Redemption...It's Sweet!!
I know I haven't posted in awhile and I have composed about a dozen posts and haven't finished them but this post seemed necessary and I just felt called to do a little "digging" on the subject...
We all have issues and we all have a past. Even if we haven't done anything that the world deems "horrible" we ALL have things that we deal with...skeletons in the closet, so to speak. These issues are often something that we keep quiet and secret in fear that others might reject us or not love us anymore. As I have posted in the past, that certainly was the case with me. While I don't believe that we must confess all of our sins to everyone that we meet, in my particular situation, I knew that God was wanting to use my past mistakes to help others, and before I could do that I had some confessing to do! The truth is the ONLY One that we must confess our sins to is Jesus Christ. He wants true repentence from us and more than anything He wants to forgive, redeem, and restore us!
My life was stagnant and God had so much more in store for me but what was holding me back was my issue (my secret). I truly felt that if those that I loved the most knew what I had done - the truth - that they would not love me...or even like me. That was the scariest part for me and what God revealed to me was incredible. I knew that I was going to have a conversation with someone that I loved, admired, and could potentially lose because of the news I was going to tell her. However, the entire process God was whispering in my ear..."whatever the outcome of this situation, you will be okay. Just trust in Me." I was terrified but I listened and I followed and the results were life changing! She was hurt yet forgiving and loving. Our relationship has nothing in the way now and I think we are closer now than ever before!
I say all of that to say...WHATEVER your issue is...Christ wants the same thing for you! Whatever is keeping you from joy, peace, and ultimately doing what God has planned for your life needs to be confessed and then redeemed. That's what He wants for you!
I was talking with one of my long time very best friends yesterday and she is going through such a rough time but the transformation I have seen her in 4 short months is just incredible! A life that was once filled with sin of all kinds is now having to deal with the consequences of her actions but she has given her life to Christ and she is dealing with everything with grace. I have never been more proud! She is asking me some really tough questions and it has prompted me to look further and have in depth conversations with my husband.
My friend asked me about divorce and what to do based on what the Bible says. Yikes! I know what to say to someone who isn't vulnerable and going through the situation at the moment but the LAST thing I wanted to do was discourage her or tell her something that wasn't true according to the Bible. This is what I think the Bible says about divorce....
In Matthew 5 it says that anyone who divorces his wife and remarries is committing adultery and thus causing her to commit adultery as well. In I COrinthians chapter 7, Paul reinforces this saying that "a woman must not separate from her husband but if she does she must remain unmarried or reconciled to her husband. A husband must not divorce his wife." (vs. 10,11). But he also goes on to talk about the relationship of believers/unbelievers. If either party is a unbeliever and willing to stay in the relationship the believer they should stay together because the believer will sanctify the unbeliever. Then he stated that if the unbeliever wants to go, the believer should let him go.
What does that all mean? Well, I believe that
1. divorce isn't wrong in God's eyes - remarriage (or adulterous relationships) after divorce is wrong
2. if two people (one or the other or both) aren't believers during the time of marriage, you were never truly married in the eyes of God anyway, so He does not honor your marriage. Legal marriage is not bound by God's (biblical) standards
3. if you are believers and a divorce is inevitable for whatever reason, you must make the choice to decide what is most important to you. Should you stay single for the remainder of your life in order to keep with God's commands?...I believe so. Yes, that's a tough pill to swallow but often following God's way is not easy.
I love my friend so much!!! She has done almost a complete 360...going to church everytime the doors are open, reading her Bible for direction, and doing her best to provide for her little girl. She is still in the midst of some very difficult trials and will likely face more in the future but she is doing so well!!
God has redeemed her from her past as He has me...will you surrender EVERYTHING to Him too and allow Him to work in your life? There is such freedom in forgiveness!
We all have issues and we all have a past. Even if we haven't done anything that the world deems "horrible" we ALL have things that we deal with...skeletons in the closet, so to speak. These issues are often something that we keep quiet and secret in fear that others might reject us or not love us anymore. As I have posted in the past, that certainly was the case with me. While I don't believe that we must confess all of our sins to everyone that we meet, in my particular situation, I knew that God was wanting to use my past mistakes to help others, and before I could do that I had some confessing to do! The truth is the ONLY One that we must confess our sins to is Jesus Christ. He wants true repentence from us and more than anything He wants to forgive, redeem, and restore us!
My life was stagnant and God had so much more in store for me but what was holding me back was my issue (my secret). I truly felt that if those that I loved the most knew what I had done - the truth - that they would not love me...or even like me. That was the scariest part for me and what God revealed to me was incredible. I knew that I was going to have a conversation with someone that I loved, admired, and could potentially lose because of the news I was going to tell her. However, the entire process God was whispering in my ear..."whatever the outcome of this situation, you will be okay. Just trust in Me." I was terrified but I listened and I followed and the results were life changing! She was hurt yet forgiving and loving. Our relationship has nothing in the way now and I think we are closer now than ever before!
I say all of that to say...WHATEVER your issue is...Christ wants the same thing for you! Whatever is keeping you from joy, peace, and ultimately doing what God has planned for your life needs to be confessed and then redeemed. That's what He wants for you!
I was talking with one of my long time very best friends yesterday and she is going through such a rough time but the transformation I have seen her in 4 short months is just incredible! A life that was once filled with sin of all kinds is now having to deal with the consequences of her actions but she has given her life to Christ and she is dealing with everything with grace. I have never been more proud! She is asking me some really tough questions and it has prompted me to look further and have in depth conversations with my husband.
My friend asked me about divorce and what to do based on what the Bible says. Yikes! I know what to say to someone who isn't vulnerable and going through the situation at the moment but the LAST thing I wanted to do was discourage her or tell her something that wasn't true according to the Bible. This is what I think the Bible says about divorce....
In Matthew 5 it says that anyone who divorces his wife and remarries is committing adultery and thus causing her to commit adultery as well. In I COrinthians chapter 7, Paul reinforces this saying that "a woman must not separate from her husband but if she does she must remain unmarried or reconciled to her husband. A husband must not divorce his wife." (vs. 10,11). But he also goes on to talk about the relationship of believers/unbelievers. If either party is a unbeliever and willing to stay in the relationship the believer they should stay together because the believer will sanctify the unbeliever. Then he stated that if the unbeliever wants to go, the believer should let him go.
What does that all mean? Well, I believe that
1. divorce isn't wrong in God's eyes - remarriage (or adulterous relationships) after divorce is wrong
2. if two people (one or the other or both) aren't believers during the time of marriage, you were never truly married in the eyes of God anyway, so He does not honor your marriage. Legal marriage is not bound by God's (biblical) standards
3. if you are believers and a divorce is inevitable for whatever reason, you must make the choice to decide what is most important to you. Should you stay single for the remainder of your life in order to keep with God's commands?...I believe so. Yes, that's a tough pill to swallow but often following God's way is not easy.
I love my friend so much!!! She has done almost a complete 360...going to church everytime the doors are open, reading her Bible for direction, and doing her best to provide for her little girl. She is still in the midst of some very difficult trials and will likely face more in the future but she is doing so well!!
God has redeemed her from her past as He has me...will you surrender EVERYTHING to Him too and allow Him to work in your life? There is such freedom in forgiveness!
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