The magnified mirror

 

I’m not one to fuss too much when it comes to grooming, however now that I am in the “bush” up north visiting my beloved sister where they (husband and wife team) manage a game reserve and the room I am staying in has a portable mirror with one side magnified, which got me thinking… as Christians our default action automatically drives us away from certain practices, things like running with the crowd as we once did, for me it was wine, women and song. People are watching and they observe the change and in turn ask the question what has transpired? The answer is an obvious one, we walked into the path of Jesus Christ our Lord and therefore the change had to happen. He has altered our outlook on life, we now no longer run like we once did, that type of lifestyle does not interest us anymore. However, just like the mirror, once I flipped it over, the other side was a magnified, that’s what I now want to explore. The secret sins that so many of us keep alive must be addressed. The things we think we will get away with because it isn’t obvious to the outside world and therefore we hang onto them as if it isn’t a serious matter. But it is! I am well aware of my struggles and so are you, whatever the struggle. The issues of the heart must be tackled head on. Any thought that we act upon behind closed doors, when it opposes the will of God for our lives must no longer be allowed to gain traction. The question I ask, what about the secret sins in our lives? What will we do with that part of our lives? We must find the grace of God to deal with them appropriately. Unless we flip the magnified mirror into that part of our lives nothing will ever change.

 

We have not been called to a life of the undercover agents of the world, God sees all. Remember David even tried to hide his sin and we all know how that ended. For a time he was living without the peace of God in his life and his son died because of it. But thank God for His patience with us all. Once that was address he was freed to serve God with liberty. Let us therefore be true to ourselves and let us all pray to find the same freedom, but for that to happen we must be real about the issues of the heart. The Christians relationship with their God is personal, so stop trying to excuse that part of your life that is hampering your growth.

Here is how those thoughts need to be dealt with. Certain thoughts happen without too much planning, in other words the thoughts that pop into our brains which are contrary to our great Saviours character, happen from time to time, but it’s what we do with them that matters. Do we realise that when acted upon we are sinning against our Father, or do we view it as a very light matter? Do we use the grace of God in our lives as a blanket to cover them up as if it doesn’t really matter, it matters! This life is all about working out how we can live on earth as if we were already walking the streets of God in heaven; “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”, this thought must become our reality and a way of life. This is a reason why Christ paved the way for God’s children. Our carnal instinct will always drive us towards “let grace abound” and we should all know by now what Paul teaches on that subject; “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1-2)

 

So how are we to deal with those thoughts that “pop” into our heads? The obvious answer would be to find grace to put off the “old person”, just like a scorpion has a sting so does death and that sting is sin. Newness of life in Christ has an opposite effect, which is peace and life. Old things, old lifestyles must be eradicated from our existences. But the reality of it all, if given half the chance, sin will look to remain alive. We must look with intent to deal with all that robs us of the victory that is now ours in Christ. This is a process that we will war with until we take our last breath here on earth.

 

Let’s now look at the process we face on a daily basis; “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”  (James 1:13-15) – And yet in the same breath we must be tested in those areas of our lives, we will be lead to face them somewhere along the path. It’s the secret sins that we accommodate in our lives that we must now find grace to overcome. Let us all be aware of the reality we face and fall to our knees as we seek out God’s graces in our lives to overcome and nullify those thoughts, which in turn glorifies our heavenly Father. It’s all about His will for our lives and not our carnal selfish wants, those itches that need to be scratched must be ignored. Or rather dealt with in the right manner, we must stop making excuses for our weaknesses. Like the Italian man who has a temper and says “it’s not my fault I was born with a European temperament.” We all have our own crosses to bear. Remember the anguish the Lord went through and bring His experience to mind and that will help us call out for God’s grace to overcome. Did you know that it’s the grace of God in our lives that teaches our heart to fear…

 

“Let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” (James 5:20)  

 

Signing off

 

Tyrone