I recently arrived back from Haiti on a missions trip. It required many months of planning, painstaking labor, fundraising and team work to pull it off. Needless to say, by the time everything was done and over with, I needed a vacation. Unfortunately, my personal funds were running low and a nice getaway was not looking very promising to say the least. I remember specifically talking with God about it and asking Him to provide something so that I could get refreshed. Not even a week had past and I received an email from a friend of mine saying she could not go on an all-expense paid 10 day vacation to the Holy Lands. Everything, from the flight, hotels, transportation and all meals were covered and the trip is scheduled in one month. I almost could not believe the email I received when I read it for the first time. She specifically said, “no you did not misread that” in the email, so I knew it was for real. I began praising God for His goodness and generosity! 

A couple of days after I received this amazing blessing, I found myself walking in the flesh. I had a little argument with my step-mom in front of several people from church regarding some things that took place on my missions trip. I was not proud of how I handled the altercation and condemning thoughts filled my mind: “How could you do such a thing? You are the leader of the whole trip and you lost your cool. You do not deserve that vacation. You treated your step-mom with such disrespect. What type of spiritual leader are you?” On and on these condemning thoughts went. Eventually, I went away to a quiet place to spend time with God. In prayer I felt like God was impressing this in my heart, “Cory, you are filled with My Presence and have a heart to please Me. Shake off the condemning voices and believe that I am pleased with you.” The Bible says, 

“He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy, by

[the] cleansing [bath] of the new birth (regeneration) and renewing of the Holy Spirit, which He poured out [so] richly upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. [And He did it in order] that we might be justified by His grace (by His favor, wholly undeserved), [that we might be acknowledged and counted as conformed to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action], and that we might become heirs of eternal life according to [our] hope” (Titus 3:5-7 AMP).

We are saved and made right with God, not based off our performance or good deeds, but solely on the finished work of Jesus Christ. When we accept Christ into our lives, we are made right with God once and for all, but that does not mean that we have Christ’s character operating in our lives. I have learned that God takes us through a process of change. It happens over time and definitely not all at once, and to be honest, it is a work that will not stop until we are in Heaven with Him. Along this journey, you and I will make mistakes, but we can get back up and ask God to forgive us and move forward with the good plan He has for each of us. The Bible says, “For a righteous man falls seven times and rises again…” (Proverbs 24:16 AMP). A man or woman of God will make mistakes. The key is to get back up and learn from them. Just because you slipped up does not mean that God disqualifies you from receiving the good things He wants to give you. If that were the case, no one would ever receive anything good from God. And certainly, my moment in the flesh would have disqualified me from receiving the vacation that God desired to give me. God knows the end from the beginning and he sees all our pitfalls before they happen and He still chooses to do extraordinary things for us and through us. Remember, it is His unmerited favor…not something you or I deserve. The key is to admit when we are wrong and repent from our wrong choices and ask God to forgive us. He can work all things for our good when we turn our circumstances over to Him. The Bible teaches us that God disciplines those He loves (Hebrews 12:6), but He also is a rewarder of those who faithfully seek after Him (Hebrews 11:6). And this certainly does not mean a perfect lifestyle. 

Just relax and trust that God loves you and wants to bless you! He wants to give you good things in life. Will you let Him? Do NOT believe the condemning lies of the Enemy any longer. He is the Accuser of the brethren and wants nothing more than to keep you pinned down in defeat. You were meant to live an extraordinary life. Will you let God forgive you? Will you forgive yourself? Will you receive the goodness of God in your world? The choice is yours!