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What a journey those Magi from ancient days must have had following the star that led them to Jesus the King of kings and Lord of lords. Have you thought about your journey with Christ? Maybe you’ve sat on the sidelines hoping for something to happen. Or maybe you’re afraid of what will happen if you go all-in for Jesus. Whatever the case let Him take control of your life, let Him have the steering wheel and one thing for sure, your life will be an adventure.
There is no other light than Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness.” The fact remains that if we don’t follow Him, we do walk in darkness. And where is that darkness? It is in the world. Those things that are opposite from what Jesus taught, what Jesus brought from God the Father to us here on earth are darkness. Jesus also said, “You are the light of the world.” Our light is not to glorify ourselves, but it is to reflect the desires and will of God to glorify Him. So, who is the Light? Christ Jesus the hope of glory is our light that is reflected through how we live out our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
It’s essential that our prayers be controlled by the word of God. When our prayer life is soaked in the word of God not only are our prayers renewed and fresh, our mind is renewed as well. And when our minds are renewed by the word of God our lives are renewed by the Spirit of God.
As believers in Jesus Christ, as followers of His Word, we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit that changes and transforms us, changes and transforms our desires. One of the desires He brings to light is prayer— talking to God. Prayer regardless of age, IQ, education, and resources, we can all do the same thing— pray. Since God invites and expects us to pray, then prayer has to be simple.
Do you know our lives are to reflect the thankful heart we have for what God has done? We ought to desire to walk into His presence with singing because of what Jesus has done— He saved us, He redeemed us, He called us His own! That is worth giving God all the praise and thanksgiving for working in each of our lives. As we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, let us remember the cost and give thanks to God for His hand of mercy and grace upon our lives.
As followers of Christ, there was a time in each of our lives when we surrendered to Christ. We gave Him our all, we were all in for His purpose and plan for our lives as individuals and as the Church. Jesus made it clear that commitment was a key part of being a follower of Christ. In the Gospels, we see many examples of people who followed Jesus because of what they hoped He could offer them, yet, He consistently challenged them to “count the cost” of following Him. We’re going to look at the call on the Christian life to be committed to Christ, His Word, the church, prayer, worship, and His mission. We’ll see that before God calls us to commit to Him in this way, He’s already committed to us.
We end our series on Understanding Spiritual Gifts this Sunday as we gather together to celebrate Holy Communion. Through this series, we’ve discovered that our spiritual gifts are given by God, used for His glory, and each one of us has a different one to build up the Body of Christ. Now that we know that, what are we going to do about it? Each one of us has a passion, something that burns inside of us to do, a heart to change our world. That fire is connected to the use of our gifts for the glory of God.
In order to continue using our gifts, being effective in this world for the glory of God we must be plugged into Christ. It bears repeating, no one can do anything without being plugged into the source of all things, especially when using and perfecting the spiritual gifts God has given you. Scripture reminds us, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me [plug into me], you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5, emphasis mine). So, how do we remain plugged in for life? Well, glad you asked. Listen in on the Sermon today.
We begin a new Sermon Series and Study focusing on Understanding the Spiritual Gifts. Did you know you have a gift given to you by the Holy Spirit? If you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, you have a spiritual gift to share with the Body of Christ to build it up in the world. That is how worthy you are to God that He has given something for you to do within the kingdom to help others see the abundant life now.
Put your Sunday groove on because we are coming together as a Church to worship, praise, and thank God for all He has done and will do through you and me in this new season. Have you ever seen those commercials where people press a reset button? We aren’t resetting things, we are moving forward with a Fresh Start, a new step in our walk with God and one another. Be sure to join us this Sunday as we see new faces, make friends, and take that fresh step in your spiritual journey. We have a ton of opportunities to make connections, learn more about God, and serve in our community!
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WORSHIP GATHERINGS:
Sundays at 9:00 a.m. or 11:00 a.m. 835 Riverside Avenue Torrington, CT 06790 See our regathering info here PHONE (860) 482-4705 OFFICE EMAIL secretary@firstcong.com GENERAL CHURCH EMAIL fcongrchurch@optonline.net |