From The Crucible (by Pastor Linda Pugsley)

You feel refreshed, invigorated in the Lord stirred by some sermon or some song. You then lay out a plan to assure a successful prayer life, an abundance of time lingering in the presence of God and running rough shod in victory over sin and temptation. Oh, yeah…an invincible soldier in the army of the Lord!

Then wham! Reality hits you and you fail miserably in all areas. So what happened? Are you a failure in God’s eyes?

Well, as I read the accounts of God’s Biblical heroes, I find that success was not the common thread…the common thread was their passionate relationship with God. Moses argued with God, Jacob wrestled with Him and dear old David broke more than just a few of the Ten Commandments!

So, it’s not your success God is looking for as much as your passion for Him, your willingness to allow Him to dominate your life. I don’t mean to infer that He will brush your sins under some religious rug—no way. I am just telling you that you don’t need to fret over your failures but rather focus on letting God own more and more of your thoughts, words and deeds. That will bring success.

Just let Him inside you and let Him rule; He’ll take it from there. Don’t concentrate on doctrinal positions or some ethereal spiritual happening—just concentrate on Him. When you fail, He will forgive. When you flourish, He will smile. But whatever you do, don’t turn your back on Him as the Israelites did! Don’t let today’s major distractions pull God away from being your central theme, your passion.

The usual daily busyness of our overstimulated culture can easily usurp the Lord from being your friend and your mentor…the One to Whom you go and the One you bring with you in all you do. Never, ever, no matter what is going on, stop thinking about God. Let Him be the central motivation in all you say and do and your failures will fade and your successes in Him blossom. Endure the fire…it’s producing pure gold!

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