1. comfort isn’t key
It’s so easy in American society to create an idol of comfort. God never promised an easy life of comfort. Actually time and time again throughout the Bible we see choosing to live for God brings difficult challenges but so much amazing growth. I’m so grateful for living a life that is full of growth and challenges and most times doesn’t feel comfortable.
2. grace
Last week my squad and I learned about building/achieving life goals and creating values for our lives. Grace is one of the values that I chose. It’s something I’ve been stepping into more in this season of life. A term that’s pretty common around here is that we have the ability to “fail forward”. This is completely new to me because for most of my life failing was something that brought me shame. I’ve been learning the healthy balance of guilt and conviction over shame and how God has so much Grace for us and it’s important to give yourself Grace sometimes because we’re all sinners but Romans 8:1 shows us that’s not our identity!
3. comparison is dangerous
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many.”
1 Corinthians 12:12-14
We are all given different gifts and grow in things at different times and that’s something to be celebrated. In the past it’s been easy to compare my growth or gifts with someone else and that’s not good because God doesn’t want us all to be the same. He created us to be beautifully different but become more like Him daily.
4. when are you going to die already?
“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.”
Matthew 10: 37-39
Two weeks ago a great guy named Gabe came and gave a session on spiritual authority. He has the gift of prophesy and God gave him a word for us and that was, when are you going to die already? To live truly in our identity as Gods children we must die to our flesh and find life in Him.
5. we are the clay
“But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Isaiah 64:8
My sweet friend Abby did listening prayer for me and she got the phrase “wet the clay”. I prayed about what this might mean and God brought up trust. When I trust in Him I am wetting the clay so He can mold me into whatever He would like me to be. We are the clay jars God has chosen to put treasure in.
6. truly listening is so important
“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry”
James 1:19
The people around you bring perspective and a viewpoint that should be valued by God because it’s valued by God. I have been working on truly listening to the people around me. Not listening to respond. Not listening to correct. Just listening to see where people are coming from and care about their story. A powerful quote I heard recently was “we should learn to say “I understand” before “I disagree””.
7. love is patient
God is patient with us. His character is love. He doesn’t tell us expectations and make us strive to reach them. He patiently walks beside us and helps us through growth and trusting Him. There is no striving in His kingdom, just abiding. His yoke is easy and burden is light.
