 2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death.” ~CSB
I punished my teenage son one day by taking away his cell phone. He was upset because I interrupted communication access between him and his girlfriend. He began to say how sorry he was and that he would not do it again. Eventually I gave him his phone back but the same disobedience continued. Time went by, we talked and he admitted that he was only sorry because he had lost his phone privileges. He wasn’t getting the bigger picture of the punishment that would eventually make him a better man. The world had taught him to have ‘its’ remorse. And because of that, his spiritual lessons could not be learned. Do we do that? In life when we know we may be going through something because of a bad choice we made, we begin to feel sorry. But where is our remorse guided? Is it worldly remorse we are feeling or godly remorse? Tony Evans paints a beautiful picture in his commentary about this. He writes, “Judas experiences ‘worldly grief’ after he betrayed Jesus. He knew he had sinned and was filled with remorse, but was unwilling to repent, (Matthew 27:3-5). On the other hand, Peter experienced ‘godly grief’ after denying Christ. This led to his repentance and recommitment to the Lord, resulting in his spiritual restoration. (Matthew 26:75; John 21:15-19). Now, I know the story about my son may seem minor, but ‘worldly remorse’ starts somewhere. My son was only focused on what he had lost, something he desired but did not have anymore. What he should have been focusing on was the big picture of doing better. As we live and breathe we need to take heed in the times God puts us on ‘pause’. In this pause let us not focus on what we lost or are not gaining. Yet let us focus on the ‘big picture’. Let us step away from the ‘worldly remorse’ and embrace the ‘godly grief’ that leads to ‘repentance’. Step away from grief that leads us away from God, but embrace that pain that pulls us to Him! It is in this ‘repentance’ we will find the peace, guidance and healing that will open our eyes to what it truly is God is giving us! Genuinely be remorseful to the Lord and declare His will over your life and watch the power of God move in the spiritual world He so graciously provided for you. Amen
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1 Corinthians 12:4-7 “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. 7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.” ~NLT
I have a confession. When I was younger, I purposely did not watch ‘award’ shows. I used to look at these shows and say, “I could do that. What’s so important about THAT person?” I was so way off base with that kind of thinking. What I didn't realize was that I was envious of other people’s success. What I didn’t realize was that success was supposed to be their ‘blessing’. A blessing they worked hard for. Blessings that God had already prepared for them. Blessings they had already walked through the ‘fire’ to receive. The biggest thing I failed to realize was that God already had my success lined up for me. But I was so busy criticizing others that I didn’t even make time to talk to the Lord about His will for me. God has big plans for all of us. But the world attempts to keep us from knowing that. Dr. Charles Stanley said once, “...Satan wants us to notice what others are doing so that it makes us feel inferior.” Think about it, we get on social media and see our friends on vacation, but we can’t go because money isn’t right. Or couples posting good relationships and ours is not so good. All these things are distractions. First we don’t know what the struggle is or was, of the people we see enjoying their success. That’s just it! We all may be going through right now, but after the midnight cry, joy will come in the morning! The bible talks about different body parts doing different unique work in order for the body to function as a whole, (1 Corinthians 12:15-26). We possess that same duty. We live our life as a ‘body part’. Our duties are to function in our own God-given unique way so that we can allow the ‘Body of Christ’ to function as a whole! Don’t let Satan disturb, distract or destroy that duty! Stay focused. Endure the trials and training of your sufferings because in the end, God will heal you, guide you and allow you to rise to the top. And when we begin to walk in our victory, make sure we share our struggle; mixed with God’s miracle in our lives; with others so that they may rise also. May God bless and keep you in His grace and mercy as you walk in Jesus’ name. Amen  Luke 12:11-12 “Whenever they bring you before synagogues and rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how you should defend yourselves or what you should say. 12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what must be said.” ~CSB
In my time in the Army and in law enforcement, I have been trained to prepare myself for the worst situations. For instance, I was trained to think about an incident that could go wrong, and five solutions for that situation. I took that training to situations in my everyday life and found myself preparing for something that may never take place. But one day the Spirit of the Lord told me not to do that anymore. God said in His Word that He sent us a Comforter and a Counselor. God gifted us each with the Holy Spirit that will guide us through tough situations. Think about it, how often do you find yourself talking to yourself, responding to a person who is not there; or a situation that has not happened yet? All of this causes us stress. The encounter with people and the uncomfortable situations are not for you. They are for Him. God wants to use us in these situations we encounter. That person or that situation is to be used by the Father to show others His power in healing and peace through you. We are not to figure out what to do under our own power. Rather, we are to walk our Christian walk and allow the Holy Spirit to say the right words of ‘healing’ that will come from God. This power of the Holy Spirit will bring a ‘miracle’ solution to any situation. God’s power in us will always defeat the enemy’s influence, on us and those around us. But we must trust God. Never fall away from trusting in God’s power and will for our lives. Until we learn to fully trust God, we will remain further away from our goal in loving God as much as He loves us. May God continue to bless and keep you in His grace in Jesus’s name. Amen  Zechariah 13:9 “I will put this third through the fire; I will refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name and I will answer them. I will say: They are my people, and they will say: The Lord is our God.” ~CSB
Do we find ourselves at a stand still as we walk in our callings? We have received our vision and direction from God, in what He has commanded of us. We feel that we are walking in obedience, yet we are becoming frustrated because it seems like things aren’t going according to how we were called. Let us step back and take a look at this from another perspective. Remember the world has taught us to be impatient. Because of that we have taken that vision God had given us, and we may be trying to do multiple things at once. We must understand that our God is a ‘step by step’ God. We must listen for His direction and move in the steps He has given us. In other words, there may be some things we must experience in one step, that will allow us to move a little more gracefully in a step to come. Look at Abraham. God told him in Genesis 12:1, “...Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” ~CSB God told Abraham to leave home! That would be a pretty hard move for most of us. But this scripture shows us that some of the steps God gives us, may not be the easiest. May not be comfortable, and may not be convenient. But they must be taken. Why? Because each step allows us to become stronger for the next step. Each step allows you to learn, grow, heal, and endure. Strong Christians will experience patience. Experienced Christians will practice patience while enduring the trials of the step. We will find that as we endure each step, God will birth a miracle in us with a blessing so great, not only will we benefit from it, but others around us will also benefit. Allow God to ‘...refine us as silver is refined…’ Allow God to ‘...test us as gold is tested…’ So that when we call on His name, He will answer us. He will say, “...They are my people.” And we will confirm, with enthusiasm and faith “The Lord is our God.” May God continue to bless you in His protection of peace, healing and love in Jesus’ name. Amen |
Authors Billy & YolandaThis is the place where we share our heart through God's Word in faith that will inspire and empower you to live in peace. Archives
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