good morning, all.....i'm on day 5 off of hydros....better today than yesterday, although i only slept for 3-4 hours last night....gets me every time!
anyway, i was up at the crack of dawn this morning, of course, and i sat down with my cup of coffee to turn on the news and weather....was in our bedroom sitting room, sitting in the recliner....looked over at my Bible....peeking up as a bookmark in the Bible was a sheet of paper i'd kept for a few years now.....a written version of a sermon our pastor delivered at church....the title was "A Self-Control Makeover".....it obviously affected me deeply at the time, because i only keep the ones i TRULY feel a connection with....so funny how God works sometimes.....but here are a few very pertinent scriptures for anyone who is interested....just wanted to share....
Romans 7:15 I do not understand what I do, for what i want to do, i do not do, but what i hate to do. ....... For i have the desire to do what is good, but i cannot carry it out.
Matthew 26:41 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the body is weak.
Romans 7:17 As it is, it is no longer i myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.
Romans 8:32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all -- how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
to do a self-control makeover, first we have to acknowledge the ROOT of our problem...
1 John 1:8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
John 8:34 Jesus replied, i tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to that sin
secondly, we have to believe that Christ can CHANGE us....
let Jesus Christ be your Master, the Lord of your life....when HE is your master, He can do ANYTHING thru you. Do not try to play God!! God is God, not you! stop trying so hard and just give it to God....
1 Corinthians 10:13 no temptation has seized you except what is common to man. and God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!!!
and finally, we all know we have to confess our struggles to another....we have to humble ourselves before God and humble ourselves before someone we trust (i.e., this forum! :-))
James 5:16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work. If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls adn has no one to help him up!!
Ephesians 4:27 Do not give the devil a foothold
Ecclesiastes 11:4 Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.
(TRANSLATION: We've got to ACT, we've got to do something about things!)
Anyway, it was just such a coincidence that i happened to glance over and see this this morning. I can't tell you how many times over the years since i've had this sheet sitting here that i haven't noticed it at all.....and yet this morning, in the midst of my struggles and challenges on day 5, i just happen to glance over and see it! God does work in mysterious ways..... :-)
My hope is that maybe just one or two or three (or more?) on this forum will take heart and benefit from some of this. Remember, you absolutely cannot overdose on God's word!
God's blessings to all of you....and happy first day of spring! i hope everyone is keeping up the good fight, no matter what day you're on or how long you've been clean....
kim