Titus 2:11-12
The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age.
I remember back in high school all the papers I was assigned to write for a grade. Not only in high school, but also in college. College laid on more paperwork than I thought would come along. However, it wasn't meant to be frustrating and upsetting, but to discipline me to know how to write well and to keep improving my writing. I had teachers that were strict about the writing and kept on me so that I could achieve the potential they and God saw in me. At times, I would feel like ripping up the paper and just saying "enough of this" and forget about it. Now, in my life, I deal with trying to become a better devotional writer. I look back at the previous ones I've written and I can see how God and others have given me guidance and suggestions at how to improve my writing. I enjoy working hard on improving my grammar, sentence structure and wording things differently. There can always be improvements. I'm continuing to learn and change how I write so that others can read my devotional writing easier and be touched more by the Word of God.
Learning will never stop in life, no matter what profession/career you take on. If we stop learning how to do things right in life, we will sway toward doing things wrong. We know what is right and desire to know how to do things correctly, so we must keep learning and changing how we live in our Christian lives. God gave us His Word and offers His Salvation so that we can learn how to live properly. We have no excuses for doing wrong because God is clear about how we should live our lives. Sometimes we complain about not being sure of what is right or how to handle a tempting/compromising situation. Could it possibly be that too often we find ourselves "stuck" in a decision making situation because we have strayed away from keeping to God's Word and remembering what He says is right? I think so. We find so many excuses and we end up falling so far back from where God wants to take us.
Our Father in Heaven has taught us, through His Word, how to say "NO" to ungodliness and worldly passions. I see things in my own life, day after day, that I want to get right and I seem to keep messing them up. I then realize that I must really desire, deep in my heart, to really end whatever obstacles remain in my way of pleasing God. I need to get rid of that sin, learn and change how I'm living. The grace of God has saved me from the fires of Hell, but it's up to me to continue living for God and not turn my back on His ways. The world is good at pulling us away from what we know is right and holy. God has taught us and is still teaching us through His Word how to say "NO" to the world. However, it is His Word we must keep studying daily to be reminded of what He says "YES" to.
So, are we really learning and changing for God? Or are we letting too much of the worldly passions consume our lives?
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