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Celebrating a New Beginning is a joyful and transformative experience, akin to embarking on a fresh journey with Jesus. It's an opportunity to leave behind the past and embrace a spiritual rebirth filled with hope, faith, and the promise of a brighter future.
In life, we encounter moments of despair, confusion, and limitation. It is during these times that we may feel lost, spiritually blind, and unable to move forward. Yet, it is essential to remember that it is in the in-between where Jesus shows up most powerfully. He bridges the gap between our struggles and ultimate transformation. Jesus is our in between.
There are many things in this world that are clamoring for our attention. But the truth remains in the real issue— how we live our lives for Jesus. The Bible remains the believers’ guide, the place where we can find the real answer to real issues that we face each and every day so that we can be doers of the word and not only those who have heard or believed the lies the devil tries to get us to believe.
We all have a message to tell. It’s what we’ve been calling “Our Story.” You have a different story that will capture the attention of some people while another person has their story that will intrigue others. Yet in each one of our stories is the certain fact that Jesus Christ came into our lives to transform us into His character. Who has heard your story? Who has yet to hear it? God calls us to go tell it from the mountains that Jesus Christ has come to seek and save that which was lost.
Where would you be if your friend or relative didn’t ask you to come to church or attend a Christian event? Think about it. Your friend was most likely your friend first before asking you to hear about Jesus. How we seek people, how we listen, how we engage and invite can make all the difference. It can soften hearts to hear the good news of the love of God through Jesus Christ.
You’ve maybe heard it said that “God’s NO is not a rejection. It’s a Redirection.” God’s goal for you is to become more Christlike and often, we take a number of turns that take us off God’s intended purpose and we need redirecting. The thing is, we don’t yet see things clearly, we know things in part, and we struggle perhaps in the wrong direction, but we will, one day, “will know fully, even as we are fully known” by God. Isn’t it amazing that we can hand over all our past, present, and future to a God who knows us and desires the best for us?
Belief in the power of positive thinking is not the same thing as an inner wisdom and unwavering confidence in Christ. It doesn’t come from believing in ourselves. True optimism, true belief is in getting our minds right on the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. It comes from biblical convictions about the nature of God and knowing that He loves us and has an exciting plan tailored for just us. Getting our mind right is part of being able to recognize that God is working in and through us to accomplish His purpose.
So, there’s a dream God has given you or maybe a dream that has been rekindled by last week’s Sermon and Study. Now what? Our next step is to focus on the one main thing in life that will keep us moving forward to obtain it. It sounds simple! Yet, in reality, it rarely comes easily. The push and pull of everyday life make take away some of the excitement we once had. But that’s why we must learn to Remain Focused. Fix our eyes on Jesus and the promise God has given to get us through.
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.
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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