Good Morning
Stand with me and lift up your bible and repeat after me.
This is my Bible.
I am what it says I am.
I can do what it says I can do.
I am going to learn how to be what it says I can be.
Today I will learn more of the word of God.
The indestructible, never ending, living word Of God.
I will never be the same.
I will never be the same.
In Jesus Name
FIRST THINGS FIRST
A young ensign had nearly completed his first overseas tour of duty when he was given the opportunity to prepare his ship to "Set Sail." With a stream of crisp commands, he had the decks buzzing with sailors and soon the ship churned slowly out of the channel.
The ensign's efficiency was remarkable. In fact, the talk was that he had set a new record for getting the ship underway.
But his captain was not as pleased. A message delivered to the young officer read, "My personal congratulations upon completing your underway preparation exercise according to the book and with amazing speed. But next time, you might wait until your captain is aboard before setting off."
What good is a ship without the captain? The ensign did all the right things, but he never did the most important thing.
It is a matter of priorities.
I know that I may accomplish a great deal every day.
I may do the right things, but am I doing the best things?
To borrow language from author Stephen Covey, “do I put first things first?”
With all that is transpiring in life today, maybe we need to slow down.
You just thought as I said that, “Slow down? Is he crazy? All the things I have to do.”
No. I am not.
I am just sharing.
Turn with me to the book of Genesis chapter 2 and say, “Amen” when you are there.
Let’s read verse 2 and 3.
Genesis 2:2. “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so, on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”
Being fully alive in a relationship with Jesus Christ requires a deep relationship with the God.
All of us hunger for things that will take us to a deeper place with Christ.
It is a place where we taste meaning from life.
It is a change or the creation of a habit where we learn to believe that we can do things for ourselves as well as honoring God.
It requires changes in our lives
It is a transformation.
It is a renewal of strength.
It is being in awe of our God and what He has done in our lives.
It is forgiveness from those we have hurt and forgiving those that have hurt us..
It is hope of things to come.
It is companionship with the Lord and those we love.
It is peace, knowing that He is in control.
It is fulfillment by acknowledging Him for what he has already done.
It is intimacy with the Lord, listening and talking to Him.
It is stepping forward in the life that He is walking us through.
Those treasures and many more could be found in Jesus Christ if we are committed more than we have ever been.
This requires a commitment of the biggest things that we have in life.
Our heart.
Ancient mariners would find quiet water in which they could spend time and look at their compass and maps to decide where they would go next in their journey.
We all need to regularly stop and look at the compass in our heart.
We need to keep our eye on it and remember that every step is important.
Everything we do and every breath we take are things that are important.
If you have ever seen someone make pottery at a pottery wheel, it is not an easy thing to do.
You sit and get used to the wheel spinning and you learn that you are the one who controls the on and off switch and the speed of the wheel.
You place the clay in the center of the wheel and then start the process.
As the wheel turns, you can make the width and height of the pot that you are creating.
The faster the wheel goes, the faster you have to go with your part of moving your hands and fingers to create what you hope to make.
Life is like that.
We spin around and go at different speeds to try and accomplish what we want.
As we make our piece of pottery look better and better, we learn to shape and craft what we want to do.
I have had the opportunity to learn how to sit and craft at a pottery wheel before and you know what I noticed?
Nothing comes out perfect.
No matter how hard you try, things just are not perfect.
They have little flaws here and there even if you are a true craftsman.
That sounds a lot like me.
And you.
God loves just as we are.
Made in His image.
The only thing that is different between each of us and the Lord is?
He is perfect and we are not.
We all have flaws.
If you are working with clay to make a pot and it does not turn out just right, you can wet it with water and reshape it or you can just put it in water and start over.
I would love to be able to put myself in water and reshape the man I am but I don’t have to do that.
I can just spend some time with my Creator and ask Him to renew me and reshape me just like the clay.
I look at where I have come from in life and where I am now and see a lot of cracks and bumps and flaws that have been made new on the Lord’s pottery wheel.
I also see that I'm a lot like Paul
Turn with me to 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and say, “Amen” when you are there.
Let’s look at verses 7 to 10.
“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
I have a couple of thorns,
So, do you.
We all do.
It is part of our lives.
God made us in His image.
Not ours.
Not what we see on TV.
Not what we hope to look like, but who we are in Christ.
New.
The old has gone, unless we dwell in it.
I don’t know about you but I like be being shaped and directed by the Lord each day. Amen....
I am willing to allow Him to direct me, teach me, shape me, and love me each and every day.
How about you?
Let’s let the potter have control of the piece of clay that we are and continue to get closer to Him each and every day.
Amen?
Stand with me now and let’s pray to the potter.
Let’s go to Him in prayer.
