R Word (eBook)

The Unspoken Word That Will Propel You into Your Destiny

Kara Garen (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023 | 1. Auflage
226 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-1-6678-8647-3 (ISBN)

Most people's eyes glaze over when they hear that the 'R' Word stands for Repentance. This word has a lot of baggage and misinformation attached to it. But what if you discovered that repentance isn't about satisfying God, but about God supernaturally healing your soul? What if God established repentance to help YOU? Do you struggle with: •Mental unrest? •Anger? •Shame? •Bitterness? Would you like to be set free? Our lives can change in indescribable ways when we repent - yet most of the church believes it's a dead practice. But when we humbly repent, we get set free from so much bondage. In The R Word, you will learn how to: •Understand that the Father's heart towards you is love, even if life has taught you otherwise. •Discover that repentance is not a one-time event or outdated, but a very real way to heal. •Grow in your understanding of the Holy Spirit's voice and how to thrive in life with His guidance. This book will explain, through personal stories and biblical insights, that it is only through relationship with God that we can feel safe enough to repent and experience the freedom that comes with it. Allow Jesus to destroy the evidence of negative choices in your life so that you can enter into your destiny without distractions holding you back. When God restores your soul, He restores your life!

Most people's eyes glaze over when they hear that the "e;R"e; Word stands for Repentance. This word has a lot of baggage and misinformation attached to it. But what if you discovered that repentance isn't about satisfying God, but about God supernaturally healing your soul? What if God established repentance to help YOU?Do you struggle with: Mental unrest? Anger? Shame? Bitterness?Would you like to be set free? Our lives can change in indescribable ways when we repent - yet most of the church believes it's a dead practice. But when we humbly repent, we get set free from so much bondage. In The R Word, you will learn how to: Understand that the Father's heart towards you is love, even if life has taught you otherwise. Discover that repentance is not a one-time event or outdated, but a very real way to heal. Grow in your understanding of the Holy Spirit's voice and how to thrive in life with His guidance. This book will explain, through personal stories and biblical insights, that it is only through relationship with God that we can feel safe enough to repent and experience the freedom that comes with it. Allow Jesus to destroy the evidence of negative choices in your life so that you can enter into your destiny without distractions holding you back. When God restores your soul, He restores your life!

CHAPTER 1

The Confusion Surrounding Repentance

THE ASSAULT

My mind was being assaulted. Memories of past mistakes tormented me. The images of my encounters with men brought back the pleasure of physical sensation along with the miserable feeling of shame and disgust. I felt sick. If I sat still long enough, I would catch myself shaking my head, as if shaking hard enough would erase the memories.

I couldn’t understand what was happening. I gave my life to Jesus the year before. I was in the Word, spending hours a day with Jesus and was involved with some student ministries on campus. So how could I have these thoughts and feelings?

Although I grew up in the church, I went to college and dove into the party scene. That became a stronghold for me. The first two years of college are a blur. I was looking for validation and love in all the wrong places. I hit rock bottom.

I remember the moment I completely surrendered to the Lord. I was in my apartment, sitting at my desk staring numbly out the window. I felt so alone– there was nothing real in my life, even though it was filled with activity and people.

I began crying because I could literally feel the pain and emptiness inside of me. In that moment I felt so overwhelmed and I knew Jesus was the answer. I decided in my heart to give my life back to Him. Immediately God took away my desire for alcohol, partying, swearing, etc. – all of it was gone in an instant.

After this encounter with Jesus, I immediately lost all interest in the life that made up my first two years in college. I wanted things to be different, so I was seeking after Jesus the best I knew how. I loved His Word and I was committed to a total life change. I chose the better path and loved God deeply.

I had not been actively living in disobedience since I gave my life to Christ. So why now? Why at this moment was I struggling so hard? Was I backsliding without my consent? Nothing made sense to me.

BREAKING FREE

During this time, I had in my possession a book that helped free people of spiritual bondage. The book was helpful and led people through prayers of confession. I had gone through certain prayers in it previously but had used it mostly as a reference.

As I was sitting in my pajamas on my bed, I looked over at my bookshelf and that specific book stood out to me. I somehow knew the Lord wanted me to read it.

I didn’t really know what I was looking for, but immediately I found a confession prayer regarding sexual sin.

I felt bad about my sin in this area but had never uttered a word of that remorse to the Lord. I had also never gone deep into my spirit and let the Lord heal me of the pain from those experiences. Whether I wanted to admit it or not, there was a lot of pain there. Instead, I basically shoved that whole part of my life away without ever having a conversation about it with God.

There I was, crying and upset because I didn’t want to be thinking those disturbing thoughts, yet feeling completely overwhelmed and incredibly guilty from what was surfacing in my mind and body. In my desperation, I began repenting of those past sins.

There I was, crying and upset because I didn’t want to be thinking those disturbing thoughts, yet feeling completely overwhelmed and incredibly guilty from what was surfacing in my mind and body.

I was fairly detailed and mentioned what I had done. I ended up crying through a lot of it. I felt so secure with His love at this point in my life that I trusted God with the details. I even explored with the Holy Spirit why I made some of the decisions. Exploring why I did things shed light on my own insecurities, allowing Him to give me truth in their place. With each tear and confession, I truly felt the Lord taking the pain away. By the end of my confession I felt relief and total acceptance, especially after reading scriptures that related to my struggle.

As I was closing my time with the Lord, it ended with me thanking Jesus for what He’d already done on the cross. I knew enough to know that I wasn’t begging to be forgiven. I knew that I had already been forgiven– once and for all–at salvation. But what I was thanking God for was His grace. I was finally accepting responsibility for my actions, and it felt great to release it all to Him.

After that sacred time of repentance, the most amazing thing happened.

I could barely recall those memories or feelings anymore.

What had once felt so up close and personal seemed distant and foreign. I could barely picture the guys and no emotions or nausea came whatsoever. It was incredible and supernatural. I was FREE.

No more shaking my head to get rid of creepy images that I wanted nothing to do with anymore. No more wondering if I was going crazy or backsliding, or if I was ever going to be able to have a normal relationship again without those thoughts and feelings running through me. No more guilt or condemnation plaguing me at night when I’d try to rest in peace. And best of all, no more physical sensations that left me cold.

I was finally accepting responsibility for my actions, and it felt great to release it all to Him.

You see, the inner consequences of those sins could have haunted me forever. Instead, through repentance, the Lord took so much turmoil out of my soul. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that moment was a turning point for me. Everything in my future was about to be shaped by that one experience. Whether I knew it or not, my entire perspective on God and His power had just changed.

A CRITICAL PIECE MISSING

Because repentance is such a critical piece of our relationship with the Lord, it has been a silent target of the enemy for years. Had I learned the freedom true repentance brings years ago, I wouldn’t have had to deal with the tidal wave of negative effects of my sin. It would have been a much easier road handling one or two issues at a time instead of years of baggage in a desperate moment.

There are several areas in the Word of God that the enemy has ruthlessly targeted over the years. Most of the things we’ve been afraid of as Christians are some of the most powerful weapons God has given to the Body of Christ.

You see, the inner consequences of those sins could have haunted me forever. Instead, through repentance, the Lord took so much turmoil out of my soul.

So, when I think about repentance and the avoidance that concept receives from the Body of Christ, I know God has much more to reveal about it.

Most people’s eyes glaze over when they think about repentance, yet there is something supernatural and powerful about it. Bringing my junk to the Lord has freed me of baggage and cut off the voice of the enemy in so many ways. It has literally increased my ability to think straight—giving me a quiet mind and eliminating many negative voices, images, and feelings. It enables me to engage with His Word with less distractions, providing me a greater intimacy with the Lord. It has brought me to a place of much greater self-control. Processing my poor responses to painful experiences with Him has drawn me out of bitterness. And apologizing for blaming God for the bad things in my life has rid me of a lot of stress.

Repenting whenever the Holy Spirit tells me to has enabled me to live in peace and breathe easier.

All this freedom has surfaced over the past decade and it happened through genuine repentance. It’s so simple. I should have done it sooner! We are the only people who get to experience true peace and freedom on earth, and I forfeited it for so long.

Why is that? I asked myself. Why have I never had a real lifestyle of repentance until now? I know it wasn’t taught to me, but why hadn’t I picked it up somewhere? I mean, I’ve picked up many other things along the way, so why not something as important as this?

Repenting whenever the Holy Spirit tells me to has enabled me to live in peace and breathe easier.

I began to wonder if one reason is because it was never modeled for me. Repenting isn’t something we really do openly as followers of Jesus. Some people do, but not everyone and only in certain circles. Even when people mention it, there is a very vague understanding of what exactly it means to repent.

As I mulled over this, I landed on some major issues surrounding repentance that could be the reason our generation may shy away from it.

REMINDS ME OF PRIESTS

When I used to think of repentance, it would conjure up pictures of the Catholic Church and confession. I pictured large cathedrals and confession booths. I pictured dismal people and a stoic priest waiving his hand over people saying, “You must repent.” And then afterwards, “Your sins have been forgiven child, go in peace.”

I personally didn’t grow up in the Catholic church, but quite frankly, I didn’t want to tell someone else all my sins. As far as I...

Erscheint lt. Verlag	17.1.2023
Sprache	englisch
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Christentum
ISBN-10	1-6678-8647-9 / 1667886479
ISBN-13	978-1-6678-8647-3 / 9781667886473

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