Preparing for the New Year!

Alright everyone, how many of you have already made your New Year's Resolutions that you know you will not be keeping?  HaHa...I know right.  This is a time in which we always seem to stress some sort of renewal in how we live our lives.  Most of the time they deal with losing weight, exercising more, reading more books, or managing our money better.  Maybe others set goals for their work and school.  But, no matter how hard we try in the beginning, we usually fail.  And you know what, that's ok.  We are human.

Is it not great to know that we have a Savior who looks beyond our imperfections if we truly belong to Him?  Even with all the things we try to do, we will still fall short of the glory of God.  But, the true message of Grace covers a multitude of failures.  The bible is full of individuals who strived to serve God to their best ability, and yet had their own shortcomings.  David's lust, Peter's denial, Abraham's lies, and Moses' inability to follow directions are just a few examples of true powerhouses for God, that were still human and made their mistakes.

There seems to be a misconception among some that Christians can reach a point to which they no longer sin.  I have had discussions with many of these individuals and still fall back to this verse:

Romans 3:10
"as it is written, there is none righteous, not even one."

and...

1 John 1:8
"If we say we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us."

So what do we do?  Do we just give up because we will mess up?  Absolutely not!  Our purpose in life is to serve God, and to try to be Christ-like as much as possible.  We still must push forward to the prize that is before us.  This life is short compared to the eternity that we have before us, and the reward in heaven is great.  We have a job to do, and even though we will make mistakes, we must continue on in our witness of Christ to the world.  If we sit back and do nothing, think of all the opportunities we will have to share Christ that will never happen.

So.....what does all of this have to do with the new year you ask?  How about a New Year's resolution that focuses on something you are going to try to do for God, instead of yourself.

Psalm 98:1
"O sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done wonderful things, His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him."

I challenge all of you to come up with a new year's resolution for the Lord.  Even if we fail, He will still win the victory.  It can do nothing but strengthen us and our witness for Him, and bring honor and glory to Him.  And not because we are anything great, but because who we serve is!

Thanks for reading, and I pray God's blessings on you all in 2015!

Renewal

I apologize for my long absence from writing.  Life tends to fly by at a pace that it is hard to grasp all that is happening around us.  I have even had my own personal struggles and fears that I have had to deal with over the last year.  There are always trials, and changes that need to be faced.

So much has happened that have shaken my faith, but not destroyed it.  There have been injuries to loved ones, the loss of my grandmother to cancer, trying to buy a new home, a new job, and the list keeps on going.  And I have caught myself many times questioning why all this was happening all at about the same time.  Is it all a test?  Is it God showing me what I am capable of handling?  Is it preparation for something in the future?  And through all of my questioning, I have found that I had developed a lack of trust.  A lack of faith.  I had become prideful about my accomplishments, and somewhat bitter about my downfalls.  But, even at my lowest point, God was always there within reach.  It was not that He left me, but I allowed myself to move away from Him.

2 Chronicles 7:14
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Renewal to God is based on a few conditions as seen in this verse.  And these conditions all rest on us.  First, we have to humble ourselves.  We have to understand the fact that there is nothing about us good enough on our own to please God.  As Paul said, he did not feel worthy enough to tie the sandals of Christ's feet.  Only through humility, can we adequately approach the throne of God.  Secondly, we need to pray, and pray often.  If we want a right relationship with God, we need to speak to Him on a regular basis.  This is our way to reach out to Him.  As I stated earlier, He never leaves us and is always there.  Next, we need to seek Him.  We do this by studying the Word of God.  We look to find what He expects of us, and we learn of who He is.  This helps us to draw closer to him.  Lastly, we need to repent.  Repent literally means to have a change in mindset.  Not only do we need to ask forgiveness for our shortcomings, but we need to consciously change our actions to match.

When we submit to these four conditions, God brings about renewal to our lives.  He will hear our prayers, He will forgive our sins, and He will bring about healing for all of our sufferings.  No matter where we are in our lives, or the level to which we feel we suffer, God is still there.  We just have to recognize it, and actively seek Him for help.

Lord, forgive me for my distrust and distance from You.  I know that you have always been there, regardless of my situations.  And I know that I have come through them, not own my own power, but by Your grace.  Please give me the continued strength and guidance that You always have provided in times past.  Shower me with Your love and comfort, so that I can push on in this world,  and show the world who You are through what you have done in my life.

Amen.

Thanks for reading and God bless you all!