song that describes how I feel. I'm not gonna write the rest of the lyrics because I want you to listen to the song yourself.
I didn't blog to get pity. I didn't share for sympathy. I'm sharing to show God's wonders. He works even when you think He's far away. Yeah, my summer is not what I thought it'd be. But it's also not over. It's definitely a hard adjustment going from steady schedule and income to almost nothing. But God's not done. Today I began to make more friends at my church. A light is beginning to shine through the clouds.
Storms are going to happen in life. It's the only way we grow. It's so painful to be molded by God. It's not fun, but the results are worth it. God strips me of everything when He wants me to focus back on Him and continue to mold me, and that's exactly what He's been doing. If you're in a storm right now, don't give up. God may feel far away, but if you look for Him, you will find Him.
Here's my broken hallelujah!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo3DudOzV4k&feature=kp
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Weaknesses- Good or Bad?
Weaknesses are good.
Wait, what?! You've got to be kidding me, right?
Nope, not at all! I am being completely honest with you, weaknesses are good. And for me, that is a VERY comforting thought!
I really love the Transformed series we are doing at Harvest. Today's quiettime was on 2 Corinthians 12:9, and it talked about how God uses our weaknesses. The journal listed three promises about weaknesses, and as I read them, I realized that weaknesses are good! Here are the three promises:
1. "God's power is present in your weakness,"
2. "God works through weakness to accomplish His task,"
3. "God allows limitations to become blessings in disguise."
I really felt relief just flow through me. I am a major perfectionist, and I hate having weaknesses. I don't like it one bit. I want all of me to be perfect. But that's not what God wants. Sometimes I think we think God expects us to be perfect. He doesn't! Not at all! He knows we aren't, and that's how He shows his power! If there was no weakness in us, how would He show His strength? God needs us to be weak. He has no reason to work in our lives if we're perfect. For me, this puts a whole new meaning to the fact that God loves me the way I am. I don't have to change, I don't have to clean-up, I don't have to be perfect to follow Him!
"I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works; my soul knows it very well." (Psalm 139:14)
For most of my life, I have felt like God and everyone else expected perfection from me. I am a very self-conscious person because of it. Perhaps you can relate to that feeling. How wrong I am! I don't have to be perfect! I can embrace my weaknesses because God wants to use them and work through me! The devotional also brought up the fact that we are like jars of clay. "But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us." (2 Corinthians 4:7) We are breakable, and God knows it. We are a treasure to Him!
I hope this truth brings you comfort and joy as much as it did me. We as humans cannot be perfect, and God does not expect us to be. Embrace your weaknesses because that is how God will work!
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Wait, what?! You've got to be kidding me, right?
Nope, not at all! I am being completely honest with you, weaknesses are good. And for me, that is a VERY comforting thought!
I really love the Transformed series we are doing at Harvest. Today's quiettime was on 2 Corinthians 12:9, and it talked about how God uses our weaknesses. The journal listed three promises about weaknesses, and as I read them, I realized that weaknesses are good! Here are the three promises:
1. "God's power is present in your weakness,"
2. "God works through weakness to accomplish His task,"
3. "God allows limitations to become blessings in disguise."
I really felt relief just flow through me. I am a major perfectionist, and I hate having weaknesses. I don't like it one bit. I want all of me to be perfect. But that's not what God wants. Sometimes I think we think God expects us to be perfect. He doesn't! Not at all! He knows we aren't, and that's how He shows his power! If there was no weakness in us, how would He show His strength? God needs us to be weak. He has no reason to work in our lives if we're perfect. For me, this puts a whole new meaning to the fact that God loves me the way I am. I don't have to change, I don't have to clean-up, I don't have to be perfect to follow Him!
"I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works; my soul knows it very well." (Psalm 139:14)
For most of my life, I have felt like God and everyone else expected perfection from me. I am a very self-conscious person because of it. Perhaps you can relate to that feeling. How wrong I am! I don't have to be perfect! I can embrace my weaknesses because God wants to use them and work through me! The devotional also brought up the fact that we are like jars of clay. "But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us." (2 Corinthians 4:7) We are breakable, and God knows it. We are a treasure to Him!
I hope this truth brings you comfort and joy as much as it did me. We as humans cannot be perfect, and God does not expect us to be. Embrace your weaknesses because that is how God will work!
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Personal Blog: Romans 8:35-39
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,neither the present nor the future,nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 8:35-39
God transcends everything. His love cannot be conquered, it cannot be removed, it cannot be broken, it cannot be lost- which is very comforting for the future.
The future is scary. It is often times dark and unknown, but Jesus is the light we must cling to, I must cling to. Nothing separates us from God's love. No mater what we go through, His love is always there and forever will remain. I can't see my future, but I can trust in the One who does. He holds it all in His hands. Worrying will get me nowhere. It won't make the future any better.
As a kid I would sing the song "He's got the whole world in His hands." It often comes back to me. I can still remember the words and the motion that accompanied that line. As a kid, you'll believe anything. It wasn't hard for me to grasp the fact that God is big. Everything is big when you're a kid. But especially being in college now, that knowledge starts to become reality. So many times I get lost in the mystery, and God shines His light and says," See? I told you to trust Me."
I am so glad God is real. There is no way I could live my life without the knowledge that there is a God up in Heaven orchestrating my life and waiting for the right time to bring me to Him. Life is so empty without having anything to live for. You can live for people, but they will only let you down. Everything in this world will let you down. God has never let me down. He is constantly by my side. His love knows no end.
Last semester, I thought I had my whole future planned out. I was gonna major in Christianity, take Greek and French, go to grad school, etc etc. But this semester, I got thrown a curve-ball and now I have absolutely no clue what is in my future. Oh sure, I still want to go into ministry. But now that I might double major, I can't do all the classes I want to do, and I have no clue how I'm going to get everything done in 3 years. Not to mention, I have absolutely no clue what the summer holds for me. I am going through a dark cave now, but God shines just enough light for me to see the next step. I don't know what lies for me at the end, all I can do is continuously trust and rely on God.
I am so glad God's love is a constant. I almost didn't read my devotional today, but I am so thankful I did. I would've missed out on this truth. When I read Romans 8:35-39, the phrase that immediately stuck out to me was "neither the present nor the future." God gave me the reassuring truth that no matter what happens, no matter what is in store for me, His love is always there. He is always walking right beside me, holding my hand, and guiding me every step of the way.
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." (Romans 8:18)
God transcends everything. His love cannot be conquered, it cannot be removed, it cannot be broken, it cannot be lost- which is very comforting for the future.
The future is scary. It is often times dark and unknown, but Jesus is the light we must cling to, I must cling to. Nothing separates us from God's love. No mater what we go through, His love is always there and forever will remain. I can't see my future, but I can trust in the One who does. He holds it all in His hands. Worrying will get me nowhere. It won't make the future any better.
As a kid I would sing the song "He's got the whole world in His hands." It often comes back to me. I can still remember the words and the motion that accompanied that line. As a kid, you'll believe anything. It wasn't hard for me to grasp the fact that God is big. Everything is big when you're a kid. But especially being in college now, that knowledge starts to become reality. So many times I get lost in the mystery, and God shines His light and says," See? I told you to trust Me."
I am so glad God is real. There is no way I could live my life without the knowledge that there is a God up in Heaven orchestrating my life and waiting for the right time to bring me to Him. Life is so empty without having anything to live for. You can live for people, but they will only let you down. Everything in this world will let you down. God has never let me down. He is constantly by my side. His love knows no end.
Last semester, I thought I had my whole future planned out. I was gonna major in Christianity, take Greek and French, go to grad school, etc etc. But this semester, I got thrown a curve-ball and now I have absolutely no clue what is in my future. Oh sure, I still want to go into ministry. But now that I might double major, I can't do all the classes I want to do, and I have no clue how I'm going to get everything done in 3 years. Not to mention, I have absolutely no clue what the summer holds for me. I am going through a dark cave now, but God shines just enough light for me to see the next step. I don't know what lies for me at the end, all I can do is continuously trust and rely on God.
I am so glad God's love is a constant. I almost didn't read my devotional today, but I am so thankful I did. I would've missed out on this truth. When I read Romans 8:35-39, the phrase that immediately stuck out to me was "neither the present nor the future." God gave me the reassuring truth that no matter what happens, no matter what is in store for me, His love is always there. He is always walking right beside me, holding my hand, and guiding me every step of the way.
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." (Romans 8:18)
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