-
Your Mess Becomes Your Message
Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 21, 2011 (message contributor)
YOUR MESS BECOMES YOUR MESSAGE
Joe Almanza grew up in a family of organized crime called the Mexican Mafia:
"We were supplying most of the heroin for the Southern and Midwestern US. I became addicted to heroin. I went to many drug addiction agencies. I sold some heroin to an undercover agent and I went to prison. When I got down to the prison I got the red carpet treatment because my name carried weight. I didn’t want to be a religious person because in my culture that’s not cool. They say that if you become a believer that’s for sissies. I was in prison where they keep you in the cell for 23 hours a day and you get out for 1 hour. One night in 1982 I felt really down. One of the ways to deal with this is to commit suicide. Some rays of light came through my prison window. All of the windows there were painted black but every once in a while some paint would come off and a ray of light would shine through. On that night in 1982 a little ray of light came through. God seemed to be saying that He was that one ray of light. I began to belief and then he started to put people into my life. One day I was looking for something to read and I found a magazine by someone in the Churches of Christ."
Now he is a minister at an inner city church. He says, “Sometimes your mess becomes your message.”
Related Sermon Illustrations
-
Hearing Problem PRO
Contributed by Christian Cheong on Apr 23, 2005
HEARING PROBLEM A middle-aged man was distraught over his wife’s stubborn refusal to admit she had a hearing problem. One day he asked his family doctor for advice how to convince his wife that she has this problem. The doctor promptly told him that when he got home he was to confirm the ...read more
-
The 5-Year Old Had Been Missing All Night. When ... PRO
Contributed by Gregg Bitter on Apr 27, 2003
The 5-year old had been missing all night. When his mother had looked out yesterday afternoon, she no longer saw him playing in the yard as he had been doing fifteen minutes earlier. Had he been abducted? Had he wandered off? Soon she and her husband, the neighbors and the police were all ...read more
-
People Are Always More Encouraged When We Share ... PRO
Contributed by Jim Kane on Apr 27, 2003
“People are always more encouraged when we share how God’s grace helped us in weakness than when we brag about our ...read more
-
I Never Forgot What Chuck Swindoll's Said Years ...
Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 27, 2003
I never forgot what Chuck Swindoll’s said years ago, “It is a sin to bore people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ!” I have ...read more
Related Sermons
-
Secret Help For Secret Hurts Series
Contributed by Maurice Mccarthy on Nov 8, 2017
Postsecret is a blog where people share secrets that they have, many are very painful. This is a message about God's secret help for secret hurts.
-
The Secret Of Contentment
Contributed by Donnie Martin on Aug 20, 2009
The secret of contentment isn’t found in something, but in someone. This message reveals what is involved.
-
Responses Of The Heart Series
Contributed by Dennis Davidson on Jul 31, 2014
The Word of God is sown into our heart & it must come to fruition within our heart. The condition of our heart determines the fruition of the Word of God that is sown.
-
Undercover Jesus
Contributed by Jerry Shirley on Jun 21, 2013
Why is Jesus going incognito? Is it for fear of His life? No. Some might try to kill Him, but He could avoid that. His hour is not yet come. Link inc. to formatted text, audio, PowerPoint.