I Dare You...

One month ago, God challanged me with a dare. He said, "Catie I dare you to find out what it looks like to be completly focused on who I am." And I took it.

As soon as he challanged me with that dare, he followed up by asking me to fast from secular music and tv. I found that those things consumed my time and pulled my focus away from who he was. As I began to dive head first into what it looked like to be consumed by him, he began opening my eyes to his glory, his beauty and his divine nature. Through the process I realized I had sought identity in things other then him. He began to fix my face upon his, and show me what it was like to be found in him. Things I had struggled with in the past, and continue to struggle with he has helped me to overcome. He has unraveled the lies and deceptive words the devil told me over the past several months, and he helped me forgive myself.

Part of being consumed by God means having your identy in him and being like him. Loving him in all circumstances, rejoicing in persecution, and growing inspite of your own sinfulness. When we are consumed by him, we are filled with who he is: loving, forgiving, patient, compassionate, graceful and full of joy. God began filling me with each one of those. But forgivness was one I didn't quite understand. Because I didn't understand how to forgive myself and those who had recently hurt me, I put it off. But God wanted to do something with me, and I knew that in order to be fully consumed by him, I had to fully let go of any hinderances, and obstacles in my life. So I sat down with God, and we began the process of self-forgivness.

It took me a while to understand what forgiveness was. I found an awesome definition of it..."forgivness is not expecting payment for wrongs." I had wronged so many people in my life recenly, and being the "you must get punished for every bad thing you do" kind of person I am, I didn't understand how I could just move on from what had happened. I messed up, I needed to fix it.

But then God reminded me of his truth. He said, "you messed up, but I have the power to fix it." I have tried in the past to fix things, but in the end it only looks like a small bandaid over and gaping wound. Only God knows how to redeem (not fix) lifes circumstances.

I remember when I got it. When I realized I had to forgive myself and that I could forgive myself. God gave me the words to say, and I had to say them out loud in order for them to sink in. I said, "Its okay, what I did was wrong, but God forgives me and he is redeeming me." The more I began to say it, the more I began to believe the words. And now I fully believe them. Now I never want to repeat the misakes, but I know that the mistakes I've made are going to be redeemed by God, cause he is that awesome!

So I dare you....I dare you for a week, two weeks, or a month, to see what your life would look like to be completly consumed by who God is. Its a challenge I'm not going to lie...it takes perserverance, but the most beautiful thing about it is that God is with you every step of the way, holding you, guiding you and speaking truth and wisdom into your life.

I took the challage and God did increcible things in my life. I dare you to see what he will do in yours!

"Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high priviledge of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant. I've dumped it all into the trash so that I could embrace Christ." - Philipians 3:8 (The Message)

~Catie