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www.truthworks.com 14 OCT 04 devotion archive |
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CHANGED I tell you the Truth,
Romans 12: My lunch hour usually consists of a walk to the downtown mall which is about three blocks from my office. During my walk, it’s not unusual for me to run into my old college friend Pete Cosby. Pete won’t mind me telling you that when we were in college together, he wasn’t known for his loving and kind heart. Pete played football and was just about as wild a young buck as you’d want to meet. If there was something sinful to indulge in, Pete could show you the way. To be honest with you, Pete was also one of the funniest guys I ever met. But when I see Pete on the street now, he’s not the same Pete I knew way back when. The Pete you’ll meet on the street today is handing out tracks, praying with people in need and witnessing to anyone who’ll listen. This past Tuesday, I stopped to talk with Pete for a moment. He was telling me a story about last past weekend, which was homecoming for our Alma Matter, West Virginia University Tech. He told me how he met up with several of our old classmates. But he said he became dismayed when story after story about him reminded him and his friends about the life he once lived. Pete said it saddened his soul and he began to pray in his heart for God’s wisdom and mercy to shine within him. As God spoke to Pete’s heart, he asked some of his friends to step outside because he needed to talk to them. Getting away from the noise, Pete explained that he was now a Christian, how God had changed his life, how that old life had passed away and he was a new creature and how much he loved Jesus. Pete said that his old friends acknowledged the change. But one particular guy there was struck by the change he saw in Pete. And the Spirit of God went to work on a guy named Spike Lykens. If you can imagine what a Spike looks like, you’ve got a pretty good picture of our Spike. I won’t go too deep into Spike’s past, but let’s just say Spike was one huge rowdy cowboy. At that moment, Spike was met head on with the truth as he witnessed what God had done in the life of one of his old college friends. And this huge man suddenly found himself weeping and crying out to God simply because he knew he needed Jesus. God works in mysterious ways. I’m pretty certain that Spike Lykens didn’t plan on attending homecoming at WVU Tech with the idea that he’d meet Jesus there. But that’s exactly what happened. And now, another life has been changed by the Spirit of God. If you listen to Pete Cosby for just a few moments, you’ll hear him testify to the changes in his life. Pete admits that he has a sinful past, but you can’t help but catch that his heart is overjoyed with the change in his life, brought about by the Spirit of God. Change is what God desires in our lives. We were all born in sin. But God had a plan from the beginning, a gift that transforms us, changes us and makes within us new creatures. Like I said, the Pete I know now and the Pete I knew then is not the same Pete. “What a great story,” you might say. But if you know me, you also know that I don’t tell you stories to entertain. I’m sharing this story because we all need to be aware that God’s desire is to bring about change in our lives. He accepts the way we are, but He never desires to leave us in the state. The question today is simple. Are you a new creature? Are you changed? Is there enough evidence in your life to convict you of being a Christian? If you’ve never experienced a change in your life, please listen closely. It’s not because you’re not good enough to live the life, it’s not because you haven’t had the right training and it’s not because “you’re the way you are and you can’t change.” The change that we see in a Christian is more about who is in that person than who that person is. Being “transformed by the renewing” of our mind means to be changed from the inside out. Surrender fully and wholly today to Jesus. Too many of us accept the gift but never fully surrender our beings. Perhaps you’re not living a satisfying life. Then perhaps you need a change. Your Servant, <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Prayer Requests (and Praises!) If you have a prayer request and would like to see it here, please drop me an email so we can share with others.
Continue to pray for God’s
will for our nation, our nation’s leaders and our up coming election. We need
God’s hand upon us and we need constant reminder that His mercy is our only
hope. Please reply if you have prayer requests, comments or simply need an open ear. I always enjoy hearing from you. <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Copyright © 2004 Truth Works Publishing. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise specified, all scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV.
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