“I will sing of the goodness and lovingkindness of the LORD forever; With my mouth I will make known Your faithfulness from generation to generation.2For I have said, “Goodness and lovingkindness will be built up forever; In the heavens [unchangeable and majestic] You will establish Your faithfulness.” Psalm 89:1-2 AMP
Often, we find ourselves asking the question, “How am I doing in my relationship with the Lord?” Inner reflection is part of the growth cycle in Christ and an important part of our relationship with God. The problem is when we find that we are falling short of the standard we know to be true. It is in those moments that I remember the words of the Psalmist, “…the goodness and lovingkindness of the Lord forever.” That doesn’t give me an excuse to continue a cycle of failure but strength that He will always be faithful to me! We all have those moments of testing that do not go so well. Even in our daily lives we wonder where do these thoughts and actions come from? I can imagine the enemy before the throne of grace asking God if He saw or heard what I had said or done. “Do you see you kid down there failing miserably?” “Yep! That’s my boy!” There is a comforting verse in the book of Hebrews.
“And if they had been thinking of that country from which they departed [as their true home], they would have had [a continuing] opportunity to return. 16But the truth is that they were longing for a better country, that is, a heavenly one. For that reason God is not ashamed [of them or] to be called their God [even to be surnamed their God–the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob]; for He has prepared a city for them.” Hebrews 11:15-16 AMP
Do you see it? “…God is not ashamed [of them or] to be called their God…” WOW! I love the truth of this verse. The preceding verse talks about that moment where we are tempted to turn back but, we were “longing for a better country.” Our actions or thoughts may not have measured up but our hearts were still in the right place. That is the amazing part about grace. His grace allows to “grow” in the knowledge of who He is. It is a process that will take a lifetime of wins and losses until the day we meet Him face to face. The Apostle Paul put it this way.
“Therefore there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior].” Romans 8:1 AMP
Condemnation usually pushes you away from the very One who will give you the answer. We have all experienced the voice of the enemy; “You’re no good! You will never measure up, You can’t possibly do this?” Those things are designed by Satan to push us away from God. When he comes spuing his lies just say, “You know, you are right! The only reason I can is because of the blood of Jesus Christ!” Watch how fast the demons flee! Now the Holy Spirit comes and brings that gentle conviction that produces life not death! We read about this process in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians.
“For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.” 2 Corinthains 7:10 NLT
Remember that His faithfulness trumps our failure. The Scripture is clear that we can come boldly to the throne of Grace, when……in our time of need! Don’t let the voice of condemnation push you from heaven! Come boldly to the One who can do all things! Have a blessed day, Pastor Ken