Forgiveness? Is God Really Personal? YES! And YES!
I remember the white bunk bed, I got top bunk because I was the oldest. My little sis would ask me to hang down my arm and hold her hand until she went to sleep. We had a code knock with our brother who was in the next room. 3 knocks for "I love you," and one final knock for "goodnight." That's a picture I'll always hold onto. I loved that time of the day. Sometimes we would all get the giggles and not be able to stop. It's still fun to get the giggles. It's so rare as adults, but so fun when you collapse on the floor, tears streaming down, laughing so hard you can't breathe! For a moment we let ourselves be little kids again.
Well, that little girl in me would crawl up into that cozy spot and say my prayers. I would confess my sins to God. Then I would lie there in bed, restless, until finally I had to get up and go confess my sins to my parents. They didn't tell me to do this, I just didn't believe God could hear me, and I needed to say it out loud to someone with skin on! I hated doing it, and yet I couldn't get peace until I did. I had been taught that I had direct access to God, but I couldn't wrap my brain around that! I think we all feel that way some times even now. Does God hear me?
Well, I struggled with receiving forgiveness until well into my 30's. I lived in constant self condemnation, struggling to believe God had personal love and forgiveness for me. One day, after months of healing through soul work and Scripture meditation, God gave me a huge breakthrough in receiving His forgiveness and love! He made the truth become so real to me that I felt the weight literally lift! I remember going to a prayer group the very next morning and our reading was Psalm 86:5 "You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you." (NIV) I couldn't believe it was right there in front of me the very next morning! Ever have those moments?! Those are moments you never forget! That Scripture was not a coincidence! But I tell you, by His grace, I had been purposeful in meditating on Scripture about forgiveness and love. God had sent a special lady to tell me that His Word is full of living power - Hebrews 4:12. I began clinging one verse at a time until it became a part of my body, soul, and spirit.
Well this week in preparing for Girl's Group, I came across Romans 8:1-2 which had become a daily meditation of mine as I leaned into God's truths. "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." The next passage to read was Romans 3:19-24. I will quote verse 21-23 here because it came jumping out at me as sweet honey to my soul, " But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus," (ESV) Isn't that the most powerful gift?! Justified! Redeemed! Romans 3:23 is another familiar verse. Sometimes we need to p. a. u. s. e. enough and s. i. p. or we gulp right on past the gift!
We don't have to go through a person to confess to God! I still struggle with confession sometimes. Friends who know me well have experienced my seasons of excessive apologizing. I'm thankful for their faithfulness through all my stuff! We all have stuff! We need community to point each other to truth. So here is truth! We have direct access to talk to God the Father through Jesus! Hebrews 4:16 says, " Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." This leads to another of my favorite songs, Boldy I Approach by Rend Collective:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QDnVD7gu5Y
This ties together with peace. Accepting God's forgiveness is a vital step in healing. It's always good to remind each other of this. I find it helpful to start my prayers with "Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner." If I have specific confessions, I make them, and I then I move into thanksgiving and praise. HE has made this possible on the cross! Praying out loud let's my soul "hear" it.
Forgiveness has two sides. We know it, but do we live it? Is there someone who you just can't imagine forgiving? It's OK to pray and ask God to forgive the person through you. Continue to pray that way until the feeling catches up with the prayer. If you have been greatly wounded, it may take a long time to feel it. God will meet you in this process with His grace. We hurt ourselves more than the other person when we can't forgive. Bitterness takes root and it's a tough ugly root to pull! Sometimes we need to forgive a "perceived offense "and let God be the one Who knows whether it was really an offense or our imagination. We are not the judge, and because of our wounds, we can easily take offense when there has been no purposeful offense. Surrendering this area of our lives is incredibly freeing! Let go!
Jesus Christ modeled this for us in the most unimaginable way. When Jesus was on the cross paying the price for our sin, "And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34 Jesus will help us pray the same prayer! Romans 8:34 tells us, "Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us."
It has to go both ways. This brings "peace that passes understanding." Philippians 4:7. This is God's desire for us! He wants us to walk in peace so that we can see His glory and reflect it back to Him. Otherwise, we resist the cross and all that God did on that day. It tells us in Ephesians 2:14 "For He Himself is our peace." This is where this song comes in today. It's called Running in Circles by United Pursuit. It is a beautiful meditation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foVRP07WOAg
This post may seem disjointed, but I just dump my brain as it comes. This would never pass as an essay for a English! If it's meant for you, then you will connect the dots. God has had me in two areas of Scripture this week. So I'll take these two points of focus, forgiveness and a personal God, as God's Divine appointment for me.
So this moves on to my next thought - God is so personal! Jesus has been super personal with me this past week! I asked Him last week to give me a special personal touch of peace, He always does, but I asked for eyes to see it, a soul to feel it. Wouldn't you know He gave me Matthew 11:28-30, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (ESV) At first I thought, oh yeah, this is a great verse that I've heard 1,000 times. But, He didn't give it to me just once, but 8 times in 7 days, and from so many different places! There was no way to miss it! God was saying, OK here you go, this is for you and just to be sure you don't miss it, I'm going to surprise you with it every day!
The last time the verse came up was so crazy! It was in the lyrics of a Flame song, Start Over. It's funny because I went to the Flame concert with my girl's group last week - a Christian rap concert. I hadn't detected the Matthew 11:28 in the rap! The words come at you so fast, but I had shared that verse with my girls earlier. So the following Sunday night at girl's group, they said "Mrs. Asmus you have to hear these lyrics!!" That was such a fun moment!! We got to experience God being personal in community! That's why being in touch with others is so important! We can share the joy when God moves on our behalf! Share the pain and the joy!
Now this may not be your style, but if you take the time to absorb these Flame lyrics to Start Over, you will see that these guys know Jesus! If you are game, here it is, and Matt 11:28 is at about the 2 minute mark of the song. Hit pause to catch all the lyrics as you go:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCmHiRUDBr4
So, this post is (1) about God's forgiveness, and (2) His faithfulness to speak to us personally, we are in His grip of grace.
We must continue to share God's story in our lives, struggles or not, because often in a time of weakness, we see Him the most! A weak time can be the best time, because we know beyond a doubt that without Christ, all we have is weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9 "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." If we ever start to think we have to be perfect in order to encourage, then we are in trouble. Tying back to the beginning, let the little child in you come to Jesus. He's waiting arms open wide.
So I'll just let the posts bubble up as HE nudges me. Be encouraged that as Timothy Keller says, “The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” Any be very encouraged with the lyrics of My Heart is Yours by Kristian Stanfill. I can't get enough of this song! God bless!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC1MgLr2LqE
Well, that little girl in me would crawl up into that cozy spot and say my prayers. I would confess my sins to God. Then I would lie there in bed, restless, until finally I had to get up and go confess my sins to my parents. They didn't tell me to do this, I just didn't believe God could hear me, and I needed to say it out loud to someone with skin on! I hated doing it, and yet I couldn't get peace until I did. I had been taught that I had direct access to God, but I couldn't wrap my brain around that! I think we all feel that way some times even now. Does God hear me?
Well, I struggled with receiving forgiveness until well into my 30's. I lived in constant self condemnation, struggling to believe God had personal love and forgiveness for me. One day, after months of healing through soul work and Scripture meditation, God gave me a huge breakthrough in receiving His forgiveness and love! He made the truth become so real to me that I felt the weight literally lift! I remember going to a prayer group the very next morning and our reading was Psalm 86:5 "You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you." (NIV) I couldn't believe it was right there in front of me the very next morning! Ever have those moments?! Those are moments you never forget! That Scripture was not a coincidence! But I tell you, by His grace, I had been purposeful in meditating on Scripture about forgiveness and love. God had sent a special lady to tell me that His Word is full of living power - Hebrews 4:12. I began clinging one verse at a time until it became a part of my body, soul, and spirit.
Well this week in preparing for Girl's Group, I came across Romans 8:1-2 which had become a daily meditation of mine as I leaned into God's truths. "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." The next passage to read was Romans 3:19-24. I will quote verse 21-23 here because it came jumping out at me as sweet honey to my soul, " But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus," (ESV) Isn't that the most powerful gift?! Justified! Redeemed! Romans 3:23 is another familiar verse. Sometimes we need to p. a. u. s. e. enough and s. i. p. or we gulp right on past the gift!
We don't have to go through a person to confess to God! I still struggle with confession sometimes. Friends who know me well have experienced my seasons of excessive apologizing. I'm thankful for their faithfulness through all my stuff! We all have stuff! We need community to point each other to truth. So here is truth! We have direct access to talk to God the Father through Jesus! Hebrews 4:16 says, " Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." This leads to another of my favorite songs, Boldy I Approach by Rend Collective:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QDnVD7gu5Y
This ties together with peace. Accepting God's forgiveness is a vital step in healing. It's always good to remind each other of this. I find it helpful to start my prayers with "Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner." If I have specific confessions, I make them, and I then I move into thanksgiving and praise. HE has made this possible on the cross! Praying out loud let's my soul "hear" it.
Forgiveness has two sides. We know it, but do we live it? Is there someone who you just can't imagine forgiving? It's OK to pray and ask God to forgive the person through you. Continue to pray that way until the feeling catches up with the prayer. If you have been greatly wounded, it may take a long time to feel it. God will meet you in this process with His grace. We hurt ourselves more than the other person when we can't forgive. Bitterness takes root and it's a tough ugly root to pull! Sometimes we need to forgive a "perceived offense "and let God be the one Who knows whether it was really an offense or our imagination. We are not the judge, and because of our wounds, we can easily take offense when there has been no purposeful offense. Surrendering this area of our lives is incredibly freeing! Let go!
Jesus Christ modeled this for us in the most unimaginable way. When Jesus was on the cross paying the price for our sin, "And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34 Jesus will help us pray the same prayer! Romans 8:34 tells us, "Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us."
It has to go both ways. This brings "peace that passes understanding." Philippians 4:7. This is God's desire for us! He wants us to walk in peace so that we can see His glory and reflect it back to Him. Otherwise, we resist the cross and all that God did on that day. It tells us in Ephesians 2:14 "For He Himself is our peace." This is where this song comes in today. It's called Running in Circles by United Pursuit. It is a beautiful meditation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foVRP07WOAg
This post may seem disjointed, but I just dump my brain as it comes. This would never pass as an essay for a English! If it's meant for you, then you will connect the dots. God has had me in two areas of Scripture this week. So I'll take these two points of focus, forgiveness and a personal God, as God's Divine appointment for me.
So this moves on to my next thought - God is so personal! Jesus has been super personal with me this past week! I asked Him last week to give me a special personal touch of peace, He always does, but I asked for eyes to see it, a soul to feel it. Wouldn't you know He gave me Matthew 11:28-30, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (ESV) At first I thought, oh yeah, this is a great verse that I've heard 1,000 times. But, He didn't give it to me just once, but 8 times in 7 days, and from so many different places! There was no way to miss it! God was saying, OK here you go, this is for you and just to be sure you don't miss it, I'm going to surprise you with it every day!
The last time the verse came up was so crazy! It was in the lyrics of a Flame song, Start Over. It's funny because I went to the Flame concert with my girl's group last week - a Christian rap concert. I hadn't detected the Matthew 11:28 in the rap! The words come at you so fast, but I had shared that verse with my girls earlier. So the following Sunday night at girl's group, they said "Mrs. Asmus you have to hear these lyrics!!" That was such a fun moment!! We got to experience God being personal in community! That's why being in touch with others is so important! We can share the joy when God moves on our behalf! Share the pain and the joy!
Now this may not be your style, but if you take the time to absorb these Flame lyrics to Start Over, you will see that these guys know Jesus! If you are game, here it is, and Matt 11:28 is at about the 2 minute mark of the song. Hit pause to catch all the lyrics as you go:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCmHiRUDBr4
So, this post is (1) about God's forgiveness, and (2) His faithfulness to speak to us personally, we are in His grip of grace.
We must continue to share God's story in our lives, struggles or not, because often in a time of weakness, we see Him the most! A weak time can be the best time, because we know beyond a doubt that without Christ, all we have is weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9 "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." If we ever start to think we have to be perfect in order to encourage, then we are in trouble. Tying back to the beginning, let the little child in you come to Jesus. He's waiting arms open wide.
So I'll just let the posts bubble up as HE nudges me. Be encouraged that as Timothy Keller says, “The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” Any be very encouraged with the lyrics of My Heart is Yours by Kristian Stanfill. I can't get enough of this song! God bless!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC1MgLr2LqE
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