Lord, forgive me for bringing the sins of others to You at the cross and then hiding my own transgressions. As if You don't already know every little thing about me. As if You were not watching and praying for me that I would make the right choice, take the right road, and speak the right words. Instead there are far too many times that I am guilty of evoking my choices, will, way or words to please me and not my Father. This is at the expense of remaining in Your good graces, enjoying fellowship with You and letting my Light shine.
We have failed time and again to fulfill our promises to God and others. Maybe we agreed to serve on a committee and after two weeks we are bored, ready to move on to something new, feeling they aren't making progress or reaching a conclusion fast enough for us. Maybe we feel we are being unappreciated or under-utilized, so we are ready to jump ship. After a few rehearsals of being timely and singing your heart out nobody has recognized that the new coveted solo should be yours. How about signing up to be a part of the Parent Teacher Association and then come to the conclusion that Bake Sales, Book Sales, and dealing with so many personalities and opinions is more than we want to put up with for the next year.
Don't forget that you rededicated your life to spend more time with the Lord. Spending time in His Word daily, praying often, meditating to hear from Him, and serving His people. But your excuse for being lax in your promise is,
Lord, I'm overloaded with obligations to all these things I committed to serve on to please You! I can't do it all! I can't serve You and Your people and do the things I want to do. After all, Lord, I am married, with a husband and children to care for. I can't take care of my family and be faithful in my church service too. When I get home and cook, do homework with the kids, spend time with them and my spouse there is no time left for spending time in Your Word. I fall asleep in mid-prayer, so I definitely miss hearing from You!
Are we blaming God for our failure to be better stewards of His time? (In other words, our poor time management skills.) Are we blaming others for our ineffectiveness, which subsequently leads to burnout on our part?
Thank You, I'm forgiven and let me so forgive others. Thank You for picking me up and assuring me that though I stumble and even fall, I don't have to stay down. Your love will pick me up and as the "mature saints" used to say, "You will turn me around and place my feet on solid ground." Thank You Lord!
Lord, forgive me for remaining silent when You have given me a word to share. Moreover, forgive me when I'm speaking words that You have not given me permission to say. I pray I will learn to fully stop giving people a piece of my mind and instead will give them a piece of my heart. Forgive me for attaching Fear to my spirit and letting it reign instead of trusting You and moving in Your will. I pray I will be cognizant of Your word that says, "Perfect love (Your perfect love) casts out fear." Finally, let me remember to always remain hopeful, knowing that my life will be exactly as You have ordained it as I submit to Your will. God's banner of love will not be removed and Your promises to love and forgive me will not change.
Cynthia Jones is a child of God, wife, mom and Shazzy Fitness guest blogger. Cynthia has led several Women’s Ministries for over 28 years; she and her husband serve all over the country, mentoring and teaching couples how to love & grow according to God’s design for Christian marriage. Subscribe to our newsletter and get awesome updates on faith, fitness, fun, family and fellowship!