THE FOLLOWING ARE ISSUES I’VE BEEN DEALING WITH IN MY LIFE.

*ENABLEMENT: I WAS THINKING ABOUT ENABLING A FEW WEEKS AGO. AND THIS THOUGHT HIT ME LIKE A TON OF BRICKS: WHEN WE ENABLE OTHERS TO CARRY ON IN ANY FORM OF SIN, WE ARE PARTICIPATING IN THAT SIN!!! THAT IS SUCH A HARD PILL TO SWALLOW, ISN’T IT? I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT ALL THE TIMES IN MY PAST THAT I HAVE ENABLED PEOPLE, AND ALL THE TIMES THAT OTHERS HAVE ENABLED ME. WHAT A HARSH REALITY, THIS WAS SOMETHING I HAVE NEVER WANTED TO ADMIT TO MYSELF, BUT I CAN’T DENY IT NOW.

*RELAXING: I HAVE BEEN LEARNING TO RELAX, WELL A LITTLE ANYWAY. IF YOU KNOW ME, THEN YOU KNOW I’M JUST A VERY ANXIOUS, BUSY, UPTIGHT PERSON MOST OF THE TIME. I HAVE BEEN LEARNING TO GET OVER MYSELF LATELY AND TO RELAX. GOD MADE A SABBATH. WE’RE COMMANDED TO OBSERVE IT. YET AGAIN, ANOTHER THING I DIDN’T LIKE ADMITTING TO MYSELF.

*REPENTANCE: I HAVE BEEN LEARNING IN MY LIFE THAT AS MANY TIMES AS I SAY, “GOD, I’M SORRY FOR (FILL-IN-THE-BLANK)”…..IT DOESN’T MEAN ANYTHING UNLESS THE SIN I’M DOING CEASES. REPENTANCE IS NOT JUST SAYING I’M SORRY TO GOD. REPENTANCE IS TWO-FOLD;
1. ACKNOWLEDGING MY WRONGDOING BEFORE GOD, WITH A REPENTANT HEART, AND CONFESSING IT TO HIM.
2. TURNING AWAY FROM MY SIN.
SO OFTEN IN MY LIFE, IT’S BEEN EASY TO JUST DO THE APOLOGIZING THING. I’VE BEEN DEALING WITH THIS A LOT WITH MY SON. HE THINKS AS LONG AS HE ALWAYS SAYS I’M SORRY (MIND YOU, HE’S THREE YEARS OLD, SO HE’S STILL VERY LITTLE) THAT HE CAN DO WHATEVER HE WANTS. BECAUSE MOMMY ALWAYS FORGIVES AND LOVES HIM. SO MANY TIMES LATELY WE’VE HAD TO SIT DOWN AND TALK ABOUT THIS. THESE WERE SOME OF MY WORDS TO HIM THE OTHER DAY: “DYLAN, YOU CAN’T JUST DO THE WRONG THING, SAY YOU’RE SORRY, AND EXPECT EVERYTHING TO ALWAYS BE OKAY. YOU HAVE TO STOP DOING THE THINGS YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO DO. YOU HAVE TO MAKE THE DECISION, EVERYTIME, TO DO THE RIGHT THING. AND HERE’S THE DEAL, YOU CAN DO THAT! YOU ARE A BIG BOY, A SMART BOY, A GOOD BOY, AND YOU CAN CHOOSE TO DO THE RIGHT THING!” IT WAS LIKE LOOKING IN A MIRROR AND HEARING THESE WORDS ECHO TO THE CORE OF MYSELF!! HOW TRUE. I NEED TO TAKE A DOSE OF MY OWN MEDICINE. GOD GAVE US THE ABILITY TO THINK AND REASON. EVERYTIME I SIN IT IS NOT BECAUSE OF SOME OTHER THING OR PERSON IN MY LIFE, IT IS NOT BECAUSE OF MY PAST, IT IS NOT BECAUSE LIFE’S JUST TOO HARD…….EVERYTIME I SIN, IT IS BECAUSE I MAKE THE DECISION TO DO SO. IT’S QUITE SIMPLE. AND SUCH A HARD THING TO ADMIT TO MYSELF. IT’D BE SO EASY FOR ME TO GO ON SAYING, “BUT GOD, IT’S SO HARD, BECAUSE OF THIS, BECAUSE OF THAT, ETC”…….BUT THERE COMES A TIME WHEN I KNOW BETTER. I’M 27 YEARS OLD. I THINK I KNOW BETTER NOW.
LORD JESUS, FORGIVE ME FOR KNOWINGLY SINNING AGAINST YOU, AND FOR THE HORRIBLE THOUGHTS OF THINKING I CAN TAKE YOUR GRACE AND MERCY FOR GRANTED, OR ANY OTHER PERSON’S GRACE AND FORGIVENESS FOR GRANTED. FORGIVE ME FOR PUTTING MY WANTS BEFORE YOUR TRUTHS. AMEN.

“IN THE SAME WAY THE SPIRIT ALSO HELPS OUR WEAKNESS; FOR WE DO NOT KNOW HOW TO PRAY AS WE SHOULD, BUT THE SPIRIT HIMSELF INTERCEDES FOR US WITH GROANINGS TOO DEEP FOR WORDS;…”
*ROMANS 8:26

SOMETIMES IN LIFE, WE CAN JUST GET BURNT OUT. THAT IS WHERE I WAS YESTERDAY. JUST FLAT SPENT. TIRED. EXHAUSTED. WEARY IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE. PHYSICALLY, EMOTIONALLY, SPIRITUALLY DRAINED. MY SWEET SISTER HAD TO LOVINGLY REMIND ME OF HIS YOKE.

“COME TO ME, ALL WHO ARE WEARY AND HEAVY-LADEN, AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST. TAKE MY YOKE UPON YOU AND LEARN FROM ME, FOR I AM GENTLE AND HUMBLE IN HEART, AND YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. FOR MY YOKE IS EASY AND MY BURDEN IS LIGHT.”
*MATTHEW 11:28-30

LORD FORGIVE ME FOR PLACING MY OWN YOKE UPON MYSELF, AND THE YOKE OF OTHERS. I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO CARRY THE WEIGHT OF THE WORLD ON MY SHOULDERS. THAT IS NOT WHAT YOU PUT ME HERE FOR. YOU DON'T NEED ME TO BE A HERO. I AM THE ONE IN NEED OF YOU, EVERY MINUTE OF EVERYDAY. I AM NOTHING WITHOUT YOU.

WITH SO MUCH HURTING AROUND US, WHETHER IT’S YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW, I CAN’T HELP BUT THINK OF THIS SONG BY CHARLIE HALL, “DRAW CLOSE”:

“LORD LET ME FEEL IT, THE WAY THAT YOU WOULD FEEL,
BROKEN FOR THE PAIN THAT PEOPLE BEAR.
LORD LET ME TASTE IT, THE TEARS FROM BROKEN REEDS
TEACH ME TO PRAY WITH WEEPING FOR THOSE WITH NEEDS…

DRAW CLOSE TO THE LONELY ONES, TO THE HURTING ONES,
TO THE ANGRY ONES….JESUS BRING PEACE…
DRAW CLOSE TO THE TORN APART, TO THE BROKEN HEART,
TO THE ONE WHO’S FAR….JESUS BRING PEACE…
AND DRAW CLOSE.”

“REJOICE WITH THOSE WHO REJOICE, AND WEEP WITH THOSE WHO WEEP.”
*ROMANS 12:15*

“BLESSED BE THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE FATHER OF MERCIES AND GOD OF ALL COMFORT, WHO COMFORTS US IN ALL OUR AFFLICTION SO THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO COMFORT THOSE WHO ARE IN ANY AFFLICTION WITH THE COMFORT WITH WHICH WE OURSELVES ARE COMFORTED BY GOD. FOR JUST AS THE SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST ARE OURS IN ABUNDANCE, SO ALSO OUR COMFORT IS ABUNDANT THROUGH CHRIST.”
*II CORINTHIANS 1:3-5*