Let your light so shine before men that they may see your moral excellence and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and they will recognize ... honor ... PRAISE & GLORIFY your Father Who is in heaven. - Matthew 5:16 (AMP)
I grew up in a religion where works were "expected" of its members. That in order to reach "the highest degree of heaven" (where God the Father & Jesus Christ are), you have to DO certain things. The idea of doing good works was so that you could achieve more in the kingdom of heaven, like you would reap more rewards by doing good things than someone else...that because you accomplished all these great things you were by some measure better than others. Growing up, I never felt like I could possibly measure up to all the expectations that the church put on me.
So I rebelled.
I ran as far from God as I thought I could get. I ended up smoking, drinking and seeking attention from all the wrong people. I thought that by hanging out with people who were "popular" that I somehow would be popular too. But I wasn't. I ended up getting myself into addictions that would take decades to take control of, and ultimately betrayed my true self, because I was trying to seek satisfaction in all the wrong places. Ultimately, I ended up alone. (But I wasn't truly alone.)
In those moments when I felt the most alone, I knew I wasn't. I could feel a protection around me. I was protected when I should have fallen into danger. I was comforted when I should have gone crazy with all the worries & problems I had in my life. I went through several times when I was homeless & penniless. Every time I thought hope had run out, I prayed for help. And I always got it.
When I ran as far as I possibly could have and I hit ROCK BOTTOM, even though I should have been I was NOT alone! JESUS was there.
He showed me that there was NO distance that I could run - NOTHING could separate me from His love! NOTHING could "qualify" me to receive His blessings, so I didn't have to worry about measuring up to the never-ending demands I was raised with.
Everything had already been done to guarantee my salvation. The price had already been paid by His grace. I simply needed to TRUST in Him, give my will over to align with His, and step forward in faith.
Now I live differently.
I try to reach out to those people who remind me of where I once was. When I see someone suffering or struggling, I take the time to show them love in whatever way I can. I try to bring a smile to someone who is sad. I try to reach out to those who are homeless, and even when I have no money to give them, I do what I can. I try to prove to people that there is hope. I invite people to church or to Celebrate Recovery. I pray with them if they will let me.
One of our goals for this year should be to be a light to someone else as often as possible. We are the light to others when things seem dark. We can bring Jesus to people who don't know Him. I honestly believe that it is because I was raised to know Jesus that I could feel the presence of His spirit with me during those dark times. But what about people who don't know Him? It is OUR job to take the love of Jesus to everyone who doesn't know Him.
I'm going to make this year be one where I strive to share the light of Jesus with everyone I possibly can. I'm going to try to stop being shy. There are times when I have the opportunity to share a testimony or a prayer with someone and I pass it by. So this year it is my prayer that we will all strive to be the light of Jesus to everyone around us this year. Let us reach out & lift up others and try to make a difference every day, is my prayer, in Jesus' name!
So I rebelled.
I ran as far from God as I thought I could get. I ended up smoking, drinking and seeking attention from all the wrong people. I thought that by hanging out with people who were "popular" that I somehow would be popular too. But I wasn't. I ended up getting myself into addictions that would take decades to take control of, and ultimately betrayed my true self, because I was trying to seek satisfaction in all the wrong places. Ultimately, I ended up alone. (But I wasn't truly alone.)
In those moments when I felt the most alone, I knew I wasn't. I could feel a protection around me. I was protected when I should have fallen into danger. I was comforted when I should have gone crazy with all the worries & problems I had in my life. I went through several times when I was homeless & penniless. Every time I thought hope had run out, I prayed for help. And I always got it.
When I ran as far as I possibly could have and I hit ROCK BOTTOM, even though I should have been I was NOT alone! JESUS was there.
He showed me that there was NO distance that I could run - NOTHING could separate me from His love! NOTHING could "qualify" me to receive His blessings, so I didn't have to worry about measuring up to the never-ending demands I was raised with.
Everything had already been done to guarantee my salvation. The price had already been paid by His grace. I simply needed to TRUST in Him, give my will over to align with His, and step forward in faith.
Now I live differently.
I try to reach out to those people who remind me of where I once was. When I see someone suffering or struggling, I take the time to show them love in whatever way I can. I try to bring a smile to someone who is sad. I try to reach out to those who are homeless, and even when I have no money to give them, I do what I can. I try to prove to people that there is hope. I invite people to church or to Celebrate Recovery. I pray with them if they will let me.
One of our goals for this year should be to be a light to someone else as often as possible. We are the light to others when things seem dark. We can bring Jesus to people who don't know Him. I honestly believe that it is because I was raised to know Jesus that I could feel the presence of His spirit with me during those dark times. But what about people who don't know Him? It is OUR job to take the love of Jesus to everyone who doesn't know Him.
I'm going to make this year be one where I strive to share the light of Jesus with everyone I possibly can. I'm going to try to stop being shy. There are times when I have the opportunity to share a testimony or a prayer with someone and I pass it by. So this year it is my prayer that we will all strive to be the light of Jesus to everyone around us this year. Let us reach out & lift up others and try to make a difference every day, is my prayer, in Jesus' name!
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