Secret Intents and Motives

When we depend on someone else for our sense of value, we put our self into bondage to that person. Our motives, goals and opinions revolve around that person's whims.

People come and go in our life. They have unrealistic expectations of us, tire of us and dump us on the curb like a useless sack of trash.

However, Jesus never ever leaves us or forsakes us (Hebrews 13:5). He died for us in spite of our self and our failings. He approves of us in Christ and fully accepts us with all of our idiosyncrasies (Hebrews 13:8).

We can also put our self into bondage to religion by attempting to earn God's love and acceptance. We drive our self endlessly to work harder and to do better to please Him.

The truth is that our "self" is already crucified with Christ (Colossians 3:3; Galatians 2:20). At Salvation, we are fully accepted in the Beloved of God (Ephesians 1:5-7). God's Spirit fills us to the brim and overflows on everyone around us.

We prove that we love Him by our obedience to His Word (John 14:15). We do not always keep each letter of the law all the time, but our motive in life is to walk in His ways (Galatians 3:24; Psalm 86:11-17).

God sees our whole heart - including our secret intents and motives (1 Samuel 16:7). He encourages us to keep our self unspotted by the world (James 1:26-27).

Jesus loved us even when we did not love Him (1 John 4:19). We feel secure in His love, because it is not dependent on whether we earn or deserve it. It is a free gift, which lasts forever (Romans 3:23, 6:23).

Prayer:

Father God, the world values human attributes like popularity, physical features, power, influence and financial abundance; but You reward faithfulness to Your Word. You discern our secret intents and motives and discipline or bless Your children according to the desires of our heart (Jeremiah 17:10).

Help us to shed the trappings of this world that we carry with us into our relationship with You. Purify our thoughts and teach us Your ways, so that we want only what You want and value only those things which bring You honor and glory forever and ever.

Thought for the Day:

We attempt to justify our motives and actions, but the Lord weighs them on His scales; as we consult the Lord, He will guide our steps and establish our plans in His will.

- Proverbs 16:2-3

The Breaking Point

 

People often think that the life we know is better than the life we do not know. That is why women stay in abusive marriages and continue to suffer the torment. They believe they do not deserve better.

When we come to Christ, He humbles us; yet He gives us His holy boldness. We start to realize that we are not defective; and that in Him, we are "enough".

Christ in us transforms us into all that He intends for us to be. We no longer need to strive for perfection, because God's Spirit within us changes us from one stage of holiness to the next (2 Corinthians 3:18).

We find our true identity and fulfillment in Christ alone (Colossians 3:3-4, 2:9-10; Philippians 1:13-2:16). We are adopted as God's children, conformed to Christ's image and co-heirs with Christ of God's Kingdom.

Most of us need a breaking point in our life in order to step over the line from self-effort to Christ-reliance. The trials, which God allows in our life, are designed to bring us to the end of our self.

My breaking point was when the love of my life decided that there was no option for us, but divorce. I had no job, no alimony and no foreseeable future.

In this bewildering new world, my only option was to rely totally on God for each moment of my day. As I did, I entered a deeper relationship with our Lord; one that I continue to this day.

As I listened to His Spirit within, He led me to get a job at a Montessori school where my training and relationships taught me to nurture my own soul.

He also gave me two other jobs, so I could pay my bills and save for a rainy day. Eventually, in His perfect way and timing, He brought a nurturing, appreciative husband into my life as well, and restored my ministry as a Pastor's wife.

Prayer:

Father God, You brought me to the place in my life where I stopped trying and gave up. I cast all of my cares on You, because I had no doubt that You cared for me. You taught me that Your Spirit will put us in the right place at the right time, if we will listen to that still, small voice within us (1 Kings 19:11-13).

Remind us that the sooner we stop trying, and enter into Your rest, the sooner our life will hold unspeakable joy, even in the midst of sorrows. Your Spirit leads us to be productive for Your Kingdom; and in the process, all of our needs are met.

Thought for the Day:

As we totally surrender our heart to God in prayer, we give Him our weaknesses and failings - even the sins we commit in secret. We no longer live in shame, but in the fearless confidence and identity of Christ in us.

- Job 11:13-15; 1 John 1:9; Colossians 1:27

Many thanks to Matt Milligan for his photo.

There is No Condemnation

 

 

Satan loves to use condemnation to defeat God’s Saints. His condemnation causes us to sink into the quicksand of shame with no visible way out. We see our faults and are burdened by our failings. Satan plants lies in our soul during each perceived failing; and we readily believe them, because of our feelings of hopelessness.

 

God, on the other hand, does not condemn us, He convicts us. Conviction reveals our guilt with a desire for repentance. Repentance means to turn away from sin and move toward holiness. Even if we never commit some gross sin of immorality or murder, we are still sinners (Romans 3:23). No amount of good works or self-effort can free us from the penalty of our sins.

 

Trusting in Jesus is our only means of salvation (John 14:6). His Holy Spirit breathes God’s breath of life into us and our spirit is no longer dead in sin. We completely surrendered our goals, dreams and aspiration in life to God’s will for us (Ephesians 2:10). We serve God with authentic devotion each moment of the day. We no longer desire a life of worldly pursuits and willful sin.

 

God’s Spirit converts our sinful nature to the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). We realize that God’s presence is within us and the Holy Spirit is sanctifying us. We are truly saved from hell and going to heaven (2 Corinthians 13:5-6; Lamentations 3:40-42). God removes our condemnation by washing us as clean as snow, and giving us a new heart and spirit within us (Ezekiel 36:25-27). 

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for washing us clean, and giving us righteous desires and Your Spirit to direct us (Colossians 2:13-15). Thank You also that Jesus nailed our sins to the cross and blotted out the charges proved against us. Remind us not to live for You in our human effort. Help us to allow Christ to richly dwell in us as Your Body, so that whatever we do in word or deeds, it is all done for Your glory and honor (Colossians 3:16-18).

 

Thought for the Day:

God took away Satan's power over our life and openly displayed to the whole world the triumph of Christ over Him; so that there is no longer any condemnation for those who love God and who are called to serve Him in His purpose for our life. – Romans 8:1; Colossians 2:15

 

Failings are not Failures

Read: Hebrews 4:14-16

“To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy - to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” - Jude 1:24-25

I despise getting falsely accused. I do so many things wrong already, that I do not want to add fiction to the facts! I used to have such low self-worth that my head almost touched the ground when I walked! Then, I learned that with Christ in me, all of His worth is now mine. That person's opinion is just that...his/her opinion, and not fact at all. Talk about a shot of adrenalin! This thought makes my heart sing and my feet tap out a dance of joy.

Even with His worth as my own, however, I still suffered with shame when I actually did something wrong. It wasn’t very long before God taught me another lesson. Failing in one area of our life opens us up to the possibility of success in another. We may lose a battle in the process of our day, but Jesus already won the war 2000 years ago on Calvary’s cross.

Therefore, we no longer need to feel shame over, nor obsess about our shortcomings. Rather than experiencing defeat from our failings, we can look for God’s direction in other areas of our life. As we bask in the Sonshine of His love, His peace and joy fill our soul and our spirit to the point of saturation. Then, we seek His will and walk in His wisdom as His Spirit leads us moment-by-moment throughout the day. This way we experience complete intimacy with God and ultimately more success in our endeavors.

For example, maybe baking is not your specialty; and every time you try, you fail. This does not have to be a defeat in your life. Maybe God is trying to steer you in another direction or show you another calling for your life. Instead of baking, He may want you to read, or write, or work in some particular field of employment where He can use you to further His Kingdom. In another example, if you are not a good student, you are not dumb or stupid! God just wants to use you in more practical ministries. 

If you get into some type of trouble because of some ill conceived action on your part, you are not a failure. You just lost a skirmish. Hide under the shadow of His wings (Psalm 17:8) and allow your Heavenly Father to restore you to a place of confidence in His ability within you. Then, folllow the leading of His Spirit into the next moment of your life.
            
Thomas Edison is known to have said, “I have failed my way to success.” He tried thousands of different fibers for the element in his light bulb. He imported plants from all over the world in his endeavor to find just the right substance. Finally, as we all know, he succeeded. What if he gave up after a hundred tries? What if he quit after five hundred failed attempts? The world would be a darker place today!

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, we often discover what we can do, by finding out what we cannot do. Help us to listen to Your Spirit each moment of the day, so that our successes far outweigh our failings.

Thought for the Day:
We learn wisdom as much from our failings as we do from our successes.