Posts tagged new creation

A Healthy Bride Revisited

June 15, 2023 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

I posted this some time ago, but I decided that it was worth repeating. Please share the posts as you see fit.

A few years ago, between worship songs at church, I shared this word that the Holy Spirit gave me: “Church, God
wants a healthy bride. That means some things will have to be stripped away.”

Later that week, He gave me the image of a wound that had been bandaged, but the bandage had been left on too long. The bleeding had stopped, and some healing had taken place, but for true healing, the old dead things must come off.

I see Him doing this in the body of believers. We should not expect that this will be a painless process, right!?
He is preparing His bride, making us healthier, beginning to complete the work that He has begun in us.

(Philippians 1:6   For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by
the day of Christ Jesus.)

I have experienced this difficult transition myself and watched those near me travel through it as well. Keep trusting Him, rest in Him, wait on Him.

(Isaiah 40:31  But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like
eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.)

It’s not pretty, but it’s beautiful! Lean on Him and on each other, resist the temptation to isolate, choose to trust even
when it feels hopeless. He is bringing us out of this cleansing and has new things for us to do. He tells me, “Walk as one who is forgiven, and sin no more.”  Be open to His voice to direct you and use His Word to pray and to encourage yourself in the Lord.

(1 Samuel 3:9  And Eli said to Samuel, “Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for
your servant is listening.’”.                      

1 Samuel 30:6   ….but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.)

Lord, help us participate in this process while trusting and resting in You, to do the work that we simply cannot
accomplish without You. Your Word tells us that we are new creations in You. Help us walk that out and live in the freedom the Son has given us.

Amen

II Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

John 8:36 

If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

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Eye Exam

October 23, 2021 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

A few days back I had my annual appointment with my eye doctor. Two years ago I had cataract surgery so I was glad to get the report that my eyes are healthy.

This morning though, I was awakened to the conviction of several ongoing sinful patterns in my life and the potential long term effects of them. As I wept over these things that continue to mark my life with heartache, I thought, wow, I can’t believe that my eye doctor couldn’t see those planks in my eyes!!!

I thought back to another situation in the past when the Spirit told me that my sins were going to cost me dearly, and eventually they had. I realized that like last time, these sins are quite possibly robbing me of the future God has for me.

While I looked at the things that I felt were impeding other people’s spiritual progress, was I even trying to fight the temptations in my own life and not give in to overeating or overspending? There, I named the planks! “Is there any more Grace for me?” I wondered behind my tears. I know there is but I also felt like I have taken advantage of the grace for so long, I certainly don’t deserve any more chances.

Then I thought of the horrible state of affairs in our country and our world, and this verse came to mind: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will heal their land.” II Chronicles 7:14

My wicked ways might not appear to someone else as wicked, but I know from the Bible and from the Holy Spirit’s conviction that they are. They are every bit as wicked as the sin I so easily spot in other people’s lives, the specks in their eyes.

If I ask you to think of the one area of your life where you struggle the most, what would immediately come to mind? Quite possibly, like me, you’d think of several, those repetitive sins which point to our rebellion towards God. In what areas are you fighting what feels like a losing battle for self control? In what areas are you in rebellion against God’s best plan for your life?

It’s not about us deserving or earning good things, because Jesus died so that the Father’s promise of hope and a future will be ours even though we don’t deserve it.

What if the reason I repay God’s goodness with sin is because I don’t believe I deserve anything good? What if, like a naughty child, I misbehave to test the limits of my Father’s love because it is impossible for me to comprehend that kind of love? What if I start believing that no matter what I feel, as the song says, “The Lord has promised good to me, His Word my hope secures.”?

My challenge to myself and to you today is to fall on His power to transform us, for us to be willing to be changed and free of the sins which so easily entangle us. Lord, please help us live as new creations, which You tell us we are. Help us remember to use the weapons you have given us so that we will stand, not in rebellion any longer, but in Your strength.

Amen

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