God will give you new life again. He'll redeem you from your enemies. ~Micah 4:10
As I was reading Micah this morning, God gave me a fresh appreciation for how far he has brought me. There was a time I was knee deep, no I take that back, EAR deep in sin. It was all around me. I couldn't get away from it. And although I knew what I was doing was wrong, I didn't realize the seriousness of it. I didn't realize what it was actually doing to myself or to my family. I felt as though I was going deeper and deeper into a pit without anyway out. One thing I became very aware of was the presence of the enemy in my life. I was depressed, the anxiety I felt seemed to choke me at times, I felt persecuted on all sides.
Micah continues:
But for right now, they're ganged up against you, many peoples saying, "Kick her when she's down! Violate her! We want to see Zion grovel in the dirt." ~Micah 4:11
I would ask God why he allowed me to sin like I had. "Why didn't you just stop me God?" Deep down, I knew that he had tried...several times. God gives us free will. We are not robots programed to be perfect little people who do no wrong. He gives us the ability to make choices and to walk our own paths, hoping that we will CHOOSE to come to Him. When we sin, we are choosing to walk away from God...not the other way around. Don't get me wrong, God is more powerful than we could ever imagine. He could choose to stop us and sometimes he does (probably more times than we realize) but he allows us to make our own choices and to make mistakes for OUR benefit.
Micah continues:
These blasphemers have no idea what God is thinking and doing in this. They don't know that this is the making of God's people, that they are wheat being threshed, gold being refined. ~Micah 4:12
Sometimes the only way we'll look up is when we are down on our knees; when we have hit rock bottom and can no longer stand beneath the weight of sin we cling to. God knows that. He knows what it is going to take to get our attention. So He allows us to go through suffering for a time, because He knows that it is the only thing that will bring us to Him. That was my experience at least. Until that time, I never realized how much I needed Him. By the time I was "on my knees" I was desperate for a Savior, for forgiveness and His redeeming power to give me my life back....no, to give me NEW life. And you know what? He did. He saved me from my sin, he forgave me, redeemed me, and so much more. He has given me the love I was so frantically searching for in all the wrong places. He has healed many of my relationships that were strained and tattered. He has cut loose the relationships that were so harmful and dangerous. I know peace now. I know what it feels like to be genuinely content and happy with life as it is.
Micah continues:
On your feet, Daughter of Zion! Be threshed of chaff, be refined of dross. I'm remaking you into a people invincible. ~Micah 4:13a
I am now a daughter of God, who is continuously being refined and made into gold. He's definitely not finished yet but I can't WAIT to see the finished product. What about you? Where are you right now? Are you lost in your sin feeling like you have no way out? Are you on your knees and at your breaking point? Or have you found new life in the only One that can give it? He's waiting, you know. He's ready to do just that. Let me be the first to tell you that once you do, your life will never be the same again. Let's just say your shoulders will have a lot less weight on them. Gone will be the sin that has bogged you down for a lifetime and in its place will be the sweet feeling of joy and peace. Well, what are ya waiting for?
Until next time...
The scripture I referred to above is taken from the Message translation.
