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Conviction is our Friend

Conviction isn’t something we like to think about very often. I think that’s because it always seems to put us “under the spotlight”. Let me put a positive spin on it and help you see conviction in a new way.

The first thing we have to know is that conviction, not condemnation, comes from the Holy Spirit. As a believer, when we hear the voice of conviction, we’re hearing the voice of God. God is speaking to you directly, and the only reason He’s doing it is because He loves you. We are sheep following our Good Shepherd. That means we are going to need direction as we walk through this world. We’re also going to need to be corrected. The reason conviction comes is because God desires to bring change in our lives. He’s not trying to embarrass us, or shame us, or teach us a lesson necessarily; He simply wants us to be more like Him.

Everyone wants to be used by God, but we all must go through the process of change. In other words, God wants to change us so He can use us in a greater way. There are things in our life (attitudes, thoughts, unbelief) that must be dealt with. These things have to come out of us to make room for what God wants to put in us in their place. Sometimes our heart gets overcrowded with the wrong things.  I’ll tell you one thing we need to be convicted of more than anything else, and that’s the Goodness of God. Sometimes we find ourselves expecting the worst or the least from Him. That way of thinking is a reflection of how we really see God – and that needs to change. We need God’s help to see the very things that are stealing our life from us.

Conviction can be a good thing. If the Lord sees something that needs to be changed, it means He has His eye on you, to change you for the better. Give yourself over to God’s motive behind conviction: His great love for you.  Trust Him, respond to His voice, take responsibility for what He’s showing you, and you’ll find yourself as a tool smoothly functioning in the Master’s Hand.

Blessings!

Dan Owczarzak