Last night we hosted our church’s parent youth small group at our house. It’s an evening once a month for high school students parents to meet together for fellowship and discussion. We’ve been going through the book Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges. What a great book! It tackles the issue of sins that we tolerate in our lives because they aren’t the more obvious social sins. Last night we took a look at the sins of ungodliness and unthankfulness.
First I have to say once again how thankful I am for our church and the way God works through it in our family’s lives. It was a sweet thing to sit with a dozen or so moms and girls and hear how God is actively working in their lives. It was a precious reminder of his personal, tailor made, involvement in each individual life and also a picture of his larger work in and through the body of Christ.
Now to the sin part.... My eyes were opened to the sin of ungodliness and it’s prevalence in my life and society as a whole. I mistakenly had thought that ungodliness was equated with unrighteousness or wickedness and had to do more with actions or deeds. The truth is that ungodliness is an attitude toward God. It’s living our daily lives with little or no thought of God and his will. It’s all the times I have my devotions and then get busy going about my day and God gets crowded out of my brain. When I sat and realized the enormity of that sin it brought my attention once again to Christ. He was the only man who ever lived who had a godward attitude every moment of his life. It made me so thankful, once again, for his enduring the cross for me (who has sins too numerous to count that stem from ungodliness.)
We also talked about unthankfulness. As I read that chapter prior to the meeting I almost sighed with relief that there was a sin that I had pretty well killed. All of the financial struggles that our family has been through over the last year have made me very aware of God’s provision and thankful. More than any other time in our life when we pray before a meal we are truly aware that God made it possible and we give heartfelt thanks. Because our church is centered on the gospel I have grown leaps and bounds in thankfulness for salvation too. This blog has been a testimony of that fact. So I shut the book and had a little talk with God and thanked him for his work in my life regarding thankfulness. Then a still small voice began coming into my mind. You see, there are certain situations in our family that frustrate me – specifically regarding my children and a lack of seeing evidences of God’s activity in their lives. I felt a gentle reminder from God that this was a big area of unthankfulness in my life. My mind is so set on the picture of what I want our family to look like that I have failed to be thankful for the ways God is at work now. I have failed to be thankful for the way he is choosing to work and the speed in which he seems to be working and I have even, in my self righteous sinfulness, felt that somehow their lack of change meant He was not working at all. I am thankful to God for the realization of this area of sin. Now that I am aware of it He can work with me on killing it. Then, I'm sure, he will reveal to me another layer to work on.
As always, seeing the infiltration of sin in my life drives me deeper into appreciation for the cross. I was not saved just from the events of sin or the seasons of sin but because through and through I am sinful.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ- by grace you have been saved. Ephesians 2:4-5
Lovingly and patiently he is working all things together for good to conform me to the image of Christ (Romans 8:28-29) one respectable sin at a time Praise God!
Comments
Jan. 12, 2008 - Ouch...but thanks.
Posted by baronsgirl
What a needed reminder, my friend. Thank you for this! I'm kind of at a loss for words, but once again....your wisdom has blessed me and I am grateful for your willingness to be transparent and share so that the Lord can teach me through you.
I love you!!! ~Jodie
Jan. 13, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by Joyous
Thanks Jodie,
As always your comments encourage me to continue sharing what God reveals to me about my own struggles.
Love you,
Joy