God loves you and He has an amazing plan for your life. He wants you to be happy and He wants to bless you, but there’s so much more to His plans and purposes for you than that.

First and foremost, God wants a personal relationship with each of us. And He wants us to partner with Him in sharing His love and the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those who don’t know Him. He wants us to care about them…to pray for them…and to show them His love and what it means to really be a Christian.

I remember a time years ago when I wanted to serve God and witness for Him, telling others about Him, but I didn’t have His power in my life to BE a witness. I was going to church every week and was part of the group that went out in the city and handed out Gospel tracts about how you can become a Christian to people on the street. But I didn’t enjoy it, and I was just doing it to fulfill an obligation to witness for God.

Then, in 1976, God touched my life in a major way when I was crying out to Him for something more. I knew there had to be more than what I was experiencing in my relationship with Him at that point. God heard my prayer and He did a work in my heart that actually changed my desires so that more than anything else, I wanted to be what He had created me to be.

This is when I got really serious about studying the Bible, and I discovered the key to having true freedom in Christ.

No Freedom in Wishing

In John 8:31-32 (AMP), Jesus said, “If you abide in My word [hold fast to My teachings and live in accordance with them], you are truly My disciples. And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.” These verses clearly show us that it’s not possible to be free without facing the truth.

It’s important for us to understand what truth really is. Truth is the way things really are—not the way we think they are or would like them to be or wish they were. It’s reality from God’s point of view and it is a central theme in His Word. Jesus is the Word of Truth (John 1:14, 17). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, and He guides us into all the Truth (John 16:13). And as children of God, we belong to the Truth (John 8:31).

It Starts with You

But if you want to have the freedom to be who God has created you to be and have the life Jesus died for you to have, then you have to face the truth. And it starts by facing the truth about yourself. I know about this from personal experience, because when I started studying the Word, the Holy Spirit went to work in my life.

I remember one day when I was praying for Dave to change. God spoke to my heart and said, “Joyce, Dave is not the problem.” I thought, “Well then, who is? There’s just me and him, so if it’s not Dave, then who is it?” Isn’t that amazing?! I was so self-deceived that it didn’t even occur to me that I could be the problem.

For the next three days, God showed me what it was like to live with me. I was so sorry for the attitudes I had, the way I behaved, the anger I displayed every time I didn’t get my way…and it was so hard! But I needed to face the truth about myself so I could have freedom from sin and the things that were keeping me from the love, peace, wisdom and joy that God had for me in Christ.

Transformed into His Image

It took time for me to change; 2 Corinthians 3:18 says that as we look into God’s Word, we “are constantly being transfigured into His very own image…from one degree of glory to another…” (AMP). But each day as I spent time with God in prayer and studying His Word, I made progress little by little.

You know, sometimes we hide things in our heart that are hard to face or deal with. And when we don’t deal with them, they cause problems in our relationships and steal the joy from our daily lives. But God wants us to invite Him—the Spirit of Truth—into our hearts to deal with us…to reveal the truth so we can be set free.

Psalm 51:6 says, “Behold, You desire truth in the inner being; make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart” (AMP). And Psalm 26:2 says, “Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; test my heart and my mind.”

I want to encourage you not to settle for anything less than the best life Christ has for you. If you’re ready to do that, then pray this with me: “Lord, in Jesus’ name, I pray that You would examine me, prove me and test me, so that Your Spirit can lead me into all truth.” Now get ready, because God wants to reveal Truth to you and make you everything He’s created you to be!

For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]. Ephesians 2:10

Since before we were born, God has had a unique plan for each of us. It is not a plan of failure, misery, poverty, sickness, and disease. God’s plan is a good plan, a plan for life and health, happiness, and fulfillment. In Jeremiah 29:11 we read, For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.

It would benefit every one of us if we would say to ourselves several times a day, God has a good plan for my life. Each of us needs to be firmly convinced of that truth to keep us from being affected by our changing circumstances and emotions. You may be asking, “If God has such a wonderful plan for my life, why am I not living in it?” I understand why you would ask that question. It does seem strange that if God loves us so much and has such good plans for us, we should have to suffer and go through pain.

What you must remember is that we have an enemy who is out to destroy God’s wonderful plan. Although God had a good plan for my life, I ended up in an abusive environment because the devil came and disrupted that good plan. But there is something else, something really awesome about God, we need to understand. God doesn’t like it when someone hurts us and tries to undermine His plan for us. While He is making us lie down in green pastures to restore our soul (see Psalm 23:2-3), He is getting up to do something about our situation!

It should be a great comfort to us to know that what we cannot do for ourselves, the Lord will do for us—if we will trust ourselves to Him.

“This is the message God has given us to pass on to you: That God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. So if we say we are His friends, but go on living in spiritual darkness and sin, we are lying. But if we are living in the light of God’s presence, just as Christ does, then we have wonderful fellowship and joy with each other, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin” (1 John 1:5-7).

One of the first passages of Scripture that I memorized as a new Christian was the first chapter of 1 John. This passage has been a beacon to me through the years as a simple reminder that in God is light and the only reason that I do not live perpetually in that light is because at times I deliberately sin.

Steve had lost his joy and enthusiasm for Christ, and as a new Christian was perplexed. He could not understand what had happened to him. As we counseled together, it became apparent that he had allowed some of his old natural habit patterns to creep back into his life.

I suggested that he make a list of all the things that were wrong in his life and confess them to the Lord in accordance with 1 John 1:9. A few days later, with joyful enthusiasm he came to share with me how his heart had been kindled afresh with the love of God as he was now walking in the light as God is in the light, having wonderful fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

How does one walk in the light? Do not tolerate unconfessed sin. Meditate upon the Word of God. Spend time in prayer talking to God and letting Him talk to you. Share your faith in Christ with others. Obey the commandments of God.

Are you walking in the light as God is in the light? Are you experiencing the joy of the Lord? Are you constrained by the love of Christ to share Him with others?

Bible Reading: I John 1:6-10

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I shall always seek to walk in the light as God is in the light in order that I may experience wonderful fellowship with my Lord. When I find myself walking in darkness, I shall pause to confess my sins and by faith claim God’s forgiveness and cleansing so that I may be restored to once again walk in the light with God.

I will praise and give thanks to You with uprightness of heart when I learn [by sanctified experiences] Your righteous judgments [Your decisions against and punishments for particular lines of thought and conduct]. I will keep Your statutes. Psalm 119:7–8

I believe people give their mistakes more power than they need. We should admit them, repent, and ask God to forgive us for them. We should also learn from our mistakes because by doing so, they can add value to our lives. Instead of allowing mistakes to make you feel guilty and bad, let them be your teacher, and always remember that just because you make a mistake does not mean you are a mistake. Just as God has promised in His Word (John 16:13), trust Him to lead you by His Holy Spirit into all truth.

Dave and I have four grown children, and I can assure you that over the years they have made many mistakes, but I love them just as much as if they had never made the mistakes. Some parents never allow their children to make any of their own decisions or mistakes. This is the biggest mistake of all. To grow we must step out and try things. We learn what works and what doesn’t. Learning from firsthand experience is a much better teacher than a textbook.

Lord, I’ve made my share of mistakes, but I refuse to let them rule over me. I take them as lessons that I am learning from, and I know You will lead me into all truth by Your Spirit. Amen.

Therefore my heart is glad and my glory [my inner self] rejoices; my body too shall rest and confidently dwell in safety. Psalm 16:9

There are dozens of things that happen during ordinary, everyday life, and we can enjoy them all if we just make a decision to do it.

Things like getting dressed, driving to work, going to the grocery store, running errands, keeping things organized, sending e‑mails, taking the kids to practice, and hundreds of other things.

After all, they are the things that life is made up of. Begin doing them with an attitude of gratitude and realize that, through the Holy Spirit, you can enjoy absolutely everything you do every day of your life.

Joy doesn’t come merely from being entertained, but from a decision to appreciate each moment that you are given as a rare and precious gift from God.

Prayer of Thanks Father, thank You for the gift of life, and thank You for every activity that comes with that gift. I pray that You will help me find joy in each part of my day as I live for You. I thank You that I can choose to enjoy even the average, routine parts of my day.

For we [Christians] are the true circumcision, who worship God in spirit and by the Spirit of God and exult and glory and pride ourselves in Jesus Christ, and put no confidence or dependence [on what we are] in the flesh and on outward privileges and physical advantages and external appearances. Philippians 3:3

Self-confidence is the buzzword of today’s culture. Society proclaims a basic need to believe in oneself and that you need to feel good if you are ever going to accomplish anything in life. Too many believe the lie.

Many people spend their lives climbing the ladder of success only to reach the top and discover their ladder was propped against the wrong building. Others strive to perform perfectly, only to endure repeated failures. The result is always the same—emptiness and misery.

You don’t need to believe in yourself—you need to believe in Jesus in you. You don’t dare feel good about yourself apart from Him. You do not need self-confidence. You need God-confidence!