It May be Dark, but it's Not Too Late

It's not too late.  It's not a lost cause. It's not hopeless.  It's not too far gone. 

     When we are in a relationship with someone, not matter what kind, it often seems like there is no way to repair the damage when the relationship is broken.  Marriages end, children are estranged from parents for decades, and people die having never restored themselves to each other.  We see this so often that we believe that all relationships are like that.  That is not true.
     First of all, most relationships that are broken and not repaired are that way because one side or the other refuses to restore the relationship.  It may be out of anger or the feeling that a restored relationship will only bring a return of the problem that began the rift in the first place.  In order for a relationship to be restored, there has to be several changes.  A change must come in the situation and a change must come in the mind and heart of those in the relationship.
     The situation could be an argument that resulted in statements being made that established hurt feelings or a refusal to associate with the other.  The situation could be a stance on an issue that is outside the bounds of one person's acceptable living limits.  The situations are usually real problems, but are not always unchangeable.
     The other change takes place in the heart of those involved.  We have to be willing to listen and understand.  Possibly a misunderstanding has taken place and can be corrected.  Possibly the situation is exactly as it was originally understood and a change in the situation must occur.  Then a decision can be made as to whether the relationship is worth the surrender of the stand we have taken.  
     All of these scenarios involve an evaluation of something we hold dear, our control.  Our ability to decide what we want.  Sometimes that is the source of our broken relationship. 

There is one relationship, however that has a different set of rules.  Our relationship with God.  When there is something wrong with our relationship with God, it is easy to figure out where the change needs to happen.  Why do I say this?   
God never changes.  



Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17

God is never unfair. He is perfectly just based on the way He designed the universe. He made the rules.

No matter how much we want to have a say in it, they are already set and do not change.


God always forgives someone who honestly asks Him for forgiveness. No matter what it is. But we have to be the ones to change. We have to REPENT or change our ways and ask him to forgive us.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9


God has already sacrificed in an order to restore the relationship.

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8


Whether we are spending our lives not in a relationship with God because of anger or because we feel unworthy or because we are in a situation that is against God's universe, the fault is not God's. We can be consumed with the desire to control our own choices, but ultimately they must align with God.


We must confess that Jesus is Lord of all including us. We must recognize Him and be willing to give up control.


Next we must ask forgiveness and for restoration of the relationship. He has promised to say yes.


"If you confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord" and trust in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."


The relationship is maintained just like most other relationships. Talk together often. Learn everything you can about each other. Choose to do things that improve the relationship whenever you can.


It's not too late.

Lead us, Deliver Us

     God is big enough.  He can handle it. We don't need to lie to him about our problems.  He already knows them.  He is not shocked or upset because of our failures or struggles.  He doesn't look down in dismay when we tell him about the sins that we just can't seem to get out of our lives.  Even though we hide them from everyone in the world, God knows and understands the problems even better than we do ourselves.  These is no deep, dark secret that he doesn't already know.
     God is strong enough.  He doesn't love us only when we keep his commandments.  He is there to save us because he knows we can't fight such huge opponents on our own.  The very thing that we believe is coming between us and God is the thing that He is ready to destroy for us.  There is no sin that he cannot remove from our lives.  Sometimes we ask him to take it away, but we keep reaching out and taking it back.

     How do we overcome a problem that we know God wants out of our lives, but that seems to be un-fightable?

First we have to trust that God CAN remove it.  Begin with a moment in time where we approach God in prayer and say, "Lord,  I admit that there is this sinful part of my life and I ask you to forgive me for participating in it."

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleans us from all unrighteousness."
1 John 1:9

At this immediate moment that sin is forgiven.  God promises it.  Do we immediately loose our desire to do it again?  Not always.  Especially if we have accepted it into our lives many times. We must continue to go to fight, but not the way we did in the past.  Every time the battle comes back, we must not gather our strength to overcome it, but immediately take it to our champion of spiritual battles and turn it over to him.  Jesus fought temptation with prayer and scripture.  That is our way as well.  Victory over sinful things is a definite thing when God is doing the fighting on our behalf.  " Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:11-12

The most important struggle against sin takes place in our hearts and minds.  Allowing ourselves to fantasize about sinning is the best way to return to sin and give in to temptation.  Once we have agreed with God that this must be removed from our lives,  the enemy returns to the spiritual battle of temptation.  We fight it with immediate prayer and a call to our God to take up the battle in our minds.  Don't wait to pray.  Do it immediately when temptation strikes.  Step aside, close your eyes and say, "God the temptation is here, the battle is yours and I trust you right now."

We must also make changes in our lives to keep that sin from approaching us.  If we have struggle with abusing substances, we must remove them from our houses and ask others to keep us away from them.  If we struggle with a relationship that is inappropriate, we must remove those people from our interaction and stop allowing ourselves to "enjoy" the sin  in our minds.  If we have issues with inappropriate internet pictures and temptations, we must move our computers and only use them in public areas with others in the room.

God alone defeats sin.  We fight it successfully only with His strength.  We also fight it with trusted believers who are also calling on God's power in our behalf.   Stop trying to fight on your own.  Ask God to take over and destroy your enemy of sin.  It will be a constant battle, but will get easier as we develop the response of going to God immediately on a regular basis.

When Jesus prayed to God the Father, he said, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"  He knew that constant spiritual war raging in the hearts and minds of those on earth and that the power of God can subdue it.  Pray and Surrender to God's Power.  You will be overjoyed at the change in your life.