21 Days

Day 11- Forgiveness

Author: Joel Reed

In 2015, during a time of prayer and reflection, I invited the Lord to search my heart and show me if there was anything in me that displeased him (anything that the Holy Spirit wanted to remove from my life). He responded instantly, and to my surprise he showed me a root of unforgiveness. Specifically, I had been harboring unforgiveness toward two men in my life. One was a former colleague and the other a family member. I wrestled with this for a few minutes (it felt like an hour) because, in my eyes, I had been legitimately mistreated by these men. I questioned why God would want me to revisit my feelings and opinions toward them. By my standards, I was right in my judgement and believed that I had a right to feel the way I did. But, the Holy Spirit was urging me to let go of my earthly rights so that he could give me a heavenly inheritance. 

Mark 11:25 tells us that we are to "forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your father also who is in heaven may forgive you." A similar message is found in Matthew 6:12.  Ephesians 4:32 says, "Be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." And 1 John 1:9 teaches that, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us."

If we want to be forgiven by our heavenly Father, then we have to obey his command to forgive those who have wronged us. We must confess our sin of unforgiveness and then make the willful decision to love our offender as Christ loves us. 

After hearing from the Lord, we really only have two choices. We can dismiss what we heard as unreasonable or unfair and keep our earthly rights (reproducing the same sin). Or we can submit to His higher call and receive the forgiveness and favor of the Lord (breaking the cycle of un-forgiveness).

So, I asked for God's forgiveness for my sin and prayed for both of my offenders. A weight was lifted from me and I felt genuine love for them. It was then that the Holy Spirit gave me one last command. I called the men and asked for their forgiveness. 

PRAYER 

Father, search my heart. Remove anything in me that is not of you. Today I choose to live by faith. With your help, I will not let bitterness or un-forgiveness take root in my life but will generously give forgiveness to everyone.

Day 10- Conviction

Author: Pastor David Robertson

The Gift of Conviction

“…because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.” 1 Thessalonians 1:5

Seventh grade was the worst year of my life. Finally, the school year ended and I began to breathe again. Then, autumn in Chicago signaled it was time to go back to Jefferson Junior High and face the music. “Oh God! What am I going to do?”

I was pondering my plight during the morning preaching at Calvary Temple Assembly of God and then it happened. I experienced the gift of conviction. The Holy Spirit, as only He can, leveraged my desperation, the truth of the Scriptures, and a compelling awareness of my sinfulness. With my 13-year old heart pounding wildly, my hands sweating, and all the spit in my mouth now gone, I responded to the altar call. I gave my heart to Jesus right then and there. I was born again! Then it happened just like the song says. "I felt Peace like a river, joy like a fountain, and love like an ocean in my soul!"

Our regeneration is made possible by the Holy Spirit. He is the one who convicts us of our sin, much like a court of law convicts a felon. Imagine if we didn’t feel bad when we behaved badly. You would think not feeling guilty would be a good thing, when in fact, it puts us in spiritual danger. Our enemy, the devil, uses a different approach. His accusations produce in us condemnation. This is a good test to determine whose voice is talking to you.

Conviction is a gift. Without it, we can quench, grieve, and ignore the Holy Spirit to our own harm. With it, we can allow Him to gently but powerfully do His job, and that is to lead, guide, and direct us into all truth (John 16:13). Let’s determine this year to be:

• Quick to listen to conviction
• Quick to repent of sin
• Quick to obey the next right thing

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:44

Notice how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work in partnership  to draw us to Himself. Conviction plays a key role in this process because our sin nature rationalizes, justifies, and even enjoys our misbehavior. 

PRAYER

Father, thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit, and the conviction He brings to keep my life on track. In the strong name of Jesus, amen.