What A Love

What a love he has for me, for us, for you. I used to think that God was a "one time" kind of guy. One time to show love, one time to rescue, one time to forgive, one time to reveal, and so on. I was so completely wrong. The Lord has continued to speak and reveal himself to me since the day in January of 2013 when I accepted his gift of Salvation. It's been over a year now, and what a year it has been. The cliche thing to say is that Christianity is a hard walk filled with ups and downs. But it's not exactly cliche when you're living in it. I was obviously naive to think that walking with God was going to be a breeze. I wish I could write every single thing God has done this past year, but to catch up to present times, I would already have an entire novel-- A novel in one year, imagine how much God has left for me? This past year, the most significant attribute to my walk, I would think, is influence. God has taken and given to me many times. The people he has put in my life this year have been an absolute blessing, and even the people he has chosen to take away from me have turned into blessings. Through people alone I have been able to gain resources necessary to grow my faith. No matter the person, each one radiates Christ's love. They inspire me daily to better myself in Christ. This alone is a huge challenge. Everyone always has room to grow. My growth is dependent on my pursuit of Christ, and efforts to stand firm in Faith rather than fall into sin. Lately, God has been teaching me that not only does he love me for who I am and not my actions, but my sinful nature will never leave me. As a human, sin is a natural part of me. When I accepted Christ, however, I declared war within my soul. I thank God for making me strong, but no matter my strength, I am still human. I will never be perfect. Romans 7 tells me that whenever I want to do good, evil is right there with me. I know that I have to constantly fight to overcome this evil. My evil may be different than your evil, but the same God is in control. The greatest part of this war is that God is on my side, and with Him, there will be victory. And though I still struggle, victory is coming, and evil will be defeated. This battle will be won, and this evil will no longer have a hold on me. I see this hope, I feel his love lavished upon me, and it gives me all the more reason to continue fighting. Not only will I no longer be a prisoner to my evil, but I am a light to the world, and I will shine this light in darkness. I am beyond ready for Jesus to use me in huge ways, and I know he is using me now. I desire to be a better example for the people around me however. I've also learned that giving my problems completely to God is the most affective solution. So, with this as well as with many other things, I am trusting that God will continue to grow me and use me for his glory.