Step 1- Repent

“And at last I see the light/ And it’s like the fog has lifted/ And at last I see the light/ And it’s like the sky is new/ And it’s warm and real and bright/ And the world has somehow shifted/ All at once everything looks different/ Now that I see you.” - Tangled



Just like in this song from the movie "Tangled," everything looks different when you "see the light" and look to God. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” The verse claims that God works all things for the good of those who LOVE God and are called according to His purpose. You have to love Him and want His purpose first. You have to allow him to take away your heart of stone and allow Him to put in you a heart of flesh.

God is Holy and cannot tolerant sin, and if we expect God to actually do a mighty work in our lives, we have to be sure of two things: first, we need to be sure that we are actually His children, and second, we need to be sure that we following Him daily.

When you see God for who He really is in His glorious splendor, you will see yourself for who you really are. Repenting is more than just saying you’re sorry. It’s a turning of your heart towards God and agreeing with Him about your life and sin. When you become a believer, God saves you from yourself and begins to change all that you are from the inside out.

Have you submitted your will to His will, and if you have, are you currently following Him daily? Are you in a process of dying to yourself and becoming more like Christ? In the book The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life, Hannah Whitall Smith states, “Just as the potter, however skillful, cannot make a beautiful vessel out of a lump of clay that is never put into His hands, so neither can God make out of me a vessel unto His honor unless I put myself into His hands.” Put yourself into the Father’s hands. From that point on, everything may not work out the way you expected or wanted, but He will work all things out for good.

Keep Repenting

Even if we are Christians and are secure in our faith, we must be quick to repent if we want to keep our relationship with Jesus strong and keep Him on the throne of our lives. Proverbs 3:11-12 (ESV): “My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.”

Don’t think of God’s discipline as a punishment for sin but rather a way of refining you to live in the fullness of who He has called you to be. Furthermore, once you start living the fullness of life you are called to, people may question you and want to put you back into your old lifestyle. Don’t be surprised by this behavior, but know it is biblical. Jesus said in John 15:18 (ESV): “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.”

Next, be sure to forgive yourself for the sins that God forgives you for rather than harping on them. 1 John 1:9 (ESV): “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Thinking that our sin is too big for God to forgive just belittles God’s ability. I once heard Beth Moore say, “we have not out sinned God’s ability to forgive us.”

Just because we have the option to repent doesn’t mean we have free reign to do what ever we want. Let your actions be a reflection of the love you have for Christ and bring Him glory through every circumstance. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:23, “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial.”

God’s Glory

But what if you are quick to repent and are following Him to the best of your ability, and things still aren’t going well for you? Struggles and trials in life aren’t always the consequences of sin or not following the Holy Spirit’s leading. John 9:2-3 (ESV): “And his disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ ‘It was not because of his sins or his parents' sins,’ Jesus answered. ‘This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.” God is the utmost concerned about His glory and that He is glorified in all situations.

God doesn’t promise us that we won’t face trails and tribulations, but He does promise that He will be with us when we walk through these times. Isaiah 43:2 (ESV) “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

God uses trials and tribulations to build character, and He is more concerned with our character than our comfort.

Suffering -> Perseverance -> Character -> Hope

How do we get through these painful trails? We can follow Romans 12:12 (ESV) which encourages us to, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Also, take comfort to know that you are not alone in your suffering because the Lord walks through suffering with you.

God uses unlikely people and unlikely circumstances to bring about His perfect plan and redemption. We can’t see the whole story. Just look at the story of Joseph in the Bible. God’s plan to save His people during a famine was accomplished, and Joseph was greatly blessed, though Joseph went through a great deal of suffering in his life. I bet Joseph felt downright terrible when he was wasting away in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. He knew the blessings that God had promised him, but it didn’t make his circumstances any easier. Sometimes I feel like Joseph probably did in that prison cell: wasting away, letting time pass by, and aging day by day while waiting for God’s blessing.

In reference to Joseph, Marian Jordan Ellis in her book, Wildness Skills for Women stated, “Right now, wherever you are- whatever you are dealing with- God is with you and yes, He does understand. Don’t despair. Cry out to Him. Allow Him to carry you through this wilderness. He promises to never leave you nor forsake you. God was with Joseph, and yes, He is with you.”

God is sovereign, and He has us in every season for a reason. Often times, we must break before we can heal. Job 5:18 (ESV): “For he wounds, but he binds up; he shatters, but his hands heal.” A. W. Tozer said, “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.”

Our job is to continue to look to Him and for Him in all circumstances and to trust that He is working things out for good. “To see the King in His beauty must be our one desiring: to hunger, thirst and take our fill of Him. And if He makes us stand in some obscure and darkened corner of His palace yard, we can be sure He puts us there because from that distinct advantage we, with our present stature, will behold Him best whenever He comes passing by.” –Geoffrey Bull, God Holds the Key

God has you in this season of singleness for a reason, and we have to trust Him in that. It may be that He needs to prepare you first to be ready for marriage. It may be that He needs to prepare your future spouse for marriage. It may be that He can use you more if you are single. It may be that He will get more glory and that you will learn to trust and praise Him more if you are made to wait. I don’t have all the answers, but I hope I can teach you how to walk through this season in a way that is pleasing to God and teach you how to actively pray for your heart’s desires.

A prayer of repentance: Father, forgive me for my sins. I am returning to you wholeheartedly. Please be merciful to me Lord. I am acknowledging my guilt. Teach me how to walk the spiritual walk again and to see things with spiritual eyes. I know through discipline, You are positioning Yourself first in my life. I am humbling myself before You and submitting to Your will. Thank You that Your discipline shows Your love for me. Thank you for grieving me into repentance. Please release me of my guilt. Please take my guilt and replace it with hope, joy, and peace in believing. Help me to living continually in your presence. Take me to the Holy of Holies. Forgive me of my sins. Cover me with the Blood of Jesus. Make me clean enough to enter your presence. Let me hide myself in thee. Only you can make me whole again. Heal me as I turn my heart back to Yours’ once more. Lord, look down from heaven and see us from you Holy glorious home. Surely, You are still our Father. Help me to keep my eyes on You above all else.
In Jesus Name,
Amen