I wrote this the last day in India and it has been saved in my documents since then. Decided to open it tonight and it was definitely the thing I needed to read and realize after these last 3 weeks in Atlanta. The Lord has great timing.
I will not accuse
forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would
grow faint before me–the breath of man that I have created. I was enraged by
his sinful greed; I punished him, and hid my face in anger, yet he kept on in
his willful ways. I have seen his
ways but I will heal him; I will guide him and restore comfort to him,
creating praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel. Isaiah 57:16-19
Repentance. Forgiveness. Restoration.
While sitting in the Mumbai Coffee Day God shared a part of
His heart with me after reading this scripture.
He is COMPASSIONATE.
He is MERCIFUL.
He is FORGIVING.
We will sin. We will turn from God. We will ignore God. We
will be unloving. We will be judgmental.
BUT God will not accuse us forever. He will not be angry
always. He will not hide his face from us in anger.
He will heal us of our hurts. He will guide us in our
missteps. He will restore us.
We must repent, not only with words, but with sadness in our
hearts. We must find ourselves face first on the floor with sorrow in our
hearts for our sins. We cannot only say the words and ask for forgiveness, it
isn’t about just words, it is about our hearts. Are our hearts saddened and
hurt by the sin? Because when we sin we put a rift between us and God. Our sins
hurt our relationship with the Lord, with our Father! This rift breaks my
heart.
My sin causes me to fall to my knees and pour out the
anguish of my heart and cry to my Father!
