Finish Well

 

By Andrea Merrell

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, 

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2 NIV

The woman’s testimony, shared with a group of her peers, spoke of promiscuity, drug and alcohol abuse, and shoplifting. She couldn’t hold a job or relationship because no one trusted her.

“Then I got saved,” she said. “I expected everything to change immediately. To be free of all my ungodly behavior. But I stayed so focused on my past that it kept pulling me backward. I kept failing the Lord time and time again.”

The Word for You Today says:

When you focus on something, you empower and give it momentum. That’s why Satan wants you to concentrate on things that don’t matter. The Bible tells us to fix “our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfector of faith.” God doesn’t pay by the week; He pays at the end. You will be rewarded based on how you finish, not how you started.

When the woman switched her focus, her life began to change—in every way. She took her eyes off her past and put them on Jesus. She filled her mind and heart with the Word and learned to shut out the voices trying to pull her back into a life of sin and shame.

The word tells to “work out our own salvation … to cultivate it and actively pursue spiritual maturity” (Philippians 2:12 AMP), but God doesn’t demand perfection. No matter how many times we fall, He lifts us up and puts us back on the right path, promising to help us and never leave us.

Remember … it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

Photo by Adam Winger on Unsplash

Listen, Learn, Grow, and Change

 

By Andrea Merrell

Moreover we know that to those who love God, who are called according to his plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. God, in his foreknowledge, chose them to bear the family likeness of his Son.

Romans 8:28-29 Phillips

 

“Life is too hard. I can’t take it anymore,” the woman said as the tears poured. “Will you pray for me?”

“Looks like the Lord finally got your attention,” the pastor answered.

God doesn’t bring pain, sorrow, and hardship on us, but He certainly uses them, especially to get our attention and turn our focus toward Him. C.S. Lewis once said, “God whispers to us in our pleasure … but shouts to us in our pain.”

Romans tells us that when we are loved and called by God “everything that happens fits into a pattern for good.” Why? Because God’s plan is for each of His children to bear the family likeness—the image of His Son. That requires growth and change.

“But we all … are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJV). Even Jesus “learned obedience from the things He suffered” (Hebrews 5:8 NKJV).

Don’t discount hard times. Listen, learn, grow, and change through them.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Stuart Miles.)

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Catch Yourself in the Act

By Andrea Merrell

 

For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks

Matthew 12:34 NKJV

“I can’t change. It’s too hard,” the woman said. Her words were bathed in both defeat and defiance. “It’s just the way I am.”

Her problem was a negative mindset and a critical spirit—and she couldn’t figure out where it came from.

The Bible clearly tells us that what we say is a result of the abundance of what’s in our heart. The Message puts it this way: It’s your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words. 

The following verses go on to say: Let me tell you something: Every one of these careless words is going to come back to haunt you. There will be a time of Reckoning. Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation.

Just like the woman said, change doesn’t come easily for most people. It takes hard work and determination, but it begins with a decision—a decision to allow Holy Spirit to be in control. The psalmist cried out, Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips (Psalm 141:3 NIV).

Someone once said the best way to change a bad habit is to catch yourself in the act. Whenever that first negative, ungodly thought pops into your head, recognize it for what it is—and get rid of it.  

Words are powerful, so take yours seriously. God does.

Don’t let them come back to haunt you.

(Photo courtesy of Blogpiks.com and Stuart Miles.)

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Build Your Life Upon the Rock

By Andrea Merrell

For who is God except the Lord?

    Who but our God is a solid rock?

Psalm 18:31 NLT

From jackets and snow boots to tee-shirts and flip flops … all in a matter of hours.

It’s amazing how quickly things change. In fact, I’ve heard it said that the only constant we have in this life is change.

I drive down the street looking for my childhood home—the place where so many memories were born—and it’s no longer there. Leveled to the ground. The old “swimming hole,” as we used to refer to it, now filled in and replaced by a fancy subdivision. Friends and family who have passed through my life … now gone.

Even though in this world nothing remains the same, there is a constant that—or rather who—keeps us safe, secure, and filled with hope. The same yesterday, today, and forever, God’s love never fails. He never gives up on us or leaves us. His promises are yes and amen, because His Word never returns void. And His plans and purpose can never be dismissed or derailed. If He said it, we can count on it. When we belong to Him, He even engraves our name in the palm of His hand.

We all experience different seasons. Friends and family may come and go. Situations and circumstances can change as quickly as the weather. But God never changes. He is the Rock upon which we build our lives.

Have you built your life upon the Rock?

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and mrpuen.)

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