TIED TO TRACK

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

One of the toughest challenges many of us face is “forgiving” ourselves.  

We are just “too intimate” with us, right? 

We can’t mask us. We KNOW the truth.

And that can be crippling, BINDING in fact.

I mean as much as we may want to be, we aren’t perfect. 

We are going to miss the mark. 

It is how we handle those misses that is important.

Old guilt haunts.

Past wreckage can captivate our psyche.

Damaged pasts will keep trying to bleed into our present to keep us stuck, frustrated, on the edge and defeated; right where the enemy wants us.

Sometimes the first order of the day is to FORGIVE ourselves.

“Be courageous enough to forgive yourself; never forget to be compassionate to yourself.” - Mridha 

But that is a tough order some days, isn’t it?

The days when we mess up; those times when we look more like sinners than saints. 

And then there it comes like a freight train barreling down and we are tied to the tracks. 

What you ask? That locomotive named guilt. 

We try to escape the track, but can’t. And the train just seems to keep on coming; determined to run us over and leave us mangled and mauled.

But can I suggest something?

Choose to break free by embracing forgiveness!  You can.

Remember: - those who are in Christ Jesus are not judged guilty…Romans 8:1 (NLT) 

You see my friends Jesus has opened the door to forgiveness for you. 

And HE LEAVES IT OPEN. Most if not all of you KNOW that.

Many of you WALK in that assurance.

But I am confident there are days when the enemy does his dead-level best to blur truths like this. He does his best to lace our minds with lies that try to tie our performance (and eventual mistakes) to our grace and freedom; and thus, use guilt to re-tie us to that track! 

That is why it is imperative to remember…

If you have unresolved sin, confess it. GOD then deals with it.

…if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. – 1 John 1:9 (MSG)

 

This passage has been liberating for me. My sins ARE as the adage goes, like scarlet. And for years I allowed my poor performance to dictate my freedom in GOD’s grace, to tie me to the track. And while I still sin (in fact I know I did yesterday, maybe already this morning) and while I still struggle from time to time with my ineptitude, selfishness, and fear, I am so grateful that I CAN FORGIVE myself thanks to JESUS!

But if you are feeling a little “tied down” right now, don't hesitate, forgive yourself.  You can.

Remember…

…Jesus Christ, righteous Jesus. When he served as a sacrifice for our sins, HE SOLVED THE SIN PROBLEM FOR GOOD—not only ours, but the whole world’s.  1 John 2:2 (MSG)

And untie yourself. 

Have a blessed weekend

I love you all

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE