I Refuse to Settle

Revelation 5: “The Games We Play” Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Ladies and gentlemen, we should not allow our emotional and physical needs to blind us to what is really there in the people we date. There have been times when what I desired to see in a person overshadowed what was truly there. That is what I call “playing with ourselves.” If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it’s a duck. When we ask God to reveal what is hidden in the person that we meet or date, please believe that He will show you who that person is at that very moment. Although we may choose not to see it – is that just plain dumb or what? I’m so guilty of that. Ladies and gentlemen, we must be aware that we make a conscious choice to be blind to what God is showing us. We cannot afford to be so desperate for companionship that we don’t pay attention to the red flags and signs that the Father is giving us. If that person shows you inconsistencies, flakiness, and does not keep their word in the beginning, that’s their character being revealed. Now, you can be pulled or drawn into playing these games if you want to (many of us have) by ignoring the warning signs from God. Many of us have prolonged our future mates from coming into our lives. We cannot be afraid to walk away from someone who is wrong for us. Walking away puts you that much closer to the person God has for you and makes you open and available for God’s man or woman waiting for you. Girls Let’s Talk! ng me closer to my mate or making that man commit to me, it had the opposite effect. In one of my relationships -- if that’s what you want to call it -- oh, wait I know what to call it -- it was the “buddy” relationship. In the “buddy” relationship, you are friends who have sex without a commitment. This is worse than the “friend with benefits”. In my experience with my “buddy,” there came a time when grew I tired of the lack of commitment, I wanted more. I told him that I couldn’t do the buddy thing anymore and…God was convicting me. However, the truth is if he would Commented [DS3]: Revelation 5: “The Games We Play” (max 1000 words) have said “Charmaine, I want to be in a committed relationship with you,” this would have trapped me because I would have still been having sex with him and that would have been wrong any way you look at it. My standard would have still been compromised. Thank you, Lord, that he said, “No, that is not what I want.” At least he was honest, in fact he was very serious; he was adamant! Man Games Ladies, men play games by telling you the things that keep you pacified, things like this: “Well, we’ll see,” or “Maybe later on,” or -- this is the clincher -- “You never know,” which is one of the biggest lies because they know! If the relationship starts off with you giving up the goodies, without commitment for marriage, believe me, it’s going to most likely end the same way. You may end up with nothing, having given him the best part of who you are, is it worth it to you? =====Gaming God One person who we can’t play games with is God. He knows all and sees all. I remember I would cry on my best friend’s shoulder when I got lonely, or worse, when I had just fallen again, sexually. I would say to her, “Where’s my husband?” “What’s wrong?” “Why hasn’t he come yet?” All the while, I knew in my heart I was nowhere near ready for him. And my poor friend would be struggling to really help me figure out what in the world was the holdup. The answer was ME. Although my friend didn’t know what was going on in secret, God did. Until you’re ready for your mate, whether male or female, they will not come. You cannot play games with your future or your destiny. For God knows the time and season for everything. So why would a loving God bless you with his great and precious promises knowing you are truly not ready for them? Let’s stop lying to ourselves about where we are and be honest. When we continue to “front” and play games about where we are, it really stops the will of God in our lives. Just like Jacob, in the Word of God. At first, Jacob was true to his name; it meant “trickster.” Genesis 32 says that Jacob wrestled with the angel all night. Jacob said, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” And at daybreak, God told him, “Your name will no longer be Jacob (trickster) but Israel…” He got the blessing of not just name change but a nature change. It took struggle and determination, from that point on, Jacob was changed. I personally believe that when I got my breakthrough is when I began to realize that I could no longer fool God. I was a mess, and I needed to be changed from the inside out. And boy, what a wonderful change! knowing the truth, I allowed them to play games with me because of my neediness and vulnerability at that time. But as the Bible says in Thess. 4:3-8, we should learn to control our own body and not wrong our brother by taking advantage of them. So, let’s learn to love and respect ourselves and one another. Let us behave as if we know who God is, and who we are in Him.