My heart was racing as I dialed a number that I had called hundreds of times before. It was 3:42pm, and I knew the moment I heard his voice that he was going to speak words that would paint the exact reality I didn’t want. In a manner that conveyed his tender heart as well as his refusal to see me any other way, he said, “We’re just friends.” I thought I would crumble into little pieces, but looking back, what he revealed was always the truth. I just didn’t want to admit it because I knew it would be a gut-punch to my soul.
Like I did once, many single believers pretend there is more to a relationship with someone they’ve fallen for when there isn’t, because this person doesn’t feel the same way. There’s a place in all of us that craves to be satisfied by the attention of someone who moves us in a special way. There are very few delights in life that thrill us in this way. It’s why being in the company of a person that touches our souls makes us want more and more of them. We don’t allow ourselves to consider that this is someone that isn’t meant for us and that they will not be the significant person in our lives. We just want their affection and attention, and we convince ourselves this is all that matters.
Part of becoming a spiritually mature believer is recognizing there are some things that must be surrendered and crucified. For many of us, these things are treasures we hold very close to our hearts. We can’t imagine that God will want us to release these treasures because they add so much to our lives. They put us in touch with parts of ourselves that make us feel lively and losing this feels like losing a part of who we are.
You and I must come to the reality that newness in Christ means that many aspects of our lives will reach an expiration date. The pattern that God has set is that we must release the old to welcome the new. So, we must constantly keep our eyes on what God is doing in us, because He is always revealing more about our life in Christ. Newness puts us in a position to see who we used to be, so we can move the spotlight on who we are becoming. Ephesians 5:8(NIV) says, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.” Most of us are convinced that we know ourselves so very well, when that isn’t true. We know a little bit about who we were before Christ entered our lives, but only God knows us through and through. We used to be in darkness, but because of Christ, that isn’t the case anymore. So, however we feel when it comes to what moves our souls, we must realize that our souls are being transformed, and this may require us to leave that soul-moving thing behind.
At this very moment, God knows the things about us that cause us to cling to the past and to also cling to the person we were before we accepted Jesus Christ as the Head of our lives. Life will not support our refusal to grow, transition, transform, and release the old; it just won’t. We can’t be the person we used to be. New blessings will require new awareness and change.
Jesus Christ taught in Matthew 16:24-25(NIV), “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” We all think that shinning, soul-moving things that spark our emotions will thrust us into new frontier, but in truth, only Jesus Christ can give us something real. He is the newness we’re craving for. When it comes to people and things of this world, the allure will wear off and numbness will set in, but that’s never the case with Christ. We must deny ourselves and stop indulging our old nature. He instructs us to take up our cross and follow him. He will take us to new places in the Spirit, and we will find that everything we want can be found in him.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Don’t Pretend, Let God Give You Something Real”, written by Kim Times, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2021. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.