I'll Never...

As I prepare to teach tonight's Sacred Romance group, I am thinking about the "arrows" launched at us by our enemy from childhood on and the effects they have on us throughout our lives. So often, as John Eldredge says in the companion workbook to the Sacred Romance, "the only thing more tragic than the tragedy that happens to us is the way we handle it - the choices we make, the person we become, the life we live (or don't live)." Believe it or not, as adults we do have a choice in how we respond or react to the tragedies and difficult situations in our lives. Some of the arrows that strike us as children leave us for a time without a choice and without control, but as we grow into adulthood, we are given the choice to make wise decisions according to the word of God.

So many times, however, even as children we say in our hearts, "I'll never let that happen again" or "I'll never do that" - these statements are literally inner vows or covenants we make with the enemy to control our own lives from that moment on. We put ourselves in charge. The thing is, we were never equipped to take control - God created us for relationship with Him - to give Him the Lordship of our lives. I am reminded of the great clip from the movie Bruce Almighty where Bruce finally realizes he cannot be God. As he stumbles down the road, he cries out to God and says, "I want You to decide what's best for my life. I surrender to Your will!" We cannot always know what is best for our lives. God knows that these times have the opportunity to make us stronger, more like Him. Does He inflict these times on us? I don't think He's the source of these things, but I do think that He allows them because of free will. Jesus said in John 16:33, "I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]"

"But it did harm me" you might say. Let's look at it in view of eternity, where real life begins. These mortal bodies are simply shells for our real selves to reside in temporarily while we're here on the earth. When we realize that what happens to this physical body is not nearly as important as how we choose to respond in our souls, we begin to put things into an eternal perspective. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 says, "For our light, momentary affliction (this slight distress of the passing hour) is ever more and more abundantly preparing and producing and achieving for us an everlasting weight of glory [beyond all measure, excessively surpassing all comparisons and all calculations, a vast and transcendent glory and blessedness never to cease!]. Since we consider and look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are visible are temporal (brief and fleeting), but the things that are invisible are deathless and everlasting." We must begin to see what happens to us as brief and fleeting in comparison to eternity.

So we've made inner vows in our past, what do we do now as adults? Well, the first step is to simply renounce them. Then begin to allow the Holy Spirit to come and minister truth to your life and healing to your heart. We don't just make inner vows as children, we are tempted to make them all the time throughout our lives. Darrel and I went through a situation a few years ago in which I made an inner vow to never let it happen again. I didn't even realize it until this week when a similar situation seemed to be arising. That inner vow rose up within me along with the need to immediately control the situation and turn it to my favor. I had to renounce that inner vow and repent for my sin. And true to His word, God was faithful and just to forgive me and cleanse me from that sin. I had to take my hands off the situation and let let God decide what was best - if that means going through a difficult time filled with hurt, then so be it - He will be faithful to see me through and make me stronger, more like Him. I encourage you today to rid yourself of these alliances you've made with the enemy. Relinquish control to your heavenly Father and let the trials make you stronger.