Connected To Christ
By guest author
KAYLA WRIGHT
Licensed Christian Counselor
Specialist in Child & Adolescent Therapy
Life Training Christian Counseling
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
John 15:5 NIV
I grew up in a Christian home. I genuinely never had a time in my life where I didn’t have the love of Christ being poured into me, and praise God for that! Yet, as I reached adolescence, I found myself feeling the weight of my imperfections slowly overcome me. How do I be the perfect daughter, sister, friend, and Christian? I know what it looks like to love like Christ, and yet I keep failing. How can Jesus say His “yoke is easy” and His “burden is light” if it feels so heavy (Matthew 11:30)? What took me over a decade to learn and what I’d like to share with you is this: Perfection is heavy; His grace is not.
Perfection Is Heavy; God’s Grace Is Not
When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior and receive the Holy Spirit within our hearts, we begin the process of becoming like Jesus. Romans 12:2 says to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is” (NIV). It is important to note that we are first transformed, then able to recognize God’s will. We are not able to do right things on our own, so when we focus on our abilities to do the right things, we feel the defeat of not measuring up. However, when we focus on being connected to God, growing in our relationship with Him, and allowing the Holy Spirit to transform and renew our minds, we find ourselves loving like Christ. That is what Jesus is bringing light to in John 15. Apart from Jesus, we can do nothing, but connected to Him, we “will bear much fruit”. How do we make this shift from focusing on our achievements to maintaining our relationship with God?
Receive His Grace
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ.”
Romans 3:23-24
Once I acknowledge that His Grace is sufficient for me, I no longer have to be afraid of failing (2 Corinthians 12:9). Does that mean I get to freely frolic in sin? In the words of Paul in Romans 6:2, “Absolutely not!” However, it does mean that I no longer have to tiptoe in fear of wrong steps. I can walk humbly and freely, learning along the way, and trusting in God to cover the spaces where I misstep. My focus can be on aligning my heart to God’s, seeing myself and others through His eyes and loving myself and others with His love.
Fall In Love With Getting To Know God
“How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand–when I awake, I am still with you.”
Psalm139:17-18
Reading the Bible can feel like a daunting task. It is certainly very expansive, and parts of it can be hard to understand. How I read my Bible changed when I learned how to see God in every part. I now get excited to study God’s word, because I discover new parts of His character each time. We see His faithfulness through generations through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We see His power and patience with the Israelites. We see His redemption in Moses, David, Rahab, Peter, and Paul. We see the outpouring of His love through Jesus’ life, sacrifice, and resurrection. When I fall in love with getting to know God, I chase after Him. I delight in every moment of prayer or conversation surrounding Him. As we grow closer to Him, our hearts become more like His, and we are able to act more like Christ.
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Kayla Wright joined the counseling team at Life Training Christian Counseling in May of this year. The passion of her counseling work is to make a meaningful difference in the lives of TEENS AND PRE-TEENS.
Kayla is nationally licensed as a Christian Counselor by the National Christian Counselors Association, with an advanced board certification in Child & Adolescent Therapy. Kayla gained extensive experience and credibility in providing counseling to teens and pre-teens during her tenure on the staff of Revive Christian Counseling in Owensboro and Madisonville, Kentucky.
Kayla Wright, as well as each of our other counselors, offers convenient sessions at our office in Louisville, Kentucky, as well as online counseling via Zoom or FaceTime. Please click on this link to learn much more about how our COUNSELING FOR TEENS & PRE-TEENS in Louisville, Kentucky can help the child you love find the highly-effective, Christ-centered help they need. Contact us today at 502-717-5433, or by email at kayla@lifetrainingcounseling.org