My college roommate, Steve, was neat. Not just neat in the sense of a lot of fun, but neat in the sense of not sloppy. I, on the other hand, tend to be sloppy. Why make up a bed you’re going to sleep in that night? Steve was very gracious. Little by little he helped me change. I learned the purpose of hangers, the reason for toothpaste lids. Our four years of rooming together were four years of regular repentance. Then he turned me over to Denalyn, and she’s still working on me.

The same thing happens to Christians. As Christ moves in and takes up residence in his life, the Christian sees how sloppy he is. Over time, his language changes. His habits change. He lives a lifestyle of repentance. The longer we hang out with Jesus, the more we see what needs to change. Repentance becomes a lifestyle!

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If God chose only righteous people to change the world, you could count them all on one finger—Jesus! Instead he included others in his plan—sinners, the ungodly, the imperfect. God used and uses people to change the world. People! Crooks, creeps, lovers, and liars—he uses them all! If you ever wonder how God can use you to make a difference in your world, just look at those he has already used, and take heart.

No matter who you are or what you’ve done, God can use you. Because you’re imperfect, you can speak of making mistakes. Because you’re a sinner, you can speak of forgiveness. God restores the broken and the brittle, then parades them before the world as trophies of his love and strength. And when the world sees the ungodly turn godly, they know God must love them too. God can use you, my friend.

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Impatience is selfishness with time. We don’t like to waste it. People get in our way and slow things down, so we burn them with impatience!

Patience recognizes that we share time with others; it’s not just our time. Patience knows other factors are at work—that some things can be sped up with encouragement, not flames of retribution. The best way to turn down the flame of impatience is with love.

“Love is patient.” Love is a fruit hanging from the tree of Galatians 5:22. It’s the first-fruit, and some say the most important. The seeds of love produce the harvest of all the other fruits: joy, peace, patience… So if you have the Holy Spirit, then you have the potential of making patience a part of your life. Thankfully, God is patient while you find that patience.

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Nothing fosters courage like a clear grasp of grace. And nothing fosters fear like an ignorance of mercy. If you haven’t accepted God’s forgiveness, you’re doomed to live in fear. Nothing can deliver you from the gnawing realization that you have disregarded your Maker and disobeyed his instruction. No pill, pep talk, psychiatrist, or possession can set the sinner’s heart at ease.

You may deaden the fear, but you can’t remove it. Only God’s grace can. 1 John 1:9 (NKJV) says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Your prayer can be as simple as: “Father, I need forgiveness. Please forgive me. I place my soul in your hands and trust in your grace. Through Jesus I pray, amen.”

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In Psalm 32:5 (TLB), David says, “I confess my rebellion to the Lord. And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.”

Confession is not complaining. If I merely recite my problems and tell you how tough my life is, I’m not confessing. Confession is not blaming. Pointing fingers at others may feel good for a while, but it does nothing to remove the conflict within me. Confession is coming clean with God.

David discovered this. As if his affair with Bathsheba wasn’t enough. As if the murder of her husband wasn’t enough. David danced around the truth. It took a prophet to bring the truth to the surface, but when he did, David did not like what he saw. He confessed. He came clean with God. And the result? He proclaimed, “And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.”

Want to get rid of your guilt? Come clean with God.

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Simply put, we are not good enough to go to heaven. So what can we do? We could start doing good deeds. Perhaps if we do enough good deeds, they’ll offset our bad deeds.

The question then becomes how many good deeds? If I spend one year being greedy, how many years should I be generous? No one knows the answer to that question. A rule sheet can’t be found. A code has not been discovered. Why? Because God doesn’t operate this way.

God has been so kind to us. We have no way of balancing the scales. All we can do is ask for mercy. And God, because of his kindness, gives it. God turned over our sins to his Son. Jesus Christ died for us. He did what we could not do so that we might become what we dare not dream—citizens of heaven!

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I was seven years old. I’d had enough of my father’s rules and decided I could make it on my own, thank you very much! I got to the end of the alley and remembered I was hungry, so I went back home. Did Dad know of my insurrection? I suspect he did. Was I still his son? Apparently so – no one else was sitting in my place at the table.

Suppose someone had asked my father, “Mr. Lucado, your son says he has no need of a father. Do you still consider him your son?” What do you think he would have said? He considered himself my father even when I didn’t consider myself his son. His commitment to me was greater than my commitment to him. So is God’s. I can count on him to be in my corner no matter what! And you can too.

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Human love is convenient. It suits the needs of the person at the time and works into his schedule. God’s love is eternal. You’re always on his itinerary.

Human love is emotional. Hormones, sleeplessness, worry, past hurts, Mexican food—all complicate these emotions. God’s love is committed. While God has feelings for us, his feelings do not dictate his love. His love is based on a decision to love us. Your actions don’t increase or decrease his commitment. In fact, if you never love God, he will still love you.

One thing human love has going for it: you can see it. God’s love is just as real, but not quite as tangible. We will see it, in time and for eternity, as we gaze at the face of God and his Son, Jesus Christ, while we stand in the presence of God in heaven. And what a day that will be!

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On the unforgettable day when Patmos became Paradise, the apostle John saw what you and I will see. He saw One who sits on the throne. “Around the throne there were twenty-four other thrones with twenty-four elders sitting on them.” (Revelation 4:4 NCV).

The number twenty-four probably represents the twelve Hebrew tribes and the twelve apostles – the old Israel and the new covenant. The elders represent us, and what they do is what we will do. “They put their crowns down before the throne and say: ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, because you made all things'” (Revelation 4:10-11 NCV).

I cannot wait to see you there. One glance into the eyes of the King and you will know heaven has only one head worthy of a crown. And it’s not yours, and it’s not mine.

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“God will praise each one of them” (1 Corinthians 4:5 NCV). What an incredible promise! God will praise each of them. That day is coming. Your day is coming. God will put a crown on your head and a hand on your shoulder, and he will bless you.

Each child you hugged, he will praise you for it. Every time you forgave, he will praise you for it. Every penny you offered, every truth you taught, every prayer you prayed, he will praise you for it. He’ll praise you for the day you refused to give in and the season you refused to give up. But most of all, he’ll praise you for saying yes to Jesus.

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