VIII. HOW SHOULD I THEN LIVE?

Genesis 4:7

A covenant is a binding agreement.  It gives me the foundation of security and safety to know that God is in a covenant relationship with me.  When I break the terms of that covenant I lose that firm foundation and find myself on shifting sand.  Often that causes great anguish, feelings of depression, fear, guilt and alienation.  That is exactly what I should feel because breaking a binding agreement results in losing the security and safety of the firm foundation I was on.

Usually the breech in covenant is the result of pride, self reliance, or some other sin.  Bad feelings are like the warning lights on a car panel that shows that something is wrong or needs attention and action.  The light directs me to the problem so that it can be fixed and the car can operate as it was meant to, safely and securely.  Bad feelings such as depression and guilt show me that something is wrong and I need to address it and fix it.  To ignore those feelings or to say I need not feel them is like taking a hammer to the car’s control panel and breaking the warning light.

When the world or especially the church, tells people to ignore the warning signs of something that is affecting a person’s covenant relationship with God, they do a great injustice to people.  They are leading people into a false sense of safety and security; eventually the break in relationship, the real sin, will overcome and destroy them.

The enemies of God lie and are deceptive.  They cause me to attack and destroy the warning signs rather than the breach in the covenant.  Fortunately God does not break or breach the covenant He made with me and always sends a Nathan to point out the problem, just as He did to David in 2 Samuel 11 & 12.  Then I can repent and reconcile the covenant and regain my true safety and security and live as I was meant to live. Thankfully as I have gotten older I watch for the warning signs and attend to them quickly.  They, the depression or the guilt, are not the problem; they are a part of the solution because they tell me something is not right.

How should I then live?  I need to watch and heed the warning signs.  They are the gifts of God that He installed within me at birth, to keep me safe and secure.