by Pastor Brad Carter
As I mentioned in Part 1, I have surprisingly enjoyed my time writing and reflecting with God. Here are a few more lessons from my “Garden Time” in the last year.
The Father’s Acceptance
First of all, God has already proclaimed my acceptance before I ever completed a single task. When I live from that understanding, knowing I already have The Father’s acceptance, then I don’t have to live for the approval of others. The reason that leading for affirmation robs you of courage is because in your desire to please others, you will refrain from taking leadership risks while walking by faith because of the possibility of disappointing everyone else. Often times when God instructs you to do something, it won’t be popular at all in the beginning! It takes courage to trust God! So never let the peer pressure of the outside world to cause you to play it safe!
Learn to Count Lessons Not Losses
Lesson number two from 2024 was to learn to count lessons not losses. The culture of this world is built on results. One might argue that Jesus preached this. After all, I’ve heard so many well-meaning preachers say “Judge a tree by it’s fruit. So if a minister doesn’t have a lot of fruit from his/her ministry then be slow to listen to what they have to say.”
The problem with that train of thought is that fruit is not earned, it simply grows as a sign of life. God is way less concerned with results than we are. After all, remember the story of Moses striking the rock? Water comes gushing out in the book of Exodus. The second time was different. Moses approached God in search of water for the people. Then God told him to speak to the rock instead of striking it. But Moses disobeyed and struck the rock twice. When he did so, water started flowing once again and the people were happy! But the Lord was not.
Success In The Lord’s Eyes
What’s interesting to me is that Moses’ act produced results yet The Lord still wasn’t pleased with it. Why? Because success in the eyes of the Lord isn’t the same as culture. This is important because sometimes we may not get the results we desire. Yet in the eyes of the Lord that’s not failure. When you start to count lessons not losses, it will change the way you think! You will become a student instead of a victim! Consider this….there’s not one thing you will ever experience that can not be used by God to educate you! We need to stop asking “Why did this happen?” And start asking “What can I learn from what happened?” Failures bury a person, but lessons plant a person! This is a key to our own personal growth!
Your Turn
Let me encourage you. God is working in your life. I appreciate being able to share my lessons, and I hope they bless you. But ask God to remind you what you have learned. I believe Garden Time and learning from it is something we can all have.
More inspiring messages are available here:
For Part One of Lessons From the Garden visit https://bethewordministry.com/lessons-learned-from-the-garden/
For more from Pastor Brad Carter visit https://awakenwallace.ac/
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