(This post has been in drafts since mid 2017 maybe May or June.  I was deleting drafts yesterday, December 30, and realized this forgotten post ties in well with what I was going to write about.  I guess it just wasn’t time. 😀 )

It is currently New Year’s Eve.  December 31, 2017.

It’s the time to make resolutions or so they say.  I’m not very good at those as I tend to lose track.  I have to take things slow because I’m all in or give up because I get overwhelmed and put too much pressure on myself.  There’s a lot of things I can say about why resolutions don’t work.  I can go on and on about how everyone expects things with a fresh start at the beginning of a year.  It’s a new clean slate.  A new blank canvas.  A new start.  Burnout happens and you’re back to where you began feeling defeated.

But, what if instead of making a resolution you let God revolutionize you?  What if we gave our lives to Christ instead of ourselves?  What if we let Him do the teaching and we sat back and watched it happen?  What if we surrendered?  We would see our little resolutions were so small and instead learn just how great our God is.  He is much better at dreaming for us.  He knows us better than we could ever know ourselves.

So, I have a few extra pounds because I like chocolate.  I’ll never fit into my “skinny clothes” because I’ve overcome the struggles of why I fit in them in the first place (New Creature).

Three and a half years ago God started a new season in my life. It has been the hardest and best years for me as I have been refined and have grown so much in His word.  I have learned so much about my Savior and how much He loves me that I can never go back (nor would I want to) to the way I was before 3 years ago.    Three years doesn’t seem like a long time, but simultaneously feels like an eternity.  36 months.  Time flies and also goes by slow. Ha.

God is not a genie who grants us wishes.  He is a heavenly Father who takes cares of His children.

Life is hard sometimes and it doesn’t always go as expected.  Through a lot of despair and tears I can now say to that statement, “Thank You, God!”

He can’t be manipulated although religion tries to convince us otherwise.  Religion is good at trying to tell us that if we are good and do the right thing we deserve a reward or heaven, but what does the Bible say?

“AS IT IS WRITTEN, THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NO, NOT ONE: THERE IS NONE THAT UNDERSTANDETH, THERE IS NONE THAT SEEKETH AFTER GOD.”
– ROMANS 3:10-11

“AND JESUS SAID UNTO HIM, WHY CALLEST THOU ME GOOD? THERE IS NONE GOOD BUT ONE, THAT IS, GOD.” – MARK 10:18

(Jesus said that He wasn’t good.  JESUS.  If Jesus says He isn’t good, but only the Father then there is not a chance for us.  Now, we know the truth He and His father are one and He didn’t move without the Father.  That is what Christians aim to be.  We were not there in the beginning and spotless like Jesus, but the new man is.)

“FOR BY GRACE ARE YE SAVED THROUGH FAITH; AND THAT NOT OF YOURSELVES: IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD: NOT OF WORKS, LEST ANY MAN SHOULD BOAST.” – EPHESIANS 2:8-9

But, what are His gifts?

Obviously we crave tangible things that we can see, right?  But, we can’t take things with us.  Faith is believing without seeing.  We have something sitting in our heart or a dormant dream that hasn’t reached the surface.  We see it right around the corner, but it hasn’t arrived yet (Waiting on God).  God didn’t promise a rich life with everything we wanted (the current charismatic churches and false prosperity teachers will say otherwise).  He never promised a life of grandeur and comfort.  But, He did promise He would be there.  He promised eternity with Him.

Nothing in this life is promised nor does it matter as we are just sojourners passing through.  Without Jesus we will never be content and nothing could ever be enough.  We could search the whole world over and come up short if we don’t have Him for who could gain the whole world to gain his soul?  Why would you want to?  He is the Prince of Peace.  He is rest.

“BUT THE MANIFESTATION OF THE SPIRIT IS GIVEN TO EVERY MAN TO PROFIT WITHAL. FOR TO ONE IS GIVEN BY THE SPIRIT THE WORD OF WISDOM; TO ANOTHER THE WORD OF KNOWLEDGE BY THE SAME SPIRIT; TO ANOTHER FAITH BY THE SAME SPIRIT; TO ANOTHER THE GIFTS OF HEALING BY THE SAME SPIRIT; TO ANOTHER THE WORKING OF MIRACLES; TO ANOTHER PROPHECY; TO ANOTHER DISCERNING OF SPIRITS; TO ANOTHER DIVERS KINDS OF TONGUES; TO ANOTHER THE INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES: BUT ALL THESE WORKETH THAT ONE AND THE SELFSAME SPIRIT, DIVIDING TO EVERY MAN SEVERALLY AS HE WILL.

FOR AS THE BODY IS ONE, AND HATH MANY MEMBERS, AND ALL THE MEMBERS OF THAT ONE BODY, BEING MANY, ARE ONE BODY: SO ALSO IS CHRIST.”
– 1 CORINTHIANS 12:7-12

So, the church has been given gifts used to edify one another.  Not one person has every gift as we are created to help one another.

And to help one another we have the fruit of the Spirit.

“YE SHALL KNOW THEM BY THEIR FRUITS. DO MEN GATHER GRAPES OF THORNS, OR FIGS OF THISTLES?

EVEN SO EVERY GOOD TREE BRINGETH FORTH GOOD FRUIT; BUT A CORRUPT TREE BRINGETH FORTH EVIL FRUIT.  A GOOD TREE CANNOT BRING FORTH EVIL FRUIT, NEITHER CAN A CORRUPT TREE BRING FORTH GOOD FRUIT.  EVERY TREE THAT BRINGETH NOT FORTH GOOD FRUIT IS HEWN DOWN, AND CAST INTO THE FIRE.

WHEREFORE BY THEIR FRUITS YE SHALL KNOW THEM. – MATTHEW 7:16-20

“BUT IF YE BE LED OF THE SPIRIT, YE ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW.

NOW THE WORKS OF THE FLESH ARE MANIFEST, WHICH ARE THESE; ADULTERY, FORNICATION, UNCLEANNESS, LASCIVIOUSNESS, IDOLATRY, WITCHCRAFT, HATRED, VARIANCE, EMULATIONS, WRATH, STRIFE, SEDITIONS, HERESIES, ENVYINGS, MURDERS, DRUNKENNESS, REVELLINGS, AND SUCH LIKE: OF THE WHICH I TELL YOU BEFORE, AS I HAVE ALSO TOLD YOU IN TIME PAST, THAT THEY WHICH DO SUCH THINGS SHALL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD.

BUT THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS LOVE, JOY, PEACE, LONGSUFFERING, GENTLENESS, GOODNESS, FAITH, MEEKNESS, TEMPERANCE: AGAINST SUCH THERE IS NO LAW.

AND THEY THAT ARE CHRIST’S HAVE CRUCIFIED THE FLESH WITH THE AFFECTIONS AND LUSTS.  IF WE LIVE IN THE SPIRIT, LET US ALSO WALK IN THE SPIRIT.  LET US NOT BE DESIROUS OF VAIN GLORY, PROVOKING ONE ANOTHER, ENVYING ONE ANOTHER.”

– GALATIANS 5:18-26

Jesus has changed my life for the better.  I am a completely different person… and it’s only the beginning.

He rescued me from a terrible place.  He called me His own and will never leave me.  He fought to keep me.

He fought for me.

FOR ME.

He waited for me while I was struggling to surrender.  He was there through it all.

He is true love.  (I go into more of that in my post “God is in the waiting“.)

My favorite bible verse is Psalm 34:4 which says, “I sought the LORD and He heard me and delivered me from all my fears.” Every word of that is true. I couldn’t do it on my own. I sought the LORD and He heard me and just like it says He delivered me. He rescued me.

Matthew 18 talks about the parable of the lost sheep. If a shepherd, who diligently watched his flock, had 100 sheep and one went astray He would leave all 99 just to go find the one that was lost. Isn’t it incredible that the Creator of the universe cares about us so much that NOT EVEN ONE is able to get so lost in the darkness that they cannot be found.  That is how precious His children we are to Him.  He would leave His entire flock just to go find the one stubborn sheep who wandered off.  Finding Him truly was like the parable of the woman and her lost diamond. She frantically searched for it and when it was found she called her friends to rejoice over the missing treasure (Luke 15:8-10). That’s what Jesus is…THE hidden treasure.

“AND YE SHALL SEEK ME, AND FIND ME, WHEN YE SHALL SEARCH FOR ME WITH ALL YOUR HEART.” – JEREMIAH 29:13

I love every opportunity to share what Jesus has done in my life.

In this three years time He has opened my eyes to His truth. My faith has gotten stronger. He is it. He is enough.  His strength is made perfect in my weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).  The cross and His one sacrifice were enough to cover all of my shame and sin. As Christians we know that we are on this earth for a short time as sojourners waiting for the next life where His church (the body of believers) will be in His glory for eternity. It’s our free will as humans to choose eternity with Him or not. We choose heaven or hell and there is only one way to the Father: Through His Son, Jesus.

So, there won’t be new resolutions this year.

There will only be more God revolutions.