Sunday, April 5, 2009
Ouch!
God sure must love me! Again, he has been pointing out areas in my life that I like hidden alot better! A friend gave me a book called "Feminine Appeal: Seven Virtues of a Godly Wife and Mother" by Carolyn Mahaney. I have just been reading it in bits and pieces as time allows. It covers all kinds of wonderful things like submission to your husband, the delight of loving your husband as God lays out, self control, and the honor of working at home. Things I thought I had pretty much under control. Pat-self-on-the-back!
But, obviously, I still have lot's of growing room.A great conviction point God has used to hit home comes from chapter 2. Not so much directed at my husband alone, but every other area of my life as well. She makes the point that when our reaction is not loving, and those pesky feelings of anger, pride, jealousy, selfishness, fear, and laziness are the first to pop up, it is because of sin in our life. There is no room for Godly character when these are our first responses. Her solution is to check our hearts at the first sign of these "sin alarms" and seek God to reveal what sin we are harboring, then repent. This is how we maintain a loving relationship/attitude that is glorifying to God. When we agree with the diagnosis of Scripture that we have a sinful heart, then we can also receive the remedy- the forgiveness of Christ and His power to change.
Usually I just like to justify all those things. What a challenge! What a concept to pass along to my children. What a ripple effect to those around me.It is hard to see ourselves as sinful. Full of sin. Me. Full of sin. But, if we do not have open eyes to see that, we then cannot see Christ, as we have no need for Him. He then becomes just somebody else to have an opinion.
As I tell the kids often, "I don't think God was kidding!" Scripture promises that we will all give an account one day to God for everything in our lives. One day every knee will bow and confess He is Lord. I am glad he has granted that to be willingly in my life through Jesus, and as He continues His work in me, I hope it is glorifying to Him, as painful as it is to me at times. Pruning sometimes needs to get vigorous for the sweet fruit to one day emerge.
