Fervent Study, Part 3
I am continuing to share the awesome Fervent book by Priscilla Shirer.
5. Your Past
"If I were your enemy, I'd constantly remind you of your past mistakes and poor choices. I'd want to keep you burdened by shame and guilt, in hopes that you'll feel incapacitated by your many failings and see no point in even trying again. I'd work to convince you that you've had your chance and blown it - that your God may not be able to forgive some people for some things, but not you....not for this."
I have a yucky past, and coming to Christ helped me deal with it. It took a lot of convincing, but I learned God has enough grace to forgive even me. So much grace that it flows over me and drowns me in an ocean of it. In fact, He not only forgives, but He loves so hard that you want to repent and it's life changing.
"The past was in the past. It didn't have permission to touch me anymore." p. 97
One of my favorite verses, which God led me to in the midst of dealing with my past, all those years ago, through purely flip through the Bible and pointing at a verse:
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." 2 Corinthians 5:17
The old has gone.
The new has come.
I mean, there is no better deal than that. <3
"Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. Behold, I will do something new. Now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert." Isaiah 43:18-19 Rivers in the desert. What a RELIEF. That's what I feel. Relief.
"He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may swell in me." 2 Corinthians 12:9
6. Your Fears
"If I were your enemy, I'd magnify your ears, making them appear insurmountable, intimidating you with enough worries until avoiding them becomes your driving motivation. I would use anxiety to cripple you, to paralyze you, leaving you indecisive, clinging to safety and sameness, always on the defensive because of what might happen. When you hear the word faith, all I'd want you to hear is "unnecessary risk.""
Man, this chapter sure hits hard with me and my anxiety. Through Christian counseling (which I describe to be one on one Bible study), I learned how important it is to live life DESPITE anxiety. It is so much easier to just stay home and cling to sameness. So tempting, really. But from traveling, even out of the country, to volunteering in church, to homeschool, to moving out of state and building a house, my life is not meant to live in sameness. So, I do all of those things, and don't let anxiety stop me. As 2 Corinthians says above, His grace is sufficient. <3
Priscilla makes a very good point on p. 109: "If the enemy is working that hard to keep me from moving forward, there must be some blessing or beauty from heaven he's trying to divert me from."
She continues to remind us that "We clearly know from Scripture that "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim. 1:7). So whenever you sense a "spirit of fear" invading any particular area of your life, you can know by process of elimination that it's not coming from God." Boom. Such a good point.
She explains that fear is a perfectly normal emotion when facing something big or new or scary. The point is not to wallow in that fear. That's the difference.
"Peace, I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful." John 14:27
I used to read this as "don't be afraid. Only people who don't trust God at all ever feel fear." Very accusatory and puts me in a defensive mode. Thanks to therapy, I now read this as "I know you're afraid. It's normal to be afraid. Don't worry. I'm here. It's okay. It's all going to be okay." Very reassuring and has my fear melting away.
7. Your Purity
"If I were your enemy, I'd tempt you toward certain sins, making you believe they are basically (even biologically) unavoidable. I'd study your tendencies and proclivities till I learned the precise conditions that make you the most likely to indulge them. And then I'd strike right there. Again and again. Wear you down. Because if I can't separate you from God forever, I can at least set you at odds with Him for the time being."
This is so hard for me. Gossip is delicious. Celebrity gossip seems harmless. So many really wonderful novels are out there, but they have inappropriate pages. I feel jealous way too often - like all the time. [Insert your temptation here.]
"Obedience to God garners intimacy and nearness, diving blessing and favor. Always. And disobedience creates a sense of distance and loss, grief and regret. Always." p. 122
Well, that's your reason right there. Which do you crave? Is slipping with your temptation worth it?
"Impurity weakens your praying - which in turn weakens your power." p. 122
"Without this close contact with the Father, we become convinced that our careless behavior, our decisions, our habits, our general sense of what qualifies as worthwhile entertainment is somehow OK, that it's "not so bad." Yet all the while the enemy's carefully crafted options of impurity chip away at your spiritual reserves and effectiveness." p. 124 I love the way she says this. So true.
The good news is if you repent, there is hope.
"There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death." Romans 8:1-2
I promise you don't have to be stuck. You can say no and turn away. You can be free.
Three more chapters. I think I'll save them for another post. I hope you are liking these. This book was really good.
5. Your Past
"If I were your enemy, I'd constantly remind you of your past mistakes and poor choices. I'd want to keep you burdened by shame and guilt, in hopes that you'll feel incapacitated by your many failings and see no point in even trying again. I'd work to convince you that you've had your chance and blown it - that your God may not be able to forgive some people for some things, but not you....not for this."
I have a yucky past, and coming to Christ helped me deal with it. It took a lot of convincing, but I learned God has enough grace to forgive even me. So much grace that it flows over me and drowns me in an ocean of it. In fact, He not only forgives, but He loves so hard that you want to repent and it's life changing.
"The past was in the past. It didn't have permission to touch me anymore." p. 97
One of my favorite verses, which God led me to in the midst of dealing with my past, all those years ago, through purely flip through the Bible and pointing at a verse:
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." 2 Corinthians 5:17
The old has gone.
The new has come.
I mean, there is no better deal than that. <3
"Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. Behold, I will do something new. Now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert." Isaiah 43:18-19 Rivers in the desert. What a RELIEF. That's what I feel. Relief.
"He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may swell in me." 2 Corinthians 12:9
6. Your Fears
"If I were your enemy, I'd magnify your ears, making them appear insurmountable, intimidating you with enough worries until avoiding them becomes your driving motivation. I would use anxiety to cripple you, to paralyze you, leaving you indecisive, clinging to safety and sameness, always on the defensive because of what might happen. When you hear the word faith, all I'd want you to hear is "unnecessary risk.""
Man, this chapter sure hits hard with me and my anxiety. Through Christian counseling (which I describe to be one on one Bible study), I learned how important it is to live life DESPITE anxiety. It is so much easier to just stay home and cling to sameness. So tempting, really. But from traveling, even out of the country, to volunteering in church, to homeschool, to moving out of state and building a house, my life is not meant to live in sameness. So, I do all of those things, and don't let anxiety stop me. As 2 Corinthians says above, His grace is sufficient. <3
Priscilla makes a very good point on p. 109: "If the enemy is working that hard to keep me from moving forward, there must be some blessing or beauty from heaven he's trying to divert me from."
She continues to remind us that "We clearly know from Scripture that "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim. 1:7). So whenever you sense a "spirit of fear" invading any particular area of your life, you can know by process of elimination that it's not coming from God." Boom. Such a good point.
She explains that fear is a perfectly normal emotion when facing something big or new or scary. The point is not to wallow in that fear. That's the difference.
"Peace, I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful." John 14:27
I used to read this as "don't be afraid. Only people who don't trust God at all ever feel fear." Very accusatory and puts me in a defensive mode. Thanks to therapy, I now read this as "I know you're afraid. It's normal to be afraid. Don't worry. I'm here. It's okay. It's all going to be okay." Very reassuring and has my fear melting away.
7. Your Purity
"If I were your enemy, I'd tempt you toward certain sins, making you believe they are basically (even biologically) unavoidable. I'd study your tendencies and proclivities till I learned the precise conditions that make you the most likely to indulge them. And then I'd strike right there. Again and again. Wear you down. Because if I can't separate you from God forever, I can at least set you at odds with Him for the time being."
This is so hard for me. Gossip is delicious. Celebrity gossip seems harmless. So many really wonderful novels are out there, but they have inappropriate pages. I feel jealous way too often - like all the time. [Insert your temptation here.]
"Obedience to God garners intimacy and nearness, diving blessing and favor. Always. And disobedience creates a sense of distance and loss, grief and regret. Always." p. 122
Well, that's your reason right there. Which do you crave? Is slipping with your temptation worth it?
"Impurity weakens your praying - which in turn weakens your power." p. 122
"Without this close contact with the Father, we become convinced that our careless behavior, our decisions, our habits, our general sense of what qualifies as worthwhile entertainment is somehow OK, that it's "not so bad." Yet all the while the enemy's carefully crafted options of impurity chip away at your spiritual reserves and effectiveness." p. 124 I love the way she says this. So true.
The good news is if you repent, there is hope.
"There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death." Romans 8:1-2
I promise you don't have to be stuck. You can say no and turn away. You can be free.
Three more chapters. I think I'll save them for another post. I hope you are liking these. This book was really good.
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