Should We Make New Years Resolutions?

      Happy New Year!  As 2012 quickly approaches, we often think of New Years resolutions we would like to make for the coming year.   We think of things such as losing weight, begin exercising, start journaling, reading a set number of books, reading the Bible all the way through and more.  Most of us know that the problem is we don't seem to be able to follow through and after a few weeks into the new year, we begin to miss a day here and another there.  Soon we have missed a week and before we realize it, we have stopped completely.   The results are that we feel guilty, frustrated, and maybe like a failure. 

      Is there an alternative to making New Years Resolutions?  Yes!  Let me suggest a different approach.   I call them Prayer Goals.  Why not go to your Abba in prayer and ask Him what goals he wants you to pursue in 2012?  For the remainder of the week, continue to ask Him.  How will he show you these goals?   They may be new desires he puts in your heart, a sermon you hear, a suggestion from a family member, a Scripture, etc.  As these ideas come to mind, write them down and pray over each one.

     Once you have identified the goals your Abba has for you for the coming year, rather that resolving that you are going to do these through your own self-discipline and will power, you may want to pray something like this. "Father, I believe these goals are ones You have given to me for this new year yet, I know that I do not have the ability to accomplish them in my own strength. Therefore, I surrender each one of these to you asking you to accomplish these through me. Each time I begin to work towards meeting these goals, remind me to ask Jesus to live through me because Jesus says "Without me you can do nothing." John 15:5

      Finally, pray and tell God that you are taking yourself out from under any kind of self-imposed law which rises up and says to you, "I must meet these goals".  This is how we live under and by grace instead of self-effort and legalistic rules.

      As you approach these goals each day, week or month, trusting Jesus to live through you is essential.  However, that does not mean you are passive or irresponsible.   For example, if you are going to start exercising, you will need to trust Jesus living through you to prioritize your schedule, get you to the gym, do the exercises through you, and to be consistent.

     Happy New Year in Christ!  Remember, He loves us!  Live free in Christ!

How to Prepare to Be with Your Family for the Holidays

     One Christmas song invites us to go home to be with our family for Christmas because it is the best place in the world. We can't wait to get there. It goes, "There's no place like home for the holidays..."

     This idealistic phantom family lives in Christmas songs but rarely is it seen in real life. In most homes during Christmas, many have ambivalent feelings. Deep within, we want to be with family on Christmas day, but we also know this encounter has the potential for conflict, rejection and pain.

     So how do we prepare to meet our family during the holidays? First, make sure before we pack our bags for the trip, we unpack the baggage in our hearts. The best way to do that is to squarely face the hurts inflicted upon us by anyone we will encounter. To do so, go to your Abba and ask Him to remind you of all the things this person has done to you. While still in prayer, ask Him to show you how that event made you feel. Next, pray, "Father, you forgave me through your Son, Jesus Christ, when I did not deserve it. This person did __________ to me and it made me feel _________. This person does not deserve to be forgiven, but in Christ, my identity is that I am a "forgiver" and I have the Great Forgiver living in me. So, by faith I choose right now to forgive that person whether I feel like it or not." Before you leave that prayer time, take responsibility for your sin of resentment towards that person and confess it to the Lord. Jesus died for your sin of resentment so you can thank Him for forgiving you or ask Him to forgive you. Our Abba's forgiveness is one of our blessings in Christ! (Ephesians 1:7)

     The next preparation you will need to commit yourself to is to pray and tell your Father that you give up the right not to be hurt by this person again. In essence, you are telling God that you are trusting Him to be in control. We see this kind of trust in Jesus life in Phillipians 2. (If you have been abused, this does not mean God approves of that or that you should allow it again.)

     Finally, and foremost, ask Jesus Christ to live His life through you to love the people you will be around during that time. What would happen if you went to all of your holiday gatherings with the attitude that you are showing up to love these people instead of showing up to get them to love you! Jesus says to us, Without Me, you can do nothing!" John 15:5. Depend on Him to live and love through you, including those who may not seem lovable. You cannot determine how they will respond, but that is not your responsibility. However, we are responsible to love people (Romans 13:8).

     I would enjoy hearing from you if you choose to allow God to lead, live and love through you during the holidays.

Until next time remember, He loves you.

Be Free in Christ,

Mark Maulding , President and Founder 
GraceLifeInternational.com

The Devastating Failure of Performance Based Acceptance - A Real Life Story

    The real life story you are about to read is so full of the complete gospel that we share, I could not say it better myself.  I think you will actually want to pass this on to many of your family and friends.  

   "I've been saved for over 30 years (most of my life), but after discovering my identity in Christ through Grace Life's counseling and other ministries, I can say that it truly feels like I've been born again. My initial foundation in God was strong but the list of rules and religious duties deemed necessary to please God, far outweighed any explanation of my freedom in Christ. This was only compounded by the demands in my childhood home that seemed to tell me that good was not good enough and my best should have been better. I became addicted to the idol of high performance (to the point of being physically nauseous almost every day) and would do almost anything to avoid the pain of failure and experience the high of success. This need to succeed impacted me as a Christian, a wife, mom, and teacher. I believed that it was my primary means of gaining the love, approval, security, and sense of value for which I longed. I enjoyed many successes, while achieving great honors in high school, college, and in my teaching career."
   "No matter what struggles I faced, I took the attitude that I would pull myself up by the bootstraps and make things happen. After trying to hold the pieces of my life together, it all came crashing down when I faced a seemingly insurmountable personal crisis of devastation. I remember lying on my closet floor one day, and crying out, "I give up! I have no more to give!" I believe at that moment God lovingly said, 'Finally!'"
   "Not long afterwards, a short-term counselor recommended that I contact Grace Life for extended Christian counseling. So, I began one-on-one counseling and I can truly say that I will NEVER be the same. Before finishing my counseling, I was also blessed to participate in the Grace Life Conference and the Advanced Discipleship course, each having been uniquely instrumental in deepening my understanding of God's grace. What I have received has not merely been an experience but an encounter with God. Where fifteen years of counseling had miserably failed by trying to build my self-esteem, God spoke through the counselors and teachers at Grace Life to bring me to the end of my self-sufficiency and caused me to give up, so that He could show me that He had been enough all along---He is my peace, my joy, my comfort, my counselor, my husband, my life, my All... And even more, my ALL in ALL (meaning in every circumstance). He has changed my view of Him, myself, and others. (Joanne Saulsbury)
  
Until next time remember, He loves us!


Mark Maulding
President and Founder
Grace Life International
www.GraceLifeInternational.com