When I was in the Military, we used to always call the commander of our forces “the Old Man”. Our Old Hickory was crude and crusty, and nobody liked him. He used to go out drinking with all his chief executives while belittling and harassing his junior officers; constantly making life miserable for the rest of us. He certainly was not a fine example of an leader, let alone the leader of an army. So when the Old Hickory was transferred to a different base, we all rejoiced with immense elation.
Then we got a new general — a new Old Man. The old Old Man no longer had his hold of authority over us; he was gone… and he wasn’t coming back. But I was trained tirelessly under that Old Man. So how do you think I related to the new Old Man? At first I responded to him just like I had been conditioned to respond to the old general. I tiptoed around him expecting him to bark at me and bite my head off. That’s how I lived for over four years around my first general.
However, I got to know the new general and as I got to know him more and more, I began to realise that he wasn’t a crusty old malicious tyrant like my old Old Man. He wasn’t out to harass his crew; he was a good guy who really cared for us.
I had been programmed for four years to react a certain way when I saw a general’s hand raised above his head. I didn’t need to react that way any longer, but it took many months to recondition myself to the new general.
YOU also once have served under a self-serving gnarly general: your old sinful self with its sinful nature. The admiral of that fleet is Satan himself, the prince of darkness. But by God’s grace you have been transferred into Christ’s kingdom ….
So why do you still react as if your old general was still in control of your behaviour?
Thank you so much for allowing your eyes to be opened once more through another post! I sincerely hope and pray that this message has touched you for the better.
Remember, TEO will have a new message up for you all every week so grab some friends and join us or journey with us solo on our eye-opening adventure! Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section down below.
THE DISAPPERANCE OF MY OLD MAN … YOUR NEW COMMANDO
PRAYER POINT
Dear Lord Heavenly Father, I thank you that my relationship with my old general, that old sinful self, is gone. I choose to live today in the reality of my new nature ~ Christ!
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