Do you ever feel like you keep going around the same mountain? That you're living this Christian life from breakthrough to breakthrough? Maybe you just feel plain defeated, like this whole Jesus thing isn't really going ANYwhere.
Every time you turn around it's something else! Or maybe it's the same thing.
I've felt that way too.
But what I realized not that long ago from a post on IG is that while I was crying "Jesus! More of You less of me!!!" He was crying the something quite similar: "Ventura!!! More of you! I already gave you ALL of ME!"
So the way to move your mountain isn't MORE JESUS. You have ALL of Him. The way to move your mountain is to give Him more of YOU! EVERYTHING!
You go to church and you sing "I surrender aaallll!!!" And "I give myself awaaaaayyyyy!!!!" And even "NOT MY WILL BUT YOURS, LORD!" But EVERY time there is an opportunity outside the walls of corporate worship to choose His will above yours, you FLAKE!
Hmm. Did that sting a little? Make you cringe? Feel like a punch in the gut? Yeah. That's called conviction. And you haven't felt it in a while. Or maybe you've felt its evil cousin condemnation. There is a difference.
Conviction is a means to an end. It is the tugging of the Holy Spirit to ignite change in your life. It is a Godly sorrow that leads to repentance.
Condemnation is a passing of judgement. A decision that what you did is unredeemable and beyond forgiveness.
The Holy Spirit convicts. Our enemy, satan, condemns.
So if you are feeling condemned go read Romans 8.
If you are feeling convicted go read Romans 6.
We have to get away from this feel good Christianity. It's not gonna always feeeeeellll good when you are presenting your members as instruments of righteousness. Especially since they are used to being used for unrighteousness.
For example. Say you grew up
In England where the driver is on the right side instead of the left. You learned to drive there and did so for about 20 years. Fast forward to today. You're older and you've never driven from a left side drivers seat in your life. But now you've moved to America for a new job and that's the way it is. And for you it's extra awkward, uncomfortable and even frustrating at times because everything is backwards. You have to learn new traffic signals and speed limits. All while commuting to your new job who didn't find it beneficial to give you an easy work load for your transition. Now you have to learn to shift gears and do turn signals with opposite hands than you're already auto tuned to. Sometimes you feel like an idiot and that you have to learn to drive all over again. You have to reposition your members to do the same things but in a different order and a different way.
Now you wouldn't think it strange to give that guy some grace if you were carpooling with him. But you would want him to learn eventually to do it right. And the only way he could is if he practiced, maybe he will relearn in a lot fewer than 20 years, but still it takes work.
But when it comes to this Christian walk we have a different standard. We expect God to do some magic trick on us. Or conduct our every move away from sin. That is not the case, dear ones.
We are given a new heart. All things are made clean and new in us when we are born again. But repentance isn't a one time thing. We must continually and consistently turn away from sin. The difference in a sinner and a saint is a sinner pursues sin and a saint pursues righteousness.
So you keep going around the same mountain because while your heart has changed your pursuit hasn't shifted in that certain area.
Instead of pursuing God when your money is funny, you pursue more hours at work or tell your boss "I mean I can miss one Sunday of church." Or think to yourself I need these tithe money now. You think yourself out of the situation instead of pursing the word of God on the topic.
Or maybe when you are emotional instead of seeking God or looking for a righteous way to deal with your emotions you go to your safe place. Maybe that's venting to your friends, or lashing out on social media. Or maybe that's dipping back to your ex or turning on a little pornography. Sex relieves stress after all, right?
What about when someone at work or home makes you mad? I mean just steps on your toes and gets you heated. Do you run to the word that says a soft answer turns away wrath or do you jump to gossip about that person or go off on them immediately?
Do you have the tendency of laying your new life aside when circumstances come to shake you up?
Listen, honey, you will never be victorious if you keep on presenting the members of your body (your mouth, your mind, your legs) for unrighteousness. CONTROL YOURSELF and pick up the Bible! You know. That book you couldn't get enough of when you first found Jesus that now sits in your car waiting for Sunday morning to roll around?!
There are a couple of common themes in Jesus' ministry. For one, the word often says "He had compassion on them so he healed them." Before Jesus healed on several accounts compassion preceded the miracle. So you must know that Jesus indeed loves you. He feels a deep passion concerning His people and seeing them set free, healed, delivered.
Second, when Jesus healed people before and after He made sure they knew to go and sin no more. He actually told one guy who He saw a week after He healed him to stop sinning or something worse would happen to him! Jesus took holiness just as serious as He took our breakthroughs.
So, I urge you, let your next break through be the last of that chapter. Stop going around the same mountain. Pass the test. Surrender that area to Jesus. Stop pursuing sin and present your members as agents of righteousness. Take ACTION concerning your walk with God. You have faith, now put it to work. Put yourself to work. Get free, test out of the minor league so that God can use you!!! ALL of you!
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