Raising the White Flag

Talk about raising a standard...I'm talking about lowering a standard. Through counseling, I have come to realize that I have this imagined standard of what a Christian should look like: always on time, hardest worker that comes in early and leaves late, witnessing to every person that makes eye contact with, eating healthy, cleanest house, etc...add to this the hammer drop of knowing that if I don't meet this standard, I  am bring in dishonor to the name of Christ - sometimes not wanting to say I'm a Christian bc I didn't want people to think Jesus is as screwed up as me! Wow! What have I been thinking??? I'll tell you: condemnation! I couldn't even believe Romans 8:1 because of the phrase "walk according to the spirit". I seriously believed I should be "beat up" or condemned bc if I wasn't meeting my invisible standard then I must be walking according to the flesh! When in reality NO ONE - no not one is able to perfectly adhere to this standard! If they were, they would be Jesus!! Why could I preach that message to others and yet be blind to my opposite belief?

I  so thankful now that my eyes have been opened to the truth to see the word in a whole new light. I am so thankful that the heavy burden of the law has rolled off my back onto its proper place- Jesus. He has done all the heavy lifting! I get to walk in His grace and mercy with a smile. I have the priveledge of being the predestined one - to be adopted BY HIM, accepted just the way I am BY HIM, made holy and blameless BY HIM! Let's sing- What a priveledge to carry everything to God in prayer...

 I am working on tearing down this unreachable standard that the Old Testament called "the law", accepting the fact that God says I am righteous in Jesus (still blows my mind) and bloom into who my heart longs to be (a carbon copy of Jesus) by basking in His unconditional love. Just as an adoptive parent would have mercy on their new child that came from a home where they weren't groomed with the best character traits, Jesus knows we learned some bad habits when we walked as children of darkness. And as an adoptive parent would take on the role and responsibility of grooming the child into who they were meant to be, my Heavenly Father is doing the heavy lifting of changing me from glory to glory into who I was meant to be! I get to enjoy the ride!! Now if that isnt good gospel news, I don't know what is?? If that is the heart of our message, how could that not be a magnet for all those hungry for unconditional love??

Amen.