Love Jesus more than you hate yourself.

There are times when loving God seems easy.....I read my bible, I pray with fervor (that means loud and with lots of big words and not many breaths between them).  You know....I'm ON FIRE!  Then, there are times when I lose focus....things seem like a chore.  It's in those times that we can feel like we lost something, that we failed or that God left.  

Unless I miss my guess, we've all been  where we are disappointed in ourselves!  We say things like...I can't believe I'm such a bad Christian....I can't believe I don't pray 10hrs a day like the saints of old.  on and on.....We beat ourselves up, fill ourselves with guilt and shame.   I've been there...I know what it feels like to feel like a failure. 

The question is....how do we fix it?  How do we come out of those seasons?  First let me say....You NEEDED a savior and you STILL do.  The truth is, we do fail....but he doesn't.  Psalm 100 reminds us that he is God, that his loves endures forever.  That same grace and love you relied upon for salvation is the same one that you should rely on each and everyday.  We always need Jesus to sustain us....our lives are IN him...not FOR him. 

In times of discouragement, he never left.  He promises to never leave or forsake us.  We just simply lose focus sometimes.  We start looking at things more intently than we do him.  So, it's important when you are trying to "get back in the game" so to speak....that we don't make the same mistake that got us into the place we are in....focusing on something other than Jesus! 

We do fail, but focusing on our failure will lead us where?  To more failure and desperation....focusing on Jesus will bring us hope, forgiveness, strength, joy.  That's a much better list isn't it?  So, what I've learned to do, and what I would encourage you to do when you are struggling with consistency.....is to focus more on Jesus success than on your failure.  Fall in love....find something out about Jesus you didn't know.  Listen to stories of how he is moving in the lives of others....get excited again about your savior.  Read Psalm 100..He IS GOD.   It's OK that you still need a savior...so do I.