Attending church last night, I was listening to the priest give his homily and I started to get a little uncomfortable. He was talking about compassion for others and I swear, he was looking and talking right at me! I was feeling convicted. –He wasn’t looking at me in reality. But his words stabbed me just like a knife. I was feeling pain in listening to him talk about being compassionate to others because I realized that for awhile now, I had not been. God was working on my heart.
Do you ever feel God pointing out something in your life that needs a little work or attention? It is New Year’s after all, the month of resolutions. I’m sure we all do. This is the time we generally take a good look at who we are, where we are in life and what we need to do. God is good at using other people to convict us, whether that is our spouse, a friend or our pastor.
Awareness
Character development is my passion. I try to practice what I preach and I’ve noticed the last two years or so, I have not been so compassionate to other people at work, especially during this COVID year. Oh, I have compassion for people, don’t get me wrong. It’s just sometimes I let frustration and annoyances get to me. Then, I let it show or share those things with others. Can you relate?
Feeling conviction is good. It’s an awareness, an awakening. Those convictions remind us that we are not perfect, no one is. We all have work to do. God is working on us, in us, showing us that we could and should do better. Isn’t that what we are supposed to be doing, improving our habits, trying to be better versions of ourselves?
A new year is just beginning. –That’s exciting. A year of opportunities and experiences. A year of growing and change. A fresh clean slate to start again. What are some of the things you are feeling convicted about? Is there something you’d like to work on to improve your life?
Taking Action
I’d like to encourage you to take action to do something to improve your life.
1) Start with prayer. Ask God to convict you about something that needs awakened within you this year.
2) Find a church, a community of believers to belong to and just start attending if you don’t have one. God has created us to be in communion with Him and each other.
3) Find a podcast to listen to. There are so many podcasts available for inspiration. I just started the Bible in a Year with Fr. Mike Schmitz. There is also Living Proof with Beth Moore. Whatever your church affiliation, there is something for everyone. Ask your friends what they are listening to. Ask your pastor what he recommends.
Feeling convicted is a good thing. It helps us root out the things in our lives that are weighing us down. It helps us to be better versions of ourselves.
As always, plan these things in your day. Schedule them in your new calendar. Practice them for 21 days until they become a habit. When you change your habits, you change your life.
In addition to my Facebook page, I just started a private group called, you guessed it, Character and Virtue. It’s a for people who want to change their habits and need some encouragement and coaching. It will be a source for accountability and sharing. Look me up if interested.
God bless.–Barb
