The word justified means, "just as if I had never sinned".
My life is now hidden in Christ and the Father can no longer see my wretchedness but only His holiness.
This humbles me.
I deserve punishment. I receive grace.
I deserve justice. I receive mercy.
I deserve nothing less than death, but I am given new life.
I love that the Lord would be so generous to me. I am so thankful. I rejoice in my salvation.
I am a receiver needing to be a giver.
The Lord has been wrestling with me all night. It is this very issue that He has brought to light in the wee hours of morning. My heart has been exposed. It has caused great despair.
When others offend, annoy, frustrate me..........I do not treat them with grace. I do not treat them as if they had never sinned against me. I don't easily release past offenses. There are certain people that were destined to be an irritant in my life. Sandpaper. Ughhh!!!!!
There was victory at the end of our match this morning. The Lord won. True to His nature He awarded me the prize. Grace. He has given me grace to let them go. He has given me grace to begin again. He has given me grace to forgive myself.
There will be more sandpaper moments. There will be grace to treat those who offend with grace and mercy. I trust that He has made me rich in this. I will choose to walk in it.
Justified!!!!!
Cheri
3 comments:
My precious Cheri, you are such a beautiful person - inside and out. Forgiveness and grace are so awesome that it can be almost overwhelming to comprehend.
Just as He has given you the understanding and insight to see the challenges you are faced with, He will also give you the peace and grace to overcome. We could all learn much from you.
Don't be too hard on yourself - even sandpaper wears smooth with enough use. I have a feeling that you are probably not as mean as you think you are!! :)
I love you,
Shala
I have been wrestling with a similar issue. There are people at work that are sandpaper to me. I joke that God puts them in my life for a reason but it is no joke. It is really what He's done. I joke and say that rotten so and so, I just don't like her today because she did xyz. Yes, the things people at work are ridiculous and petty and even mean hearted with no compassion and understanding of another's job. BUT, I am saved by grace and I need to extend grace. It's just so hard. When you supply a person with their requests and they are greedy and call it "cheap" or a person complains on the accomodations they are given. It's so hard to extend grace to silly and petty complaining. May God refine my character and enable me THROUGH Him to extend grace to those who are sandpaper not only to me but also to others. (That helps because sometimes if I didn't know it's just they way they are, then I'd develop my own personality complex thinking it was me.)
Thanks for this reminder, Cheryl.
Love,
Paula
Cheri, you are so sweet. I love how your heart always seeks God.
I have "sandpaper" people in my life too, but God is using their rubbing on my life to soften hard edges and make me more like Him.
I have in the past sometimes jokingly refered to them as my "thorn in the flesh", but I think sometimes God allows them to stay because He is working His character into my life and shaping me into His image. Just as Paul learned, it's when I'm weak that He is strong.
Praying for you and sending a hug,
Joy
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