Journal Entry ~ 08/28/17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. - 2 Corinthians 5:17
There are days when we don't feel much like a new creation at all. We can get stuck in our old habits...cynicism, negativity, judgment, gossip, impatience...or we can get lost in our sinful thoughts...lust, depression, fear, anxiety...the list goes on.  Whether we're facing a monumental trial, or just stuck in a day where everything seems to be going wrong, when we're in the flesh, we don't feel like a new creation at all. So what does this verse mean?  If we're in Christ, then why hasn't all that old sinful behavior fallen away?  Because there is a battle going on between Spirit and flesh, and that battle will continue so long as we're drawing breath in this broken world. BUT if we are in Christ, the difference is that we don't have to stay there in the flesh. He provides an escape from our struggles in the flesh.  If we are continually turning to Him and repenting, and taking it one day at a time, He is renewing our minds, day by day, making us into that beautiful new creation. He is making us more patient, kinder, more loving, more compassionate, more understanding.

The battle to stay on top of my thoughts in the flesh since my diagnosis has been real. It's a moment-by-moment struggle - in one moment I am turning to Him and handing my fears to Him, allowing Him to renew my mind, and the next moment I'm taking it back.  Each time I hand it to Him, though, I cannot only feel His strength and His comfort, I can feel Him changing me and making me new. He is revealing sin in my life to me, and demolishing strongholds - things that were so important to me have just fallen away.  He is growing my patience and compassion for others because He is allowing me to see people differently. I continue to be blown away at the work He has done in my heart and the doors He has opened in just 2 short weeks since my diagnosis.  So thankful for His faithfulness to not give up on us, and for the way He brings trials into our lives to do the work He could only do when faced with a struggle.


Press on, ladies ~ you are loved💗

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