Show notes for Abide in Jesus episode 2.

You are listening to Abide in Jesus, the podcast for women who want to experience Christ’s healing touch in their lives. I’m your host author, Carolyn Rice. And in this episode, we’ll talk about coming just as we are to Jesus.

I’m currently writing a Bible study that goes through the book of Mark. And one of the passages that really stuck out to me was mark one 16 through 17.

And as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon, Andrew, his brother casting a net into the sea for, they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, follow me. And I will make you become fishers of men (NKJV).

The first thing that stands out is that Jesus saw them.

He saw what they were doing and He saw who they were.

Jesus Sees You

Jesus sees you.

He sees how you’ve been broken.

He sees what you’ve been through.

He sees the time that you’ve been defined by your brokenness.

He sees your tears.

He sees your pain.

He sees you in those quiet moments when you cry out to Him and ask ,Why did I go through that? Why is this happening? Jesus, I don’t understand.

He sees you and He hears you dear daughter of the king, and He has a plan to bring you out of this brokenness and into His healing.

Jeremiah 29 :11 says for, I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord thoughts of peace and not of evil to give you a future and a hope (NKJV).

And Isaiah 61: 3 says, To console those who mourn in Zion to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord that he may be glorified (NKJV).

And that is a promise to you, to you dear sister, that He wants to console your brokenness, He wants to give you beauty for ashes. He wants to give you joy for all the times you have cried in private.

He wants to give you the garment of praise for the oppression and heaviness you feel.

Follow Jesus

What does it mean to follow Jesus? In my life It meant to come to him with all of my burdens, with all of my cares, all of my hangups, my pain with all the things people have defined me as.

It means to come to Him in prayer, through being in His word and doing what it says.

It means inviting him into heal those places within me and continue coming to Him. As you spend time sitting at Jesus’ feet, you’ll learn to discern his promptings.

To follow Jesus means a daily practice of sitting at His feet, letting Him speak to you through His word, giving Him those things that are on your heart in prayer and walking out what He speaks to your heart in your daily life.

Jesus Makes You into Who He’s Called You to Be

After Jesus says, follow me, then He says, and I will make you become fishers of men.

I want to tell you a story.

A long time ago, maybe it was 20, more than 25 years ago, I had just started following Jesus. I was sitting with this guy and he was talking to me about God.

I said to him, “You know, I’ve done some really bad things in my life, and I just don’t feel like I’m good enough for God.”

He looked at me for a moment.

He had me read Romans 3:23 out loud. For all, have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That also is in the new king James version.

He then spoke to me about God accepting us, right where we are that we don’t have to be good enough first, to just come as you are.

This really helped me to overcome not feeling good enough.

That is just a lie of the enemy right there that says you aren’t good enough for God, or you have to get yourself together first. That’s just a lie of the enemy. Jesus accepts you just, as you are. For it is as you follow Him that he will do the work in you.

You don’t have to clean yourself up or get better before you can come to Jesus. You don’t have to be unbroken before you come to Him. You come to Him with all your brokenness, all your burdens, all your tears, and you bring them, and you set them at His feet in prayer. He will pick you up out of the ashes of those things and He will make you into who He has called you to be.

It is as you simply decide to spend time with him each day, that He will do the work in you.

So dear sister in Christ, you don’t need to keep it all together. You don’t have to be good enough, come just as you are. Determine to follow Him and He will do the work in you.

Prayer

I’d like to say a prayer for you today:

Father, I pray for my dear sister listening to this. I pray father that as she follows you, you would begin to do the work in her and you would continue that work until the day she comes home to be with you. We break off every lie that says she’s not good enough, or that she has to live up to someone else’s expectations in order to follow you. Give her the freedom to simply sit at your feet daily and know that as she does, you will do the work in her. You will make her into who you’ve called her to be. You will lead her and guide her into wholeness, into healing and into the joyful place of truly knowing you. In Jesus mighty name. Amen.

Thank you for listening to abide in Jesus.

You can find show notes for this episode at Carolyn’s books.com.

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