Seeing is never believing

Kathy Cleveland
Jan 21, 2014
6 min read

“Seeing is never believing: we interpret what we see in the light of what we believe. Faith is confidence in God before you see God emerging, therefore the nature of faith is that it must be tried.

We discern spiritual truth not by intellectual curiosity or research, but by entreating the favour of the Lord, that is, by prayer and by no other way, not even by obedience, because obedience is apt to have an idea of merit." ~Oswald Chambers

I read these two quotes this morning, after God woke me up from a DEEP sleep, with an urgency to pray & putting many thoughts and truths on my mind...

Suffice it to say, there is NOTHING and NO-ONE like God and His Word -- quick, powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing the soul and spirit, ever discerning the intents of my messy heart. We all have “besetting” sins and I believe, also each of us possess a “thorn in the flesh”, something that possibly only us & God are aware of, but that we struggle with throughout our life on earth. It may periodically utterly consume us, other times we may ignore it, but it is always there and exists for only one ultimate purpose – that GOD receives glory and praise.

We make our decisions based on what we believe. When we believe a lie, about ourselves, or about God – our attitudes, words and actions will reflect that. Consequently, when we believe the truth, our hearts will be affected and we will have the choice to make different decisions, ones that agree with God and His Word and ultimately reflect His perfect will in us and for us.

The bible clearly states there is NONE righteous, no – not one! (Romans 3:10) Our hearts are deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. (Jeremiah 17:9) God searches our hearts, and tests our thoughts. (Jer. 17:10a) We will be grieved by the trials in our lives. (1 Peter 1:6) and our faith will be tested, so that in the end, it will come forth as refined gold, resulting in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ! (1 Peter 1:7)

Every day, our lives are filled with choices to make. We can continue to walk in darkness, unbelief, and choose the things we know are wrong – OR – we can choose to walk in the light, believing God and choose to take one victorious step at a time, by His grace alone.

The scars we carry on our bodies are so very similar to the ones we have hidden in our hearts. You see, I have some very nasty scars and marks from my belly button, to all the way across the bottom of my stomach. Two of them are 7 inches in length and overlap one another. Only a few people have ever seen them, and two of those were doctors. They physically represent when I lost several babies, when internal bleeding existed, when infection was removed, and even when doctors weren’t sure what was going on – until they operated to see. Because of these scars, my body will never be as it was before. And so it is with the mental, emotional and spiritual scars that exist in our hearts as well.

In the deepest part of even the very “best” of us, lie the scars of sin, shame and heartache. Some are caused by loss, some by injuries or hurts – done to us or by us… then there is rejection, failure, or trauma. Some are as a result of the sinful natures we are born with and even some are from deep internal wounds inflicted young, that caused us to bleed inside – things only God sees, but He longs to remove – so that we can be made whole. No scar is ever hidden from God – not one. He knows our thoughts, words and deeds, even before we do. We are all broken by sin, and as a result we ALL need Jesus. Only His love can permeate and transform our wicked hearts, taking ashes and giving beauty, replacing sorrow with joy and making us a NEW creation in Him. This process first begins when we accept Jesus as our Savior and continues until we get to heaven. Preceding it is always a deep mourning over our sin with godly sorrow that leads to repentance. (See 2 Corinthians 7:9-10)

I am a wretched sinner, saved by His grace alone. Every day, like a mirror, His word reminds me that the only thing good in me is Jesus! What glorious hope I have, when I boldly go before His throne of GRACE, shine the light of His word on my heart, and stand in His presence! He reminds me of all these truths I have shared with you and He is ever faithful to complete the work HE began in me, work that started before the world even existed!! Oh, how awesome is He!! He knows all of me – the good, the bad & the very ugly – and yet He continues to whisper to my soul – I love you, I have forgiven you, and I am NEVER going to leave you!!

This I KNOW:

· I am a wretched sinner.

· Some of my struggles I will have until the day I meet Jesus face to face.

· My choices reflect my belief.

· When I believe God, my prayers and desires will reflect that.

· My heart has been wounded and those scars will remain, but the pain that caused them doesn’t have to.

· Godly sorrow will always lead to repentance without regret.

· The thorn in my flesh exists to keep me close to Him, ever aware of my desperate need to be completely dependent on His grace.

· God is faithful, even when I am not.

· I can choose to walk in the Light.

· His word can transform anyone – even a wretch like me!

· His love is the ONLY thing that never fails.

· I am His and He is mine – because of who HE is and the strength of HIS character will never fade.

I don’t know who these truths are for today except me. But, this I KNOW: I am a HOT MESS that loves Jesus, a continual work in progress. My journey may not look like yours, but our sinful hearts are all the same!

Only God and a few close friends know the deep depravity of my heart and what my deepest struggles are. Today, I want to thank God for His kindness and His goodness to me. He rescues and protects me, often from myself – it is so much more than my mind can possibly comprehend. But what I do understand it that is a marvelous work of grace and I am ever grateful! He has surrounded me with non-judgmental friends, who care for me, who willingly choose to walk these paths with me. They encourage me, they love me no matter what, and they do not ignore or reject me when life (& I) gets messy! Even when they see all the good, bad and ugly in me - they still consider me a friend - Oh, what precious gifts they are to me! Thank you, Jesus, for EACH one!! :-)

I will end this LONG blog of thoughts today with these words from a song by Laura Story:

"Who Is Like Our God"

Where can I run in times of trouble? Where can I turn when hope seems lost? I find my strength within Your shelter You will not fail though the night is long Who is like our God? Mighty in the battle Your Majesty be lifted high Who is like our God? He reaches for the broken Jesus hears me when I cry How can it be that You are for me? Though I am weak, Your love is strong You are my light and my salvation In Your name alone, I overcome Who is like our God? Mighty in the battle Your Majesty be lifted high Who is like our God? He reaches for the broken Jesus hears me when I cry Who else can help us? Who else can save? Who else can overcome the power of the grave? Who else can heal us? Break every chain? There is no one, no one else There is no one, no one else Who is like our God? Mighty in the battle Your Majesty be lifted high Who is like our God? He reaches for the broken Jesus hears my cry Who is like our God? Mighty in the battle Your Majesty be lifted high Who is like our God? He reaches for the broken Jesus hears me when I cry He hears me when I cry He hears me when I cry Who is like, who is like our God?