Happy Friday!
Terri, tortillas aren’t on my hit list but tortilla chips are. Lynette, yep, can’t eat what you don’t bring home. Nita, dear friend. Writing this blog is fuelled in part by the encouragement you gave me so long ago. And Jennifer. Oh my, sweetheart. You’re in my prayers.
When I was a child, my parents worked hard to instill in me good manners: Be respectful to grown ups. Don’t interrupt. Don’t talk back. Be sure to say please and thank you if the Robertson’s offer you something to eat. Don’t’ run across the neighbour’s yard.
Sometimes I’d forget my manners. My parents, especially my mom, would say: “Gayle, you know better than that. Why’d you do it?”
“I don’t know. Forgot, I guess.”
“Well, don’t forget next time.”
But I would.
I appreciate my parents’ correction. Yet it occurred to me some time ago that God never talks this way to me. He never says when I sin, “Gayle, you know better than that.”
Why?
God knows something we either forget or just don’t realize. There is no power in simply knowing better. Good grief. If that’s all it took to make the right choice every time, I wouldn’t have written my woeful tale yesterday about my almond binge.
Fact is, God gave us the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law as His perfect standard for living right. Yet it’s not in our makeup to do the right thing 24/7 and do it all (or not do it) for the right reasons. Nobody’s ever pulled that off except for Jesus Christ Himself. The God-Man. The law was intended for us to give up and admit, “I just can’t do it. I’ve tried. Hard. In fact it seems the harder I try, the worse it gets.”
That might seem an awful place to have to be. Yet it’s the very best place to be. Just watch what God does when someone says that to Him then asks for His help.
I wasn’t even thinking about almonds when I walked into Costco last week. But when I saw ‘em, I wanted ‘em bad! Once I got home and ripped open that bag, there was no stopping me. The more I told myself to stop, the more I indulged. That’s just the way we are. We want what we want when we want it. Without the consequence. Especially when we decide we can’t have it.
Christ came to rescue us from that mentality. Overdosing on almonds is hardly going to ruin my life. I won’t be arrested for driving under the influence. But I think you get my point. Neither the law of nutrition nor the Law of God can bring salvation. Rather its value is to point me to Christ Himself as my Savior. He rescued me from hell – miracle enough. And yet, He keeps rescuing me from myself daily in small and big ways, all the while guiding me to walk in His ways that bring freedom.
I attend a church that teaches and extends grace. I am surrounded by friends that extend grace to others. Above all, I believe what God’s Word says about grace. So you’d think I’d keep it straight all the time that I can never rely on my own strength to make right choices . . . that I’d remember it was for freedom that Christ set me free.
I wish that were true. Instead, sometimes God says to me:
“Gayle, you foolish girl. Who have you been listening to? What have you been watching on TV? You started out well this week, this day, this hour. Before your very eyes you keep seeing Me work in your life. You know it is I who accomplish such things – not you by your puny effort. Where’s your head, Gayle? Do you think My grace was only to save you, set you on the right path? Now that I’ve cleaned you up, do you think you can manage your life from here?”
No. I don’t believe that. God knows I don’t. Nevertheless, human nature is such that unless I choose daily to abide in Christ, the potential to revert back to my old ways of handling my life is ever present. In fact, I believe the longer I walk with Christ, the greater my propensity will be to fall into legalism. Why? Because the more I experience God’s love, kindness, and forgiveness, the more I’ll realize He deserves my love and adoration. So when I fail to give Him the honor due Him, I’ll feel terrible.
Unless I remember. And I must remember . . .
Christ alone is my righteousness. Not Christ plus my efforts. Just Christ. All God asks is that I would believe Him for the grace He longs to give through His Son. It’s really quite amazing, don’t you think? We can’t even return God’s love without His grace much less accomplish any good thing in His name.
I don’t get it. I don’t get anything about God. He knew it would be this way before He even created us humans. But I do believe Him. Everything He says. And when I remember God’s grace toward me, I can relax and just be His kid.
Have a terrific weekend all. I’ll see you back on Monday!
AGAIN..LOVED IT! AWESOME! GOD, THANK YOU FOR GIVING GAYLE THE WORDS TO MINISTER TO US, GLORY TO YOU LORD FOR GIVING HER STRENGTH AND INSIGHT. THANK YOU GAYLE FOR LETTING GOD USE YOU MIGHTILY TO SPREAD HIS WORD! CAN’T WAIT FOR MONDAY NIGHT AND CAN’T WAIT FOR ANOTHER BLOG ON MONDAY! YOU GO GIRL! GOD BLESS ALWAYS-JENNIFER 🙂
It’s early Monday AM, and Monday isn’t posted yet…hoping I get back to the computer before tonight! :o) Okay, I love getting to know you through this medium…yes, you should write a book. (Says me, the literature snob who doesn’t read just anything!~ask my friends who call me the literature snob-judge :o))
Blessings on you day. Reading your things makes me see your eyes smiling! Ruth
P.S. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’ve been hanging out in Romans 4….Ruth