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By Posted on Posted in grace, growth No Comments

Many christians would say that an important goal or mark of growth in their lives is becoming like Jesus. The Bible encourages us to cast off sin, to be loving, to forgive, to “walk as Jesus walked.” (1 John 2:6)

He has extended revolutionary love and grace to us.

“…when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”  Titus 3:4-7

It doesn’t take much for us to understand that we need to be like Jesus and extend love and grace to others. However, we completely miss the boat when it comes to extending grace to ourselves.

I’m not talking about making excuses or justifying our selfish behavior.  It’s time to stop listening to the lies running through our heads. I’m a failure. I’m worthless. I’m not as skinny as so-and-so. Why can’t I get it together? If people knew the real me, they’d be shocked. Lies.

It’s time to start forgiving ourselves the moment that God forgives us. It’s time to start giving ourselves the opportunity to make mistakes.

If you want to be like Jesus, then give yourself grace. Right now. Today, tomorrow, and every day. Give grace to yourself because God always does.

By Posted on Posted in forgiveness, grace No Comments

Loving my study in the book of Hebrews. One of the most commonly quoted verses about God’s word is found in chapter 4, verse 12:

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

God’s word gets right down to business. It cuts through our bone-hard self-protection to the soft inner marrow of our hearts. It exposes the root of our sins and problems: our thoughts and attitudes. We are always trying to deal with our sins from the outside, attempting to change our behavior with self-control. God wants to deal with the inner root of the problem in our hearts and in our minds. The disease of sin has infected the marrow of our hearts. The sin we see in our “outer” lives is only a symptom of the inner problem.

Beware…the enemy wants us to believe that God is always pointing fingers at us and frowning upon our sin. This morning, the Lord drew my attention to the progression of verses after the one we’ve been looking at. If we continue in Hebrews 4, we see:

verse 13  “nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. everything is uncovered and laid bare before him…” It is true that God’s word uncovers even the secrets in the marrow of our hearts. Nothing is hidden from Him. However,this is not the end of the issue.

verse 15  “for we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have (Jesus) who has been tempted in every way, just as we are…”   What is revealed in my heart… what He finds there… Jesus understands. He walked this earth, fully human. He battled temptation. Someone challenged me with this question: Why would the scriptures say that He was tempted in the desert if it wasn’t REALLY a temptation? If it wasn’t temptation, then it would have been called something else. It was a temptation that He had to battle.  He understands how hard it is to face sin and overcome.

verse 16  “let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and grace in our time of need.”  He does not condemn us for our temptations and our sins.  He offers grace every time. So approach Him with confidence! He knows your struggle.  He has been tempted and angered. He has been rejected, judged, and gossiped about.  He has been desperate to avoid suffering (read Matthew 26 and Mark 14).  He handled all of these situations in a way that pleased the Father, yet He does not condemn you for being unable to do the same.

He loves you! He understands you! Do not hide from Him. You may fear that opening your heart will leave you judged and vulnerable.   However, opening your heart makes it possible for him to pour out his love and mercy. Uncovering the marrow of your heart is the only way to be transformed! He will bring healing where you need it. He will bring the inner change that you need. He will shower you with grace!

Open your heart to Him.

By Posted on Posted in God's presence, grace, rest No Comments

“Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.

Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts…”

(but open them instead.)  Psalm 95:6-8a  NIV

“And so this is still a live promise. It wasn’t canceled at the time of Joshua; otherwise, God wouldn’t keep renewing the appointment for “today.” The promise of “arrival” and “rest” is still there for God’s people. God himself is at rest. And at the end of the journey we’ll surely rest with God. So let’s keep at it and eventually arrive at the place of rest, not drop out through some sort of disobedience.”  Heb. 4:8-11 MSG

No matter what happened  yesterday, last week, or over the last 6 months, today is the day that you can enter His rest. Stop struggling, stop worrying, stop beating yourself up. If you hear, “You’re a mess”, “You don’t deserve it”, or “You’ve gone too far”… these are lies from the enemy. God’s voice is saying to you today, “Come to Me. I am overcome with love for you. I forgive all of your mistakes. I am ready to move forward with you today.”

Today is the day!