Advice For The Christian Girl

Woman Of Repantance

Captivating that Heart of Repentance

Saul fell far from God. This was a tragic hero who had potential but allowed compromise to take the throne from him.

But we can wonder, David sinned too so what was the difference? Why wasn't the throne of David completely taken from him? Why didn't God raise another David to take it away from him? Why did God love so much? How could someone as broken as David be called a man after God's own heart?

That's where the difference lies. Here look at Saul's great downfall and then look at David's fall.

Saul's fall

David's fall

1) David valued God

David loved for God. After he sinned, the prophet Nathan later would confront and help David realise how much it has hurt God. Once David realised his mistakes, he wrote Pslam 51. It's a psalm of repentance. It's true, God knew David would fall short and make mistakes but God knows that because our flesh we wont be perfect but it was that heart of repentance that made David so different from Saul. Saul when he realised his mistake didnt react the way David did, his heart didnt cry out for God to stay with him, to purify him etc but David did. He asked for God not to take His Spirit away from him, he asked to be washed clean. He cared so much about how God saw him snd what God thought of him more than man. David made a mistake but he was a man that when he saw the damage it did to his relationship with God, he sought to fix it through crying to God in prayer. That's a man after God's own heart.

The difference between the two is the value they had for God. David cried for God not to take His Spirit from Him similar to how in the new testament we can grieve the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30).

A woman of repentance values the relationship she has with God.

What destroys our relationship with God is sin, disobedience etc

Adam eating the apple didn't just lead to death but broke His relationship with God. It broke humanity's closeness with God. It took Adam out of intimacy.

When you sin, you're breaking your closeness with God. Choosing to willfully sin, say bad words, and do things outside God's will leads to you drawing further and further from God.

The truth is that God doesn't just walk away and draw far from us. We are the first ones to draw far away from Him. He leaving us is often because we first left Him (biblical quote).

We see the story of Samson. The Bible reveals that the Holy Spirit left Samson (Judges 16). We see this with Saul when the Holy Spirit left Saul (1 Samuel 16:14).

When we sin we are numbing ourselves to sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. We are putting a distance, a wall called sin between us and God.

A true woman of God values her relationship with God. If you truly love someone, if you realize what you're doing is hurting them you would stop.

There was a time when I kept sinning against God. Constantly. Not just in what I watched in videos, books, listened to etc but I would repent. I would feel bad, horrible and hate myself for doing it but I just would go ahead and do it again.

It grew to a point where I knew that even if it stopped today I would just end up doing it again tomorrow. It felt like a circle. I wouldn't watch pornography or read anything inappropriate for about a month but just fall later on.

It got tiring

But one day, I just came from doing that and I felt a strong wave of conviction. It was something I never felt before. I felt so strongly that God was tired of it all. At that moment I felt like God was telling me to stop messing with Him. That doing this on-and-off thing was hurting Him.

At that moment I felt how hurt God was. I felt how horrible it was that I was playing with God by okaying this game of obedience or not. It was hurting God that I would hear in my conscience a voice telling me not to do it just to ignore it and do it anyway.

I realise I was hurting the One who took me when others rejected me. The One who listened to my every word. The One who would comfort me. The One would never leave me. The One who is my Lord, Saviour and best friend. It was at that moment that I started having a deeper conviction to stop.

And though I can't remember that year I do know that I started having the fear of God. The fear of God means that you respect God, and see Him as so great and amazing that you reverence His presence in your life. You value Him.

Suddenly things I used to find were okay I stopped. Videos I used to watch I couldn't tolerate. Things I used to enjoy I now dissolved. Though I didn't change overnight, something did change from within me.

What changed was I genuinely decided to stop and follow God. I also had His Spirit helping me along the way.

I learned to value God. The idea of hurting the one who loves me more than any human being broke me inside. It broke the desire to sin and now I started desiring just please and honour Him.

I began having that desire and wonder checking if God is hurt by this or that. It wasn't a condemning voice or legalistic. Legalistic basically means that voice forcing me or making me feel bad or that's weighing on me to be perfect, no, it was a freeing thing. I felt free. I could now freely serve God. I could now freely honour Him.

My love for God has only increased and grown throughout the years. I and God have been through a lot together. His my best friend.

And when you're a woman who values the God she has in her life you won't easily accept what He doesn't or enjoy what He hates but the bible tells us something.

When we delight in the Lord He'll give us the desires of our hearts. (Psalm 37:4).

And those who love God will obey His commandments (John 14:15).

The more you spend time with God, get to know Him, and draw nearer to God your desires will start matching His. Your character will start reflecting His till what He loves you'll love and what He hates even you'll hate. What grieves Him will grieve you and what gives Him joy you'll enjoy.

It is a beautiful relationship that develops over time.

2) Dependant on His Spirit

The Bible reveals to us the fruits of the flesh and the fruits of the Spirit. The Spirit bears fruits contrary to the flesh and vice versa (Galatians 5:17).

But to bear the fruit of the Spirit, you need the Holy Spirit. It is He who will help you

The Bible says that one of the functions of the Holy Spirit is to be our Helper. He helps us in our weakness not just by intercession (Romans 8:26) but also by His counsel (Isaiah 11:2) and also with His strength and power (Acts 1:8).

3) Regularly keep Watch

What you can do is reflect on the day. At times at the end of the day, I reflect on my actions. I ask myself questions. Was I productive today? Did I sin? What could I have done wrong if I did something wrong? How did I speak, think and reflect?

Constantly checking only yourself helps you live a life of repentance because you always be trying to improve and live a life according to God's word. You're meditating on your actions and checking your relationship with God regularly.