As I have noted on several occasions, the ocean is the place I find most calming and it’s the place I always feel most connected with God. For me, it feels like I’m standing on the edge of the world, and there is nothing worldly standing in between me and my Heavenly Father. I realize this is simply a way for my mind to set my worry thoughts and worldly obsessions in the background, making room for a more focused interaction with God. It’s also difficult to sit and look at the enormity of the ocean itself and maintain a feeling that whatever I’m dealing with is too big or too much for God.

Sitting in church yesterday, I was once again captivated by the message being delivered by our pastor. He is a man who is constantly striving to focus on godly wisdom, and he is gifted in his ability to make the most valuable lessons of the bible relatable. This particular Sunday, he was talking about the ways in which people will be tempted by sin, and also that the temptation itself is not the sin, but instead it’s what we choose to do with the temptation.

As I listened to him there in the sanctuary, I had a significant epiphany regarding a temptation I’ve been facing for several months now, and how I’ve allowed that temptation to get the better of me time and time again. I realized that, by the choice I was making each time I was faced with the same temptation, I was choosing sin over and over. I also realized that it is up to me to put a stop to it. I reached out to my precious alto family this past weekend, and at what was a strong nudging from the Holy Spirit, I brought down one of my walls. I have spoken a lot about the importance of fellowship, but what good does that talk do if I don’t practice that fellowship for myself?

In a devotional I’m working through right now, we are discussing how to face fear. The devotional stated that God’s love is the antidote to human fear. I made the comment that, conversely, human fear can be a destructive force against our connection to the love of God. Satan knows this, and you can be sure that he uses human fear quite effectively. It will permeate our hearts and minds, holding us back from making godly choices, and cementing us in a place of frustration, anger, and/or sadness. That is the time when the adversary’s real work begins.

When God send someone into our lives, and we are without any doubt that the connection was made with great purpose, we can be sure that Satan will do everything he can to break that connection. However, God can also use that same connection to help us learn and grow. He can use it to teach us important lessons, as well as learn how to break old habits and patterns long established out of fear. However, none of this can happen unless we are willing to face Satan’s great weapon and choose a different way. We have to find the strength to do the things we are most afraid of doing. We have to be willing to give our anger, frustration, sadness, and especially our fear, over to God and let Him begin to earnestly work in our lives. If we don’t, we are always going to end up exactly where we started, which is usually farther from where God wants us to be.

What is it you’re afraid of? What are you refusing to face because you know it’s going to be hard? What choices are you making that serve your emotions instead of the Lord? I am in the process of answering those questions for myself…and I am going to choose to start making different choices as much as is humanly possible. As my pastor said, if the choice is left to our human minds, we will always make the wrong one…but when the choice is left to the wisdom of God, we will never be taken down the wrong path. Whatever it is you are facing right now, God already knew it was coming your way, and He already knew how He wanted you to handle it. He already knows how He can use it for good in your life, no matter how bad it seems through your human eyes. Are you brave enough to choose to accept the love God wants to bring into your life?