Journey of Faith Friday: Love Life and See Good Days

Love Life and See Good Days

This current season of life is a sweet one.  While it has it's challenges (third trimester fatigue, toddler discipline, mom's breast cancer treatments), it has been filled with gratitude and God's faithfulness to open my eyes to new truths if I give Him the chance to do so.  

Each morning I get up at 6 or 6:15 and meet with the Lord prior to starting my day as a parent.  It is crucial for me.  I am a morning person, so rarely is it a challenge for me to get up early.  Plus, I know the time is quickly approaching when new baby exhaustion will wreck havoc on my life for a few months.  

Last week I began the Bible study Conversation Peace: The Power of Transformed Speech with a group of women.  This is a study I desperately need, because my speech has been, and often times still is, very hurtful.  The first few days I really missed my previous form of study (Good Morning Girls SOAP format), but this verse jumped off the page and I found myself reading it over and over and eventually using the SOAP format to apply it to my life.

1 Peter 3:10-11

"Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.  He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it."

LOVE LIFE.


SEE GOOD DAYS.

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I have had many seasons of life where I have spent endless hours asking, praying, searching, and pondering the reason (and how to change it) I did not consistently LOVE LIFE.  I see good days and I have learned to express gratitude in every season, but I can't explain the turmoil I have experienced over the years based on those two words: LOVE LIFE.

I have read 1 Peter 3:10-11 a number of times, but this time God opened my heart to receive it.  He used it to challenge me to evaluate my love of life based on the words that come out of my mouth, which ultimately are a result of what is truly in my heart (Matthew 12:34). OUCH!!!

WHAT ELSE?

If I want to love life and see good days I must:

• do good
• avoid evil (acts and speech)
• seek peace
• not only seek peace, but pursue it

This list seems simple enough, but the reality is it takes discipline, planning, endurance, intentionality and time to accomplish.  

Doing good includes much more than volunteering in an area of need or giving to the poor.  

Avoiding evil includes much more than avoiding the "big" sins such as stealing, murder, and adultery.

Seeking and pursuing peace includes much more than simply keeping to yourself and avoiding conflict with others.

For me, it includes the discipline of taking every negative thought captive (2 Cor. 10:5) and submitting a positive prayer to the LORD.  It includes being acutely aware and ceasing the slanderous comments that I speak about people.  It includes transforming my thought processes to believe the best about people versus picking their intentions apart or allowing little things to annoy me.  It includes respecting my husband on every level.  It includes talking less and listening more.  It includes acquiring less and giving more.  It includes failing, forgiving, and trying again.  I could write pages and pages of the ways this verse must play out in my life, but for now I will stick with the basics and primarily focus on taking my thoughts captive and make them obedient to the LORD (2 Cor. 10:5) knowing that will affect my speech, in turn increasing my love of life.