If Only

(Photo found here)

Over the years, I have been helped immensely by Paul Tripp's writing and speaking ministry (in addition to admiring his stylish mustache). I signed up awhile ago to receive his "Wednesday's Word" weekly devotionals. Here's a good one that came through not too long ago.

"If Only..."

It's so easy to slip into an "if only" lifestyle. I find myself slipping into it often. The "if only" possibilities are endless:

If only I'd been from a more stable family...

If only I had a more understanding spouse...

If only my children were more obedient...

If only I'd been able to find a better job...

If only I'd come to know Christ earlier...

The seductive thing about our "if onlys" is that there is a bit of plausibility in all of them. We do live in a fallen world. We all face hardships of various kinds. We all have been sinned against in a variety of ways.

None of us ever lived in ideal circumstances or in perfect relationships. The world is a broken place and we have all been touched in many ways by its brokenness. Yet, the "if only" lifestyle tends to say, "My biggest problem in life exists outside of me and not inside of me."

In Psalm 51 David says something very radical. It's counter-intuitive to a culture that tends to say that we all are the result of what our experience has made us. David says, "Surely I have been a sinner from birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me." (Psalm 51:5)

David is saying that his greatest problem in all of life is not the result of what he has suffered in the situations and relationships of his life. Rather, David is saying that his biggest problem is internal and was there before he had any of these experiences! And David gives this deep and internal problem a name - sin. How humbling!

Think about it this way. It's the evil that is inside of you that either magnetizes you to the evil outside of you or causes you to deal with the evil outside of you in a way that is wrong. It's only when you begin to accept that your greatest problem in all of life is not what has happened or been done to you, that you begin to get excited about the rescuing grace of Jesus Christ. It's only when you begin to accept that your greatest need is something you came into the world with, that you will begin to hunger for the help that only God can give you.

It's only then that you begin to hunger for more than changes of situation and relationship. It's only then that you begin to accept the most radical and personally liberating truth that you could ever conceive. What is that truth? It's that what you and I really need to be rescued from is us! We are the biggest danger to us. That's why God offers us the gorgeous promise of his grace which has the power to change us from the inside out.

Are you embracing that promise or are you still saying, "If only..."

Make a list of the "If Only's" that you find yourself repeating. ... If you're honest, who do you blame most? Circumstances, relationships, situations (outside), or a heart that's corrupt (internal)?

How can you become more self-aware that your biggest problem exists inside of you, not outside of you?

God bless,

Paul David Tripp

You can find lots of resources by Paul Tripp at www.paultripp.com. If you're interested in the Wednesday's Word emailings, you can scroll to the bottom of the page, left hand side, and see the link to sign up.