God’s ways are not my ways at all. So often I have a plan and want to begin chronologically, or in whatever way makes the most logical sense to me. But God rips me from my starting point and places me in the middle of something entirely out of left field. The more I walk with God, the happier I am that I am not God. Realistically, I couldn't handle it—I already have enough on my own plate!
One thing I have seen about God is that He is a nosy man, a metiche. I say that because the more aware I have become of His presence, the more He makes me confront the very things that make me uncomfortable. He goes into the locked closets of my heart and shines a big, bright, white hospital light! As Hebrews 4:12 reminds us,
“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” (NLT)
His word is living and active, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit, and judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart—leaving everything bare and exposed before Him.
In doing so, He forces me to see the true depth of Pillar 3: Rewriting the Narrative. In order to truly become more like Christ, we must deny our flesh, and part of that denying is being brutally honest with ourselves about what our flesh actually is: the world, our trauma, our pride, our insecurities, and all the not-so-little things that add up to hold us back from our Father. As Paul writes in Galatians 5:16–17,
“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit. gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” (NLT)
walking by the Spirit means actively warring against the desires of the flesh, choosing instead to let God transform our inner life.
In the beginning, when the Bible was first written, it was written to God’s people—people whom I see as much like ourselves today. A people living to survive, working day and night, barely making ends meet; a people losing hope; a people losing the very thing that made them precious: the identity God gave them as His children.
“See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” (NLT) - 1 John 3:1
Theology, whether we like it or not, is woven right into our biology. Our bodies breathe every day without our thoughts,our hearts beat without our permission, and we grow and heal all on our own. So why do we so often berate ourselves?
The answer is simple: because when we don’t know WHO we are, we settle for any and everything that will make us feel good. But Proverbs 3:5–6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.” (NLT)
calls us to lean not on our own understanding, trusting instead in the Architect who formed us.
One post at a time, walk with me as God shows YOU exactly why you are a blessing to this world.