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| Sunset at Clear Lake, IA |
I am blessed to participate in a woman's group that gathers Wednesday mornings in honor of the Holy Spirit and the gifts He bestows on believers. It is a wonderful time of fellowship, prayer, encouragement, learning, praise and worship.
The woman who opens her home for these meetings has an intimate relationship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I am so grateful to her for sharing her experiences and her wisdom with us.
Jesus said this about the Holy Spirit...
But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you. John 14:26 (AMP)
All the women who gather on Wednesdays are seeking an intimate relationship with Jesus and are filled with the Holy Spirit. So when the newest attendee came with an assignment, I was eager to listen. The Holy Spirit prompted her to put words on slips of paper. She put them in a bag and let everyone draw one. Our assignment was to pray about the words and see where Holy Spirit would lead each of us in our study and then speak to the group about the experience.
I was excited, I'd been asking the Lord what He wants me to do next, what He wants me to study, and felt sure this was an answer. One by one we went around the room, each taking a slip out and telling everyone the words we received...pride and humility... depression... strength in God, not ourselves... worship and praise... healing... God's faithfulness... abuse... importance of the cross... guilt and shame... restoration... stewardship... It was interesting to see how the words fit each persons situation somehow. And mine... self esteem.
Journal Entry Day 679 July 30, 2014 Wed 12:55 Prayer Room
My first thought when I read mine was (name redacted). I've been praying for her and asking God's guidance to help her. I've thought for awhile the root of her issues are with low self esteem. When I was young I too had issues with self esteem.
But I don't want to push this off on another person, this word is for me first and so I pray Lord Jesus open my eyes and open my heart to what it is You want to reveal to me with this word. Show me Lord any area of my life that is lacking in self esteem and any area of my life where I esteem myself higher than I should. In fact just yesterday I repented for criticizing another mother for how she was dealing with her teenager. Yes I'm afraid in many ways my lack of self esteem has turned around too far and I esteem myself higher than others. But the Lord is gracious and merciful; thank You Jesus for cleansing me of this sin of pride over and over and over again.
Teach me Lord what You want me to know, draw near to me Lord as I draw near to you.(end journal entry)
So I went on a word search, I was pretty sure "self-esteem" was not in the Bible (clue number one) and so I picked up my dictionary.
"self-esteem"- a confidence and satisfaction in oneself; self-respect; self conceit.
"self-respect" - a proper respect for one's own standing or position
"self conceit" - an exaggerated opinion of ones own qualities or abilities; vanity.
Then I searched the Word (the Bible) while doing so, I heard this in my spirit...
We need God-Esteem - confidence and satisfaction in ourselves that can only come from God so that it is not tainted with self-conceit or pride. (clue number two)
Then I went online to the Blue Letter Bible and did a search for the words confidence and satisfaction.
Proverbs 19:23 The fear of the Lord leads to life and He who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil.
Proverbs 14:26 In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge.
So it seems to have confidence and satisfaction that comes from the Lord, we must have fear of the Lord. But what does that mean? To fear the Lord? Surely the Lord does not want us to be afraid of Him because in 2 Timothy 1:7 Paul wrote that fear does not come from the Lord.
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (NKJV)
It is so important to understand the Bible was not written in English. One of the reasons I strayed off God's path when I was young was because I took every word literally from the Bible and got confused. Now when I read the Bible, I know the Lord is not contradictory and so when I find what seems to be a contradiction, I search out the true meaning.
In 2 Timothy this word 'fear' was translated from the word deilia - which means timidity, fearfulness and cowardice. The Lord did not give us a spirit of timidity, fearfulness or cowardice.
In Proverbs the word 'fear' was translated from yirah - which means respect, reverence, piety - a dutiful devotion to God.
Similarly the dictionary definition of "esteem" is to regard with respect, so God Esteem is simply to regard God with respect, to be dutifully devoted to God.
So lets go back to self respect which means a proper respect for ones own standing or position. Get this... When you fear (are dutifully devoted to) God, when you know who you are in Jesus Christ, your position on earth, your standing on earth, your social status, your job or lack there of, your education or lack there of, your money or lack thereof, those things no longer define you. When you realize you are a child of Christ, you are standing in the throne room of God. Not because of anything you did, no, because Jesus Christ shed His blood to wash away your sins. He died for you and He was resurrected showing Himself fully God, He is seated in that throne room at the right hand of God. You too can be resurrected and seated in the heavenly's. Your position on earth is temporary, your position in heaven is eternal. If you don't know Jesus Christ as your personal savior, if you are not walking in a proper respect for the Lord Jesus Christ, it is not too late. Please wake up and see this life is so fleeting, give yourself over to Jesus, your eternal position, your eternal standing depends upon it. As a bonus...you will find the kind of self esteem that brings satisfaction and confidence here on earth.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)
If you want to learn more about who Jesus is go to All About Jesus Christ
If you are ready to accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, do so now. Pray out loud, it doesn't have to be word for word, there's no one way to come to Christ, this is just an example of what to pray... "Lord I believe that Jesus Christ came to earth as a man, fully God and fully human, I believe that He died for my sins and the sins of the world and that He rose to heaven on the third day, so that I may have eternal life with Him. I believe that He is the way, the truth and the life. I confess that I have sinned. Lord forgive me for all the sins I've committed in my life, cleanse me with the blood of Jesus, make me righteous in Your sight Lord. Thank you Father for Your forgiveness. I am now ready to accept Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. I believe that I have been saved and have eternal life in You. Help me Lord, day by day as I seek to live according to Your will for me and my life to bring glory to You Lord. I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, Your only Son, Amen."
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| Painting by Louj |
Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary Tenth Edition Copyright 1993 by Merriam-Webster Inc.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Aug 12, 2014
P.S. The cross painting is 16 x 20 acrylic on canvas and is for sale for $20 visit Tree Town Art Gallery
http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Aug 12, 2014
P.S. The cross painting is 16 x 20 acrylic on canvas and is for sale for $20 visit Tree Town Art Gallery
