I want to be all that God wants me to be and fear that exact thing at the same time. Thoughts that race through my mind are, “What will it cost me?” “What will I have to give up?” “How will I be changed?” Then I timidly pray, “God, do whatever it takes to make me more like Your Son. Remove anything that distracts me out of my life that keeps me from doing all that You have called me to do.” In all honesty, I want to reflect Jesus to my world and also feel like a failure so much of the time. I have failed in one way or another as a husband, as a father, as a son, as a friend, and sadly to say, as a Man of God. Because of the history that I have, at times I believe that God wouldn’t be able to use me for anything godly. Yet every time I begin to believe that lie, God’s grace reminds me that my past does not have the final word—Jesus does. I have been all things unholy. I have secrets, shame, and deep painful scars that only God and I know about. The enemy would love for those scars to become chains, but the Lord desires to transform them into testimonies of His redeeming power. I have done a lot of bad things in my life before Christ, but because of Jesus in my life, I have done a lot of good since having a relationship with Him. I am thankful when I read what is written in *Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship [His own masterpiece, master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [predestined for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].* Understanding that we are God’s workmanship, our desire should be to have Him help us by the Holy Spirit’s activity in our lives with anger, pride, lust, envy, and one of my biggest challenges, comparing myself to others instead of the Lord Jesus. God is not intimidated by our brokenness because He is the Master Craftsman who delights in restoring what sin has damaged. The question that we all need to ask ourselves is this: when we look in the mirror, who do we see? Do we see our own reflection or the reflection of the Lord Jesus bleeding through? One of the things that I have learned about God is that He is not into playing games, and I realize that I shouldn’t be either. The realization is that God wants to be seen in every aspect of our lives and not just the ones we pick and choose. For many, they would rather be god over certain areas of their lives than to have God be God over every aspect of their lives. Partial surrender will always keep us from experiencing the fullness of what God desires to accomplish in and through us. In the end, we have to make a choice: Either we take control of our own lives or let God chisel away all that He knows needs to be removed because it brings dishonor to Him. It is not pleasant. It can be painful. Still, every strike of His chisel is motivated by perfect love, not punishment, because He is shaping us into the image of His Son. By being humble, letting go of our lives, and taking up our cross to follow Him, we will be blessed beyond measure—maybe not in this life, but certainly in the one to come. My friends, none of us has arrived, and every one of us is still being formed by the loving hands of our Heavenly Father. We are all invited to surrender more deeply, trust more fully, and allow Him to finish the beautiful work He has begun in each of us. May we never settle for comfortable Christianity when God is calling us into complete transformation by sanctification. Together, let us encourage one another to keep saying “yes” to Jesus, knowing that His plans for us are always better than anything we could hold onto. For those of you who desire more, please join me in this prayer. “Dear God, today I am turning everything over to You. Help me not to hold onto anything that You don’t want in my life. Search my heart and reveal anything hidden that keeps me from walking closely with You day by day, moment by moment. Help me to see me as You see me, as a work in progress. Give me the courage to trust You even when Your work in me is painful, knowing that Your plans are always for my good and for Your glory. Help me to be obedient to the things that you want me to do even when I don’t want to do them. Please make me Your masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works. Do whatever it takes to make me what You want. May every thought, every word, and every action of my life bring honor to the name of the Lord Jesus, in His mighty name, and all of God’s people said, Amen.” 

My BeLoved, may the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen. In Christ Love, douglas. HE>i. pastord.blog

Special Note: I want to thank those who read what I write and are encouraged to support the ministry God has entrusted to me either one time or have decided to give on a monthly basis. I am encouraged to see certain verses playing out before my eyes like what is written in *Philippians 4:16 For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account.*

To any who are interested, please feel free to reach out to me with prayer requests, questions, encouragement, or for information on how to come alongside me with financial support at pastord.blog@gmail.com or I do have a Zelle account associated with my phone number, 5202720387 last name Blaser. Thank you my Beloved for your ongoing prayers and support.