Introduction – Patrick Henry Hughes Story
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=9xwCG0Ey2Mg
God created Patrick Hughes for His glory and honor. he has created you for His glory and honor.
God knows me completely (1-6)
God knows everything about you. Let’s examine what He does know about each one of us.
He knows my daily activities. He knows everything you do and is interested in all you do.
He knows my darkest thoughts. Sadly, He knows our perverted minds. I have said often that if women knew what ran through the mind of a man, they would never have anything to do with us. God knows and still forgives our sinful nature.
He knows my deepest emotions.
He knows my deceptive words.
He knows my defective works.
A recent story from Rome illustrates the heart of man. Yet we find that God peers within our heart to discover our deeper motives in life. Hebrews 4:12-13
Illustration – Man opts for jail over New Year with relatives
Fri Jan 1, 2010 10:53 am ET
ROME (Reuters) – A Sicilian man stole sweets and a packet of chewing gum so he could get arrested and spend New Year's Eve in a jail cell rather than be with his wife and relatives, Italian media reported on Friday.
The 35-year old Sicilian first showed up at a police station on Thursday asking to be arrested because he preferred spending the night in prison rather than with his family, but was rebuffed because he had not committed a crime, the Agi news agency said.
The man immediately went to a tobacco shop next door, where he threatened the owner with a box cutter as he grabbed a few sweets and a packet of gum. He then waited until police arrived to arrest him for robbery, the news agency said. (Writing by Deepa Babington; Editing by Charles Dick)
You can’t deceive Him! – Jacob
God pursues me relentlessly (7-12)
Why would God do that? Why would he want a relationship with me?
First, He is the great Creator.
Second, He is the blessed Redeemer. He redeemed us to bless and worship Him. Jesus came to seek and save those who are lost. Luke 19:10
And finally, He is the marvelous Sustainer.
Not only does God pursue us but if we want to enjoy life to it’s fullest, we must also pursue Him with a great passion.
Illustration – Following God-ordained Passions
I want to die the same way Wilson Bentley died.
Wilson grew up on a farm in Jericho, Vermont, and as a young boy he developed a fascination with snowflakes. Obsession might be a better word for it. Most people go indoors during snowstorms. Not Wilson. He would run outside when the flakes started falling, catch them on black velvet, look at them under a microscope, and take photographs of them before they melted. His first photomicrograph of a snowflake was taken on January 15, 1885.
Under the microscope, I found that snowflakes were miracles of beauty; and it seemed a shame that this beauty should not be seen and appreciated by others. Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated. When a snowflake melted, that design was forever lost. Just that much beauty was gone, without leaving any record behind.
The first known photographer of snowflakes, Wilson pursued his passion for more than fifty years. He amassed a collection of 5,381 photographs that was published in his magnum opus, titled Snow Crystals. And then he died a fitting death—a death that symbolized and epitomized his life. Wilson "Snowflake" Bentley contracted pneumonia while walking six miles through a severe snowstorm and died on December 23, 1931.
And that is how I figured out how I want to die. No, I don't want to die from pneumonia. But I do want to die doing what I love. I am determined to pursue God-ordained passions until the day I die. Life is too precious to settle for anything less.
Mark Batterson, Wild Goose Chase (Multnomah, 2008), pp. 15-16
You can’t escape Him! - Jonah
God created me phenomenally (13-18)
God created each of us as individually as snowflakes. No two people share the same DNA.
Look at the precision of His hands. Everyone one of us is hand-made. We are hand crafted and not completed until God says so. We’re not junk made in China. The Eternal God created us personally!
Listen to the praise of our lips.
Learn the purpose of our lives. We were created to praise God and serve Him. when we discover why we are here and who we were intended to serve, only then can we truly serve Him.
Love the presence of God.
Illustration – Created to be filled
In one of his meetings, D.L. Moody was explaining to his audience the truth that we cannot bring about spiritual changes in our lives by our own strength. He demonstrated the principal like this: “Tell me,” he said to his audience, “how can I get the air out of the tumbler I have in my hand?” One man said, “Suck it out with a pump.” But Moody replied, “That would create a vacuum and shatter it.” Finally after many suggestions, he picked up a pitcher and quietly filled the glass with water. “There,” he said, “all the air is now removed.” He then went on to explain that victory in the Christian life is not accomplished by "sucking out a sin here and there," but by being filled with the Holy Spirit.
You can’t ignore Him! – Saul
God judges me righteously (19-24)
Oh God, Eliminate your enemies. God’s enemies ought to be our enemies. We ought to hate what He hates. That includes the sin which so easily brings us down.
Oh God, Examine my heart. Everyone should have their spiritual heart examined. Only God can do the examination because He is the Great Physician.
Oh God, Establish my soul!
Illustration - Judge Gives Six-Month Sentence for Yawning in Court
It's a given that some judges in the American legal system are more severe than others. But Circuit Judge Daniel Rozak—from Will County, Illinois—may be the only federal judge who has sentenced a man to prison because of a yawn.
That's right. In August of 2009, Clifton Williams was attending the hearing of his cousin in a Joliet courtroom. His cousin pled guilty to a felony drug charge, and when Judge Rozak delivered a sentence of two years probation, Mr. Williams let loose the incriminating yawn.
Judge Rozak noticed, later describing the incident by saying that Williams "raised his hands while at the same time making a loud yawning sound." The judge decided that this was a disrespectful interruption of the court, and sentenced Williams to six months in jail—the maximum penalty for contempt of court without a jury trial.
This isn't the first time that Judge Rozak has flexed his judicial muscles. A Chicago Tribune investigation revealed that Rozak has charged several court spectators with contempt when their cell phones rang in the middle of a session. In fact, with 30 judges operating in his Judicial Circuit, Judge Rozak has brought more than a third of all the contempt charges filed in the past 10 years.
People like Daniel Rozak are the reason why some people cringe when they hear God described as a Judge. They wonder, Will God judge me with fairness?
Sam O'Neal, Geneva, Illinois; source: Matt Bartosik, "Shut Yer Mouth: Man Gets Six Months for Yawning," nbcnewyork.com (8-11-2009)
You can’t dispute Him! - Job
God knows us, loves us and pursues us daily. But one day, every person created will stand before an Almighty God to give an account of their life. Those who have committed heinous wickedness and rejected God’s only Son will suffer separation in Gehenna forever. Those who received God’s Son and repented of their sinful ways will enter into His presence for all eternity.
