Transformed- Spiritual Health

When I was a young girl, I can remember my mom telling me one day not to touch the stove because it was very hot and would burn my finger. Yet, the mischievous and rebellious part of me decided I was going to touch it anyway. To my surprise, the stove did, in fact, burn my finger. I will admit that sometimes, it’s easy for me to want to respond like this in my relationship with God. There are times when God will convict me or lead me to do something, but I don’t want to listen because I feel my way is better (as wrong as that is.) As followers of Christ, God holds us to a high standard. He is incredibly forgiving and indescribably loving, however He wants us to GROW. That means that sometimes, we need to follow instruction we may not like. Therefore, instead of doing what we want because it is more thrilling or enjoyable at the time, we must choose to trust God’s direction because He has our best interest in mind. Whether it is a conviction or call to action, God guides us with the intention of protecting us as well as helping us to mature and grow.

As great as it is to become spiritually aware of where God is guiding us, (as mentioned earlier) it is just as important that we put this knowledge into action daily. I can’t imagine what the church would look like if we all simply accepted Christ as our Savior, but never really applied anything from Scripture. I partially wish this series was simply titled, “Transform,” because in reality, we are never done being transformed by God. The more we study His word and hear Him speaking into our lives, the more we should be allowing Christ to remold us.

Pastor Aaron mentioned four steps on Sunday that we must do in order to grow:

1.)    Get fed up with our lives.

2.)    Own up to our sin.

3.)    Offer up ourselves.

4.)    Lift up praise.

I think these steps are so important to incorporate into our routine. In order to grow, we must be intentional. We must choose to recognize when there’s an area of life where we just aren’t following God’s plan. We must admit when we screw up! We must be willing to make a change. Finally, we must praise God for all He has done and is doing in our lives. I encourage you to analyze yourself this week and throughout this series. Are you allowing God to completely transform you, or are you selfishly holding back? 

Written by: Tamara Sturdivant

Edited by: De Ann Sturdivant