1 John 3:7-10
Children, don't be fooled. Anyone who does right is good, just like Christ himself. Anyone who keeps on sinning belongs to the devil. He has sinned from the beginning, but the Son of God came to destroy all that he has done. God's children cannot keep on being sinful. His life-giving power lives in them and makes them his children, so that they cannot keep on sinning. You can tell God's children from the devil's children, because those who belong to the devil refuse to do right or to love each other.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
On the reality TV show, “What Not to Wear,” the fashion experts take all of the clothing in a person’s closet and analyze each piece. Most, if not all of it, ends up in a symbolic trash can. The person with such poor fashion sense is told, “You can never wear this again.” A lot of these people protest, beg, plead, and even cry. They want to keep “just one thing,” for “old time’s sake”. But the fashion experts are insistent that the old things must go. When the person is “made over,” they usually comment that they would not want their old things in the closet again. They see how much better the “new person” they have become truly is… and often the transformation is internal as well as external.
In terms of our Christian faith, we have been “made over.” And many of us have tossed our “old life” into the trash can. The trouble is… a lot of us kept one or two things in the back of the closet… for sentimental reasons…out of fear… or “just because.” And we keep dragging these things back out from time to time and wearing them!
You may have read today’s passage and asked, “If God saved us through the blood of Jesus, why are we still bothered by the devil?” In my prayer journal/sermon notes, I have written that the word “destroy” is a Greek root word – luo – which means “to undo and loosen.” Jesus “loosed” us from the curse of sin. He did not “half-save” us… but He didn’t wipe it out the curse of sin, because we have to do that by choosing to follow God completely. It may seem like we are free from the bondage of sin, doing things our way and receiving blessings… but until we completely follow the will of God, we will never experience His full blessings.
If you want to be blessed, to prosper and fully lose the curses of your old sinful life, you must obey God’s word. You must ask Him to strengthen you with the courage to dump ALL of your old ways in the “trash can” and “dress yourself” in His grace, mercy, love, and righteousness.
Too many of us are bogged down by the baggage of old sins that we cannot seem to surrender. We often make excuses… “it’s always been this way”…”this is as good as it gets”…”this is all I deserve”…”I’m doing the best I can.” In truth, God has so much more He wants to give us… we deserve more as His heirs… and until we completely surrender to His will, we can do much more to draw closer to Him!
Ask God to show you how and where you need to shed roadblocks to living fully in His blessings. Listen for His answers. Trust Him to give you the strength and courage to take whatever steps are necessary… and put on His full armor. Dress yourself in the glory of the LORD, and get ready to be amazed by His blessings upon the “new you”… and the lives of those you encounter.
©2012 Debbie Robus
Showing posts with label baggage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baggage. Show all posts
Daily Devotional for September 2, 2010
Romans 7:4
That is how it is with you, my friends. You are now part of the body of Christ and are dead to the power of the Law. You are free to belong to Christ, who was raised to life so that we could serve God.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I was no different from any other new college graduate. I had my sights set on getting a job, having a great place to live, and being able to afford “things.” I guess I didn’t realize that teachers are not the wealthiest professionals on the planet! But it didn’t take long before we realized that “things” were not making us happy. What truly mattered were our relationships – with others, with each other … and with God.
So we formulated a plan to “downsize” from a 1900+-square-foot, 2-bedroom house and pool to just over 1100 square feet and one bathroom! We cleaned out closets and the attic, and we had a huge garage sale and sold everything that wouldn’t fit in our “new” little house and lifestyle. In our new business venture, we helped recreational vehicle travelers (RVers) find work while they traversed North America … funding their adventures on wheels by taking jobs along the way. Many of these people sold pretty much everything they owned - lock, stock, and barrel - crawled into a tiny home on wheels and took to the road. Can I tell you something? These were some of the happiest people we’ve ever met.
Additionally, the “less is more” concept was very liberating for us, too. We’ve found that living in a small town with no malls and large department stores means we often “make do” with what we have – or can access locally – and we don’t even think about the other things. We have more time and energy to focus on things that really matter … our family and friends, ministries of our church and community, and more.
Life as a Christian is not restrictive. New life in Christ represents freedom … to serve Him in ways great and small, to focus on what is really important – and who truly matters. A life filled with good food, parties, fun times and “stuff” may seem like the high life. But I can tell you with complete certainty that we very quickly become a slave to these things … and we don’t even see it coming. Choosing to “downsize” our lives – physically, emotionally, and socially … and to give up the boundaries of what society deems the “norm” … for a life filled with a focus on Jesus and His ministries represents incredible freedom.
“But I’ve got friends!” you may say … or “What about my obligations? I have football practice and ‘Mommy and Me’ play dates and golf games or poker night …or Bunco!” or “If I spend time with my friends and take care of myself and go to school/work/club meetings, there’s not a spare minute left for anything else.” The truth is, we have become slaves to a lot of what we do presently, and “letting go and letting God” have control would be liberating in ways we can’t even imagine.
I pray that today you will take a long, hard look at your life. What has enslaved you … social commitments, “stuff”, friends who are dragging you down, an addiction of some sort … even to seemingly “good” things like exercise or a hobby? What do you need to unload in favor of more time for the “good stuff” of Jesus? Where do you need to liberate yourself to make room for Him to work?
©2010 Debbie Robus
That is how it is with you, my friends. You are now part of the body of Christ and are dead to the power of the Law. You are free to belong to Christ, who was raised to life so that we could serve God.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I was no different from any other new college graduate. I had my sights set on getting a job, having a great place to live, and being able to afford “things.” I guess I didn’t realize that teachers are not the wealthiest professionals on the planet! But it didn’t take long before we realized that “things” were not making us happy. What truly mattered were our relationships – with others, with each other … and with God.
So we formulated a plan to “downsize” from a 1900+-square-foot, 2-bedroom house and pool to just over 1100 square feet and one bathroom! We cleaned out closets and the attic, and we had a huge garage sale and sold everything that wouldn’t fit in our “new” little house and lifestyle. In our new business venture, we helped recreational vehicle travelers (RVers) find work while they traversed North America … funding their adventures on wheels by taking jobs along the way. Many of these people sold pretty much everything they owned - lock, stock, and barrel - crawled into a tiny home on wheels and took to the road. Can I tell you something? These were some of the happiest people we’ve ever met.
Additionally, the “less is more” concept was very liberating for us, too. We’ve found that living in a small town with no malls and large department stores means we often “make do” with what we have – or can access locally – and we don’t even think about the other things. We have more time and energy to focus on things that really matter … our family and friends, ministries of our church and community, and more.
Life as a Christian is not restrictive. New life in Christ represents freedom … to serve Him in ways great and small, to focus on what is really important – and who truly matters. A life filled with good food, parties, fun times and “stuff” may seem like the high life. But I can tell you with complete certainty that we very quickly become a slave to these things … and we don’t even see it coming. Choosing to “downsize” our lives – physically, emotionally, and socially … and to give up the boundaries of what society deems the “norm” … for a life filled with a focus on Jesus and His ministries represents incredible freedom.
“But I’ve got friends!” you may say … or “What about my obligations? I have football practice and ‘Mommy and Me’ play dates and golf games or poker night …or Bunco!” or “If I spend time with my friends and take care of myself and go to school/work/club meetings, there’s not a spare minute left for anything else.” The truth is, we have become slaves to a lot of what we do presently, and “letting go and letting God” have control would be liberating in ways we can’t even imagine.
I pray that today you will take a long, hard look at your life. What has enslaved you … social commitments, “stuff”, friends who are dragging you down, an addiction of some sort … even to seemingly “good” things like exercise or a hobby? What do you need to unload in favor of more time for the “good stuff” of Jesus? Where do you need to liberate yourself to make room for Him to work?
©2010 Debbie Robus
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