1443 Out of God’s Way

When God created the world, he would pause and see that it was good. For six days, he created. He formed the mountains. He filled the seas. He breathed life into all living creatures. And the final verse of the first chapter of the Bible says, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the sixth day.” What did God do the next day? He rested. Do you know why God rested? Because he was absolutely confident in his creation. He knew it was good. God held the power to make everything precisely as he wanted, and that’s exactly what he did. Now, you have to know that’s what he did when he created you! He made you precisely as he wanted, then he looked at you and all your life could become, and he said, “that’s very good.” So, why don’t you see yourself in this way? This past weekend while hosting our BIG Life Retreat in Colorado, one woman said these words, “God, now that I’ve gotten out of your way, I can see you created a really cool person.” It was such a powerful statement, the whole room took a deep breath. What a life changing realization! And this is what God has been trying to show each of us! If we will just get out of the way, we will see God knew exactly what he was doing when he created us, and it was in fact, VERY GOOD. But goodness gracious, we get in our own way, don’t we? We’re detoured by roadblocks, then we realize we’re the ones building the roadblocks brick by brick. We’re the ones talking ourselves out of great things. We’re the ones playing little. We’re the ones tying the knots that keep us bound. All while missing the fact that what God started in us was really good. Philippians 1:6, “I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” God is working in you, on you, and through you. He knows what he started in you on the day he imagined you and all your life could become, and he knows it was undeniably good. And here’s the promise … he’s going to continue his good work in you until it is finally finished. When will he be finished with you? When Jesus comes back! What does that mean? That means, God’s not done with you yet, girlfriend. His good work continues in you. He hasn’t given up on you. He hasn’t cancelled his good plans for you. He looks at you and sees exactly the life he created you for, and he’s patiently waiting for you to get out of the way! How have you been in the way of who God created you to be? Is it your negative self talk? Oh, the stories you tell yourself about yourself. The layers of lies and insults you accept as your truth? Is it the habits you’ve picked up along the way that have stolen your value and worth? And now, you feel powerless to change those habits? Is it the regrets of who you’ve been and what you’ve done? The years you’ve wasted? The holes you’ve dug? Now you feel stuck living this life you don’t even want? Your confidence has taken a hit. Your God-given dreams have been watered down. Your holy potential has been locked away. You’ve been held back. Who is behind all of that? THE ENEMY OF YOUR SOUL. Yes, the one who sits in Hell and schemes his attacks aimed at you and the good plans God has for your life. And who exactly does the enemy of your soul use most often in his attack against you? YOU. You, yourself. You and your thoughts. You and your worries. You and your overwhelm. You and your relentless ambush against your own self. You and your self-sabotage. You and your excuses. You and the stories you tell yourself. Dang woman, you are mean to you! But here’s what I know … if you will get out of the way, you will see that God created something really special in you. If you will partner with God, you will see that he is using everything together for good in your life so that his good work continues to make you everything he created you to be.