My "Messy List"

For the past few weeks we have been on a series entitled, "One Month to Live". Each week we've had a different speaker give a different message on the subject. Two Sunday's ago Arvil Ogle spoke and challenged us to make a "Messy List" of our lives. This is to help us spend more time examining OUR lives instead of spending so much time trying to CRITIQUE others lives.

"And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, 'Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye." (Matthew 7:3-5)

If you will read what Jesus said in the above passage he doesn't tell us not to deal with other people's "specks" at all. But what he does say is for us FIRST get the log out of our own eyes so THEN we can see well enough to deal with the speck in our friend's eye.

Occasionally, I will ask Jodi (because she knows me best and I trust her more than any other human being) to honestly evaluate my life and give me two things that she can see are my "weaknesses". Sometimes I come out feeling pretty good about myself. But God is the one who truly knows my heart and sometimes I can know the evil lurking in my own heart.

I made my "Messy List" today and tried to do an honest evaluation of my life. I will share a few with you:

1) I tend to be impatient at times. (Patience is a fruit of the spirit and is a must if I want to move forward towards full devotion. I've heard and experienced the difficulty of praying for "patience" in your life.)

2) I can be irritable at times. (Sure, I can blame it on lack of sleep but the Bible tells us the love "is not irritable."

3) I tend to get in a funk when things happen that are either out of my control totally or I can't seem to get control over something I think I need to be in control of. (I need to remind myself that God is in control! Period.

4) I tend to be a "fixer" and when I can't "fix" something or "fix" somebody or "fix" a situation I can get bent out of shape. (This goes back to that control thing.)

5) I tend to be hardest on those closest to me. (I need to learn to shell out the mercy and grace to others that I so desperately need myself. Please forgive to those people that I have been hard on-I'm sorry).

6) I tend to be hardest on myself. (I've always tended to "beat myself up" when either I mess up or don't do the job I think I should have or could have done. I take a lot off of the enemy's hands when I do this. I need to realize there is no condemnation for those in Christ and that where I fall short God's grace is sufficient!)

Boy, my life sure would be a mess without Christ working in me. Thank you Lord for your mercy and grace.