Thursday Thoughts-Pursuit of Holiness

If you are like me there are certain things in your life that are there that you hate, whether it is the way that you react in a tough situation, or how you react to someone cutting you off on the Loop, or that you find yourself not leaning on the Lord as often or as well as you should. The reality is that most of us today find ourselves in these positions, but the sad fact is that for most of us this has just become a way of life. We say things like; "I know that I shouldn't react that way but it's just who I am." or worst we compare ourselves to others, "I know I struggle here, but at least I'm not as bad as he is." And sin has just become something that has lost it's weight and has left many believers feeling far from the Lord, unable to figure out why the Bible doesn't speak to them or why they are in a "desert" season. And for some of us it's because we have walked out of the oasis and into the barren wasteland. Now I know that there are certain times that God leads us into the desert seasons to grow us and refine our walk, but a lot of times we walk ourselves there and then wonder why we can hear the voice of the Lord clearly.

We have a saying here at the church, actually it was stolen from a friend of mine who is also a pastor, "We want this to be a place where it is ok to not be ok, it's just not ok to stay there."

The truth of this statement is that it is ok to have struggles and doubts and sin that keeps coming back, and YES, it's even ok to be open and honest that we struggle, the only thing is that some of us believe that it stops there. The second half is the important part!! As we see our sin and recognize those blind spots, we must war against that sin. In 2 Cor. 7:1-Paul speaks to the church and he admonishes us here, "Since we have these promises (6:16-18) let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, brining holiness to completion in the fear of God."

I love this verse because it tells us to war over sin and violently pursue holiness. To not sit back and go, "oh well, I just guess this is my cross." But rather we wage war by the grace of God on those things that steal our affections for Him. This is the weight of the Christian walk, God has made us alive and calls us from death to life and therefore has called us to action.

Are you taking action today? What are you doing today to put to death the desires of the flesh and allow the Spirit to overwhelm every area of you life? That is the question, are you pursuing Christ in all that you say and do?

The answer is not always easy, but the great news is that we are not alone, we have a body that is here to wage war TOGETHER, and bring about holiness. That is awesome news !!!

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon