25 Woods Lake Road, Building 8, Greenville, SC
Because we are all sinful creatures we fail God and other people regularly. In those moments of failure we certainly deserve whatever condemnation and judgement might come our way, yet we can all recall times when God showed us His grace instead and gave us a fresh start. You may feel like you’ve blown it so badly that God will never take you back. But He stands ready right now to extend His grace and give you a new beginning!
We were created to worship God and bring Him glory. However, sometimes we lose sight of that and choose instead to put other things in the place of the love, devotion and worship that belong to Him alone. When that happens we are, in a very real sense, worshiping other gods on the altar of our heart. God will use any means necessary to destroy those idols and turn our hearts back to Him. Are there any areas of your heart that need to be given back completely to God?
David started out as a great king. He led the people with kindness and discernment, and he put all of his trust in the Lord. But none of that lasted. Like all of us, David was unable to live up the perfect Law of God, and his kingship was eventually tarnished by sin. Thankfully his sin did not mark the end of his legacy, because David threw himself on the mercy of God and he was forgiven. Where do you turn when you fall?
There are times in life when God allows us to go through seasons of barrenness. We feel emptied of the joy and hope we once knew. God uses these trials to test us and grow our faith, and if we will allow the hardships to make us better instead of bitter, God will bring us through to a place of blessedness once again, where we are much stronger than we were before.
How would you react if you went in for major surgery and the doctor came into the operating room with filthy hands and rusty instruments? Just the thought of it is unsettling! While cleanliness is important in the physical realm, it is far more important in the spiritual realm. Even though we are already completely righteous through Christ, sin still hinders our daily walk, and it breaks our fellowship with God. Thankfully He has provided a way for us to be cleansed and to restore our communion with Him. Are you using this simple tool He has given us to constantly maintain your fellowship with God?
Our lives are fueled by hope. The decisions we make, the goals we pursue — in fact everything we do is driven by the hope that our efforts will make life better tomorrow than it is today. Often we search for hope in all the wrong places. We mistakenly think that we will find hope in a new relationship, or by having a particular experience, or if our current circumstances were different. But none of those things can ever give us hope. There is only one place hope can be found. Have you found it yet?
At times in life we tend to go our own way instead of walking with God. In fact, sometimes we don’t just walk away from Him, we actually run! But if we truly belong to Him, He will not let us run forever. Often He will have to break us, wound us, in order to keep us from going astray and forgetting our dependence upon Him. These wounds might be painful, but they are really the marks of grace. They are proof that He knows us and loves us enough to keep us close to His side.
Jacob had ruined his life. He had lied to and cheated his family, and now he was about to pay! When his brother threatened to kill him, Jacob fled for his life, and while running away from his sin, he ran straight into God! Surprisingly, God met Jacob in love, and it changed his life. Sometimes we also try to run from the consequences of our sin, but we must remember that God’s love is greater than our sin! He longs to restore us to Himself if we will just surrender.
At some point in life, every believer will go through seasons when they feel bruised and beaten down by trials. During those times, discouragement can cause our spiritual fire to dwindle and almost burn out. How wonderful to know that Christ has promised He will never break a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick! He comes to the weakest of us with mercy and grace, gently lifts us up, and lovingly restores us to himself again.
Matthew begins his gospel by listing the genealogy of Jesus, and he includes people in that list who did some very evil things. Why would Matthew want to highlight the dirt instead of sweeping it under the rug? Because he wanted us to know that the forgiveness Christ came to bring is available to everyone, regardless of their past. Have you ever brought your past to Jesus, or are you still carrying it all by yourself?
It is amazing to see how a skilled artist can take broken pieces of glass and carefully assemble them into a stained glass window to create a beautiful work of art. This reminds us how we were once broken and shattered by sin, but Jesus restored us into something beautiful by His grace, and now our lives can reflect His glory!
Surely no one would ever walk up to a sick person and ask if he really wanted to get well; unless the one asking the question knew that this person had deeper issues that first needed to be dealt with. Even as Christians, we can get stuck in ruts of sin or excuses that keep us immobilized, and sometimes we prefer to just stay there. Are there any ruts in your life that you need to get out of?
