Reality Check: The Letter
I received an email letter yesterday and it was unlike anything I had received before. I didn’t know the sender personally, I only knew them through my association with Southern Gospel. However, that letter made all the difference in my day. It was a positive Reality Check that I needed.
Why did it make a difference? Because it showed me that I was doing things I didn’t realize I was doing, and others had noticed. In a good way! The words of gratefulness and encouragement were more than just something you would send to a business associate. The writer had let God use his pen to show me that I was developing characteristics that God wants me to have in my life.
Steadfast? Me?
In my Bible reading of yesterday was Psalm 57, verse seven. The writer said that his heart was steadfast. That made me stop and think. I know what’s going on in my heart and my head most of the time (though maybe not always) and I didn’t think the word steadfast really applied to me. However when I got the email, I realized that the writer was saying the same thing that the psalmist was saying. Sometimes you have to hear it from someone else to realize how others see you, and how you need to see yourself.
How do you see yourself? Do you see all the good things? Or do you see only the negative things? If you are like me, the negative stuff is a lot bigger and more noticeable than the positive. Take some time to read the word of God and to find out what God is telling you through His word. And if you can’t see yourself as He sees you, be humble enough to accept the good things that others say about you.
Reality Check: The How – To
So how do you learn to be steadfast? You just be it. Decide today that you are going to develop habits that will make you more like Christ. Read the word, pray, talk to your friends about your faith, and listen to what they say about theirs. Learn from each other and learn from your pastor. Most of all, take time to be in the presence of the Lord. He has placed some amazing gifts, talents, and characteristics within you. You just need to see them and develop them.
Keep aiming to strengthen your faith. If you listen to the Word and listen to the Lord, you will hear Him saying to you exactly what the human writer said to me: “You ROCK!”
By Lorraine Walker
Editor, SGN Scoops
For Gospel music news visit SGN Scoops on Facebook
