Tuesday... Yes, we can be bold and free.

There can be so much about us that weighs us down and enslave us, but God's Word tells us that we can be bold and free. We can be confident.

The Apostle John over in his first letter wrote in 3:20-21 (MSG), "For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves. And friends, once that's taken care of and we're no longer accusing or condemning ourselves, we're bold and free before God."

Do you live in that world, always condemning yourself? Now there is a guilt that God takes care of though our confessing it to Him and asking Him for forgiveness and when He does forgive us then that guilt is washed away, it is taken care of. But there is also a debilitating self-criticism that keeps us a prisoner.

Verses 18-20 says, "My dear children, let's not just talk about love, let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality. It also is the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves."

Verses 18-20 in the NLT says it this way, "Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other; let's show the truth by our actions, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything." And then verses 21-22 says, "Dear friends, if we don't feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that pleases him."

Verse 16 also says, "We know what real love is because Jesus gave his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters." It's amazing what happens when we take our eyes off of ourselves and our feelings and imperfections and accept God's real love for us and give that love to others. So let's show His love to others. Yes, we can be bold and free. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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