The Elijah Projects goal is to facilitate a process of soul searching so that we might rest. I have had many times in my life when I felt exhausted but I could not sleep. I felt worn out but I couldn't get my mind to stop racing. Elijah's story is thousands of years old and yet it still rings true. This week we are talking about shame. I Kings 17:18 breaks into the widow's story. After losing her precious son she asks: "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?" This is a shame reaction. The widow falls prey to the universal question: "Am I being punished today for the wrong in my past?" It is nearly impossible to find rest when the tapes in our heads play on repeat... cataloging our wrong. This is Satan's trap. He takes our sin, mistakes, wrong and then deceives us to believe that that wrong
is us, rather than a mistake. The truth of the gospel is that in Christ, we are FREE. We are responsible to deal with the consequences of our mistakes but when we ask for forgiveness Jesus throws our wrong as far as the east is from the west.
Try something with me. Turn your neck to the left or right, whichever side has more mobility. Strain your neck to look between your shoulder blades. TRY REALLY HARD! Can you see that spot right between your shoulder blades about 1/2 way down your back. NO, unless you are a Cirque du Soleil gymnast you shouldn't be able to see that spot on your body! That is where God moves our wrong. He moves it so no matter how hard He might strain He can not see it. God didn't have to do that, He chose to give us a way to freedom.
Satan uses shame to keep us trapped. He uses shame to attempt to name us, to identify us as being something wrong. For instance someone who tells a lie is a liar. God does not name us by our wrong. He sees us as "fearfully and wonderfully made in His image.
Today... take a step toward the truth. Identify where you are feeling shamed. Invite God to reveal your true identity and your name. This is not easy. It takes a great deal of vulnerability. It requires us to be honest with what we have done wrong and take a courageous step to ask God to forgive us. God is our Protector and our Provider. In Him we find our strength.
I encourage you to identify one of the many names for God to cling to today:
Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace, Fisher of Men, Potter, Restorer, Alpha and Omega, King of Kings. For more work on this subject take a look at pages 15-18 of The Elijah Project Workbook.
The Elijah Projects goal is to facilitate a process of soul searching so that we might rest. I have had many times in my life when I felt exhausted but I could not sleep. I felt worn out but I couldn't get my mind to stop racing. Elijah's story is thousands of years old and yet it still rings true. This week we are talking about shame. I Kings 17:18 breaks into the widow's story. After losing her precious son she asks: "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?" This is a shame reaction. The widow falls prey to the universal question: "Am I being punished today for the wrong in my past?" It is nearly impossible to find rest when the tapes in our heads play on repeat... cataloging our wrong. This is Satan's trap. He takes our sin, mistakes, wrong and then deceives us to believe that that wrong is us, rather than a mistake. The truth of the gospel is that in Christ, we are FREE. We are responsible to deal with the consequences of our mistakes but when we ask for forgiveness Jesus throws our wrong as far as the east is from the west.
Try something with me. Turn your neck to the left or right, whichever side has more mobility. Strain your neck to look between your shoulder blades. TRY REALLY HARD! Can you see that spot right between your shoulder blades about 1/2 way down your back. NO, unless you are a Cirque du Soleil gymnast you shouldn't be able to see that spot on your body! That is where God moves our wrong. He moves it so no matter how hard He might strain He can not see it. God didn't have to do that, He chose to give us a way to freedom.
Satan uses shame to keep us trapped. He uses shame to attempt to name us, to identify us as being something wrong. For instance someone who tells a lie is a liar. God does not name us by our wrong. He sees us as "fearfully and wonderfully made in His image.
Today... take a step toward the truth. Identify where you are feeling shamed. Invite God to reveal your true identity and your name. This is not easy. It takes a great deal of vulnerability. It requires us to be honest with what we have done wrong and take a courageous step to ask God to forgive us. God is our Protector and our Provider. In Him we find our strength.
I encourage you to identify one of the many names for God to cling to today: Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace, Fisher of Men, Potter, Restorer, Alpha and Omega, King of Kings. For more work on this subject take a look at pages 15-18 of The Elijah Project Workbook.
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