This New Life

Much has been written in scripture, and in other books, about the transformative nature of the Holy Spirit and what happens when you invite the Lord into your life.  The ultimate goal for us as believers is to reside in Heaven, with the Lord, for eternity, enjoying the promise of salvation.  While here on earth, however, we still have to live our lives, day in and day out.  Here is what Paul writes about living with the Holy Spirit: "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;  to be made new in the attitude of your minds;  and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:22-24

How many times do focus on truly putting off my old self, taking on a new attitude, only to find that I cannot sustain it for more than a few measly days.  What a huge frustration for me it is to not be able to follow through, continuously, on what I have been taught.  Herein lies one of my biggest challenges in living spiritually inclined.  Consistency.

  The key, for me, is recognition.  It's important for me to be able to recognize when I am slipping off the path illuminated by the Holy Spirit.  Satan, and all of his troops, do their best to drag me to a different path, daily, which is why it takes daily prayer and reading to keep me focused. 

One of the glories of being saved in Christ is that His forgiveness of our sins is eternal, as long as we are able to confess them  Falling short of the goal, being distracted from the path of righteousness and letting my mind be deceived by the senses is part of being human that will forever challenge me.  Thank goodness I have a loving God that will accept me in whatever condition I show up, as long as I know Him and confess my shortcomings, mistakes and mess-ups. 

How amazing is it to know that there is one person, always, in my corner, on my side, loving me unconditionally, not because He has to, but because He chooses to!  He chose me, so it's up to me to choose Him, daily.