Philippians 1:20-21

"I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."

What a wonderful HOPE! That living on this earth is for Christ alone, then when life on this earth is done, there is ETERNAL life. Wow.

This sounds great! But when it comes down to it, I don't live like this. As of late, living for Christ has become a second and living in my desires has come first. In the previous post, I wrote about how the past few weeks has been challenging, and God has been showing me how He wants me to deal with some thing. If only my human eyes would have seen it earlier, because I think as though I have hurt many people around me through my own mistakes this past year. Why oh why was I selfish enough to wait and put off the conviction. How my heart is full of pride.

In this conviction, the Lord has brought me to a place of mourning. He has also brought joy in the midst of my sin. God, how great Your grace is! How amazing Your love is! And though my feet will continually wonder off at different points in my life, how great, then, is His grace all the more.

Now, what can I do but press on and persevere toward a more personal, more intimate relationship with my Lord, my God?

"In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son." Hebrew 12:4-6

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." 12:11

"Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a CONSUMING FIRE." 12:28-29