MY LIFE: #37 Turn or Burn.

I have always been a passionate person. I love music, art, literature, and theology. I have had a thirst for knowledge since my youth. However, it tricked me.

TURN AWAY FROM SIN OR BURN IN ‘MY WAY’

As a Christian, turning from worldly passions to releasing the indwelling Life of Christ is a transformative journey. It’s about surrendering our own desires and ambitions to align ourselves with God’s will.

This doesn’t mean we lose our passion, but rather, our passions are refined and redirected towards things of eternal significance. In Christ, we find a deeper, more fulfilling purpose that transcends earthly pursuits. This shift, our U-Turn in focus, is not a loss but a gain, as we discover the joy and peace that come from living a life that releases His Life. Remember, this journey is personal and unique for each individual, and it’s okay to seek guidance and support along the way.

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

(Titus 2:11-14)

I have always been a passionate person. I love music, art, literature, and theology. In fact, in eighth grade, I won a 2-year art scholarship for my first charcoal. I have had a thirst for knowledge longer than my memory can serve me and a hunger for adventure. I have always wanted to experience everything life had to offer.

But my passions also had a dark side. I was prone to temptation, addiction, and obsession. My struggle to control my impulses and emotions dominated my childhood and young adult life. I often acted on my desires without thinking of the consequences.

I hurt many people in this destructive pattern. I broke many hearts, betrayed trust, and wasted opportunities. I lost more friends than I can count, hurt family members, and wasted opportunities of innocence. Honestly, I became a slave to my passions, and I hated myself for it.

I knew I needed to change, but my addiction to passion blocked me at every turn. Making a U-Turn was simply out of the question. However, in my young mind, I knew I needed to find a balance between my passions and Jesus’s Life principles. I also had an intuitive sense that I could not be free until I discovered the power of forgiveness and redemption.

But, at the time, I didn't know how. I didn't know where to start. I didn't believe I had the strength or the will to do it.

The truth of the matter, I couldn’t!

My wife and children have endless memories of me taking a road less traveled. As soon as we were “lost,” I would tell them, We aren’t lost, but only temporarily displaced. I got that philosophy from my father. It was the bond that we both shared and enjoyed. He taught me the principle that being lost is a state of the mind. The problem with this ideology is that it develops deep roots of fake it until you make it. If anything gets in your way, jump over it, go around it, or destroy the “it” that is in front of you, but NEVER make a U-Turn. That philosophy manufactured in me my greatest fleshly nasty habit.

THE U-TURN

In today’s diagram, we will discover one of the most critical in our topic in finding freedom from the passions that burn us – illustrating repentance and the Spirit causing a U-turn in the believer.

Repentance starts with a person considering their own way, which requires an honest appraisal. Repentance is not just feeling sorry (2 Cor. 7:8-10). It is a complete alteration of the basic motivation and direction for the believer’s life.

Note the arrow of My Way leading to an Honest Appraisal, which starts the renewal of the mind (Luke 15:17). Once the mind is renewed by the mind of Christ from within, the will makes the choice to believe Christ’s renewal (Luke 15:18). As with all choices, the “feelings” will automatically follow and support the choice of the will (Luke 15:19). Conduct (or change of behavior) will follow the mind, will, and emotions, as they line up with the Spirit’s conviction and the mind of Christ (Luke 15:20). Confession and restitution are the results of the exchange of the believer’s own way with that of God’s way (Luke 15:21).

The first thing I had to do was allow the Spirit to conduct an honest appraisal of my own soul. Once that happened, I could then consider my reactions to the hurt, and that creates a turning effect in my own life – even if the other party wants nothing to do with me.

HONEST APPRAISAL

Honesty is a mirror’s reflection of a purified mind that is highly valued in the Bible, mostly found in the Life of Jesus. It means being free from deceit or untruthfulness and living with integrity and sincerity. The root etymology of the word honest is from the Latin honestus, which means “honorable, respected, regarded with honor.” It is derived from honos, which means “honor, dignity, office, reputation,” and the suffix -tus, which indicates a quality or state of mind rooted in integrity.

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. (Ephesians 4:25)

Authentic honesty leads us to a clear statement & confession of what is. This is accomplished by the Holy Spirit revealing the condition of Jesus’s mind - saved or not. That is, what the TRUTH is about our own purpose, motives, methods, and patterns – without the varnish of self-protection, without enhancing or guarding our reputation, and without using devious means to maintain personal objectives.

One difficulty encountered is that of avoiding procrastination. An honest appraisal must be undertaken in obedience to Christ within, without waiting for the “feelings” to line up. Honesty requires facing the Truth (Jesus). The purpose of HONEST APPRAISAL is to bring about in ourselves a heart of cooperation that is in line with the Holy Spirit, by whom changes, and renews our MIND, which changes our WILL, in order for our “feelings” to realign with what is True about us.

For most of my life, I was bent out of shape because I was attempting to defend a reputation that God Himself was not interested in defending. He was interested in addressing my motives, methods and rejection patterns without me making excuses or me trying to protect myself.

Being willing to repent to God and man is critical in daily living as a believer. This is how God demonstrates His everlasting love, acceptance, and forgiveness to others. It is also the method God uses to admit to a condition of being lost, stop us from jumping over obstacles, and face the reality that we, indeed, are lost.

My wake-up call was admitting that Jesus was the obstacle standing in MY WAY on that path we call life. Since He is consistent in saving the lost, every path I took I found Him standing in my way to block me from burning in the pit of Hell. Boy, am I glad He is faithful to the very end!

God does not want anyone to perish in the eternal fire of Hell, nor does He want us to burn in our fleshly patterns, but to have everlasting Life in His Son in Heaven. That is why He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins and to rise again on the third day - to provide a death device for our Old Nature. He offers us forgiveness and salvation as a free gift of His Grace, if we repent, make a U-Turn, and believe in Him. Repentance means to turn away from our sinful ways and to turn to God, through Jesus with a heart of faith. It is a spiritual U-turn that leads us from death to life, from darkness to light, from Hell to Heaven. God loves U-turns and welcomes anyone who makes them. He is ready to wipe out our sins, refresh our souls, and transform our lives.

Coming up next is #38, “Identity Truly Does Matter.”