It’s time to start over, again. You see, I know it may come as a surprise, but I’m not perfect. I make mistakes. When I try to do the right thing all the time, I confuse myself. When I try to be perfect, it puts insurmountable pressure on me, because perfection is an unreachable goal. No one is perfect, except Jesus Christ. He was without sin. Considering that this is true, and it is, will you please tell me why we are always beating ourselves up when we do make mistakes?

Satan is the accuser of the brethren, so isn’t it just like him to twist our thinking enough that we would accuse ourselves. That’s bold. We can walk around defeated, or we can choose to believe the report of the Lord. What is his report? As the song goes,

Whose report will you believe? We shall believe the report of the Lord. 

His report says, I am healed!

Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise. (Jeremiah 17:14)

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

His report says I am filled!

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. (Matthew 5:6).

Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. (Luke 6:21).

And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31).

Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:11).

His report says I am free!

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32).

If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. (John 8:36).

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2).

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. (Galatians 5:1).

His report says victory! 

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57).

For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. (1 John 5:4).

To believe his report will absolutely set us free to live the life that the Lord has chosen for us to live. When we do make mistakes, it isn’t the end of it all; it can be a learning experience, a time to regroup and by all means, to keep pressing toward the mark of the prize of the high calling of God. He is more than enough to live for. When the enemy comes in like a flood, I have a choice to drown, or to ride the wave. Eventually, I will find solid ground again; and if not, I can trust him to know what is needed to reach it.

Sometimes in our walk with God we may be so far out in the wilderness that we are unable to find our way back to civilization. Again, we do have a choice. I am tired of stumbling and skinning my knees, but I refuse to stop walking, because to stop is just as dangerous as turning back. If we quit fighting our way through in prayer and fasting, we will never reach our victory, and we become easy prey for the enemy of our soul, satan.

When I made up my mind to serve the Lord, I didn’t expect to always have an easy path to follow; but what I knew to expect is that the Lord has a path for me to walk on, and if I would just trust him and keep walking , eventually I would reach the other side of the rough spots, because he promised to never leave me or forsake me. Quitting was never an option. I knew what that was like, and believe me, I may have to crawl at times through dark places and over treacherous mountains, but I made up my mind a long time ago that no matter what, I would never look back if the Lord would forgive me.

He promises in Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” When I was lost, my life was empty. There was a void that could never be filled without Jesus Christ. I can now drink freely from the wells of salvation. I can sleep peacefully at night, knowing that God loves me.

Yes, we live in troubled times, and not every day is blissful, and lacking in challenges; however, now, I know that when those days come, that I don’t have to face it alone. God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in the time of trouble, as it says in Psalm 62:7: “In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.”

In this week’s Lattereign, we are reminded to not give up. Shall we return with Empty Vessels?

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).