Start Talking a Child of God

Romans 4:20-22 NLT

“Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous.” 

What does it take to have a faith that never waivers? One important piece is how we talk to ourselves!

Life is hard. Can we all agree to that? Life gets difficult. Things happen to us that we don’t like. And we tend to make decisions we don’t like. Some of it is out of our control. Some of it is our own willful foolishness. But as human beings, we tend to respond to the trials of life with negative self-talk. And many of us are prone to self-pity. It’s like something within our flesh wants to turn to despair. 

“I really blew it.” “It’s over for me.” “Nothing ever goes my way.” 

And on and on we go. Now it's not always bad to feel bad. Sometimes, we need to process pain by letting ourselves feel the weight of a situation. But negativity should not be our language. It shouldn’t be our default mindset. A mindset of despair is rooted in unbelief. 

So we have to change our operating system and start aligning our words and thoughts with what God’s word teaches us. This is not the law of attraction. It's not about manifesting anything. It's simply about echoing what the Bible says. 

Here’s a key Scripture:

"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God."

John 1:12-13 ESV

If you have repented of your sins and placed your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then you have become a child of God. And you have to own that! And one of the most important things to remind yourself of is that as a believer, your sin problem has been dealt with. 

“I am a child of God (John 1:12)!” “I've been saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8).” “I’ve entered into life (John 5:24).”  

Now it’s okay to feel bad when you sin. It would be weird if you didn't. And it's important to confess your sins to God and ask for forgiveness. But once you've confessed, you need to believe that God has forgiven you.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness." 

1 John 1:9 ESV

Don't continue to wallow in guilt. Instead, encourage yourself:

“God has wiped my sins away as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).” 

Or when you encounter failure, don’t speak defeat or put yourself down. Instead of saying, “I blew it”, say, “I’m gonna learn from this. God is gonna turn this around for good as I submit to Him (Romans 8:28).” 

Or when you face rejection, don’t internalize it saying, “I’m awful” or “I’m no good”. No! Go with what God says about you: “I’m fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). I’m God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works (Ephesians 2:10). “God will never leave me nor forsake me (Deuteronomy 31:6).”

Or if things don’t go the way you expect. Instead of saying, “Oh no, I didn't get enough hours of sleep”, say “God can give me strength and increase my power (Isaiah 40:29).” “He will be with me wherever I go (Joshua 1:9).” 

So here’s the principle: If you are God’s child, then God is not against you. He is for you! You have a reason for hope! Scripture is loaded up with verses that you can apply to just about any situation you face. But you have to actually use these verses. Speak them out loud. Memorize them. Talk about them with your friends and family. Be around people who can encourage you with them. You can build your faith. You can strengthen your faith. 

A bar of soap is not gonna clean you if you don’t apply it to your hands. A can of paint is not gonna change the color of your house if you don’t apply the paint to your wall. And the Bible is your ultimate weapon of faith. But it’s not gonna do you as much good as it could if you don’t apply it to your life!

Read your Bible. Study it. Find the Scriptures that apply to your situation and begin using them. You say, “Calvin, I don’t know where to look.” It’s gotten ridiculously easy. You can literally type into google, “bible verses on my identity in Christ” and you’ll find dozens of them. You could literally ask AI, “Show me some verses that help me deal with loneliness”. Boom! Things will pop up. 

It’s not difficult. You just need to stop standing in your own way. And look again at Abraham. 

God had promised Abraham a son. Abraham was 75 years old when he received this promise. And for 25 years, he did not see God’s promise come to pass. He had every reason to be discouraged. He could have doubted God’s goodness. He could have doubted God’s faithfulness. But we read, “Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God (Romans 4:19-20).” 

Not only did Abraham’s faith not weaken. But it grew stronger! 25 years of waiting with no result… and his faith grew stronger! How was this possible?

Verse 21 says, “He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.” 

Are you fully convinced that God is able to do whatever He promises?

It’s okay if the answer is no. You’re human. I’m human. We go through doubts. But don’t stay in your state of doubt. Fight for your faith! Do what you need to do to strengthen your faith. 

And sometimes, we grow numb. Sometimes, we become too worn to even try to fight. Sometimes, the last thing we wanna do is get encouragement from the Scriptures. And if that’s you, then just give God what you got. 

There was a man who once told Jesus, “I believe; help my unbelief (Mark 9:24)”. Ask God to give you faith. Ask God to ignite your courage. If the only thing you can say is, “Jesus help me”, then that’s good! If you need to just sit and process the pain for a bit, then do so. But do it with God, in His presence. Your Heavenly Father is faithful. “Those who wait upon Him will renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31).”  

I know life is hard. But you don’t have to lose hope. In the same way that God provided food for His children when they were in the wilderness, I believe God is willing to provide hope in any situation His children find themselves in. Just keep moving towards God.

Don’t talk like an orphan. You are His child. Don’t talk like a victim. You are a victor! God is with you. And with Him on your side, you can’t lose!

God bless you, and all praise, all honor, all glory be to God forever in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth! Amen and amen! 

Make Righteousness a Priority

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Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

What does it mean to pursue righteousness? Well first off. Let’s define righteousness. 

In many places throughout the New Testament, righteousness means being right with God. Being justified or acceptable in God’s eyes. And this comes from putting your faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It’s not about your behavior or conduct. 

However, in the context of Matthew 6, I would say righteousness is about your behavior and conduct. To be righteous is to be good. Having a good character. Behaving in a way acceptable in God’s eyes. It’s this definition that we’re going to be using in our discussion today. Pursuing this kind of righteousness is not a means of earning salvation. It is not a means of earning God’s love. God’s love for His children is unconditional and salvation is a free gift that is received by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. So we need to see that pursuing behavioral righteousness comes as a result of being saved, out of a love for a God. 

Now, going back to Matthew 6:33, notice Jesus says: seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Seek it first! Make righteousness a priority. 

A chapter earlier, Jesus says:

““Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭6‬ ‭

Now Jesus is saying to hunger and thirst after righteousness! Desire it! Long for it! Go after it with everything you’ve got! Pursue it passionately! 

When we read the book of Proverbs, you can metaphorically picture righteousness as a point right in front of you that you’re walking toward. Hear what God says in Proverbs 4:

 “Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭25‬-‭27‬ ‭

And there’s the key. If you’re pursuing the path of godly moral character, you have to keep your eyes directly ahead of you at the prize. The prize is bringing Jesus Christ glory by your character and conduct. 

How do we keep from serving off the path of life? 

God says:

“Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of the evil. Avoid it; do not go on it; turn away from it and pass on.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭

What does it mean to enter the path of the wicked? 

Here’s what I think: too often, we say that we want to be pure and not sin, yet at the same time, we wanna get as close to sinning as we can without doing it. But then we end up sinning anyway because we got too close to the fire. 

We tell ourselves: “I’m only gonna have fun and spend time with this worldly person, but I’m not gonna sin like they do.” 

Then, all of a sudden, we find ourselves using profanity like they do. We find myself bursting out in anger like they do. We begin to compromise our integrity. 

We tell ourselves: “I’m gonna watch this movie that contains sexual immorality, but I’m not gonna let it affect me.” But then it does end up affecting us. We begin slipping into unwholesome fantasies and lustful behaviors. 

Jesus says:

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭29‬-‭30‬ ‭

We can’t flirt with wickedness! Who we spend time with is going to influence us. What we consume is going to influence us. The environments we spend our time in are going to influence us. And so, if there is something that is going to influence us toward sin or compromising our integrity, we have to either avoid it or get rid of it. 

But on the flip side, if something is good and stirring you toward righteousness and Christlikeness, then by all means, make use of it. Spend time with godly friends and influences. Most important of all, spend time in the Bible everyday. When Jesus was tempted by the devil, Jesus responded with the words, “It is written!” Christ Himself used Scripture to overcome temptation! 

The importance of Scripture is further confirmed by the psalmist who says:

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭119‬:‭9‬-‭16‬

So the word of God is key to living a righteous and godly life. And there’s also a lot of other good resources that can be spiritually beneficial, like Christian sermons, podcasts, videos, and articles.

But we do have to be careful. We don’t want to get into the habit of just consuming Christian content non-stop. If you’re just consuming Christian content, there’s a danger of avoiding actual intimacy with God. You can spend so much time talking about God and thinking about God that you forget to actually talk to God and hear from Him yourself. 

So instead of going crazy with content consumption and assuming you know what’s going to benefit you spiritually, try something else. Go before God and ask Him: Lord, how do you want me to pursue righteousness? How do you want me to spend my time? Who should I spend time with? What content should I take in that will help me spiritually? Where do you want me to go to encounter you? 

Ask God these questions and then take some quiet time to listen. Let the Holy Spirit guide you. Because the one thing you don’t want to do is to pursue righteousness in your own strength. Doing that will just burn you out. Instead, get into the habit of humbling yourself before God and asking Him to lead you. 

God says:

“Hear, my son, and accept my words, that the years of your life may be many. I have taught you the way of wisdom; I have led you in the paths of uprightness. When you walk, your step will not be hampered, and if you run, you will not stumble. Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭10‬-‭13‬ ‭

So when you pursue righteousness, do it God’s way, not your way or anybody else’s. 

And finally, remember that pursuing godliness is a process. Sanctification is a process. It’s okay if you’re not perfect. It’s okay if it takes you time. Sometimes, you might need a break from trying and you might need to just rest in the fact that Jesus died for your sins and through his shed blood, you have right standing with God if you have put your faith in Christ as your Lord and Savior. It’s good to rest in that. 

But ultimately, as far as forming your character, don’t quit! Don’t quit fighting to become the person that God has called you to be. 

I close with these verses:

“For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭

All praise, all honor, all glory be to God forever in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth! Amen! And Amen! 

Are You Spiritually Drained?

1 Kings 19:3-5 NIV

“Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.”

Have you ever been spiritually drained? Spiritually fatigued? Maybe you’re not at the point of wanting to die, but you just don’t have the drive and passion you want to have. You want to honor God, but you keep falling into sin. You know the right thing to do, but everything within you resists doing it. The promises of God don’t stir and excite you like you want them to. You’ve grown numb. 

If you’ve felt this way, you’re not alone. Not only did Elijah feel ready to drop, but Paul did as well. “For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength”, he writes in 2 Cor. 1:8 (ESV). So, what I want to do is give you a solution without giving you more “stuff” to do. Another item on your to-do list might probably just be something you don’t feel like doing; and might only reinforce your feelings of inadequacy.

Instead, what I want to give you is hope. In Deut. 8:3, Moses says of God, “He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (NIV).

I want us to home in on the word “manna”. Why is manna important? Because it’s something God gave to His children in their time of lack. While the Israelites were wandering in the desert, they had no food. So, they depended on God to supply them manna, which was bread from heaven. And God only supplied them enough food for one day at a time (Ex. 16:4). The only exception was the sixth day, in which they had food enough for that day and the Sabbath (Ex. 16:5). This was the answer to their lack! 

This is also the answer to your lack of will. God is gracious enough to supply you exactly what you need to move forward. He can bring about the right person, the right word, the right circumstance, the right motivation, the right conviction, etc. Just be on the lookout for what He is supplying and how He’s providing for you. When you’ve run out of discipline, God can be your strength. When you’ve run out of the will to fight, God can be your fuel! 

All you have to do is keep pressing forward toward God. It’s not gonna be clean. It’s not gonna be a straight line. But keep staggering toward the finish line and watch God see you through it! Sometimes, the only thing you can do to move forward is to cry, “God help me!”. And that’s okay! Give God all that you got and He can multiply it.

Look what God did with a jar of oil! (2 Kgs. 4:1-5)

Look what God did with six stone water jars! (Jn. 2:1-11)

Look what God did with five loaves of bread and two fish! (Matt.14:13-21, Mk. 6:31-44, Lk. 9:12-17, and Jn. 6:1-14)

But it goes beyond multiplication. We see God sustaining His loved ones who were sapped of strength. In Matthew 4, Jesus had been fasting for forty days. Satan tempted Him to command some stones to turn into bread. Jesus retorts by quoting the above passage from Deuteronomy: ““It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matt. 4:4). Jesus was successfully able to complete a forty-day fast because His Father sustained Him.

At the end of that narrative, we read: “Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him” (Matt 4:11). This is not the only time God sent an angel to help someone in distress. Let’s go back to story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19 after he had gone to sleep:

“All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you. So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.” (1 Kgs 19:5-8)

God knew exactly what Elijah needed when Elijah had run out of gas. In the same way, God knows exactly what you need in your moment of being spent. And He is there to spur you along on the journey!

Let’s now revisit the words of Paul and conclude with his statement in context:

“For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.” (2 Cor. 1:8-9)

When you are spiritually drained, it’s time to stop relying on self. Instead, look for God’s gracious supply and make a move toward Him. Your Father will not fail you!

All praise, all honor, all glory be to God forever in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth! Amen and amen!