His Promise ALWAYS Stays True....

How true that headliner is....and how often we can forget it.  We remember God’s promise is true when things are going great in our life.  We praise God for his multitude of blessings and paths he is opens up for us that we perceive as amazing opportunities, whether it has to do with personal relationships, work, finances, etc.  Our human nature is to respond with thanks and love in times of praise when we receive so many gifts.  I certainly cannot deny this, seeing how my own personal love language is giving and receiving gifts. 

But what about when things are not going according to "plan"...not God's plan, but OUR plan.  So many times, I leave God out of my plan, forgetting that it is His desire to have a deep and intimate relationship with me.  I believe I know what is best for myself (and others - guilty!!!) - I have certain goals and values, and I want to lead my life a certain way, not according to God's standards, but to my own standards and the world's standards.  When I do this, I WILLINGLY walk away from God.  If I choose to walk away from Christ, the further I put distance between myself and Him, the harder it becomes for me to hear His voice.  Example: Two people meet in the middle of the road and start talking about a problem concerning one of them. Person A chooses to stay in the place they met, continuing to talk but Person B starts to walk away in the opposite direction, refusing to listen. With each step Person B takes, the harder it is them to hear what Person A is trying to say. 

We walk away from people and God simply because:

1.      We are in denial of reality

2.      We ignore or try to fix our problems ourselves

3.      We act and react in the way we think is justifiable - this is where pride, anger, resentment, and pain start to grow and lay their roots in our hearts and minds

The moment the uninvited problems show up and stay unresolved, doors to hurt, pain, and suffering appear.  I find myself so quickly to blame God for bringing the destruction in my life, and refuse to listen to His voice.  If I don't start to retreat back to God, how can I expect to hear His voice?  How can I be open to give and receive love for myself and for others, if I don't accept truth?  You cannot be loving without being truthful, nor can you be truthful without loving.

I've come to realize this past week how imperfect I truly am.  I do not always say the right things, show the right emotions, listen just as I would like to be listened to, or love the way I know I should.  That is because I am capable of holding onto just as much pride as the next person.  When I hold onto that pride, I willingly choose how I act and react, and whether it is intentional or unintentional, and I am 100% capable of hurting people because of my pride.  Even with pride, when someone continues to attack you and goes around to others attacking you and lying about you, I have learned that rather than simply attack back, I can put my pride aside and I do not have to do a thing.  

Hurting people hurt people.  Their actions speak for themselves.  I do not have to defend myself to them or the people that are hearing the lies.  When truth is truth, you don't need to defend yourself.   Why is it wrong to be defensive, to set someone straight when they've misjudged or even misspoken against you?  Because defensiveness is an ungodly characteristic.  Think about it.  Did Jesus rise up in indignation and defend His own character or life?  No.  Recall those excruciating hours He hung on the cross while men spat upon Him, jeered and mocked Him, tore His clothing and took it as souvenirs.  The Bible says in 1 Peter 2:23 that while Jesus was reviled, He did not revile in return.  Instead, He entrusted Himself to the One who would judge righteously.

Since I have started to be open to God and His plan for me, I see him convicting my heart so quickly.  I find myself not just asking for forgiveness to those I know I have hurt, but giving forgiveness to those, even when it is not asked.  God has been doing some pretty amazing things in my marriage, in my family, and in myself.  I have had to accept that it is naive of me to think now that God is being placed first in my life, that I will no longer suffer.  He wants me to bring my suffering to Him, and place my faith in Him, knowing that He will bring me out on the other side of peace.  I have had to accept that by submitting to His will, it will bring relationships and situations forward in my life that will be tested.  I truly and faithfully believe EVERYTHING happens for a reason.  He has a reason for everything.  I have already had to make some very hard decisions.  I have had to re-examine what is my responsibility and what is not my responsibility; what I will allow in my life and what I will not allow in my life.   I cannot put my faith in others - I need to my faith in Jesus Christ.  I cannot expect people to give me the respect and love I deserve and also expect it to be enough. God is more than enough.  I cannot put my pain and heartache onto others and expect them to want to protect me - I only have to bring it to God and know He will protect me.  In my experiences of hurt and pain, I am starting to choose to praise my amazing and merciful God because His love is unending, unfailing, and unchanging.  

No matter what I say and do based on God’s truth, love, and grace for me in spite of my imperfections, I have to admit myself at the end of the day: I cannot change anyone. I cannot save anyone. God can use me as a vessel for someone to come to Him through my own personal testimony, but I am powerless and in order for others’ to hear God’s truth they have to:

Believe + Receive = Become

Believe God’s truth, love, and grace for you in spite of your imperfections.
Receive God’s truth, love, and grace for you in spite of your imperfections.
Start to become who God’s want you to be through his truth, love, and grace for you in spite of your imperfections.

Prayer: Jesus, you are MY example for living graciously, victoriously and obediently, even when misunderstood or mistreated.  I want to live like You so that others are drawn to You.  So when I begin to feel mistreated or misunderstood, ganged up on or misrepresented, robbed or misheard, help me to listen to Your words of truth rather than my wounded feelings.  Help me to entrust myself -- my reputation, my rights, my heart, my future, my feelings -- to the One who sees all and knows all, and who will judge appropriately.  And help me to care more about my testimony for You than my emotions or my need to be right or even heard.  Help me resist the temptation to pick up my weapons and fight back, but to be gentle and patient and kind instead.  Amen!