Breathe in. Breathe out. Sometimes it's all you can do. Life is heavy and pretty cruel sometimes.
But my God is good. My God is faithful. He is full of love and mercy and forgiveness. I am so glad that His love is not contingent upon my obedience and faithfulness, because I am just so frail and weak. Over and over I fail and I fall short (Rom. 6:23). I mess up. I blame myself for failure. Feelings of guilt and shame torment my heart. I wallow in my sin feeling hopelessly trapped.
Why? I know that the Lord is good. I know he has washed me clean. I know that he is working in my life to sanctify me and make me like himself. So why do I keep feeling guilty? Answer: I'm focused on myself. I mess up, look inward, and think, "Wow! Again? Come on, dude. Haven't you learned?" That's the problem. When we fail, we can't dwell on ourselves. That's only going to push us further behind. When we fail, the first place we should look is the cross. Dwell on Christ. Surrender. Rest in his love. Take one look at your sin and ten looks at the cross. That's where you'll find peace and rest (John 14:27).
Don't beat yourself up when you fall into sin again. We're human. However, we can't become comfortable in our sin either. Walk in love, rest in Christ (Eph. 5:2, Matt. 11:28-30). If you are one of his children, he is daily restoring your soul. Take comfort in that. Dwell on that.
A few awesome promises to meditate on:
1. He's got your future in his hands... and it's the best one for you. (Jeremiah 29:11)
2. He will never stop loving us, even when we fail. (Romans 8:37-39)
3. He will provide you with the strength to carry on. (Isaiah 40:29-31)
4. His grace is sufficient for our salvation. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
5. God is never-changing. You can count on anything he has ever promised. (Hebrews 6:17-18)
6. None of his promises will ever fail or fall short. (Joshua 23:14)
But my God is good. My God is faithful. He is full of love and mercy and forgiveness. I am so glad that His love is not contingent upon my obedience and faithfulness, because I am just so frail and weak. Over and over I fail and I fall short (Rom. 6:23). I mess up. I blame myself for failure. Feelings of guilt and shame torment my heart. I wallow in my sin feeling hopelessly trapped.
Why? I know that the Lord is good. I know he has washed me clean. I know that he is working in my life to sanctify me and make me like himself. So why do I keep feeling guilty? Answer: I'm focused on myself. I mess up, look inward, and think, "Wow! Again? Come on, dude. Haven't you learned?" That's the problem. When we fail, we can't dwell on ourselves. That's only going to push us further behind. When we fail, the first place we should look is the cross. Dwell on Christ. Surrender. Rest in his love. Take one look at your sin and ten looks at the cross. That's where you'll find peace and rest (John 14:27).
Don't beat yourself up when you fall into sin again. We're human. However, we can't become comfortable in our sin either. Walk in love, rest in Christ (Eph. 5:2, Matt. 11:28-30). If you are one of his children, he is daily restoring your soul. Take comfort in that. Dwell on that.
A few awesome promises to meditate on:
1. He's got your future in his hands... and it's the best one for you. (Jeremiah 29:11)
2. He will never stop loving us, even when we fail. (Romans 8:37-39)
3. He will provide you with the strength to carry on. (Isaiah 40:29-31)
4. His grace is sufficient for our salvation. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
5. God is never-changing. You can count on anything he has ever promised. (Hebrews 6:17-18)
6. None of his promises will ever fail or fall short. (Joshua 23:14)
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