A Love Not Fragile

Fill me with incorruptible love.”

A few days ago, I thought I had offended a brother in Christ. I panicked as I began to imagine all sorts of ways the enemy could wedge his way in through misunderstanding and offense. I dropped to my knees and went to the Lord in prayer, asking Him to protect our genuine affection, to preserve our deep connection. As I prayed, the Holy Spirit gently communicated, “Do you really think my love that fragile?”

When I heard those words in my spirit, I sat back, my face still wet with tears and me full of the realization that yes, deep down inside it seemed I did think His love was that fragile. In that moment the Spirit began to minister to me about the true nature of God’s love— a love that is as strong as death. A love that is as unyielding as the grave. A love that burns like a blazing fire that many waters cannot quench, nor rivers wash away. 

This is the kind of love that disciples of Christ are called to have toward each other. A love not easily offended, nor one that keeps a record of wrongs. A love that bears all things and hopes all things, a love that always protects, always trusts, and always perseveres. A love that can be tested by the wrecking-ball of the enemy and not be found fickle, fragile, and wanting, because its incorruptible foundation is in Jesus Christ the Lord. 

Last night I had a dream. In the dream I was on my knees weeping, as I confessed both my need and desire to be filled with incorruptible love. O Lord, fill us with Your incorruptible love. 

(Rom 5:5) Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

(1 Pet 1:22,23) Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever..

(1 Cor 15:52,53) For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

Changing The Winds

Sometimes I wonder if my prayers change the winds 

If shipmasters look up to see the sails

Unexpectedly switch their billows from east to west

Sometimes I think about my travels in the dark place 

When I was destroying myself 

And allowing myself to be destroyed

It was so dark there 

But not so dark that the Lord couldn’t find me

Not so dark that He couldn’t reach me 

And lead me out

It took a long time to climb out of that place 

One day I laid on my bed in a fetal position 

I wept and cried out, “Oh Lord, send me an Angel!”

No angel came

Not one I could see, anyway 

But deliverance came

Salvation came…eventually

Because it took a long time to climb out of that place

Sometimes I think about all the mistakes I’ve made

Mistakes that seem vain and pointless 

Mistakes which seem like no discernible lesson was learned 

Mistakes that seem to have not shaped me at all

Other than exposing my selfishness and ignorance

Perhaps that was the lesson?

To face my own selfishness and ignorance 

Sometimes I wonder if my prayers change the winds 

Then I look up to see myself still here 

Unexpectedly switched from darkness to light

(Eph 5:8,9) For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.

(Isaiah 42:16) I will lead the blind by a way they did not know; I will guide them on unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light before them and rough places into level ground. These things I will do for them, and I will not forsake them.

(1 Pet 2:9) But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

My Alabaster Jar

I don’t want to find myself at the end, standing on the bank of the Jordan holding my alabaster jar. 

This morning, as I began to meet with the Lord, I thought about what Amy Carmichael said about the alabaster jar. I read it a couple of days ago, and it has lingered in my mind, “[There are] some among us who love their Savior and yet have not broken [their alabaster jar] (John 12:3).” We see Mary taking the most precious thing she has, the greatest treasure she possesses, and she breaks it and pours it out onto the feet of Christ. She holds nothing back from her Savior, and when she pours everything she has out onto His feet, “the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

Over the last couple days, I’ve been pondering what I might be holding back from the Lord. What treasure might I be keeping for myself? What is my alabaster jar? And the answer that came to me is, “My time.” Time is my most precious commodity, for every second of my day is filled to the brim with need and necessity. Time is something that I literally have no excess of to spare. Time is a treasure to me, it is my alabaster jar that I keep tucked away for myself to indulge in stolen moments as I please, rather than pouring them out upon the feet of my Lord. 

In writing one of my recent devotionals, I spoke of the necessity for us to leave the banks of the Jordan and step into the waters of experience, because at some point, our faith must transcend the realm of “notion” and enter the realm of “actuality. As I prayed this morning, I told the Lord that I did not want to be found at the end of my life standing on the banks of the Jordan, clutching my alabaster jar. 

I want to be found in the deep waters, with my jar broken and the perfume spilled out all over His feet. 

(John 12:2,3)  …Martha served, and Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with Him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

(Song of Sol 1:3,12)  The fragrance of your perfume is pleasing; your name is like perfume poured out… While the king was at his table, my perfume spread its fragrance.

(Matt 22:36,37) “Teacher, which commandment is the greatest in the Law?” Jesus declared, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.”

(Prov 9:16-18) “Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says, “Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.

In My Lane

“I’m in my lane.”

My High School students had their first grammar test today. They used their study hall period this morning to go over their study guide, and a few of them still had questions, so their study hall teacher, who is also their marine biology teacher, was gracious enough to allow me to come to the classroom and work through the answers to the study guide on the board. As I taught and answered questions by doing the work on the board, she sat there wide-eyed and at a loss and said, “It’s like you’re speaking another language!” In an attempt to reassure her that her lack of grammar knowledge was not a reflection of any lack of biology skill on her part, I replied, “I’m in my lane.” 

English language arts is my lane. It’s what I do, and it’s what God has gifted me to do. Science is her lane. It’s what she does, and it’s what God has gifted her to do. If I were to sit through one of her classes on shark biology, I would sit there wide-eyed and at a loss, as if she were speaking another language… because biology is not my lane. I can’t compare myself to someone else, using the qualifications of their lane. And we can’t make this same mistake in the Body of Christ, either. 

For example, I’m very good at meeting practical needs, but my sister is very good at meeting emotional needs. If someone expected me to meet their emotional need in the same manner as my sister could, then frustration will enter into the picture and inevitably give birth to all sorts of other weeds-in-the-garden, like bitterness, resentment, and criticism. We must not expect things from others that they are not equipped to give. Or perhaps, we must not set a bar for someone at a height that they are not capable of reaching. We must remember that we each have a lane…

…and our job is to encourage each other as we shine in them. 

(1 Cor 12:4-6,11) There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different ways of working, but the same God works all things in all people… All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

(1 Cor 12:14,25-27) For the body does not consist of one part, but of many… there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other… If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a member of it.

(Heb 3:13; 10:24,25) But exhort one another daily, as long as it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness… And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Lessons From The Pumpkin Patch

Lessons from the pumpkin patch…

Late this spring, I decided to plant a pumpkin patch in a large, unused area of our yard. After planting the seeds, I shared some of the insight the Spirit brought to mind in a post I made on 4/19/22. Yesterday, as I began to clean up a summer’s worth of pumpkin patch growth and harvest what was produced, the Spirit once again began to minister to me “lessons from the pumpkin patch”….

1. “Everything works against fruit production.” From the moment the seed is in the ground, it will have to face challenge after challenge to grow and bear fruit. The weather, pests and pestilence, and even the ground itself, will constantly work against the health and productivity of the plant. The plant must overcome each obstacle for it to continue to thrive and bear fruit. (Matt 13:3-8,18-30)(Rev 2:7,11,17,26; 3:5,12,21)

2. “No two pumpkins look alike.” As I walked through my pumpkin patch looking for pumpkins, most of the fruit was hidden in the overgrowth. But each time I found a little treasure-in-the-grass, it looked different than the one I found before. Each one was a unique shape and shade of orange or white. Each one varied in size. No two pumpkins looked alike, but they were all indeed pumpkins. (1 Cor 12:4-20)

3. “The fruit must be harvested within a specific window of time.” Since I’ve never grown pumpkins before, I waited too long to harvest them and some of them were rotten. But if I had harvested them too soon, they would have been unripe and useless. Indeed, the fruit must be harvested because it wasn’t meant to be on the plant forever (ie: exterior structures; whereas Christ is our eternal interior structure), but it can only be done within a specific window of time— too soon and the fruit is immature and bitter, or too late and the fruit is diseased and rotten. Either way, the farmer has no crop, no return, no reward for all that work. (Rev 14:14-18; 18:2-5)

For those who have ears to hear, let them hear. 

The Experience Must Come

The experience must come. 

For a long time I used to pray, “Lord, make me wholly thine.” I prayed that, and I meant it. But one day the Holy Spirit showed me that in many respects, we pray that while still standing on the banks of the Jordan. One day, as I prayed, “Lord make me wholly thine…” He pointed out that I was leaving off the last, and most important part, which was: “…by whatever means necessary.”

We may stand on the banks of the Jordan and pray with true desire in our heart, but at some point, we must act upon our desire to be “wholly thine” and step into the waters of experience. At some point, our faith must transcend the realm of “notion” and enter the realm of “actuality.” In other words, faith must leave the banks of the Jordan and be walked out in its deep waters. 

The problem with deep waters, is that there is no ground beneath your feet. In deep waters, you are at the mercy of the current— a thing in which you have absolutely no control over. It’s sink or swim, and sometimes it feels a whole lot more like “sink” than “swim.” But to be “wholly thine” means that we are so, whether we sink or swim. If we sink, we find the Lord was beneath us the whole time. If we swim, we find the Lord was beneath us the whole time. We tend to see sink or swim as a fail or succeed dichotomy, but the truth is, whether we are abased or abounding, we are still in Christ. Whether sinking or swimming, He is there. 

Beloved, He is the creator of the waters, and as the waters surround us, so does He. 

(Phil 4:11-13) I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

(Is 43:1,2)  …O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.

(Is 41:9,10) I brought you from the ends of the earth and called you from its farthest corners. I said, ‘You are My servant.’ I have chosen and not rejected you. Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.

(Joshua 3:13) And it will come about when the soles of the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, that is, the waters which are flowing down from above; and they will stand in one heap.”

The Way Of Love

Love is a choice, more so than mere emotion.

I must admit, that I am still working through this truth revealed by our Savior. I have often asked the Lord to help me love someone, simply because I did not feel “loving” emotions for them.  I have also often thought that I was failing to love someone, because I wasn’t feeling “loving” emotions toward them. But what the Lord has made increasingly clearer to me, is that love is not really something we feel, it is something we do. Love, according to God, is a choice. 

Love is choosing to do the right thing— regardless of whether you feel like it, regardless of whether we think someone deserves it, regardless of what others may think love looks or feels like… and regardless of whether we will be loved in return.  In Paul’s description of “the way of love” at 1 Cor 13, one will notice that each elucidation is a choice, each quality is an action. None of Paul’s descriptions are emotions. Patience and kindness are actions I choose. Likewise, I choose not to be envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, or easily-angered. I choose to keep no record of wrongs. And I choose to not reason like a petulant child. 

Protect, trust, hope, persevere— these are actions I choose. But love itself, comes from something much greater than myself, which is why Paul is able to say, “Love never fails” (v. 8). Beloved, we may be dead to sin, but our humanity is still prone to failure. However, love will never fail, because the Apostle John teaches that God is love (1 John 4:16), and God cannot fail. Love is not necessarily something that is felt, but is walked-out. So, as long as I am indeed abiding in Christ…

…I am able to choose to walk “the way of love” in the palm of His unfailing hand. 

(1 Cor 14:1) Follow the way of love…

(1 Cor 13:4-8,11) Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails…

(1 Cor 13:11) When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.

(Phil 3:12-14) Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me… I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.

Finding Solace In His Sovereignty

My friend text me the other day because she felt sad about watching her fish die. 

Because we are currently in a severe drought, many who have ponds in our area are watching the slow, unrelenting death of an entire mini-ecosystem in their backyard. Many of us find ourselves standing at the edges of our ponds, hands hanging limply at our sides, as we watch the creeping shadow of death eclipse our backyard ponds, along with all the life that is connected to and dependent upon them. And as we watch this process, some of us ponder the symbolism behind it. 

Watching something die stimulates various emotions within us— frustration, angst, tension— all working together to create an inner-unnerving that reminds us of our total helplessness. Watching death take place, touches the deep recesses of our soul in a way that nothing else can reach. It reminds us that God is ultimately the only one who can fix all things. He is the only one who gives life…and takes it. We may amble on for a while under the illusion of control— over this world, over the church, and over our own destinies— but we will all inevitably face the infinite wall of human limitation. 

Facing this limitation includes overcoming the temptation to think that if you had just “prayed enough,” things would be different. That if you just “had more faith,” then those prayers would have been answered. I have had to face the reality that I can’t save things from death, and I can’t pray it away either. What I can do, is take my requests and my heartache and my longing to the Lord and lay it all at His feet. But ultimately, He is, and always will be, the one who is sovereign over the outworking of His creation. 

My job is to trust Him and worship Him, regardless of whether He gives life…or takes it.

(1 Sam 2:6,7) The LORD brings death and gives life; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. The LORD sends poverty and wealth; He humbles and He exalts.

(Ps 139:16,17) Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. How precious also are Your thoughts for me, God! How vast is the sum of them!

(Job 1:20,21) Then Job stood up,… fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

(Rev 1:17,18) When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last, I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

Getting To The “Yes”

“Help me get to the ‘Yes.’”

I had a vision about ten years ago that played itself out over the course of an entire night. I would rouse from the limbo-state of the vision, only to fall back into twilight unconsciousness where the vision would pick right back up where it left off. It was a symbolic vision of the course of my life, how God currently sees the church, how I would react to that, how others would react to that, and what my destiny would ultimately be. In His magnanimous grace, He let me see my end. And it was an embrace. 

It would accomplish nothing for me to even attempt to explain everything I saw, because visions usually don’t make sense to anyone but the person having them. The language of heaven transcends both words and sight. It’s like Dolby Digital surround sound for the soul— so many inputs all at once, a person is immersed in a communication that is experienced rather than heard. Which is why the ones recorded in Scripture seem to baffle those who read them.

But what I can share with you is that the journey of my life, all that I experienced and endured, ended with me having come out of a house and waiting on a porch with a baby in my arms— a son. The mother had left the house to be in an immoral relationship and I was left alone, waiting for someone. As I waited, the house was being repossessed by bill collectors. Piece by piece, it was being dismantled by those who were coming to collect. I didn’t want to be in the house, but I had nowhere else to go, so I waited on the porch, guarding the door. 

At what seemed like the very last minute before the collectors came to force me aside (at best), or kill me to get inside (at worst), the person I was waiting for came. I had not been abandoned, He had simply been away working on preparing a place for us. He came upon the porch and I began to tell Him about everything that had been happening to me, to the house, all the troubles I had endured, all the challenges that I had faced. But He just wanted me to answer His question, “Will you be mine?”

I was so busy trying to tell Him about all the troubles that had taken place, but all He wanted to know was if I would be His. If I would accept being in the most intimate relationship a human being can have with God. He wanted to know if I would surrender in complete and total trust and dependence upon Him. He wasn’t waiting for me to figure it out, He wasn’t waiting for me to understand why everything was happening the way it was. He was simply waiting for me to say “Yes.”

On days when I’m struggling, I think of the moment in that vision when I finally stopped trying to explain everything to the Lord and said, “Yes.” I think of the great release of the burden I had been carrying all that time. I think of the peace, the completeness, and the fearlessness that flooded my entire being. On days when I’m struggling, I pray to Him, “Help me get to the ‘Yes.’” And then I think of His embrace. 

Beloved, let us pray for Him to help us get to the “Yes.”

(1 John 4:16,17) And we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us. God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him. In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.

(John 3:27-29) John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but am sent ahead of Him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.”

(Rev 19:7-9) “Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready. She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” For the fine linen she wears is the righteous acts of the saints. Then the angel told me to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

Flying In The Water

“Penguins can’t fly— until they’re underwater.” 

I took my youngest daughter to the aquarium yesterday. When I came across this sign, I stood there and thought about all the times I must have been like a penguin looking at all the birds in the sky, complaining to God about my lack of ability to fly. How many times have I gazed up at the sky lamenting my limitations? How many times has my perspective been my own worst enemy? If I define “flight” as passing through the air, I lose sight of “flight” that may take place in the water. And I wonder how many of us do this very same thing in our spiritual lives?

There have been times in my life when God has allowed me to encounter circumstances that caused me to look up to the sky and lament to God, “I’m not equipped to deal with this. I wasn’t designed for this.” I can’t love the way this situation requires me to love. I can’t be patient the way this situation requires me to be patient. I look up at all the birds in the sky and complain to God about my lack of ability to fly. But God didn’t make penguins to fly in the sky. He designed them to fly in the water. The deep, deep waters. 

Only God could put a bird in the water and command it to fly. And woe to that creature who questions its Creator’s wisdom and understanding. Woe to that creature who doesn’t trust its Creator’s design. Woe to those who look up at the sky, complaining of their limitations, instead of looking to Christ and asking Him for better perspective. Woe to all the spiritual penguins like me, who spent way too long trying to figure out how to join the birds in the air, when they should have been joining the Lord in the deep water. 

Because penguins can’t fly— until they’re underwater. 

(Is 43:2,3) When you pass into waters, I [am] with you, And into floods, they do not overflow you, When you go into fire, you are not burned, And a flame does not burn against you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior..(LSV)

(Luke 5:4) When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”

(Ezekiel 47:4-6) …He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”

(Gen 1:21,26,31) So God created the great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters teemed according to their kinds, and every bird of flight after its kind. And God saw that it was good…Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over all the earth itself and every creature that crawls upon it.”…And God looked upon all that He had made, and indeed, it was very good. 

Cast Your Burdens

“Momma, it’s hot.”

I’m staying at Moody Gardens this week for my middle two daughters’ cheer camp. During the day, while the big girls do cheer camp with their coach, I’ve got one little girl to keep occupied. Yesterday, as we walked around the grounds from one activity to another, my littlest one loudly moaned about the stifling Galveston heat. And I responded, “Baby girl, God ain’t gonna take away the heat today, but He did give us the wind. Let’s thank Him for the wind.”

The Lord is not in the business of removing every obstacle and relieving us of tribulation. On the contrary, He said “in this world you will have trouble.” His foremost apostle said, “do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you.” And His brother said trials are God’s way of testing our faith to produce perseverance. Indeed, the Lord never said He would remove our yoke, He simply promised that His would be much lighter to bear because He carries the weight of it. 

Beloved, God is in the business of bearing our burdens with us. The relentless march of our lives will continue on. Our test is how we will walk in it. When the strain and stress come, who will we look to? When we are pressed beyond measure, what will seep out from deep within us? When we are stripped of self-sufficiency who will we lean on? The answer to all of these must be “Christ.” Because God ain’t gonna take away the heavy things, but He has given us His Son to help us bear them. 

Let us thank him for His Son.

(Matt 11:28-30) Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

(Ps 55:22) Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.

(2 Cor 4:16-18) Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that is far beyond comparison. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

(Dan 3:24,25) Suddenly King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and asked his advisers, “Did we not throw three men, firmly bound, into the fire?” “Certainly, O king,” they replied. “Look!” he exclaimed. “I see four men, unbound and unharmed, walking around in the fire—and the fourth looks like a son of the gods!”

Cling To What Is Good

“Hang on to what you did right….”

I’m helping chaperone my two middle daughters’ cheer camp this week. This afternoon when I came by to see how they were doing, my older daughter was rushing toward the door in tears. I followed her and put my arm around her. I didn’t say anything, I just waited until she was ready to talk. And when she was ready, she said through tears, “Momma, we did it wrong. We made mistakes.”

Last night when I talked to my momma about her last cancer scan, that’s the very thing that wracked my heart— all the things that I didn’t get right. Our lives may look nice on Facebook, but behind all that is the real stuff. The ugly stuff. The mistakes and the hurt and the struggles that we don’t take pictures of. And in that moment when my daughter leaned on me because she felt like she did it wrong, the Spirit of God spoke a word to her through my own lips that was meant as a balm for my own soul too, “Baby girl, just hang on to what you did right.”

Oh Beloved, that is His word to hearts that feel like they are bearing the weight of the world. To hearts that long to be clean, but keep finding smudges. To hearts that want to love like Christ, but keep tripping over themselves. Don’t hang onto your mistakes, learn from them. Don’t cling to what you did wrong, because that will pull you down to the depths and drown you. Repent where you need to, acknowledge your wrongs, and make amends if necessary, but only cling to what is good. 

Just like I told my baby girl: “You can’t change what you got wrong, but you can hang on to what you did right.”

(Rom 12:9) Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.

(Phil 4:8,9) Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

(Ps 43:3) Send out Your light and Your truth; let them lead me. Let them bring me to Your holy mountain, and to the place where You dwell.