Last night in "Beyond Success" we had a discussion about how God is perceived. One of the ways reminded me of II Corinthians 5:17. When we accept the Lord, our past is no longer. That knowledge is priceless! It reads in the workbook, "It means that God has the ability to look beyond my past and love me." That is exciting to ponder upon. God loves us so much He gave His Son for us to live. He loves us so much He loves us no matter what we do. Our past is just that. Our past. Our past can be used to encourage others of what God can do in one's life but it definitely should not be done in a boastful manner. II Corinthians 5:17 has different meanings to me. I became a new creation when I accepted the Lord many years ago. I also became a new creation through the restoration process God is bringing me through after Doc's death. I continue to seek God's will in my life as I strive to walk in obedience to Him. I have the goal of eternal life with God and know I will fulfill that goal as I live for Him on this earth. I like how Matthew Henry describes the life of a believer. The believer not only is well assured by faith that there is another and a happy life after this is ended, but he has good hope, through grace, of heaven as a dwelling-place, a resting-place, a hiding-place. Faith comes by trust and gives hope and peace. I am so grateful for the way God uses my past to show people His love and grace. He desires us to use our story for others to realize His love for all. We all need to get better at sharing our story. Big Daddy Weave's song "My Story" is on my mind this morning...
If I told you my story
You would hear Hope that wouldn't let go
And if I told you my story
You would hear Love that never gave up
And if I told you my story
You would hear Life, but it wasn't mine
Hope...love...life. Yes! God gives all of Himself so we can give Him all of ourselves. He loves us so much and desires to be in relationship with us. It comes down to free will. Will we choose God or will we choose the world? Will we allow the enemy open doors or will we stand in the empowerment of the Holy Spirit? Will we allow God to take us from the caterpillar to the beautiful butterfly or will we stay in our cocoon?
Dear Jesus, Thank You for the way You blessed me yesterday and the blessings ahead in this day! Thank You for loving me so greatly! Thank You for cleansing me so You can fill me with more of You! May You flow from my words, actions, attitude, and thoughts in a mighty way. May You shine brightly through me so people will see/hear You instead of me. I pray an extra dose of You to be poured into Little Ivy today with chemo. I pray You will be greater than any side effects. I also pray an extra dose of You to come down upon: my Momma; my sisters Linda, Sally, and Mary; Melanie; Rhonda; Jack and Paula; Cait; Mary Lilley; Brandy Combs and family with the funeral today; Pastor Sylvia; Pastor Scott; Cathy; Carol Barnett and family; Owen and Karol; and many others. Thank You for all that was accomplished yesterday and what will be accomplished today! Thank You for Rickey who makes me laugh and encourages me! Thank You for friends who check on and love on me! Thank You for the gift of life and for restoration! You are so, so good! Lord, empower me to get better at sharing my story. Open up new avenues for me to do so. Thank You for being My Story Maker! Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment