A Disclaimer

God uses every circumstance in our lives to either bring us to repentance or to drive us from Him, whether for a while or forever. He has used every experience I have blogged about to show up some hidden sin in my own life. The sin of pride, the sin of unforgiveness, the sin of exacting a price for my forgiveness when God forgave me all of my sins without payment from me (for we know that we can never repay this debt, we live a life of thankfulness and praise for the rest of our lives), the sin of always questioning authority and not submitting. He has shown me that when I refuse to submit to the authority of my boss at work, my minister and elders and my husband I am REFUSING to submit to HIM! This refusal to submit then causes all sorts of other problems in my life and all sorts of sinful behaviors sprout from that one refusal. After all, who put those people in their positions? If we believe, as I do that my loving heavenly Father orders ALL things, then it logically follows that He has ordered the circumstances in my life, whether it be at work, at home or in church. I MUST come to the belief that this is so! So long as I fight it I am stating my own unbelief. So therefore if I disagree with something my pastor says or my boss at work requires of me and I take it to the authority over that person and the higher authority rules that my complaint is without foundation, I must submit to that and trust God for that decision. At bottom, top and all through the issue, GOD is in control. HE is the ONE who has caused the circumstance to be! HE has done it for my good and HIS glory! HIS will is perfect! If I become angry with a boss or elder or my husband because of a decision made, it is not a reflection of how unfair that person is....it is a reflection of my own sin and unwillingness to submit to the will of GOD!
Now about my disclaimer....This post (and truly all of my posts) refers to ME and to MY own experiences and the things that I am learning. It refers to the shift in attitude that God has brought about in my life, the changes that He has caused in my walk with Him, in my relationship with my family and in the way I view the happenings at work and try to deal with them in a way that will bring glory to God. I am excited about the changes God has wrought in me! I am thankful for the way He has shown me that true submission also brings true freedom, true joy and true thanksgiving.
Am I stating that I am without sin? HEAVEN FORBID! I know the state of my heart and I still do get angry, I still do question God at times. But through all of the events of my life He is bringing me a joy and peace that I could have never imagined! And at rock bottom that joy and peace come from learning to submit daily to the things God has ordained in my life. The second piece of the puzzle is that God has shown me through the circumstances of my life to be thankful for ALL of those circumstances. Will I stumble in the future? I can guarantee that the answer will be yes! But by the grace of God, the Holy Spirit will convict my heart and bring me to repentance. God is faithful when we are not! He always keeps His covenant!
God just keeps on winnowing and showing me even those secret sins to which I have become attached. He keeps on bringing them to my eyes and turning me to repentance. To some this will be offensive. It is not intended in that fashion. This blog contains the thoughts and ramblings of a joyous daughter of Christ sharing her journey and that is how it will continue.
I cannot contain my joy for the things God is doing in my life!
Till next time....