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The LORD hates every liar, but he is the friend of all who can be trusted. Proverbs 12:22 (CEV)
I was a seminary student and out of work. A friend of mine needed some help for a couple days preparing for a trade show and asked if I’d like to fly with him to the show for a couple days to get things prepared. I jumped at the chance to get away for a couple days ‘vacation’ even if it meant work.
Once inChicagohe decided he needed a paint sprayer and went to a local store to purchase one. We used the sprayer to prepare for the show and then, while he stayed at the show I boarded a plane for home.
When he returned the next week I asked how the show went. He chuckled and told me it went fine. Then he said his brand new paint sprayer was stolen and he thinks it was taken by his contact in Chicago, a guy named Joe.
“Joe swore he didn’t take it, but I’m pretty sure it was him since it was under lock and key. Only he and I had access to that room. Then, to top things off he accused you of taking it!” My friend went on, “I told him I knew you wouldn’t take it. I’d trust you with my life!”
I’ve thought about his words on occasion. True friends trust each other with their lives. I hadn’t really done anything to build that kind of trust, I was just honest.
When you build a lifestyle of honesty in every situation you protect yourself from attack. Your lifestyle speaks much louder in your defense than any words you can utter. Jesus says ‘If you can be trusted with little things, God will allow the greater things into your life.’ (Luke 16:10)
Being honest with yourself builds trust with others when you are attacked. It isn’t about doing the big things. It’s about doing what you say you will do. It’s about being honest about your feelings and when those feelings may hurt others, to be graceful and loving in sharing them.
Take the small steps needed on a daily basis to build trust in others. Allow God’s spirit to guide you in your words, actions and thoughts. Building a lifestyle of honesty will protect you from the false accusations that come your way. That way not only will your friends be able to trust you, God himself will be able to trust you with the big things in life.
PRAYER: Father God, when I was growing up I’d always dream of doing something big. Usually those dreams revolved around my own personal desires. Now that I’m older I still desire to do big things, but to do them for you. Empower me with your Spirit to start small by being honest with myself about who I am so that I can build trust in others. In Jesus name, Amen.
He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. Ephesians 1:7 (NLT)
When something is really important to you, won’t you do anything and everything to get it? You’ll save or take out a loan or use all your credit balance (not advised) so that you can have it in your possession. You may even sell something else or give something away in order to get that prized possession.
Now, imagine you scrimped and saved and bartered until finally you were able to purchase your prized possession. Would you set it free? “Of course not!” you say. Look at all I gave up for it. Look at the years of saving and sacrificing and giving. There’s no way I’d give it freedom. I might lose it!”
But God did. He loved you that much. See, when you buy something to possess it you buy it with the idea of holding on to it. You buy it with idea of passing it on to your heirs, or keeping it safe, or holding it close to you.
Jesus Christ didn’t come to earth to create some new fantastic religion. He didn’t come to earth to show us how bad we were. He didn’t come to earth to give us a bunch of rules and regulations. He didn’t come to earth so God could control, possess or manipulate you. Jesus came to earth for only one reason: your freedom!
Freedom from your past; Freedom from the mistakes that still haunt you; Freedom from worry, doubt, fear and anger; Freedom from physical and emotional scars that you bear. That’s what grace is about. That’s what God’s kindness gives us. Freedom.
So, live free through the forgiveness, grace and kindness you find in Jesus Christ. It’s not about religion. It’s about a relationship built on being free.
PRAYER: Father, I’m so undeserving of your love. I’m so undeserving of your grace. Forgive me for the times I’ve allowed myself to be held captive by you. Help me live in the freedom I have in you. In Jesus name, Amen.
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:10
Can you hear the emotion in King David’s ‘voice’ as he pens these words? I see him hunched over a table in the far reaches of the palace, away from everyone. Surrounded by wealth, holding the power of the kingdom in his hands, considered mighty, powerful, invincible. Yet there he sits. His hands covering his face as he ponders the situation.
“How did I let it go this far? How did I let this happen? What will the people say? What’s next for me in God’s eyes? How can I fight off a bear, a lion, a giant and countless enemies and let this happen to me?”
The list goes on as David recounts the things in life that led him to this point. At that time it was perhaps the lowest point in his life, the time when his affair with Bathsheba was exposed. This well-known verse is or has been the cry of each of us as we’ve traveled this journey of life.
Our spirit is right. We know what we want to do. We charge straight ahead into battle with the intent of living for Jesus. We determine that nothing will keep us from the goal of living what we believe.
Then life happens. It’s not the big things that pull us down right away. It starts with the little things, tiny lapses that seem insignificant. But like a tumor they grow unseen until we realize we’ve strayed far from the path. The goal is no longer even in sight for us.
That’s when grace steps in. Grace says that no matter how far we stray from the path we intent to travel we can be forgiven.
Notice the words again. David asks his Father to ‘create a pure heart’. Only God can create something. To create means to make something completely new. The heart was considered the seat of emotion and the source of our thoughts and desires. David isn’t asking God to fix his heart, he’s asking for a new one. That’s the key to making meaningful and effective change in your life; coming to a point when you reach out to God and say “I can’t do this anymore. My DNA won’t allow me to make the changes I need to make. Make my heart (my emotions, my desires, and my passions) new. The old ones aren’t working
Only after our passions are made new can we hope to have the strength to change. Our determination to follow Christ unwaveringly can only happen after we have confessed our sin and by grace received forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Our spirit (the source of our actions) will only be pure when our heart is made new.
PRAYER: Father God. I’m so tired of trying and failing and trying and failing and trying and failing again. I try to hard to live for you without much success. Like David, I ask that you would create a new heart within me. I confess my sin and weakness. I acknowledge my need for you. I accept your forgiveness and grace through Jesus Christ. Help me go in your strength to tackle the issues I face today. In your name I pray, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 