Our God Remains the Same
This article is part of a special series here at More Than Sundays. In this series, instead of writing a few articles on different topics under the same overarching theme, we posed the same prompt to each of our blog writers and asked them to write an article fulfilling it. For this series, the prompt is as follows: “What is a lesson you have learned about God or your walk with God that took you a while to learn or that you wish you had learned sooner?” We hope that by sharing the hard lessons God has taught us that you will be blessed in the process. Please enjoy.
Boldness. Forgiveness. Grace. Gratitude. Humility. Love. Obedience. Mercy.
Those are just some of the lessons I have learned during my walk with God, and quite honestly, these are lessons that I am still learning.
I have learned that I am a human, and that my faith is not dependent on my good works or actions alone. If that was the case, no one on this Earth could experience a relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s okay to feel flawed and broken because there is hope found in the brokenness! The good news is that through Jesus, you are no longer broken but healed! Our God finds us right where we are, in our mess, and restores us! This doesn’t mean you will never make a mistake ever again. This doesn’t mean you will never feel depressed again. This doesn’t mean that you can’t come to Jesus and ask for forgiveness again. This doesn’t mean that you won’t feel rage again. This doesn’t mean that you won’t use foul language again. This doesn’t mean you won’t feel bitterness or resentment again. What matters is that Jesus Christ already paid the price for all those sins, and by acknowledging His death and resurrection and repenting of these choices and sins, you are broken no more!
Prior to giving my life and heart to Jesus, I often felt like I had to fix myself first. I wanted my life to be lined up just right, and then I would live the life that Christ wants for me. I wanted to get myself together so that I wasn’t ashamed to admit that I needed help. I didn’t want to admit that I couldn’t figure out my own life by myself. I also assumed that those who were Christians had their life figured out and were on these straight paths to heaven. I didn’t think that my life needed saving because after all, there are people out there who live a life way worse than me, so my life wasn’t that bad. I once heard a pastor say, “Until you admit you need something, you have no reason for it.” (Thanks, Pastor Michael!) So, until you admit that you actually need Jesus, you have no reason to actually want Jesus. Admitting the truth with our own voice is half the battle. Saying something internally doesn’t have the effect of saying something out loud such as, “Jesus, I admit that I am a sinner, and I am in need of a Savior”. How humbling is that! But also, how bold is that! It takes a lot of courage to say that we crave Jesus so much that we are willing to admit we have no control over the direction of our lives, and we need help. I didn’t realize that being a Christian is hard work. It’s hard work to deny the temptations of this world daily. It’s hard work to create new neuropathways in the brain and to be intentional with God’s Word every day. But while it can be hard work, it’s also rewarding and provides a source of encouragement that I was seeking to find in the world around me. Deep down, I wanted reassurance and affirmation, but I was seeking those things in humans and material things. I was letting my social life and success dictate my worth. When I felt like my friends were fading away or I couldn’t buy the one thing I really wanted, I felt like I wasn’t good enough. I wanted to be accepted and validated through my actions so that I could show other people what a good person I was, where my social status was or what kind of goals I had. I was working to prove who I was when really there is only one who can tell me what kind of person I am because He knows the inner linings of my heart. It takes a lot of mental battling to be able to tell yourself to let go of the control and accept that it’s not a one-time occurrence that changes who you’ve been and allows you to never sin again. This acceptance of Christ is a steppingstone into continued growth to know Him and be known by Him. 1 Peter 5:8-10 (ESV) says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” He transformed me from who I thought I was to who I was meant to be. I am no longer walking around in an ignorant state of bliss because I now have a purpose and greater understanding to be filled with truth and affection. My purpose isn’t just to work up the success ladder, to buy a big house, to make other people happy, to raise kids, to have the nicest cars, to have the most friends, to always be at every social function, to have the best paying job, or to have the nicest clothes. That’s what the world wants me to think that my purpose is. Without Christ, the worldly things consume me, but I must remind myself of my true purpose daily.
There are times when I must intentionally remind myself of who God really is and his characteristics. There are days when I feel myself pulling away but the best thing to do is remind myself that our God is forever faithful. Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV) tells us, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” I have many more things to learn and will forever be learning. My walk with Jesus isn’t perfect but I will continue to learn more about my imperfections so that I will draw closer to my perfect God. Everyday is a new chance to learn something else about this life that God has given me, and my hope is that anyone who reads this will understand the magnitude and learn to see our life for what it is in all of its imperfections. In those moments, may we find boldness, forgiveness, grace, gratitude, humility, love, obedience, and mercy in God.