So if God’s will for you is to constantly rejoice, be in communication with Him, and to do it all with a heart of thanksgiving, then why are we so sad, quiet, and full of complaints?

It’s possible we missed one little word in the text that changes everything.  It’s the word, “in”.   God will for us  in what? In Christ Jesus. You see scripture is clear apart from Christ you can do nothing.  If we are in Christ, we are a new creation, the old has gone the new has come.  The old sad, quiet, and complaining you is gone and the new rejoicing, praying, and thanksgiving you had come. 

So when we walk in the flesh we will see our old self. When we walk in Christ, deeply reflecting on the love He has shown us by ransoming our lives with His very own blood,how can we not rejoice?  How can we not be communication with our Father to praise Him? How can we not have a heart of gratefulness?

Personal Reflection

So who are you in today…self or Christ?  Do a quick assessment are you rejoicing, praying and giving thanks or are you sad, quiet and complaining.  Close your eyes and call to mind the moment you first understood and believed the gospel.  Remember the location, time of day, circumstances, the feeling of being freed from sin and death for all eternity.  Don’t you want to rejoice and talk to your Heavely Father, praising Hima be telling Him thank you?

If you have never given your life over to Christ, know that you have broken God’s law and instead of His wrath being poured out on you, His son willingly went to the cross and took the wrath that was yours, poured out His blood to pay for all of your wrong-doing, past,present, and future.  Surrender and  receive this gift today.  Rejoice, be in constant communication with your Him, praise and thank Him for the wonderful gift you have in Jesus!

Prayer Focus

Gracious Father, thank you for opening our eyes to see the difference of one little word.  Help us to be all in.  All in Jesus.  Let our minds never forget the price that was paid, the power of this gift, and the depth of the love you have given us.  May our hearts rejoice, our souls commune with you, and may our hearts be filled with praise forevermore, in Jesus’ Name, Amen!

Recently my two boys were wrestling on the trampoline. It got a little rough; one of them ended up getting thrown off and bumped his head.  This moved him to a place of vengeance coming after his brother. Took about 20 to 25 minutes to disarm and settle down. Had I not intervened, more damage most likely would have been done.

When it comes to the family of God, the same thing can happen, even as adults.  People can sometimes get a little rough and end up hurting one another.  Despite this reality, the church body is critical and part of God’s plan of redemption and our growth (See Ephesians 4).

If you’ve had an injury from the church as I have had, you may be tempted to take out your vengeance.  I urge you instead of repaying evil for evil, do good to your brothers and sisters.  For perhaps God is teaching you the truth that vengeance is His. For when we repay with evil we simply do more damage. We do not restore anything, God desires restoration and wants us to desire it also.  The verse above is sandwiched between appreciating those who lead and that familiar passage of rejoicing and praying without ceasing.

Personal Reflection

No doubt that following the Lord’s instruction takes rejoicing and prayer.  You see when we are hurt we usually shift our focus to ourselves and thereby skewing our perspective.  We stop rejoicing, start complaining and devise plans of revenge or watch and wait for whoever wronged us to fail.  Sometimes, we even invite others to take our side and are used as Satan’s instrument to divide the family of God. Put an end to the evil by desiring restoration, rejoice in all that the LORD has done for you, and pray without ceasing that your focus would be there.  You will not heal if you are clinging to your hurt like a security blanket and hurt never comforts. God does!

Prayer Focus

LORD help us to let go of the chains of hurt that bind us and corrupt our desires.  May we find forgiveness and release at the cross. Draw our eyes to you and all of what you have done for us.  Let our lips overflow with your praises! May we desire restoration, rejoice, and pray without ceasing; In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

@brianfriedl

#forgiveness #novengeance #truthtalk4life