"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." - Ephesians 4:22-24
Alignment is a word I’ve struggled with for a long time. More times than I can count I’ve asked a question similar to “Do my actions and words represent my faith in God?” As a self-diagnosed perfectionist, I find difficulty in sanctification, and either feel like I’m so close to becoming the person God called me to be or failing miserably. It’s kind of exhausting swinging between pride and self-loathing.
Most of the time I start the morning filled with the Holy Spirit, overwhelmed by the goodness of God. By lunch, my energy and patience can dwindle and I find it just a little easier to use profanity in place of prayer, or gossip in place of grace. By the evening, I can find myself in full-out displacement with God. I know I’m called to put off my old self and run towards my new self, but it’s easy to backslide.
How do we hold ourselves accountable to the life Christ calls us to while giving ourselves the grace to grow? I think together, through prayer and shared transparent testimonies of our pursuit of God, we can find that balance. We can vulnerably recognize our shortcomings, yet rejoice in the fact that Jesus’ blood washed us white as snow, and His mercies are new every morning!
Let’s be the people who are willing to admit to each other that we’re fighting the good fight to stay aligned with God, no matter how many times we stumble, slip or fail. Let’s let our pursuit of God, and our passion to walk alongside one another in love and truth be greater than our pride, and desire to be seen as having it all together.
Challenge: Let’s put Galatians 6:2 into practice! “Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” Be open to receive someone’s truth with grace, and be vulnerable in being honest about your struggles and burdens.