When "should" becomes "could"
I love the moments, however brief and elusive they might be, when my mind can wrap itself around the truth of the freedom that Jesus gave me when he died for me.
How many ways do I tell myself I should do this or I should do that, eventually falling, unknowingly, into the habit of thinking that if I don't do certain things, I am not doing what I must to stay in His good graces. It's not about what I do or don't do that established or maintains that freedom! I accepted Jesus a long, long time ago. I have never, not even for one iota of a second, thought to dismiss that decision and renege on giving my life over to God. Scripture assures me that once I have accepted Jesus as my savior, my life is new. My old life is dead and gone and I am a new creation. And it was not my actions or works, it wasn't because I prayed the right way, or read the right things, or behaved a certain way - no matter how good or rotten - it was never what I have done (or haven't done). It was a decision to simply believe and accept the promise from God that I could come home to heaven even though I can and will never "deserve" to.
As a good friend and fellow believer said so succinctly last week, I do right things (at least strive to) not because I have to, but because I get to. It's not because I should, it's because I could. Not because I have to, but because I get to. And my place in God's family is not threatened by my inability to always do the right things.
A little time to let that sink in. How does that change the perspective of our days?
Peace,
Sam
How many ways do I tell myself I should do this or I should do that, eventually falling, unknowingly, into the habit of thinking that if I don't do certain things, I am not doing what I must to stay in His good graces. It's not about what I do or don't do that established or maintains that freedom! I accepted Jesus a long, long time ago. I have never, not even for one iota of a second, thought to dismiss that decision and renege on giving my life over to God. Scripture assures me that once I have accepted Jesus as my savior, my life is new. My old life is dead and gone and I am a new creation. And it was not my actions or works, it wasn't because I prayed the right way, or read the right things, or behaved a certain way - no matter how good or rotten - it was never what I have done (or haven't done). It was a decision to simply believe and accept the promise from God that I could come home to heaven even though I can and will never "deserve" to.
As a good friend and fellow believer said so succinctly last week, I do right things (at least strive to) not because I have to, but because I get to. It's not because I should, it's because I could. Not because I have to, but because I get to. And my place in God's family is not threatened by my inability to always do the right things.
A little time to let that sink in. How does that change the perspective of our days?
Peace,
Sam
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