Lesson From Gideon

This is the official last week for the women's bible study "Gideon" by P. Shirer.  But I don't believe it will be my last week.  I have too many unanswered blanks that still need my attention.  Priscilla with the power of the Holy Spirit has gotten into my business.  That business of God and me and me and God - where am I in that relationship?  God hasn't changed - the question is am I willing to change?  Am I willing to look hard into my heart and check out what is inside and allow the Holy Spirit to come in and clean house.  I need to decide: do I want to go deeper with God?  I can study the bible till I have every verse memorized but if I'm unwilling to be changed by those verses it is all for naught.

These 3 points are straight from the workbook pages 162-163:

1. Pinpoint your tendencies.  Ask the Lord to clearly show you where you normally turn for comfort, acceptance, approbation, and connection during good and bad times in your life.

 "Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart." Psalm 26:2 (NLT)

2. Restructure your allegiances.  Recommit to a God-centered existence in which you consistently acknowledge and see God before turning to other things or people for approval or acceptance.

"Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need." Luke 12:31 (NLT)

3. Rearrange your priorities. Refuse to indulge improper passions.  Restructure your life to exclude the idols that have become your go-to activities or relationships. Cement boundaries in place and enlist accountability to keep you on track.

 "So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective." Colossians 3:1-2 (MSG)

These points should make you squirm in your seat that would be the conviction of the Holy Spirit.  I can relate only too well with Priscilla when she says "I knew that opening myself up to their (idols) removal would require an uncomfortable transformation I didn't want to deal with right then. So I just didn't."

So what am I going to do about it?  I'm going to write these 3 verses down on index cards and I'm going to start praying them back to God.  Asking him to lead me on this journey of change - will you join me?