Running

I wonder how many believers are running towards God and how many are running away from God.  I also wonder how many are just staying stagnate, not advancing, or retreating, just kind of stuck where they are.  These are questions I think we should be asking ourselves at times.  I also wonder how many are conforming to the world or how many are being transformed.  It seems that many believers start out their Christian journey running towards God, happy and content, enjoying God’s blessings and growing in grace, but as time goes on something takes place, which could be a number of things, and then a change starts to take place in many of their lives.  

Sometimes people may get judgmental and start judging themselves by other’s standards, then they start looking down on others with a ‘better than thou’ attitude, which is sin and it hinders their growth.  Others get offended by someone, or more than one person, and get angry and hold onto that anger, and that hinders their growth.  I don’t know how many people think about this but some are angry with their wives and that hinders their prayers and slows down their growth.  Read this in 1 Peter 3:7, “Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.”

Then there are those who get angry at God for some reason or other and they become bitter and instead of growing closer to God they are falling farther and farther away.  There are also those that tell stories and gossip about people, which is also a sin and, they many times may not realize it but, they separate themselves from God.  Think of this, all of these things are sin and sin separates us from God.  Read Isaiah 59:2, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.”  I know this was directed to the Jews, but the way I see it, God does not change, He is the same and He hates sin and sin separates us from Him!!

Many seem to forget at times, including me, that God’s Word says this in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”

It also goes on to say this in verses 8-10, “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

There are just so many reasons why people either run from God, or grow stagnate, or are struck where they are in one or more of these situations which there are many more than what I have mentioned here, but I know who is behind them all and that is the enemy of our souls.  He is a liar and the father of all lies, and the one who only comes to steal, kill and destroy, so we need to resist him and tell him to flee.  We then need to confess and repent of the sin, or sins, we are guilty of and start growing and running towards God because He loves us and that is His will for us, praise His Holy Name!!

Remember Jonah who was one of God’s prophets?  He was a man who lived for God and was obedient, but even though one day he started running from God, God got his attention and Jonah wound up in a fish’s belly.  I wonder if that fish thought he tasted good when it swallowed him, just a thought.  Let’s go on, there are always consequences for sin.  Think about this, do you think God corrected Jonah out of anger?  I think God did it because He loved Jonah and wanted him to do the right thing because He loved him.  Sometimes God may correct us in ways that seem kind of harsh, but remember He always does it from a loving standpoint, even if He is angry.  When Jonah repented, and it was all said and done, even though it doesn’t say it, I think that Jonah learned from his experience and was a better man for it in the end.  

If you are running from God you are wasting your time, God is everywhere and you cannot hide from Him!  So if you find yourself running, or in one of the other circumstances I mentioned or in something that I didn’t mention, that is sin, so repent and confess it, ask God to forgive you and start running towards Him and keep the evil one on the run.  Forgive God and forgive others and stop gossiping and stop judging others by your standards, God’s standards are what we need to try to achieve.  Get into God’s Word and let it transform your life as you put it into practice.  We all need to do this so that we can run towards God and grow daily in our faith.  Something to think about!  May you have a super day and may God bless you and yours!!