Teaching on Life

 

Hope and Healing for the Hurting through Personal Prayer Ministry
Author: Rev. Dr. Kiyimba Joseph
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Are there hurting places in your heart? Do not be discouraged. Your Creator loves you. He is able to find a way to heal you and make you completely whole, and He won’t stop short if you won’t. "Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1b and 2.

Be encouraged by these words from Romans 12:2, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

In prayer ministry, hurtful issues that touch one’s life emotionally and spiritually are brought to the Lord for His truth, forgiveness, healing, and freedom. Minds are renewed and lives are changed as people are freed from the hurtful effects of unresolved issues.

Are there emotional or spiritual issues from your past that you have not been able to “leave behind”? How do they affect you? Why? What can be done about them? These are the issues this ministry addresses.

Have you found that some of the feelings from hurtful past experiences show up in your life today? This may happen when something subconsciously reminds you of a past memory that still holds negative emotions. You may not be aware of the connection between what you are feeling today and something you felt in the past. But have you had times when you wondered why your reactions were so strong or so difficult to handle?

We are finding that negative emotions that we have felt before are connected in our minds with the memory of the first time we felt those emotions. In this prayer ministry, we help people find the roots of their hurtful emotions and seek true healing from the Lord.

When an issue is fully resolved in the original memory that it stems from and the Lord brings healing, the person is set free from its hurtful effects in his or her life. Then the person is able to experience the perfect peace of God concerning that issue and can truly leave it behind without any difficulty.

Unforgiven hurts: Have you ever tried to “forget” a significant hurt or offense without facing it fully and dealing with it? Trying to forget that way is like covering up or closing a physical wound without first cleansing it of any dirt or debris that may be in it. Even if you are able to put the memory of the offense out of your mind in such a way, so that you are not consciously aware of the hurt, it is still there somewhere. And as long as it is somewhere inside, it has the potential to continue to affect you until it is completely resolved in your heart so that there are no longer any feelings of hurt in the memory.

But how can you forgive completely? We have found that an offense can be fully resolved in your heart if you will first allow yourself to feel the emotions that are coming from your memory of what happened, without pushing them down or ignoring or denying them. Then you must be willing or at least be “willing to be made willing” to give the hurt to Jesus. He will help you truly forgive and receive complete and lasting peace in your memory of the event. However, forgiving completely like this does not mean trusting the other person if trust has been broken. That may follow if trustworthiness is proven.

Hurtful beliefs: Can you recall an unpleasant experience from earlier in your life that you can still feel negative emotions from -- feelings of embarrassment or shame, anxiety or fear, panic or desperation, loneliness or grief, rejection or abandonment, hopelessness or despair, frustration or anger, or some other hurtful emotion? Can you see ways in which that experience may still affect how you feel, what you believe deep down inside, and even what you do in certain circumstances in your life today?

The emotions you can still feel from such early experiences are coming from what you believed in your “heart” in response to what happened in each situation. Here are a few examples of this kind of emotionally held belief: “It is my fault.” “I am not wanted.” “I am dirty.” “I deserve it.” “I am bad.” “I can never be good enough.” “There is something wrong with me.” “I am stupid.” “God doesn’t love me.” “I am trapped.” “There is no way out.” “I am going to die.” “There is no hope,” and the like. Your hurtful belief(s) coming from a memory will be whatever you believed at the time of the hurtful experience.

Do you relate to these kinds of “hurtful beliefs” or “lies” in your life? You may know in your “head” that a hurtful belief is not true, but it can still feel as though it is true emotionally, “in your heart.” As with hurts from the past, such emotionally held beliefs have the potential to affect you in what you think and feel and do, until they have been fully dealt with. This is true even if you may not be consciously aware of them.

Have you just given in to living with the effects of your past hurtful experiences? Or have you tried to overcome those effects on your own? Have you tried to counter the hurtful beliefs by telling yourself what is true in your logical mind, but have found that doing that has brought little or no lasting relief from those emotionally held beliefs? Have you tried to ignore, deny, minimize, or push down your negative emotions or hurtful beliefs?

If one faces the hurtful emotions and related beliefs in the memory of the event where they were first felt and believed, it can prepare one to receive God’s healing. While you are feeling the emotions and how true the hurtful belief(s) feel in the memory, we ask the Lord to let you know in your heart what is true concerning the belief(s). When He helps you come to a realization of the truth about what you believed there, the memory becomes peaceful and calm. As you experience His healing in this way, His truth sets you free from the hurtful beliefs or “lies.” We find that this healing results in lasting freedom from each hurtful belief that is dealt with in this way.

Unconfessed sins: Do you feel ashamed or guilty about something you have done that you have not fully confessed and asked forgiveness for? Have you thought it was too long ago to be dealt with? Or have you tried to justify it to yourself, or in some other way tried to silence the feelings of guilt?

We are not including anything here for which you may still feel guilty, even though you have confessed it, asked forgiveness for it, and tried to make it right if you could. Such lingering feelings of guilt are much like “hurtful beliefs” or “lies.” We have found that when you bring these feelings of guilt to the Lord, He can help you separate out false feelings of guilt from true conviction and lead you into His perfect peace.

Do you carry anger that may once have been appropriate but has been held onto too long? Do you have resentment, bitterness, hate, or desire for revenge? Have you made selfish decisions, said or done something to hurt someone, or judged others?

In Psalm 139: 23 and 24 David shows us how to bring all these things to God in prayer: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there be any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” With the Lord’s help, we are able to see what is in our hearts. In prayer ministry, we help people open their hearts to the Lord, confess to Him, and experience His complete and lasting forgiveness.

Self-protection: How have you tried to protect yourself from the effects of hurtful emotional experiences in your life? What you do about your negative feelings and hurtful beliefs can have a deeply significant effect on your life and on the lives of others. Ways of handling these hurtful things that are centered on trying to protect or “heal” yourself will often work against letting God protect you or bring you His complete healing.

Have you tried to ignore, deny, minimize, or talk yourself out of your hurtful experiences, negative emotions, or hurtful beliefs? Has this truly gotten rid of all your pain or discomfort, or do the hurts and hurtful beliefs still affect you?

Have you tried to “protect” or “heal” yourself or control your pain by turning to alcohol or other addictive, sinful, or harmful behaviors, or by holding onto your “right” to stay hurt or angry, resentful, bitter or hateful? Do you see how such things may be harmful to your relationship with God, your relationships with others, and your health and well-being?

Have you made “self-protective vows” such as not to trust anyone or not to allow anyone to get close enough to you to hurt you again? Such vows can have significant unintended effects in a person’s life until they are dealt with, even if they have been forgotten about.

Have you had very hurtful emotional, physical, or sexual experiences as a child? If so, you may have built walls in your mind so that a part of you could go through each experience as it was happening, take the knowledge of it, and hide with that knowledge deep inside. That may have helped you handle pain that was too great for you at the time. However, even though such memories may be hidden, their effects can touch your life and the lives of those around you. Jesus has healing for those places too, when you are ready.

There seems to always be a downside to our ways of trying to protect or heal ourselves compared to giving the hurtful things in our lives over to the Lord to seek His help and to accept His healing. In this prayer ministry, we seek to help people surrender their own ways and bring their issues to the Lord for His truth, forgiveness, healing, and freedom.

The enemy: Are you giving a place to the evil one that allows him to be active in your life without you being aware of it? Here are examples of some ways one may do that:
Jesus warned of consequences of not forgiving our brother from the heart in a story recorded in Matthew 18:21-35. He concludes with these words in verses 32 to 35: “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” Is Jesus saying that the enemy will be allowed to cause us torment in some way if we will not forgive our brother from our heart?

In John 8:44 Jesus said the devil is the father of lies. Our emotionally held hurtful beliefs are really lies that can affect how we feel, what we believe, and what we do. Could we be open to the devil’s influence through such lies without our realizing it?

We are warned about holding onto anger in Ephesians 4:26 and 27: “‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” May you have given the devil a place in your life by holding onto anger?

It is important to bring these and all hurtful things to Jesus and address them fully with Him. Then our enemy the devil will no longer have access to us because of them. Even curses against us will not stick if we deal with all issues in our lives (see Proverbs 26:2b).

Generational issues: Do you wonder about issues that seem to run in your family?
In Exodus 20:4-6 we are told that making or worshipping idols can have a harmful effect on one’s children for up to three or four generations. In Leviticus 26:40 and in Daniel 9 we learn that confessing both our own sins and the sins of our fathers (and forefathers) can be a part of gaining complete freedom from generational issues and related curses. As we bring these concerns to God in prayer, He brings to light what we need to know and do so we can be set free.

There is hope for the hurting. For “we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37b through 39

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work in us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” Eph. 3:20 and 21

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

If you would like to learn more about receiving prayer help in this way we invite you to contact us at: Tel: +256711949076
ABA Foundation, P. O. BOX 70592 KAMPALA UGANDA
Emails: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Website: http://www.AbaAfrica.Org

30th September 2009, it started a good day for me but ended in a narrow escape.
It was at 07:30 P.m. when I left public market and rushed to the stage just next to the bus-park main-gate, ready to board and get to Heritage Hotel as early as possible. I went to Der-es-laam in Tanzania for official work. Taxis were scarce, as that was the school visiting day.

Standing with other three ladies, a Toyota corona car stopped besides us and the woman asked whether there was anybody going to the same route. Four of us boarded and the lady started explaining how it was difficult to get taxis given the fact that it was a school visiting day.

As we approached the main traffic lights, she branched off to the road leading to another direction and explained that she was avoiding the heavy traffic jam on the high way and that she was going to use the by-pass. That sounded logical because people use that route whenever there's heavy jam on the main high way.

The three ladies said it wasn't their destination and thought she would leave them near the stadium where they can easily get transport. The lady packed and complained as to why these ladies boarded even when she had told them her final destination.

After these ladies come out I realized I was alone in the car with this stranger. My conscience was not clear on the fact that I was alone with the stranger. I looked scared and quickly this woman responded and said she was only avoiding traffic jam using the by-pass.

When we reached past a business school she introduced herself. “I am Christine working with Tanzania Revenue Authority, a student at Dar-es-laam University and married with one kid.

I also introduced myself as Joseph, founder and Executive Director of an Organization.

 

 


Here we go:-

Stranger: Something strange happened to my account last week, Tsh.700,000/- from my account was withdrawn by unknown person, has it ever occurred to you? [Establishing whether I have an account with the bank].

Myself: Well, it has never happened to me but I think it must have been an error in the bank. I advise you to see the customer care service manager/ Bank manager immediately and lodge in your complaint.

Stranger: Excuse me, "you said you are married with how many kids?"

Myself: One kid I replied.

Stranger: How old is the kid?

Myself: Kindergarten going.

Stranger: [Kept quiet for about five minutes and then asked,] If someone gave you advise, would you take it or not?

Myself: If it's good advice why not?
[We are now moving towards a smelly valley where they do some car washing].

Stranger: " I pity you gentleman, I pity you and more so a father".
Well I'm not Christine and I don't work with Tanzania Revenue Authority as earlier introduced, neither a student at University. I am a serial killer and that is my job.

Myself: I looked at the lady in disbelief and then exclaimed. The question in my heart was what next?

Stranger: And you laugh?

Myself: I'm not laughing, I'm wondering and scared (I answered in a low tone)
[I could not believe this humble lady change all of a sudden].

Stranger: You seem not to believe me, have you ever heard of serial killers in Tanzania?

Myself: Yes, I have ever heard of them.

Stranger: I trained to kill and my job is to kill.
"Here are my gadgets to prove to you that I'm a killer. I kill Albinos and other people."
[Pulled out one long sharp knife, short sharp double-edged knife, a pistol, rope with a knot, and bludgeon].
"Have you seen these" asked the stranger.

Myself: I answered, Yes Madam.
[Inside my heart I was like, what should I do now?].

Stranger:
I'm going to forgive you on the grounds that you are a father, but never ever board these small cars. These cars are for our own secretive business but not for taking people to their homes. Ok?
Never ever, Ok? X3 [Stressing and shouting, her hands shaking and her lips quivering as if possessed by demons].

Myself: I'm sorry Madam and I will never do it again.
[My heartbeat was so fast; my throat became dry and my feet very cold}
{Now nearing the petrol station on the road that joins the highway}.Excuse me Madam, 'I’m requesting to stop here and I will get to my hotel'.
Stranger: "I don't work on your orders, "Shut up" and I can kill you, I can kill you, I can kill you gentleman".
[Interchanging the knife and a pistol in her hands, remember she did not stop at any one moment. She continued driving towards the valley].

Myself : I kept quiet and I was very calm and in my heart I knew it was all over and then I said my last prayer.
[God my hour has come, forgive me my past mistakes while on earth and accept my soul, God take care of my little child I'm leaving behind on earth, Amen]. Chances to survive where so minimal that instead I requested God to pardon me and accept my soul.

Stranger: Do you have any money in your bag?

Myself: Yes, I have shs.500.000/- worth USD $250.

Stranger: Only? Who is going to pay for my fuel? Put all the money here, give me your phone and ATM card.

Myself : Here is the money and the phone but I don't have an ATM Card with me here. When I get to Hotel I will pick my Uncle and pay you.
[I had two phones, Erickson and Nokia. Nokia was on the side bag and could not be seen easily. I also had UG.sh.100.000/- worthy USD $50 in an envelope in the side bag.
I gave her the Erickson. Meanwhile she demanded that I open all my bags which I did and only to find scholastic materials for my child. I think this one made her more annoyed.

Stranger: You think I'm a fool, to go around the city, I'm the most wanted woman around if you didn't know." I said bring your ATM Card"
[As she points her pistol on my head, ready to shot at me, her eyes became red, her hands started shaking again as she withdrew her pistol and jeered].
[She removed the sim pack from the phone and threw it at me and retained the phone. "You man, you have your God and when you get to your home kneel and give thanks to your God. I will neither rape you nor kill you; you will reach your destination unhurt but give thanks to your God. [Trembling and shouting].

["Never ever do this silly mistake again" Have you heard? I'm an AIDS victim and you are forgiven on the grounds that you are a father and probably you have your God. [Now nearing the football stadium. I will show you where we throw dead bodies because it seems up to now you cannot believe what I'm saying. By the way what is your tribe?].

Myself: "Muganda from Uganda" I replied.

Stranger: Are you sure?

Myself: Yes Madam; I'm a Ugandan.

Stranger: Go and thank God, You are not the tribe that we want to kill nor an Albino.
[She shouts and her hands start shaking, her eyes turn red again as she gets her knife ready to stub].
Do you understand our language, Kiswahili?

Myself: Yes Madam, I do.

Stranger: "shukuruh bwana yesu!" Meaning, thank Mr. Jesus. You found when the spirit of killing had not descended upon me" Thank your God. [Repeated it three times as she placed her knife down].(Now near the Stadium, look down there {bushy dark valley} and then when you go back ask what they found there last week. The previous week a dead body of a young woman was found in that place.
[She drives around the field as she claimed was looking for safe parking, She tried to stop but saw a security guard and drove off very fast and joined Jako's Hotel road to the high way.
Myself: I again said my last prayer and my understanding capacity deteriorated and felt like my soul was ready to part with the body. My body was helpless and then mentioned one word OH MY GOD!


Stranger: What are you saying?

Myself : Kept quiet. [Enough of psychological torture and was like let her do what she wants].

Stranger: I'm talking to you [Shouting at me].
Well, this is what I have for you and it’s for your own consumption.
She starts to reveal.
Never ever accept lifts from strangers, [These small cars for example are used for operations of killing]. We take advantage of the situations, for example when it's raining or drizzling, and when there is scarcity of cars like now. It's the time most people are desperate.
Never trust people.
You can never tell by outside appearance what one is. For example, I'm smart, looked a lady claiming to work with Revenue Authority. I convinced you how difficult it is to get taxis as its school visiting day. Our lies are always based on simple logic.
Never board a taxi of less than three people.
One will pretend to be the driver another conductor, another passenger. We even use special hire cars on self-drive, go execute the mission and hand back to the owner.
We use so many tricks like also requesting for a lift.
We are many in town and our mission is to kill. Gentleman never ever,

You are lucky because you were not even the target group, thank your God. [Nearing the road to Seventh Day Adventist Church]. The ladies you boarded with were my target group and I know I will get them again. (After she mentioned these words she behaved as if she was coming from sleep and stopped her car suddenly. I'm going to leave you hear. [Next to where they wash cars - another dangerous zone]. Do you have transport?

Myself : No Madam, I don't have.

Stranger: How are you moving?

Myself : "I will walk" I replied.

Stranger: Ok, get out of my car and walk up to that house without looking behind and when you reach there, only come back when I have driven off. No making any noise and should you, then I will shoot. [As she points her pistol at me].

Myself : Got out of the car, one of shoes got off as I was trembling.
Stranger: Put on your shoes properly and quickly walk. [Shouting and very rude].

Myself : I was already psychologically dead and I knew she was going to shoot. My wobbling feet could not support me enough and life was a mile away. I Walked about five meters away and heard this stranger take off at neck speed. Continued because my fear was she could come back and harm me. I could not hold my tears, started crying and suddenly saw a man with gun coming towards me. {Security guard to the home I was ordered to move to].
Security Guard: Sorry, I saw you at gun point from a distance and I wanted to shoot but unfortunately you were at close range and my fear was I would end up shooting you. That one must be among the killer group. You are lucky. Has she injured you?

Myself : Basically psychological torture and took some money but no physical harm. [About three minutes later my Uncle called on the hidden phone that was on the side of the bag. That watchman was helpful as he helped me to cross the road to board taxi to the Heritage Hotel. I have been under fear but thanks be to God I'm coming out of it though the memories are still very fresh.
This was a nasty experience that I wouldn't like anybody to go through and this is what I have to say.

The world we are in is full of evil and please don't make the same mistake!

Watch out! You may not be as lucky as I was to come out of that quagmire.

Please don't give lifts to strangers for those with cars!

Those without cars don’t ask for lifts from strangers!

Be cautious on what you talk and where you talking!

Be close to your God at all times and commit each day to him before any activity [Could be one thing that shielded me when I met the enemy]

Remember the story of Daniel, Aberdeen and Shadrach, Rescued without a scratch.

God was also on my side! Please take care!

Thank you for sparing your time to read through my story.




Joseph:

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.


MAY GOD HELP US!

Most of us have learned that the Bible teaches us mainly about two things....

1. The first is our relationship with God.

2. The second is our relationship with one another.

Every book in the bible deals with these two relationships.

Almost everything that I talk about from this pulpit concerns our relationship with God. That is a good thing to talk about!

Tonight though, I want to begin a new series concerning our relationship ourselves and with others.

We are going to address relationships that deal with the husband, the wife, friends, and family, communication...but I want to begin this series tonight by talking about understanding yourself!

The first key to understanding yourself is to understand...

• Who you are.
• Where you come from.
• Where you are going.
• What is your purpose.

...before you can be successful in any relationship...you must be able to understand yourself!

Before you can be successful in your relationship with God you must be able to understand yourself!

Tell the person next to you..."I am about to find out who I am."

The bible says....
James 1:17-18
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

James, Jesus half brother, wrote this.

Very quickly in his writings, he begins to talk about who we are....

• He begins by stating, "Every perfect gift is from above, from God the one who created light, and from the one who can never change."

James is setting up his next statement in this verse.

In the very next verse, James says, "God brought us to life by His word, and we became His most precious possession."

In two verses, James tells you who you are, and where you came from!

• God brought you into this world.
o It doesn't matter what the earthly circumstances of your birth were.
o You were not a mistake.
o You were not an accident.
o God put you right where you are for a purpose.
o God brought you into this world.

That's where you came from!

• The bible says that you are a perfect gift from above.
o That cannot change.
o There is no variableness or shadow of turning about that!
o You are the most prized possession of God.
o You are the apple of His eye.

That is who you are today!

Somebody say, "I know who I am!"

Then James goes on to say that it is not good enough to hear who we are, but we must become who we were born to be!

James 1:22-25
22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

There is a lot to swallow in those four verses!

James makes it easy for us to understand though...he compares it to looking in the mirror.

How many of you like to look in the mirror? Don't raise your hand.

o The mirror doesn't lie...it tells the truth every time.

o I liked the mirror a lot more when I was 25 than I do today.

I looked in the mirror a lot in those days...

o I did my hair.
o Shaved.
o Brushed my teeth.
o Tied my tie.

And then I stepped back to admire the beautiful sight...just kidding.

Then I walked away and came back five minutes later to make sure everything was just right...like the mirror was lying to me or something.
Don't laugh at me, you know exactly what I am talking about! Some of you go back to the mirror seven, eight, nine and ten times before you leave the house.

It is like you forgot what you looked like ten minutes earlier.

That is exactly James point...

James 1:23-24
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

The reason that some of us struggle so much in our relationships is because we forget who we are...

o I can preach to you about being the prize of God's possession till I am blue in the face.
o You can hear me and agree with me all night long.
o But if you forget who you are between now and Sunday when the enemy starts messing with you...it is not going to do you any good.

James says, some of us are like that person who constantly has to look in the mirror to make sure they are good enough.

You know what your problem is tonight?

o Some you have forgotten what you look like!
o Some of you have forgotten who your father is!
o Some of you don't remember where you came from!

It is time for somebody to go beyond the hearing, and start believing.
It is time for somebody to start becoming who you are.

25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
James said, don't look in the mirror, look in the word...the word is your mirror!

Take it to the next level...don't just hear the preacher, but believe him and put it into action!

o You are the apple of God's eye.
o You the crown of His creation.
o You are not an accident.
o God didn't make any mistakes.
o You are a perfect gift from God.

o Satan has no power over you.
o The enemy can't mess with you...Unless you let him.

Can I get a witness in the house tonight?

Since you are a perfect gift from God, it is important to understand that you are unique!

There ain't nobody else like you in this entire world!

David said...

Ps 139:14-16
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.

o You were fearfully and wonderfully made.
o God knows every part of you...everything about you was recorded while you were in the womb.

Not only are you unique in creation, you are unique in purpose.

God has a unique purpose for your life!

o Nobody can take your place...You are unique.
o Nobody can talk like you...you are unique.
o Nobody can sing like you...you are unique.

Isaiah 43:6-7
6 I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth;
7 Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.

We were created for the glory of God!

o God's glory is the beauty and power of His Spirit.

o We were created then to show God's glory...his beauty and his power...to all of the earth.

That is our purpose!

We are earthly vessels that contain His Glory!

We reveal His Glory to this world through our unique abilities...through our unique characteristics that were given from God.

o In other words...I can't sing like my wife...she reveals Gods glory through song...the beauty of music. She is unique in that way.

o I try to reveal God's glory through the spoken word.

There are many ways that each one of us can show God's glory to this world.

o Love for one another.
o Compassion.
o Humility.
o Servant hood.
Another way that we can all show God's glory is by our testimony! Our witness!

o Your personality is unique.
o So your testimony is unique!

You don't have to do it like Bro. Church, or Bro. Smith, or Bro. Matt Maddix.

But you do have to do it! You are called to be a witness!

1 Peter 2:9
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

We are called to show people how He called us out of darkness! We cannot hide our light!

Nobody else can reach the people that you are called to reach...you are unique.

There are a lot of people that will listen to your testimony, but they won't listen to my testimony, and they won't listen to Bro. Smith's testimony.

o Nobody else goes where you go.
o Nobody else works where you work.
o Nobody else has the friends that you have.

Listen now...and nobody else can witness like you can witness.

God had given you the unique ability to reach the people in your life!

If you don't reach those people...who will reach them... You are the only one who can reach them...you are unique!

God placed you where you are for a purpose.

I can't take your place, and you can't take my place...you are unique.

When I look at my own children...same father...same mother...yet so different...unique.

o As much as they look like me, my image, my wife's image...God has also made them in His Image!
o As much as Barrett wants to be like Davis, he can never be because God has already made him perfectly unique.

He has in own personality.
He has his own smile.
He has his own frown.

And it is the same way for each of us!

God made us that way and He understands our differences!

Matthew 25:15
15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.

Don't be jealous of the talents that somebody else has...God made them that way.

And if you will use what God has given you...He will bless you with more.

Remember what out text said...

James 1:25
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

If you start doing what God has created you to do you will be blessed!

Can I get a witness of that in the house tonight?

So God made each of us unique, and God loves us that way.
His love is unconditional...

John 3:16
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

God's love for you is unconditional...we are the object of His affection.

I didn't say that God loves it when you mess up and sin...but His love for you is unconditional.

I know you have heard that before.

The important thing tonight is to remember what I am telling you....that is what it really means to understand yourself.

Remember where you came from.

Don't forget who you are when you leave this house tonight!

o Our problem is that we forget who we are.
o We forget where we came from.
o We forget what our purpose is.

Do you know who you are tonight?

The reason people backslide is because they forget who they really are!

The prodigal son took his inheritance and left his family and home behind.

He erased the memory of his past.

o He became somebody that he was not.
o Instead of staying true to who he was, the bible actually says that he joined himself to a citizen of another country.
o He forgot who he was...and became another person, living a life he did not know.
After a time of living like that, and when his money was all gone, the bible says...

Luke 15:17
17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

When he came to himself...one day he woke up!

One morning....

o He remembered who he used to be...
o He remembered where he came from...
o He remembered who his father was...

Oh does anybody remember who your daddy is tonight.

Do you know who you are ?

It dawned on the prodigal that he needed to go back home...even if it had to be as a servant.

So he heads back home to his father...

Luke 15:20-24
20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
21 And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:
23 And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:
24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

You might not think you are worthy to be called a child of God tonight...but if you will just give God a chance...

o He will bring out the best robe.
o He will bring out the fatted calf.
o He will throw a grand celebration.

...because you are one of His...a child of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords! He loves you more than anything.

o Do you remember who you are tonight?
o Do you remember when God baptized you with the Holy Ghost and fire.
o Do you remember when you took on His name at baptism.

You have been purchased with the blood of Jesus Christ, and you are not your own....he is Abba Father to you!

It is time for somebody to start being who God called you to be tonight!

ABA Foundation

The objectives of ABA Foundation is Helping People Live Better Life and to Promote the Socio - Economic Welfare of the Vulnerable Communities especially the Destitute Children, Orphans, Widows, Disaster Affected People and Poor Families affected by HIV / AIDS among others.

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