“So I tell you this,
and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do,
in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and
separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to
the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given
themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and
they are full of greed.
That, however, is not
the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him
in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to
your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by
its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put
on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
Ephesians 4:17-24
“It’s just not fair,
they get all the breaks!”
Have you ever heard
someone make that or a similar statement?
Maybe it has even come
from your own lips a time or two.
If so, then you have
probably also heard this spoken:
“Who said life is
fair?”
The truth is there
are a lot of things that happen in life to us and to others that is not fair.
For us as believers,
though, it’s not about fairness but is about becoming like Jesus Christ.
Every believer will
mature through the same spiritual process.
I did not say the
same circumstances or even the same methods.
But you cannot mature
as a believer without surrendering self.
What brings that surrender
in your life could be quite different than what is needed to bring it in my
life.
There were
experiences and circumstances that brought about a surrender to the will of God
in Joseph’s life that were not at all like what David experienced but you
cannot deny that both were in pursuit of God.
We tend to judge by
our own experiences and circumstances and so when we start comparing what
another person ‘endures’ compared to us we immediately start crying “Foul!”
“I had to go through
this – why don’t they?”
Maybe it’s because
God knows best!
Did you ever consider
that?
Yes, even when it
comes to the process of maturing as a believer; God’s path, no matter how
different it may seem to be for you compared to others, is still the best way.
Suppose I said to
you, “Let’s all meet in Venice, Italy on August 1st 2014 at 10:00 a.m.”
Do you think we would
all travel the exact same route to get there?
Of course not!
Our destination may
be the same but our starting point will be different and that will help to
determine what we each have to do to arrive at that destination.
God knows what has to
happen in your life in order that you might mature as a believer.
He make take you
through some things that I never experience, not because He loves you more or
less than me, but because He knows what it will take.
Do you trust Him with
the process?
Let go of your recipe
for your life and follow His lead.
His ways are perfect
and His plans for you are good!
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