| Reaching for Life--A Journey with Jesus |
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Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen Dear Congregation Have you ever planned a long journey in your life? If so, where did you begin your planning? Before you travel you need to know where you are heading and, in doing so, you need to find a route which will bring you to your destination in the shortest possible time. In looking for the shortest way we may come across unfimiliar roads that bring us to our destination quicker, forgetting the fact that we are not aware of the problems that we might encounter on that road. Since we do not know the route, we are dependant on a map to take us to our destination. A map that clearly shows us that someone else had travelled on that route before we had. We service our cars, hoping that we will travel safely. For us to ensure a safe journey, we need people we can trust since we need that piece of mind before we embark on our journey. Why did I use this illustration? I used this illustration because it fits very well with our text, since we daily undertake our spiritual journies. As we prepare for our busy day, we first stop for a moment to spend time with God and then we can continue with our daily chores. Our theme text ( Reach for Life) is written in John 14:1-7. Dear Congregation As we travel daily to other destinations, we also travel with God. The question is: What resources do we use on our spiritual journies? Firstly, we use a map. The map, which we use, does not consist out of stripes and place names, rather it contians instructions, which are written in words. Our spiritual map is the bible. The words of the bible become alive because God has given us a guide to instruct us. This guide enables us to understand the bible. The Holy Spirit guides us through the maze of life. The Holy Spirit shows us where we need to turn off in order to reach our destination. Our destination is to live life to its fullest, because where we want to be, we want to live and because of that, we find our God, who gives us life. We need to trust the mechanic because it is he who enables us to reach our destination. Not only does this meachanic fix our hearts, but he travels with us because he knows where every pothole on our heavenly road will be. He has travelled this road before and therefore, he will know what needs to be done in order to get to our destination. Who is this mechanic to whom I refer? Jesus Christ is his name and he prepares our hearts for the journey. Not only did he fix our hearts but he was also willing to settle our debts. Through his blood on Calvary, he allows us to find peace within ourselves; that all has been prepared and that we are ready to undertake our own unique journey. As we trust the mechanics and technicians before we leave for our destination, so let us also trust our Lord, who has prepared the way for us, who knows the road on which we ought to travel and how we are to reach it. Christ is the mechanic, and where do we get to know Christ? When we trust our meachnic, then we should also look out for the things that might go wrong along the road of life; like the potholes, the things in life that hinder us from becoming what we ought to be; like doubting that God wants to use us to further his work. His love is the love that sustians us, to continue on our journeys. Yes, the journey of life also has filling stations along the road, where we can fill-up and refresh ourselves again. These are the people that God has placed alongside the road of life to encourage us when we are discouraged, to give a word that brings us hope. None of the people we meet along the road are there to hurt us, but to guide us. The fuel that we use on our journet is love. Can you remember a person who refilled you with love by just being there, without even saying a word? Can you remember that one individual who had just the right words when you needed to hear it from them? Yes, there are also other mechanics standing ready to give you encouraging words and yes sometimes even a warning. God sends us people that have profound influence on our lives and these are the specialists who know exactly what we need for our journey of life. Knowing where your journey has started will direct you to the end of your journey, but only if you allow these specialists to do what they are called to do. I call these people light-bearers because they help you and I to see the way God, through Christ, has intended for us to walk. Dear congregation Let us travel on the road of life together with our Lord. Let us be that support that others need in their time of fear and despair. Let us be open to accept our mistakes and that we can also travel on the wrong road, or the road that God did not attend for us to travel on.Let us love one another by correcting and helping one another in brotherly and sisterly love. Let us be willing to carry one another and be open to one another for direction because we can never know when God uses other people to cope with the challenges that we face in our daily lives. And the Grace of God, which surpasses all our understanding protect our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen |