God's Side of the Line-- Guest Post by Jeanne

God's Side of the Line

It's so easy to tell when I am on God's side of the line instead of being on my side.  So, I am always  amazed  at how long it takes  for me to figure it out!  I sit around feeling completely overwhelmed.  Everything  is so huge and I am so tiny.  "I'll  never  be able to do any of this,"  my head screams,  "I just want to go hide."

"You're no good at any of this!  You can't possibly do it!  You failed before and you will fail  every  time!!"   

 I hear it over and over again.

Oh Brother!  I recognize this voice!!  I wish I had recognized it sooner.

It is the accuser. The one who knows what I want my life to be about.

I want to live for God.

I want my light to shine  

so that people around me will see Jesus.  

This is who I am.  

 When you read what I write I want you to see God not me.  When I sing my songs I want you to hear God not me.  He put a light in me, not for me to shine, but to illuminate Him.  

I am here for only one reason -  to lead you to Jesus.

 Matthew 5:16 (NIV)

"...let your light shine before men (and women),

that they may see your good works and praise your Father in Heaven."

The accuser does not want that to happen!

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So Satan, the accuser, starts whispering in my ear.  He starts with the truth to make it look good.  He tells me I am responsible for taking care of my home, my family and my husband.  OK those are jobs God gave me.

Then he begins to  redefine  'taking care of '  to mean keeping my home perfect at every moment, pictures perfectly straight on the wall, nothing out of place, not even a speck of dust.  He goes on to tell me I must keep my children entertained, I must buy them every new thing that comes out, and I must allow them to do what they want - or -  they might not like me!   Soon he's on to my job as a wife, saying I must anticipate all of my husband's wants, that Satan of course  redefines as needs.   It becomes my  job to do  everything  for my husband, even the things that he should do for himself, even the things he would rather me not do!  It's becomes my fault if  anything  goes wrong in our relationship.

Satan assures me that the world  will  end if I allow my husband or my children to be  unhappy  for even a second!

Good grief!  No wonder my jobs look way to huge!!

They have become not only huge but also  quite impossible!    I could do them with God's help but I don't believe He would help, because I don't believe that is His will for me.  

I believe God's will for me is to do those jobs as God defined them. {<--Tweet this}

I believe that I am to obey my husband 'in the Lord.'  To obey him as he obeys Jesus. To follow him as he follows Jesus.  To love Jesus and my husband, as my husband loves Jesus and me.

Ephesians 5:23-25  (The Message)

 The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church,

not by domineering but by cherishing.

So just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises such leadership,

wives should likewise submit to their husbands.

Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church

a love marked by giving, not getting.

Loving  this way means respecting my husband enough to let him do the things  he should  and  wants to  do for himself.  It means releasing him from  my control  back to  God's control .  It means I need to do the same for my children.  It means working with  joy  in my home - not allowing it to become an  obsession.

"Satan I will not allow these things to become idols."  {<--Tweet this}

God promised us joy everlasting,  not  happiness every moment.   They are very different things!

I am calmer now!

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Say!  This is looking better.  I'm getting bigger and the jobs are getting smaller.  Here Lord -  let me hand this last piece of  Your job back to You and I'll just step back across this line, onto  my  side.  Hey, everything is right sized over here, how about that!    Please Lord forgive me  for once again trying to run the show.  I'll just  -  stay over here  -  cool my heels  -   and mind my own business   -  instead of  Yours.

Wow!   

All of a sudden I have more than enough time to do what I am supposed to do and I have time to hang out with You, God! {<--Tweet this}

How cool is that ?!    I like this a lot better!!

Are you trying to be perfect?

Are you doing things for other's that they should be doing for themselves?

Who's side of the line are  you  on?

Life is so much more pleasant on our side of the line.

You might ask God to help you get back.

I'll be waiting over here for you.

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Blessings.

Jeanne from iamnotperfect-yet.com

Happily shared with Simply Helping Him, My Daily Walk in His Grace, Christian Mommy Blogger


~*~*~Thank you so much for being on the blog today, Jeanne! We've needed a new devotional for a long time :)