puricare chronicles: Failures

Showing posts with label Failures. Show all posts

Saturday, March 27, 2021

WHEN YOU FEEL YOU'RE NOT ENOUGH - Whatever positive characteristic we feel we are not, God is. Whatever we need, God is. He is the God who fills in our gaps; He is I AM who fills in our blanks. When we say, “I’m not strong enough,” God says, “I AM.” When we say, “I’m not smart enough,” God says, “I AM.” When we say, “I’m not good enough,” God says, “I AM.” Once we let go of the lies that we’re not enough … and take hold of the truth that we’re more than enough because of Jesus’ presence and power in us … then we’ll be set free from paralyzing insecurity and on our way to experiencing courageous confidence to do everything He calls us to do. When we allow God to fill in our blanks He turns what we perceive as our greatest weakness into our greatest strength. Because of Jesus’ finished work on the cross, and His power in you, you are more than enough! - “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” - As soon as my first-grade teacher held up that initial spelling flashcard, I knew I was in trouble. Just 6 years old, I’d skipped off to school with a new box of crayons, a Swiss polka-dotted dress, and fresh hope that I would be smart. But first grade only confirmed my greatest fear: I was “not enough.” We lined up our miniature wooden chairs in a row like a choo-choo train.

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When You Feel You're Not Enough

Whatever positive characteristic we feel we are not, God is. Whatever we need, God is. He is the God who fills in our gaps; He is I AM who fills in our blanks.

When we say, “I’m not strong enough,” God says, “I AM.” When we say, “I’m not smart enough,” God says, “I AM.” When we say, “I’m not good enough,” God says, “I AM.”

Once we let go of the lies that we’re not enough … and take hold of the truth that we’re more than enough because of Jesus’ presence and power in us … then we’ll be set free from paralyzing insecurity and on our way to experiencing courageous confidence to do everything He calls us to do.

When we allow God to fill in our blanks He turns what we perceive as our greatest weakness into our greatest strength. Because of Jesus’ finished work on the cross, and His power in you, you are more than enough!

Sharon Jaynes

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

As soon as my first-grade teacher held up that initial spelling flashcard, I knew I was in trouble.

Just 6 years old, I’d skipped off to school with a new box of crayons, a Swiss polka-dotted dress, and fresh hope that I would be smart.

But first grade only confirmed my greatest fear: I was “not enough.”

We lined up our miniature wooden chairs in a row like a choo-choo train.

The teacher held up a spelling flashcard for us to identify the word. If we missed the word, we had to go to the caboose.

I spent most of the first grade in the caboose. I just couldn’t spell. For some reason, I especially had trouble with the word the.

I’ll help her, my teacher must have thought. She made me a nametag that read t-h-e, and I had to wear it for two weeks.

Students came up to me and asked, “Why are you wearing that tag?”

“Is your name ‘The’?”

“What’s wrong with you?”

Eventually, I learned how to spell the, but that’s not all I learned.

I learned I wasn’t as smart as everybody else, and once again, not enough. Although I ended up doing well in school, many times I’ve still felt like that little girl in the caboose.

Moses was also someone who felt he wasn’t good enough.

When God spoke through a burning bush and called Moses to lead His people out of Egyptian bondage, he had a big case of the “not-good-enoughs.”

That’s when he had a one-sided argument with God.

Moses told God he was the wrong man for the job. He wasn’t brave enough, strong enough, smart enough, eloquent enough, charismatic enough or confident enough.

At one point, Moses asked God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

And God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:13-14, NIV).

Moses was 80 years old when he argued with God.

But even the weakest knees in the hands of I AM can become a mighty force to be reckoned with.

I’ll go out on a limb and say that you, too, have likely struggled with feelings of inferiority, insecurity and inadequacy.

And the underlying statement feeding the sense of worthlessness is “I’m not __________ enough.”

You can fill in the blank with a number of qualities. False beliefs such as …

I’m not strong enough.
I’m not experienced enough.
I’m not talented enough.
I’m not brave enough.
I’m not pretty enough.

But here’s what we need to remember: Whatever positive characteristic we feel we are not, God is.

Whatever we need, God is.

He is the God who fills in our gaps; He is I AM who fills in our blanks.

When we say, “I’m not strong enough,” God says, “I AM.”

When we say, “I’m not smart enough,” God says, “I AM.”

When we say, “I’m not good enough,” God says, “I AM.”

Once we let go of the lies that we’re not enough … and take hold of the truth that we’re more than enough because of Jesus’ presence and power in us … then we’ll be set free from paralyzing insecurity and on our way to experiencing courageous confidence to do everything He calls us to do.

We’ll get out of the caboose and sit up front with the Engineer.

Want to know something amazing? One of my greatest weaknesses as a child was spelling words.

And now that is what God has called me to do today … write with words.

I stand with Paul who lamented about his weakness: “But he [God] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

That’s what happens when we allow God to fill in our blanks. He turns what we perceive as our greatest weakness into our greatest strength.

What is God calling you to do today?

Where do you feel you’re not enough?

Oh friend, because of Jesus’ finished work on the cross, and His power in you, you are more than enough!

Don’t forget it.

Heavenly Father, so many times I feel like I’m just not good enough, smart enough, wise enough … just not enough, period.

Help me stop focusing on my self-perceived inadequacies and start focusing on Your all-sufficient supply.

In Jesus’ Name,

Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” - Philippians 4:13 (ESV)

RELATED RESOURCES:

If you struggle with feeling like you're just not enough, then Sharon Jaynes’ new release, Enough: Silencing the Lies that Steal Your Confidence, is just for you. Click here for more details.

REFLECT AND RESPOND:

Which areas of your life do you tell yourself that you’re not enough?

What is God telling you about your true abilities through today’s devotion?

Join the conversation to add a prayer for you or a friend to recognize you’re enough.

Sharon Jaynes served as vice president and radio co-host for Proverbs 31 Ministries from 1996-2006. She is a best-selling author of 24 books and Bible studies, including Enough: Silencing the Lies that Steal Your Confidence, Praying for Your Husband from Head to Toe: A Daily Guide to Scripture-Based Prayer, Take Hold of the Faith You Long For: Let Go-Move Forward-Live Bold, and her latest release--Lovestruck: Discovering God's Design for Romance, Marriage, and Sexual Intimacy from the Song of Solomon.

Sharon has been featured on several radio and television programs such as Focus on the Family, Family Life Today, Revive Our Hearts, and The 700 Club. But what she loves most is speaking to women face-to-face at women's conferences and events. Her passion is encouraging and empowering women to walk in courage and confidence as they grasp their true identity as a child of God and co-heir with Christ. She’s a storyteller who loves weaving biblical principles and powerful stories to help the Bible come alive. Sharon and her husband Steve have been married 39 years. They have one son, Steven, who is married to someone Sharon says is the sweetest girl ever, Emily. They live 767.5 miles away (yes, she’s counted them).

Proverbs 31 Ministries is a non-denominational, non-profit Christian ministry that seeks to lead women into a personal relationship with Christ, with Proverbs 31:10-31 as a guide.

https://www.proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2018/04/02/when-you-feel-youre-not-enough

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Words and Music by Robert Gay.

CLICK HERE . . . to view complete playlist . . .

https://puricarechronicles.blogspot.com/2018/05/more-than-enough-jehovah-jireh-my.html

Sunday, March 21, 2021

SATAN’S PERMISSION TO SIFT YOU LIKE WHEAT - Satan is not sovereign; he does not have the freedom to act in any manner he chooses, but rather all his treacherous work is governed by the counsel of God’s will. Every true believer in Christ has the assurance that Jesus continues to be our intercessory prayer warrior. Though Satan was the supernatural power behind Peter’s failure, it was Peter’s own prideful heart that was the earthly means to his fall. Followers of Christ must never be so naïve as to think that Satan pays most attention to those who have already surrendered to his demonic powers. No, the opposite is true. It is those who follow Christ and have a reputation for being godly Christians who have targets on their backs. Satan cares not much at all about professing believers who do not seriously follow Christ and; therefore, are no threat to the devil’s kingdom. We must not knowingly allow him to take advantage of our weakness, or remain ignorant of his schemes. However, we must also never minimize our personal responsibility. For whenever we allow our pride to control us we throw open the door to making the devil’s work so much easier. - “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat.” Though Peter is named, since he was their leader, Jesus is referring to all of the Twelve (“you” is plural). All of them would be attacked by the devil but, as their leader, Peter would be most obviously singled out by the Evil One.

Satan’s Permission to Sift You like Wheat

Satan is not sovereign; he does not have the freedom to act in any manner he chooses, but rather all his treacherous work is governed by the counsel of God’s will

Every true believer in Christ has the assurance that Jesus continues to be our intercessory prayer warrior. Though Satan was the supernatural power behind Peter’s failure, it was Peter’s own prideful heart that was the earthly means to his fall.

Followers of Christ must never be so naïve as to think that Satan pays most attention to those who have already surrendered to his demonic powers. No, the opposite is true. It is those who follow Christ and have a reputation for being godly Christians who have targets on their backs. Satan cares not much at all about professing believers who do not seriously follow Christ and; therefore, are no threat to the devil’s kingdom.

We must not knowingly allow him to take advantage of our weakness, or remain ignorant of his schemes. However, we must also never minimize our personal responsibility. For whenever we allow our pride to control us we throw open the door to making the devil’s work so much easier.

by Paul Tautges

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31).

Did Jesus ever speak more startling words to His disciples?

Though Peter is named, since he was their leader, Jesus is referring to all of the Twelve (“you” is plural).

All of them would be attacked by the devil but, as their leader, Peter would be most obviously singled out by the Evil One.

Just as Satan would succeed — temporarily — in scattering the disciples by striking down the Chief Shepherd, so he would succeed, but only temporarily, in striking down Peter, their visible leader.

Satan Did More than Say “Please.”

The New American Standard translation says that Satan “demanded” permission from God to target the apostles (as does the ESV).

Satan said more than “Please” to God, i.e., he asked with a strong degree of insistence.

And Satan demanded this permission from the sovereign Lord for himself (middle voice), that is, for his own selfish, destructive agenda.

We do not know if accusation was included in his request, as it was in the case of Job, but that is probably the case since the devil is also the Accuser of the brethren, day and night (Revelation 12:10).

In spite of this, however, we must remember that he did indeed have to get permission from God to torment and attack Peter.

Satan is not sovereign; he does not have the freedom to act in any manner he chooses, but rather all his treacherous work is governed by the counsel of God’s will (Ephesians 1:11).

Human Weakness was the Devil’s Advantage.

When Jesus addressed Peter, he used his former, original name Simon, not his new, promise-filled-with-power name, Peter.

Surely, this hearkened Peter’s mind back to his pre-Christ life.

The significance of this and its repetition is noted by Norval Geldenhuys in the New International Commentary on the New Testament: “By addressing Peter as ‘Simon, Simon’ (with the repetition), the Saviour calls upon him to realize the seriousness of the matter which He is going to discuss. And by calling him ‘Simon’ instead of ‘Peter,’ Jesus reminds him of his human weakness — he is, as regards his own powers, not ‘Peter,’ but ‘the rock,’ but a mere helpless human being.”

Satan’s means to laying Peter aside temporarily was not some grotesque, appalling sin that would even be shameful to the Gentiles (though all sin is surely grotesque, appalling, and shameful to a degree); it was through Peter’s human frailty that Satan would tackle him to the ground.

It was Peter’s fear of man and cowardice that Satan would take advantage of for the sake of his own demonic plan.

Ruin was the Devil’s Goal.

The image Jesus chose, that of sifting like wheat, is painfully graphic. “The picture is of grain in a sieve, where the head of grain is taken apart (cf. Amos 9:9). Our English idiom of ‘picking someone to pieces’ or ‘taking someone apart’ has similar emotive force. Satan would like to bring Peter to ruin and leave him in pieces, exposing his lack of faithfulness. This leader of the Twelve is a prime target, and Jesus knows it” (Darrell Bock).

Satan did not intend to merely play around with Peter for a while, to have some fun with him and then leave him alone.

The devil’s single desire was to destroy Peter once and for all. And he would have succeeded had it not also been true that Jesus the Son of God had already been praying for Peter before his particular temptations came upon him.

Jesus had a More Powerful Role in this Fight.

Jesus told Peter, “but I have prayed for you[singular], that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32).

“While Satan thus acts as the cunning adversary, Jesus acts as the intercessor, the advocate of His disciples and especially of that particular one whom He had previously pointed out as the leader amongst them” (Geldenhuys).

Though Satan takes full advantage of Peter’s human weaknesses and succeeds in temporarily derailing him, the Evil One fails to fully destroy the apostle because Jesus intercedes for him.

What a comfort this is!

Every true believer in Christ has the assurance that Jesus continues to be our intercessory prayer warrior.

Nonetheless, Temporary Failure would Result.

Regardless of the Son of God’s prayers for him, Peter would indeed fail.

His human faithlessness would be revealed and would drive him back to his compassionate, restorative Savior.

Darrell Bock says that Jesus’ intercession “does not mean that Peter will never fail, but that whatever failure he has will be temporary…. Peter will not fall away completely, since Jesus goes on to note that, when Peter turns back from his failure, he is to strengthen the brothers. Peter’s failure will be a failure of nerve, not a heart denial of Jesus. The remark is a note of reconciliation before the fact and pictures how God offers total forgiveness. He knows our failure and still extends his hand graciously to the believer who trusts him.”

Restoration to Greater Usefulness was Jesus’ Goal.

Jesus’ goal was the polar opposite of Satan’s.

Satan unlocked and unleashed his arsenal for Peter’s destruction, but we must never forget that all his attacks were kept in check by the sovereign God who possesses all wisdom and has purposes that cannot be seen by us.

Peter’s faith would fail for a time, but not be completely destroyed.

Jesus told him that later, after he had been restored to the Savior, Peter would be equipped to “strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32).

Satan’s diabolical work would indeed be used for God’s higher, holier purposes.

Satan cares not much about professing believers who do not radically follow Christ and; therefore, are no threat to the devil’s kingdom agenda.

The Over-Confidence of Pride Prepared Peter for Failure.

After Jesus informed Peter of this upcoming trial from Satan, the apostle responded in his typical impetuous manner filled with the pride of over-confidence:“Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33).

“Others may fail you, Jesus, but take heart I am not weak like them!”

Though Peter boldly vowed his loyalty to Christ, even to prison or death, R. Kent Hughes comments, “this foremost disciple would succumb to cowardly denial and infamous failure.”

Though Satan was the supernatural power behind Peter’s failure, it was Peter’s own prideful heart that was the earthly means to his fall.

Peter would forever remember Jesus’ warning, but he also would never forget the deep sense of personal failure that he felt when he realized what he had done and “wept bitterly” (Luke 22:62).

Let this Be a Warning to Us.

Followers of Christ must never be so naïve as to think that Satan pays most attention to those who have already surrendered to his demonic powers.

No, the opposite is true. It is those who follow Christ and have a reputation for being godly Christians who have targets on their backs.

Satan cares not much at all about professing believers who do not seriously follow Christ and; therefore, are no threat to the devil’s kingdom.

We must not knowingly allow him to take advantage of our weakness, or remain ignorant of his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11).

However, we must also never minimize our personal responsibility. For whenever we allow our pride to control us we throw open the door to making the devil’s work so much easier.

We fall when we least expect it. “In the story of Peter’s fatal self-confidence and pitiable fall every believer has a permanent and powerful warning never to rely arrogantly on his own strength. A healthy confidence is indeed necessary to every Christian, but this must be in the sense of reliance on God—i.e. faith, not in our own resources, but in the power given to us by Him” (Geldenhuys).

“Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).

Paul Tautges

By God’s grace, I’m a husband, dad, grandpa, and a pastor at Cornerstone Community Church in Mayfield Hts, OH. I love Christ because He first loved me.

The purpose of Counseling One Another is to stimulate and nurture healthy, Word-driven growth among believers in Christ. By coming alongside to encourage your spiritual growth in the Lord, and pointing you toward Christ-centered resources to strengthen your personal ministry, we hope to assist you in making obedient disciples of Jesus Christ.

Counseling one another is built upon the biblical philosophy that counseling is intensive discipleship and care, which is the normal work of believers in the community of the church. We live in a fallen world, complete with its sin-related battles as well as suffering-related problems and, therefore, are in need of personal one-another ministry. We are not opposed to all forms of “professional counseling,” but believe God intended for most one-another counseling ministry to take place as fellow believers love and help one another grow in their walk of faith, as we learn to apply His all-sufficient truth and grace to our hearts and lives.

https://counselingoneanother.com/2013/10/25/satans-permission-to-sift-you-like-wheat/

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