Speck-tacular Lessons

Our internet has not been working well ever since we returned from our trip to Montana.  We are working on getting that remedied, but it has deterred my blogging.  That's okay, though, everything happens for a reason.  A big lesson for me happened over our trip in a combination of a physical issue and a book I was reading during airplane travels (since I couldn't sit with my husband and talk with him about the treasure the whole time.....and I left the Forrest Fenn's book at my parents house.....doh!...but, I pretty much had that memorized :P)  Anyway, I think God meant for me to read the book and maybe even have some time since I have been home to digest it.

While we were on the trip searching for the treasure I got a speck of dust or something in my eye and it was incredibly irritating for several days....it is better now, but still doesn't feel completely cleared out.  Anyway, it made me tear up a lot and I splashed water on my face as often as I could to try to help flush it out.  I even thought at one point, "What if I miss seeing the treasure because of this speck in my eye!?"  AND, that WAS the question for me to consider.  I was going to be reading Forrest Fenn's book and studying through all the clues during our travels, but I forgot the book because I had taken it out of my bag to look through it the night before we left.  So I grabbed a different book that Brad had packed in his bag since he was reading something different.  The book is called Respectable Sins and is all about different sins that we (our culture) have grown to tolerate and even sometimes glory in.....definitely not consider these as sins....more like reactions to our circumstances....even though they really are ungodly if we hold them up against God's Word.  They are things like impatience, anxiety, selfishness, pride, anger, envy, jealousy, ungratefulness....and each chapter really convicted me.  It was one of those times where I could only read a little and then I had to close the book and just pray for a while because I really saw some of myself in the pages and was realizing the speck in my eye needed clearing out, you know?!....

Grace is AWESOME and we should always think incredibly HIGHLY of it, however.....

Sin clouds our vision until we have a difficult time seeing God and being certain of the narrow path we are to travel.  It prevents us from entering into the fullness of God's glory.  I am not saying that each individual sin prevents us from eternal life, but I am saying that we will fall short of God's glory and at least most definitely miss out on some of the great rewards of knowing Him and seeing Him as He reveals Himself to those who's walk is blameless.  How can we be blameless when we are sinners....that is a great confusion for so many.  I cannot be blameless on my own strength....so that means I must depend on the Holy Spirit to empower even my desire toward faithfulness. My part is in deciding to make an intentional effort to be revitalized and empowered in the Spirit each day through God's word, prayer, and waiting on the Holy Spirit to guide me.