Freedom in Waiting

            I used to think waiting was torture. Don’t get me wrong; I consider myself a patient person overall, but as I mentioned before, I want to know what’s going to happen next—now.

            Unfortunately, I’ve discovered that God doesn’t work that way. Yes, sometimes He does answer prayers immediately, but oftentimes, He does not, for His ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not 

our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8).

            Recently, I’ve been seeking wisdom on which way to step in my life, and the answers are not entirely clear. All I can do is wait, wait, and wait some more. But, I feel like I’ve been doing that for so long now, and so I fought the waiting. In my own strength I’ve searched high and low for answers, just a glimmer of a solid pathway with my name on it.

            However, I usually found a road block or felt so out of step with my Creator, so I had to fall to my knees and let Him start over. You know that recalculating phrase that a GPS repeats over and over again? Well, I know over my four years of college, God did that. I changed my major twice, but I finally found where God wanted me, and I realized that recalculating period where I had to wait wasn’t a waste of gas or time. I learned a lot from those times of waiting, but waiting was still hard—is still hard.

            That period of waiting has resurfaced in my life, but God is teaching me a lesson: waiting on God doesn’t lead to frustration or pain or uncertainty. Waiting on God is living in freedom because when has God ever failed? Never.

            God knows the plans He has for you (Jer. 29:11), which means you don’t have to know them. He promises to work everything out for good in your life (Romans 8:28), and when has He ever failed to come through on a promise?

            God tells us not to lean on our own understanding, and I understand why a little better. Not only is our understanding flawed, but it traps us and clouds our lives with worry and chaos. His understanding is so much better than ours. Think about it: He is omniscient and lives outside of time, which means He probably has a better grasp on the future and how to work my life out that I do, and living in that knowledge is freeing.

            I don’t have to have it all together because He does.

            I don’t need all the wisdom of the world because He is the author of wisdom.

I don’t have to have life figured out because He does.  

            Today, let go of your worries. Cut the strings of control you may have on your life and free fall into the arms of Grace.

I promise that freedom is found in resting in Him.

Living Life Together,

Rebecca Thomas

Desperate for New Mercies

            Joe’s heart slammed against his chest cavity as the blaring sound of the alarm clock accosted his ears.  

            Tuesday. Another day to remember what he had done the previous day.

            Joes’ hands shook the tiny, black machine as he searched for the small button that would bring silence to the dark room again. Grabbing the corner of his black sheets, he covered his head to block out the beginning of yet another day—one more grueling day.

            I’m worthless. They’ll never love me after what I’ve done. I’ve gone too far. God. . .wait. God doesn’t want to hear from me right now. I’m too dirty.

            The sun peaked underneath Joe’s sheets as he realized hiding out in bed was impossible; he had to face the day despite what he did yesterday and, even, the day before.

—˜™–

            The man I wrote about above is just a fictional person I made up, but I’m pretty sure his situation is representative to at least one morning in all of our lives.

            We see morning coming and wish its arrival wasn’t true, not because the weather is bad or we are physically ill. No, we don’t feel this way because of those excuses. We feel this way because we failed; we sinned.

            And we don’t feel worthy anymore. Grace seems too far away. God’s mercies have been used up—we’re sure of that. So, we hide from life, others, and especially, God.

            However, the truth we so often forget is that (thank God) we are not God, and He is not us. His grace and mercy reaches beyond the capability of our minds to understand. Lamentations 3:22-23 declares that “the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (ESV).

            Whatever you’ve done yesterday, remember that God’s mercies are new every morning. Therefore, confess your shortcomings to a gracious and merciful God. His love never ceases, and He longs to give you mercy.

            Every morning His mercies are new. Live in that truth today.

Living Life Together,

Rebecca Thomas

Past Sins

            They haunt many of us.

            Past failures and mistakes loom over us and fog our vision. The sin we committed yesterday or ten years ago still grips the minds and hearts of many Christians today. Instead of looking forward, many of us have our heads craned backwards, scared that those sins will forever haunt us, eternally bind us.

            We misconstrue the truth of grace. We forget and really don’t fully believe that grace sets us free; so, we chain ourselves. I’ve heard people say “How could a perfect God ever love me after what I’ve done?” Our spiritual feet become crippled as we fall prey to the lie that God doesn’t want to spend time with us after we’ve sinned (even after we’ve confessed) or that God doesn’t fully forgive. The thought is that He just says that he forgives, but in reality, He keeps records of wrongs.

            These beliefs are destructive lies filled with no ounce of truth.

            1 John 1:9 states, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (NIV).  

            Isaiah 43:25 declares, “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.”

            Romans 8:1 tells us that “there is no commendation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

            From these verses, we can know that God forgives us completely, forgets our sins, and purifies us. We have no need to live in our past failures; God doesn’t want us to.

            The next time you find yourself in despair from past sins, remember that when we confess our sins, God erases the sins from existence.

            We no longer have to live in shame when we are in Christ Jesus. He makes our soul white as snow while He remembers our sin no longer.

            One final thought: "For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin night be don away with that we should no longer be slaves to sin--because anyone who has died has freed from sin" (NIV, Romans 6:6-7).

           You're totally forgiven and free from sin. Live in those truths today. Let them overwhelm you. 

Living Life Together,

Rebecca Thomas

Shining Stars

            Have you ever stopped to look up at the sky on a clear night?

            Growing up, I remember my dad taking us outside to watch shooting stars and famous comets streak across the sky. I always gazed in wonder at the vast, limitless star-filled sky. Tiny white lights were strung everywhere, some in patterns, some not, but all were magnificent.

            Even now as a young woman, I’m amazed and awestruck when I tilt my head towards a clear sky not distorted by city lights. Sometimes, I simply lie in the grass and stare; their beauty is breathtaking.

            God compares Christians to shining stars, but unfortunately, our beauty is shadowed to the world like stars are to those who live in a big city.

            Philippians 2:14-16a states, “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life” (NIV).

            I don’t know about you, but this verse convicts me many days, and I’m not proud of that fact, either. God has blessed me with so many things, yet some days, I find myself complaining more than being thankful. As a Christian, I have been given more than I ever can deserve even if I only received grace.

            Followers of Christ have no reason to complain or argue because we have been given so much. We are children of God. What more do we need?

            Moving along in the scripture in Philippians, the word tells us that if we do not complain or argue, we will “become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation” (Phil. 2:15). Do you know why stars shine brightly? It’s because the sky around them is so different from them. In the same way, when we as Christians are not marked by complaining and arguing, we are vastly different than the rest of the world. Being content with what you have in a world that always wants more is strange to many, but how many people long to be satisfied? All people are looking for satisfaction, and we have that in Christ.

            When we live our lives finding sufficiency in God’s grace and in the knowledge of God’s unfathomable love, we shine like stars. No longer do we need material possessions to make us happy and all that we do have are blessings in which we thank God for. When fully relying on Christ and conforming to His image, no longer do we seek to find what others can give us, but we long to serve so that others may joy in God’s grace as well.

            Today, I challenge you to shine like stars so that others will gaze in wonder and long to know more about God.

Living Life Together,

Rebecca Thomas