Knowing the Lord: DEVOTIONS

DEVO #3 | Feeling Guilt...

  THINK:

    Sin.

    Nasty stuff, isn't it?

    It looks good, it feels good...

    But it leaves a bitter aftertaste. You feel used, empty, alone. 

    What do you do as the guilt sets in?

          There was this woman who'd just submitted papers for divorce. She started dating again and did something she'd probably regret later. Her best friend found out and said, "We better go to church."

  SO WHAT?

    That is the wrong response.

     Going to church wasn't wrong, but her motives were.

    God isn't about guilt.

     God is about forgiveness and compassion. God is mercy in action.

     You know you did something wrong? Drop to your knees and tell God you're sorry. If you really are sincere, then He will forgive you. And that's it! No more guilt! No more shame!You don't have to do a thing to be forgiven but ask. Jesus's sacrifice (his death) was the price. 

    "[God said] I have swept away your offenses like a cloud,

           your sins like the morning mist.

        Return to me,

              for I have redeemed you."

       - Isaiah 44:22 (NIV)

     LIVING IT OUT:

      Going to church, praying, and reading your Bible are all good things. They bring your heart closer to God. Doing them out of guilt or duty, however, makes you feel even worse.

     So what should you do?

     Go to church because you want to know God more. Read the Bible to align your heart with His. Pray because you know He'll answer.

   People get messed up when they make God into a series of rituals. That's not what God wants. He wants a relationship. 

    You can't earn His grace, His forgiveness. It's a gift. So instead of feeling rejected in sin, ask for forgiveness and rejoice in the fact you don't deserve it. Rejoice that God loves you so much. Thank Him today for what He's done.

   "Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this; 

      shout aloud, O earth beneath. 

  Burst into song, you mountains,

 you forests and all you trees,

 for the Lord has redeemed Jacob,

 he displays his glory in Israel."

- Isaiah 44:23

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Keep fighting the good fight. <3

- Katrina