How Difficult Is It to Hide Who You Really Are?

There are special occasions when dressing up in costumes and wearing a mask is acceptable and fun. Every year young and not so young children come knocking at the door holding out their bags expecting to receive a treat.

A high school student told me he put on an imaginary mask to pretend he was happy and all was well at home. He was forbidden to tell friends his parents were separated with divorce impending. Facades and false impressions rarely hide the real person.

The good news is it’s impossible to hide and cover up who you are from God because he knows your heart, mind and soul. Think about it: if others can see through your facades and false impressions, how much more in depth does God see you? God’s unconditional love tells you to take off the mask and come to him just as you are and make a new beginning free of falsehoods and cover-ups.

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 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.  

~2 Chronicles 16:9 English Standard Version 

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Why Is It So Hard to Let Go of the Past?

A clean slate should not be confused with totally eliminating the careless choices that impacted your body, mind, and spirit, including your relationships. God’s grace and mercy grant peace and the courage to prevent the past from dominating what God makes new for you.

The idea of showing mercy to oneself may seem impossible, but it deserves consideration. Think of it as refusing to ruminate on the past. Self-mercy includes forgiveness, turning over to God what transpired in the past that sometimes has seemed beyond resolving.

Personally extending mercy to oneself involves sincere repentance or turning from a lifestyle of self-indulgence or self-incrimination. 

Self-mercy permits God’s grace to establish a new mindset you live by each day that God will bless. Self-mercy acknowledges self-discipline that may be painful while God is at work to set you on a new path that’s filled with hope and his plan for your future. So praise God!                 

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I am convinced and confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will [continue to] perfect and complete it until the day of Christ Jesus [the time of his return].

~Philippians 1:6 Amplified Bible

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What Most Often Tests Your Faith and Resilience?

Daily troubles as well as those monstrous ones can have a powerful influence on our attitude and resilience. Are troubles designed to rob us of faith and confidence, or can they be an exercise in building determination to win a victory over every hindrance that life hurls our way?

When David was a young man, he killed Goliath, the Philistine giant. When Saul compared himself to David, he became jealous and conspired to kill David. Jealousy robbed Saul of the opportunity to mentor David, the person God selected to be the next king.

In life’s experiences we’re often forced to face troubles that test our faith and resilience. The most difficult task is coming to terms with how to manage the resulting suffering that cannot be ignored. In Psalm 50:15, God invites you to call upon him in days of trouble, for he promises to deliver you. Faith and trust help you conquer what seems impossible. 

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I am confident of this: that the one who has begun his good work in you will go on developing it until the day of Christ Jesus. 

~Philippians 1:6 Phillips – New Testament in Modern English

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How Is God's Plan Linked to Pivotal Events?

A pivotal moment can occur when your purpose in life is redefined. When my father was in his forties, he was offered a job as a craftsman at an aircraft factory. This opportunity was a stretch for him, but he realized it was a pivotal moment he couldn’t let slip away.

This new job gave him confidence that life could be better and enabled him to later buy a farm and build a new house where he and my mother could retire. Pivotal events occur infrequently during a lifetime but are closely coupled to God’s purpose for each individual’s life.

If you are experiencing a pivotal moment in your life, perhaps God is preparing you for a significant place in his plan for you. While anxiety may be present, expect strong assurance from God that he is leading you. His word promises that the good work he began in you to secure his plan for you, he will finish. 

So give thanks and praise to God!  

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Don’t be impatient. Wait for the Lord, and he will come and save you! Be brave, stouthearted and courageous. Yes, wait and he will help you.

~Psalm 27:14 The Living Bible
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Can the Fallout from Disappointment Be Limited?

Disappointment and immaturity are close companions that often line up together. Disappointments are experienced early in childhood and will continue throughout life. Young couples must adjust to the reality that marriage doesn’t produce all that was fantasized during courtship.

People struggling against immaturity will battle disappointment constructively rather than allow compatibility to be destroyed. Disappointment is felt by mature people, but it does not generate lasting discouragement. For stable marriages, compatibility atones for even serious disappointments.

Everyone may have experienced poor judgment, but corrections and recovery are possible. Hebrews 12 encourages believers to discipline their minds just as athletes train their weak arms and legs to win the prize.

Remember, God corrects everyone he loves, so be thankful for his love and correction.                            

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I am confident of this: that the One who has begun his good work in you will go on developing it until the day of Jesus Christ.

~Philippians 1:6 Phillips – New Testament In Modern English

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New Year Expectations for Positive Good

How are your expectations for this coming New Year affecting you emotionally? Are you feeling confident your expectations will bring you joy and peace? Your expectations are influenced by other people’s beliefs, behaviors, theology, and politics. Whether or not expectations become reality is dependent on your commitment to bring them to fruition.

There are positive and negative expectations. Positive expectations are connected to the belief that if I manage my life with realistic boundaries and goals, I can depend on a measure of success. Negative expectations can diminish your self-esteem, your confidence, and can result in distrust that the future will be beneficial.

To counteract negative expectations, turn your thoughts to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who designed you to trust him with all you heart. Then look for the evidence of the hope he will provide. “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” Let this be your vision and hope. Happy New Year! 

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I am confident of this: that the One who has begun his good work in you will go on developing it until the day of Jesus Christ.

~Philippians 1:6 Phillips – New Testament in Modern English

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Satisfaction Guaranteed

The sixteenth century Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon was convinced a fountain of youth was hidden somewhere in Florida. If he could find it, he would remain young and wealthy. Instead, he was killed at age forty-seven by a Florida Indian’s arrow. De Leon and those who financed his search believed staying young and wealthy guaranteed happiness.

Our obsession with youth and happiness is actually an attempt to create a life worth living. Happiness derives from the Latin root hap, which means subject to change as circumstances change. In other words, happiness can fluctuate according to events and situations.

As we age, the more challenging it may become to recall the uncertainty and unpredictability of our youth. Aging may also generate a longing for the chance to choose again a life worth living. Personal satisfaction with who we are, is dependent on how well we serve others and the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus came to serve and to give his life as a ransom for us, which gives us a life worth living.  

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Even young people get tired, then stumble and fall.

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.

They will be strong like eagles, soaring upward on wings;

They will walk and run without getting tired.

~Isaiah 40:30-31 Contemporary English Version

I am confident of this: that the One who has begun his good work in you will go on developing it until the day of Jesus Christ.

~Philippians 1:6 Phillips – New Testament in Modern English

Crisis! Redemption or Stagnation?

Jacob, the youngest son of Rebekah and Isaac spent decades honing his skills in manipulating, deceiving, and being a fraud. Jacob needed redemption but was reluctant to accept it. He would have to experience severe crises to make the transition. Genesis 28 presents his first major crisis. With his mother’s help, he stole his brother’s blessing.

 

To escape Esau’s plan to kill him, Jacob’s mother sent him to Haran to live with her brother. On the way he stopped for the night, lay down to sleep and had a dream that proved to be the beginning of his redemption. It was his first personal encounter with the Lord God. A severe crisis can weaken a person’s resistance to God’s intervention.

 

The issue is that God intervenes even when we’re undeserving and have severely messed up our lives. As Jacob slept, he dreamed God spoke a message of reassurance and hope to him, a chance for a new beginning with a clear conscience. God gave him the opportunity to build a bridge to a different lifestyle, and he will do that for you.

False Assumptions vs. Reality - Part 1

The parable of the prodigal son from Luke 15 parallels our lives in interesting ways. It's about a young man who could not compete with his older brother's privileges and power. He assumed that if he left home he could be successful in his own right. The father permitted this young man to follow his dreams. The story is about distinguishing false assumptions from reality.

False assumptions blind a person's ability to correctly perceive reality. Imagine the fantasies this young man possessed. He would separate from his family and find his own way in the world. He evidently assumed that life is a party and his inheritance would sustain him indefinitely.

One other assumption this young man surely held was that his friends would have his back when he needed them. Waking up to the truth takes time, but then choices based on reality can be set in place. Truth based on reality believes that God is at work to save you from yourself. The Lord Jesus Christ will help you sort out false assumptions and give you faith to change.

Burned Out or Blessed? - Part 1

Just about everyone eventually gets to a place in their everyday work experience where change would be a welcome relief from the routines that have long lost their challenge. Even the rewards of safety and security of everyday work routines do not compensate for the absence of heartfelt meaning and purpose for how life is spent.

Working only for financial security and recognition may eventually result in mental and physical burn-out, a major cause of crisis for people in their mid-life years. Each person's core being, that part of the self that needs affirmation and nurturing, must be in harmony with the way life is lived. To be out of harmony creates displeasure with just about every aspect of life.

However making sweeping changes during mid-life may not be productive.  It's beneficial to present needed changes to the redemptive power and guidance of Christ Jesus. He will give wisdom and direction for any needed changes. I am confident that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.