In part 3 of this series we discussed the idea of breaking free from guilt and shame so we can embrace our call to be God's masterpiece. The main idea of the post was to declare that we are not too far gone to be loved by or used by God.
But what's our part?
Here's my take: We are not merely existing without any bearing on what the outcome of our days will be. Life is full of actions and reactions. A relationship with Jesus does not negate this law of life. In fact, it is God's law of sowing and reaping that we see play out in this cycle as choices are followed by consequences.
Throughout scripture we find wonderful promises from God as well as great proverbs (wisdom or advice) for life. Many of these require some action on our part. Take these few for example: Tell the Lord what you need and His peace will guard your heart and mind (Phil 4:6-7); Trust the Lord instead of your own understanding and He will guide you (Proverbs 3:5-6); Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)
Did you catch it? It's the verb before the promise that we are responsible for. We aren't held accountable for the promise itself, but we are held responsible for the action that prompts God reaction.
Why do I share this? Because I think we are made up of largely two mindsets and from time to time straddle both. The first being that we are powerless and victimized by whatever evil system that is present in the world to keep us bound. The second being that our life is solely what we make of it and not only do we have to monitor how we act but we also have to control every reaction to us. I'm not sure where you stand, but I've tried both and both have failed me at some point.
I want to suggest a third mindset for us to consider, what we dig up depends on what we plant; however, there are conditions outside of our control that can affect our harvest. Take a farmer for example, he can control the seeds he plants, the care he gives to his crop, and any precautions he takes from outside forces, but he can't control the temperatures, the rains, or natural disasters
Here's what I'm saying: There are only certain things in which we can control. Our obedience to God, the required actions that proceed His promises, and the return on living according to Godly wisdom are in our control. The unseen obstacles of life are not. We can take precautions, but we can't control them. So as we journey from a fragmented state to being whole, let's practice controlling what we can control and then trust God to fulfill His promises.
Here is a list of promises and life wisdom to get you started.
Here's what I'm saying: There are only certain things in which we can control. Our obedience to God, the required actions that proceed His promises, and the return on living according to Godly wisdom are in our control. The unseen obstacles of life are not. We can take precautions, but we can't control them. So as we journey from a fragmented state to being whole, let's practice controlling what we can control and then trust God to fulfill His promises.
Here is a list of promises and life wisdom to get you started.
P.S. If you are anything like me, you may be still wondering if God can be trusted to fulfill His promises. That's one we each will have to wrestle in our own arenas of life, but in the next and final part of this series I will try to explore that question a little deeper.
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