"Only Life Changes"

Father God, let this touch someone’s heart and thank You for leading us in the right direction. Thank You and praise You in Jesus Precious Name Amen.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.
John 14:12″

Ever made Banana Bread and left out an ingredient. Then the banana bread comes out hard or doesn’t taste well. Maybe you over cook it and cut it up for the dogs as biscuits. Then later on think: How did I leave that ingredient out or how did I over cook the banana bread? You rack your brain with thoughts. Well, I had to feed the baby, answer the door to the neighbor, I finished making out my grocery list oh and I went and answered the phone. Well God I messed that up! But all and all you were able to use the banana bread for something. Maybe make banana pudding and crumble up the banana bread and throw the dark part away. While you mix the crumbs in the pudding or just fed it to the dogs as biscuits. You were able to solve the problem and do better next time. This is how it works with forgiving yourself and asking God for forgiveness when we mess up and start all over again. Then God blesses us as we walk right.

So last week I was wearing a dress. Let the dogs in the house and my big dog JoJo jumped on me with mud on his paws. So, there was mud on my dress. I wiped what I could off and left the rest because I had no time to change. Got to church and the dirt was dry. So, I went in the restroom and took a dry paper towel and wiped it off. Good as new. The dirt was gone. That is what God does! He wipes our past clean as we walk in obedience with Him. Let me give you the recipe for Banana bread.

“Banana Bread”
Bananas remind me of sinners. I look at old bananas and I see banana bread. I take the 3 bananas and stick them in a bowl with 1 cup of sugar. I cover the bowl and let the sugar flow into the old bananas. Praying no mold will grow and that it blends together good. {Thats LOVE!} {God works through us sinners like this, he flows His love through our ugliness} “Then remove the cover and stir up the sugar and bananas. {God lets us be confused about doing what is wrong, so we turn to right thinking.} Great! The sugar and bananas blended smoothly! {Mixing sinners and saints together} 1 egg {Volunteer greeting you to the church} 1 tsp vanilla {Praise and worship} Mix together in a separate bowl 1-1/2 cup Self-Rising flour {The Pastors Preaching} 1 pinch of salt. {Mix together} Bible study and then finally! Now add 1/3 cup butter Crisco {accepting Jesus as your savior} Now add the 1/3 cup butter Crisco by blending it good with the dry ingredients. Mix all the ingredients together in the same bowl. Preheat the oven to 350~ degrees. Grease and flour a 1-pound bread pan. Add the batter to the 1-pound bread pan. {All people going in the same direction} Bake for 1 hour or till the toothpick comes out clean. Remove banana bread from the oven to cool.

{Blessings for Obedience-Deuteronomy 28:1-14}
If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock, the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. The Lord will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the Lord your God and walk in obedience to him. Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they will fear you. The Lord will grant you abundant prosperity, in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground, in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you. The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them.

{So how do you feel when your children do everything you tell them to do? I know I used to love when I could go through my routine and the days go by smoothly because everyone was doing what they were supposed to do. Or one would come and say hey mom I messed up and broke a glass. I would say: You didn’t get cut, did you? They would say no, and I cleaned up the mess mom. I’d say cups can be replaced. Just be careful next time.}

If we go to God and let him know we messed up and repent and ask for forgiveness. 1 John 1:9. ~ It reads in Isaiah 55:7 ~ Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

“Curses for Disobedience-Deuteronomy 28:15-22
However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees, I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you: You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country. Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed. The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out. The Lord will send on you curses, confusion and rebuke in everything you put your hand to, until you are destroyed and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in forsaking him. The Lord will plague you with diseases until he has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess. The Lord will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew, which will plague you until you perish.

Last thing God wants to do is bring curses on you or me. He wants us to make right choices. Obey the commandments. God is a forgiving God. God’s love for us is unconditional and the very foundation upon which we are forgiven. No matter what we have done or how long we have been away, God is going to welcome us back with loving, open arms. As we feel sorry for our sins and acknowledge our sinfulness, we return to God time and time again. Love is the greatest virtue and the greatest commandment. One time, Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment. Matthew 22:37-40 reads, “Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

{Prayer}
Father God, I rejoice and sing of Your great love, Your mercy and Your faithfulness to all Your people, even when we go astray. You guide us back to You. I thank You and praise You that You are the Author and Giver of true ‘social justice’, and that You care for the needs of the poor, the fatherless, the widowed, the foreigner, and the oppressed. Honestly, You are worthy to receive sovereignty and power, honor and glory in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

{Power Verses}
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23
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