This Changed my Whole Life!

I didn't understand! I had been a Christian for 15 years. Why was my life worse after 15 years than it was when I got born again? "God, Where are You???? God, Fix This!!!! God, change Him!!!" That is what I was constantly praying, yet things continued to get worse in nearly every aspect of my life.

Why?

Why wasn't God doing anything about my problems?

Finally, I changed my question saying, "God, What am I not understanding? Help me to know what to do!!!! Help me! I don't want to live like this anymore!"

It was then that things began to change. The blame game was over.... no more "Fix Him!" Pass the bucket was over, too.....no more, "God, You fix it!" It was down to Me. What is my problem, anyway? What do I need to do differently?

I finally humbled myself. I finally was willing to change, and to be changed. I was willing to be taught and to learn and to do things differently.  Reading the Bible became a necessity to me. It was no longer a religious duty where I would read then walk away not even knowing what I had even read, remaining unchanged. I was desperate to find help. Now God's Word became alive to me. I don't know how to explain it well. I wanted to learn, I was searching to understand. I was willing to receive instruction. I was fed up with life as I knew it. I was willing to change MY ways, finally! Things simply had to change! As I read God's Word, things began to make sense to me and certain words and statements captured my attention and impacted me from deep within. It was not just in my head, it was in my inner self.

I recognized that it was Me that needed to change, not everyone else or things, but me!

But How? What?

There are several major things that I learned that have changed my life radically. If you learn these and respond accordingly, you will be changed too.

Today I will share one thing I learned. In upcoming days I will share more.

#1 - I recognized I was a Fool

Proverbs 12:15
Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.

Proverbs 1:7
Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise (disrespect) wisdom and discipline.

Isaiah 5:21
Woe to the wise in their own eyes, And -- before their own faces -- intelligent!

Proverbs 3:7
Never let yourself think that you are wiser than you are; simply obey the LORD and refuse to do wrong.

I thought I knew what needed to be done to fix things. I thought I knew Who needed to change and WHAT They needed to do. I was right....in my own eyes, but a Fool never thinks HE is the Fool.

Proverbs 18:7
The first to speak in court sounds right— until the cross-examination begins.

I began to be cross-examined by God's Word and the Holy Spirit, only to find out that my wisdom was nothing more than that of a fool.

I had not respected the wisdom or the  discipline of God. I had not obeyed God and I had not turned away from my own way of doing things. Truly, I had been a Fool.

Proverbs 26:12
There is more hope for fools than for people who think they are wise.

Could it be possible that I was worse off than a fool?

It was hard to believe that I, myself, was the fool. But my attitude, my behavior and my thoughts and words revealed my true condition. The comment that I heard a lady say once clearly reveals a fool's perspective. She said "I don't really need to take time to spend with God. I am doing pretty well on my own." Being wise in her own eyes, she did not realize how needy she actually was. She was a Christian, by the way.

We do not know what we do not know. That is not a riddle. We simply do not know what we do not know. By ourselves we are in an echo chamber, recycling our own way of thinking and processing things. Until we hear another perspective, our thoughts only rotate around what we already know, whether it is right or wrong. It is necessary that we learn from another. It is necessary that we learn from those who are wise. God Himself is the All-Wise God. Who better to learn from? We must follow the instructions given in Proverbs 1:5 - Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance,

Proverbs 14:14
The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.

Proverbs 1:29-33
For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the LORD. They rejected my advice
and paid no attention when I corrected them. Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way, choking on their own schemes. For simpletons turn away from me—to death. Fools are destroyed by their own complacency. But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm.”

I was a Christian, but I was still doing things my own way. I was A Fool. I was simply experiencing the results of my own ways. I was complacent and I was being destroyed. It was the fruit of living my own way.

Proverbs 16:18
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

Doing things my own way was the way of a Fool. I was full of pride. I thought that I knew best. I had not humbled myself to either learn from God or do things God's way. I was only reaping the consequences of my choices.

So, the first lesson I learned that changed my life was to realize I was a fool. My problems were the result of doing things my way. I had not taken the time, effort or interest to really want to know God's advice on how to live my life. I was complacent and I was being destroyed by doing things my own way. I had assumed that now that I was a Christian, everything was up to God to fix. How wrong I was!!!! More about this issue to come in future posts....

Please take what I have learned seriously. Learn from the truths from God's Word. Give attention to God's ways. Refuse to be a fool. Refuse complacency. Destruction is a downward spiral so sadly brought upon us by the choices we make. Choose to learn God's ways. Stop thinking YOU know the way to go, humble yourself and learn and follow what God says about the wise way to go. If you don't like the fruit in your life, stop being a fool. Grow in true wisdom and knowledge instead. God's ways are the right ways.