Vindication?

I awakened this morning pondering how to help a woman in a difficult marriage. Her story is much like mine which really boils down to self-righteous spouses who are afraid of one another and desperate to be the "right one." Each likely thinking they're right in Christ. Neither willing to move off the desire to be vindicated in their thinking or acting.

The humbling effect of recognizing that my hope for my marriage was not placed in Christ and His righteousness was jolting. My hope is (was?) I will be proved right. That, like in movies and novels, the unloved woman would receive the love she wanted with a dramatic and romantic apology -- "I haven't loved you the way I should have. I'm so sorry, will you forgive me? I vow to love you well." Or perhaps it is from a child, "Mom, you were right all along. I'm sorry for my rebellion." (Funny thing: I did call my parents and while I did throw in the 'you were right' I sought forgiveness for my rebellion! Maybe it is real life? Wait a minute, I apologized to my husband, too, in a similar 'romantic-y' manner.)

Lately the Lord has been turning my heart to His righteousness. He has made me realize that it is easier for a human to forgive a sin than for Him to do so. He had to bring Christ to us and make Him our sacrifice. Learning how to fear God and not man, I recognize that my love for others is properly motivated by a desire not for them to recognize my good advice, but for them to be right with God and bound by His Spirit for heaven. My heart aches much more heavily when I long for His righteousness to be known and acknowledged by friends and family. Much of that heaviness is the recognition that I fail to honor Him as God, Lord, Savior and Master. I want to be found by man to be right. The Lord is transforming my heart's desire. I'm a nobody, I want them to find that God is right.

I get it now. Hopefully it sticks.

My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less - YouTube



 


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