Not Loved, Not my People

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Chosen!

“Not You” these two words would slash and dice my self-image over and over as a child as an adult as a wife as a mother as a friend.  Come to think about it, there isn’t a situation that I can think of that these two words weren’t said to me.

Once, I was invited to a birthday party so that a girl, who repeatedly bullied me in elementary school, could beat me up.  She broke my yellow watch.  I ran all the way home down the dusty dirt road humiliated and ashamed, clutching that broken watch.  I can still see Dawn’s sad eyes pitying me, unable to stop the fight.

We don’t want you!

Chosen is not a word that I applied to myself.  I was the kid in Sunday School with two or three stars on the attendance sheet, and then a long span of empty spaces.  Then two or three stars would appear followed by a long empty space.  I would hear the gospel presented, and I wanted desperately for this forgiveness and love for myself.  I never felt like I was worthy enough for something so wonderful. Why would God choose me?  Then I read II Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,

as some understand slowness.

 Instead he is patient with you not wanting anyone to perish,

 but everyone to come to repentance.

Anyone, everyone?  I was pretty sure those two words included me.  I thought I caught God by the toe.  If anyone or everyone, included me, then God’s amazing love was for me too.  This was my first step on the road to understanding who God is.  For me, God turned a spot light on. I stepped into that little circle of faith, my first steps in understanding the difference between value and worth. Over the years, He has slowly increased that circle of faith.

                I stumbled on to I Peter 2:9-10.

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

The footnotes in my study Bible in I Peter led me to the book of Hosea. Hosea was a prophet.  God asked him to marry a promiscuous wife, Gomer.  After marrying her, he would latter have to buy her back out of prostitution for 15 shekels of silver and five bushels of barley. God uses Hosea and Gomer as an example of his plan to lead us out of our sin into His abundant life.

Gomer gives birth to three children, and I feel sorry for all of them. Their names were Jezreel, Lo-Ruhamah (Not Loved), and Lo-Ammi (Not My People).  Can you imagine how the book of Hosea brought healing to me? Not Loved, Not my people, I felt like this was my identity.

Jezreel’s name foreshadowed the destruction of Israel for the slaughter of God’s prophets by the hands of Jezebel in Jezreel.  I hope your name isn’t this bad.

“Hi! My name is Jezreel.”

“Isn’t that where Jezebel slaughtered all the prophets? I heard it was a blood bath.”

 “Yes. Yes, it is.”

The names that challenged my little circle of faith was Lo-Ruhamah, Not Loved and Lo-Ammi, Not my people. The Lord’s declaration through the cross to you and I is “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy but now you have received mercy.”  Although, I identified with promiscuous Gomer, God chose me to be His, not because I was worthy, but because He loves and values His creation. I promiscuously sought love, affirmation, purpose, worth, identity… you name it.  I tried to find it anywhere I could. I was an affirmation addict. I was Lo-Ammi! Not His! God transferred me from Lo-Ammi to royal priesthood.  He never intended me to sit in that little spot light of faith, clutching my broken yellow watch.  He wants me to stand in the word “Chosen”.  I didn’t have God by the toe; He had me in the palm of His hand.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be blameless in his sight. In love, he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through the blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. Ephesians 1: 3-8

What scandalous grace God has lavished on us?  Once we were not His people and not loved, but now we are Chosen. I think I should end every post with these words until this is a reality in all of our lives.

Praise.jpg

Meditation: Resurrection Sunday

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The Resurrection is our hope, strength, foundation, and future. Jesus was the firstborn among many (Rom. 8:29). Whenever, I am overwhelmed by my body failing, grief, and even natural disasters, I remember that right now we live our lives in the “in between”, the Saturday before Resurrection. Because Jesus was bodily resurrected, there will be a resurrection for all of us, not spiritual like we enjoy now, but bodily resurrected to live forever with Jesus as our source of life and light. The Message writes it this way, Philippians 3:21,

“But there’s far more to life for us. We’re citizens of high heaven! We’re waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He’ll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him.”
One day we will live in a city with no need for  moon or sun. For in the resurrection the Glory of God will be our light and the Lamb will be our lamp! Rejoice today that Christ is Risen! And one day we will join Him! (Rev. 21:23)
Today is our new year!  We remember the foundation that Christ Jesus laid for us not only on the cross, but in the reality of the resurrection gives us a new life to live. No matter what we may face this year, the resurrection of our Messiah will be a solid foundation to find hope, joy, and love. We know that one day there will be no more darkness. No more night designed for our rest. No more suffering designed for us to learn to rest in Jesus because we will enter into that eternal rest. We need to know this and meditate on the resurrection, so that when the shadows of darkness threaten our hope, joy, and love, we will fear no evil!
Resurrection sunday
Meditation: The Lord Has Risen!
Why do you look for the living among the dead!
He is not here; the Lord has risen!
He has risen indeed!
The Lord has risen!
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death is your sting?
Death has been swallowed up in victory!
Christ is risen!
Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”
Thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
The Lord is risen!
Alleluia! He Has risen!

You can’t have my sugar.

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The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”

Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word.”

Matthew 19:10-11

 

Jesus set a higher standard for us than we are able to live out, and He was far more divisive than Christians want to admit sometimes. He reserved his harshest words for legalist, and those who used religion for profit. He called the Pharisees a brood of vipers. He replied, “And you experts of the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry and you yourselves will not life one finger to help them,” (Luke 11:46).

For those who believe that God cares more about being nice than holy, forgiveness and reconciliation become confused with codependency.

Forgiveness is the central theme of the gospel. A Holy God who cannot look upon sin gives man the choice to love and obey Him, but we jump into sin with both feet abandoning the Source of All Life. As we come up for air, we find ourselves overwhelmed by the weight of sin, and who should come to our rescue? The God, we abandoned. He gave His Son to die on the cross IN OUR PLACE, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled with God. God paid the costs, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled to Him. The God who forgave so much commands us to forgive others as He has forgiven us. Now let me tell you a story.

Suppose your fun-loving, carefree neighbor asks to borrow a cup of sugar a few nights a week. Then this progresses to needing more groceries, and then she moves on to borrowing pots and pans that she returns scorched and broken. This neighbor always seems to have a great need, and you must fill it. What is the most loving to do? Forgive and forget? Keep giving until you have nothing left? Or perhaps you look a little closer at your neighbor’s need. Her greatest need is to learn to be responsible for herself. How can you respond to help her with her true need?

You forgive her. What does that look like? Forgiveness means she no longer owes you for what she has taken. You don’t keep a list of all the groceries and pots and pans. To forgive her, you pay the costs for what she has taken. Forgiving others always costs the forgiver. How do you respond the next time she asks for a cup sugar?

Draw a boundary. Actions always have consequences. When you refuse her the sugar, it doesn’t mean you haven’t forgiven her. You love her enough for her to experience the repercussions for the way she is living. Your pantry is no longer open for her use. There is a change in the relationship. This change doesn’t mean you have not forgiven. You let her know that you love her and forgive her, but the relationship has changed. In order for you and your neighbor to reconcile, she must have a change of heart.

The change of heart is your neighbor being convicted of the way she treated you. She comes to you in repentance, apologizes, changes her behavior, and perhaps replaces the pots she ruined. Now, you grow together in trust. You need a stick of butter, and borrow from your neighbor. She gives. She needs a cup of flour to finish baking cupcakes, and you give. There becomes a mutual relationship of giving and taking.girlfriends-2213259_1920

Forgiveness is hard and costly, but forgiveness doesn’t mean that the other person can continue to abuse you. In Matthew 18 Jesus gives us pictures of what forgiveness and reconciliation look like, and they are two very different things. “If they refuse to listen” becomes a key phrase in the process of reconciliation. Jesus gives consequences to those who refuse to listen. He gives a process of the wounded telling the offender of what they have done. If they repent, you’ve won your brother back! If they refuse to listen, take a friend. If they still refuse to listen, then go to the church. If they still refuse to listen, treat them as a pagan. This would mean there would be a break in relationship. Most Christians don’t practice this. Often, we want to be nice, keeping the peace and unity at all costs, even allowing others to continue to abuse us.

God doesn’t live this way, and He doesn’t ask us to do more than He. God is not codependent, meaning that He doesn’t live in a dysfunctional relationship with us, where He supports and enables us to continue to sin against Him. He allows us to experience the earthly consequences of sin, so that we may repent. We can be very sorry for having an affair. His forgiveness does not clear up the STD we got. His forgiveness doesn’t change our spouse’s heart. Forgiveness does not change the consequences.

How many times do I forgive? Peter asked the same question. 70 times 7. Jesus goes on to tell the parable of the unmerciful servant as a warning to us all. God has forgiven us so much. We have been forgiven so much and should not demand repayment from those who owe us less. We are to have mercy.

Forgiveness is an inner discipline of the heart. Reconciliation is the wounded and the offender coming together living in relationship with one another.  This means that the offender has been convicted and tried to make things right. If the offender refuses to listen, the break in relationship remains.

Meditation: My New Song

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Because of Jesus, I can sing a new song. He pursued me in the darkness. He patiently corrected my wrong beliefs about who He is. He waited for me to in humbleness to abandon my selfish pursuit of my earthly kingdom. Jesus restored my soul, and as my eyes focus on His heavenly kingdom, I find myself desiring as Paul wrote, “…we also groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies,” (Rom. 8:23).

Restored

Meditation: My New Song from Psalms 18, 40, 116, and 117

I waited patiently for the Lord;

He turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the slimy pit;

Out of the mud and mire.

He set my feet on a rock

And gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,

A hymn of praise to our God.

I love the Lord, for He heard my voice;

He heard my cry for mercy.

The Lord is gracious and righteous;

Because He turned His ear to me,

I will call on Him as long as I live.

May all who seek You

Rejoice and be glad in You;

May those who love Your salvation always say,

“The Lord be exalted.”

Many, O Lord my God,

Are the wonders you have done.

The things You planned for us

No one can recount to you;

Were I to speak and tell of them,

They would be too many to declare.

How can I repay the Lord

For all His goodness to me?

I will lift up the cup of salvation

And call on the name of the Lord.

I will sacrifice a thank offering to You

And call on the name of the Lord.

Great is His love toward us

And the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Giving an Answer to Grief

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Some of us in the church fear suffering and evil because our faith does not hold up under criticism and doubt, whereas, Biblical suffering proves the very need in every heart for the Suffering Savior acquainted with grief that conquers sin and death on the cross. If we have ever made the life of following Christ easy, may we repent in truth that dying to self and living a new transformed life in Christ costs. Rosaria Butterfield said it best, “So die to self, take up a cross, and don’t expect that your personal experience is going to go any better than the Savior you love and follow.”

Our world in darkness walks, and what do we answer about such darkness that Believer and Unbeliever alike face? My aim in following pages is to give words to those who are suffering from grief of all kinds. I want to bring comfort to those who sit in darkness with the Light of Truth. For when we find ourselves in the furnace, may we not be consumed, but rather refined because in the fire we walk with God.

As I wrestled with grief, I found that unbelief was the basis of much turmoil in my affliction. Only when the Bible became my lens to view my afflictions and the very blood of Christ sustaining my soul did I count affliction as joy. It was then that I could make the sacrifice to praise the One who suffered and died so that I could have a High Priest, who was fully human in every way, bring me to glory and break the power of him who holds the power of death that is, the devil—and free me who all my life was held in slavery by my fear of death.

Hebrews 2:10-13 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it is fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are the same family. So, Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. He says,

“I will declare your name to my

Brothers and sisters;

In the assembly I will sing your praises.”

And again,

I will put my trust in him.”

And again he says,

“Here am I, and the children God has given me.”

rest in gods rest

 

There is hope and His name is Jesus.

In grief of all kinds we are battered by strong emotions both on the inside and the outside. We feel tossed about like a ship on water during a hurricane. We feel as if we may drown in sorrow. Advice comes from people who have not suffered, or by those who have been stunted in emotional maturity by abuse. They cannot relate to sadness, and only want to cheer up the one in grief. Often those around the one in affliction cannot handle strong emotion. Our lives have become too busy. The one in affliction needs to learn to rest, and most of us cannot not stop long enough to sit in grief. The ministry of presence is so important. Words will fail. When we sit in grief with another and allow her to lament, we give what Jesus gives to us. We give the one in affliction the right to give voice to her affliction, and we sit silently with the Lamb, who was silent for us.

We must focus our eyes on Jesus. Jesus entered into history because sin causes suffering. Jesus becomes an anchor for our soul, firm and secure, in life’s storms.

Hebrews5:7 “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death.”

Jesus is not afraid of strong emotions. He cried drops of blood in Gethsemane. If Jesus is our model, then we should freely express our grief, our sadness. Look at Jesus on the cross as he faced ultimate darkness, forsaken by the Father! He cried out His question to God without restraint (Matt. 27:45-45).

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

In affliction, we feel forsaken. We are not greater than Jesus. We cry out the same words, WHY? God, why? In our anguish let us go back to the pure milk of the Word which is the foundation of repentance, of faith in God, and the resurrection of the dead.

–excerpt from the book I’m writing. I have hope because of Jesus.

World Poetry Day

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In case you didn’t know, it’s world poetry day. Somewhere between sadness and grief, Jesus met me, and gave me the comfort of His presence. He spoke gently through the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace from chapter 3 of the Book of Daniel. This story has comforted me in a variety of storms, and it doesn’t disappoint. When Jesus says, “I will not save you from all suffering, but I will be with you even in the fire,” we glorify Him as we are obedient.

These men said, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Even in the storm may we say, “But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods.”

Below is a short poem in honor of Kai Glass. His short life has been God’s grace to me to hold to the Truth even in darkness. I will always miss Kai, but my prayer is that even through suffering, I will be found obedient. One day there will be an end to these sufferings.

In Between

between…the words

there is and no

where hope recedes

and light flees

my soul refused to die

his heart has stopped

but mine defied

the darkness came

we remain

hope is found

in grief’s sound

Banishing My Inner Negative Voice

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John 10:10-11 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

The struggles in this life stress our ability to think rationally and clearly. We compound this stress with the cloud of sin, and further add the weight of memories of times that people harmed us or our past failures. We have the thief of an inner negative voice (INV).

Banishing an inner negative voice takes a conscience decision to come out of denial and recognize that this stronghold in our minds keeps us from living an abundant life. No one is doing it to us. We are doing it to ourselves. In the scriptures, Jesus almost never relates blessings to physical wealth. When discussing physical needs, he says that God gives to all, righteous and unrighteous, describing lowly birds (Matt.6:25-34). He provides these things. Jesus came to give us more. He came that we would have LIFE. He came to free us from sins bondage. We have peace with the Father, no condemnation, forgiveness, comfort in our grief, satisfaction for our thirst for righteousness…etc.

Choice

An INV steals our ability to think rightly, shading the Truth with lies that kill and destroy our desire to serve God and others well. I have a good friend who gave me the book Balcony People. Sometimes our inner voice is broken by overly critical people in our lives who judged us harshly. This person can be a parent, caregiver, grandparent, anyone with authority over us or even a close friend. Janice calls overly critical people basement people. They steal truth from us and their criticism threatens to take away our peace, but it’s up to us to decide how we are going to live now.

Will we keep listening to basement people? Or Will we consciously choose to fill our lives with God’s Truth and balcony people who tell us the truth?

The steps to banish an INV are not magical. I’ve heard the lines, “Well, you just need to pray more and read your Bible more.” These are good things, but Jesus calls us to make disciples and teach them to obey everything (Matt. 28:19-20). The INV needs a teacher to disciple them in truth, so that they can obey. Discipleship makes the difference. Learning to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ is a process (2 Cor. 10:5).

And let me make it clear, It’s not just positive self-talk. Being honest with ourselves involves repentance. Someone may have been overly critical, but that doesn’t completely negate what they say. Learning to live in the Truth is learning to acknowledge our sin patterns and to walk in the Spirit to overcome them (Rom.8). If we continue to puff ourselves up with positive talk, we may be missing the changes we need to make in order to live the abundant life Jesus died to give us.

“Your brain will try to “protect” you and keep you safely on the ground. However, if you want to fly, if you want to depart from the path of your almost certain future, you’ve got to defy the fear and pull back on the stick.” Nik Tarascio, 3 Steps to Overcoming Negative Self Talk

I’m going to use Nik Tarascio’s 3 steps because they are what I have to do too!

  1. Don’t pretend it doesn’t exist.

If you are like me, you have learned to dismiss or diminish harm that others have done to you. It was my coping mechanism since childhood.

Psalm 35:5 “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my inequity.”

Nothing ever goes away by ignoring it. Sores left to fest get worse. Face the INV. Point your finger right at it, and proclaim the Truth.

V6 “I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” And you forgave me the guilt of my sin.”

If God will forgive us of guilt, how much more will He delight in healing our broken places, so that we can live the abundant life?

  1. Get Real with it.

Preach the Gospel to yourself. We have a new identity in Christ. We once, “walked in these ways, in the life you once lived, but now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these, anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator Col. 3:7-10).” Do you see holes in your knowledge? Do you know how to preach the Gospel to your broken places? Find a mentor who will disciple you. God’s plan is for us to live in a family relationship with one another encouraging one another.

  1. Visualize walking with Jesus

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God, When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you will also appear with him in glory (Col. 3:1-4).”

Let this truth dwell in you richly!

I found this list a few years ago and it has been immensely helpful. I don’t know who wrote it, but it’s good. I listed a pdf of God’s Voice Vs. Satan’s on my Resources page.

God's voice vs Satan

Meditation: Know

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We can be sure of few things in this life. We know that we will have struggles. The righteous and the unrighteous face many of the same storms. We also know the One that “even the winds and waves obey (Luke 8:22-25)”.

“Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea (Ps. 46:2).”

This verse encourages me because the earth gave way beneath my feet and the mountains of my faith seemed to be falling into a sea of depression. If I believed that faith is about how I feel, I would have quit.

My feelings focused on the raging storms in my life, engulfing me in darkness.

The faint Light of knowledge reminded me that God is who He says He is. He is faithful and true. His Good News is real. We must KNOW the truth of the scriptures in order to calm the winds and waves of our feelings in times of distress.

Resting in the knowledge of God’s truth calms the fear in my heart, so that I can say, “Therefore I will not fear!” Today, I am meditating on God’s command for me to cease striving to restore myself, and know that, through Jesus Christ, He has restored me.

The Lord Almighty is my with me!

knowledge

Meditation: Be Still and Know from Psalm 46

Be still, and know that I am God.

God is our refuge and strength an ever present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear,

Though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though the waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

Be still, and know that I am I God.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall.

Be still, and know that I am God.

Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; He lifts His voice, the earth melts.

Be still, and know that I am God.

The Lord Almighty is with us: The God of Jacob is our fortress. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth.

Be still, and Know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations:

I will be exalted in the earth.

The Lord Almighty is with us.

Be still, and know that I am God.

God Loves You!

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Someone needs another sneak peek at the devotional I’m writing about learning to rest,

Whispers of Rest in the Storm.

Day 23 Rest in the Love of Christ

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were sinners, Christ died for us.

What beautiful words! God demonstrated His love. When my son died, I hurt so much I despaired, “Maybe God doesn’t love me?” In my brokenness, I couldn’t imagine God loving me and allowing me to hurt so much.

loveMaybe you are like me, and you struggle believing that Jesus loves you. Abuse and affliction steal our dignity and self-worth. Even the message we hear from the world is to be loved we must earn our place, prove our usefulness, and show our value.

We have to work for it.

Sometimes, while in the storm, we ask for a sign. In my weakest hour I asked for a sign that God loved me. I’m thankful I asked for a rainbow because they are more rare than pink sunsets. God denied me a rainbow, and I am so thankful that He did.

In the storm, I cried out, “God, if you love me, then save me from this hurt.”

He whispered back, “I already have. I sent my Son. He humbled himself into the womb of a woman. He experienced every human struggle, and did not sin. He is your sign that I love you. He paid the debt for all your sin. He ripped the curtain that separated us. Let my rainbow be my promise to not flood the earth, and enjoy the pink sunsets that I created to declare my glory. Let Jesus be the sign of my love for you. I will walk with you in your hurt. Depend on me.”

Every morning God whispers, “I love you! Look at Jesus and see how I love you.” Romans 8: 32 says, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” These words sooth my aching soul in the storms of life.

Rest today knowing that God demonstrated His love for you through Jesus. We need no other sign. Enjoy the beauty of His creation, but let Jesus demonstrate His love for you! God walks with us through the storm, and nothing can separate us from His love (Rom. 8:34-39).

Is God for You?

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Here’s a second sneak peek at Whispers of Rest in the Storm.

Day 10 Rest in Repentance

Isaiah 30:15 “…In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength…”

Repentance is not a onetime event.

1 John 1:8 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”

Remember how rest has a few definitions? Rest means to recover strength, and it also means to refresh oneself.

John gives us cover by blatantly writing that we sin, and if we say we don’t sin the truth is not in us! We can unashamedly kneel and repent. We need a change in perspective of repentance from negative to a time of refreshing.

Repentance is the only no-shame way to refresh our souls. In repentance, we say that God is bigger than us. His ways are right, and our ways are wrong. Keeping a short account keeps us aware of Jesus’s blood and the comfort of the Holy Spirit constantly.

You have heard that God is for you. It’s an encouraging platitude that can keep us living in pride.James 4: 6 says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” If we are proud and refuse to repent, then God opposes us. The Greek word means that He resists us like a football player stiff arming the coming opponent.

When we rest in repentance, it feels like death. As we refresh ourselves in repentancerepentance whatever is proud will die, and we will be made alive in Christ.

As we moment by moment learn to rest, we will find that humbling ourselves grows easier as we see the fullness of God’s love for us in Jesus Christ our Savior.