I’ve noticed that when people talk about their worst times, it’s always something in the past.
“Back in the 90’s I struggled with...”
“Before I was a believer I lived in all kinds of sin..”
“I used to really struggle with...”
And you know what?
Jesus really does change our hearts, so I’m not denying they aren’t different now.
They are, they are made new.
They’ve experienced a life changing type of love.
But I fear that as Christians, we are much more open to talking about our “old struggles” than the real hardships we are facing right now.
I worry that there is something inside of us saying, “now that we know Christ, we shouldn’t have these problems, so let’s pretend they aren’t there.”
And I get it.
I would like it if all my sin and personal struggles vanished when I accepted Jesus.
But they didn’t.
Do I feel more stable and self controlled?
Yes (usually).
But are there real issues in my life right now that I’m struggling with?
Yes.
That goes for all of us.
And it’s okay.
Really, your struggles do not make you a “less than” Christian.
I would argue that actually, our struggles are actually just a reminder of how much we need Jesus.
Because being saved does not mean we are now perfect.
I think it’d be really helpful if we were more honest about this in our faith communities.
Not that we need to sit around and talk about all our flaws and failures..
But that we can remind each other that our only hope for righteousness lies in Jesus.
Each and every time we struggle can serve as a reminder to be so grateful for a Savior who took on all our baggage.
Of course we should aim to be as much like Jesus as we can.
But we need to know we won’t even come close.
Maybe truly believing that could allow us to be more honest with our struggles without feeling so much shame.
Without feeling like we need to hide.
So today, when your flaw and quirks pop up and you start to hear those condemning thoughts...
Turn it into worship.
“Thank you Jesus, for loving us sinners.
Thank you for taking on our sin so we could seen as righteous in God’s eyes.
Even though we’ll never be perfect on this side of heaven, thank you for continuing to sanctify us.
Thank you for never giving up on us.”
~Kelli Bachara, The Unraveling Blog