Ramblings of a Smoldering Believer: Jesus Wins!

I had a moment recently where I had to remind myself that Satan does not win. God triumphs. We have the end to read and when you read it, Jesus wins. It has been as though I've been fighting a battle for the last few weeks, one that I don't feel I have been winning. However, as a child of God; as a born again believer; as a person who is looking forward to an eternity in Heaven, I shouldn't have the concerns I do. Most believers shouldn't.

I'm not saying I'm perfect and that having this revelation means that I'll automatically be able to control the concerns I have and be able to just throw everything to God and press on. I'd love it if it was that easy, but it is something I'll have to work on and that believers everywhere have to work on. We have an amazing Father in Heaven who loves us so very dearly. So much so that He didn't want us to perish in the pits of Hell. He wants us to be able to come home to Heaven one day, so He defeated Satan through His Son. What greater way to show the love He has for us? Do we truly grasp that love? I don't believe we do . I know I don't. Writing this makes me have an awe of that love. I'm known as a loving person and I still don't grasp that love.

Knowing this, I really want to be able to walk in that love. To know the depth of that love and be able to express that love to other people. What a great feat that would be! To show the love of God to other people. People who don't know that love! It blows my mind.

It also blows my mind that people who go to church and are "Christians" can be so unexcited, so 'blah' about this! So unexcited about Christ in general! The believers are sleeping! Now this doesn't apply to EVERY believer. It isn't a catch all. I know there are people who are madly in love with Christ and who are on fire and see and have the passion for Christ, but where are they all hiding? Where are they scattered? They exist and they fight to be able to hold on to that fire in the company of so many lukewarm believers.

The ramblings of a smoldering believer.

Pressed Faith

I started out writing this, "How do you bounce back when your faith has been pushed past its limits?" I didn't even get to finish this sentence when I remembered the verse people quote about God not giving us more than we can handle, which I had to look up because I can't always quote chapter and verse in scripture. I couldn't find it, and it doesn't seem to be in the Bible. The closest thing I have found is I Corinthians 10:13. But this verse only speaks about temptations, and in that, living righteously. How many things are said in church circles or in religious circles that can't really be backed up by scripture?

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying we'll find something in life that GOD can't get us through. Hebrews 13:5 states that ... "He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."" God is always there. I could pull many more scriptures where God makes it plain He wants us to lean on Him in times of despair and doubt and when we just don't think we can go on. He wants to give us His strength, His wisdom, and His love when things go so wrong that we question His very existence and question the point of what we are doing. I'm fighting these very questions lately and have even found it difficult to want to open my Bible or listen to praise music. I fight the urge to give in and give up. No my life isn't exceptionally hard compared to just about every other person walking this planet, but it doesn't mean it's exceptionally easy either.

Leaning on God in the hard times is one of the biggest tests that we have. He wants me. All of me. In the good and the bad. In many ways, our relationship with God is like a marriage, but one that is held together by a covenant made by one party, instead of two. God made the covenant. We just have to walk in it. He cries after us when we turn away from Him, but He never leaves. I'm learning this time and again. When we feel that we are utterly alone and God is nowhere in sight, we have to remember that God won't leave us. He never leaves. We do.