Names of God Part 2: Through Thanksgiving & ChristmasSample

Paul proclaims that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. He describes himself as chief of sinners because he used to oppress, persecute, and kill Christians. However, as a demonstration of God’s mercy and great patience, Paul chose to surrender His life to the Lord. As a result of Paul’s salvation, many who witnessed the change in his life were saved. A transformed life is evidence of God’s great power to save. It is so easy for believers to get discouraged when we compare our actions to God’s expectations in the Bible. Believers may get caught up in our feelings and begin to feel hopeless and worthless. However, we must remember that sometimes the struggle with sin is evidence of God’s holy work within us. The battle within may be the only evidence that we truly love God and are seeking desperately to conquer our flesh and live for God. Thus, we should celebrate the struggle. We should celebrate when we feel convicted about sin that used to provoke absolutely no emotion. We should celebrate when we have this inward urge to repent, apologize, and ask forgiveness for a behavior that we know is not Christ-like. We should celebrate, because every sin we recognize in ourselves makes us so much more aware of God’s holiness, of God’s patience with us, of God’s mercy poured out on us, and of God’s love for us. Regardless of how a believer feels about her mistakes or judges her failures, God’s joy must be her strength. When God sees His children, He only sees the righteousness of Christ. That is worth celebrating. What is your response to the recognition of sin in your life? Does it send you running to your Father’s arms for help and deliverance? Or does it send you into hiding? Are you still weeping over sin that God has already forgiven and forgotten? Are you judging another believer’s struggle with sin instead of encouraging them? Father God, thank You for Your Spirit that reveals the inner workings of my heart. I pray that my heart remains tender and receptive, Lord, to your correction. When I want to hide from You and avoid Your Word, Lord, gently remind me that all good fathers discipline those that they love. Thank You that each of my failures and mistakes reveals my utter dependence and desperate need for You. Lord, remind me that my dependence on You is not considered weakness, but that it brings You great joy. In Jesus’ name. Amen.