"Heartfelt"

 "For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God." (Ecclesiastes 5:7 KJV)

  ""A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad. You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you."" (Matthew 12:33-37 NLT)

 As I was praying about this post today, I was reminded about the point made about keeping a vow, how it is that we must also respect and accept a vow given by God, which is actually more important than any kind of a vow that we might dream up or think about. We should all know, it is easier for God to forgive us of our sins, than it is for us to forgive ourselves; yet we must do so, in order to live in the righteousness that the blood of Christ Jesus has given us! 

 This was the point that Peter made, with regards to our knowledge of Jesus Christ, saying, "But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins." (2 Peter 1:9) We must fully accept God's forgiveness, believing that when He says that our sins have been forgiven, that He means what He says; otherwise, we find ourselves carrying the corpse or that old man strapped on our backs; smelling the odor of that rotting corpse wherever we go; reminding us of the sins we committed. 

 The thing I shared yesterday regarding my issue of being impatient and judgmental, it is really important, because I feel it is something that the Lord wants me to stop doing; I know this, because every time it happens, I feel as though I have quenched the Spirit! If you don't know what that means, it means that you have denied the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, putting your own feelings first, before letting Him control your heart. We must yield to the power of the Holy Spirit! 

 It hurts me to say, but I really believe that I am not alone! As crazy as this might sound, but I really do miss the arguments that my wife and I use to have; not because they were fun, because they were sometimes quit disturbing. But we always ended up yielding to the Holy Spirit, letting Him take over and changing our hearts towards each other, instead of each other wanting our own way. 

 During some of those fights, I knew full well what needed to happen, yet I did not yield myself to the power of the Holy Spirit; not because I did not want to, but because I did not feel like doing it! Sorry for having to share that, but in that moment, that is what I believe that I felt. Oh, how much I wish I could take so many of those moments back! 

 We really need to get a grip and start putting those things behind, letting God have full control of our lives, instead of holding on to those old sins! What does it mean to be justified? Didn't Jesus die for all of our sins? All means all, both then, now, and tomorrow; He has washed us as white as snow...

"Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be encouraging to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:29-32 NLT)