Snappy

What do you do when you are faced with a situation that is wrong? When someone has promised to do something and doesn’t. When unpleasant things happen and cause more unpleasantness. When people let you down? I find there are two choices.

1) Be gracious and point out the errors with love.

2) Snap and snarl getting yourself and others upset..

I think we can agree that 1 is the perfect response. However I have been a solid 2 this last couple of days.

I want to get from 2 to 1. In honesty my reaction has improved vastly since God started working on me. I no longer rant and rave when things don’t go my way – and I am overwhelmingly grateful for that huge change. But now, as I look at Jesus I want to become more and more like Him in every way.  My attitude this last few days has not been loving or kind or helpful to myself or to the others involved.

Yes, but how? This is the huge question I  – we – all face. How do we change. I truly believe that I have experienced God’s hand changing me. Just sovereignly doing what was needed so that in an instant I was different. But I also believe some things need time and effort from me.

^12 …—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³ for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.

¹⁴ Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ¹⁵ so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”^[c] Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky ¹⁶ as you hold firmly to the word of life.

Philippians 2: 12-16a

Working out your salvation with fear and trembling. But wait I hear you cry, surely Salvation is a gift from God and Jesus did it all on the Cross.

Valid points, indeed He did, the wonderful and marvellous truth is that He did pay the penalty for my (and your) sins and give freely the gift of Salvation. I am a New Creation, I am born again of water and the Spirit, I am sanctified, justified, made righteous. But I also have to live here in flesh on a sin cursed earth surrounded by people. I spoke about it before – it’s the now and the not yet in tension. I am moving from where I was to where I will be on that Glorious Day when He and I meet face to face. This is a huge topic and so I am going to assume you agree with me that some things we have to work on, pray about and allow the Holy Spirit to guide us into becoming more disciplined. It’s called self-discipline for a reason…

I think God gave me guidance this morning when I was talking to Him about it.

My heart, O God, is steadfast,
    my heart is steadfast;
    I will sing and make music.

Psalm 57:7

The next time I start to get disgruntled I am asking for a psalm, a hymn or a spiritual song to fill my heart and mind. It’s the split second of losing focus that lets my temper go. If I can fill that split second with Him, with worship, with Truth then maybe I can step back and act as I should, in a way that’s pleasing to Him. The best way to have that inspiration, is to fill my life with it, to constantly have worship and praise in my mind, on my lips.

So here goes – all prayers gladly accepted.