The New Year.

"Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights of the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain."
Philippians 2:14-16

"For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
2 Corinthians 12:10

These are going to be my cornerstone verses this year. These two concepts - complaining and discontentment - are things I constantly struggle with. But they have no place in my life if I claim to know the Lord. If I say that I believe in the healing power of Christ, and if I believe that Jesus rose from the grave and defeated sin, then I absolutely believe that He can have power in my life over these sins.

Here lies a problem tho, Christians today don't really believe that being discontent or complaining are actually sin! Seriously, I just said that!! Sure, most Christians would say they aren't good, but if you really looked at our lives and witnessed how much most of us Christians complain about daily circumstances or how unhappy we are with all of those circumstances, well, that there is evidence enough that we either take sin lightly, or we don't really think it's sinning.

Let me tell you, my complaining spirit and discontent for the life God has given me have been robbing my joy for most of my life. And I won't have it any longer! God has given us everything! And as an American, God has given me more than 90% of the people currently living on the planet, probably more than 99% of the people who have ever lived in the history of the earth! Sincerely though, knowing Christ and knowing that my future in eternal goodness is sealed in His sacrificial love gives me no reason to complain EVER. I mean it, EVER!!

No matter how much pain, suffering, ridicule, poverty, hunger, anything bad or uncomfortable that I should come to suffer, it will be a small puff of smoke in the long run. My desire for this year is to know this truth so deeply, that it is unshakeable by anything Satan can do. That no matter what unbelieving friends or strangers say or do to me, I desire to still take joy in God's promises. I want to understand the gravity of my ungratefulness and lack of faith to a degree that shames me so much for this way of past living, that I will NEVER go back there. And I know God can do it. It's almost scary to say this, but I believe He will! There is so much joy in saying that! There's also a small ounce of fear, b/c that means this year, I can be sure that Satan will put it to the test.

And I hope that you will too! Please, friends and family who know me, hold me accountable to this! I will also be doing some studying, praying and writing about these concepts more, in the hope that God will use it to solidify my faith in Him, and possibly, to solidify your faith in Him as well. No one in the history of the earth has made the promises and predictions that God has, and every prediction He has made so far had come to fruition! Wow. This gives me a lot to pray about. Please pray with me, for me and for your family. It's time that we come together as Christians and take a stand against sin, especially these sins that undermine our own faith and testimony. Believe that God's future grace can help you overcome any obstacles that comes your way and you will certainly see the evidence of this truth in your life!

Here are just a couple verses to leave you with.

"He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?"
Romans 8:32

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ."
Ephesians 1:3

"And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him."
Hebrews 11:6

"These all died in faith (speaking of Old Testament followers of God), not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared for them a city."
Hebrews 11:13-16

These verses all speak to me in different ways. I hope to do some studying and writing on the idea of being dead to ourselves and this world we live in... I think this has amazing relevance to what God called Abraham and the Israelites to in the Old Testament... to be strangers in a foreign land... trusting God to take them there in His time, in His way.

Hope this new year brings you closer to God and understanding the gravity and surety of His love and promises for you! Stay in touch!

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