«Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to [Gideon], ‘Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down’ » (Judges 6:25, 26).
Giving up our idols hurts. It exposes us, but in order to give us fur tunics, God must first remove the aprons of fig leaves. Before dressing us, God strips us naked; before building an altar, He breaks down our idols. Since we have lived so long with our idols, they are buried deep in our souls. They are anti-personnel mines. If we take a wrong step, they will make our self-esteem shatter. Thus, in order to be able to heal us, God must show us the condition of our hearts; He must expose us.
A friend made negative comments about my work. Obviously, no one wants to hear such comments, but my disproportionate reaction to thinking that my work was mediocre and crying for twenty minutes as soon as he left showed me that there was danger lurking beneath the surface. The anti-personnel mine that the enemy buried in my heart is the idol of professional success. The underlying idea is that I must earn my courage as a person by being a perfect professional, that the worst thing that could happen to me is to fail.
No matter how many accomplishments I achieve, I am never going to feel like they’re enough or, rather, that I’m enough. This is the idol trap of success! However, the pain of failure can act like a radar, showing me the areas of my heart that I haven’t yet given up. If I ask Him, God begins to dig. With His hands, He removes the earth around the mine with the precision of a neurosurgeon. The process hurts and is not instantaneous, but God is faithful in completing everything He begins. Gradually, as God deactivates the anti-personnel mines, I regain spiritual and emotional territory. The ground that was sterile becomes a fertile field. There’s a dance floor where I wasn’t encouraged to step for fear of detonating my anxieties. Everything becomes a party!
Dear Father, I give you permission to dig up and deactivate the mines of my soul.
Even if the process exposes me, I know that those who trust in You will never be ashamed.
#WomensDevotional
#RadioJovenAdventista
#MeditacionesDiarias
Take From: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2022
«NO FEARS»
BY: VANEZA PISSUTO
Collaborators: Alexandra Pérez & Angelica Cuate.
