9 For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. (Colossians 1)
God is really rooting things out in my life right now. There are places of immaturity that need to be shed, like a snake sheds its skin so that it can grow larger and stronger. God is ‘sluffing off’ some of the Old Self that still clings to me at times. He is calling me upwards and outwards, away form who I have been to who I can be. We can get bogged down, even in ‘good things,” God calls us out of them be revealing what truly lies within those ‘good things’ and revealing to us that He has ‘better things’ that He is calling us to. I woke up this morning with a touch of grief over the way I had spoken toward someone in an e-mail. I knew immediately that God was asking me to write an apology and send it. They live on the other side of the Country, so an e-mail is my best option. God revealed to me that my heart was self-righteous in my comments, and I was judging this precious person.
God’s cleansing is good, but it hurts. It hurts when He really lays the finger on an area and calls us to deal with a weakness, or entrenched attitudes of the heart. I call these, “God’s ouchies.” I work with children, so give me a little grace on the concept here. God loves us too much to let us stay as we are. All true inner healing, all growth and maturity requires God’s scalpel. He puts us under the knife, so He can remove what is harmful to Others and ourselves. They are inseparable, for when we hurt others, we end up being hurt ourselves, and vice -versa. I remember reading one of those Church signs that said “Love your Enemies.” I cynically said to God, “Yeah, right, God…I am my Enemy.” He spoke to my heart and said. “Exactly! How can you love your neighbor, if you hate yourself?” Good Question, and thus began my journey of letting God lay the finger on all the wounded areas of my life that were infected, not healing properly, manifesting behaviors that harmed myself or others. I believe that is what He is still doing in revealing to me my need to pray for others instead of judging them. I will close with Colossians 1 again, because it is a good prayer of loving others with God’s Word. I have an e-mail to right, and someone to pray for. God is calling me higher, and it hurts, but I wouldn’t want it any other way. Abide in His Love, dear people of God.
9 For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. (Colossians 1)
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