It may seem like I am "cheating" the system by using an old blog post, but I have thought back to it multiple times in the past couple of weeks and am amazed at God's ability to teach and re-teach through past experiences and thoughts.
I always want to say something profound or reach some kind of revelation when I sit down to write [a blog]. Why is that? Why do any of us have the desire to say profound things or to do profound things? To be people who change the world and "make their mark." Can we not be more happy if we simply humble ourselves and stay quiet? Won't God teach us more through this than through constant meaningless chatter? And if we ever reach that point where we are no longer intentionally trying to say profound things or be profound people, this is when God will shine through us most and speak truth into our lives. Isn't it ironic how that works? We need to be willing to give it up in order to recieve and obtain what we desire. And of course that very lesson is portrayed through the verses of Matthew 10:38-39:
"and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."
It is easy to look at those words and ignore the truth in them. But once you take a deep look into yourself and what you are striving for, their relevance speaks clearly.
Over the past few days I've been thinking about this concept and wondering what my ultimate goal is. What am I striving to be? More importantly, who am I striving to be? The person God made you to be is not too far from the reality. The question is are you going forward and actively trying to be that person and make it reality? Are you trying to bring the eternal to the mortal and live out God's kingdom on earth, like Jesus did?
Are you bringing joy, peace, happiness, positive energy, patience, kindness, and wisdom to the table? Or are you bringing the opposite?
I know for sure that I am messing up and making plenty of mistakes along the way, but the important thing is that with every day I am trying. I want nothing more than to bear and bring the fruits of the spirit to those around me. And although it is messy and not always the most fun and again, mistakes are made...it gives life the value that it deserves and makes it worth the struggle.
"It is not that we are perfect now or that we will never have to struggle. Or that the old person won't come back from time to time. It's that this new life involves a constant, conscious decision to keeping dying to the old so that we can live in the new."
-Rob Bell, Velvet Elvis
So you've messed up. Ask God's forgiveness, apologize and make amends with those you need to, forgive yourself, and then pick yourself up and move on. Move foreward and put the past to rest. Continue to strive to be the you that God intended you to be and bring the best he has blessed you with. God is doing a new thing now."
Our lives consist of continuous beginnings. We are constantly starting new phases and making new discoveries. We are forced to find a balance of old and new. We make mistakes and start over. We experience the vibrancy and beauty of life right alongside the death and darkness. We must die, to truly live. What a mystery.
Spring is on the horizon. Praise the Lord for another new beginning.
-Melanie Roorda
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