Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for we are members of one another. “Be angry, and do not sin”. Do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give a place to the devil. Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. ” – Ephesians 4 25-32.
Have you ever been mad? I mean boiling to the point of almost being able to see the steam oozing out of both your ears? Over the last couple of months, I have been mad. Angry with myself.
I’ve needed to take some time to process my life. Self-evaluation although seriously difficult at times, is necessary if we ever expect to meet our own level of GREATNESS.
Have you ever had a time in life when you kind of knew you weren’t operating at an optimal level but have been ok with just getting by only to be confronted by someone who knows you practically better than you know yourself? Then on top of that, this person proceeds to call you out on your messy self? Um-hum, getting served up a piping hot plate of ME is not exactly what I wanted to see on a platter.
We sometimes try and go as far and as we can go in mediocrity. We carry on with the day-to-day, hoping no one will notice. But then, it happens. Seemingly out the of blue, it happens, we get called to the carpet by someone who knows us very well and has been sitting back, and watching us for quite some time. They have been waiting in silence watching to see if we would snap out of it on our own volition. Meanwhile, we’ve thought to ourselves, well, I guess I’m ok just as I am. No need to push, no need to exert any more energy than what is absolutely necessary. All the while we have been spotted without even knowing it. Yuck, the worst feeling ever.
Well, when it’s all said and done and we’ve pouted, cried, and the steam from our once percolated ears has settled a bit, then comes the sighs, the thoughts, and perhaps the feelings of guilt over what we’ve already been aware of but didn’t have the guts to do anything about.
I am thankful to God and grateful to Jesus for the opportunity to ask for forgiveness, to then stand up and dust my knees off, and to then carry on with the support of a dynamic loving heavenly father that wants each of us to live up to our fullest potential even when no one is looking. I am also grateful for people that allow themselves to be used by the holy spirit, to hold us accountable, allowing us to see what we need in order to bring ourselves up to a higher standard.
December 5, 2020