“Restore us, O Lord, and bring us back to you again! Give us back the joys we once had.” Lamentations 5:21
I have been reminded over the past month of the Sovereignty of the Lord. Being injured the past month, has not been fun necessarily, but the Lord has taught me so much. I have really tried to seek His face during this time, and what a blessing it has been. There have been days where it hasn't been easy, but God has given me enough strength for each day. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I can say without a doubt - "God is so good"!!
Today I read through the book of Hebrews. Hebrews is a phenomenal book. The book of Hebrews talks about the power of God, as well as the importance of having faith. The phrase "By faith" is used countless times in this book. By faith Noah built an ark, by faith Rahab was not destroyed, and the list goes on and on. It got me thinking...is my faith strong? Is your faith strong? I know this may be a little extreme, but if today you or I had a gun pointed to our head, and we were asked to denounce Christ and be able to live or stand up for Him and die, what would you choose....what would I choose? I would like to think that I would take a stand for the Lord - I don't just want to think it though, I want to know it :). I am so thankful for my relationship with the Lord, and for what He has done in my life and for what He is going to continue to do. I want my life to reflect the amount of faith that I have in my Lord and Savior.
Here are some verses that stuck out to me from Hebrews:
“…let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.” Hebrews 12:1-4
If you really take the time to decipher the verses above, there is a lot to take in. Do you find yourself weighed down by the cares of this world...or by a particular sin? Do you feel like you are enduring the race, or do you see yourself falling behind? The important thing is that we keep moving forward. When we come to a stand still, that is where we are the most vulnerable. We all have different struggles in our lives. Satan wants to see us stop or fall to the ground. His desire is that we perish - not that we live. You know what is pretty cool though? We have a "911" number that we can call - His name is Jesus. And this number isn't just used in emergencies, it can and should be used all the time!! Jesus is the ultimate lifeline! We serve a God who is the giver of ALL and to all. I can guarantee you, I will end up flat on my face and have before when I choose to not look to the Lord. Let's not become weary - Satan would love that! Sure, this life isn't easy, but the Lord promises to never give us more than we can bear. The Bible is full of countless promises from the Lord. We need to make sure we are claiming those promises as our own.
I really liked what "My Utmost For His Highest" said today:
One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin. No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the inherent consequences of sin.
“If we walk in the light as He is in the light. . .” (1 John 1:7).
Lets take action of sin that may be in our life. What do you need to ask the Lord to help you with? What do I need to ask the Lord to help me with? We are foolish to not go to the Lord. We can't change on our own, but only with the help of the Lord.
I hope you all have a great weekend :)
Check out the song below! I think it sums up the importance of keeping the faith :) Don't give up! Keep on keeping on!!
God bless,
Megan