Tag: renewal

He Makes All Things New…

“Therefore, if anyone [is] in Christ, [he is] a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new,” 2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” Ezekiel 36:26 NKJV

 There are times in life when we can all use something new. The trials of life can leave us thirsty for the renewing Spirit of God to come upon us, change us and often deliver us even from ourselves.

There is a tendency for regret, old ideas and misconceptions to prevent us for seeing with spiritual eyes the new things that God would do with us and often through us in what we usually perceive as ordinary and mundane lives. Sometimes we are so busy reminiscing about what was, we blind ourselves to the potential of what can be.

Thankfully, God can replace our old opinions, biases and lingering doubts with inspiration and revelation. The seed of a dream we may have forgotten or deliberately buried, God can resurrect into something beautiful.  new buds

Often the key to receiving the transformation we desire is a willingness to change. God can do the impossible with us, yet often that first step toward a new beginning is recognizing when what once worked, no longer works! We often linger in dead religious acts that are void of His presence or even dead relationships when the anointing of God has long moved on.

The birth of a “new you” usually requires death to the very things that hold you back. Bad habits, wrong mindsets and negative influences allow us to remain comfortably where we are instead of moving forward with God.

Receiving a new heart and a new spirit requires that we bury those things that harden our hearts. Fear, regret and anger are a few things that keep us from experiencing God’s best. It’s not that we earn our blessings but we most certainly can block them with our very thoughts and deeds.

A hard heart is rarely kind. A bitter or envious spirit seeks to take, not give to others. We all have qualities that we could do without, things we need to improve and remove. What we are unable to accomplish in our own strength, Christ is more than able!

Just as putting on new clothes gives many people a renewed sense of self by changing the outward appearance, God can do so much more on the inside which enables us to make a real difference in our daily interactions with other people.

Seeking God’s Word and His wisdom changes us on the inside and outside. This not only blesses us, but prepares us to bless other people.  DSC_9938 (2)

If you are seeking a change in your life, feel “stuck” where you are or your faith has faded, try God!

Renew your relationship with Him.  He will reveal more of Himself to you. He will also reveal more of you to you! Seeking God’s Word and His wisdom allows us to find our true selves.

It’s not what we see in the mirror. It is not what others say about us. The titles we may hold, jobs we do, accolades and accomplishments eventually fade away. But with God, we can continually die to our old selves and be transformed into the people He created us to be.

And what could be better than that?

“and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4 23-24 NKJV

It’s a New Year…so get over it!

It’s a New Year…so get over it!

This isn’t at all what I had planned to write about. My intention was to end the year in 2013 thanking the many people who have supported me and this blog especially so in the latter part of the year. You are hardly forgotten! Alas, my plans were for naught. Christmas was wonderful!

Ringing in the New Year…not so much.

I slept through the beginning of 2014 as best I could huddled down in my covers and fighting off a very nasty bug. I thought I had been oh so careful, washing my hands at least twenty times a day (I am not exaggerating), Lysol, Sani-wipes, trying not to inhale other people’s germs, taking vitamins and getting plenty of rest. Yet, it came down to taking my own advice. “You aren’t going to do much of anything until you get over it.”  I have said these very words to patients at least a hundred times.

Yes, I took all the proper OTC remedies, was seen by a nurse practitioner and given a good antibiotic to knock out my trifecta of bronchitis, sinusitis and possibly strep. Even with all of that, the body said NO! Not moving, doing or going a-n-y-w-h-e-r-e!

I had “plans” to hit the New Year’s Day sale of my favorite department store. Didn’t happen. So, as I lay in bed reminding myself that I was NOT dying, it only felt like it; I was praying and thinking how everything happens for my good. Maybe I spent enough money this holiday season and I didn’t need to go to the mall. Okay God, I’m stuck at home for my own good. I get it.

The next day, I’m still sick, actually sicker. I’m thinking to myself I’m doing everything I can to get better. I know what to do! “You are going to have to get over it before you do anything,” I hear God in my spirit.

But HE is not talking about my illness. God does work out all things for our good and He most definitely can use anything to get our attention.

You see, on Sunday the television preacher was preaching “get over it.” I listened to that sermon and thought it was good and very relevant.  Only days prior to that, I was speaking with my oldest son about making good choices and telling him not to make the same mistakes I had. In his teenage wisdom, this kid told me to “get over it.”

First of all, if one of my kids tells me to “get over it,” there is a huge problem. My first instinct was to look behind me and see exactly who he was talking to!

Cam said it so quickly and distinctly and then resumed his normal conversation I was left speechless. I knew it was God talking to me through my child. It was hardly the first time God has done that.

I heard the same exact words in less than a week and knew them to be true yet still a little something in me hesitated. I had no problem “getting over it,” but there have been times when I have circled back and found my “it.” Or, I worse, I allowed “it” to find me.

It may be a reference to something else, a subtle reminder or just being tired and annoyed as we all can be that allows my “it” to rear its ugly head. I have gotten over many more significant things in my life, matters of life and death but this one thing, somehow finds a way to grab my attention and my thoughts.

Unfortunately my thoughts can then morph into regret which then can become resentment and consequently eat away into the forgiveness I thought I had given.

I did pray for revelation while I was sick. And boy did I get it!

I post this because God basically told me the things I want to do, places I want to go and dreams I want to see realized ain’t happening (and yes I do mean ain’t) until I get over “it” for good!

I suspect that most of us have some “it” that may be holding us back from God’s very best in our lives.

When Abraham’s nephew Lot took the best of the land that was divided between them Abraham got over it. Abraham knew that whatever he had with God was so much more than anything Lot could ever take from him.

We would all do well to remember this same thing as we begin 2014. Whatever we may have lost, whatever regrets we have, or mistakes we have made are insignificant compared to the power of our God. In our weakness, He is strong.

Leave your past exactly where it belongs and concentrate on what God can do now. God has plans for all of us if only we would trust Him and truly “get over” the things, thoughts, regrets and mistakes that can hold us hostage and keep us from achieving our very best this year.

Have a Very Blessed 2014!

“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.” Philippians 3:13-15 NKJV