James 4:8
"Come near to God and he will come near to you." NIV
"Draw night to God, and he will draw nigh to you." KJV
So many of us make up our minds that we are going to get our lives straightened up and change our ways so that we will be be Godly people. Those of us who have tried that route have found out rather quickly that it does not work. We have no power within ourselves to be "Godly." The Bible is repeatedly clear that salvation is a free gift of God and it is our choice to receive it or not. Because of the blood Jesus Christ poured out on the cross, all we have to do is approach God, confess we are sinful, and dedicate ourselves to Him. There is no struggle on our part to be "good" or "stop this or that." We give ourselves over just as we are. Then, God will do the rest. He will make us holy. He will make the changes that need to be made. He will make us useful for Him. It's really not a difficult thing for us. Jesus Christ is the One who did all the work.
Heavenly Father, we confess that we try to make ourselves holy by consciously changing our behaviors. Forgive us, and help us to understand that all we have to do is give ourselves to You and You will do the rest. Help us to keep this truth in our hearts and minds. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
©2011
Daily Grace
Bobbi Craigmyle, Psy.D., BCPCC
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2 comments:
I knod my head in agreement with your posting this morning! How many times do I "determine to keep my mouth shut"...and turn around quick on a dime and wag wag wag goes the tongue. I once heard a preacher say, you can cut your tongue out and throw it down on the sidewalk and it will flop around for three or four days trying to get the next word in: I really enjoyed reading your post this morning! It was good news!
Thank you for a wonderful post..and something to really think about.
God is soo good!
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