dale – overcoming self

Forgiveness Required

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” Jesus, Mt 18:33-35

To the extent that I receive forgiveness I have it to give. The verses above are the conclusion of an illustration regarding heaven that Jesus told. (Mt 18:23-35) In it we learn of someone who experiences the freedom of being forgiven without ever truly receiving it. When I find it difficult to forgive, if I recount the forgiveness that I have received it gets easier.

The point I want to leave with you today, is that, although forgiveness may be hard, it is essential. Work at it, re-affirm your forgiveness of those who trespass against you. I know it’s hard; personally I have had to work at and re-affirm my decision to forgive daily for months and months when an offense has been great. Truth be told, I still have to re-affirm years later when I’m reminded again. Along the way it feels like I’m just going through the motions but eventually my heart begins to change as I internalize and express the mercy and grace God continues to given me. Unforgiveness is a burden that sucks the life out of you; it’s a deadly poison. I want to encourage you to embark on a journey of forgiveness so that you can be set free –It may be a long and difficult journey, but you’re worth it!

I pray that God gives you the grace to start today.

The Worst

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” –The Apostle Paul 11Timothy 1:15 NIV

The Proper Attitude of Man Under Grace by William Newell

To believe, and consent to be loved while unworthy, is the great secret.
To refuse to make “resolutions” and “vows”; for that is to trust in the flesh.
To expect to be blessed, though realizing more and more lack of worth.
To testify of God’s goodness at all times.
To be certain of God’s future favor; yet to be ever more tender in conscience toward Him.
To rely on God’s chastening hand as a mark of His kindness.
A man under grace, if like Paul, has no burdens regarding himself; but many about others.

“If God justifies a sinner, it does not mean that he finds reasons to prove that he was right –far from it. It does not even mean, at this point, that he makes the sinner a good man. It means that God treats the sinner as if he had not been a sinner at all.” –William Barclay

Perhaps for Paul not to acknowledge that he is the worst of sinners would, quite possibly, be the greatest conceivable ingratitude against God.

Positioned to Receive.

I learned a lesson the other day; I’m amazed how God allows me to live through things to get a point across. As a father sometimes I get a glimpse of the relationship my Heavenly Father desires with me.

“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him? ” —Luke 11:13 CSB

As a father I love my children and of course want the best for them. I want to help them succeed by discovering and developing the talents and abilities that God has given them. Unfortunately my teenage son hasn’t matured to point of realizing I’m not the enemy. I think my daughter is almost there; perhaps she believes it in her head but not fully in her heart.

My son has an incredible talent for art. His natural ability to create is amazing. About the time my son became school age I had an artist friend give him some art lessons. My friend was amazed how my son could naturally conceptualize and capture how things relate spacially. He said it is a difficult thing and gave an example of how hard it is to draw a human that convincingly stands on the ground. Such things weren’t even challenges to my son.

Perhaps with great talent comes great responsibility. My son is 19 and although gifted, he has yet to develop his talent. By contrast, my daughter, not as gifted of an artist, has produced some amazing art work through a lot of hard work.

In the midst of these lock downs of Covid 19, since he’s home from college, I’ve encouraged my son to develop his art skills. I routinely ask him if de drew something today, if he says, “No” I simply reply, “You’ve still got time.”

I found an art desk on OfferUp that would fit in my son’s room nicely. I purchased it and brought it to my work so he could tighten and replace some screws and relocate the drawers to the left side since he’s a lefty. When I asked him to come to my work, because I needed some help, he refused even though I told him it would only take about 30 minutes. I told him I really needed help and asked about the next day. He begrudgingly agreed. I told him I’d come home for lunch and pick him up. When lunch time came he wasn’t home.

I was disappointed and pondered how to handle this situation; I prayed. I really wanted my son to have this desk. I imagined how he would enjoy it. I wanted to support his pursuit of the gift God has given him. There was a distinct lack of thankfulness and gratefulness in my son that made me want to scrap the whole idea. I wasn’t going to give up however, I decided I would ask 5 times before selling it and then inform him of the missed blessing. That was really a hard decision to make and I hoped that we wouldn’t end up there but sometimes life lessons are a more valuable gift.

As all this was playing out I couldn’t help but draw a parallel with God’s gift of salvation. While pondering why my son was so resistant to receiving my gift I realized my relationship with Father God really isn’t that different. How may times has He invited me into His presence to bless me and I’ve refused? Why do I refuse; why did my son refuse my invitation? Perhaps my son refused my invitation because he doesn’t believe that I have his best interest at heart or he believed I was lying.

Do I believe God? Do I believe that God is good? Do I believe that He has my best interest at heart? Do I believe that God desires to bless me?

My natural response is, “Of course I do!” Is that truth? Deep down, no it’s not; there is a disconnect —my response doesn’t reflect my actions. The problem with such a lie is that it holds me in bondage and prevents me from receiving the blessings that God has for me.

I forfeit God’s blessings by ignoring His requests, just like my son, if he refuses my requests, he will forfeit the blessing that awaits him and was purchased specifically for him.

Lord, expose the lies that prevent me from seeing you as you truly are. Give me the grace to reject the lies that I’m holding onto and replace them with truth so I can experience the fullness of your love. Amen.