RETURN TO MAKER

2 Corinthians 5: 18 - 21

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  

Today we come before you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ who died on a cross to make available deliverance, forgiveness and freedom from sin so that we might have eternal life through him. 

Often it seems that what God made simple and straightforward, man has complicated.

Jesus the Savior, the son of God, God Himself come in the flesh, stood silent before his accusers next to Pontius Pilot and let those around him hurl their false accusations at him.  He made no effort to defend or excuse himself.

• He stood silent while they accused him of being a blasphemer, though he knew he was the way the truth and the life the word incarnate. 

• He stood silent while they accused him of stirring up riots, while he knew that it was he who had come to bring them a peace that passes all understanding. 

• He stood silent while they accused him and desired him to be put to death, while he knew it was he himself who had breathed their first breath of life into each of them and that it was through him that each might find eternal life. 

This Jesus, the Lord of Lords and King of Kings who came to the earth he created as a human child, born in a lowly manger so that we would see - if we would choose to have eyes to see, that our deliverer desired to understand us, to relate to our human condition and circumstances, and to show compassion for our hurts and our troubles and our sorrows and then show us the way to joy and rejoicing and victory! 

In the name of Jesus we who trust and believe in him call out to those who may not yet have turned their eyes to him, who may not yet have turned their hearts in hope toward him in order that they might receive his gift of salvation and be bathed in his redeeming grace; we call out his mercy before others that they would have opportunity to see and opportunity to experience the saving grace of the God who made formed and created each one of us, knit us together particularly and specifically within our mothers womb's and brought us forth for his purpose, for his pleasure for no reason that rests in us, but only because, not just that he loves us, but that he is love.

• The Lord your God, (for he is yours as well as ours, even before we ever acknowledge that truth), he  desires not only that you know the Way, but that you abide in the way and allow it to transform the manner in which you live your life. 

• The Lord your God desires not only that you have life and life eternal but that you live it in abundance with joy and rejoicing. 

• The Lord your God (who made formed and created you), desires not simply that you know of him, that you know about him, but that you know HIM with a deep and abiding knowledge concerning him and his truth which is our truth. 

• That in the beginning before ever you or I were HE IS. And that in that beginning because his very character is love, he held you and I within his heart right from the beginning, and in his perfect timing has brought each one of us into being, and written our names in the lambs book of life, all those who would both hear his truth and trust and believe his truth. 

And his truth is not a concept, it is not an idea, it is not a theology or an ideology.

He himself is the truth, who came to earth as man, to deliver his creation, each one of us, from the wickedness, darkness and evil schemes of the devil we know as satan. 

He himself is the way! The way to what you might ask? The way to the purpose for which God created you. To eternally live in harmony in His presence!

 He himself is life! Both the source of and the giver of life.  He provides life that is eternal, abundant, productive, and worthwhile.

 He is the truth! Truth is Jesus!

Truth is not a religion, it is not a denomination, it is not man-made nor is it subject to man’s approval, mans validation or mans reasoning. 

Truth is a man, the man Jesus, the son of God, God incarnate.  The full expression of everything that God is, is Jesus! 

It is perfectly expressed in his willingness to give everything for others to have everything they could ever need or want. Not only the material wealth of this world, but eternal life in an eternal state of joy and peace and abundance and happiness and fulfillment. 

And his promise is an uncomplicated extraordinary promise. That those who seek first his kingdom and his righteousness shall receive all the abundance both of his kingdom that is spiritual and of his creation, this world which is physical.

In return for him giving his life, his very being - everything that he is, breath and life and purpose and love and forgiveness of sins and being washed clean of all unrighteousness and being made right with him, the ruler of the universe, having given his every thing to pay the penalty for our debt, in return for all of this he asks one thing and one thing only from us. 

Our heart.

The seat and center of all and everything that we are with all of our faults and flaws and issues and problems and sorrow’s; that we give all of that to Him and receive in return for trusting him who created it all - made it all - formed it all - planned at all and is executing it all and keeping it all going - we receive instead eternal life, abundant life, and joy unspeakable!

That is the entirety of the reason Christ, the Messiah, the Savior the Son of God, JESUS! - that is why He came - to make available to each one of us RECONCILIATION to our Creator, God Almighty.

Everything else - the behavior we display, the choices we make, the actions we take and the words we speak are an external expression of the internal truth of being born-again, filled with Holy Spirit and overflowing with the Love of God through Jesus!

 2 Corinthians 5: 18 - 21

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  

The Christmas season is one where many of us begin to think about this baby born in a manger.  We may wonder about this Creator who claims to care so much about us.  Especially if we are having a hard time, going through a deep sorrow and life hasn't worked out quite like we thought it would, like we thought it should.

This Christmas season, I pray sincerely, honestly and fervently that you will KNOW the love of God in tangible ways in your life and experience that love in practical application in your life. 

Need help? Want help? Have questions?  Contact us - it would be our joy and privilege to reach out to you on His behalf and reconcile you to His love!

Ambassadors in the Embassy

The following is what the Holy Spirit put on my heart this morning and revealed to me; I posted it on Facebook but I thought you might not see it. I hope you don't mind but I really wanted to share it with you:

What do you think of when someone says the word church? We may think of church as a gathering of people, or perhaps we think of church as a building where we go on a Sunday or Wednesday, or maybe we think of church as religion.

To some degree each one of these definitions is correct in certain ways. That's actually quite sad, and if I may be so bold, allow me tell you why this is so.

The function of the Body of Christ is for each member to be an Ambassador for Christ, (2Corinthians 5:20) or as it says in Acts 1:8 to be witnesses to Christ, which would make the buildings that we go to to be equipped for the work of ambassadorship Heavens Embassy. Just as we have a countries embassy existing in foreign countries, these buildings we call church should actually be the Embassy of Heaven here on earth!! Representing NOT our ideology, doctrines or beliefs but the TRUTH of the Almighty God, the Sovereign Creator of all heaven and all earth.

If we understood that in all its fullness, how would that change our behaviors and our interaction with the community around us?

A little food for thought from Turn the Tide Ministry as we head into our weekend.  Share, comment, contact us for prayer, with questions or for more information about being an Ambassador for Christ!

Anointed Ambassadors

There is no end to what we humans can truly do and accomplish when we are anointed by the Lord to do so, just as there is nothing we can do so well without it.  Many years ago when I was raising my children, the Lord anointed me to work with children in a very special way.  I opened a daycare, which allowed me to be in the home for my children while earning a very desperately needed income.  During this period of time I seemed to instinctively know the what, when and how concerning all the needs of the children who were brought by their parents for my care. 

No amount of crying irritated me in the slightest, I, a very impatient person by nature, was infinitely patient with these 1, 2, 3 and 4 year old demanding little human beings.  They delighted me!  I genuinely enjoyed introducing them to “the world” and found great joy and satisfaction in their delight!  Every new discovery they made was as fresh and exciting as the first time my own children had made just such a discovery.   A hug from one of them gave me the warm fuzzies like nothing else could, and I can honestly say that in almost 15 years of providing this service, I loved each and every child in my care and enjoyed every minute with them... until the day I didn’t anymore.  The season of child care came to an end for me and with it the special anointing.  A new season in my life began and a fresh, equally satisfying but different anointing came with it.

It was the same when Turn the Tide Ministries was blessed with our first RV which we affectionately referred to as Harvey the RV – a 19 foot mini motor home.  We lived in those 19 feet as if in a palace, and when God blessed us a couple of years later with an answer to prayer - simply that we would have a fifth wheel with a separate bed from the couch, it was like He had given us the Taj Mahal!  We dubbed it the "Silver L" and quickly re-made it to fit our needs.  We were blessed and not once did we feel cramped or overcrowded, not even when company came to visit our little space!

Every believer is anointed by God for the work of the ministry.  (See last weeks Sunday Sermon) Each one has a particular purpose for the talents and abilities God has given to us, to accomplish Gods great plan.  Each one is called by the Lord to serve, not all in the same way or same capacity, but all to serve to accomplish "the Mission" stated in II Corinthians 5:

 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ..."

Have you confessed Jesus as Lord in your life?  Have you believed God raised Him from the dead and by the shedding of His blood you have received Remission of sin?  Then you are an Ambassador, a representative of Him on this earth.  It isn't a pulpit or a degree or a piece of paper from some "august body" that makes you a minister for the Lord Jesus Christ - it is the Christ in YOU and you walking IN that truth that releases His miraculous anointing in your life to do extraordinary things in His name! 

Ephesians 4:1-7 " I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. "

HAVE A TRULY BLESSED & ANOINTED WEEK!  

A FULL TOMB - OUR HOPE!

BLESSED  HOPE  THAT  SUSTAINS  US,  BLESSED  HOPE  THAT  GROWS  OUR  FAITH!

BLESSED  PALM  SUNDAY  AND  LOVE  TO  ALL  FROM  US!

SUBSCRIBE  RIGHT  NOW
SO  YOU  DON'T  MISS  THE  ORIGINAL  DRAMA  PRODUCTION

MALCHUS;  an  Easter  Miracle!

We'll be posting it for Easter Sunday

TODAY  ENJOY  THE  STORY  OF  THE  FULL TOMB!

Knocking on Doors

Following the leading of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, we were going door to door and offering to pray for people.  Only one said no and shut the door on us.  Most were very pleasantly surprised and responded positively to the offer, made with no strings attached.  We knocked on the next door and a man answered.  He seemed rather distracted, but invited us in and asked us to sit down.  We made the offer to pray and he accepted, but had some questions he wanted to asked first.

At the end of our impromptu interview, he allowed us to pray for him and his family.  He asked where we gathered on Sunday and we told him along with a welcome to join us anytime he chose.

His children began attending regularly and became part of the church family.  Several times when they were not working he and his wife joined us as well.

As we are a traveling ministry, the time came for us to move on.  Joyfully we bid farewell to our new friends and followed the Lords leading once more to parts unknown.  Several months later we received a phone call from the pastor of that church we'd worked with while in that area.  He asked if we remembered the gentleman on who's door we had knocked who subsequently visited the church.  We said we did.  Then he shared a story that reminded us and encouraged us in the work God has called us to.

Pastor began "Jim (not his real name) called me out of the blue the other day.  He wanted to share a story for me to pass on to you.  He said that day we came to his door and offered to pray for him, he had at that very moment been sitting in his office.  His marriage was falling apart and his business was a mess.  He cried out to God and asked for help.  Right then is when we knocked on his door!"

Since then, with open hearts to the Lord this family has received much healing and deliverance.  If Jim hadn't called Pastor to share with him, we never would have known the impact our little insignificant act of obedience had harvested for the Glory of God Almighty!  We don't always see the result, but God always knows the end He is moving us toward.  Always, it is for not only our good but the good of others as well.

What a mighty, awesome, loving, kind and infinitely creative God we serve!  This story and so many others like it are the reason we have forsaken all to travel where the Holy Spirit leads and share the glorious Gospel of Salvation through Christ Jesus with any and all that we come in contact with.  We don't count souls harvested, we just obey our God and trust in Him with all our hearts, leaving things in His ultra capable hands!

What a joy, what a privilege to serve the Lord and fulfill His purposes in our lives.  Whatever the Lord has called you to in YOUR life, be encouraged that He is there working all things together for good even when you don't see or know the result of it.  Every insignificant act of obedience He turns to SIGNIFICANT GLORY TO HIS WONDERFUL NAME.

Our Amazing Lord!

Isn't it amazing how God works? When we get ourselves out of His way, set aside our own will and desire and truly allow His Spirit to lead and guide us we may end up in places we never even dreamed of doing things we hadn't ever thought about and yet they are just exactly the right place and the right things to do, bringing Glory and Honor to His name rather than our own. We are finding this truth applied over and over again in our journeying as Ambassadors for Christ.

You may be familiar with the parable Jesus shares in Luke 12:20 about the man who puts his hope in the physical riches of this world only to enjoy none of the fruits of his labor. His focus was on the temporary things of this world rather than obedience to the Lord. In short the story is a snapshot of his life. He is blessed with abundance of goods, but rather than giving thanks to God and seeking how he might honor the Lord for the abundance he's been granted, he makes his own selfish plans which are never realized as his life ends that very night.

The point or moral of the story is simply to give God the glory, to seek Gods way for our lives and not our own ways. To recognize the temporary nature of this life and keep our focus on the HOPE that is ours in Eternity, precisely so that we won't get fixated on the things of this world. This is an especially necessary reminder in this age of instant gratification. Cell phones keep us in instant constant contact and computers connect us to everything the world has to offer at the push of a button. We've grown so far and so fast, and yet the exhortation remains to WAIT UPON THE LORD. His timing, His will, His plan brought to completion in our lives.

We recently had a "plan" about where we were going and what we were going to do.  It was a good plan that included being a blessing to others, preaching the Word of God and leading people to a saving knowledge of Christ as Savior.  A good plan, but it was our plan, not Gods plan.  Thankfully, as we prayed and sought His way for us, He showed us His way.  It wasn't ours, not what we had thought but His is so much better!

One of the things we've had to guard against in our lives since answering the Lords call to live as Missionaries fully surrendered to Him is a tendency to define what we think "ministry"is or what it should look like based on how it's "always been done." We see it in the churches as well. This is what has worked in the past, so we simply continue in our flesh doing what has worked in the past. A few tweaks here or there to keep up with technology, maybe refresh the music ministry to reflect current tastes, but essentially we plod along doing what we've always done.

In the midst of his discourse to believers in the first century, wherein he touches upon many different subjects, the Apostle James makes this great observation that is timely to our lives today.  "Come now, you who say "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit"; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that." James 4: 13-15

We are joyfully and even sometimes painfully discovering that MINISTRY as God defines it is very different from "what we've always done" and very different from what we thought it would be. When we insist on defining what His work is, we limit ourselves to our ability and our knowledge. WE BOX GOD IN. We don't stop His work from occurring, we simply stop ourselves from doing His work and begin doing our own. By putting aside our preconceived notions and truly seeking the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will find ourselves doing things we never could have imagined, for He is infinitely CREATIVE, but they will be the things that bring about His glory, His will and have positive Eternal effect on others lives as well as our own.

Thank you for joining us today for an encouraging Word in the Lord!  Subscribe to Tide Turning Tales and get the Teachings and inspiring stories right to your inbox.  Leave a comment and tell us how the Lord is working in your life! We are one body in Christ.  Whatever we do, lets MAKE IT COUNT FOR CHRIST.