TOday we are going to go downtown to hear Ann speak on Essential Oils.

Devotions from Gary Thomas’ book The Beautiful Fight

Character transformation, though dependent on grace and God’s power, requires a lot of hard work, self-discipline, surrender, and a life marked by repentance. God is more concerned about out character than our comfort.
Some tell us that life is free of pain and effort but when we refuse the pain of transformation, we have to endure the misery of our immaturity. Our sinful patterns are a heavy weight.  The surest path to stress in our lives is to rebel against God’s plan. We have the choice to live of life of redemptive pain or of self-destructive pain.
True transformations isn’t built on a one time decision or by reading a book. It’s built on consistent choices. Christlikeness is born in us when we deny ourselves in small tasks of life-  seeking to understand instead of being understood,’ holding our tongue when before we would have readily criticized, having our will broken by forgiving and serving and listening etc.
Without perseverance there is no maturity. “The difficult relationships and situations we find ourselves in are really masked ‘opportunities of sainthood.’”

Common events and relationships can be God’s tools to shape our character if we respond to them as such. Let us be open to these opportunities.