“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
– Romans 8:35

What a scripture. Talk about staying power. God will never stop loving us. It seems like that scripture covers everything, but it doesn’t. Nothing separates God from loving us but our free will. When God first created the garden, everything was perfect. A beautifully orchestrated machine with everything in perfect harmony, except for one thing: man, the only thing in the garden with free will.

They didn’t eat each other, and you couldn’t make them. God in His infinite wisdom knew that true relationship could only come from free will. Even though He loved us, we had to choose to love Him back. So nothing can separate us from the love of God, but we can separate our love from Him.

We have been taught that the gift of God is to go to heaven. Nope the gift of God is eternal life. This is a return to our original state. It is a return to the Garden. This is where Adam walked with God. He talked with Him face to face. The gift of God is to be able to have a relationship with the eternal. The cost of sin is a spiritual separation from God.

So many times, I find in my life that I try not to have sin; because it makes me feel guilty; or I am afraid of the example I am setting; or I don’t like the consequences in my life. There is nothing wrong with this. Guilt can be conviction to change. We should strive to set a good example for our kids. And certainly, God gives us consequences in our life to show us the pain and burden of sin. However, I don’t believe that any of this is the quick path to change in our life. How many times do we feel guilty only to go back to the behavior when our guilt is gone?

Let’s go back to nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. Yes, this is true, but you have a choice.  And YOU can separate your love from Him just like Adam and Eve. So every time you sin, you are choosing yourself over your relationship with God; you have become your own God. So the burden of sin isn’t getting into heaven or not. The true burden of sin is that it breaks your connection with God.

So what is the answer to true change? True change comes with a desire to be in a relationship with Jesus. You have to value your relationship with Jesus more than your own selfish, self-centered desires. You have to know and experience that relationship and know how your sin impacts that.

So how do we get there?  Have you ever eaten shmooly booly? The aroma, the smooth texture, the savoriness? Yeah, me neither, because I made it up. Have you ever eaten a fresh tortilla? Yep, my mouth is watering, too. With no experience or relationship, you will have no desire. The Bible says, “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8). So today, right now, start working toward a closer personal relationship with Jesus. The desire for this relationship and wanting to protect it will lead us to make change. When we are in a relationship with Jesus, He will send the Holy Spirit to help us endure and make these changes.

So in the end, yes, it takes discipline to not sin. We have to choose not to do certain things, but real change in our live comes from cherishing and protecting our relationship with Christ and the healing that is done through the Holy Spirit in our life.

So here is my prayer, “Lord, thank you for Your love. I want to be in a relationship with You. Please give me your Holy Spirit and help me with my side of the relationship. Let me experience the goodness of Your love.”

– Written by Jeremiah

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