Romans 2:4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
It seems harder to deal with repenting after you’ve walked with Jesus for a while. The “big” stuff was so obvious there was no hesitation about what needed to go. That was good, but this is the season to take another look. There’s a hidden closet where the evil one has stashed some of my less obvious sins. That makes them really easy to forget about. They’re smoldering, fiery darts that will be used as weapons of contempt for God’s “kindness, forbearance and patience” and to discredit the reality of his work in me. I caught a whiff of smoke and realized where there’s smoke…there’s fire. it’s time to put out these fires.
• The well-meaning prayer request with “too many details” about someone else’s crisis can become a weapon that impacts other people’s response to them. I need to remember God already knows every detail!
• The wrong tone of voice, even when used with “just the right” words, is a devilish eraser capable of wiping out the validity of God’s work in my life to the ears that hear them.
• Using the Word of God as a weapon to verbally discipline someone or manipulate their behavior is a serious violation of my trust in God’s sovereignty, and it’s unkind. The power of the Word lies in “realizing that God’s kindness is [what’s] intended to lead you [both] to repentance.”
The closet has been aired out. I’m waiting for the smoke to clear. Amen [So be it!]
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