God's Work In Me

Yesterday, my husband asked me if I had a Bible verse that I really liked.  Philippians 2:13 came to mind right away. "For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure."

This verse caused me confusion for quite some time.  Then, some ladies from church did a Bible study on the book of Philippians.  Through that, I learned what the verse was saying.  Perhaps it is obvious to you...but for me, it took awhile to understand.

God is working in my life.  He is the one who brings all good things.  He is the one who gives me the desire to do right.  He is the one who enables me to do right.  And these good things that He enables me to do?  They are not for me.  They are for Him.  They are for His pleasure, and His pleasure is good.

Simple, right?  That is EXACTLY what the verse says.  So why did it take me so long to understand what the verse was saying?

I am not a patient person.  My husband says I have improved greatly in this area since we have been married, which is so incredibly encouraging to hear.  But still...I have a long way to go, and it is a struggle.  For so long, I would beat myself up over it.  "Just be patient, Rachel.  Just do it." "Count to 3, then react."  "Recite this verse about patience whenever you feel impatient."  These were the things I would tell myself.  Time after time, my inward struggle would just lead to more guilt.  I would fail, chastise myself, at times berate myself, repent, and repeat.  Those things I was telling myself were well and good.  There is nothing wrong with those statements.  But they missed the main point.  They were focused on behavior modification, rather than a change of heart.

Since it is God who is working in me, giving me the desire to do right and also the ability to carry it out, then shouldn't my response to my own impatience be to run to Him in prayer?  Shouldn't I rest secure that He will work in me to carry out these very things He has given me the desire to do?  Knowing that my very life is for His good pleasure, shouldn't I be driven to study His Word and know Him more?  Shouldn't I be seeking counsel from fellow believers who also know and love Him?

My mindset has been changing, ever so slowly.  Life is not about behavior modification and simply doing the right thing.  Life is about doing right, obeying God's commands, for God's good pleasure.  And our God, who sees our hearts, knows very well what our motivation is.  There is no hiding that from Him.

This is not simply about Rachel being more patient.  This is about God's transforming power at work in the lives of all believers.  This is about God, not Rachel.  THAT is the point.  That has always been the point.  Somehow, I missed it.  

In studying His Word, God transforms our lives.  We see more clearly who He is.  Little by little, we learn to love Him more.  And as we do this, He conforms us to His image.  He develops that patience, or those good works, in us.  He causes us to do right.   He uses fellow believers to come alongside us and teach us.  He uses our life experiences to grow us.  Through it all, He is at work.

So if you see Rachel being patient with someone, if you see Rachel working out her salvation, join with me and praise the Lord for that!  It is Him, working in me, and it is for His pleasure.