5 April 13 Finally?

I have been a carnal Christian for so long now that with my recent breakthroughs, it feels like getting saved all over again. I know that I was saved when I first received Christ. I know that Christ has been with me ever since. But when I say that I was a carnal Christian, I mean that I still had not truly grasped one of the key components of being a Follower of Christ. I was still putting myself first, thinking of me before I thought of others. I was Joyce Meyer's proverbial "What About Me? What About Me?" robot. :)

And still my God loves me. Still my Savior intercedes on my behalf before the Father. Thanks to this current study of the Gospel of John that the Life Group I attend is doing, I have grown closer to Jesus. I am only now truly beginning to understand the "fullness of Christ." And it was all my fault. I now understand why I must "renew my mind daily" (Romans 12:1). Jesus is the Word. (John 1:1) I prayed so many times for God to let me get as close to Him as possible. God kept telling me over and over through various media that all I needed to do was study His Word. Unfortunately, I didn't get it. But, by His grace, I have it now. :)

Does this mean that I am perfect now? Nope. That's why I must renew my mind daily. That's why I must submit every thought to obedience in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). That's why I must spend time in His presence. I am still mortal. I am still flesh. And until Jesus calls me home, I will struggle with temptation. I will also have problems, struggles, make mistakes, and do stupid stuff. But now I have Jesus. When I spend time in His Word, I become more familiar with His ways. When I spend time in His presence, I become more familiar with His voice. And then when His Holy Spirit Who now dwells in me speaks, I can hear Him clearly. When a situation comes up and I must choose to put myself or someone else first, it becomes my nature to do that because the more time I spend with God, the more like Him I become. The more time I spend with Jesus, the more sense it makes to me to forgive someone than not to. The more time I spend with Jesus, the less time I spend thinking about myself. I find my thoughts are on the well-being and needs of others instead.

Jesus loves me. Plain and simple. Does it mean that I get a free ride and can do whatever I want? Nope. Not if I really love Him. His Word tells me that people will know that I love Him because I keep His commandments. (John 13:35) I think that my biggest problem since I was first saved was that I just wanted to "date" Jesus. I wasn't quite ready to sell out every area of my life. I had my own agendas. But when I finally got serious about getting to know Him, He did not hesitate to reveal Himself to me. And I have been left overwhelmed. Because I have discovered that I am loved, truly, unconditionally, and forever. You see, Jesus knew all of the possible outcomes for my life. He knew exactly what He was getting when He paid the ultimate price for me. And I definitely got the best end of the deal. I get Him - The King of kings and the Lord of lords, my Savior and Redeemer.

So, no, I'm not perfect and I'm gonna make mistakes. My life isn't grand, perfect, or carefree. But because of my Lord, I have hope that I will live this day better than I did yesterday. And I will enjoy this day, no matter what, better than I did yesterday simply because He lives.