As I strolled into the gym I saw a large mural-type photo on the wall. It was a birds-eye view of a women scaling a steep wall. She was looking up with assurance, intently into the lens of the the photographer. As she gripped the goads with her fingers, her toes were also found their place in the clefts, as she worked her way up the face of the rock. Beneath her, miles away, was the valley in the distance. Because of her altitude, the field below looked like a patchwork quilt, with blurred, undefined features. She had apparently climbed for miles and I bet did not want to look down!
It made me think of the ascending climb of the Believer. The path we take often leads up a steep incline too and one must look intently upwards as well to find the rungs and clefts, or the verses of scripture where the promises of God give us sure footing and the wise counsel of those that have traveled that way before, in order to scale the walls and mountains we will encounter on our journeys.
Most importantly we have to keep our eyes on our guide, Jesus Christ. Down below, our past, our sins and the valley left behind is not worth gazing back at either. It's actually dangerous to look down or look back for the reason that one could lose their footing and the grip so carefully acquired.
Finally, as I kept looking at the photo I noticed something I had not seen before: a thin rope or line attached to her harness that was anchored from high above. Something or someone strong enough to keep her from falling was on the other end of that rope. Oh, praise the Lord; now that'll preach!
The LORD God is my strength— he will make my feet like those of a deer, equipping me to tread on my mountain heights. Habakkuk 3:19
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, Jude 1:24
Sunday, May 21, 2017
A Walk by Calvary
I've been by Calvary and saw my Savior on the tree;
So I am set free,
for now I see -
that because of my sins,
He died just for me.
So I am set free,
for now I see -
that because of my sins,
He died just for me.
Luke 23:33–34
33 When they came to a place called The Skull, they nailed him to the cross. And the criminals were also crucified—one on his right and one on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing”…
Ephesians 1:7–8
7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins…
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Freedom
It is Mother’s Day and I am grateful for the sober live I live today in Christ and in recovery. Though I am happy, my relationship with my own mother and my daughter is healthy today, I seem to feel a yearning for more. Is it for another greeting card or more texts wishing me "Happy Mother's Day?"
Perhaps the desire to have more is the longing to be ‘complete' because some need remains unmet and some goal unattainable. It is a natural part of the recovery process. The catch though is that I have pledged to live in the ‘supernatural’ - in the kingdom of God. So why is it then that with all His blessings the shameful sense of loss still lingers?
*I read a devotion this morning that said early experiences with shame in childhood are tough to uproot. "First in is often last out.” For example, memories of bullying, failing an exam or being left back a grade often result in shame. Another common source of shame in our culture is sexual abuse. I know this well and it has only been an encounter with the person of Jesus Christ and His finished work at the cross that has freed me from the pain of the horrible scourge of abuse and trauma.
That shame is no longer mine because Christ has taken my shame when He endured the awful scourging for my sake. So, I can rejoice today. Feelings are not always an accurate barometer of the climate in my heart. It’s bright and sunny!
If you’re holding a sense of remorse or guilt, take a moment to write about it. No one has to read it but you and Jesus. Letting it out takes the steam out of it so it won't load you down or take the wind out of your sails. Go for God because Jesus has liberated us from shame!
1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness."
Psalms 103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, Luke 4:18 (KJV)
Perhaps the desire to have more is the longing to be ‘complete' because some need remains unmet and some goal unattainable. It is a natural part of the recovery process. The catch though is that I have pledged to live in the ‘supernatural’ - in the kingdom of God. So why is it then that with all His blessings the shameful sense of loss still lingers?
*I read a devotion this morning that said early experiences with shame in childhood are tough to uproot. "First in is often last out.” For example, memories of bullying, failing an exam or being left back a grade often result in shame. Another common source of shame in our culture is sexual abuse. I know this well and it has only been an encounter with the person of Jesus Christ and His finished work at the cross that has freed me from the pain of the horrible scourge of abuse and trauma.
That shame is no longer mine because Christ has taken my shame when He endured the awful scourging for my sake. So, I can rejoice today. Feelings are not always an accurate barometer of the climate in my heart. It’s bright and sunny!
If you’re holding a sense of remorse or guilt, take a moment to write about it. No one has to read it but you and Jesus. Letting it out takes the steam out of it so it won't load you down or take the wind out of your sails. Go for God because Jesus has liberated us from shame!
1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness."
Psalms 103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, Luke 4:18 (KJV)
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