It is so very good to believe in this most wonderful God.
“You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder.” Jas 2:19 NIV
Lies. As I said yesterday, there are some people who try to claim credit for the way their lives have been transformed. They do not, or worse, refuse to give God praise for the good that is being done. When I was in the hospital all those times with my Beckie, the parents of these beautiful children would often gather together to encourage one another. There was a time when one parent, who was also going through so many challenges, said to me, “I just don’t know how we are getting through this.” I did not skip a beat as I quickly responded, “Do you want me to tell you how you are getting through it?” These parents looked at me with this weird expression like “how would you know,” kind of a thing, but I simply responded, “Whether we acknowledge it or not, it is only by the Grace of God that any of us can go through any difficulties.” The light in their expressions told me that, it was probably the first time they even thought about God’s blessings in the midst of their situation.
The only way we can change is with God’s Grace. He will get us through, even if we do not acknowledge Him, because He is a Good, Good Father. Just like I do not need my son’s permission in order for me to do something nice for him, so too God does not need our “ok” to bless us. When we believe the lies that we are getting through it, whatever “it” happens to be, on our own, then we are missing out on the greatness of God’s blessings. For instance, if someone has lost 100 pounds and they are patting themselves on their own backs, they are forgetting all the times God gave them the strength to keep making the right decisions that brought about that wonderful result. If this person happens to be born again, then they are not giving God His due and they will miss out on the fulfillment that comes from it. Believing the lie that we can do any good on our own, keeps us from the greatest blessing, having this amazing relationship with our Creator…and this is exactly what the enemy wants!
Join me in memorizing 52 verses this year:
January: 1- Jn 3:16; 2- 2Co 5:17; 3- Jas 2:26; 4- Eph 2:10
February: 5- Jn 10:10; 6- Ro 6:23; 7- Rev 21:4; 8- Php 4:13
March: 9- 1Pe 5:7; 10- Jn 8:32; 11- Dt 30:19; 12- Jn 3:30; 13- 2Chron 20:3
April: 14- 2Chron 20:12; 15- 2Chron 20:15b; 16- 2Chron 20:17
May: 17- Ro 8:28; 18- 1Co 13:13; 19- Php 2:12; 20- Mt 5:4
June: 21- Lk 23:42; 22- Jas 4:7; 23- Pr 22:6; 24- Mt 5:3; 25- Jn 14:6
26- Jas 2:19
<>< Peace, Diane
