Victory in Christ II

Over the past fet won for us and living in the joy of that victory! I started a conversation on this in my previous blog and I would like to continue that now.
Paul, in the letter to the Philippians (not the Filipinos as a lector in Mass once read), says
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4)
The Lord knows us well enough to see that many times we need to hear things twice for them to catch our attention and set in, so he does just that within two sentences. So I say it again, REJOICE! Rejoice that God has saved you! Rejoice that He won the victory over sin and death! Rejoice over the thousands of promises He has made to you in the Scriptures. These are happy things that we often lose focus on when things get tough. We simply get too busy or we are not filling our minds with the words and promises of the Lord.

Jesus has already broken the chains,so stop clinging to them

Some people in the Church have a hard time believing that God exists, but for the most part, I would say that most Church-going people at most times believe that God exists. The struggle I have seen is do we BELIEVE him? We as Christian people need to take the Lord at His Word; that He is who He says He is and He will do what He said He will do. It is easy to hear these things on Sundays but during the week when things get busy and the stressful things of life happen, do we believe that His promises apply to us in our every day situations when He says things like:
It is the Lord who goes before you; He will be with you and will never fail you or forsake you. So do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he saves them. Psalm 34:8
I will instruct you and show you the way you should walk, give you counsel with my eye upon you. Psalm 32:8

He wants to meet you,especially in times of sin and defeat

And the list goes on and on and on and on! Biblical scholars have counted OVER 3000 PROMISES that the Lord has made to us in Scripture! I am convinced that the first step into walking in the Victory of Christ is believing that God is who He says He is and His promises are true. The best way to grow in that is to have a steady stream of the promises in His Word.
The truth is written in a book you have in your house somewhere, it's on your phone/computer and throughout the Mass. The day I decided to read the Scriptures daily began one of the most transformative times in my faith. I have noticed a difference in my walking in victory or defeat in the times that I am engrossed in the Scriptures and the times that I slack off. I encourage you to join me in making or renewing a promise to God and yourself to read the promises of God in the Scriptures daily. I can promise you that God’s Word is “living and effective”(Hebrews 4:12) and reading the Scriptures daily can be one of the most transformative decisions you make in your life.

With love in Christ,
Taylor Schroll
P.S. If you don’t know where to start, I would suggest the Psalms which capture almost every human emotion/experience and are full of God’s promises! May God bless you and yours!