Do you ever feel like an utter failure in the eyes of the Lord? Do you feel you cannot possible compare to _____ because she prays all of the time, holds bible studies in her house and doesn’t raise her voice at her children?
If I were to be completely honest with you, you would shake your head in disbelief at how many times I have not had time for my quiet time or even prayed. You would be appalled when I told you that I am not always gentle with my children. But then again, maybe most you wouldn’t because you too are in the same boat as me. You are fighting to stay afloat of your daily responsibilities { work, home, children, church, family, marriage} and by the end of the day, you are just too exhausted {or frazzled} to do anything other than wish to see the inside of your eyelids.
You feel like a failure in the eyes of God.
It is easy to get trapped in that mindset, to be eaten up by guilt and shame. But when I feel this way, I just look at Davids life. God called him “A man after Gods own heart.” Was David perfect; was he holy and sinless? Absolutely not.
- He was not always the best disciplinarian to his children.
- He had many wives
- He knew that his daughter, Tamar had been raped by her half brother & chose to do nothing.
- He committed adultery with Bathsheba and ordered her husband to be killed to cover it up.
David is a prime example of Gods love. He sinned over and over again, yet Christ still welcomed him back. That is not to say that the consequences for Davids sins were not harsh and swift. He lost a child that he had conceived with Bathsheba right after birth because of his sin.
Was David perfect? Did he trust God 100% of the time? Did he pray constantly? No. He was human. And he loved Christ with a deep and mad love. Not a perfect love, but a deep and mad love. David had his faults, but God knew his heart.
And God knows our hearts too. He knows that we lack patience with our kids. He knows that we get frustrated with our day to day lives, and He knows that we put Him on the back burner more times than not…
Yet He still loves us with a mad and deep love. He beckons us to come back to him. He patiently waits until we have gotten over our pity party and turn to him and run.
This life is not an easy one. It can be downright torturous at times. There will be valleys. There will be deserts. There will be thorns.
My life is a prime example of hardship. And I still don’t have it all figured out but I am working on being after Gods own heart.
In fact, I long for that.
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you so much for writing this. I needed to read this so much. I need the encouragement. Thank you so much.
JoAnn
JoAnn
You are very welcome.. I needed to hear it too
WOW, this was such a timely post. I have been feeling like this today, yesterday, all week. I really needed to be encouraged. Thank you!
A couple of years ago, I did the Beth Moore study on David, “After God’s Own Heart”. Not only did I feel released of so much guilt, I came away with so many more questions about David and myself. It was an intriguing process… one that really made me stop and change my attitude toward failure. It’s not the end of the world when I fall. It’s just another step on my path. I didn’t “back pedal”. My foot just slipped OFF the pedal for a bit, but my bike is still going forward.
I agree that this post is so timely. Thanks for the reminder that we ALL fall short of God’s glory, but luckily He is still willing to love and forgive us.
I needed to remember that today!
Thanks for the reminder. I needed this.
Thank you for once again reminding me where my focus should be, following hard after my Savior and trusting Him for completion of the wife, mother, daughter and friend that I am.
I so struggle with all of this. Thanks for the reminder!
wow. yep, I live in that moment way too often. Thanks for the reminder.