It's Not Your Fault

It's not my fault! Isn't that the cry of the human heart?! Nobody had to teach my kids to say that when something goes wrong. Isn't that what us adults still say? But we say it in a more intelligent way as we logically point out the deviant who's clogging up the system, all to say (with a sigh of relief) "Look, it's NOT me!".  Adam & Eve infamously stated "it wasn't me, it was that woman you gave me," or "it was the snake's fault," as their most convincing argument of their innocence for God Almighty in the Garden.

"It wasn't me, it was the one-armed man!"

Maybe we'll all be relieved to know that we've been telling the truth all along: it's NOT your fault!!! This statement that irritates anyone who's ever been on the receiving end is actually the truth! Maybe there's a reason this statement is so deeply embedded into us. Maybe it's for a GOOD reason--not some lame cop out.

So here it is: GOD LOVES YOU AND IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT! You didn't have to DO anything for God to love you! You don't have to earn His love. You don't have to act a certain way, be a certain way, do a certain thing, think a certain thought or feel certain feelings! You don't have to focus to say the right thing or work to become better or make yourself more compliant or strong or appealing or acceptable...God loves you and it's NOT YOUR FAULT! 

Now, some of you are thinking, "Don't you have to believe in God for Him to love you?" But scripture says God loved us BEFORE we were Jesus followers (Romans 5:8). He WANTS to be with us no matter where we go (Psalm 139:8)! He will NEVER abandon us (Colossians 1:21)! We don't have to become good enough for God to accept us (Colossians 1:22)! He's a good Daddy who WANTS to give us stuff (Romans 8:32)! He's done all the work for us while we just bask in His unconditional love (Ephesians 2:8-9)!

God made it so easy: you don't have to try to remember all the Bible verses or sermons or flowery inspirational thoughts so you can make God happy--I don't know about you, but those things don't just jump into my brain when I actually need them. And when I rely on myself to get me out of a jam, I'm just setting myself up for failure. Why? Because I could have done it better! Always! The more I know, the more I have to remember, the more I'm accountable for, the more I have to do to feel like I did it right! If only I were more _______! If only I had said _______! If only I'd done _______! I've NEVER MEASURED UP! I've never felt like I've done anything PERFECT! Not once! Not even on my best days!

So, throw all that away and exchange it for the intoxicating thought that the God of the universe lives inside of you! He loves you! He has everything you'll ever need and more! And He loves you just the way you are and it's not your fault! God accepts you the way you are and it's not your fault! God wants to be with you and it's not your fault! 

 

You didn't do anything to earn it, you can't do anything to lose it...GOD IS CRAZY ABOUT YOU AND IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!

A Reminder: You're AWESOME!!!

Today, I DARE YOU to read this and not feel AWESOME!  

These are reminders of the promises God has for you taken straight out of the Bible. Scripture references follow--check it out!

So, if no one's told you lately--let me remind you of 

HOW AWESOME YOU ARE!!!

I'm under God's Grace (Unmerited Favor).

He calls me Beloved.

I make God happy.

God chose me.

God selected me.

My life is worthwhile, meaningful, gratifying and will leave a legacy.

Before He laid down the Earth's foundations, God had me in mind.

I am holy and blameless before God.

I've been adopted by God Himself.

God has kind intentions for me.

I have an inheritance.

God works EVERYTHING that happens to me for my good.

I am accepted.

God gave me the right to become His own child.

Whether or not my parents were aware of it, God planned my birth!

I have the Spirit of God in my heart.

I have a close relationship with Jesus, the Son of the Creator of the universe!

If I'm tired and worn out, Jesus will give me rest.

God DOES NOT disapprove of me or reject me.

I've been rescued.

I've been transferred from darkness to the Kingdom of Heaven.

I've been forgiven.

I've been made NEW.

My wrongs have been overlooked.

My faults have been removed.

I'm a new creature.

My old self no longer exists, there's a BRAND NEW version of ME.

NEXT ON MY AGENDA: WORLD TAKEOVER DUE TO AWESOMENESS!!!

And here's Bible-proof of why you're so dang awesome:

To the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved."

Ephesians 1:6

"Therefore also we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him."

2 Corinthians 5:9

"You did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you."

John 15:16

"Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him, In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will."

Ephesians 1:5

"Also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will."

Ephesians 1:11

"Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God."

Romans 15:7

"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh not of the will of man, but of God."

John 1:12

"Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge."

2 Corinthians 1:21

God is faithful, through whom  I was called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ my Lord."

1 Corinthians 1:9

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. "

Matthew 11:28

"Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

Romans 8:1

"And you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority."

Colossians 2:10

"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Colossians 1:14

"There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

Romans 8:1

"He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."

Psalm 103:10, 12

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away"

Mean People Suck!

Christians can be really...mean! Sometimes we're the most fake, gossipy, judgmental people on the planet. Heck, I don't even like to refer to myself as a Christian just because of the negative connotation it has in our generation--and I'm a pastor! I mean, have you ever been flipped off by a driver with a Christian fish on their car? I think we can all relate.

As the ambassadors of Christ, Christians inform the world around us of who Jesus is. Mahatma Gandhi said it best "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

Jesus taught us about patience. Jesus taught us about kindness. Jesus taught us that God is merciful. So, when do we need mercy and kindness and patience shown to us? When life is full of rainbows and kitties? NO! When it sucks that we just made some mistake that we're embarrassed of! That's when we need mercy! And that's when God gives us unmerited favor--when we need it--when we messed up! 

This seems just the opposite of what most of us have been taught: when we're "good" God is patient and kind to us but when we're "bad" God leaves us until we straighten up and act right...then eventually God is once again available in our life. But that's just a horribly mean way to treat people! Jesus already paid our debt! We don't have to earn our right to be accepted by God--that's already been taken care of by Jesus! We are never rejected, God's with us all the time!

Maybe we Christians forget this freeing revelation...maybe we were taught to jump through hoops and so we think everybody else needs to. Regardless, let's forgive those who've hurt us and begin a NEW generation of believers who are so in love with Jesus that we act like Him and promote His teachings of GRACE, KINDNESS, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE and LOVE! 

That's the kind of Christian who WILL CHANGE THE WORLD!

Hebrews 4:16 Let us have confidence, then, and approach God's throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it.

--Heidi Elznic

Criminal Finds Success

This past week I was reminded of the first time I stole something. I started my criminal record as a hardened 3 years old, and I stole a Siamese kitten from my grandparent's cat's recent litter. I wanted that kitten, but my parents said no. So as we got ready to leave my grandparent's house, I quickly tucked the little ball of fluff under my coat while my parents were busy saying their goodbyes. 

Now, I don't know how I thought I was going to keep this cat a secret but I guess somehow I thought it would work out, so I was terrified when a few miles down the road a faint "mew" escaped from inside of my coat! My Dad slammed on the breaks and began to scold me, but with my Mom's coaxing he saw how much I wanted the kitten and that's how I got to keep my Siamese cat named Tiger...and how I saw the benefits of theft. (Check out next week's blog "Stealing is BAD") Growing up, Tiger and I were inseparable: he seemed to know he was my cat, he slept on my bed every night and just days after I went to college, my Mom found that old cat had died on my bed, curled up in his sleep. The memory of stealing Tiger brought up all the emotions of fear turning to joy that I had experienced as a 3 year old boy.

Remembering the good that's happened in our lives awakens powerful emotions. 

Unfortunately, the same happens when we're reminded of the negative events in our lives: we instantly become discouraged and frustrated.

Negative memories actually take up more space in our brains than positive memories since we usually process the negative over and over. It's like a movie playing in our minds as we watch the negative event unfold and soon we're thinking about how we could have done it better, what we should have said, and the frustration of our failures. But we don't have to watch this movie! We CAN change the channel.

We can't move on to the good things Jesus has in store for us if we stay on the bad.

Bad breaks happen to us all so we have to train our minds to remember the good. God never told us to remember our defeats. Just imagine what would happen if we'd spend our time going over our successes instead of our defeats! 

In the past, God instructed His people to throw week-long parties several times a year just to celebrate their victories! We can celebrate our victories everyday if we just take a moment to dwell on how we met our spouse, when we kicked an addiction, how Jesus set us free, or the memory of the day our kids were born--God gave us amazing victories before, He can do it again! 

Go over all the successes in life: remember how God protected you when you couldn't protect yourself, advanced you beyond what you were qualified to do, helped you make the right decision...or gave you a childhood friend when what you really deserved was a spanking! Remember the WIN--not all the mistakes made in the process!

Don't stay busy remembering what you should be forgetting. Pay attention to your thoughts and emotions--change the channel when it's negative. We all have bad breaks sometimes, but it's worth the effort to remember all the GOOD God has done for us!

Our Lord, I will remember the things You have done, Your miracles of long ago. I will think about each one of Your mighty deeds. Everything You do is right, and no other god compares with You. Psalm 77:11-13