Woman to Woman: "Whatever We Worship We Will Obey"

This week we're in chapter 5 of our study of, "What Happens When Women Say Yes to God," by Lysa Terkeurst.

For the past four weeks, we have been studying what happens when women decide to say yes to God. Today we are looking at the topic of what keeps us from saying yes to God.

When we decide to go forth in radical obedience and choose to love God with all our hearts and minds, we will most assuredly come across opposition. It can come in the form of well meaning individuals who may be convicted in some areas of their own life as they question why we're are being sold out and radical for Christ. The opposition may also come from within as we're pulled and swayed by the desires of self versus the will of God.

Lysa spoke about two gatekeepers that keep us from going into the garden of plenty that God has in store for us when we decide to say yes to him. The first gatekeeper is acceptance. This one sways us with compliments of how wonderful we are, and how highly esteemed we are to others. It lures us with a false sense of self; which makes us afraid of being able keep the facade up. We end up being caught up in the lie of comparisons wondering if we will measure up to others around us. The second gatekeeper is that of rejection. Rejection lures us away from what God really wants us to do. It fills our minds with the what if questions. What if I fail? What if others laugh at me? What if this wasn't what I was really supposed to do?

The way we turn away for the gatekeepers of acceptance and rejection is by believing, "His truth is that I am precious and accepted no matter what. No matter what choices I make, His love is not based on my performance. His love is based on His perfect surrender at the cross. But, I must choose to accept this love and walk this truth for it to make a difference in how I journey through life." - Lysa Terkeurst It all boils down to rejecting the lies of the world and putting our hope and trust in what matters most, Jesus Christ.

When the hard places of life arise that can get in the way of fully saying yes to God, we need to immerse or self in his presence through prayer and reading his Word. It's something that may not come natural at first, however it's a choice we must make.

We must choose to worship God and make Him first place in our lives.

"When we worship in these hard places, we are reminded that none of this is about us - it's all about God. We turn our focus off of ourselves and come back onto God Almighty. God can use empty places in your life to draw your heart to him." - Lysa Terkeurst

If we ever want to get past the baggage that weighs us down from fully saying yes to God, it will have to come from choosing to walk with God, day by day, every step of the way. This is when peace can be found.

"If only you had paid attention to my commands , your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea.' - Isaiah 48:18

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." - John 14:27

Wherever we place our attention, that is where our heart will be. We have the choice to focus on the problems in life, and worry and fret about them and watch them become insurmountable. Or, we can focus on Christ and watch his grace and goodness flow freely through our lives.

The choice is ours friends.

Whatever we worship, we will obey.

I don't want anything getting in the way of being able to say yes to God. Do you agree friends? From here on out my full attention and worship is fixed on Christ alone.

Won't you join me on this journey?

Just say yes.

It is time for our Woman to Woman Word Filled Wednesday Link Up. We desire to connect women of God with one another and encourage each other in Christ. So grab a cup of coffee, sit back and visit a few blogs. Be encouraged and share your own stories in their comments.

Use the hashtag #w2wwordfilledwednesday!

Three rules to this link up:

1. Must be a {Christian} faith post.

2. You must link back to W2W somewhere in your post.

3. You must visit and comment on at least one other blog in the link up.