Abundantly Pardoned

“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Romans 12:1-2 NIV)

“Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2 NKJV)

What transforms us? What changes us? What causes us to morph into a different, better person? Keeping our mind on the things of heaven. Keeping our minds on Jesus Christ. If we keep thinking of earthly things, we’ll remain of this world. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be of this world. I want to be completely transformed.

“He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new.’ Then He said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’” (Revelation 21:5 NIV) Our Lord Jesus will make everything new. No more pain. No more disease. No more suffering. No more worrying over getting bills paid and having enough for gasoline to get to work. Everything will be made new. “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20 NIV)

Amy Carmichael in one of her “Scraps” family newsletters: “I think I won’t name his faults, for since beginning to write, I have become conscious that my own are so numerous and so far outweigh other people’s, that the less I say about them the better.” Oh, so true, so true! Everytime we start to fuss about someone else, we need to stop and take a good look at ourselves. Which person has more faults? I don’t know about you, but I’m almost afraid to look! Clean me up, dear Jesus! Clean me up!

The cost of gasoline keeps getting higher and higher; the cost of groceries keep rising, and we find that sometimes the groceries make people sick or kill them; cancer is running rampant in all kinds of people we know, and the wars keep getting worse. James 1:17, 1 Samuel 15:29 and Malachi 3:6 tell us that our Lord God Almighty does not change. Hallelujah! Hang on to the Lord!

I’m now reading a book that I’m using for Bible study at the Assisted Living facility: “A Long Obedience In the Same Direction” by Eugene H. Peterson which is about the Psalms of Ascents (Psalms 120-134). We are pilgrims on a journey in this world. We’re in this world, but not of this world. Like the Hebrew pilgrims who sang these Psalms on their way up to Jerusalem for the festivals, we, too, should be singing these Psalms as we traverse up, up, up until we reach our goal: Jesus. As we make the ascents, we go into different levels of our Christian maturity. “Come, let’s climb God’s mountain, go to the House of the God of Jacob. He’ll show us the way He works so we can live the way we’re made.” (Isaiah 2:3)

I had the privilege of working with a very sweet lady who is now in a powerful battle. She emailed me her journal that she’s been writing since April 28th, and I couldn’t put it down. I blinked away tears as I read all that she’s going through because of women’s great physical enemy: breast cancer. Those are two words that pour terror into a woman’s heart and mind, and what a woman has to physically, mentally and emotionally go through in order to defeat the enemy is a battle that can make you or break you. As I read her journal, I could see Satan at work as he has tried to push her into giving into her fear and the physical pain, and I’m sure as she goes through her treatments, he’ll be prowling around like a roaring lion looking to devour her (1 Peter 5:6). Tracy knows exactly what she’s facing. She knows what breast cancer is all about, because she’s a nurse. When I was 15-years-old and going through painful procedures and paralysis on one side of my body and major surgery to remove a malignant brain tumor followed by learning to walk and see only one of everything again, I was lucky in that I didn’t know or understand all that I was going through. My parents chose to hide the truth from me, and being the trusting child that I was, I believed that it was something simple. When we’re not children anymore, we have to stand and face the calamities of life, knowing that the outcome could possibly be devastating, but we need to remember that our Lord God Almighty is a God of miracles. He who has worked big miracles and little miracles in my life will also work miracles in the lives of others. “For with God nothing shall be impossible.” (Luke 1:37). “Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.” (Jeremiah 32:17) The battles are long and hard, and we can allow Satan to use them to break us, or we can allow God to use them to make us. My long battle made me into the person that I am today. I know Tracy, and I know that her battle with breast cancer is going to make her into a better, stronger person and a better, even more compassionate nurse. In 2 Corinthians 12, we read of Paul’s thorn in the flesh. He begged 3 times for the Lord to take it away, and the Lord told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Did Paul throw a hissy fit? Did Paul allow Satan to use his thorn to break him? No, Paul said, ” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” and “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” We have the strength of our Lord to see us through our battles.

I know a very dear lady whose heart was shattered by our Lord Jesus when she went on a mission trip to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. The experience completely changed her life, and as a result, she made some changes in her life. The same thing happened to me when I watched a preview of “Passion of the Christ” (prior to, so far, seeing it 7 times). When Christ shatters your heart for Him, powerful things start happening in your life. 1 John 3:19 tells us that “God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.” That’s how He can shatter our hearts for Him. Open your heart to Jesus, and allow Him to shatter it for you. His love will amaze you!

Am I nobody? No. I am a Christian. I am not a recluse of the world or a link in the chain of darkness. I am not a seeker of excitement, for my Lord God Almighty brings excitement to each day and pours joy into my heart. I do not need wealth or fame or a fountain of youth. Christ is my Treasure, and all that I do is for Him, and in Him I have eternal life. Am I nobody? No. I am a Christian. I am not perfect , but I am loved. Am I a crystal vase? No, I am a clay pot, cracked and worn and wonderfully used. I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). You see, the cracks don’t matter to the Lord, for He makes all things new (Revelation 21:5). In Him I am a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). In Him I live and move and have my being, for I am His offspring (Acts 17:28). Am I nobody? No, I am of a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God (1 Peter 2:9). I am a Christian.

Sometimes Satan loves to interfere with the work God has called us to do. He loves to make us feel low or incompetent. He loves to stir up trouble. He loves to make us feel discouraged. What does God’s Word say in Hebrews 10:36-39? “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised. For in just a very little while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay. But My righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.” Do you hear what He says? “My righteous one will live by faith.” Faith. Standing firm. Persevering. Do NOT let Satan get in the way of your work for the Lord. Prove how faithful you are to your Lord God Almighty.