Agony of an inwardly focused individual

Date: 28-July-2012

Venue: Toongabbie Prayer Group

Today, in many cultures and belief systems the position of priest is an inherited profession flowing from fathers to their sons. Likewise, kingship is also passed on generationally from one to another. The only qualification it seems is the family line someone is born to avail the inheritance.  However, in this study we can see under God’s leadership, inheritance does not necessarily come naturally from one generation to another, instead it is given according to future heir’s character, which is primarily shaped by God himself.

Insight: Examine your attitude if the rightful honor and privilege you ought to get is not coming your way as a first born in your family. The Lord may have intervened and changed it around.

We will be using the first-born son to Jacob and Leah as a use case. His name was Reuben. We all know the story of how Leah was given into marriage to Jacob by her father Nabal. Leah became Jacob’s first wife out of circumstance rather than choice and Rachel her sister was Jacob’s intended wife became his second wife. Rachel was more beautiful that Leah, but Rachel could not conceive and give children to Jacob. Leah bore 6 sons and a daughter to Jacob, Rachel later was able to bear children of her own. Together the twelve sons of Jacob make up the 12 tribes of Israel, of whom Reuben was the first-born to Jacob. According to the Old Testament law, ‘double share of all the father’s wealth’ were to be given to the first- born (Deut 21:17). He had the right to the birthright and the inheritance of father’s wealth. However, Reuben lost this important blessing to his younger brother Joseph (Deut 33:16). Joseph would get the double portion of his father’s blessing and not the first-born son Reuben. Furthermore, the scepter was given to Judah as a sign of the ruler of the tribes instead of Reuben (Gen 49:8-10). It seems to me that God bent the rules to give the blessings to other sons?  Or did God randomly pick other siblings to give his blessings as a sign of fairness to all?

Insight: When God does something, He does so with a purpose and foreknowledge. If one of your siblings is blessed more that you or if has achieved more that you, then it is the Lord who made it possible because he has a higher purpose behind His plan.

Before we find out why God did what He did, let’s look at why Reuben lost his birthright and scepter a sign of a ruler of the tribe to his younger brothers. It is clear from the Bible that God knew us even before we were created. He knows us inside out, He knows our mental makeup and he knows how to navigate our mind. Even though Reuben was the first-born he had a turbulent mentality (Gen 49:4), it is said his temperament was like unstable water and additionally Reuben had defiled his father’s bed by taking one of Jacob’s concubine, Bilhah as his own wife (Gen 49:4 & Gen 35:22). Reuben lived in an incestuous relationship with Bilhah, the mother of Dan and Napthali the half brothers of Reuben. These two major crises put Reuben in a precarious position with his father Jacob. God worked through Jacob to establish a plan so that the Israelites would see God’s promise fulfilled. In doing so, God chooses his own peoplåe who diligently seek to accomplish his purpose. In this case God sees the potential in Joseph and Judah rather than Reuben.

Insight: If you are loosing your ground as a first born, it shows God has advanced ahead of you to fulfill his higher purpose, i.e. to keep His Promise He made to the forefathers in the wilderness.

As a result of Reuben’s failure, his generation would be small (Deut 33:6), not in a numerical sense but in how they would be engaged in the higher calling to fulfill God’s plans. Reuben would not be prominent. It is no coincident there were no prophets, no Judge, no kings or no hero from the tribe of Reuben and many tended sheep (Num 32:1 & Judges 5:15-16). However, God would fulfill one promise to the Reubenites that was made by Moses  ‘they will live and not die (Gen 33:6)’

Our sins have dire consequences and the sins of Reuben were the same.  Eventually it became generational curses to the entire Reubenites. They would become the first tribe taken into captivity by the Assyrians (1 Chron 5:26). God knew the hearts and mind of the entire tribe that ran through the generational curse of Reuben, they were a tribe unwilling to claim the Promised Land – Canaan as God promised. The promise given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would one day become less important to the Reubenites (Num 32:1-7).

Insight: In this life we are on a journey to seek out our own Canaan. We may walk in the wilderness of life, we see ups and downs and suddenly we see an oasis. God provides these oases as a place of refuge and not our permanent home even if it offered the best options possible.

When they reached the border of river Jordan, the Reubenites decided not to enter the Promised Land because life was much better where were. They became inwardly focused, self-centered and they put their interest ahead of what God wanted them to do. They forgot the very reason why they were rescued from Egypt and this they had completely disregarded the promise given to their forefathers. Reubenites found a green pasture and became selfish instead of fighting the enemy and claiming the Promised Land. Inward looking people only care about themselves. It is not clear if Reuben’s lack of interest was a result of loosing out his birthright and leadership of the tribes to other younger brothers. But he was certainly not encouraging his brothers in the pursuit to claim the Promised Land (Num 32:1-7)

Insight: Just because you did not make it big in your life doesn’t mean that you should become a stumbling block to the others. Reuben’s reluctance was a discouragement to the other brothers.

In spite of Reuben’s failure, the Lord is always just and faithful to every sinner. The promise he gave through Moses, ‘Reuben will live and not die’ (Deut 33:6) will be fulfilled (Rev 7:5).

Doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord should always precede claiming our rightful privileges. Lord knows our heart and He knows the direction we will take in our lives. The choice to follow His direction or follow our own will is entirely up to us but the consequences, as the result of those choice should be considered.

Prayer

Lord, the reason why others succeed more than me and why my efforts are diminished in the grand scheme of things are much clearer to me now. Rather than feeling bitter about their success, help me to identify where I’ve failed, correct it and become effective participant in your Kingdom work. Help me not to become a stumbling block in the other’s progress. This prayer I ask in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Your Availability or Ability

Date: 21-July-2012

Venue: Toongabbie Prayer Group

When the Lord sets His eyes on you, He will do whatever He wants to accomplish His purpose in and through you. We see this unfold time and again in several examples in the Bible. In this study, we will look at one particular aspect in Moses. I am sure many of us are familiar with the story of Moses, adopted into the royal family, grew up in the Egyptian palace, trained by the royal regiment and dined the finest food there was in Egypt. On the other hand, his older brother Aaron and his sister Miriam were living in Egypt in slavery. Moses was separated from the rest of the siblings by diving plan. God was in fact grooming the future leader of the Israelites in Moses.

When Moses was about forty years old, he left the palace to follow God’s direction. However he had a weakness, which was his inability to speak fluently, he stammered (Exod 3:10 & 4:10,12). Moses lacked confidence in persuading Pharaoh to free the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, so he argued with God to send someone else to stand up before Pharaoh and seek the freedom to the Israelites. 

Insight: When we allow God to work in our lives, he looks for our availability and not our ability.

Aaron was a gifted speaker; we know from the Bible he was the first high priest. God used Aaron’s strength in Moses’ weakness. Moses was a gifted leader but God insisted on using Moses as a leader while Aaron became Moses’ mouthpiece (Ex 4:14-16)

Insight; God does not give you gifts unless your characters permits to excel in it.

Even though Aaron was the older brother of Moses, he humbled himself before God to support his younger brother to be a leader while he became just his mouthpiece. God knows our capabilities. For instance, God knew that Moses was to become the deliverer of the Israelites from Egypt and Aaron had to use his gifts to fulfill God’s agenda. Too often we see and hear in families that elder siblings become driven by ego and then they intervene in God’s plan for the other siblings. Here we see how Aaron worked in conjunction with what God had already planned instead of arguing about leadership or his claim on the first born right to inheritance.

Insight: If you are an older sibling, the right to use your gifts over your younger sibling should only come at God’s choosing and not yours. Instead of becoming bitter and narrow minded, it is always good to know it is God who decides who is capable to carry out his work. It is God who has shaped us with the unique DNA that is so essential to carry out his agenda.

Aaron no doubt was humble to say yes for a higher calling but he too failed like most of us have. He suffered from the murmurings of the people (Exod 16:2 & num 14:2). The man who had great oratory skills is now persuaded by the people to make a golden calf and worship it (Exod 32:4). Aaron was now the leader of Israel while his younger brother Moses went to Mount Sinai to be with the Lord. Surely Aaron’s lack of leadership is evident here. One may argue that the murmurings of the hundreds and thousands of people may have subdued him, while others may say that he was forced into making an image as the ‘god’ of Israelites.  Whether or not Aaron has to be blamed here is not the argument but we see time and again the Lord is just in honoring his children. He is faithful to forgive us (1 John 1:9) and when we seek His forgiveness He remembers our sins no more (Heb 8:12)

Insight: There is no sin known to God that is unforgivable

Aaron is always remembered for his calling. Many years later, David remembers the union of the brothers to that of anointing with oil (Psalms 133:2-3). The Israelites looked up to Aaron with high esteem, the ‘entire’ household of Israel mourned for his death (Num 20:29) for 30 days.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help me to humble myself and be ready to use my gifts to the fullest for your glory. Instead of being like someone else, help me be what you have made me to be. If I am skilled in encouraging, help me to encourage others and if it is in giving, help me to give. Do not let me be driven with self-interest and self-praise.  I want to learn from Aaron to make myself available to the higher calling. This I ask in the name of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Who Do You Say I Am?

Teaching given at Liverpool, NSW Australia, on 26-May-2012

As Jesus enter the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked the disciples which I believe the most important question of their lives,' who do people say I am?', every one of us want to know what others think about us, we want our partners to know who we really are, we want our work mates to know who we are and we want our family to know who we are. As important as this question might be to many of us, let's examine the reason why Jesus asked this question.


Today if I go around asking who do people think Jesus is, I am sure I would get variety of answers, some may say he was a good man, a prophet, revolutionary figure, a political leader, a good teacher, while others may say he was a miracle worker. This is what the people in Caesarea Philippi thought about Jesus. Some thought he was the reincarnation of John the Baptist who had been beheaded by King Herod (Mark 6:14-29), while others thought he was prophet Elijah who died some 850 years before Jesus was born. Nothing too surprising, after all the miracles and power testimonies of who he was and where he came from, people still had their doubts about who Jesus really was. Today after more than 2000 years of Christendom, many may be struggling with this question.

As he walks along, Jesus zooms in on the disciples with another intriguing question, 'but who do you say I am?' (Mark 8:29), if Jesus where to ask you this very question today, what would your answer be, will you admit just like with Peter,'you are the Messiah' or will you remain silent as the other 11 disciples? Yes, Peter's confession was appropriate, Jesus Christ cannot be anyone less than our Savior, He is the God who came in human flesh to rescue us from sin and death. If he was anyone other than God, he is either a liar and a lunatic or God manifesting in human form as he claims in the Bible.

So why ask such a question? was Jesus trying to build his profile amongst his disciples? I think if we explore more in this section of the bible (Mark 8:27-31), we can unearth some valuable insights.

After Peter confessed Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus warned his disciples not to tell anyone about him (v.30), these are most likely reasons why Jesus wanted his disciples to refrain from telling anyone about his role as the Messiah.

1. Revealing about who Jesus is to the world must be on God's timing and not man's schedule. Today over a billion people know and confess Jesus as their Messiah but that is just 1/7th of the population. The rest will surely know and admit who Jesus is in God's timing. We are called to simply take up our cross and follow Him (v.34)

2. There is no point in arguing with people who have false idea or opinion about Jesus. Some believe Jesus was a mere prophet based on what they were taught yet others believe he was an incarnation of one of their gods. Whatever the case may be, the role of Messiah can only be understood if His believers become the Light in this dark world and Salt in people's lives. Jesus was more or less telling his disciples, 'let them know that you are Christians by your love' (Song composed by Jars of Clay).

3. Israelites thought Jesus would become their political figure, someone who will abolish the Roman rule and give them freedom to live in their promised land. The role of Messiah was not about setting up an earthly kingdom. Messiah is someone 'who will suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the religious law. he would be killed and three days later he would rise from the dead' (v.31)

4. He does not want people to follow Jesus and accept Him just because Peter confessed who Jesus was. Jesus does not expect you to believe in Him just because someone told you, or your church told you or some belief system has told you. He does not want you to take the cues from the others, He probably wants you to make up your own mind about who He really is. Following the teaching of men can only lead to men and to their teaching but not to God.

5. People were not ready to accept that Jesus was the promise of Gen 3:15, they did not yet see him as the deliverer promised to Abraham and David's descendants, they had not grasped the fact that He was the one about whom the prophets had prophesied

6. People had not yet accepted that Jesus was the I AM of the old testament (Exodus 3:6-14), Jesus said I AM the bread of life, the truth, way, the good shepherd, the beginning and the end and on it goes...

For those of us who believe and accept Jesus as our Messiah, He is our Great Prophet for He knows his future, he knew his purpose in life and He knows the will of God. He is the Great High Priest who is the only one who is eligible to offer the atoning sacrifice for our sins and He is our Great King who will come to reign once again from above.

Prayer


Father God, how awesome it is to wait upon you, how fulfilling it is to live in your presence and how honored we are to make that personal commitment to follow you. You are the great I AM of our lives. You are all we need God, strengthen us as we carry our cross daily to follow Jesus our Lord and Savior. Amen

Feeding the Five Thousand

Part 1:
How many signs do you want to see before accepting Jesus as your Savior? How many miracles should Jesus perform for you to accept Him as your deliverer? Wouldn't you want to ask, Philip and Andrew as they were the close witnesses to the numerous miracles the Lord had performed. Jesus used them as a 'sounding board' to see how they would respond if they were to provide food for the five thousand, they only saw their impossibilities when pressed hard for answers. Philip was quick to calculate how many months of wages it would require to feed a bite to each one of those five thousand men, while Andrew could only see the inadequacy, 'the five loaves and two small fish would not go far enough' he said (John 6:9). They failed to ask Jesus for guidance. They failed to trust that Jesus can do the impossible. They perhaps they were missing the point what Jesus was trying to make.

The good news is that Jesus did not reprimand his disciples for failing to know who Jesus was and you too can be for not recognizing who Jesus really is in your personal lives. For one you are too far stretched out in time from when Jesus walked the earth and secondly, one of the irony of living in a pluralistic society is that we are obliged to accept even if we disagree. Like the disciples, when you are pressed hard for answers, you look inwardly rather than upwards to God. You look at what you don't have rather than whom you have with you.

Today the world is looking for answers. You have several options
- Do you consider Him as your Lord and God, the Only One who can free you from your Sin and give you life eternal?
- Do you want to follow Jesus as a godly man, a prophet from God. Is he really a prophet or is he more than a prophet?
- Do you believe that Jesus came to give political freedom and establish Israel at the central authority from where all political and spiritual decisions would be made ((Isaiah 11:11-12)

Would you follow Jesus Christ because He can heal you or because he can deliver you from your sins?

Venue: Liverpool Prayer Group
Message Given: 23-Mar-2012

Would you follow Jesus Christ because He can heal you or because He can deliver you from your sins?
After Jesus had performed a series of great miracles, right from healing the sick, casting out demons from men, curing a leper, making a paralytic walk, healing a man's hand, calming the storm for his disciples and setting free a man from being possessed by a legion of demons, Jesus was looking to go on to the otherside of the mountain to pray and spend some time with his Father. But a great crowd of people followed Him because they saw the signs Jesus had performed by healing the sick (John 6:2). If you asked yourselves the question as to why the crowd were following Jesus, Apostle John is quite clear here, it was in pursuit of healing.

Two thousand years ago many followed Jesus but most of them did so for their temporal needs, and it's no different today. Christians can get too easily carried away when a healing minister is in town. Just take a look at the large crowds that follow the modern day healers and compare it with the numbers who attend an average Bible seminar or even regular Sunday services. As Christians, we tend to want action and we want it now.

Jesus can no doubt heal our sicknesses but is that the reason He came into this world? Is that the reason why he was paid as a ransom to purchase us? If He came just to heal the sick and perform miracles then we read about the people continuing to become sick and continue to be possessed by demons even during and after His three years of ministry. Jesus did not abolish sicknesses once and for all during his ministry.Jesus can heal the sick, He can do the impossible but His true calling was much more than that, He came to save sinners (Mark 2:17 & 1 Tim 1:15). No one on earth had been given the authority to forgive the sinners, only Jesus had that authority to forgive sins (Mark 2:10). No wonder the Pharisees questioned Jesus when Jesus forgave the sins of the paralytic (Mark 2:7)

Today many Christians do not want consider that they are sinners but they just want to be healed. Some don't even want to know the source of their healing. Apostle Paul, was sick many times, he was ship wrecked, he felt lonely and depressed and yet he admitted he was a sinner and a hopeless sinner at that (1 Tim 1:15). Unless we admit that we are sinners and we need deliverance from sin, then Jesus coming into this world is pointless. Its the sick who needs a doctor, its a sinner who needs a savior. If you have been praying for many years for a cetrtain healing to take place in your life and you may be still waiting for an answer. Here is what Jesus said, 'it's better for you to enter life with one eye (Matt 18:9)' and 'it's better to enter life crippled, rather than have two hands and legs and be thrown into eternal fire (Matt 18:8).Temporal needs are temproray needs, they only last as long as you life on this earth but those who put their trust in Jesus as their Savior will live with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit for eternity. When we compare our time here on earth with that we spend with God in Heaven and only then we can have the right perspective in our walk with Jesus. Are we following Him for our temporal needs or our eternal needs?

Prayer:
Holy God, I have been a busy body doing so many activities in the hope of pleasing you but at the risk of loosing my Soul. I failed to realise that I am a sinner and a hopeless sinner. There is hope only in you. You are the only one who can set right my sin nature. I want to be delivered from my sins more than I want to my temporal needs answered. Hear me O Lord! Amen!

Thank you & God Bless you!
Chris

Positional Relationship with Jesus Christ

Date: 9-Mar-2012
Venue: Toongabbie Church Hall
One may consider himself a Christian by virtue of being baptised in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Let's call this person a 'child of God and co-heir with Christ' (Rom 8:17). At the same time when that person falls back into his old sin nature, even though co-heir with Christ, he becomes slave to sin because he has not yet gained spiritual maturity (Gal 4). For instance, When one falls back into the old sin, then God's image is marred, He tends to become slave to the very thing he hates. Until one reaches the spiritual maturity, he may tend to go back and forth the sin nature. According to Apostle Paul, this is because he has not fully entered into a rightful inheritance and relationship with God the Father. As such he is simply a 'trustee and guardian' (Gal 4:2) of Godly things. When it comes to God's inheritance, basically there isn't much difference between a christian who has not matured and that of slave. They both hold onto things on a temporary basis.

So what shall we do to be set free to experience our rightful heritage? Practically, there is nothing much we can do but it is what God the Father has already done for us. Saint Paul says, 'God at the appointed time, sent His Only Son Jesus Christ, born to a Woman, born under the condition of the law so that He might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law' (Gal 4:5-6). Therefore, to transition from a trustee or guardian role to a rightful heir of God's inheritance, God had to purchase us from the legalities of the world. No longer we are slave to the old sin nature, we are now truly co-heirs with Christ even to call God the Father as 'Abba, Father'. In other words, we've been temporarily calling God as Our Father up until the time God allowed His Son Jesus to be paid as a price to redeem us. That is why Apostle Paul can confidently share his own experience when he said 'when one belongs to Christ, the old nature is gone, a new life has begun' (2 Cor 5:17). Jesus Christ is the one who was paid as a price to redeem us and we should belong to Him to remove our old nature.

What's next, we were transitioned from a slave to a son then made co-heir with Christ. I mean a mature son of God for a lasting relationship, for 'slaves does not stay with the Father forever but a son does' (John 8:35). Symbolically, we were raised from the dead (dead to sin), we are now seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph 2:6). Our position in Christ makes it possible to call God, 'Our Father'. Furthermore, we no longer have to live in the realm of darkness anymore, God has rescued us and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear son (Col 1:13)

In summary, we were once slaves to sin, then we became children of God although spiritually immature but God redeemed us at the appointed time to bring us back to Him permanently in a rightful relationship to Him. We became co-heirs with Christ, we can call God as 'Our Father' and Jesus has empowered us with the Holy Spirit to live a Godly life here on earth until He returns to take us back to sit in the heavenly realms with Jesus Christ our Savior in all His glory.

Prayer:Our Father, we learnt that our positional relationship with you depends on our position with your Son Jesus Christ. Help us to align to Him always. We cannot do it on our own merit but by your divine plan and purpose. Thank you for including me in your master plan, Thank you for redeeming me through the blood of Jesus Christ and Thank you for the Holy Spirit through whom we are empowered to call you Abba Father. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!

Thank you & God Bless you!
Chris

The God of All Situations

Sermon Date: 10-Mar-2012
Venue: All Saints Church, Liverpool NSW Australia

Has there been a situation in your life when you tried all you could but it was too difficult to manage? Today we will see a couple of situations where the disciples did not consider Jesus as the first option.

After a marathon week of healing the sick, curing many inflicted with diseases and preaching a series of parables, Jesus is looking for a place to take a breather (Mark 4:35). Apostle Mark gives us some beautiful word pictures to help us immerse ourselves in this story. Probably tired from the hectic week, Jesus requested His disciples to get a boat ready to go to the other side of the lake. Very soon after only a short while into the journey a huge storm came up almost threatening to sink the boat. Jesus was sleeping in the stern with his head on a pillow. It would seem that that the disciples tried to manage on their own to steady the boat, perhaps some of them would have expected Jesus to come up anyway from the stern of the boat to rescue them from 'perishing' (Luke 8:24), some even rebuked Jesus for carelessly sleeping while the disciples were perishing (Mark 4:38). Only God can command the wind to remain still and the sea to be calm. When the triune God created the heaven, earth, ocean, sea and the land, He created them by simply speaking. There was disorderliness, God spoke and there was orderliness.

When disaster strikes our first port of call ought to be Jesus Christ. He is ever present in our lives, in our families, at our work place and all situations. We should tap him and wake him up. He is never too tired to help you. The second lesson we learn from this story is that when disaster strikes, disorderliness sets in, God must be allowed to speak and only then we can see quietness and calmness in our situation. The experienced fishermen could not predict the weather and they could not maneuver their boats. Our knowledge, our contacts, our stars and our destiny cannot save us from perishing only God can.

Furthermore, when they reached the other side of the lake to a country known as Gerasenes, Jesus stepped out of the boat and immediately met a man who was possessed with a legion of demons. If we read this story as if it were someone else’s son, somebody's brother or another person, then it may have less of an impact. Let's read as if this man is one of our sons or our brothers or even one of our close friends. Can you imagine this person living in the caves, unclothed, bound in shackles and chain, cutting himself with sharp stones, crying and shouting all night? No one could subdue him. The very reason Satan is here in the world is to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) us, this man has become a complete tool for Satan. It is ironic that even the demons knew who Jesus was (Mark 5:7), sometimes even Jesus' disciple did not know who Jesus was (Mark 4:41). As we read this section of the Gospel we can see that only Jesus has the power over Satan and demons, Jesus can thwart their plans and He can torment them (Mark 5:7). Jesus gave permission to the demons to be cast into the herd of pigs, thus saving the demon possessed man. A minute ago this man was in a pathetic condition, utter disorder in his physical and mental state. Once he experienced the power of Jesus Christ, he was set free, he sat at the feet of Jesus fully clothed and in his right mind (Mark 5:15).

What a transformation when Jesus takes control of the situation? It makes me wonder where his family members might have been, did he have parents living at that time, did they disown him, what about his brothers and sisters or his friends? What a lonely person he would have been. Satan had stolen everything from this man. The whole country of Gerasenes were against Jesus, they wanted Him to leave, probably for making the two thousand and odd pigs drown in the lake. Whatever may be the case, Jesus is not welcome when people choose to live in darkness, but the man who was healed does not want to let go Jesus. This is the power of Jesus, you become attached to His unfailing love. He came to save sinners. The fully healed man is now commissioned by Jesus to proclaim the good news to the ten cities of the Gentiles on the east of Jordon including Damascus in Syria. Jesus has you and me (the gentiles) in His mind, he can make the impossible to make it possible for you to be saved. The ten Greco-Roman cities were blessed by this man’s teaching, the man who was healed by Jesus, his name is unknown but is works speaks even today. May these ten cities re-lives the times of Gospel proclamation once again.

What do we learn from these two stories? Firstly, Jesus is the God of orderliness, He mends our chaotic lives and gives peace and calm, wherever there is disaster and turmoil, he wants us to trust him to rescue us. Secondly, Jesus must be given a chance to have His say in our situation in order to find a lasting peace. Thirdly, Satan's purpose is to steal, kill and destroy you but Jesus came to give you life, life in abundance. Finally, when Jesus changes you, you will be of a right mind, clothed in righteousness ready to proclaim the wondrous things He has done in your life.

Prayer:
Father in Heaven, we have taken our eyes off you in our own lives, in our families and in all of our situations. We now want to call upon Jesus’ name always to rescue us. Our lives have been disorderly because we tried to manage it on our own but now we want to seek your help. Change our lives, clothe us in righteousness, make us the people whom you want us to be. This we ask in Jesus mighty name! Amen!