i’ve never been to a nascar race…or drag race, or busch series or whatever. it’s just not my thing. but, i hear tales of such events. i hear how the low rumble of the engines takes life inside your chest and goes beyond the sound of engines into the physical rumbling of bones and organs. i also understand this to be the experience of a shuttle lift off, or a building detonation. the physical movement and physics of the event actually cause a simultaneous resonance in the body.
i’m convinced that this happens when we see, hear, or experience a life that is common to our own. when we are in the presence of experiences which are familiar to us, there are emotional, spiritual and sometimes physical resonances that we experience. we see this in movies as we cry along, identifying with sadness, and laughing or smiling as we identify with joy and happiness. we identify with fear and, in turn, get scared.
spiritually this happens as we see joy in a baptism, seeing our own as a happy moment we in turn feel happiness for the one newly baptized. when death comes to a Christian, we feel sadness because death is, indeed, a sad event, but simultaneously we feel joy because we know that there is ultimate healing to come and that this person is with the Great Physician.
but there are those who see baptism and cannot have happiness, or those who see the death of a Christian and cannot, for the life of them, see hope or joy...there is no resonance. the sound of joy is not bouncing off the walls of their spirit. because they have no joy of their own.
over the past three days i have received more emails and messages than i know what to do with. some of them are messages of encouragement, appreciation, or "wow, what the heck?" but there have been numerous emails of people telling me their own story. specifically their story of failing and falling...followed by their story of redemption. in reading my story there was a resonance inside of them. they felt the loss i felt, they understood the pain i had, they experienced sin as i did...but more importantly they experienced freedom from sin, joy in restoration, the joy of forgiveness and the hope of life everlasting. when all of these things happen, sharing the story only reinforces the grace that saved you in the first place. it brings joy to hear of it and, in turn, it brings joy to share it.
this evening i wrote to a friend who shared with me his struggles and Christ's forgiveness. and with all sincerity i'll share here what i shared with him, "nothing cheers my heart more than to see sin conquered and redemption occur. God's glory in your story has only just begun." and it's true!! these past few days have brought a tremendous amount of joy to my heart. to see person after person relate their story of how God saved them from the pit of their own personal hell is remarkable!!! i am indeed so fortunate to be able to smile and maybe even do a little dance (inside my head, of course) at the extent of God's grace and compassion.
the way i've seen it
i have seen countless numbers of people over the past few years find freedom from their sin and pain. and for everyone i've seen find this freedom, it has begun, each and every time, with their confession of the state they're in. everyone of them would tell you that only by freeing themselves of the burden of lies and walking in the light of truth...has change actually occurred. many of them found freedom for a season, only to fall back into the very thing that was destroying them....alcohol, drugs, pornography, abuse, anger, adultery, violence, and the list goes on. it's not the hardest thing you'll go through....but it is the hardest place to start.
most of you who read this and find yourself in one of these categories may not ever speak of it. you'll continue to suffer pain, burden, loss and depression. trust me on this one thing...it won't go away and it will never get better.
here's why:
"cursed is the man who trusts in mankind, and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the Lord. for he will be like a bush in the desert and will not see when prosperity comes, but willlive i n stony wastes in the wilderness....the heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick. who can understand it?" jeremiah 17:6,9
relying on ourselves has produced nothing but pain and chaos. for us and for all around us. you know this to be true because that one phrase resonates so deeply. it's not how it's supposed to be. it's not right. you say that to yourself over and over, "is this what life is? is this whati'm living for?" yes, it is....if you're doing it YOUR way.
a better way?
"confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed." james 5:16
and more
"if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 john 1:9
the context of that verse in 1 john is light vs. darkness. to live as though you have no sin, or that you have no struggles, or that there is nothing wrong is a lie. it's walking in darkness. "if we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth." 1 john 1:6 you cannot live a truthful life without confession. there is no such thing in the bible as "private repentance." peter, after denying Jesus publicly confessed. thomas , after doubting Jesus, publicly confessed His Lordship. Paul, after approving murder found every opportunity he could to confess his sin and the grace that saved him from it. "if we walk in the light [truth] as He Himself is in the light [truth], we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 john 1:7 confession not only restores our relationship with God...it restores our relationships with people....spouses, children, parents, siblings....even exes and those we've injured. God's grace reaches beyond what we have done and can, in fact, give us the chance to be forgiven and to forgive.
how do i start?
men: email me. call me. message me. i'll hear you out and give you a safe place to start. if not me then find a man that you trust. perhaps one who's been there before and knows grace. women: find a kindred spirit. a woman you can go to as a mother or sister. full of grace and truth.
whoever it is and wherever....the key is confession. get that burden OFF!! relief, forgiveness, joy and restoration is found ONLY in Jesus Christ and He calls you repent and believe.
He is faithful. He will do it.
He promises He will...and so do i.
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