After suffering a cold last fall, I developed
laryngitis, which held on for weeks after the cold healed. I adjusted my
lifestyle to rest, drink plenty of fluids; but I kept on talking.
I gradually got used to the sound
and the strain it caused to try to converse by pushing words past the
"frog" in my throat. However, this badly strained my vocal cords.
I had to stop talking in order to
allow the vocal cords to heal. One month transitioned into the next, but my
raspy voice remained the same. For 10 weeks I wrote notes or sent emails
instead of talking.
Week after week, I would heal
just a bit; but then if I talked at all, I had to start the healing process all
over again. I tried every product known to man to facilitate the process; but
silence was the golden cure.
Once God finally healed my vocal
cords, I did not recognize the sound of my normal voice. I was so used to the
raspy condition that I rather missed that tone.
This reminded me of a season of time,
which lasted for over a year, when we remodeled several parts of our former home.
The chaos in which we lived gradually became normal; so when we restored our
house to order, the order seemed abnormal.
This is the way sin creeps into
our life too. We allow a small concession in our habits or lifestyle, which
seems inconsequential at the time. Then we start to notice a big difference in
our prayer life and unity with God's Spirit.
Yet, we adjust to allow the sin
to remain. Over a series of months, the sin seems normal and we do not miss the
deep union with the Trinity, or the power in our prayer life or the wisdom and
flow of living in the Spirit that we once enjoyed (Ephesians 4:30; Isaiah
63:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:19).
When God's Spirit convicts us, we
ignore Him and may even add a few more sins to our lifestyle, which complement
the one we already allowed. Sin seems normal to us again, and holiness is
forsaken.
Prayer:
Father God, never allow sin to
feel normal to us. Keep us from searing our conscious or from consenting to
allowing even more sin to develop in our lifestyle (1 Timothy 4:2). Keep us
focused on You and never permit us to compromise our union with You through the
deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13).
Create in us a pure heart, O God,
and renew a holy and righteous spirit within us. Do not cast us from Your
presence or take Your Holy Spirit from us; restore to us the joy of our
salvation and help us to please You in all that we think, say and do (Psalm
51:10).
Thought for the Day:
If we remain true to God's Word
and promises to the end of our life on this earth, trusting God as faithfully
as when we first believed, we will also share with Christ in the inheritance of
all that belongs to God's Kingdom. - Hebrews 3:14
