It is supposed to be a Happy New Year, but many of you are not really Happy or upbeat about the coming year at all…are you? What are you feeling? Disappointment? Discouragement? Depression? Disillusionment? Loneliness? Fear? Anger? Pain? Uncertainty? Frustration?
The world is full of problems and pressures that can cause us to feel any or all of these ways. For example, I was just released from my position at work after 12 years. The leadership of the organization made a decision to go in a different direction and the new plan did not include my position. We all know what the economy is like right now, so many would say that I have a reason and maybe even a right to have all those feelings. But, I do not. I am actually very excited and looking forward to the journey that lies ahead of me. I have an incredible sense of freedom and hope as I look forward to what God has to teach me during this time and what he has planned for the next season of my life. I know and believe God is my provider and that he will never leave me nor forasake me. Don’t misunderstand me; I know this will not be easy, and will likely even be difficult at times, but I plan to abide closely in God and trust him to guide and direct me to my next assignment for him. This faith in God provides me peace, hope and freedom, and these feelings trump the others! Why do I know and believe this; because God tells me so…
“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” John 8:31-32
Here are some Truths That Set Us Free:
1. God is good (Ps. 119:68; 136:1).
2. God loves me and wants me to have His best (Rom. 8:32, 38-39).
3. I am complete and accepted in Christ (Eph. 1:6).
4. God is enough (Ps. 23:1).
5. God can be trusted (Isa. 28:16).
6. God doesn’t make any mistakes (Isa. 46:10)!
• Everything that comes into my life has been “filtered through His fingers of love.”
7. God’s grace is sufficient for me (2 Cor. 12:9).
8. The blood of Christ is sufficient to cover all my sin (1 John 1:7).
9. The cross of Christ is sufficient to conquer my sinful flesh (Rom. 6:6-7).
• I don’t have to sin (Rom. 6:14).
10. My past does not have to plague me (1 Cor. 6:9-11).
• My past failures can become stepping stones to greater victory and fruitfulness.
• If I will let Him, God will cause everything that has happened to me to work together for my good and for His glory.
11. God’s Word is sufficient to lead me, teach me, and heal me (Ps. 19:7; 107:20; 119:105).
12. Through the power of His Holy Spirit, God will enable me to do anything that He commands me to do (1 Thess. 5:24).
• There is no one that I cannot forgive (Mark 11:25).
• There is no one that I cannot love (Matt. 5:44).
• I can give thanks in all things (1 Thess. 5:18).
• I can be content (Heb. 13:5; Phil. 4:11).
13. I am responsible before God, for my behavior, responses, and choices (Ez. 18:19-22).
14. I will reap whatever I sow (Gal. 6:7-8).
15. The pathway to true joy is to relinquish control (Luke 1:38; 1 Peter 5:7; Matt.16:25):
• of my life
• of my husband
• of my children
• of my circumstances
16. The greatest freedom I can experience is found through submission to God-ordained authority (Eph. 5:23).
• The husband is the head of the wife (Eph. 5:23).
• The wife is to reverence and submit to her husband (Eph. 5:22, 33).
• “The heart of the king is in the Lord’s hand . . .” (Prov. 21:1).
17. In the will of God, there is no higher, holier calling than to be a wife and mother (Titus 2:4-5).
18. Personal holiness is more important than temporal happiness. (Eph. 5:26-27).
• Happiness is not a right.
19. God is more concerned about changing me and glorifying Himself, than about solving my problems (Rom. 8:29).
20. It is impossible to be godly, without suffering.
• Suffering is a tool in the hand of God to conform me to the image of Jesus (1 Peter 5:10).
21. My suffering will not last forever (2 Cor. 4:17-18; Ps. 30:5).
22. “It’s not about me; it’s all about Him!” (Col. 1:16-18).
