"Get It Out!" -2

"If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:" (Psalms 66:18) Talk about a tale of two brothers, Cain had no desire whatsoever to love his brother; he had pretty much made up his mind that he had a right to express what he felt in his heart. That is exactly the point! He felt bitterness in his heart and he needed to get it out; obviously, he chose the wrong way to get it out! Now let me try to understand: Cain regarded iniquity in his heart, yet he talked with God; not only that, but he talked with God regarding the iniquity that he held within his heart; interesting concept, don't you think? You see, I am under the understanding that we must bring our issues before the Lord, and then it is God who draws them out of us; it is God who can change our hearts, if we so desire to be changed. Cain, on the other hand, did not desire to be changed; he was offended, and he wanted revenge for the offense that he felt he had been dealt. The point I was trying to make about "regard", is that it pretty much means you're holding onto something that you should be getting out of your heart; not dissecting it, looking after it, or even considering it; it needs to be gotten rid of, and there is only one way that we are getting rid of iniquity in our heart, and that is by giving it to God!!! Do you want to be changed? That is the real question! The question is not "How?", because it's pretty much a miracle when it happens; but it is just a matter of turning it over to God, saying, "God, please remove this bitterness from my heart; I want to love, as you love me." This is why I said this verse has two parts, as in, separated from God's fellowship is a choice that we make by not letting God separate us from iniquity...
"If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion - how can God's love be in that person? Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and He knows everything. Dear friends, if we don't feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from Him whatever we ask because we obey Him and do the things that please Him. And this is the commandment: We must believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. Those that obey God's commandments remain in fellowship with Him, and He with them. And we know He lives in us because the Spirit He gave us lives in us." (1 John 3:17-24) NLT