Transformational Thought
Being fully utilized by God has to be one of our daily goals in our Christian walk. He designed us to glorify Him. Bringing God glory provides us with maximum fulfillment. To be fully utilized, we must understand who we are, and why we act the way we do each day. This understanding equips us to be in sync with God’s intentions and plans. Then He can use us in powerful ways that totally fulfill our needs, wiring and desires. You see, He is always trying to use us by setting up situations and placing people in our lives. But instead of following that path, we often stray and choose a different course.
Assessing ourselves thoroughly means we have to allow God to reveal our deep, hidden, faulty areas. Looking inward really requires lots of courage. We are so quick to diagnose and judge others. What if we took that same energy and time to refocus and examine ourselves?
It’s astounding how ignorant we are about our true selves. We rarely recognize the distortions, laziness, envy, pride, entitlement and weaknesses inside us. We must dump the idea that we understand ourselves just because we live our lives. The only one who truly understands and knows us is God. He wants to show us who we are, then equip and ultimately transform us to become Christ-like by developing the Mind of Christ.
To look inward, we need regular quiet time alone with God to analyze our daily decisions and ask why we made those decisions. By using the perfect mirror of The Holy Bible and God’s lenses, we can see our misguided desires and affections. These lead to false idols and substitute fixes that distance us from Him. Seeing ourselves through His eyes enables us to change our foundation from sand to solid rock, allowing us to become a powerful Lighthouse shining God’s glory. Going through this process is what transformed my life and set me free of the bondage in which I was wallowing.
Take some time to ask yourself, “What outranked God? What was more important to me than pleasing God in that situation? In my decisions today, what fleshly desire or fear was more important than keeping the Holy Spirit on the throne of my life? How could I have honored Him with a Godly decision?”
Today, examine an area of temptation or a wrong decision you made recently. Heart diagnostics can be painful. But being honest with yourself will open the door to reaping the fruit of the spirit and growing the mind of Christ. Whether you will be honest and use God in your self-examination and assessment process or you lie to yourself and use your own me-centered lenses and standards – it’s your decision, so choose well. The Lighthouse Network resource WITHIN REACH was designed for this very process and includes a worksheet that allows you to explore your decisions deeply and easily.
Prayer
Dear Father God, I am so thankful that You are God with us—constantly and eternally. This fact alone is sufficient to fill my days and nights with joy. Thank You, my Lord. Sadly though, my mind slips out of focus and I begin looking outward at the broken world around me. I know by Your Word that I need to be alone with you in order to learn and grow in You. I desire this time alone with You, Lord. Please help me push away all the distractions that prevent me from being alone with You. When we are alone, I ask that You give me the courage to look deeply inside myself. Let me be honest with myself so that I may be honest and open with You. Give me your lenses to see my core accurately. I pray to You in the name of the One who gives me courage, Jesus Christ. And all God’s children say AMEN!
The Truth
“…when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.” Mark 4:34
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” Psalm 139:23-24
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel,’ which means, ‘God with us.’” Matthew 1:22-23