…bitterness…anger…weakness…turmoil…wrestling…confusion…doubt…unworthiness…

So, anyone of you struggle with faith? Are you bitter a lot on “life”, God? Do you feel weak, like you can’t beat sin? Does “faith stuff” just confuse you so much, you basically give up on trying to grow in it? Do you doubt this stuff is even real? Do you feel unworthy of God’s love because you know “the truth” about what’s going on inside you, and it usually isn’t “nice godly stuff?”

Today I just want to touch on these things we ALL deal with on occasion (no matter how close to God we are…). I know one area I struggle in is comparing myself to others. I don’t pray as much as she does, or I don’t teach as well as him, or why does that person seem to magically want to read the bible all day and it’s like a fight to me sometimes, or how come…you get the point. Of course, it also goes into me feeling cruddy. Why can’t I get over that certain bad attitude? Why do I still think bad, ugly thoughts? How come some folks seem to love their neighbors so well, when I can barely tolerate mine? Why do I lose my patience with Jax so easily, when he is such a good boy? Gee, I really stink at life, don’t I?

I’m sure you have similar (at least in tone if not content) lists. Why do we get this way? Well, for sure, some of our “awareness of sin” is due to the holy spirit saying, “um…yeah, that’s no good”. But what causes anger, doubt, apathy, confusion, etc. toward God?

Here is a quote, that while not scripture, is a good one: “The devil has had (thousands) of years of practice; he knows all the weak spots.”

Well, this isn’t a scientific list, but thinking of myself (and what I see in others), here are my “theories” in no real order as to why we get angry, bitter, doubtful, lazy, confused, etc.:
1. We don’t give “The Enemy” (aka Satan, the devil and his minions) enough credit
2. We never believed in the first place
3. We do believe but are too lazy/distracted/_______ to make the effort to seek God, to proactively follow Jesus, etc. (aka, if growth doesn’t happen by “osmosis”, we want no part of it)
4. We feel “owed” by God, and if life gets hard, things don’t go our way (aka prayers answered “our way”, etc.), we get upset
5. The “roots” have never been allowed to take hold

So, what do we need to believe, remember, pray for, seek, etc.?

1. We need to give respect to our enemy, but remember that the devil is not the “anti-god” (aka, not God’s equal, just bad instead of good); 1 Peter 5:8; Matt. 16:23; Ephesians 6:12; Romans 16:20
2. We need to take the time to explore the core/foundation of our personal relationship with God
3. Deuteronomy 32:4: 4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.
4. Romans 8:2: 2because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Finally, we just need to remember we are not alone, we are all going through this together… and that we have a King that conquers all (so we need to rely on Jesus…believe in his defeat of sin…and claim it for ourselves daily…or even “minute-ly”): Romans 7:14-25: 14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[a] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

Stuff To Ponder:
• How do you tend to beat yourself up? Do you still put yourself down over past mistakes?
• What does scripture say about being in bondage to our weak spots?
• Do you feel too full of sin to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus?
• What does it mean to say God is “just”, like in Deut. 32:4?
• Name as many attributes, qualities of God as you can…which ones do you wrestle with believing?
• Do you ever get angry with God? How? Why?
• What does “saved” mean to you? Saved from what? Saved into what?