puricare chronicles: GOD WINS ALL WRESTLING MATCHES - The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well. - “This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” - 1 John 5:3 - In 1980 I toured communist Czechoslovakia. The government had an inflated exchange rate for their money and black-market money was readily available, but buying it was against international law. So, as a Christian, I exchanged money legally. Then I ran out of money on the weekend when the banks were closed, and our tour guide offered me a black-market exchange. I needed money for supper, so I convinced myself that I had no choice but to disobey the law. Thus began the “wrestling match”: me telling God it was necessary. God reminding me that I was using situational ethics to disobey His commands (Romans 13:1-6; 1 Peter 2:13-17). It was an unjust government and an unfair law — but it didn’t violate God’s law. So I quit “wrestling,” returned the black-market money to our guide, and reminded myself of 1 John 5:3: “This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” I could have walked away from the wrestling match and done what was wrong, but I'd have lost in so many ways. The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well. I learned to apply my faith to a real-life situation, and this small temptation strengthened me for greater temptations in the future.

Monday, April 5, 2021

GOD WINS ALL WRESTLING MATCHES - The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well. - “This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” - 1 John 5:3 - In 1980 I toured communist Czechoslovakia. The government had an inflated exchange rate for their money and black-market money was readily available, but buying it was against international law. So, as a Christian, I exchanged money legally. Then I ran out of money on the weekend when the banks were closed, and our tour guide offered me a black-market exchange. I needed money for supper, so I convinced myself that I had no choice but to disobey the law. Thus began the “wrestling match”: me telling God it was necessary. God reminding me that I was using situational ethics to disobey His commands (Romans 13:1-6; 1 Peter 2:13-17). It was an unjust government and an unfair law — but it didn’t violate God’s law. So I quit “wrestling,” returned the black-market money to our guide, and reminded myself of 1 John 5:3: “This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” I could have walked away from the wrestling match and done what was wrong, but I'd have lost in so many ways. The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well. I learned to apply my faith to a real-life situation, and this small temptation strengthened me for greater temptations in the future.

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God Wins All Wrestling Matches

The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well.

Gail Burton Purath

“This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” - 1 John 5:3

In 1980 I toured communist Czechoslovakia.

The government had an inflated exchange rate for their money and black-market money was readily available, but buying it was against international law.

So, as a Christian, I exchanged money legally.

Then I ran out of money on the weekend when the banks were closed, and our tour guide offered me a black-market exchange.

I needed money for supper, so I convinced myself that I had no choice but to disobey the law.

Thus began the “wrestling match”: me telling God it was necessary.

God reminding me that I was using situational ethics to disobey His commands (Romans 13:1-6; 1 Peter 2:13-17).

It was an unjust government and an unfair law — but it didn’t violate God’s law.

So I quit “wrestling,” returned the black-market money to our guide, and reminded myself of 1 John 5:3:

“This is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.”

I could have walked away from the wrestling match and done what was wrong, but I'd have lost in so many ways.

The beauty in wrestling matches with God is this: when we let Him win, we win as well.

I learned to apply my faith to a real-life situation, and this small temptation strengthened me for greater temptations in the future (Luke 16:10).

Note: I was willing to go without supper that evening to obey God, but I didn't have to. Nor did I even have to borrow money. A new friend insisted on buying my supper, and she knew nothing about my lack of funds!

Please check out the Bite Size Bible Study based on this devotion. It contains scriptural guidelines for obeying and disobeying government laws. I also share why I gladly disobeyed another Czech law on that trip in 1980.

You can also find this devotion with added details as a guest post on Upgrade With Dawn.

Hi! I'm Gail Burton Purath. I started Bible Love Notes to give people a minute of Scriptural encouragement in their busy day.

I don't have all the answers, but

since I asked Christ to be my Lord and Savior in 1974, I've been learning from the One Who has all the answers!
I'm still a sinner, a learner, a student who falls down and disappoints God at times. But it's my desire to grow closer to the Lord, day by day, minute by minute.

I need to be challenged, encouraged, corrected and comforted, and I think you do as well...so let's learn together about the love of God--a love that is so vast that we will always be discovering new and wonderful things about it.

https://biblelovenotes.blogspot.com/2013/06/Law.html

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