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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: This Side of Paradise (not about the book) (07/14/11)
Personal Conflict... Is it yours?

Have you ever felt drained of energy, determination, and loss of power? It happens in the reality of life. When Jesus was carrying the cross, a woman with an issue of blood touched his garment. He felt with a passion that power had gone from him. Then he said to her that her faith made her whole.

Yet we suffer the opposite today when people feed off from us. We seem to lose power. But it is with a definite love when Jesus said to the thief on the cross that he was going to meet him in paradise that day. It is a wonderful thing when those of us who know the Lord can meet with our Lord any time, day or night.

You see, Jesus walked this earth healing and bringing others to himself and discipling them. Then having done all in His three year ministry, He still had the power to save others for eternity to spend with Him.

We are not God, or have some unique transformational being in our selves, but rather we have the Holy Spirit in our hearts at the moment of salvation when we trust in Him. The person of the Holy Spirit can give us power when we need it. The Holy Spirit can also grieve when we do wrong and when others do those things against us which are not pleasing in His sight. When we do things wrong in the sight of God it is then the power of the Holy Spirit is stripped away. When others hurt us, and causes the Holy Spirit to grieve, It is then we can request the power which will give us what we need to conquer the hearts of others. What is so sad about this my friends, is we understand what the person who has wronged us will go through because we have experienced the aftermath, when we have wronged others.

During this conflict we have mixed things going in our lives when someone has wronged us. We have the Holy Spirit who is grieving and still loves them. We tend to think that only if I could do something to teach them a lesson. Or we may even have it in our hearts that God will get them, after all; vengeance belongs to God.

To save us from wasted and drained energy, we don't need to be judgemental. This will only cause disruption in our lives. Jesus' love and power was still there on the cross, when the thief accepted the Lord. My friends, our Lord had a human body and suffered many things. He accepted the thief on the cross to be in paradise that day while in agony.

The selfless act of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love He had for His father God, and in one with all three of the God head was unique and could not be emulated from any of us. Just as he had the power on this side of paradise, He has the power to endue to give us on this side of Heaven.

With all that I have said; there is a warning not to tempt the Lord thy God. It is not a wise thing to disrupt someone else's life to see if they have the power of the Holy Spirit in them. Do we all remember that after Jesus was baptised, He went out into the desert to be tempted by Satan. The Lord's power is His and to give to them who ask and for Him only to use at His own will. We all know the scripture when it says He won't let us go through more than we can endure, but to tempt Him is dangerous.

Last weak I was drained of energy, determination, and loss of power. But I know His love for me has seen me through. I know my friends that I will know more when I reach Heaven, but in the meanwhile, I can be like Paul, when God said to Him “My grace is sufficient...”

What do you think?
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Juliette Chamberlain-Bond
07/23/11
An interesting look at the challenges we face this side of Paradise, and the ways in which we react to those challenges.

I note that you cite the woman with the issue of blood touching Jesus as He carried the cross. I do not think this is correct unless I have misread your intention.
Apart from that the points you make are interesting.



Spelling: 'Last (weak) week I was drained of energy...'
Shann Hall-LochmannVanBennekom 
07/23/11
This is an interesting sermon with some good points. I know sometimes I judge a tad too much and I know when I do even the littlest good deed like holding a door open for someone I feel that nice warm fuzzy feeling