The Desire AND the Power

I am not stuck.

I am not powerless.

My choices create my future.

I am 100% responsible to God for what I do with this life He has given me!

By making excuses and losing sight of my goals when life gets hard, I have made myself an easy target for the enemy, and that has to stop.

God has promised that He is working in my heart, giving me the DESIRE and the POWER to live a life that pleases Him!!! (Philippians 2:13)  What a beautiful thing that is!  If we have a strong desire that we are powerless to make happen, then it's not in God's will for us right now.  In every area of our lives -- marriage, kids, career goals, personal goals, etc. -- God will empower us to follow through on the desires that are pleasing to Him and in His plan for our lives!!  He plants the desire and then gives us the ability to take action and make it happen.  Understanding and believing that is huge, really.

I feel so keenly aware of the spiritual warfare and the flesh vs. spirit tension in and around me right now... it is intense, so it's comforting and right to remind myself that I don't have to fight any of this without God's empowering grace!

There is some real personal stuff and family stuff I still need to work through, but I need to work through it in a gradual, healthy, proactive way -- not just stuffing it back down with familiar junk food and familiar junk thoughts.  Jesus wants better things for me, and He is calling me up higher -- to pick up my mat, stop wallowing in old self-pity, and keep moving forward with Him.

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Recently, I did the cheesy thing where you open your Bible up to a random page and see if God has anything specific for you there.  I landed in Ezekiel 18 and got more than I bargained for... I've decided my "sanctification focus" for June will be reading through that chapter every day.  God goes out of His way here to make it abundantly clear that each person will be held accountable for their own choices, not the choices of their ancestors or their children.  For all of us, stronghold mindsets and negative family patterns are hard to overcome, but they're not a viable excuse for sin -- we get an individual, daily CHOICE.  

I want my life to matter and have a lasting Kingdom impact, and I am inching toward that but keep hesitating and stalling the progress.  I feel it.  My small, daily choices matter tremendously to God, so I want to keep that at the forefront of my mind.  Praying for grace and power as I feel God calling me to level up here!

"It is you who are unjust, not I.  Therefore, I will judge each of you... according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord.  Turn from your sins! Don't let them destroy you!  Put all your rebellion behind you, and get for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit... Turn back and LIVE!"  ~Ezekiel 18:29-32

*This is really a continuation of my last post, which became unreasonably long. lol