Rescued to Rescue

So you, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And entrust what you heard me say in the presence of many others as witnesses to faithful people who will be competent to teach others as well.  2 Timothy 2:1-2 NET

Hi everyone! What a day it is! Are we blessed?!? YES we are! Thank You, Lord Jesus for days like this, days where we wake up, breathe, see, hear. Today isn't just about our usual routines,  it is about living each and everyday like church on Sunday! The surrendered life for God’s glory!

LET’S START WITH A PRAYER, INVITING HOLY SPIRIT TO JOIN US. GOD WE LIFT UP OUR WORRIES, OUR PAINS AND OUR TROUBLES TO YOU.   HOLY SPIRIT,  PLEASE CONTINUE TO WALK WITH US AS WE FACE LIFE’S CHALLENGES.  MAY WE BE PROVIDED WITH YOUR GRACE AND STRENGTH, YOUR LOVE AND FORGIVENESS, SO THAT WE MAY IN TURN BLESS THOSE WE ENCOUNTER THROUGHOUT THE DAYS AHEAD.  WE PRAY HOPE AND HEALINGIN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST, AMEN. 

 As I look back on my life before I was a Christian, I realize that the weeds of the world were choking out the saving grace of Jesus Christ.  I loved the things of the world. God's word was unknown to me and any chance of listening to people share the Gospel had fallen onto deaf ears. But the seeds planted by Holy Spirit in the ground of my heart began to grow and eventually the worries and concerns of this world were outweighed by the importance of God and His kingdom. God didn't leave me in the dark; He rescued me. He completely replaced my heart with a new one.  Since that day my heart has responded so differently to His word.  The first year into my new life in Christ I was blessed with insight from Holy Spirit. I was rescued to be part of God’s rescue plan.  It's clear and simple. I, a sinner, was falling. God caught me, He rescued me from the storms to rescue others. To share, teach and speak His word to any and all who stand still long enough to hear.   

Brothers and sisters, we are saved to be vessels for God, His light carrying sons and daughters. He does not turn us into spiritual agents but into spiritual messengers, and the message must be a part of us.  As His disciples, our lives must be a holy example of the reality of His message. Even the natural heart of the unsaved will serve if called upon to do so, but it takes a heart broken by conviction of sin, baptized by Holy Spirit, and crushed into joyful surrender to God’s purpose to make a person’s life a holy example of God’s message.

Let’s seek  and allow  God to have complete liberty in our liveswhen we speak. Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in each of us. We don’t deserve salvation, healing, redemption, blessings, and all the other wonderful gifts that come from God. However, we serve a gracious and loving God! Our past does not define us. It will shape us, determine consequences, and potentially cause some future obstacles because we are human, but it will never trump God’s vision of who we are and where we are going. 

{tweetme}Fight any hold the past may have over you and embrace the new creation God has fashioned in His strong hands. {/tweetme}

The Lord’s purpose moving forward from this point requires us to accept God’s grace and walk in the freedom He has given us from the chains that hold us down. Do that and you will be one step closer to flourishing  for God’s kingdom. That’s what Jesus does with our lives. He takes a tattered, broken, marked person and makes us better than ever before. When Holy Spirit goes to work on us we become unrecognizable to the people who knew us before. Whenever I share my story of how I use to be in bondage to fear, people who didn’t know me then but do now can’t believe I use to be filled with it. Every time I tell them I am free, it’s only because of God’s handiwork and grace in me! 

“And, after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to His eternal glory in Christ will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To Him belongs the power forever. “ 1 Peter 5:10-11 NET

And God’s definition of rescue doesn’t just mean putting us back together, but it also means to go above and beyond redemption and restoration in making us better than before. We’re always in far better shape after Jesus has gone to work in us than before. It doesn't mean we won’t suffer or feel the growing pains because we will.   We will suffer a bit but God will restore us. That’s not a “maybe” or “if He feels like it.” It’s a promise that God will restore His people to a better place. 

I think we often feel like our past has left us too broken to be of any use. We can feel so used and ashamed that God could never use someone like us. Friend, you are not the only one because I’ve felt that. But these are lies the enemy wants us to believe to keep us down so that we won’t fulfill God’s purpose for our lives. Rebuke these thoughts and remind yourself of the scriptures we can read about regarding our future!  When God puts us back together there’s more than an external picture of being put back together like a broken vase, or the cleansing of red to white. God does an internal working in our heart, soul, and mind that is a healing of sorts as well. 

He wants to reach down into the innermost parts of our soul where no one else can go to mend and fill us with grace. To rid us of shame, guilt, sorrow, pain, insecurity, and more. These are works only God can do; no human has the ability to fill our void and depths of the heart. 

Amazing grace! There is such hope in knowing that healing doesn’t come when we bypass the process and seek the world's comforts. Rather, it comes when we seek God. The difference between healing and not healing lies in the source. Do you long to have the heaviness lifted off your shoulders and your soul to feel peace? Then turn to God. Do you desire to feel free from the shame and condemnation? Turn to God. Do you want to experience wholeness and restoration? Turn to God. He’s the answer to our healing for when we pursue God we experience grace, redemption, and healing that no past can grip onto. No longer can it hold you back from what God has in store.