Daily Huddle - Sat Sep 19, 2020 Labels

Love you all, praying for you,
 
Are you impatient?  Are you selfish?  Who told you that?  If you are in Christ, there is a permanent and eternal difference between what you used to be, and what you are now.  When you are in Christ – what you do doesn’t define you – what He did – does.    The devil is always trying to label you with your sin, so you identify yourself with it, rather than identify yourself with Him, your Savior – Jesus Christ – the Sinless One.  Praying that you will review the Relationship Topic - Salvation First (It’s the most important thing you will ever do.)  Obviously you are a sinner – everyone is.  That’s why you must be born again.  Meaning, to commit your life to obeying Jesus Christ, and trust God’s promise, that He sent Jesus to die in your place, canceling the debt of sin that you owed.  Now you are free from sin’s control, you are no longer a sinner, you are saved by Grace.  But you can still choose it.  That’s why the devil wants to still label you.  Name any sin – if you’ve done that, the devil will try to label you as that - so he can permanently extend the guilt that comes with any poor choice you make.  Certainly guilt comes with sin, cause you are guilty, you did it.  But if we confess any sin, now that we are in Christ, and repent (think differently - “No, it’s not ok, it’s sin.") confess it and turn from it, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9).  We know that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God - (Romans 3:23) His standard of holiness (the moral and ethical adherence to God’s standard).  We were born with a sinful nature.  That’s why you don’t have to teach a child how to disobey their Mommy and Daddy, they just do it naturally.  They climb the stairs when you told them not to, they sneak a cookie when they know they need to ask permission first.  Who taught them that?  It comes naturally.  Our nature is to sin, to be selfish, to instinctively want to choose wrong, instead of right, man’s way (the way that seems right, or the way that we know is wrong. but we think it will feel good), instead of God’s way (that is good, and feels good forever).  Sin is deceptive because it’s only a fleeting temporary pleasure.  That feeling is quickly replaced and overwhelmed by guilt and the separation from God that it causes – along with usually a natural consequence piled on top.  So if you run a red light – because no one is around.  You will feel guilty, unless you’ve hardened yourself to it – you’ve chosen sin so many times it has seared your conscience (I Timothy 4:2).  Next – automatically, it will separate you from God, because He is Holy and righteous, and what you just did – is not.  And yes you just hit that oncoming car that you didn’t see, and yes those red flashing lights was the cop that pulled out of the parking lot behind the building or the dirt road behind the trees, and saw the whole thing.  That's the natural consequence that you didn't think about.  And if the last two didn’t happen this time, the first two did.  So what is the remedy?  1st Ask God to forgive you – so your relationship with Him can be restored.  Second – make sure everyone is ok, third you can apologize to the cop but it won’t prevent you from getting that ticket, or the court date to appear.  And yes, your insurance rates will probably go up.  That’s the cost of sin.  There are always multiple costs of sin – far more reaching and damaging than you were thinking about – in the heat of the moment - when you decided to run that red light.  Sin Sucks.  It’s never worth it.  Saying 'No" to sin, comes from the grace God gives you to say no - (Titus 2:12).  God says He will always give you a way out. (I Corinthians 10:13) The only thing required – is choosing that way out, instead of the cheap temporary thrill of sin.  (You’ve got grace for it! – just try it).  You will be resisting the devil and He will flee from you – just like God promised (James 4:7).  If he’s not fleeing, you’re not resisting, or not resisting enough, or often enough.  Move your feet, change scenery, stop looking at the cookie jar, go do something else - clean your room instead!  Better yet, do what God told you in PiVAT before dinner, to do in this hour - sinning is not what He told you to do right now!   God will give you practical ways to avoid sinning.  Celebrate every good choice to distance yourself from it.  Tell yourself – "Good job! – I will always turn from sin, because I fear God." “God teach me to fear you, give me an undivided heart to fear your Name." (Psalms 86:11) Call someone and tell them, I’m struggling with this temptation, but I will do what is right – pray for me…  Before you know it – the light will turn green, God will provide a better option, you can even pray or praise while you are waiting.  So if you choose to sin, God will forgive you when you ask, and then you can choose to use the Grace He has given you – the next time.  But don’t let the devil label you as a red-light runner.  You did it, but what you did isn't who you are.  You are now forgiven, hidden with Christ in God.  He’s got you.  And by His Grace – you got this!  The more you choose grace – that helps you say no to sin, the more unattractive sin becomes.  Right choices are always worth it.  Always.  Praise God – you are a right choice maker!  Because Jesus was – 100% - and now you are in Him, and He is in you.  Forget what lies behind, and push forward to what lies ahead.  God doesn’t think about it, why should you?  Praise God – He will take you from here!  Go back to PiVAT – get back on His plan for you for today.  Always come back to PRISM – He’ll remind you of His love for you – His power and His wisdom for you, the way you should go, and how to do it well.
 
Love you all,
dad