Sunday Words of Encouragement September 18, 2016

We had a great Sunday School lesson this morning which gave a fresh perspective on the ten commandments as given to show God’s people how to live and stay free. I plan to share that summary in the future.

Our worship was strong leading into a good Sermon and Communion. Pastor continued the “BE” series this morning with “BE Changed”.


He noted how bad habits always pop up even when we try to remove them. But, in practice, we are not good at changing habits. “They” say it takes 17 days to form a good habit but we all know that it only takes a moment to fall back into old, bad habits.

We serve a God who specializes in changing people. It is clear we need help to change. How does change happen? Paul tells the believers: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17. We are changed through Jesus, but we must be prepared for the battle that follows because it is an ongoing struggle. The battle is fought not just day by day but moment by moment. We cannot succeed in our own strength; our will power is just not enough. We need to call upon the power of the Holy Spirit to change and to live a changed life. Galatians 5:17-23.

Only by living in the Spirit can we win and produce fruits of the Spirit. (Verse 16 and verse 25.)
Steps we can take: Read the Word. Pray. Praise and worship. Set boundaries. Turn off negatives and distractions. Delete apps and banish thoughts that would lead us back into bad habits.

When the church body lives this way, there is harmony. We focus together to fight the true enemy. We seek to help the wounded instead of hurting them. Let the church be a beacon to the community and those seeking change. Be filled with the Spirit to accept the gift of change.

This is one of our praise songs which fits with the message today:

I Won’t Go Back

A Verse for Today:
Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

I love how the Sunday School message and the Sermon were supportive of each other. I pray that I will allow the Holy Spirit to control all moments of my life. I have assurance that this is where I find abundant joy and peace.