From Pity to Praise

The dark reality of scripture is every person, whether a believer or or not, is accountable before a sovereign God, and will one day have to bow before Jesus.

Jesus said in Luke 12:48, “For everyone who has been given much, much will be required, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be asked.”

I think many reject this accountability in Scripture, but it is written in too many scriptures in the Bible for me to discount it. For me, I would rather be prepared for it to happen,than not be ready.

Accountability is essential for any society to function and a believer’s accountability is no different. We are all held accountable in one way or another.

There are laws to obey and if we fail to be obedient, we may have to suffer the consequences set by the officials who hold us accountable. Accountability is simply being responsible for our actions.

Everyone is responsible for their own behavior, we cannot function as a civilized world without it. The Bible is very clear when it comes to personal accountability. Romans 14:12 says, “So then every one of us shall give account to himself to God.”

I don’t think our feeble excuses will suffice when we are called to account before the Almighty. The Bible is filled with accounts of men and women who tried to “pass the buck.”

Adam tried to blame Eve when he ate the forbidden fruit. Eve tried to blame the serpent. She become the first one to use, “the devil made me do it“ excuse. Even Biblical leader like Aaron, and Saul tried to blame their sins on the people in Exodus 32:21-24 and Samuel 15:13-14.

As creative as these excuses may seem, not one was acceptable. Adam and Eve were both punished for their disobedience to God. When David sinned with Bathsheba he paid the price. No excuse saved him from God’s judgment.

We can read in Acts 5:1-11 how Ananias and Sapphira could not shift the burden of guilt. They lied to the Holy Spirit and they were held accountable. They sold a piece of land but secretly kept part of the money for themselves. To make themselves look generous. The important part wasn’t that they didn’t give all the proceeds of the land. It’s wasn’t about giving all the money to the church, it was because they lied.

People who can’t admit they were wrong will not repent and seek forgiveness. And God cannot forgive sin until it is confessed. I think this alone is importance for human beings to bear the responsibility of their own sins.

God’s sense of justice prevents Him from providing His mercy to the unrepentant.

God’s Word says in Romans 3;23, “All have sinned.” Every man and woman will stand guilty before God.

However, if we confess our sins, He promises to be faithful in forgiving us. 1 John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness .” If we take responsibility for our behavior, God is ready to offer His mercy and forgiveness.

I think many people do not only fear work, but the accountability that comes with it. Our new generation has a difficult time with accountability because they didn’t grow up with having it. It’s as if it were an assault on their lifestyles and plans. They do not want to be tied to anything.

Accountability for our actions is essential if we want to grow and produce godly character and fruit.

Accountability is a check and balance system that protects us from ourselves and others. A believer’s accountability is accounting for what we are up to. It is the realization that we are liable, responsible, and answerable for our actions in life to God.

Accountability allows us to be answerable to one another, focusing on key relationships such as with our spouses, close friend, a boss, and small group members, and pastors. For example I go to a small prayer meeting weekly that we stay accountable to others. And I go a little early to church to help with the service and have a little one on one on with my pastor. That alone keeps me accountable for my actions, and I know I can count on them if I find myself needing support.

We need to hold to our beliefs about the Bible and keep in line with what we believes so it does not distract us from God’s path for us or discourage others from their path.

Some things in the Bible or what the pastor teaches, and we tend to ignore them. But, I believe we need to be aware so we can be prepared for what’s coming.

If you’ve visited my blog you know I don’t sugarcoat the truth. It’s better to be informed than misinformed. A lack of knowledge leaves us room to learn, but the wrong information actively guides decisions down the wrong path.

Unforgiveness is a dangerous spiritual condition that separates us from God’s grace and poisons our souls.

Jesus teaches that if we do not forgive others he will not forgive us.

The trap of unforgiveness:.

We often think of hell as a destination for specific, notorious sins. However, scripture warns us that a quiet, hidden sin in the heart can be just as destructive. Unforgiveness is a spiritual prison. It binds us to past pain, blocks our relationships with God, and threatens our eternal security.

The Commandment to forgive:

Forgiveness is not a suggestion or an emotional option for a believer, It is a direct command from Jesus. When we refuse to forgive, we choose disobedience over God’s law to love.

In Matthew 18:21-22 Peter came to Jesus and asked Him, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

And in Colossians 3:13 Jesus tells us to, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you have a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

The direct danger to our salvation:

The Bible makes a terrifyingly clear connection between our willingness to forgive others and God’s willingness to forgive us. If we close our hearts to mercy, we close the door to God’s mercy for ourselves.

Matthew 6:14-15 tells us, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins your Father will not forgive your sins.”

The prison of torture and bitterness:

There is a parable in Matthew 18:34-35 about an unforgiving servant. Jesus described a man who was forgiven an impossible debt but he refused to forgive a small debt owed to him. The master of the servant turned the man he had forgiven to the jailer to be tortured. Unforgiveness eats away at our joy and hands us over to spiritual torment.

In Matthew 18:34-35 it tells us, “In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my Heavenly Father will treat of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Hebrews 12:25 says, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

Sadly, I learned this too late, I held bitterness in my heart for my mother. It was only when she passed away that I learned this lesson. I had let bitterness and unforgiveness for her destroy my life for many years. Amazingly after I forgave her from my heart, I began healing from the effects of abuse and neglect she caused.

Forgiving someone does not mean that what they did was right, nor does it mean you have to trust them. Forgiveness means releasing the desire for revenge into God’s hands.

If you carry any resentment, bitterness, or unforgiveness in your heart that weight could cost you your soul. Let it go, choose to step into freedom of God’s complete forgiveness.

Once, a deeply loved and perfectly just king discovered that someone was stealing from his royal treasures. To uphold the law, he decreed that if the thief was caught they would receive a punishment of ten lashes. However, the stealing continued, and the king raised the penalty to forty lashes, which was essentially a death sentence.

When the king’s guards finally caught the thief, everyone was shocked because the thief was the king’s own daughter.

The kingdom waited to see what the king would do, if he pardoned her, his justice would be compromised, but if he punished her, his love for were would by broken.

On the day of the sentencing, the king’s daughter was tied to the execution post. The people were in disbelief that he would go through with the execution. But…

Just as the executioner raised the whip, the king shouted for him to stop. The king walked forward and wrapped His body tightly around his daughter to cover her, and ordered the executioner to strike. When the first executioner objected that hitting her would mean hitting the king, ultimately resulting in his death, while his daughter would be set free.

This illustration symbolizes how God handled humanity’s failures. Because God is just, the penalty for wrongdoing had to be paid. He chose to step in and pay that penalty Himself through Jesus.

This story was once told by Charles Spurgeon of a Saxon king who had the reputation among his tiny kingdom of being the most just king.

Miracles come in all shapes and sizes. And sometimes the miracle we want isn’t the miracle we need. It’s easy to miss the miracle God wants to do in our lives because we’ve placed Him in a box.

The Bible tells us in Isaiah 55:8-9,

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways me ways, declares the Lord, As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher that your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Miracles come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes we are focused on the one big thing we want God to do, when in fact God is performing little miracles all along the way. Often it is those little miracles that come along the way that make the biggest impact on our lives. We may not even realize it until we look back and recognize what God did. The more this happens the more we can learn to look for God’s hand in everything.

When I was struggling through my life, wondering where God was and being angry at Him for giving me the family, I grew up with. While I felt alone, and was sure I was a mistake that was never meant to be born. I didn’t understand why God was keeping me alive when all I wanted was to lay down and never wake up again, even having nights I prayed for death. I didn’t understand that while my life was horrible He was patient with me and protected my life for a reason.

The miracle God performs in our lives often looks very different from the one we expected. I was praying for the miracle of death, but God gave me life. Sometimes what we want isn’t necessarily the best thing God has for us. God knows this and in His mercy and love for us, He often protects us from those things. Like me, I’m sure you can thank God now that you didn’t receive some of the things you wanted in the past.

Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” God always knows best and His plans for us are always good.

When we cannot see the final outcome, and all seems hopeless, it’s hard to believe God for a miracle in our lives. But it’s during these times especially, that God moves miraculously. It’s important that we do not lose hope, and look God. God can use our greatest heartache to reveal Himself through our greatest pain. He has the ability to turn our worst trial into our greatest testimony.

There is never a moment in our lives when God is not at work. He’s always working, and revealing Himself, and moving on our behalf. Our trials often bring us to the end of ourselves and position us to receive the greatest miracles God has for us.

Complaining about life leaves us stuck in a loop of negativity because venting accomplishes absolutely nothing.

Instead of wasting energy on what is out of our control, it’s better to shift our focus to direct action solutions and gratitude.

I have learned a few effective strategies that can help us begin taking our control back and break the cycle of complaining. I went to a counselor many years back that had helped me get rid of my constant complaining.

The first step was to give myself the right to have a pity party once a week. To complain about everything that was wrong with my life in a 15 minute span. The next are the following strategies:

• Audit Your Language: Commit to a 21 day no complaining challenge. When you catch yourself venting, consciously replace the thought with something you are grateful for who are direct question about how to improve the situation.
• Turn Venting into Requests: if you repeat the same complaint more than once, figure out how to frame it as a direct actionable request. For example I used to get frustrated when I would be unloading groceries and my husband would walk right by me and not help. My actionable request was asking him, “Can you just grab the heavy things that bring them in?” His reply was “Oh, I didn’t realize you needed help. My mother used to bring the groceries in.” I hadn’t realized he didn’t think he had to help, because of the way he was raised.
• Take Direct Action: if a problem is within your control, tackle it head on. If it is completely out of your control, stop giving your energy and focus your efforts elsewhere.

• Reframe your Perspective: constantly talking about your problem, only requires your brain to seek out more negativity. Shifting to an attitude of appreciation and actually transform relationships and career opportunities.

Changing your perspective on complaining means viewing it not as a release, but as movement without progress. To transform our complaint into actionable feedback or focused problem solving.