One of the most poignant questions that any single woman can ask herself is “Am I running in the opposite direction of my blessing?” It is such a weighty question that only a sister that is genuinely interested in a pursuit of truth will ask it. We know that God never withholds blessings from His children. He has orchestrated the universe to respond extremely positive towards us as we operate within His Will and Word. So when our lives seem to be going in reverse, and we can’t figure out what’s wrong, the most intelligent and spiritually rewarding thing to do is to ask God for the answers to hard questions.
1John 1:5 (KJV) declares, “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” This is a foundation-building truth from God’s Word, which means that it will anchor our faith as we seek to live the life that Jesus Christ made available. There is no darkness in God, and to soak in the breath of this truth, we need to be sure we understand what darkness is and what it does. God’s Word defines darkness as the absence of light. It is all those things that the evil one represents; things like doubt, fear, confusion, lack, and destruction. All darkness seeks to blind God’s people in ignorance and keep the truth from them in an effort to destroy them.
God wants us to know resolutely that He is not the author of darkness, and we should know this with absolute certainty. We cannot make the mistake of attributing the things that come from God as those that come from the devil. Neither can we attribute the things that come from the devil as those that come from God. When we are confused about the two, our faith cannot be settled.
God tells us exactly who He is in His Word. He is love. He is all light. He always wants the best for us and for us to be happy. So if we are not experiencing God’s best in a way that fulfills us, it behooves us to consider that there are some thoughts and beliefs we currently hold that might work against our faith, and one of those is the belief that God is not in our corners 100%. He absolutely is, but we must have faith in this. When our prayers are those of asking God to bless us with someone that will honor, love, and support us; our entire way of thinking and behaving towards Heavenly Father has to line up with what we expect from Him.
We can’t operate in faith and fear at the same time. 1John 4:18 affirms, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” Our love for God is perfected through our faith in Him. So when it comes to answers to our prayers, it is good practice to look under the hood and examine if our thoughts and believing are clogging the pistons, and keeping the engine of our faith from running full speed ahead.
No matter what we might think, the truth is that we can only go as far as what we believe and what we’ve been taught. Proverbs 21:2 tells us that a person may think their ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart. This verse confirms that sometimes we think we know what’s best for us; we think we’re on the right track, when in truth it could be that we are going in the wrong direction.
God tells us in Ephesians 4:22-23 (NLT), “Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.” To move forward in faith and in our desires, we have to leave our old way of thinking behind, because it no longer serves us. It doesn’t have the energy or fuel to move us forward in what God has for us. Our thoughts and attitudes need to be renewed, and thank the Lord we don’t have to do this without help. The indwelling Holy Spirit will aid us. All we need to do is have faith, and ask. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Running In The Opposite Direction of Your Blessing”, written by Kim Times, edited by Reverend Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2017. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.