Unlearning

Well, it’s that time of year and we are gearing up for school again. As I prepare my children to get ready for learning I realized that there have been seasons of my life when I have had to unlearn some things I believed for a long time. Whether I was actually taught these things or whether I simply chose to believe I’m not sure, but to be perfectly honest I believed that if I was just a good Christian girl that life would be a breeze for me. And that if there was hardship in my life, I must be doing something wrong, not believing right, not praying right...it was a self-focused faith.

There are three scriptures in particular that I’m re-learning:
John 10:10
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
Jesus did not say: I have come to arrest the thief, STOP him in his tracks, and put him away so that you will never be bothered again! I wish that is what He said. What He is saying is that there is an enemy of our soul who will come with great focus. We may feel like we’ve lost everything. We may feel like we are dying. We may feel like life is lying in shambles around us but if we look to Him– we will find our life – real, full, rich life.

Isaiah 43:2
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. “

God did not say you won’t have to pass through the waters – I’ll build a bridge for you. When you come to a river – no worries, I’ll just stop the current. On top of that, I’ll extinguish all the fires in your life. That sounds so nice, doesn’t it? What this passage does say is “When”. We know that tough situations will come, but it also says “you pass through” we are going to make it! We may feel like we are drowning but God is with us holding our head up above the water. We may feel like we are being swept away – but we will not be swept under. We may feel like all we know is being consumed in the fire – but WE will not be consumed. Maybe what we knew needed to be consumed and what we will know on the other side of the fire is that God bigger than we ever imagined before. When tough things happen – God’s promise is to be with us through it all

John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
Jesus does not always appear on the scene in my life with a super hero theme song: Da da da Daaa…saying ”I will stop the trouble!” Bummer! What he is saying to me is: this life on earth is not all there is –in fact it is very small compared to what I have prepared for you. His plan is not to stop all the trouble in my life. As crazy as is may seem in the height of our struggles, He is able to use our temporary trouble to work His desired outcome in our lives. (See Romans 8:28 and James 1:2-4) We need to find that “in Him” place! Trusting in him, we can have peace in the middle of whatever life throws at us, Now that’s a miracle!