In today’s service, we delved deep into the essence of worship, understanding it not as a mere suggestion but as a vital necessity in our spiritual journey. Just as daily medications are essential for our physical health, so too are worship, prayer, Bible reading, and fellowship crucial for our spiritual well-being. Worship is not optional; it is critical for our connection with God and our overall spiritual nourishment. Neglecting worship can lead to spiritual malnutrition, impacting every facet of our being. Therefore, we must engage wholeheartedly in worship, allowing God to be in control and experiencing His transformative power in our lives. Worship is not passive; it is a profound connection with God that refreshes us spiritually, physically, and emotionally, akin to hooking a hose to a faucet for life-giving water to flow freely. Let’s not forsake true worship but embrace it as a joyful privilege and a vital part of our Christian walk, enriching our lives and deepening our intimate connection with our Creator.
The message revolves around the profound significance of forgiveness in our spiritual journey. Starting with Jesus’ teachings on forgiveness in Matthew 6:14-15, the text emphasizes the pivotal role forgiveness plays in our relationship with God and others. It delves into the consequences of unforgiveness, likening it to a barren desert that hinders spiritual growth and God’s blessings. The message then shifts to the toxic nature of unforgiveness, drawing parallels to a poisonous substance that corrupts our souls and relationships. Through biblical references and reflections, it highlights God’s model of forgiveness characterized by grace, kindness, and reconciliation. Practical steps to forgiveness are outlined, emphasizing acknowledgment of hurts, letting go of bitterness, prayer, seeking reconciliation, and imitating God’s forgiveness. The conclusion underscores forgiveness as a commandment, a pathway to freedom, and a means to experience the fullness of life in Christ, urging us to embrace forgiveness wholeheartedly for spiritual restoration and abundant blessings.
Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart
2 Corinthians 5:17-18, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God.”
In the new creation, “old things have passed away.”
This means that my old existence, which was apart from God as my source, has passed away.
“All things have become new” means that now “all things are out of God.”
He is now my source.
When God reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, He produced a relationship that makes Him, not ourselves, the source of our lives.
He has the rightful place because He has imparted His Son into us.
Now, the source of everything in our lives is the Spirit of His Son sent into our hearts crying, “Abba, Father!”
To be “in Christ” in the new creation is to be in the source where all things are out of God.
His Son lived a human life on this earth for 33 1/2 years.
In all His living, He did nothing apart from the Father.
Whatever He spoke and whatever He did, He did out of the Father as His source.
He was wholly dependent upon the Father’s life as the source for His daily life.
We must see that the Son’s life lived out in the Gospels is now in us.
As the Spirit, He is operating to produce His dependent life in us, and to eliminate our independent living–a life of living to ourselves.
Our life in the old creation has been an independent life, in which we have lived out of our self as the source.
We have made our own decisions, done our own things, lived out of our own feelings and thoughts.
In brief, we have been the source of our life.
Thus, the Lord works in our lives to actually make Himself our source.
Why are we passing through all kinds of experiences and various environments?
They are designed by God to bring us into Himself as our source.
What we are going through right now is another step toward the goal of working a realization into our consciousness that our life is out of God Himself
Until Tomorrow
With A Shepherd’s Love,
Pastor Jackson
FRIDAY’S PRAYER REQUESTS
Tom Graham (Sandra’s Husband)
John McClain’s Mother
Amy Garner
Amy Garner’s Mom & Dad
Andrew Halevi & Daughter
Ashely Burn’s Sisters
Coly/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Dan Haines
Darlene Wiggins
David Burnette
David Harrison – Riverside
Deanna Fowler
Denise Hulsey – Jordan’s G’mother
Donnie Butler’s Dad
Doris Loyd
Dr. and Mrs. Davis
Drew
Easton Fielder
Ed Mays
Eric Magnusson’s Mother
Eric Ward
Faith Burnette
Freddie May’s Mom
George & Linda Alexander
James Burnette
James Garner’s Friend
Joanie/Jeanie Mom
Jodi Bateman
John Austin
June Cronan’s Sister
Junior Stephens
Kailey Bateman
Kim McClain’s Mother
Krista Hilscher
Larry Barker
Lee Cronan
Lillanna Magnusson’s Mom
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Linda Hodges’ Sister
Lonzo Christin
Lori Blount’s Mother
Mary Sims
Marynell Ford
Maureen Brown
Michael Stanley
Miles Bradshaw
Nora Allison
Pastor & Mrs. Driskell
Ricky Gipson
Rose Fuller – Pruitt-Monroe Nursing Home, Forsyth GA
Roseleigh Osborn
Sandra Graham
Scott Lanier
Soso Nzolo – 17 Yr. Old South African Pastor’s Daughter
Susan & Alexis Tesone
Susan Mosley
Tom Witcher