When you are walking through something that’s tough or stressful, we don’t always see very clearly. We get so consumed with our present trouble,  we forget to use the previous lessons  that we have learned along the way. That’s exactly the place I had gotten to…I had been doing all that I thought I was supposed to be doing while at the same time I was ignoring promptings to take care of some small things. They just didn’t seem that important compared to what I was having to deal with…but when the little things aren’t dealt with, they become big things.

As I had decided to finally give it all over (for real this time) to Jesus, the relief I felt was almost instant. And in the next several days, He brought a few things to light that I had been neglecting. He also showed me that some of the things I felt ‘stuck’ about were from my own doing.

I’m a big fan of reality but…OUCH.

Most of us among the living are walking around with these invisible strings that we think help us or protect us or allow us to have control over our lives. But when we don’t keep these strings in check, they can end up keeping us all tied up in knots and guess what?

We get stuck.

Here are a few of my recent ‘strings‘:

#1 DISOBEDIENCE

Well, well, well…lookie here! Ugh.

I have known (key word here) that I should be more responsible with my finances. I had taken some small steps but hadn’t surrendered it fully. And you think that I already would have considering this in one of my areas of stress, right? I might be a teensy bit thick skulled at times.

Proverbs 22:17 “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave to the lender.”

Boy, did I feel like a slave. So I made the decision that I would trust (another key word) Jesus to provide where I was lacking and I cut up the credit cards. I am now at a lower interest rate and can see the light to getting them paid off. My desire now is to be a good steward with what I have in order that I may help others.

Hebrews 13:5 “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Acts 20:35 “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’.”

Jesus also brought up some other areas of disobedience in my personal life and I am daily handing it off to Him.

Willingly.

Not because I was forced or because ‘that’s just what you are supposed to do.’ I think sometimes that we can view obedience very negatively. Whether it be from past experiences with religion/church or maybe from parental figures that used it in a bad way. Jesus calls us to love and invite Him in FIRST and because we love Him, the RESULT is our desire to be obedient. It’s not ‘You’d better obey me, boy, then you can love me.'(insert redneck voice here)

Lets go back a minute to those key words.

Know(n): God tells us that if we know that we should do something and we don’t do it, it’s sin. (Isaiah 59:2) And sin separates us from God.

Trust: Obedience and trust are like fraternal twins. They are different but are strongly connected. When you choose disobedience, what do you think that is telling Jesus? That you don’t trust Him.

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth,so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.“

I can say, even though I’m not perfect and I never will be until I leave this earth, that being obedient is a different ball of wax for sure…but I do not want to trade it in and go back to where I was. When you get a fresh breath, you want to keep breathing the same fresh air. And by His grace, I hope to continue.

Are there areas where you know you need to be obedient? What’s keeping you from it?

Or maybe you think this ‘Jesus’ thing is crazy. That’s ok and I appreciate you taking a moment to read through this post…but I also encourage you to seek Him out for yourself. You might be surprised.

‘String‘ #1 is cut. Got a few more to go!