How to do a Really Good Job

It is not your job to cleanse yourself of sin.

Not only is it not your job, you are completely unable to do it!   

This is the heart of your frustration and despair; you have failed repeatedly to purge yourself of the things you know are wrong. Thus you feel you have failed the Lord (and so you punish yourself by avoiding His comforting presence), but you are mistaken.  It is safe to forget about yourself and to run into His arms.  No preparation is necessary. Stop holding back and come.

You cannot get at the depth of your own sin; you can’t purge it from yourself. The Lord is not is not like a human lover; you need make no elaborate preparations in order to please Him.  You best show your love for Him by coming just as you are.  Are you sorry you have sinned? Tell Him! Cleansing comes not through striving to do better, but by yielding to His hand. Repentance is a cessation of effort, a confession of helplessness to fix what is wrong through your own effort.  Redirect your efforts to seeking His face and to learning of His love for you. Obedience to God becomes possible only through relationship with God. 

You have done a good job of loving your Lord.  You want to prove yourself to Him; but it is not necessary for you to do so, because you’ve already done it once and for all time by accepting Jesus into your heart.  When you accepted Jesus Christ, you participated in His Holy sacrifice: once, for all. 

Good job!  

Scripture:  "He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself..." (Hebrews 7:27b).  

Abide in the Lord

Fear is an appropriate response to living in the world.  The Bible says “fear not” so often because there are so many things that frighten. You can’t hide from fear, and confronting it is not always a good idea. 

Don't just commit your fears to the Lord, commit yourself to Him. There’s a difference.  As much as you may detest the fear that oppresses you, it has been grafted into your spirit; and thus for all practical purposes is a part of you.  It follows you to all hiding places but one; the Lord's Arms offer the only refuge where fear cannot follow. 

Yes, He is always with you, but you are not always with Him; and this fact allows fear to remain. Abide in Him.  

Do Not be Afraid

The Lord doesn't instruct you to abstain from fear because fearful things do not exist.  He tells you not to fear because He knows how to thwart that which frightens you.  He has overcome the terror; vanquished the oppressor, and set His seal upon you. The devil is frightening, but he is a defeated foe.  You don’t need to give him another thought. 

In the same way mothers no longer lie awake at night fearing polio for their children, you do not need to fear the enemy of your soul.  The vaccine against fear is named Jesus, and His Name is over you and yours as a seal of protection and victory. Do not be afraid, He is with you. 

Scripture: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (John 14:27).  

You Must Not Take Glory Unto Yourself

You fret because you know you are not what you should be, but please don't forget this is the very reason Jesus came. Instead of simmering with resentful angst because you fall short, choose to humbly rejoice because Jesus has bridged the gap. Just as you are, this moment, you are saved. Your predominant emotion should be that of relief. Instead, you continue to plot ways to appear  good enough to have earned your own salvation. And make no mistake, Child; 99% of your upset has to do with appearances. You are humiliated by the imperfection that is apparent for the world to see. This is the disgrace you dread. You  desire to appear righteous with a righteousness your own. No, do not build a case in your own defense; you are not the sole exception to the rule that there is no righteousness apart from God.

You act as though Jesus' blood has covered everyone else but you. You've justified this desire as being valid because of the difficult times you survived in childhood, but your righteousness, the only righteousness possible for you, rests entirely in the Lord. As you participate in the divine nature, His righteousness becomes yours. He will not allow you to discipline your body for the sake of outward appearances.  The Lord will not allow the pursuit of righteousness for any reason other than a desire for oneness with Him. 


As God allows you to make progress along the road of righteousness, you MUST NOT take glory unto yourself. You will become bitter. Don’t you see this is what happens? When one’s own efforts earn a positive outcome that is favorable in the eyes of the world, bitterness results.  Effort nets accomplishment, accomplishment wins worldly favor, and pride (the pride of Nebuchadnezzar) grows, cutting off relationship with God. Now needy, the prideful person condemns the lesser humans who are not adequately meeting his/her needs. Finally, bitterness takes root, bitterness because “I am worth so much and have done so much and these peons do not love me as I deserve.”

The only cure for terminal self-centeredness is to abide in the Lord. Let "To God be the Glory" become your heartfelt anthem and your battle cry. There is no other path to perfection; this is the only road that will lead you straight into His arms.  

Response to Injustice from Beloved Enemies

You feel guilt over your responses to each of your loved ones today. Please acknowledge that your injuries are real.  The Lord does not require that you respond in a perfect manner to the injustices you bear before He will support you and love you through them.  

Read Psalm 37 and remember "the wicked" can represent your beloved enemies on a day when they are not flowing with the Lord's will; it is not wrong to recognize wrong in those you love. In fact, the more negative and harmful approach is to sublimate your hurt and to refuse to acknowledge that you have been wronged. Where there is no acknowledgement of injury no  grace of forgiveness can be extended to those who have caused you harm.  

You are wise to utilize caution; if you were to pray God's wrath upon the heads of your beloved enemies you would cause great harm. God's people are not to curse one another, and so let love rule your prayers as you extend to them the same grace you have received:  "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."  

You have stumbled through a sinful response to sin that was done unto you.  Receive God's forgiveness now, and extend it to those beloved enemies who caused you harm.  

Scripture:  "If the LORD delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand"  (Psalm 37:23-24). 

For Those Who Believe

You are on dangerous ground when you view the enemy’s work and then take the Lord to task for it.   There is a flaw—and it is a huge flaw—in your logic.  All things come by God's hand to those who belong to Him; to those who have professed faith in Him.  For this age, the evil that occurs outside the  fold of the Most Holy God belongs to the enemy.  You belong to the Lord; you are God's own, bought with a price.  For you to suffer fear for yourself in response to reports of evil in the world hurts His heart; do you not know of the power of His protective love?  The Holy Spirit dwells within you and in-breathes your prayers for your loved ones, the same power that raised Christ from the dead in you, around you, protecting you, guiding you and yours. Do not be afraid.   

Scripture:  "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,  and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,  which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,  far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way" (Ephesians 1:18-21).  

The Tyranny of "Ought To"

God's children ever desire to prove themselves in ways He has not asked, and the proving weakens them for the battles He would have them to fight.  It is common to achieve clean closets while leaving the issues of a dirty heart unaddressed.  

You suffer guilt from your disobedience to the Lord, but your resentment (rebellion's slightly less toxic cousin) prevents you from submitting to His will.  And so you place a rule of your own over your head which becomes a law you cannot keep, the law of "ought to."   I ought to...clean the garage, organize my finances,  lose weight... The tyranny of the "ought to's" will rule your life apart from the obedience that will allow you to abide in the Lord's grace.  

Scripture: "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1).