|
GLEANINGS FROM THE WORD Experiencing an extraordinary God in ordinary life Issue #1,002 January 8, 2004 Time For a Trim Genni the wonder dog is a border collie/basset hound cross. Picture if you can, a full sized border collie on basset hound legs with big basset feet and you'll be pretty much bang on target. With her long border collie coat and her short basset legs, she needs to be trimmed regularly or the hair drags on the ground and can make a mess of whatever she drags along and her coat. Last night was trimming night. Not a full summer hair cut, just enough of a trim to keep things from dragging. She doesn't like to be trimmed and while she does stand still for it, she seems very embarrassed and indignant. She makes it clear to me that I'm quite rude for trimming her and that it is a very undignified process. I know that the trim is for the best, but she doesn't understand that. All she knows is that she feels somehow violated and embarrassed. We can react the same way when God brings something in our life into the light to be worked on. Becoming more like Christ and growing in Christian maturity is a process that involves, over time, dealing with the less than godly aspects of our behaviour and personalities. God is a gentleman. He doesn't reveal all of our faults at once because He knows we wouldn't be able to deal with the extent of changes. God loves us and accepts us where we're at when we come to Him. He knows that none of us could ever earn our way to heaven on our own merits. He also knows that on our own, we're fleshly creatures who need a lot of reshaping to be like Him. God doesn't correct us to belittle us. He brings things to our attention out of love and a desire to see us be more like Him. Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you. Deuteronomy 8:5 NIV Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:10-11 NIV When God corrects us, we often react with anger, embarrassment or excuses. What we do past that point is up to us. We can feel either convicted or condemned and there is a big difference. Conviction drives us towards the cross with repentant hearts and a desire to have God change us. Condemnation drives us away from Jesus. Condemnation is like a wet wool blanket over our spirit and comes from the pit of hell. Don't buy into the condemnation from Satan. Remember that God promises us that Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2 NIV Genni is a dog and doesn't know any better than to be ruled by her feelings and instincts. You are an intelligent child of God who knows that the Word of God and His promises are trustworthy. Until next time, remember that it's normal for God to do a little trimming in our lives. So when He reveals something about you, that you don't like, to you, don't turn away, run into His open, loving and forgiving arms. Be blessed Hallelu Yah (Praise God)! Kevin OUR GOD IS Jehovah Jireh : the God that provides Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide [Jehovah Jireh]. And to this day it is said, "On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided." [Jehovah Jireh] Genesis 22:13-14 NIV YOU ARE Once you have accepted Jesus as Saviour you are forgiven. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace Ephesians 1:7 NIV Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. You have value in the eyes of God so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that heaven will not be complete without you. HELP FOR THE HURTING If you're like the rest of us, you know the condemnation that your mistakes have brought. People don't forgive and forget and the condemnation eats away at your spirit your soul and your sense of self worth. You know what it must have felt like for Jacob Marley to carry all his chains in Dickens's classic story "A Christmas Carol". At times it can be a burden to even get out of bed because of the weight of the chains. The hard part is you know full well that you're guilty of many of the things that haunt you, but you can't seem to escape them. You don't have to carry all the burden. You don't have to walk in condemnation. It is possible for you to know God's great love; peace; hope; joy and forgiveness in this life as well as in the afterlife. All you have to do is take the first step of asking Jesus into your heart. He's waiting for you with open, loving arms and an endless supply of forgiveness and compassion. Will you take that step? You can simply begin the relationship by honestly and completely opening your heart, admitting you need God's help, and saying a prayer along the lines of: Jesus: I have made many mistakes in my life and done things I am not proud of. I have sinned. I need your love and forgiveness. I believe that you came into this world and gave your life on a cross to pay for my sins and that you defeated death and rose again. Please forgive me, and be the Lord of my life. I give my life to you Lord. Amen If you pray this prayer for the first time let me know so I can rejoice with you. Did you know that at Gleanings, we have a dedicated team of prayer warriors and all prayer concerns are kept strictly confidential? Your comments, your questions and your joys are shared with the prayer team, to keep me accountable as the head of the ministry and to encourage them as they see God at work in your life. As with prayer all these things are kept confidential within the Gleanings team. To share your questions, comments, thoughts, prayer concerns and praise reports email us If you enjoyed this issue of Gleanings From The Word, email it, in its entirety, to a friend. For information on use of Gleanings in your church newsletter or other situations please visit the permissions page . You can write to us at Gleanings From The Word Ministries International 114 Oak St Sherwood Park, AB Canada T8A 0V8 © 2003 K.F. "Kevin" Corbin Gleanings From The Word Minististries International - All Rights Reserved
|