The Lord reminded me that Paul the Apostle of old had TONS of weaknesses and difficulties, and he didn’t like any of them! He asked the Lord THREE times to lift some of this mess from him, and God responded, “My GRACE is sufficient for you, for POWER is PERFECTED in WEAKNESS” (2 Cor. 12:9a).

Then Paul wrote, “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather BOAST ABOUT MY WEAKNESSES so that the POWER OF CHRIST MAY DWELL IN ME” (2 Cor. 12:9b).

Here’s the scoop, then—to TRULY be able to make your boast in Christ, you HAVE experienced, ARE experiencing, and WILL experience various weaknesses, difficulties, insults, distresses…even persecution…in your determination to pursue, love, and obey Jesus fully—both publicly AND privately.

As you are facing various difficulties, you simply do what Paul did—you pull up into the grace of God, allow HIM to fight your battles, and BOAST in your weaknesses [but not in a self-pity sort of way—He’ll even help you with this].

If you’re like me, you’ve tried again and again to conquer your weaknesses and difficulties with your own strength, know-how, and willpower. But Paul lets us in on a sacred secret—holing up in the FAITHFUL GRACE OF GOD and TRUSTING HIS POWER to take over—is SUFFICIENT. God wasn’t lying when He said, “…power is perfected in weakness.”

He who has called you is Faithful, and He WILL bring it to pass (1 Thes. 5:24).

To sum things up—if you—as a believer in Jesus—have never been weak, then you really have NOTHING to boast about. It’s OK to be weak, for then God Himself can work, and He will get the glory.

In that, BOAST!

Dorothy

© 2024, Dorothy Frick

I don’t know how often I have read 2 Timothy, but this verse recently jumped out at me, as if for the first time. I come from a faith tradition that does not preach or teach much on suffering; I know some who do teach about this topic, but it makes sense to me why it’s not an extremely popular or sought after subject. Who wants to be reminded of suffering?

Here I go, anyway.

This phrase in 2 Timothy 1:8 kept rumbling around inside of me—suffering for the gospel according to the power of God—and then shortened to simply suffering…according to the power of God.

I thought of the apostle who wrote this letter to Timothy and how his entire life as a believer in Jesus was punctuated with suffering.

I love comfort. I told God that. But being a realist, I recognize that this life has its share of suffering, and no one is exempt. Whether the suffering comes in the form of rejection, mockery, lack, pain, illness, loneliness, or any number of other sources, it struck me that there is a way to suffer according to the power of God. Therefore, if I am to undergo suffering of any kind, I choose to do so according to the power of God.

Psalm 91:15 reveals an amazing statement from God. It declares, “I will be with you in trouble”. If you are IN trouble of any sort, know this for certain: That is exactly where the Living God is as well. He is WITH YOU. IN TROUBLE. He’s not like so many whose instinct is to ditch you at the first whiff of difficulty. NO. He’s right there with you in the middle of your trouble. Where you suffer. And if you dare to believe that, then you will be empowered to suffer according to the power of God, a suffering in which the Almighty bears the brunt of your pain and will turn it all around for your good. Why? Because HE’S good.

In August of 2003 I underwent bypass surgery to correct an anomalous right coronary artery. When I awoke in ICU, it felt like my chest had been crushed by an 18-wheeler. Immediately the Scripture came to me, “He was wounded for our transgressions. He was CRUSHED for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5a). And I experienced (as I was waking up from a 14 hour stretch of unconsciousness) the Lord’s crushing in place of mine. My pain was still there, but I was keenly aware of the intense pain He endured for all of us and mine became miniscule in comparison. Without being aware of 2 Timothy 1:8, I had entered into suffering according to the power of God.

And today I was reading Hebrews 2. In verse 17 I read that He was made to be like all of us in all things (the Greek meaning of “was made to be” is He “was obligated to be”. That means if He refused to be made like us in all things, then none of us would ever taste the freedom of being forgiven and cleansed or the joy of experiencing the love of God and eternal life with Him. For us to be fully accepted in Christ, He was obligated to become human…and hence, to suffer like we suffer—and beyond.

Hebrews 2:18 continues, “For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.”

There is something about suffering that is readily linked to being tempted. Resisting temptation carries a form of suffering—you refuse to pamper or give into whatever is luring you to disobey God. However, I saw something deeper here as well. Suffering of all varieties brings with it great temptation to be outraged at God and ditch HIM for all kinds of reasons. “Why did this happen? I PRAYED!” “Why won’t this go away? I don’t get it! I did everything the Bible says to do and I still hurt (lack, feel depressed, am lonely, etc.)”

Jesus was tempted in the very things He suffered. Don’t think He wasn’t tempted like we are when we suffer to scream, cry, yell, question God and tell Him off, slap faces, punch holes in the wall, kick the dog or cat, and throw an absolute hissy fit and a great big pity party! But He didn’t. Why not? Because He suffered according to the power of God. And in that, He conquered temptation and never gave in to a bit of it.

This verse goes on to say that as a result of His temptation in the things He suffered (and the inferred overcoming of it all), He is ABLE—He has the POWER—to come to the aid of all those who are tempted. That includes you.

Are you in the middle of some kind of suffering that is tempting you to question your faith and everything you know about God? Then you qualify to receive His ability and His power to aid, assist, and support you right where you are, in whatever condition you find yourself.

The victory is not in avoiding suffering altogether (although He so often is gracious to cause us to bypass it), nor is the victory in how short the suffering lasts (although He frequently brings about quick deliverances).

The victory IS found by fixing our eyes on Jesus despite whatever we may be suffering, and to know that the Greater One IS at work in our lives and that He will turn this whole situation around for good. Press on despite it all. Victory IS yours.

This is how you suffer according to the power of God.

Dorothy

© 2023, Dorothy Frick

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4

Consider it all JOY?? If you are anything like the various people I’ve been keeping up with, your life is getting hit from all sides with varying levels of agitation, piles of distraction, a suffocating sense of cabin fever, perhaps overwhelming grief or loneliness, concerns about finances and health, and the creeping helplessness of uncertainty. I could list all of the things hitting me, but your list is probably longer and more intense! HELP!

But when I gazed on that phrase, consider it all joy, it brought a smile to my face and a sense of relief to the pit of my stomach. Oh, yeah!! I remembered. God is capable of helping me through all of this!

Yup. The trials are here. We are all encountering them, big and small, piled up and weighing us down with all the typical symptoms of stress and anxiety. That means every one of us qualifies for this James 1 exhortation, and the good news is this: We will emerge on the other side of every one of these trials!

You and I may not see instant results, though. That’s OK, because the main ingredient in making it successfully through any trial that hits you (next to leaning hard on Jesus) is ENDURANCE. Perseverance. Not giving up. Knowing that this trial—and all of these trials—will be behind you at some point.

You have made it through past trials. God steadied you, covered you, assisted you…He was there with you back then; He is with you now. He is faithful. That is what you nail your endurance to—His faithfulness to you. Bind yourself to that Rock with the good sturdy rope of Truth and refuse to untie it. He will see you through every one of these tests, both great and small. He loves you.

As you hunker down in tight proximity with Him, endurance will be working on your behalf by the hand of God. Oh, so subtly, but oh, so thoroughly, endurance will have its perfect work. You will make it through Trial 1. You will make it through Trial 2. You will make it through Trial 3….and all the rest of those attacks against your peace, your health, your finances, your sanity, your loved ones, and maybe even your very life.

Most of all, though, you will have walked through this season—perhaps while feeling like a total loser—choosing to fix not only your gaze but your entire being as well on the Capable One who loves you and is willing to hold you close. As you do, my friend, you will find at the end of this onslaught of piled up trials, that you will be perfect (as opposed to destroyed) and complete, lacking nothing.

May God, the Capable One, help all of us.

Dorothy

© 2020, Dorothy Frick

“Because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:12-13

This applies to all of us. Guard your hearts out there.

Many people “liked” the post; some commented and expressed their exhaustion with our cultural conversational warfare. In response to the back and forth, I posted this:

“We must all do our best to apply this warning of Jesus to our own thoughts, attitudes, and conversations with everyone. The temptation to hate those who think differently than we is cleverly coated with a sense of self-righteousness…but to resist that, we’ve got to be shrewd as serpents, harmless as doves.

“The thing that hit me about our current Catholic kid story is when I recognized that BOTH SIDES of the commenters have similarly intense strong convictions–right or wrong–AND similar responses of offended self-righteousness toward one another! I saw that for us to be effective, we must learn to navigate NOT ONLY the issues in question, but also our own sense of being slighted, disrespected, or being misunderstood. And when attacked, it matters not which side of an issue we are on, if our RESPONSE is from wounded ego, hurt feeling, offense, or bruised pride, we aren’t going to effect the change that we so desire to bring about…we will do the opposite of what we want: We will push people further into what we perceive as delusion. Goes for both sides!

“That’s why I believe many progressives are currently shooting themselves in the foot…they are reacting so strongly, so vehemently, and so judgmentally. People who don’t take sides are really getting their fill of that (think Kavanaugh confirmation era viciousness) and tend to want to side with the less “spit-spewing” side. Those of us who embrace a more conservative, traditional worldview can be every bit as tempted to react with similar vehemence, judgmentalism, and dogged self-righteousness. However, when we speak our peace in love, are patient when wronged, honest, bold, yet never vicious, we can watch what God will do. He will help us!”

Praying that each of us press on to “study to show ourselves approved” not only in CONTENT but also in DELIVERY.

Dorothy

© 2019, Dorothy Frick

Have you ever waded into the breached dam of contention? Before you know it, you find yourself swept away in a torrent of hurt feelings and strife. Family members or friends dear to your heart seem like bitter enemies after such an encounter. Your soul stings with every thought of them; the pain demands resolution, but fear of stepping back into the flood waters of angry words and dredged up past transgressions freezes you into inactivity.

Perhaps you’ve never experienced this. Perhaps you navigate relationships with grace, thoughtfulness, and dignity, confronting every disagreement with wisdom, kindness, and fairness, humbly taking into consideration your own weaknesses as well, bringing every potential conflict to a quick, peaceful, and loving resolution.

I WISH I could say this about myself. I cannot. You see, I have found myself in the tango of turmoil more than once, even after swearing to myself “NEVER AGAIN” and committing to wise and peaceful discussions—or deflections—whichever seems to suit my fellow “disagreer”.

How, how, how, I asked myself recently, do I train myself to abandon the quarrel before it busts down the dam?

Well, the Lord came through for me (yay, God!) with some instruction as I was seeking Him about this. Instruction is good; doing it is better.

Unfortunately, living in this fallen world, I will have ample opportunity to practice. Not sure I’ll be always be proficient; but as a child of the King, He will help me every time I fall to get back up again. It is my fervent desire to grow in this and to put into practice what He has shown me.

Here’s the Scripture the Lord dropped on me as I prayed. First Corinthians 10:13 is a lengthy verse, but it’s enormously helpful. It says

“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

Standing on the edge of an ill-advised quarrel is definitely a temptation. Your pulse quickens as you think of defending of your honor and exposing how very wrong the other person is. However, throwing yourself into the quarrel sucks you right up the vacuum cleaner—trapping you and your “sparring partner” with all of the other dirt!

As I prayed about this verse, God plopped a four-point flow chart down on the inside of me revealing how to deal with the beginning of strife, any time, any place. As an acronym, the first letters of the words He gave me spells the word “ALTAR”—the very spot you must place yourself at the onset of strife—that is, if you want to invite God’s intervention.

1. ALERT! The Lord showed me that with my most recent quarrel, I had let down my guard. The quarrel had started before I even knew what was happening—and soon enough, I was in the thick of things and neither of us were benefitted. Had I been on the alert, I would have recognized the flashing warning signals…and I would have abandoned the quarrel before it started! It is because we live in a fallen, troubled world that we must be diligent to maintain vigilant, prayerful alertness for the signs of impending “tit-for-tat” verbal “slap fights” (which sometimes manifest as “helpful insights” into the other person’s secret motives or varied dysfunctions) before we get swept up in the flood of contention and hurt.
2. LOOK to the Lord. Once you realize that you and your friend are cruisin’ for a contention bruisin’, immediately force your attention to the One who loves both of you. Look to the Lord for help; don’t look to your mental database for a quick list of past transgressions they’ve committed against you. If you will take charge right then—right when the strife starts—and quietly invite the Lord into the conversation, I believe God will arrive on the scene to intervene.
3. TRUST Him. He has answers, solutions, and a way of escape. As you are busy trusting Him, your mind won’t be hashing and rehashing your best comeback to their points against you. Trusting Him to do what He does best—being God—will open the door for Him to step into the middle of your situation.
4. AND (Don’t leave this next part out!)
5. RECEIVE the way of escape. As soon as you are alert to the onset of strife, look to God and trust Him to open up your escape route…and He will. Your next step? Abandon the quarrel, receive the way of escape He’ll provide—and take it…all the while resisting the urge to land one last jab.

I realize this set of steps—ALTAR—seems simplistic. However, the weeks, months, and years of hurt and blame that emerge from the crippling incapacitation of verbal slap fights consisting of dominance-jockeying, recitation of past transgressions, labeling/name-calling, and harsh judgments destroy relationships and send many lives down bitter dead-end paths of sullen despair, callous resentment, or defeated hopelessness.

By no means does Scripture teach that confrontation is always harmful; the Bible calls us to go to the brother who has offended and speak to him about it. It also urges us to go to the people we hurt and apologize. We are even called to bring a word of correction to one who has strayed. However, never are we commanded to jockey for dominance, recite old laundry-lists of transgressions, brand each other with demeaning labels, or hit one another with harsh judgments.

May God help all of us as we navigate the ups and downs of every relationship in our lives.

Dorothy

If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.  Romans 12:1

One morning toward the end of 2016 as I was keeping my appointment with God, I heard this snatch of a verse: “…to turn the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous.” I looked it up and found it in the book of Luke. It was the angel’s proclamation to Zacharias, John the Baptist’s father, about this yet-to-be conceived child.

I thought about my generation and the swelling tide of disobedience and chaos throughout the earth…particularly in America. I want nothing more than to see an outpouring of hunger and thirst for the things of God and a moving of His Spirit upon every living soul in this generation—including the rebellious.

As I began praying about this, however, I glanced back at the Scripture open upon my lap. In my New American Standard Bible one phrase was capitalized to show it was an Old Testament quote. It read this way:

…TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN…

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from it. I knew God was showing me something I’d never thought about before. And then it hit me: The hearts of the fathers had drifted away from their children, and it was epidemic in our culture and world—and this turning away—this gross disinterest—was responsible for most of the chaos and upheaval surrounding us.

I thought of my dad and his difficulty with showing affection. I thought of his temper and tendency toward punitive actions and belittling words. And yet despite his massive flaws and mistakes I knew his heart was for me…and knowing that had helped to keep me somewhat steady in life.

Then I thought of my days as a camp counselor. We all knew it: you were either staff-oriented or camper-oriented—you either put the kids first or you prioritized hanging out with or flirting with other counselors.

I also thought about my teaching career. I had observed some who consistently arrived to school as late as possible and left right after the buses. There were those who sat in the lounge “chill-axin’”throughout every break; others stayed glued to their computer most of the day; and toward the end of my career, as smart phones worked their way onto the scene, I knew of teachers who constantly texted back and forth to each other while supervising students.

I thought of ministries and para-ministries, men and women in governmental positions (both elected and appointed), business leaders and executives, even those in volunteer roles—and yes, fathers and mothers. In every one of these cases, I could instinctively recognize those who prioritized “my ministry; my office; my position; my career; my needs; my desires; my gifting; my talent; my abilities; my expertise, my insight” above everything else. These were the ones—the “fathers”—of whom the angel spoke, whether they were male or female; whether they had children of their own or not.

These were the ones whose hearts had turned away from the children. These were the ones who viewed with gross disinterest those entrusted to their stewardship . These were the ones whose hearts were stuck on self.

You see, my dad was extremely dysfunctional and often unkind; but he wasn’t stuck on self. There’s a big difference.

And I then I saw it. Our nation doesn’t so much need a spiritual outpouring on the disobedient; instead, what we desperately need is a move of God on the fathers—on every last one of us called to leadership in any capacity—whether to steward, shepherd, teach, nurture, guide, direct, correct, or oversee anyone else. Without such a move, the full outpouring of the Holy Ghost upon the rebellious, the disobedient, and the unpersuadable will be stifled.

The hearts of those in leadership must be broken and redirected once again to genuine care for those under their oversight.

And as for the rest of us? I sense the same is true for both you and me: Consider your ways toward those entrusted to you—whether they be many or few. Is your heart genuinely toward them—sincerely listening, pondering, and probing the Spirit of God on their behalf—or is there some “stick-age” in your stewardship—gross disinterest—stuck on self?

Don’t feel bad if you discover you’ve been stuck on self; all of us have been to some extent or other. But now it’s time for the One who has stewardship over each one of us to correct, redirect, and transform our focus, unsticking our stick-age, and to bring our hearts into alignment with His heart…turning us back in genuine concern for those He’s entrusted to each one of us…eradicating any remnant of gross indifference from our souls.

And I believe that as those of us in any leadership capacity at all will yield to Him and turn in real compassion toward those He’s given us, then “the disobedient and incredulous and unpersuadable” will turn “to the wisdom of the upright” (see Amplified Classic) and be transformed.

Lord, prepare us to follow You fully—even in this!

Dorothy

My grandma was the only light in the family for years and years and through her untiring witness and prayers, God supernaturally pulled me out of the darkness in which I was drowning, and set me upon the Rock of my salvation. And even though my grandma is no longer here, those prayers she prayed are still before God, still powerful, and still moving on the hearts and minds of her other grandchildren—whether they know it or not—and now this granddaughter is in full agreement with those decades-old prayers.

My grandma was a Southern Baptist dynamo. She was so passionate about her family having a saving relationship with Jesus that the majority of them despised her for it. Sure, they loved her, but they thought she was a religious fanatic, and she made them very uncomfortable.  And they let her know it.

Grandma’s three daughters all pulled out of the Oklahoma dust-bowl Depression to put themselves through college. Each one married intellectual men—my mom married an engineer and my two aunts married professors (one of whom was rumored to be a card-carrying member of the Communist party). Grandma’s pleas of “Are you saved?” rubbed every one of them the wrong way, but she didn’t care. As a kid, I was fascinated by the dynamics and secretly admired her refusal to be bullied out of what was widely viewed by the family to be an offensive and ridiculous stance. I loved my grandma and never felt threatened by her faith.

Grandma, I am sure, prayed nearly as much as she preached, and years later, even though the others in my generation of the family seemed to embrace worldviews far different than hers, I was still seeking.

One night, during a particularly stressful Christmas break, I was sitting in a bar getting drunk as quickly as I could. My friends, all dolled up, were on the prowl for good-looking guys, but I wanted nothing of that. You see, my step-grandma (my dad’s step-mom) had just passed away, and days before Christmas I had surgery to remove a large mass from my breast. As a nineteen year old, right before I went into surgery, I was required to sign a paper stating that the doctors could remove the breast if cancer was found. Although I was relieved to learn that the mass was benign, I was not in a good frame of mind.

So there I was, in a bar that served 19 year olds, getting drunk and spiraling down into cynicism and despair. I absent-mindedly watched as the band played song after song and the patrons danced in front of the musicians. When I noticed that the revelers were swaying with their arms lifted up, I heard a voice in my ear, “Lifted hands are a sign of worship.”

I dropped my head and said, “I’m in hell.”

Days later, while alone at my parents’ home, Jesus visited me, and Grandma’s prayers were answered.

Don’t you give up on your loved ones. Prayers over distance and time are powerful tools in the hand of God. You can be sure that He is working behind the scenes on behalf of a loved one—or a nation—if you don’t grow weary and give up. Stick with it. Don’t quit!

Dorothy

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for… Hebrews 11:1a

A guest speaker recently preached at my church and exhorted us about hope. Hope is second of the 1 Corinthians 13 “fruit” trio—faith, hope, and love (see verse 13); and unfortunately, like the proverbial middle child, hope is often underestimated, under-recognized, and easily brushed aside as less significant. After all, without faith it is impossible to please God; and the greatest of the three is love. Where does that leave hope?

I wish you could have heard the message; it was a life-changing, revolutionary spark which ignited the forgotten kindling of hope in my heart, fueling the dormant furnace within me. Hope. It must be guarded. It must be nurtured. It must be fueled. It must be fed.

The man of God spoke from Hebrews 11, the famous chapter about faith. ”Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony” (Hebrews 11:1-2, NKJV; emphasis added). He pointed out that mighty faith in God exists only because hope existed first. If a man has no hope, he will not have faith. Hope must be present first because it gives faith something to give substance to.

When you are under attack, you know to resist the devil (see James 4:7). However, if he can get you to believe that your situation is hopeless by wearing you down (which is his goal), your faith will diminish because it has nothing with which to work. “Faith is the substance…”means that your faith undergirds, supports, and gives substance to something—that for which you hope. But if hope is gone, faith undergirds nothing. If hope is gone, faith supports nothing. If hope is gone, faith gives substance to…nothing.

I don’t know about you, but I was shocked to realize how insidiously the enemy had been chipping away at my hope reservoir, using all kinds of methods and angles in his evil hope-erosion strategy. The man of God posed this question to us: “Do you expect as much as you used to?” Then he bluntly stated, “If we’re honest, we really don’t.”

Do nagging limitations, fears of what others might think, or past disappointments loom larger in your mind than expectations based on the Word of God and the Holy Spirit’s leading? If you find you are managing expectations so as to protect yourself against disappointment, then you are granting “open season” to the enemy of your soul to chip away at your hope without any restriction.

Give yourself permission to hope again. Give yourself permission to pull out those dreams, blow off the dust, and let the Lord reinstate them however He desires. Let that smoldering ember of hope deep down in your belly burst back into flame, warming your heart, enlightening your eyes, and reestablishing your vision.

The man of God described hope this way: it keeps the avenue open for tomorrow to be better. Think about it. Tomorrow can be better! Next week can be sweeter! Next month can be an improvement on this month! Next year? Better than this one! You are the gatekeeper of your hope, not the devil, not your friends, not the people in the pew across the church. And as gatekeeper, you have the authority not to allow them or the world or even your past to steal your hope from you any longer.

If you—like most of us—are facing a delay in the fulfillment of your vision, dreams, or desires, you are the gatekeeper of your hope, nonetheless. You cannot allow delay—however long it may be—to bring disappointment and discouragement into your soul any longer. You’ve got to guard your hope; therefore, choose to view every delay you face as God’s opportunity to work behind the scenes, heaping up blessings to pour out upon you at just the right time.

Always be willing to believe “crazy” things—impossible things that align with the Word of God. Be willing, like Caleb and Joshua of old, to possess the land—whatever that land is for you. Let God lead you—He is the author of your hope (as well as your faith)—and He will awaken the slumbering vision He once implanted within you and will reignite the dreams lying dormant in your heart.

Never surrender to hopelessness. Don’t give it place any longer. But my hope has been deferred and now my heart is sick, you may think. Granted, the Word does say “hope deferred makes the heart sick” (see Proverbs 13:12); but that’s a far cry from saying “stuff deferred” or “situations deferred” make the heart sick! You see, you are the gatekeeper of your hope. You determine whether hope stays or goes; not your circumstances, not your unmanifested dreams—and not the devil!

Because your faith grabs hold of what you’re hoping for, you must guard your hope with vigilant watchfulness. Don’t let anything steal it. Stand your ground and allow your heavenly Father to rekindle hope for your future. Believe again that all the fruitful purposes God has planned for you will come to pass. Believe again that by His grace you will see the manifested blessings of God abound day by day for the rest of your life—starting today.

Let your hope spring forth again!

Dorothy

For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. Romans 5:5, Amplified Bible

Well, I didn’t see it at all until the Lord spoke up in my spirit. He said, “You’re wasting time right now!”

“What?!” I wondered.

“You’re wasting time by focusing on how much time you’ve wasted!”

This  jerked my thoughts to a screeching halt and brought me back to reality: I am loved! I am forgiven! I am cleansed! His mercies are new every morning! He isn’t counting that against me!

As I soaked it in, a familiar song floated up from my spirit. I sang, “I worship You, Almighty God. There is none like You. I worship You, oh Prince of Peace—that is what I want to do…”

I knew He was helping me. I kept singing.

“I give You praise, for You are my righteousness…”

And then in a flash, I saw it. All of my concern over my time use, my fruit, my impact, my output, my results—all of it—was allowing the enemy to sneak in to set up shop in my mind all over again. And I realized that every bit of “my, my, my” was simply dust and rubbish in the grand scheme of things. “My, my, my” good stuff was never really mine in the first place (apart from Him I can do nothing); “my, my, my” bad stuff (including wasted time!) was nailed to the cross! What really matters here and now—and on into Eternity—is one simple truth: Jesus is my righteousness. Upon Him alone rests my right-standing with God.

As I meditated on that phrase in the song—“for You are my righteousness”—I sensed again His cleansing, lifting presence surrounding me, soothing me, comforting me, and refilling me with hope and grace and strength.

I knew this truth about righteousness. I had walked in this truth. But I almost allowed the devil to rob me of that truth again despite the fact that I’ve walked with the Lord most of my life. Never—not even if I walk with the Lord for a hundred years of wonderfully fruitful service to God on this earth—will I ever be able to rely on my own righteousness, my own fruitfulness, my own impact, my own output, or my own results. The only truth worthy of reliance is this: Jesus Christ willingly died for me and because of that, I am free to lay aside my own feeble attempts at producing righteousness, fruit, impact, output, and results. I have received—free of charge—His righteousness, and therefore, as I humbly follow Him, I can leave whatever good that may come out of my life—and every bit of wasted time, as well—in His hands.

And that’s an offer I refuse to refuse!

Dorothy

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21