A Sad Saved Woman
“And be not conformed
to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God.” Romans 12:2 (KJV)
By Alexandra Copeland
When I
first met Andreja a few years ago, I thought she had to be
one of the most peculiar persons I had ever come across. She
was very methodical about what she perceived as her
Christian duties, and she didn’t like deviations from the
script. It was obvious that she took her commitments to the
Lord very seriously, but her demeanor was difficult to read.
You really couldn’t tell whether she liked or disliked you,
because she kept so much to herself and seemed to show as
little emotion as possible. So when her new fiancée
introduced himself to everyone, people were shocked. We were
all happy for her of course, but no one even knew she was
dating.
The contrast between Andreja and her husband, Gary, was as
different as night and day. He was bubbly and outgoing, and
she was very much the opposite. It’s no secret that
opposites sometimes attract, but when two people come
together, often they will alter habit patterns and certain
aspects of their personalities in order to make room for the
other partner. This is one of God’s purposes for
relationships. They teach us flexibility and help us to
release and surrender things that no longer serve us.
Some people don’t see it this way. They believe they have a
right to hang on to all of the things of which they have
chosen to define themselves. You will hear some people say
things like “That’s
just how I am…” as if they have written the final
chapter on themselves, and nothing more can be added. God
tells us in Romans 12:2(KJV),
“And be not conformed
to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God.” He demands that we be
flexible, that we’ll scrutinize ourselves to such a degree
that when we recognize something that isn’t in alignment
with the example of Christ, we’ll get rid of it. Our
relationships can hold up a mirror that will point out these
misalignments. They can reveal the things we need to change
about ourselves.
Andreja is not emotionally expressive, and this isn’t
necessarily a bad thing. It may have served her well prior
to her relationship with Gary, but he had reached a point in
their marriage where he needed more from her. When you see
that something about you is adversely affecting your partner
or others you love and care about, changes become very
necessary. Andreja was stuck in her ways. She refused to be
a little more adventurous and to demonstrate something that
would make Gary feel as though she was at least happy and
pleased that he was around.
It is no surprise that Andreja had brought these same
qualities into her relationship with God. Her husband’s
complaints were symptomatic of a larger issue. She hadn’t
realized that the new birth experience is the beginning of
our spiritual journey, not the end. It requires us to
continue learning, changing, and growing in Christ. Andreja,
like many of us, wasn’t too fond of change. She wanted her
relationship with God on her terms, and she was blind
sighted by the consequences of apathy because of it.
You and I cannot, nor have we the
ability, to set the pace for growth and change. God has
designed everything in life to move according to His divine
plan. When you reach a place where you refuse to put on new
layers of spiritual wisdom, love, and faith, you will find
that you are unable to meet the challenges ahead; instead of
you handling them, they will handle you! This is exactly
what happened to Andreja.
Her husband left the marriage,
and rather than looking in the mirror and trying to do all
that she could to save it, she chalked it up to an insane
notion that God wanted the marriage to fall apart. She told
herself that Heavenly Father had a greater call upon her
life and that her husband was getting in the way of it. We
will go to great lengths to absolve ourselves of
responsibility, particularly when it means that we will have
to release fears that have made us comfortable in our stuff.
Andreja did not speak of her sadness about her marriage for
a very long time, nor did she admit it to herself. Instead
she became more reclusive; a sad saved woman who secretly
blamed God for her unhappiness.
Jesus told us in John 4:24 (KJV),
“God is a Spirit: and
they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in
truth.” Most of us will place this verse in the context
of religious practices and traditions, and never go deeper
than this. We keep the worship part, but forget the spirit
and truth part. Truth demands that we rise up and take our
rightful place as believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. This
means we’ve got to deal with the stuff that holds us back.
Heavenly Father has thoroughly equipped us through the Holy
Spirit to do so.
To worship in spirit is to adore
and honor Heavenly Father from a place of deep reverence and
respect. We cannot worship God in spirit without the
presence of the Holy Spirit. He aids us in our relationship
with God, and he teaches us about Jesus Christ, so that we
are able to worship God the way He is worshiped in heaven.
Only the Spirit can teach us this, and we should lean on
him, and allow him to guide us as we surrender ourselves
fully to the Lord.
Our hearts should swell with
fruitfulness as we mature physically, emotionally, mentally,
and spiritually; but many of us keep doing the same things
we’ve always done and expect that God will respond favorably
to our apathy and inflexibility. He warns us in Revelation
3:2(NLT), “Wake up!
Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is
almost dead.” To wake up is to be alert to challenges
and occurrences that will call upon us to act wisely and
decisively. Now is not a time to duck our heads in the sand
and pretend as if we’re doing exactly as we ought. God would
never have caused any negativity. He loves both Andreja and
Gary, and wanted to bless their union. Through Christ, their
marriage could have been saved, but Andreja (and in some
ways Gary as well) would not stretch outside her comfort
zone.
We go to God with all of these
feelings and emotions beneath the surface, and we will often
do this without a repentant heart. We look to receive from
Him when we’ve not represented the truth of who we are in
Christ. We were not designed to be stagnant and immovable,
but dynamic and flexible. We were built for spiritual
promotion and elevation. This calls upon our behaviors,
attitudes, emotions, thoughts, and confessions to change as
we gain more knowledge of God through His Word.
Romans 12:2 tells us to be
transformed by the renewing of our minds. As Christians we
have to expect transformation as a way of life. God will
help us surpass some of the conditions and circumstances
that many of us face. He will guide us through rocky
terrain, and set our feet upon higher ground, but we’ve got
to learn to see obstacles as a call to grow and put on new
mercies everyday through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
God never wants us to lose in life, and if we commit to
present ourselves to Him honestly, with an eagerness to go
higher in Him, we will meet every challenge of life with
success. ♦
Scripture taken from the New King
James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used
by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT)
are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation,
copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights
reserved.
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