November, 2002 "The Gift of Nag"

I think we have all heard the expression – “the gift of gab.” Maybe you are even known as a person with the gift of gab. That can be a good thing or not – depending on whether that gift is accompanied by a gift of listening.

Well, the Lord, and my children, have been working on me recently (for about the last 25 years) regarding my gift - “the gift of nag.” I believe that God is finally getting through to me and I am becoming ever aware of my talent for being critical and for fault-finding. My husband says I would make a great accountant or attorney….but knowing how he feels about them, I am sure he is not complimenting me.

When I became a Christian and began to be aware of the spiritual gifts, such as the gift of prophecy, I learned that those with a prophetic gift also have a tendency to be negative and critical, so I tried to dismiss these characteristics in me as something I and others would just have to put up with. I viewed them as a spiritual side-effect of being prophetic, and as a genetic and environmental heritage from my family – and who could argue with that?

Thank God, He has done a great work in my heart, and has turned my initial negative responses and judgments into a positive attitude of support and prayer for others – especially for you ladies in The L.O.V.E. Club. But I often slip into my other mode when it comes to my family. Why is it we feel so at ease in being lax with the people we love the most?

Well, as I have been teaching and preparing for conferences and retreats lately, the Lord has continued to use the time with Him to speak to me of my sin in this area of my life. I am learning truly how the grace of God and mercy of God and the goodness of God can lead to repentance. 2 Corinthians 7:10 talks about how our godly sorrow can lead us to repentance which leads to salvation and leaves no regret. I do not want to regret my actions and words. I do not want to regret when they hurt those I love.

The Bible teaches us that those who have been forgiven much will love much. There is a story in Luke 7 which shares this principle.

Luke 7:36-50

36Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. 37When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."
40Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you."
"Tell me, teacher," he said.
41"Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?"
43Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled."
"You have judged correctly," Jesus said.
44Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
48Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."
49The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"
50Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

A sure cure for our self-righteous judgment upon others is a clear understanding of our own sins, and of the great mercy of God that He has poured out upon us as He forgives us.

I guess I am in a time of reflecting upon God’s mercy and grace towards me. I want to be able to share that with others in love and not judgment. It truly brings me to a place of thankfulness to our Lord and that carries me into His presence, which is where I want to be.

Psalm 16

1 Keep me safe, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I said to the LORD , "You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing."
3 As for the saints who are in the land,
they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.
4 The sorrows of those will increase
who run after other gods.
I will not pour out their libations of blood
or take up their names on my lips.

5 LORD , you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.

7 I will praise the LORD , who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I have set the LORD always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
11 You have made known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Oh, if we can only trust in Him and receive our pleasures from His hand, we will be strong as we receive the joy of the Lord which is our strength. (Nehemiah 8:10)

So, the Lord has been speaking to me about my sin, His mercy and grace and forgiveness, and it has created within me a new level of thanksgiving and gratitude for Him and His love.

Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving thanks.

1 Shout for joy to the LORD , all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Won’t you join me at the gates? Let’s give thanks unto His name for He is good.

Let Him reveal the sins of your heart. Let Him cleanse you and fill you with the forgiveness and love of God. And let Him give you a grateful and thankful heart for all He has done. Acts 3:17-22 talks about the times of refreshing that we can experience following times of repentance. Are you in need of refreshing? Then let Him cleanse you of your sins.

Then we can all praise Him together as we enter into His presence and receive His joy and strength for our lives – to live in His holiness and peace and love by the power of the Holy Spirit.

“Lord, I thank You for revealing my sins. I thank You for forgiving me my sins and cleansing me from all unrighteousness, just as Your word says. I thank You for a grateful heart. And so now as I thank You and praise You for who You are, I gladly enter Your throne room of grace by the blood of Jesus. I enter Your presence and I worship You. You alone are Holy. You alone are God. Change my heart and make me more like You. I bless Your Holy name, and I bow my knee before Your throne and call upon the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, my God and King. Amen.”

L.O.V.E.,
Patty

 

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