- Nov 30, 2022
- 3 min read
"We have everything we need within us to walk a disciplined, victorious walk with God."
Lin Wills
If we want to live life abundantly, then we can. If we want to follow the Way of the Lord, then we can. If we want to be faithful servants to God and His creation, then we can. It is only our choice which prevents this from being so.
I spent many years pointing fingers at people and things that were keeping me from a personal relationship with YHWH. There were too many hypocrites in the churches. There was too much division in the churches. There was too much bad doctrine in the churches. There was nothing wrong with the way I lived. I lived a good enough life. I wasn’t doing anything that horrible. I was smarter than the people in church. I knew more than the people in church.
"Be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined."
Titus 1:8, NIV
Even if some, or most, or all of those things were true, those fingers never pointed at the problem. And the problem was my heart. I didn’t want to give YHWH the authority. I didn’t want to give Christ control. It was my personal choice not to walk in the Way that I knew I should because of whatever number of excuses I could find.
And none of those problems that I was pointing out back then have changed. There are no less hypocrites in the church today. The divisions in the churches are not going away. The doctrine in some churches is not getting more aligned with the Word. What changed was my mindset about my place and my role with God, Father, Son, and Spirit.
I wasn’t living a good life. I was living a life that was good in my own eyes. I was doing something horrible. I was denying the Truth that I knew in the Way of the Lord. I was exalting my gifts from God over the relationship I needed to have with Him. I was leaning on my own understanding of the world more than His understanding.
“Talent without discipline is like an octopus on roller skates. There’s plenty of movement, but you never know [where] it’s going.”
H. Jackson Brown Jr.
I never would have arrived here today if He hadn’t taught me discipline. Three years ago, when the world shut down, I was quickly realizing that I wasn’t living in alignment with my beliefs. And God pushed me to stop being a hypocrite myself. So, I started doing what I knew I should.
God led me to start making the beliefs I held into an everyday lifestyle. He changed my mindset. And I started working on me.
That discipline that God taught me led to radically changing my priorities. It led me to aligning my life with my beliefs. It led to a lot of investing in myself. And, even though back then I wasn’t even considering trusting in Him, He led me back to a relationship with Him.
“The regular disciplining of ourselves to spend that quality time with God will reap great benefits, but there are times when we need more discipline than at others, depending on how many distractions there are, and how many other things are filling our minds at the time. The more we determine to press into God’s presence, the more we will want to do it.”
Lin Wills
If you are not feeling aligned, if things aren’t working, if it just isn’t working out the way you planned, then talk to God. He wants you to talk to Him. It is one of the reasons you are here. So, spend a little more time in prayer. Spend a little more time working on you. And spend a lot less time pointing those fingers at the excuses. The only excuse for not following God’s Commandments is my will.
Shavua tov. Shalom to your home. Bless your being. The reign of YHWH is now. Be a blessing to YHWH and others.