There are times where I question starting this blog, the name of the blog itself, and the continual pursuit of publishing what the Lord is speaking to me. When I chose the name The Gritfull Life, my pastor, Keith Craft had done a series called Gritfull, and it reminded me of something my granny used to say to me frequently. Throughout my childhood until she passed in 2019, I would go to her with my woes and complaints about life. She would always say to me, “Jess, keep persevering.” The truth is, I hated hearing that, but I always knew that that would be the key takeaway after pouring my heart out to her in frustration and oftentimes tears. Granny was an excellent listener. She didn’t say much, and she didn’t have a lot to comment on when I would air my grievances about life, but she would always tell me to continue persevering.
Living a life full of grit is about living a life of perseverance and passion. The Lord had me start writing as a part of my own personal healing. I had to overcome even just putting things in writing because my family always told me never to put anything in writing that I didn’t want the whole world to read. I felt very vulnerable when I first began sharing my feelings and perspectives in the digital space. I am not a preacher. I am not a theologian. I fretted about misquoting and misrepresenting God and His word. But I love Jesus. Despite the years of self-inflicted heartaches and pain, I have seen the evidence of His goodness in my life. He called me to remember. He called me to write what He is saying to me and showing me. Throughout my own personal life journey of living an overcoming life, and in the process of writing, He has started speaking to me about His church. I’ll be honest, I really struggled with this too.
The truth is, the church is in trouble. I’m not saying every individual believer, but the body of Christ as a whole. If you think about the body, and you think of a lame leg, or a short arm, or a voice box that utters curses rather than blessings, or a heart that is corrupt with sins of the flesh, the body is not healed. It is not made whole. It is not functioning optimally or pursuing its high calling. There are droves of spiritually immature christians who probably think that they live in the “grace space”- where Jesus blood covers their continual sin. And while that’s true, Jesus did not die so that you could continue in your life of sin. He died for you to worship Him first. To become His true disciple. To take up your cross, crucify your own desires and follow Him. If you think about his original 12 disciples, all but one pursued Him and paid the ultimate price to advance the gospel. And Judas dwelled with Him for a time, yet made the choice to betray Him. Judas’s testimony speaks to the fact that you can hang out in Jesus circles but continue to serve your flesh, rather than Jesus himself. If given the choice, you might even take the silver over the Savior.
We can all be better disciples. There are aspects of God’s word specific to your deficiencies in your relationship with Jesus, that if you will be vulnerable and allow the holy spirit to bring conviction, can create a pure heart and a right spirit with God. Your life can be transformed, if you apply the principles of God’s word to your life. BUT- it takes GRIT. Passion and perseverance. It takes GRIT to go against the flow. It takes discipline and grit to read your bible every day. It takes grit to say no to people and things that pollute your relationship with God while pursuing your high calling. It takes grit to walk the narrow path. It’s lonely there. But it’s also not lonely. You get to really know and understand the heart of Jesus, to walk with Him and Him alone on the narrow path. As you continue to pursue his path for you, his purpose, his calling, you will find freedom and unsurpassable peace. You will find your calling.
I’m not saying that believers should be physically isolated from the world, but the church has become diluted with worldliness, so much so, that you can hardly tell the two apart. The Lord is saying that He’s calling His bride to become purified. To come out from among them and be separate, and touch no unclean thing. He’s calling his bride to repent of her unholy living, to pursue a relationship and intimacy with God, and to be conformed to His image. I can say with confidence, Jesus does not look like the world. He’s holy. His word says, “Be holy as I am holy.”
I can tell you, you have what it takes. TRUE GRIT. You will either pursue God with passion and perseverance, or you will pursue your own desires with passion and perseverance. I’m just here to speak/write the words He’s speaking to me in obedience to the high call He’s put on my life. With grit.
I pray that you’ll seek God and ask the Holy Spirit to show you areas where you’ve fallen short. Not for condemnation, but for repentance. The hour of Jesus’ return is closer than it ever was, and bible prophecy is aligning before our eyes. This morning the Lord showed me Matthew 3 that begins, “In those days, John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” This is who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, ” A voice of one calling in the desert,”Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.”
Friend, I say to you today, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” Jesus is not coming back for an adulteress bride. He’s coming back for a bride who has made herself ready for her bridegroom.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” (Hebrews 12:1, NIV).