“Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?...neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin.”  John 8:10-11

     Jesus did not send the woman caught in adultery away to find help. She stood there and submitted herself to what He was about to say or do. He said, “I do not condemn you. Go and sin no more.” Beautiful words! He forgave her of her past and directed her towards her future. He said that she was not condemned by Him. These words brought her spiritual and emotional freedom.

     So many of us struggle with self-condemnation, don’t we? We say we believe that we are free from condemnation, but we fail and we get discouraged and we agonize and slip back into old patterns of behavior. What a struggle! Why can’t we break out of this bondage, this vicious cycle?

     Think about this: what happens when you take crystal-clear water and pour it into a dirty filtering system? The clean water will come out polluted and cloudy. There is no fault in the water; the problem is in the unclean filter. We have minds filled with unresolved pain and unmet needs, and we distort and filter everything through our minds, which are programmed to receive what we already believe. What we believe about ourselves can be more powerful in shaping our future than the truth! Our minds clog, cloud, and pollute the truth!

     The grubby, stinky things in our minds, wills, and emotions have to be shoveled out, broken apart, and removed to make room for renewal. Struggling will not bring renewal, and you cannot heal yourself by trying harder to do better. You see God’s truth in His Word or hear it spoken and you agree with it and renounce and repent (confess) those things present in your life that God needs to crucify.

     You are healed by surrendering everything in your life—past, present and future—to the will of God, and then receiving healing from Him. The only way to be truly free is to strip your old nature of everything that it derives power from, tear down strongholds (old patterns of behavior and belief that you hold on to in order to defend and protect yourself and your rights), and allow God to spiritually realign your life. This comes by the grace of God and the power of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ.

But He will not force you; you have to choose to make room to receive the renewal and restoration that will replace old things. We are strongest when we realize we need His help for everything. Make room for truth in your life.

*What are you afraid to let go of?

Lord, I ask You to pour Your grace and mercy in the areas of need, hurt, and unresolved issues in my life. I bind my mind will and emotions to Your truth. I want Your truth to be the straight edge of my life, the guiding light of my path, and the backbone of my soul.  God, with all that is within me, I bless Your holy name. Amen.


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