Woah, it's been more than a month since my last post! I've been feeling the itch to write, but my heart (and hands!) have been busy with my children, my husband, embarking into new ministries, and my walk with my Creator has been brewing all the while... Tonight I feel like the things God has been brewing are steeped enough to put into words ;)
A dear friend of mine recently wrote about the tangled thoughts whirring in her mind and heart, and her words rung true with what I've been learning.
Often I feel a bit up-to-my-neck in life... sometimes when I'm in the thick of it (which happens a lot, owning a business and having 3 children under 5 ;), the enemy tries to whisper lies to me. He tells me that I'm not capable, that it will always be this hard, he shows me each failure, each corner cut, and tells me of looming, dark clouds that just might be in the future...
But here is the truth: God does not see us as a list of failures.
The Bible tells us that He sees us as Jesus, because Jesus stood in the gap, making up the difference between where we are and where we should be.
Religion tells us that we should strive to be like Jesus (which, in part, we should- but that's not the end of it.). Should we, then, spend our lives trying TO DO the right things and to NOT DO the wrong things? Should we strain and constrict our lives and hearts to push and shove them into the WWJD mold?
2 Corinthians says,
17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
...but right before that Paul says this:
14For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
This is such a relief! Instead of straining and striving and failing all our lives, let "the love of Christ control us"! We must turn our eyes upon Jesus, and spend our lives discovering who He is, chasing Him down, falling head-over-heels in love with HIM, and let that love drive us. What a relief to let go of striving on our own strength, and enjoy a relationship with our Creator, letting being in His presence change us bit-by-bit!
This last month I've been a bit quieter, drinking Him in, asking Him who I am and who He made me to be. When I let the worries and failures of life fade, and I focus on Him, there is so much security, and so much peace.
Chase after Him with your whole heart- you will not regret it!!
A dear friend of mine recently wrote about the tangled thoughts whirring in her mind and heart, and her words rung true with what I've been learning.
Often I feel a bit up-to-my-neck in life... sometimes when I'm in the thick of it (which happens a lot, owning a business and having 3 children under 5 ;), the enemy tries to whisper lies to me. He tells me that I'm not capable, that it will always be this hard, he shows me each failure, each corner cut, and tells me of looming, dark clouds that just might be in the future...
But here is the truth: God does not see us as a list of failures.
The Bible tells us that He sees us as Jesus, because Jesus stood in the gap, making up the difference between where we are and where we should be.
Religion tells us that we should strive to be like Jesus (which, in part, we should- but that's not the end of it.). Should we, then, spend our lives trying TO DO the right things and to NOT DO the wrong things? Should we strain and constrict our lives and hearts to push and shove them into the WWJD mold?
2 Corinthians says,
17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
...but right before that Paul says this:
14For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
This is such a relief! Instead of straining and striving and failing all our lives, let "the love of Christ control us"! We must turn our eyes upon Jesus, and spend our lives discovering who He is, chasing Him down, falling head-over-heels in love with HIM, and let that love drive us. What a relief to let go of striving on our own strength, and enjoy a relationship with our Creator, letting being in His presence change us bit-by-bit!
This last month I've been a bit quieter, drinking Him in, asking Him who I am and who He made me to be. When I let the worries and failures of life fade, and I focus on Him, there is so much security, and so much peace.
Chase after Him with your whole heart- you will not regret it!!
I've definitely been feeling "up to my neck" lately! I always love reading your thoughts! This one came at a great time! :)
ReplyDelete<3 <3 <3 :) -R.
ReplyDeleteYour words and thoughts are always so encouraging, Anna! Thanks for writing and sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteWow... That's so good! All I can really think of in response is, "WORD" haha. Definitely needed that encouragement. I love what you said: "God does not see us as a list of failures." I don't know how many times each day I feel like God thinks less and less of me because of the countless times I mess up. What a relief to know that's not the case! It's really humbling!
ReplyDelete