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March 11, 2014 Divided Loyalty (2)

Tuesday March 11, 2014
Divided Loyalty (2)

Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings.  And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32 NLT)




When we read the Bible it tells us to remain faithful to the teachings of Jesus.  We are told again and again that we are greatly loved and cared for by God but we allow ourselves to focus on the lie that “Nobody really understands me.  Nobody truly cares about me.  I need to take care of myself.”  Relapse happens because we have a divided mind that tries to focus on what God says is true but also dwells on familiar thoughts which are untrue.  We easily forget that our own efforts at caring for ourselves took us to places of pain and suffering where we medicated our feelings in whatever way we could.  When we allow ourselves to become unsettled in our new life with God we forget God’s truth and begin to entertain unwholesome thoughts such as:

“I need a break”:  Relapse into our old ways is well underway when we are willing to dwell on harmful thoughts and desires for activities that led us astray in the past.  Being obedient to the word of God is hard work.  It demands we spend a lot of emotional time in unfamiliar territory.  It requires energy.  We are learning to be patient when, in the past, we’ve always managed to “get what we need when we needed it.”  We get tired of being faithful to God.  We want to take a break and just “take it easy.”  We want to feel better for a while and certain habits and relationships from the past seem to offer that comfort.  We rationalize that we’ve worked hard in so many areas and given up so much for our new life that we deserve a little something even though it is harmful.  We forget that God has given us the strength to succeed in our new life.  Once again we are divided in our thinking.  We want to do what is right but we don’t do it.  Instead we do what is wrong and subsequently regret that we have fallen back into our old ways.

I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.  (Romans 7:15-17 NLT)

When we get to this place we need to bring ourselves back into the care of the God who loves us.  We need to admit that our minds are divided.  We need to ask for His strength to overcome the temptations we are dealing with.  His strength will rise up in us as we wait before Him for guidance.

Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! (Psalm 27:14 NKJV)



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