So, all of the young adults from my church (Bethlehem Star Baptist Church in OKC) will know exactly what this post is about from the title. I need all of you to represent in the comments!!!
Basically moving the needle is a saying in our class that represents us changing behaviors to be more Christ-like, rather than just talking about the things that we should be doing as Christians but don't really put a lot of effort into or just aren't 100% committed to changing. Now, our class gets pretty real and our Pastor has really been challenging us on this for quite some time. We are currently studying Proverbs as a church and he is pressing us to use the wisdom that we are reading and learning about which is way harder than it sounds.
So, as I was praying about what this blog post needed to be this is what came to me.
This past year has really been a year of increasing my faith in a lot of different areas. I have spent more time with God, I am gaining new revelations about God and His love and His ways all of the time. But, as I was thinking about how often I have said that over the past year I couldn't help but think about the mistakes that I have made as well; the things that have not been so Christ-like. I honestly believe this was the devil trying to knock me down and make me feel bad about myself. I was really getting down on myself, thinking, if you have grown so much in Christ how did you let yourself do a, b, and c? Where is Christ in that?
But, God gently reminded me, as He so often does, that He doesn't expect us to be perfect all of the time. As long as we are doing our absolute best in striving to move that needle He is grateful for our strides. Now, is it enough to just say, "I'm trying" and stop there? Of course not. That is the point of the needle...it should be constantly moving in the right direction.
I think that a huge part in growing in Christ, especially in the beginning stages of that commitment, is realizing where you went wrong and repenting for that. I recently had an incident where I was GOOD AND WRONG, 100%, no doubts about it. And, honestly, for a second I didn't care one lick about how wrong it was. I justified my actions and I was fine with that. Then came this Sunday school lesson... And the crazy thing is, the verse that got me wasn't even one of the main verses! But, I finally was like, "Okay God, you right. It's time for me to come on out of this". You may have seen it on my instagram page where I talked about it.
That, for me, is growth. Getting to the point where I can acknowledge where I was wrong and quickly get it together.
So, I say all of that to say this...moving the needle is extremely important but how the needle is moving is between you and God. Don't let the devil discourage you in your growing process. Satan will have you to the point where you are thinking none of it is worth it because you keep falling but just know that it is God who picks us back up and if He sees us as worthy who are we to question His judgment? The same with people because I started thinking about what individuals think when I post about my growth and all of that. I can't be concerned with them. My relationship is with God and He is the one who matters when it comes to growth with Him.
I hope you were encouraged, inspired, and empowered by this.
Leave me a comment below on how you are working to move the needle or how you combat the negative voices and feelings that come to discourage you.
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