You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.
Psalm 30:11-12

It brings me so much peace in times of trouble to know that everything that Christians go through in this life has been sifted through the loving hand of God the Father first. When I encounter difficulties whether they be with finances, friends or family I can know that the Lord has given His approval for this situation to occur. His reason is always to draw me nearer to Him and teach me one more thing about becoming Christlike.

When Paul tells us in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose”, we know because of verse 29 that the word good here means “that which conforms us to the likeness of his Son.” Now to allow this trial to conform me to His Son’s image I must have the proper response to it.

The first response can be found in James 1:2. I must consider this trial pure joy. Joy? Yes joy, because I must understand that the testing of my faith develops perseverance. Next I thank the Lord for this trial, yes now I’m saying that we should be thankful in tribulation. With a proper response we already know by faith that we will grow through this trial as we go through it. I want nothing more in my life than to be like Christ my Savior and if suffering will do this, then (as I breathe a deep sigh) bring it on. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

And finally for me, my next response is to drop to my knees and ask my God what it is that He would have me do; what is it that He would have me learn? I already know that the trial, no matter what it looks like to the secular world, is a spiritual battle. Ephesians 6:12 says, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” And God has made it clear to us many times over that spiritual battles are not to be fought in our might but the Lord’s. “For the battle is not yours, but God’s”, 2 Chronicles 20:15.

So as I wait on the Lord, I pray. I pray that He would show me any sin, that He would make a clear path for me to follow and that He would guide my thoughts and actions so that only His Will be done.

Lord God, I pray for all that will read this, that You would fill them, as well as me, with the knowledge of your will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. I pray this in order that we may live lives worthy of You, Lord, and please You in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of You, being strengthened with all power according to Your glorious might so that we may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully give thanks to You the Father in all circumstances.
Amen and Amen

We all go through times of trial, and for my husband and me, God has a habit of getting our attention through financial difficulties. We’ve been through our share of other trials too but the lack of money seems to be the go-to trial for us. Maybe because it so quickly brings me to my knees crying out in prayer.

With a husband who works strictly on commission there are no promises that each month’s income will always be enough. If he has a couple of bad months in a row, just like that, we’re in deep trouble. It’s incredibly humbling to have enough and then to find yourself in need. At least for me it is. I prefer to be on the giving rather than receiving end of a gift. Now I realize you may think there is a pride issue hidden in there somewhere but I believe after all we’ve been through it’s no longer pride that makes me feel that way. We’ve been loved on enough by others to simply want to be the lovers, the givers, the caretakers.

I can’t imagine that trials of this kind would make a person anything less than generous.

You see, I know what it feels like to not be able to afford to buy your child’s class photos from school. I know the heartache of watching your kids go without new clothes at the start of the school year. I know the feeling of failure that comes along with the inability to provide health insurance which keeps your kids from playing sports. I know just what it feels like to have to tell your children that they won’t be getting any presents for Christmas.

Even though I realize that everything I mentioned isn’t really all that important in the grand scheme of things, I wouldn’t wish lack on anyone. Satan has used it to make me doubt my worthiness as a parent. Just like that, a trial God allowed to help conform me to His image, when looked at with the wrong perspective, makes me feel I don’t even know God. Satan is a liar and he will twist every situation and use it to his advantage. He convinces me that we not only deserve difficulties but also, that each season of trial will never end.

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven…” Ecclesiastes 3:1

But eventually, hopefully sooner rather than later, I begin to take every thought captive to Jesus Christ. It dawns on me that the horrible thoughts in my head did not originate with me and are not from God either. I regain an eternal perspective. I see the situation the way God sees it and it doesn’t seem nearly as heartbreaking or difficult. When my perspective changes then I can see that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Even if it means going without.

She was 7, maybe 8 when her brother started touching her inappropriately.

There was a TV room upstairs in the attic that her father had built mainly for her older brothers to use. It was fun and different up there. She could see out the second-story window into the backyard and watch the birds land in the cherry tree. It was carpeted and warm with cartoons playing non-stop. He was always up there too, her older brother that she looked up to and her parents adored.

She learned quickly that there was a price to pay if she wanted to spend time with him and so many that would come after him. This hard-learned lesson stayed with her until her death at age 33.

Everyone she met in her life seemed to extract another piece of her. It was the price she paid, to feel wanted, important, or pretty.

No relationship seemed to come without a price tag. Even though the cost seemed of less and less value to her it was so much greater than she knew.

When she started drinking at age 13 it numbed some of the pain but never for long enough. The drugs she started taking at age 14 seemed to be the answer, at least for awhile.

Yet years later no drug had ever wiped the immense regret of her two abortions out of her mind.

What confused her the most through all of this was that no one, no matter how close they were to her, seemed to notice the pain she was in. Her family saw a quiet, good student. Her  friends saw a loud-mouthed party girl. Guys just saw an object to use. No one ever saw her deep, immeasurable pain. No one ever looked at her long enough to notice it.

That woman died 16 years ago.

She was crucified on the cross with Jesus. She no longer lives but Christ lives in her. The life she lives in this body she now lives by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us. (Galatians 2:20).

I am a new creation in Christ, the old is gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Have you met my Jesus? He can make you new too!

Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test? 2 Corinthians 13:5

I remember clearly, when I came upon this verse a few years ago in my daily reading.  It caught my attention, although I did not immediately understand exactly how to “test myself.”

I stopped to talk with the Lord for a moment, “Lord, I know in my heart that you live within me. I have seen the wonderful changes in my thinking and my actions since I accepted you as my Lord and Savior. I’m sure this is the case with the Corinthian believers as well, but Paul still tells them to test themselves. How can I do this Lord? How exactly would you have me test myself?”

I underlined this verse in red pen and went on with my reading. From past experience I knew that the Lord would speak to me on this issue soon and I wanted to be able to quickly remember and relocate the verse when His answer came. Within a couple of days I found myself nearing the end of the book of Philippians when verse 3:17 popped off the page at me. “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.”

I can not imagine having the confidence in my walk with the Lord to humbly tell someone, “follow my example of living for Christ.” Yet Paul, under the influence of the Holy Spirit could say this. Out came the black pen this time and I made some notes in the margin. I noted that I have not necessarily met many Christians whose life should be used as a model of excellence and yet daily every one of us is an example to the world. Then I realized something else.

For the previous few days I had been preoccupied by business dealings with another Christian. Very occupied actually, as she had been very demanding, controlling and somewhat difficult to deal with. I actually fouind myself wishing I had never become involved with her in the first place. Each time we finished speaking I would note the way she had handled herself. I often thought, “My goodness, do I do this to others? Do I treat others graciously or do I make them wish they had never met me? Am I following her example or Paul’s?”

I have always been an analyzer by nature, and I believe to some extent this is one way of testing ourselves. If I am having difficulty with someone, I have to wonder, what started it? Was it something I said, or are they just this way with everyone? Another important question to ask ourselves is, “What is it exactly about this person that I consider to be a problem?” Why is this particular question important? Because in Romans 2:1 Paul tells us, “… for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.”

And Paul once again is exactly right, the characteristics I found difficult to deal with in this woman are the very same traits I display in my flesh. I struggle with being demanding and controlling, and yet I am the first to notice when others do not place these traits in check.

As I gave myself more time to consider this situation and especially in this new light, I saw that the best way to test myself is to take note of the very things that bother me in others and realize that these are most likely the same things that I do myself. Under conviction, I realized that I had been showing favoritism, which is against God’s instruction. In James 2:9 we find that favoritism is considered a sin, even if that favoritism is toward ourselves over another. “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

I, of course, am always able to continue to love and care for myself even though I struggle with these issues. Now the test was, will I love another with these same traits? My love for the Lord must be stronger than my love for self. Only because Christ lives in me, was I able to pass this test.

It so often boils down to community. We can read the Word alone but to apply what we’ve learned and show ourselves approved we must share our lives with others. We can only really examine ourselves when others hold the test paper.

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1:19,20

This has been happening quite often lately. I’ll be spending time with the Lord, reading His Word and asking Him the meaning of the text I’ve just read, when suddenly I begin to see a familiar verse in a new light. Then to confirm this new understanding, within a few days I will inevitably cross paths with another Christian voicing the same revelation.

In my Bible the above text was already underlined, but as I recall I had done this the last time I read it because I interpreted it to mean that my anger was not seen as righteous in God’s eyes. Taking note of this as I had just been told to, I knew I had to learn to control my bouts of anger.

This time though, the verse spoke to me in a whole new way. As I read it, I could see in my mind’s eye, people standing outside abortion clinics demanding righteous behavior from those who entered along with those who worked there. I thought of conversations, even some that I had participated in, where Christians were angry and disgusted by behaviors and actions of the unsaved. Homosexuality, abortion, adultery, pornography, all of these very obvious sins were discussed, and those who participated in these sins were maligned because of their failure to act in a righteous manner.

I’ve seen Pastors and various believers, wrathfully speak on television, even in news programs, about the sinners in our country and their need to act in a righteous manner. But God says all of this talk is wasted, for our anger with sinners does not bring about the righteousness that He desires. A “there but for the grace of God go I” attitude is what is needed. Many Christians fail at this. I think it’s time we took a cold, hard look at our actions, and decide to make a change, to walk as Jesus did.

Jesus was a magnet to sinners; because of His love for them they were drawn to Him. He never demanded righteousness of them until after they had determined to follow Him. If a person has no desire to adhere to the righteous ways that God has set forth for us in His word, the bottom line is that they are not a born-again Christian, they are not saved. It is our duty to pray for their salvation and continue to witness to them and show them the love of Jesus. It is impossible to succeed in forcing another person to do what is right in God’s eyes. They have to first come to know and love the God that created them, then and only then, will they want to follow His ways. Nudged by the Holy Spirit of course.

Philippians 2:3 wraps up in just one sentence the best way to deal with the unsaved, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” It is pure conceit to think of others’ sins as some how more disgusting to God than our own. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23.

When we are told in 1 Peter 3:15, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…”, does it sound as if we will be asked this by other Christians? Of course not. But in order for nonbelievers to recognize a hope within me, they must spend time with me.

Walking as Jesus did means loving all sinners, and displaying a joyous, hopeful, truly magnetic attitude. I should be living in such a way that all people, believers and nonbelievers alike, want to spend time with me, yet never compromising my faith in order to accomplish this goal. Subsequently, when people ask me to give the reason for the hope that I have, I am free to share the gospel through my testimony. And it is most likely “a hope” they have already decided is worth whatever it takes to get.

Christians are commissioned to lead people to the Savior of the world. Morality doesn’t save souls, only Jesus the Christ can do that.

Julian and I were having a little conversation this morning before he went to work. It was an innocent discussion about a challenging situation we were facing. Then suddenly my husband made a matter-of-fact comment as to what he considered would be the perfect way to “fix” the problem.

Husbands are funny that way aren’t they? When a problem arises, the first thing they think is, “fix it,” well, my husband does anyway. His opinion of a “fix” horrified me, and I made sure to tell him too. I twisted my face up in a manner that clearly showed my disdain for his idea (I’ve learned that men are very visual creatures.) and then proceeded to use my high, squeaky, urgent voice (Because I know how effective that is too.) and spewed out how awful it would be if his plan were to happen.

Okay I admit it; I got a little worked up over his comment, sometimes I can be just a bit melodramatic. And now that it’s over, he admits he doesn’t deal well with high, squeaky voices and twisted faces. We kissed and made up and then gave the problem back to God for the umpteenth time.

What’s really amazing to me is how quickly we can solve a conundrum (oh, good word!) such as this one as opposed to how drawn out this argument would have been just a few short years ago.

When the disagreement became evident my first reaction was to pray. Of course, my actual words were only, “God, please show him he’s wrong!” But God convicted me quickly telling me to pick up his Word, and as I started to page through it, all He had to do was to bring to mind the name James and I figured He was about to say something to me about holding my tongue and probably straightening my face out too.

But God didn’t direct me there, after mentioning James He then asked me a simple question, “Are you loving your husband right now?” Well God and I talked for a while over that one, seems He doesn’t want to hear, “Well, is he loving me?”

I’m sure I’m the only person who’ll ever need this, but the following is a little checklist with the appropriate corresponding answer that the Lord gave me for future use to know when I am actually loving someone:

Am I Loving ____________ with God’s Love?

1. Have I been continuously patient with their shortcomings? Yes
2. Have I treated them with extreme kindness? Yes
3. Am I envious or jealous of something about them? No
4. Am I being completely honest with them? Yes
5. Am I boastful or in need of other peoples approval? No
6. Have I placed my needs above theirs? No
7. Have I even considered that they might be right? Yes
8. Have I treated them and their point of view with the utmost respect? Yes
9. Have I demanded that they do things my way no matter what? No
10. Does what I want only profit me? No
11. Have I brought past worries or resentment into this problem or relationship? No
12. Am I basing my reaction today on past experiences? No
13. Have I given the person involved every benefit of the doubt? Yes
14. Is my ultimate goal in this situation to glorify God? Yes

I know it’s long and maybe some of these questions don’t quite apply to every situation but God clearly wants us to apply His definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13 to our relationships.

 ⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Cor 13:4-7 NIV

Sound impossible? That’s because it is impossible for us, but God can love people like this through us, if we let Him.

The other day, in conversation with a woman who’s husband is unemployed, she said something that I consider a misconception. She said that her husband can do a lot of things but he can’t sell. She actually said he would make a terrible salesman.

At first when she said it, I accepted it as fact. I don’t know her husband very well but I assumed that she did.

Then I began to think about her accessment of him and found I couldn’t concur. I believe every one of us can and does attempt to sell what we believe in on a daily basis.

Take for example the young professional who just purchased a brand new luxury car. He/she may try to sell us on their choice of car or their ability to afford the expensive purchase. As they tell us about their recent splurge, they may even try to convince the hearer why they deserve such luxury.

The woman who just lost 50 pounds will be more than happy to tell you about the diet plan/pills/exercise that finally worked for her and why it will work for you.

The man who feels strongly about a particular political candidate will work tirelessly to convince others to see things his way.

None of these individuals may see themselves as sales people or even selling something necessarily but if you think about it, they are.

Now I’ve been a salesperson before and I not going to try to pretend that everyone can sell anything but even the gentleman in question was able to sell himself to his wife before they were married. Anyone can sell what they truly believe in.

We are all in selling mode at some point in our lives. Even if just selling ourselves, to an employer, a banker,  or a significant other. Most of us want others to agree with us because it makes us feel, I don’t know, validated I guess. Maybe even smart if we’ve actually changed someone’s mind.

In this difficult economy, I don’t believe it is very wise for any one of us to discount our abilities. Especially if it means narrowing our options for employment. And as always, if we are in Christ, we can do ALL things through him who gives us strength.

Some people put a little too much stock in experts. I was thinking about this the other day when I looked at my daughter’s nearly perfect bottom row of teeth.

When she was five years old, I took her to the very children’s dentist that I had always gone to as a child. Yes, he was still alive and even practicing, amazing huh? I know what you’re thinking, that he must be ancient in years. As a matter of fact he is 173 years old. Anyway, when he saw two of her baby teeth fused together he told me it was necessary to pull them to avoid future problems. He also wanted to pull the two identical teeth on the opposite side of her mouth because, “blah blah blah, blah blah.” If I remember correctly those were his exact words.

Yet once they were pulled, he assured me he had done all he could and that we should start saving now because this poor little girl had “one messed up mouth” and she would definitely require braces in the future. He literally gave me the card of an Orthodontist as I left his office that day. She is 15 years old now, her baby teeth have fallen out and have been replaced by her adult teeth. Bottomline? She has the prettiest smile in the family.

Did we pray about her teeth? Yes, of course we did. Did this change the outcome? I won’t know this side of heaven what might have transpired had we not prayed. I only know what I see now, that the outcome the expert predicted was wrong.

Another time an expert was proved wrong was after my oldest was born, I took him in for his two week check-up. The doctor did all of the usual checks but because it was 21 years ago, I couldn’t tell you now exactly what it was she did. I do remember her weighing him, measuring his length and feeling the inside of his mouth with her finger. She said she was concerned because he had a very high palette and it was something that would cause him to have speech problems in the future. As a brand new first-time parent, I was extremely worried and made sure that my husband was equally worried as I cried to him when I got home that afternoon.

We were not Christian’s at the time, so I never considered prayer. Did my son experience any speech problems? Far from it.

Niko was speaking in complete sentences at the age of eighteen months, often mistaken for a much older child because of his incredible speaking ability. And being tall for his age didn’t hurt either.

Both of those incidences were ones that time, simply waiting it out, seemed to fix or at least proved the expert wrong. We were not forced to make any immediate decision based on the information given to us. But what if we were in a situation that called for action based on an expert’s diagnosis?

Such a thing happened to us when my oldest was three years old. One day we noticed that our perfect little boy had developed what we thought was a bad habit. At first we never actually saw it happening, we only saw the effects of the habit. The small bald spot on the top of his head seemed to be bigger each time we saw it. By the time it reached approximately four inches in diameter we were beside ourselves with worry. How could we get him to stop this habit if we never actually saw him do it? We were not even positive he was actually pulling his hair out, although it seemed to be the only answer to the very noticeable bald spot on the back of his little head. Wearing baseball caps didn’t help; talking to him about it had no affect either.

We decided our only option was to take him to the barber and have his head shaved. If he could not grab on to it, he wouldn’t be able to pull it out and by the time it grew back in, we hoped that the habit would be broken.

The barber recognized the bald spot and hair pulling as symptoms of a disease that someone had just informed him about. The woman had left her phone number and asked that he give it to anyone who might be experiencing the problems associated with compulsive hair pulling. I called the woman as soon as I got home. She was very sweet and more than happy to talk with me. When she visited, she brought pictures of some of the cases with which she was personally familiar and pamphlets with detailed information. She told me that she herself had been diagnosed with compulsive hair pulling or Trichotillomania. She explained that without proper treatment, the pulling would lead to permanent baldness. She, in fact, no longer had eyebrows of any sort.

As you can imagine all of this information was very upsetting. We wanted to talk with someone who was a trained professional in the field before we just accepted what this woman said to us about our son. We made an appointment with a Psychiatrist in San Diego, who was well known and respected. At $220 an hour, we felt she would be our best bet for accurate information regarding this disease and whether or not our son had it.

Within an hour and a half of entering her office, she was prescribing two different types of medication that my little three year old son would have to take for the rest of his life. She promised me that if I neglected to fill the prescriptions, even though he might have temporary bouts of non-pulling, the stress of kindergarten, elementary school, high school, and college would bring on the involuntary compulsive pulling. Eventually this would be enough to do permanent damage to his hair follicles. By the time he was in his twenties he would most likely be completely bald, without eyebrows or even pubic hair.

I took the prescription and went home to talk to hubby. I admit that this woman had scared me and I was ready, for the sake of my child, to pick up the prescription and start administering the medicine that night. My husband put his foot down; no way would he put a three year old on mind altering medicine for the rest of his life. He called his parents and they said they would pray. I talked with my parents and we came up with a plan. Each time our son would become agitated we would give him a stack of newspapers to tear up. At first he thought it was fun. We went through this day after day, week after week until finally he hated the paper tearing more than anything else. He promised he would never pull his hair again if he didn’t have to tear up newspaper anymore. We gave him the benefit of the doubt and watched him like a hawk. His hair had grown in and didn’t seem to be disappearing behind our backs anymore.

Over the years, I’ve kept this information in mind and watched as things in school or at home became stressful. I made sure to notice that his hair was always intact. He is now a sophomore in college, getting wonderful grades and even holding down a stressful job at the same time. He never gone through another hair pulling incident like that since.

Again, I am not saying the diagnosis was wrong, I will probably never know. All I know is the predicted outcome was wrong because each of these individuals, experts in their fields, failed to take into account that ultimately God always has the last word.

It’s hard to ask for favors. It’s even harder to be in a position where you have to continually ask because your situation warrants it.

I know. I wish I didn’t but I know.

Last year when we had three cars and four drivers, I didn’t have my car very often. Usually my younger son would need it for school. Because my youngest daughter is homeschooled and we’re home a lot, that worked out fine. He could even run a few errands after school for me. It wasn’t until we had one vehicle commit suicide that we ran into problems. After months – difficult months – of having to ask for rides from people God worked the whole situation out.

Now fast-forward to today and we find ourselves back in the same vehicularly-challenged place. It’s humbling to have to ask people for rides again. I despise knowing that most of the time it means that they have to go out of their way to help me. As this continues I feel less of a whole person. I know it’s not true but it’s hard to ignore those feelings.

I pray the Lord helps me remember this lesson though. I know if I can remember these feelings it will make me a better person in the long run.

I believe that nothing is by chance or coincidence. I believe that God arranges everything and when we respond correctly He is glorified. The person standing in front of you with a need was put there by God himself – help them.

A few others things about being helpful that I need to remember :

• - don’t make them have to ask. If I know someone needs something, offer it even before they ask.
• - if it’s something they will need continually – like a ride to school – tell them ahead of time that I’ll always help them.
• - keep in mind that not having is harder than having to share. Look at helping as a privilege.
• - if I would do it for a family member I should do it for anyone. God hates favoritism.
• - it is far, far better to be able to give than to have to receive.
• - everything I have is God’s, not mine. God is glorified when I use everything He gives me to show love to others not myself.
• - when I feel like I’ve done enough for someone but they still need help, that’s God saying I haven’t.
• - going out of my way to help others is carrying my cross daily. Needing help is them carrying their cross.
• - my giving is not about me, it’s about them. Give them what they want not what I think they need.
• - never make them feel they owe me.
• - always help, give, love in a way that God, not me, is glorified.
• - be a cheerful giver.
• - people always need people. That’s by God’s design.

We’ve just started a women’s Bible Study at church and one week in it’s already making me think.

The study is Believing God by Beth Moore and, although I’ve already done this particular study some 7 years ago, it’s a good time in my life to go through it again. There are going to be some coming changes in this family and I have a feeling I’m going to need to be reminded to actively, purposefully believe God is who says He is and can do what He says He can do.

I just sneaked in the first two statements of a 5 point pledge from the study. Which works out pretty good because the 3rd statement is the one I wanted to write about.

Beth Moore, would be so proud if she knew I was typing these from memory already.

Anyhoo, back to the statement. “I am who God says I am.” As I was soaking in the tub this morning I was thinking about those words. They are true you know. I am who God says I am and so are you. I have no problem believing that. The difficulty comes when I don’t know who God says I am.

I did a quick Google search and found a list of things God has said about us if we are in Christ. It’s not exhaustive by any means but let’s list a few shall we?

• I am a child of God. (But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.  John 1:12)
• I am a branch of the true vine, and a conduit of Christ’s life. (I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.  John 15:1, 5)
• I am a friend of Jesus. (No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. John 15:15)
• I have been justified and redeemed. (being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.  Romans 3:24)
• My old self was crucified with Christ, and I am no longer a slave to sin. (knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, that we would no longer be slaves to sin.  Romans 6:6)
• I have been set free from the law of sin and death. (For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.  Romans 8:2)
• As a child of God, I am a fellow heir with Christ. (and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him.  Romans 8:17)
• I have been accepted by Christ. (Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.  Romans 15:7)
• I have been called a saint. (To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.  1 Corinthians 1:2) (Ephesians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:2)
• I am a new creature in Christ. (Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.  2 Corinthians 5:17)

The last two truths are what I want to concentrate on for now.

God has called me a saint and I am a new creation in Christ.

If we could let these two truths from God permeate our being, our lives would change forever. The first point I’ll make is a serious pet peeve of mine. The second point is something I believe Christians need to be reminded of often.

First, we need to stop calling ourselves sinners. Even “sinners saved by grace” isn’t good enough. God calls us saints. If we’re sinners we have an excuse, almost a duty to go on sinning. It’s just who we are. But we’re not sinners, we’re saints. We may still occasionally sin. We’re not perfect, only Jesus is. But still, we’re saints because God said so.

Secondly, we are new creations. New! Do you hear that? I am not who I was. I am not the person who walked so far from the Lord for so many years. That creature is gone and I am not her.

I am new! You are new!

Did you too get angry at people a lot? Take offense too easily? Expect too much from others? Blame everyone else for your troubles?

Good news, you don’t have to anymore.

We can love others the way Christ loves us which is unconditionally and sacrificially. We can because we are new creations. The old is gone, the new has come.

Love has come.

Now we can either hold on to our old ways or decide to be and love as the new creations we are.

And we can love like Christ because we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. I just slipped statement 4 of the pledge in on you while you weren’t looking. Now I could wrap this post up if I could just figure out a way to fit in the last pledge statement, “God’s word is alive and active in me.”

Ah, I believe my work here is done.