(no subject)
"forgiveness is letting the prisoner go only to realize that the prisoner is yourself"
forgiveness is one of the things i've been kind of struggling with. but i finally thought about it in the right light. i didnt know how to forgive some people. just thinking about them hurt me, i cried (which i dont normally do), and i sat around & hoped the world would pass me by.
today i realized tho, that God has graciously forgiven me everytime i've wronged him. the things that people have done to me can never add up to all the hate and rejection i have had towards God in my lifetime. and yet He still forgives me. I've ignored him, cursed him, disobeyed him... i mean the things I've done to him, would tear me apart if anyone ever did to me. He has sacrificed so much for me (if you havent seen the Passion, go see it. and read joe's post). how can i not forgive other people?
John 14:15 "If you love me, you will obey what I command."
that verse i read last night is the basis of why i want to obey God in everything i do.
wow. i love these moments when my world has come to make sense to me. i know it'll slip away from me any second, but while it seems good, i want to hold on to the promise God has given me & hold on real tight.
i got this email this morning & thought it was good:
THE ELUSIVE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in
any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry,
whether living in plenty or in want" (Philippians 4:12-13,
NIV).
Michael Josephson of Character Counts says, "Ask people
[including] young people why they get high on drugs or
alcohol or seek sex without intimacy or commitment, and
they're likely to tell you it's fun and they just want to
be happy. It's tempting to envy the life of fun-loving
'party animals,' 'playboys' and 'good-time girls' until one
thinks about how they feel about themselves and their lives
when they are alone without the hyped-up stimulation they
seem to thrive on.
"It doesn't take a psychologist to realize that if
happiness is the destination, these folks are on the wrong
road. The problem is that the intense sensation of fun or
feelings of pleasure experienced by a substance-induced
buzz or an exciting sexual encounter are quickly replaced
with a consuming sense of emptiness that drives a need to
start all over to fill the vessel again. So each time
drinkers, drug users or sex addicts discover that getting
what they wanted isn't making them happy, they fall into
the despondency conveyed in the famous Peggy Lee song: 'Is
That All There Is?'
"People who make pleasure seeking the focus of their lives
are like drug addicts who need continually stronger and
more dangerous doses to get high.
"Happiness is different from fun and pleasure. It's a less
intense but more durable feeling of well-being. It's not a
continuous state. A good life is usually seasoned with
moments of joy and despair, play and work, success and
failure. Happiness is a kind of emotional resting place of
quiet satisfaction with one's life. The art of living a
happy life lies not in having more of what you want, but in
getting better at enjoying what you have."1
To this wise advice from Michael I would add that perhaps a
better word than happiness is contentment which comes from
having peace within one's self. This comes from resolving
past conflicts, forgiving all who have hurt you,
maintaining peaceful relationships; from living in harmony
with God's will and his moral laws, and above all, in
finding peace with God, knowing that all your sins are
forgiven and that you have God's gift of eternal life,
which gives one a reason and purpose for living that is
bigger than one's self.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me to live in
harmony with your will, with your moral laws, with eternal
values in mind, and a God-given purpose. Help me to forgive
all who have ever hurt me and never harbor bitterness or
grudges towards anyone. And help me to keep growing in
faith, love, and every grace ... so my life will have
meaning, purpose, and value for time and eternity. Thank
you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in
Jesus' name, amen."
forgiveness is one of the things i've been kind of struggling with. but i finally thought about it in the right light. i didnt know how to forgive some people. just thinking about them hurt me, i cried (which i dont normally do), and i sat around & hoped the world would pass me by.
today i realized tho, that God has graciously forgiven me everytime i've wronged him. the things that people have done to me can never add up to all the hate and rejection i have had towards God in my lifetime. and yet He still forgives me. I've ignored him, cursed him, disobeyed him... i mean the things I've done to him, would tear me apart if anyone ever did to me. He has sacrificed so much for me (if you havent seen the Passion, go see it. and read joe's post). how can i not forgive other people?
John 14:15 "If you love me, you will obey what I command."
that verse i read last night is the basis of why i want to obey God in everything i do.
wow. i love these moments when my world has come to make sense to me. i know it'll slip away from me any second, but while it seems good, i want to hold on to the promise God has given me & hold on real tight.
i got this email this morning & thought it was good:
THE ELUSIVE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in
any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry,
whether living in plenty or in want" (Philippians 4:12-13,
NIV).
Michael Josephson of Character Counts says, "Ask people
[including] young people why they get high on drugs or
alcohol or seek sex without intimacy or commitment, and
they're likely to tell you it's fun and they just want to
be happy. It's tempting to envy the life of fun-loving
'party animals,' 'playboys' and 'good-time girls' until one
thinks about how they feel about themselves and their lives
when they are alone without the hyped-up stimulation they
seem to thrive on.
"It doesn't take a psychologist to realize that if
happiness is the destination, these folks are on the wrong
road. The problem is that the intense sensation of fun or
feelings of pleasure experienced by a substance-induced
buzz or an exciting sexual encounter are quickly replaced
with a consuming sense of emptiness that drives a need to
start all over to fill the vessel again. So each time
drinkers, drug users or sex addicts discover that getting
what they wanted isn't making them happy, they fall into
the despondency conveyed in the famous Peggy Lee song: 'Is
That All There Is?'
"People who make pleasure seeking the focus of their lives
are like drug addicts who need continually stronger and
more dangerous doses to get high.
"Happiness is different from fun and pleasure. It's a less
intense but more durable feeling of well-being. It's not a
continuous state. A good life is usually seasoned with
moments of joy and despair, play and work, success and
failure. Happiness is a kind of emotional resting place of
quiet satisfaction with one's life. The art of living a
happy life lies not in having more of what you want, but in
getting better at enjoying what you have."1
To this wise advice from Michael I would add that perhaps a
better word than happiness is contentment which comes from
having peace within one's self. This comes from resolving
past conflicts, forgiving all who have hurt you,
maintaining peaceful relationships; from living in harmony
with God's will and his moral laws, and above all, in
finding peace with God, knowing that all your sins are
forgiven and that you have God's gift of eternal life,
which gives one a reason and purpose for living that is
bigger than one's self.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me to live in
harmony with your will, with your moral laws, with eternal
values in mind, and a God-given purpose. Help me to forgive
all who have ever hurt me and never harbor bitterness or
grudges towards anyone. And help me to keep growing in
faith, love, and every grace ... so my life will have
meaning, purpose, and value for time and eternity. Thank
you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in
Jesus' name, amen."