Set Apart for God

Romans 6:15-23

Since we -being believers- know Christ, others should be able to see Christ in us.

If you don’t know Christ, you are living in sin and therefore you are a slave to it. Walking with Christ is harder, but so much more worth it than being doomed to an eternity in hell.

As a new person in Christ, our purpose is to walk with Him in obedience.

Temptation is the devil trying to distract you from your purpose. True freedom comes from Christ. How happy I am in that knowledge. How calm have I been since I’ve had eyes for eternity!

Obedience is hard sometimes though. We know what we should do but doing it is not always easy.

Take yesterday, for instance. I got to play Mahjong with a new group! So happy and excited about that, however, it was held at a different church from mine and I worried they might have an agenda, so the first thing I tell Ruth is that I attend Trinity Baptist and she was like, that’s awesome. Nothing about her church or if she even attends there. What I should have done was invite her to my church. Guess when that crossed my mind? Much, much later.

So, when I play tomorrow night-their regular night- I will do just that!

The bottom line is, don’t let sin be your master. Come to Christ, you will be so much happier when you make that decision.

Pastor Kevin related a cute story about his son, Nathaniel. As he was sharing a sermon with the residents at Sabine Place, his son was doing an art project with one of the ladies. He wonders sometimes if the boy is listening and this next bit lets you know he always is. As he was speaking, Nathaniel was raising his hand to speak. He could tell he had something important to say. He let him. This is what Nathaniel said. “We are all just playing a game of Marco Polo with God.”

Everyone just stopped in their tracks. Huh?

Yes! We are all going Marco? Marco? And God is over here saying “Polo!! I’m right here!”

How profound! Out of the mouths of babes, right? Still brings tears to my eyes, so imagine how proud Pastor Kevin is of his son. He is definitely listening!

The Christian journey is one of accomplishment, failure, joy, struggle, strength, repentance—all powered by the unearned gift from God. This is why the gospel is truly good news. God loves you. He opened the door for you to come and live with him forever. He walks with you through the mud and dirt and by the blood of the cross, cleanses you entirely. Trust him! Don’t keep it to yourself!
John Dobbs

Does anyone in w what kind of tree this is by the leaf? It’s certainly not a maple, but it’s been turning different colors, mainly red, for several weeks now. There are two of them in my backyard along with pines, elms, and other trees.