Where God's Word Meets My Mess
I believe God has convicted me that, deep down in my soul, I treasure these people and things more than Him. Yes, I still know Him. Yes, I still love Him. Yes, I still belong to Him. But I've been chasing my fleshly desires.
Now, of course, this is the perfect opportunity for me to make up a great story about how I’m cherishing my single life and how I don’t need a man. I just need my career…or gal pals…or Jesus. Right? But the truth isn’t nearly as complicated as those made-up reasons.
In Bible study, we focus on answering the questions in the book. In Sunday School, we discuss prayer requests about our travels and job transitions. In small group, we talk about the weather, sports, or politics. But, believers are not going to grow in their faith by talking about the weather, sports, or politics.
We all struggle to find our identity in Christ alone. We all want to find our value in something we achieve, and we want others to notice our achievements. But Christ notices us—even without our achievements.
There are so many things I need to do that I’m not doing. I need to do more, try harder, be better…but I’m not. If I set New Year’s resolutions for 2019, I’ll set myself up to fail. I can’t and won’t live up to my standards—or even God’s standards. As soon as I look away from my list of resolutions—or maybe even while I’m still writing them—I’ll fail.
I know it’s hard to be honest in a high-and-mighty Christian society. It feels like the Christians who set unrealistic goals for other Christians never talk about their sins and their hardships. It causes us to wonder if their struggles even exist. Friend, just because people don’t talk about their issues doesn’t mean they don’t have issues. Not only am I guilty of inwardly judging others for their sins, but I’m also guilty of hiding my sins from them.
Even with the people we know…with the people we trust…with the people we are supposed to be unified with…we try to hide. We are silent. We conveniently forget to mention that we are struggling.
I couldn’t focus on the task at hand: doing devotions. Even though I try to do them regularly, I don’t always meet that goal. And I certainly have trouble focusing while I do them. So why do I bother? Why do I even spend time with God at all? What is the real reason I have quiet time? The real reason I have quiet time is to...
This post was featured on Pursue in February, so I apologize for my lateness in posting it here! I truly hope you'll be able to find some encouragement from this post, especially if you or someone you know struggles with body image issues. You're not the only one! 🙂 I have a secret. In my... Continue Reading →
There’s a secret about being stingy that I don’t want to share. Why? Because it makes me feel like a wimpy Christian. Simply put, a lack of generosity shows a lack of trust in God’s provision. There. I said it. The secret’s out. I am stingy because I don’t fully rely on God to provide... Continue Reading →
At some point on this blog, I’m probably going to write about every single one of my character flaws and discuss how I should be better. Today, I must admit that I’m a stingy old man. But I need to be better. My only recreational expenses are my weekly pack of Trident gum and an... Continue Reading →
His arm was covered in tattoos, and he reeked of cigarette smoke. And he sat by me in class. Oh no! I thought in a panic. Why did I choose this seat? I greatly desired to hide under the table for the 79 minutes left of class. Instead, I just sat there awkwardly, hoping the... Continue Reading →
Even though it’s untraditional to celebrate a 51st anniversary, I’m gonna do it anyway. This is my 51st post on Tizzie’s Tidbits, so I thought I should make this one super important. I want to let you in on a little secret: I am a hypocrite. That’s right. You read that. I typed that. I don’t... Continue Reading →
You may have caught on that I have an organized-in-theory kind of life. And one of the organized-in-theory parts of my life is my to-do list. I may have To-Do List Syndrome or Disorder or Disease. I make to-do lists too often, and I don’t do the things on my to-do lists enough. I’m simply not as... Continue Reading →
Recently I posted about how we need to let go of our calendar lives and wait on God’s timing to know what the future holds. However, there are some things you can do while you’re waiting for God to show you what’s next. Here’s a simple list of things a young adult can do to... Continue Reading →
