Thank you for calling me to your service, for giving me the honor and ability to teach your Word and share this good news with others.
I am unworthy to be given the privilege of thinking deeply about a Word too marvelous even for angels to comprehend.
Be gracious to me, your servant, Lord
Let your light penetrate the darkness of my human understanding.
Give me confidence in the power of your gospel. Grant me clarity in understanding and proclaiming the truths of your Word.
Edify your church today through this message.
Lord Jesus Christ, empower your people to announce the good news that you have brought to earth, that you have sacrificed yourself for all sinners, that you have been raised from the dead and exalted as Lord over all creation.
Holy Spirit, empower us to live in light of the gospel, declaring its truth with our words, and embodying this truth through our thoughts and actions.
Fill our hearts today with love for you and love for one another. Amen And Amen!
"Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart,
All you who hope in the Lord"
Psalms 31:24
Everybody wants it, but no body likes change.
Amen?
Some things have taken a long time to change, to get them where they are.
When it all changes, there is a certain cost involved.
Some people do not adapt well to change..
The way things are, is comfortable.
The way things are, is normal.
The way things are, is the way most people like it.
Most people don’t like change, and resist it!
Because they are used to things just like they are.
What if He is not pleased by what things are right now?
What if it would please Him if some Change could happen?
If we would change...
Courage...
Matthew 5:14-16
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day."
Genesis 1:1-5
Church, today you and I have a choice to make...
We can either choose to allow darkness to prevail in our lives and in the lives of those around us
or we can choose to live in His light
Now I understand, when we're surrounded by darkness, it can be a little scary
to pull out your light..
But rather than focusing on that fear..
Think for a moment on the effect light has on the darkness
A place, or condition that is in complete darkness, void of any light
transforms when light enters into the situation
And it doesn't really take that much does it?
The flicker of a candle can light up an entire room, a dark canyon..
Light has courage!
Say that with me,
LIGHT HAS COURAGE!
John 1:5 says
"And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it."
Isn't it interesting that light has the ability to overcome darkness, but that darkness has no comprehension of the work that Light is doing?
The rest of the world may not comprehend or understand the change that God is making in your life!
Some might even say:
We liked you better the way you were before.
Does every conversation have to be a sermon?
We liked you better when we didn't have to watch how we acted around you..
What they're really saying is we liked you better when there was darkness in your life..
When I think of courage, I think of those who demonstrated courage.. I think of William Tyndale, who in the early 1500’s translated the Bible into
the English language, which at the time was forbidden and punishable by execution.
For his controversial views and belief that everyone should be able to
read the Bible in their native tongue, he was later arrested and
executed.
Winston Churchill, when in 1940, Britain stood, alone against Nazi
Germany. Some in Britain wanted to seek a deal with Hitler, but
Churchill wanted to fight on, and he inspired his country and the rest
of the world through their darkest hour.
Rosa Parks, who On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, refused to
obey bus driver James F. Blake's order that she give up her seat in the
colored section to a white passenger.
Helen Keller, who overcame her dual disability of being both deaf and blind and championed to improve societies treatment of deaf people.
The Unknown Rebel at the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests who faced-off
with the tanks of the People’s Liberation Army on June 5. Stuart
Franklin’s famous photo of the stand-off went on to become one of Life’s
Magazine’s “100 Photos that Changed the World” and TIME listed the
obscure and Unknown Rebel as one of the 100 most influential people of
the 20th century.
Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani schoolgirl who defied threats of the
Taliban to campaign for the right to education. She survived being shot
in the head by the Taliban and has become a global advocate for human
rights, women’s rights and the right to education in 1997.
And I think of Jesus Christ who in spite of the shame, He suffered the death of the cross for you and for me.
The thing that limits most of us is fear!
Fear of failure.
Fear of things not turning out the way we hope they will.
Fear of what other people will think..
Let me make something perfectly clear..
We all have fears!
And the only difference between someone being fearful and someone being
courageous is that in the face of their fears, they attempted
and even accomplished what they were afraid of.
It takes courage to do what's right!
To stand up, when you're being told to sit down
And it takes courage to live a life that is pleasing to God when the rest of the world would condemn you for it.
Change doesn't come easily!
Change reveals somethings..
Change means we're no longer satisfied with the way things are
Change means something better has to come!
"And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
John 3:19
I found that out when I was called to preach..
Some people made fun of me
Others didn't take my calling seriously
People in the congregation, which I had attended, made comments
Even some of my own family made comments.
At first it hurt..
But I continued!
I was fearful, what if they were right?
But I persevered!
I stood alone..
just my little light and me..
But God wanted things to change..
He wanted ME to change..
My life couldn’t continue in the direction it was going any longer.
Regardless of what other people thought!
Regardless of how it would affect their thoughts of me!
Regardless of family traditions!
Regardless of how other believed or were brought up!
Regardless of who their God was or what their religion was!
Change had to happen!
I needed to change!
I needed to make a difference, for God!
Let me tell you that it takes courage to say yes to God when everyone around you is laughing and pointing their fingers.
It takes courage to do what is right not only for yourself, but for the
people you love even when they don’t understand your actions.
Those of you who have made a decision to give your life to Christ, to be baptized ... You're my heroes!
Some of you have faced ridicule from friends and family..
Some of you have faced generational curses on your life..
It takes courage step out away from the crowd and say,
“I want change.”
It takes courage to admit that you need His help!
It takes courage to face your demons and say I choose Jesus Christ.
In closing....
Change takes Courage!
A courageous person is not absent of fear!
They face their fears!
It takes real courage to examine your life, look at it from an outside perspective and say "I am willing to change!"
It takes incredible courage to face your fears and say,
"I am no longer going to allow my life to live me, I'm taking my life back and I'm going to LIVE IT!"
If you are tired of feeling your life is meaningless and you're not ok with your life as it is, then it is time to let go of what is and step bravely forward into a new life.
Do not allow another moment of another day to pass by without knowing in your heart that you have done everything you can to make a change..
The change God wants for your life..
He did not create us to exists, to just get by..
He created us for GREATNESS!
To be MORE than we are right now..
Change takes Courage ...
Do YOU have the courage to change?
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord life up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Brian Monzon Ministries