Elevate Your Day with Andi and Brian Hale

More God Less Guilt (Trapped By Guilt)

Grace and conviction aren’t just words. They are powerful actions that offer freedom. Throughout the Bible, grace and conviction changed the lives of King David, the woman at the well, prostitutes, the thief on the cross, and a fisherman named Peter.
 
Fishermen were considered uneducated men with hot tempers and vulgar language. Seeing beyond the surface, Jesus asked Peter to follow Him. I love how Jesus doesn’t condemn our actions. Instead, He convicts us to be who He created us to be. Peter recognized his sin and confessed. Despite all the mistakes, Jesus gave him the forgiveness to move forward and the grace to change. Peter dropped everything and followed Jesus. 
Peter became one of Jesus’s most trusted disciples, but he didn’t always get it right. The night Jesus was arrested, He predicted that Peter would deny Him three times. Outraged, Peter declared his loyalty.
Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. – Matthew 26:33-35
But only hours later, we find him weeping tears of guilt and remorse for doing the very thing he swore he wouldn’t do. 
Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly. – Matthew 26:69-75
Following Jesus doesn’t make us perfect. We will still mess up and feel the weight of our sins, but the story doesn’t have to end there. After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His disciples and three times asked Peter, “… Do you love me?” Each time Peter replied, “Yes, you know I love you.” The third time Jesus said, “Then feed my lambs…and follow me!”
Jesus saw the details, betrayal, and fear, yet didn’t expect Peter to live in the guilt of his mistakes. There was no condemnation or manipulation, only the conviction to rise up, repent, leave sin behind, and become who God had created him to be. Peter didn’t let guilt rule his life. He confessed and started leading people to Jesus.
We’re no different from Peter. There is no mistake He won’t use. Despite our human failures, we can fall at the feet of Jesus and accept His forgiveness and grace. He wants us to let go of the mistakes, disillusionments, and emotional pain. He is waiting for permission to use our mistakes to strengthen us. Are you ready?
If you enjoyed this 5-day plan from Markey Motsinger,  be sure to check out and download her free bible study, Trapped. 

God's Conviction (Trapped By Guilt)

Guilt leads to condemnation unless we learn to live in conviction. Conviction is a process where God uses our guilt to guide us towards grace and growth. As we give Him access to our thoughts and motives, He uncovers sin and reveals its true nature. Seeing our sin and hating it, we realize our desperate need for God and grasp onto His forgiveness. His grace covers us, so His conviction can change us.
What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! – Romans 6:15
As different as conviction is from condemnation, we confuse them because both make people grieve over their sin. Even though one leads to death, and the other leads to life, the pain looks and feels similar. Here’s the difference: Condemnation points to sin; conviction points to Jesus. Condemnation shows problems; conviction shows answers. Condemnation shouts, “You’re a loser!”; conviction shouts, “Jesus forgives!” Condemnation pulls us down into depression and self-hatred; conviction draws us up into holiness and truth. The differences are massive, and recognizing them is vital. Conviction introduces a richer version of life than we’ve ever known. It compels us to let go of the life we keep trying to rebuild and offers us the true freedom we seek. It gives us Jesus.
Condemnation comes easily, but God’s conviction takes work. We have to make every area, including relationships, self-discipline, finances, and health, available to God. The more access we give Him, the more opportunities we have to change. We also have to listen for His voice.
For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” – Hebrews 8:12
 A while back, I was beating myself up for verbally hurting a friend. Condemnation was in full force, and I couldn’t move past it. How could I do that? Will she forgive me? Somehow I stopped long enough to hear God say, “Yes, you made a mistake, but living in it does nothing. Instead of seeking her forgiveness, seek mine. Look to me, not the mistake. I am your future. You can do nothing to change it, but I can.” Conviction changes us if  we stop to listen to God’s voice. Every time sins surface, or guilt creeps in, God waits to tell us the steps towards freedom.
But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. – Romans 6:22
God calls us to see our sin as a desperate need for Him instead of a desperate need to be someone different, someone better. His conviction equips us to conquer our past and live victoriously in the present! How do you respond to your guilt? Do you walk in conviction or wallow in condemning thoughts?
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. – Hebrews 4:16

God's Grace (Trapped By Guilt)

From Trapped By Guilt by Markey Motsinger on YouVersion
as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. – Romans 4:17
Grace is a word that can refer to mealtime prayers, ballerinas, and personalities. But God’s grace isn’t just a descriptive word. It’s an action that holds the power to erase sin and abolish guilt. The Bible defines it as the unmerited or undeserving favor of God. This means, when we deserve punishment, He offers forgiveness, gives love, and extends approval. His grace is sufficient for every moment of every day. All we need to do is ask. 
At various times throughout my life, I have lied, stolen, gossiped , and cheated. Each time, guilt came quickly, and I wanted it gone. Instead of looking to God for grace, I compared my mistakes to the mistakes of others. If mine weren’t as bad, I would allow myself some grace, and my guilt would lessen. I was still wounded but able to function. 
 
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8
Guilt lies to our hearts. It can cause people to believe they need to earn God’s forgiveness or that their sin is beyond His reach. But, God’s grace is different. We don’t have to tiptoe around, begging for it. God freely offers it to anyone who asks and dares to accept it. He doesn’t weigh how big the sin is or how bad we feel. The gossiper, drunk driver, cheater, and murderer equally receive grace when they ask with a repentant heart. 
What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! – Romans 6:15
Grace is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. It doesn’t erase consequences, excuse mistakes, or let us purposefully sin. Instead, it stops us from focusing on what we have done, so we focus on who God is. Pulling us away from our old sin-filled life, it moves us into the new creation God created us to be. Grace does more in a moment than guilt does in a lifetime. 
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. – Hebrews 4:16
Only when we are undone from the way the world works, can we be gripped by the way God works. Grace possesses the power to erase sin and ease pain. Let’s give God’s grace permission to walk all over our guilt. What is holding you back from accepting grace?

False Guilt (Trapped By Guilt)

Guilt is a natural reaction to sin. If we’re not careful, it stops being a reaction and becomes a lifestyle that guides our decisions, influences our truth, and leaves us leading a life of condemnation.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. – Romans 8:1
For a long time, condemnation and I were good friends. I sensed it from peers, authority, and even myself. It wasn’t the size of the mistake, but that someone disapproved of something I did or said. I allowed their disapproval to open the door to a life of guilt, where I ended up never feeling good enough. Eventually, I got so comfortable with guilt that I would even accept it for things I hadn’t actually done.
To condemn means to express judgment, show strong disapproval of, and to pronounce unfit for use or service. It renders us useless and keeps us enslaved. Condemnation shouts our failures and highlights our mistakes until we believe we are unworthy and undeserving of God’s freedom. Left with shame, we are taken captive by fear, anxiety, stress, regret, and confusion, and begin living as slaves to the consequences of our sin.
Or do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives? – Romans 7:1
How do we recognize we’re living with guilt and condemnation? Our actions and words are full of justifications, criticism, anger, or a million apologies. Words like lazy, untrustworthy, unloved, and unforgivable fill our minds. We feel like a bad friend, spouse, and parent, and often assume we deserve the guilt we carry. As real as these thoughts and feelings are, they’re all lies. 
 
Lies work because they mimic God’s truth. It’s true. We have broken His laws and deserve punishment, but God doesn’t condemn us. He provides a way out. He knew laws and rules, on their own, wouldn’t save us or move us into a close relationship with Him. It’s why He sent His son. The law has the power to expose sin, and Jesus has the power to stop it. When we ask for forgiveness, Jesus replaces our guilt with grace every time. 
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. – Romans 12:1
Jesus didn’t come to forgive the sin and leave us with the guilt of it. He died to extend grace, offer forgiveness, and erase guilt. Don’t let lies cause you to miss or dismiss God’s truth. Is there a lie you are accepting? Start stepping into grace by asking God to help you identify the lies you are believing.

Guilt Trip (Trapped By Guilt)

From Trapped By Guilt by Markey Motsinger on YouVersion
I started carrying guilt around at a young age. In the seventh grade, I felt guilty for making the cheerleading squad when my friend didn’t. In high school, I couldn’t stop beating myself up for stealing. Now, as an adult, I encounter guilt for yelling at my kids, not spending enough time with my husband, and not having a handle on money. I hide it well, even from myself, and keep moving forward, but it’s always there nagging at me. 
 
Guilt is not a part of God’s plan. It drains the life out of us and separates us from reality. Yet, we keep guilt around never looking to see how much it steals or controls. God wants more for us! He wants us to be free.
For one who has died has been set free from sin. – Romans 6:7
Guilt is a mental and emotional experience that occurs when a person thinks or realizes they have compromised their standards of conduct and accept responsibility. When we don’t give these experiences over to God, they can quickly turn into shame. Shame, in return, attacks our identity, causing us to feel unworthy or not good enough. Guilt and shame take us away from the heart of God. 
He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him – Psalm 103:10-11
Guilt is an emotion with no boundaries. We experience it for things we said/did, things we didn’t say/do, and things we think we said/did. We encounter food guilt, past guilt, and parenting guilt. We face it when we can’t live up to people’s expectations and when we don’t answer our parents’ phone calls. It touches every area of our lives. 
Unafraid of the spotlight, guilt easily becomes an idol, pointing us away from Jesus and taking up space in our hearts meant for something or someone else. Fighting to escape, we repeatedly apologize, withdraw, pretend we don’t care, or justify our actions by declaring “I wouldn’t ____________ if they would just _______________.” 
Guilt has no purpose, except causing us to stay the same, live in shame, and fall deeper into ourselves. We were not created to carry a suitcase of past, present, and future mistakes. God is a God of purpose. Over the next few days, I pray you learn to let God use your mistakes to move you into a deeper place with Him. A place where guilt no longer drives your life. What type of guilt are you battling? How is it affecting your everyday choices?
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9

Focus On Your Why (You're Not Finished Yet)

From You’re Not Finished Yet with Christine Caine on YouVersion
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. – Galatians 6:9
Kylie is my oldest and dearest friend, and like so many of my friends, she frequently runs in marathon races. I am not sure if I am living vicariously through them, but I seem to have amassed many friends who love to run long distances. One thing I love about Kylie is the fact that she follows the same ritual in every marathon race she enters. As soon as the starting gun fires, she says aloud, “Kylie, all you have to do is finish.”
Throughout the race, she says this to herself at least one hundred times. She does not try to beat everyone, she does not compare her pace to the speed of everyone else in the race, she simply sets her own pace and runs her race. And most importantly, she wants to get to the finish line.
It’s such a great lesson for us all. If our goal is to be conformed and transformed into the image of Jesus, then becoming more like Jesus is our goal. Running our race, the way Jesus wants us to run our race, is our goal. Therefore, we’re not out to beat anyone else; we’re not out to be better than anyone else; we’re doing our best to be more like Jesus.
If we inadvertently get our eyes off the ultimate prize—Jesus—our eyes will fall on other things like people, status, and self-gratification, and we will get off balance and off track. If we take our eyes off the goal, we will quite possibly develop a mentality that things are not moving fast enough. That we’re not being rewarded or acknowledged soon enough. And we might even unintentionally uproot ourselves and walk out of our purpose.
But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. – Acts 20:24
To be honest, during some of the greatest challenges of my life and hardest times of ministry—those times when I found myself thinking, Why am I doing this? and had twenty legitimate reasons to quit—I’ve had to get myself refocused on the ultimate goal of when and why God called me. That is what has sustained me in my darkest hours. It’s the why that helps me keep running when the how makes no sense.
Maybe this is where you’re wrestling today. Perhaps part of the answer is to refocus on your why. More of the answer could be to not get distracted with short-term things that will gratify our immediate wants, so we can finish our course and attain our prize. Let’s refocus our eyes and hearts and minds to be on Jesus. Let’s purpose to finish our course and the ministry we’ve received from Jesus, as Luke wrote, so we can testify to the gospel of God’s grace.
Prayer
Jesus, my purpose is to finish my course and the ministry I have received from You. Please help me reach this goal. Help me keep my eyes on You, the ultimate prize. In Your name, amen.
Continue Your JourneyThis reading plan was taken from You’re Not Finished Yet by Christine Caine. Read more at ChristineCaine.com/Devo

This Marathon Called Life (You're Not Finished Yet)

From You’re Not Finished Yet with Christine Caine on YouVersion
But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” – Matthew 19:26
I love to run, though I’m totally not a serious runner. My idea of running is a five-mile slow jog, and when I say slow, I mean mothers pushing their babies in strollers can overtake me. My friend Dawn, the one I hike mountains with, is the real runner. She regularly competes in marathons and has built both the physical and mental endurance to go such distances. She’s run enough to know what it’s like to hit a wall while running, a concept I’ve never experienced because apparently I’ve never run far enough!
Hitting a wall is a place runners can overcome only with their minds. It’s more mental than physical, even when the physical is excruciating. Dawn once explained it to me by describing what happened in her first marathon. She was 23 miles in when she hit the infamous wall. She had 36 minutes to cover the remaining 3.2 miles. It would not have been an issue had she not already run for miles and didn’t have searing pain pounding in her left hip. As she tells it, the left side of her brain (the rational side) told her to stop and walk the rest of the way. Thoughts like, Don’t worry about meeting the goal. People will understand when they realize how hot it is and how badly I hurt, thundered in her head. But just as loud, the right side of her brain thundered back, There is still hope! The race isn’t over yet! It’s still possible to meet my goal. Don’t stop running!
Have you ever felt yourself in such a mental war? When your mind is screaming at you? In a race this happens when you hit a wall, when you have nothing left to give, when you’ve expended every ounce of energy and everything within you wants to quit. And yet, as Dawn experienced, somewhere deep inside, the flicker of a goal or dream begs to not be extinguished.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
I’ve been in such a place, where I hit a wall spiritually, mentally, and emotionally. But at the same time, I had the Word of God in my heart and mind. I had God’s promises resounding in me at the same time my mind was screaming for me to stop. And because of His promises, that flicker of hope, I was able to keep going by focusing my mind on God and His Word. Despite how many times my mind fought me to quit, I kept redirecting my mind away from what it wanted to think and toward what God’s Word said was true.
Maybe you’re in such a place right now. What is your mind screaming at you? That it’s not possible? That it’s too late? That you’re not equipped? Not smart enough? Young enough? Old enough? Educated enough? You can win the war in your mind by renewing it with God’s words. You can endure by making God’s voice louder than any other voice in your head.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. – Romans 12:2
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word. Help me be more acquainted with what it says so I can be transformed by the renewing of my mind, and so I can get through any wall. In Jesus’ name, amen.

As Sure as Seedtime and Harvest (You're Not Finished Yet)

From You’re Not Finished Yet with Christine Caine on YouVersion
While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” – Genesis 8:22
Do you have a dream? An idea? A yearning to do something that just won’t go away that you know God has placed in your heart? When God gives us a dream, He is calling forth what He placed inside of us before we were even born. We’re full of potential for His plans and purpose for our lives. Still, it’s up to us to water the seed of that potential, to tend to the soil of our hearts, to develop all that God has placed inside of us.
Think of it this way: God gave trees the ability to reproduce themselves through their seed. If you’ve ever taken a pine cone apart, you’ll see little seeds, each with a “wing” attached to it. That’s so the wind can catch the seed and take it where it can fall to the ground and begin to take root. In the right soil, in the right environment, that seed will sprout and grow into a new, fully grown tree. The fully grown tree was always in the seed, but no one could see it until it was put in the right soil and then nurtured by the rain and the sun.
In a similar fashion, the seeds in our hearts—the dreams and ideas and plans and purposes of God—grow as we water them with faith. The seeds grow as we tend to the soil of our hearts, feeding them the Word of God and applying it in our lives, thus making our hearts good ground.
God’s plans and purposes for our lives grow as we keep walking with Him, building endurance, and staying with those plans to completion. This is how we give birth to our dreams, to the ideas God gives us. The potential is always there, but it’s in seed form until we do what is necessary to make it grow.
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us – Ephesians 3:20
God wants us to grow to where we are to go. The challenge is that it’s countercultural. It’s so much easier to reach for what’s instant, for what we can snap and upload, for what we can order and have delivered the same day, but that’s not how God’s ways work. They aren’t instant. God works over time. With a seed that needs to be nurtured.
Are you aware of God’s plans for your life? Can you feel any untapped potential lying dormant inside you? Potential is the difference between what is actual and what is possible. It is the unexposed ability, the reserved strength, the unrealized success, the dormant gifts, and the hidden talents waiting to be developed. It is the person you are still to become. It is where you can go but have not yet been. It is all you can do but have not yet done. It is where you can reach but have not yet aimed.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. – Proverbs 3:5-6
You don’t have to know all the plans and purposes God has for you, since most of them unfold over time, but do you know one of them? Start nurturing that seed today and watch it begin to grow. It’s as sure as seedtime and harvest.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, please help me nurture the seeds of potential You have placed inside of me. I want to grow where You want me to go. In Jesus’ name, amen.