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Single Minded
by Michelle Brinson
God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Therefore, submit to God. But resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded people! Be miserable and mourn and weep. Your laughter must change to mourning and your joy to sorrow. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.
James 4:1-10 HCSB
One of our biggest stumbling blocks in our relationship with God's grace is our pride. Our Father is more than willing to intervene in our lives if we would just ask. But our pride has a way of preventing us from ever asking.
Often we believe that we are self-sufficient, that we have our lives under control. If you are like most people, you believe you have reasonable control over your own life. Yet, it doesn't take long for reality to crash down upon us. These thoughts can quickly vanish when you encounter unforeseen circumstances, like losing your job or a serious illness.
King Saul was very dependent upon the Lord when he first began ruling Israel. Samuel confirmed this, saying, "Is it not true, though you were little in your own eyes, you were made the head of the tribes of Israel?" 1 Samuel 15:17 NASB
In his younger days, Saul did not believe himself to be above anyone. However, that changed as he assumed a role of great leadership.
Pride hinders the work of God's grace in our lives because it shrugs off the notion that God can help. Instead of viewing God as a redeemer who brings salvation to the lost, pride looks inward and says, "I can do it myself." It reminds me of that phase many children go through around 2 or 3 when they begin to say "I can do it all by myself." And while many of would like to think we can… the past has proven we can't always do it by ourselves. God didn't want us to anyway. That's not how He designed us.
This prideful attitude is destructive and prevents us from walking in God's amazing grace, for it's in His grace that we recognize our unworthiness, His holiness, and His great love for us regardless. How can we ever think we are self-sufficient?
Let us seek to serve the Lord today with all humility, as we allow His grace to flow richly into our lives.
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Michelle sees her marriage as a ministry and desires for it and herself to be used by God. She and her husband and son are active members of their church. She is also passionate about spreading the good news locally as well as internationally via mission trips to East Africa and wherever else the Lord leads.
Michelle is a talented writer and speaker who prays God will use her in sharing His hope and truths to those who are hurting and in need of love.
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