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A Morning View Near the Patio

Yesterday I decided to make oatmeal raisin cookies.With a tad bit of humor involved, I always justify them as heart healthy cookies. After all, oatmeal is good to bring down cholesterol, lower cholesterol is good for the heart, so therefore oatmeal raisin cookies are healthy!                                                    There are many ways we can justify our own sin. Please do not think about everyone else right now and what you perceive their sin to be, think about yourself. Are you living a life deep in relationship with God, striving for perfection on this earth?
John Wesley spoke of going on to perfection in this life. I struggled each time I heard this statement. I will never become perfect in my own efforts. What I believe Wesley was really encouraging us to do was to become mature in our relationship with God. We are to love God, love our neighbor and to live like the example of how Jesus Christ lived. We are to grow from the moment of yes to relationship into mature Christians practicing and living a different life throwing off selfish living and taking on the character of Christ.
So what do oatmeal raisin cookies have to do with perfection? Oatmeal is good for the body. Oatmeal by itself has a positive impact on the care for the heart by helping to lower cholesterol. It is much of what we add to oatmeal to make cookies that brings down the value of the final product, which makes less healthy.
Friends, when we add our chosen sin to our into our Christian walk with God, we lessen who Jesus is within us and the impact our lives have for the Kingdom of God. When we live as a part of the world we become lessened like the benefits oatmeal in the body when we add brown sugar. When we live in the world with others we are different. We should not justify sin, like I justify oatmeal raisin cookies. Shall we continue striving for perfection becoming mature in our journey with Jesus? Shall we live different than the world?
“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty.
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”  - Galatians 5:7-10, 13-18
Peace,
PB

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