By Dr. Joyce Shelton
Would you like to become all that God desires for you to be? Wholeness in body, soul, and spirit is a wonderful goal which we should all be striving for.
Psalm 139:13-14 says;
“For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”
God’s Original Design
Even in our mother’s womb, God knew all about us and took great delight in who we were as His creation. God’s original design for mankind was to live in a perfect environment allowing us to develop wholeness as His children. When sin entered the world through Satan’s temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, God’s perfect plan became marred.
John 10:10 tells us;
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
Satan, who was once very powerful in the Kingdom of Heaven, chose to rebel against God. Refusing to repent, he was cast down to earth to be the lord of this earth for a season.
Picture, the day you were born. The natural, there were probably people there assisting your safe delivery into this unknown world. In the spirit realm, there were two individuals also anxiously waiting for your birth. The Spirit of the Lord was waiting to receive you with great anticipation of His plan for your life. The spirit of Satan (or one of His demons since he is not omnipresent like God) was also waiting for your birth. The battle for your soul began!
Wholeness Is Destroyed By Sin
Satan is driven by an incessant need for power and control. He is insanely jealous of anyone who has a close relationship with God. His plan for the destruction of our souls begins at birth. While we were born with God’s ideal blueprint for our lives, we are each vulnerable to past and present sin and devastation brought on by the fall of man.
Exodus 20:5 says,
“…for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.”
Sin is like chemical warfare used in more current wars. You don’t outwardly see a tangible weapon, yet it’s subtle effects are deadly. Once we are born, Satan’s spiritual warfare began. We are shaped and molded by our family system and environment.
By the time most of us reach our preteen years, the pattern of our view on life and God has been set. The way we view wholeness has already been modeled for us. The Spirit of God is also moving throughout our life to draw us closed to Him. His tactics are different from those of Satan. He is a gentleman. Picture if you will, the destruction behind the rage of a rapist as opposed to the gentleness of a caring lover.
The rapist does not care about the damage and destruction he is bringing upon his victim. He has an incredible need to gain a sense of power. A lover is gentle, not forceful. He is extremely concerned about the needs and welfare of the one he loves. This is also true of our Lord. He loves us so much, that He treats us with tender love, care, honor and respect.
Revelation 3:20-21 says,
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne.”
John 4:13-14 says,
“Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Wholeness Is a Decision
Wholeness begins with repentance. Luke 3:3 tells us, “And he (John the Baptist) came into the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” Upon repentance of our sins to God, we begin the lifelong process of deciding to strive for wholeness. While we cannot change our past, however, we can change our future. Wholeness is a decision!
The blame game is something that many of us are very good at. “I am the way that I am because of my mother, father, circumstances, or others who have caused me to be like this.” While we seem to accept the lie that we will not rise above our circumstances, we seem to settle into a mindset of mediocrity. Jesus said, “…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Wholeness is a decision!
Wholeness Brings The Victory
James l:13-17 says,
“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God; for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err my beloved brethren, every good and perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variablness, neither shadow of turning.”
Wholeness is our choice! If you do not like the way your life is going, then do something about it! We all make mistakes. We all fail. It is what we choose to do with our mistakes and failures that will make the difference of us experiencing wholeness.
Read Dr. Shelton’s bio here.
Contact Dr. Shelton at drjoyceshelton@gmail.com
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