Single-Minded Devotion
James 4:7-10
We made a decision to turn our wills and our lives over to the care of God.
We may already have chosen to follow God's way, letting his ways define the overall direction for our lives. But even so, many of us still keep a part of our hearts hidden away from God. We have devoted this part of ourselves to gratifying our addictions, to doing things that are contrary to the will of God. This sets us up for living a double life, which can fill us with guilt, shame, and instability.
Even for those of us who have made the decision to give our hearts to God, we face new moments of decision every day. James was addressing Christians when he wrote, "So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts" (James 4:7-8).
When we choose to live the double life, it is easy to become doubtful that God hears us at all. James wrote, "For a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world" (James 1:6-8).
When we resist the devil at every turn and choose to draw close to God, he will draw close to us. When we open up our hidden hearts and begin to make choices in favor of recovery, we will soon grow confident that God desires to help us.
God has already defeated the devil; all we need to do is choose the winning side.
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