Blind Eyes Open

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It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins, Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him." John 9:3 NLT

Who knew that this day would change every day afterwards? Imagine what it would be like to be blind from birth. You wouldn’t know color; only blackness. You wouldn’t know what it feels like to see a smile of approval. You wouldn’t know the face of your mother. You would often fall and run into things. Get out of the way, would be normal to hear. Left out would be the common feeling. Shame would be your constant companion.

This is a small piece of how it must have felt for the blind man in John 9 when Jesus and His disciples encountered him. The disciples didn’t see the blind man as a person with hopes, dreams, desires, and God-given potential. They saw him as an object lesson for a spiritual discussion about sin. Jesus saw the blind man as a person created in the image of God with innate value—the same way He sees you and me.

Jesus lived out the love of the Father every day all the time. He came to bring light to a world walking in darkness. He was on mission and He wasn’t distracted from His purpose.

“Go,” he told the blind man,, “Wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means ‘sent”). So the man went. John 9:7 NLT

A decision to act in faith changed the blind man’s life forever. What a great example of Jesus fulfilling His mission! Not only did the blind man return with sight but also a testimony, I once was blind but now I see!

We are never the same once we experience what it means to live out the love of Jesus. When Jesus works in your life, you too will have a story to tell. The world needs to hear your story.

Gary Kendall
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 5, Live Out, Day 1, Devo 21

Invest in Others

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I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 1 Corinthians 15:3 NLT

No one invested in Kelly in a positive way, until a wrestling coach saw through the destructive way Kelly acted out. He saw a guy with talent, a quick wit, and a tender heart. Kelly was a good athlete and the team needed him, so the coach had extra motivation.

Kelly was kicked out of school several times for fighting which kept him on the border line of being a drop out. Kelly was raised by his dad and my granny. Kelly’s Dad worked hard but then spent a lot of time at the bar after work.

Sometimes, Kelly made progress. Other times, he stayed on the fringes. Consistency wasn’t his strong suit. Kelly had as many losses as wins on his record not just in athletics but in life, but he kept showing up. During this time the wrestling coach was as consistent as Kelly was inconsistent. He invested in Kelly repeatedly and made multiple invitations for Kelly to attend his church.

Kelly eventually said yes. This guy wasn’t put off by the bravado coming from Kelly’s words. He saw through the act. He knew what Kelly really needed was a relationship with His heavenly Father. He needed to find his way back to God, but he also needed positive role models.

Once Kelly accepted the invitation to church and to a couple of campus organizations he met a whole new group of students. Through the influence of these key people who took an interest

in him and a set of circumstances that only the Holy Spirit could arrange, Kelly reached out to Jesus.

The change was dramatic. Kelly knew real love for the first time. He quickly found freedom from shame, drugs, and alcohol. His relationships improved. Kelly felt hope for the first time in a long time.

Kelly married Polly, a cheerleader and one of the co-eds in the group. Kelly explored the scriptures. He found a good church. He discovered he was a leader and a gifted one at that! He started reaching out to others like a few men reached out to him. His story connected with others, and before long Kelly was leading others to find the life he found in Jesus. And in the process Kelly was becoming more and more like Jesus.

Today Kelly is a dynamic pastor who started a church House of Joy from a very small group  in Valdosta, GA. The fledgling church has grown to 300 plus in five short years and shows no signs of slowing down. You would never guess that would have been his future had you met Kelly in his teen years! If you’d told Kelly what the future held for him he would have laughed at the idea.

God gave Kelly spiritual gifts that are divine graces. In other words, he didn’t earn or deserve them. When Kelly answered the invitation of Jesus to follow Him, the gifts came alive inside him. Kelly’s story drew others to Christ. Lives were impacted, and destinies were changed.

You too can experience the life changing power of Jesus. He invites you to join Him in sharing your redemption story. You are gifted by God and you are called to invest in others.

From Community For Community

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All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper, and to prayer. Acts 2:42 NLT

Chelsea was just a year out of Pittsburg State University. She is a young adult who is not married. She’d been attending Indian Creek Community Church for the past two years. She found her way back to God and was baptized last year.
I saw Chelsea at the Lenexa BBQ cook off where, with her eyes wide she pulled me off to one side and said, I can’t believe what happened at my community group last night!

She proceeded to tell me she had gone to her group with a bit of an attitude because things hadn’t been going smoothly for her lately. She was frustrated with God and had some doubts about whether He cared about what she cared about. She was amazed that when she shared openly with the group, they listened and took her doubts to heart. They connected with her at a soul level. They discussed her concerns with honesty and to them there were no dumb questions. She found some answers that night, and she learned that her group was there for her. She felt she heard God speak to her through her group that night.

That was encouraging, but it was just the beginning of the story. Later the same night the group rallied around a couple who were in financial jeopardy. They pooled their money to pull together a house payment. Then they went out together to eat ice cream and celebrate. That’s community at its best! Everybody needs it!
We shouldn’t be surprised that community is central to the life of a disciple. Here’s a clue--God is three-in-One, Father, Son and Spirit. That’s community from the very beginning. Need more evidence? God designed people to live in families. Still not convinced? When you become a Christ follower you are added to the family of God. Community is the way God designed life to be lived.

Here is a question for you, Are you living in community?

Gary Kendall
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 4, Love People, Day 4, Devo 19

Be Baptized

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Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:28 NLT

A catalyst for spiritual growth is baptism. Jesus was baptized at the beginning of his ministry. It was a sign of His dedication to do the will of the Father. He set the example for us, and it is a huge statement of identification with Jesus when you do what He did.

Baptism doesn’t save you. But baptism is an act of obedience whereby you symbolize that you identify with Jesus’ death. In baptism, you allow yourself to be laid into the water. When you go under it is as if you’ve entered a watery grave. You die to self. Then when you are raised out of the water, it symbolizes the new birth with Christ Jesus. You are raised to new life!

There is a great joy in obedience! It is always a boost to your spiritual growth to live the life Jesus lived and follow his example.

Listen to the joy expressed in these quotes from people who’ve repented and been baptized. I would say that getting baptized was one of most awesome things of my life. There is no greater feeling than going under the water as the old Joel and coming out of the water a renewed Joel. I personally felt Jesus touch me and refresh my body while I was under the water. Joel Johnson
The meaning of baptism for me was just incredible. It was a beautiful and an extraordinary experience. I felt the power of GOD with me in that moment. After being immersed in the water, it was as if I was breaking free, which represented a new beginning. This beginning has put me on the path where I am opening up so much in my love for Christ and his love for me. I genuinely loved the experience of declaring my faith and commitment to Jesus publicly. Jennifer Creason

There is a joy and a power that is released in obedience. If you have not been baptized tell your spiritual mentor, or a pastor, you want to be baptized. Ask the person who’s been the greatest spiritual motivator to you to participate and be with you in the water. Reclaim your spiritual birthright by accepting Christ and being baptized. It is a clear declaration that says, I’ve joined the family of God!

Gary Kendall        
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 4, Love People, Day 4, Devo 18 

Welcome to the Family

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But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12 NLT

Clandestine meetings aren’t only a part of the plot of a thriller movie, but they are a part of a bigger quest that goes on in the soul of a person on a spiritual journey. The Bible tells the story of a man named Nicodemus who sought out Jesus at night.

Nick launched the discussion with Jesus with a statement that implied there was a greater question. It appeared that God was working through Jesus, but who was he really? Was he the Messiah?

Jesus flipped the conversation and talked about how it was that Nick would discover spiritual truth in the first place. In other words, it wasn’t Jesus who was on trial here. Nick needed to question whether he correctly knew how to discern truth. The implied question in the words of Jesus was whether or not Nick really knew for what he was searching.

To understand his own purpose in the conversation Nick was going to need to come face to face with his spiritual side of life. Jesus said he needed to be ‘born again.’ Nick evidenced his shallow fleshly thinking when he wondered aloud how a man could enter the womb a second time.

Jesus’ answer was profound. He spoke of a duality of life where the physical nature of life coexists with a spiritual side. There is a powerful purpose that comes alive inside when you discover that your body and soul are meant to align your Creation’s plan.

This discovery is a powerful clue to sorting out your true identity and living out your destiny. The second birth reunites you with your Creator, your Father, and you join the eternal family of God. You were created to live in this family and it is through rebirth that you join the family! Are you in?

Gary Kendall
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 4, Love People, Day 2, Devo 17

Who Am I?

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Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people.1 Peter 2:10 NLT

In the movie The Bourne Identity, Jason Bourne, the lead character, struggles to determine his true identity. He has amnesia with flashbacks to traumatic events. He is sure they shaped his present reality, but he can’t put the pieces together. He remembers fleeing for his life. He remembers it was kill or be killed at some point, but why? What was the motive? Was there a purpose? And who was the girl with him?

Jason strains to learn if there was a moral value to the pursuit of his life. He fears he may have been a rouge on the run perhaps even from himself. Bit by bit, piece by piece, his memory returned, and he began to separate who he was from what he did. Once he discovered the truth, he began to live out of his true identity. The truth was the key to his question, Who am I?

He discovered in his life’s quest that indeed he had a higher purpose than self-preservation. I’ll stop there so I don’t spoil the story.

In the same way it is critical that you and I discover our true identity. I imagine you have a head start on Jason Bourne in the condition he was in. But no doubt you feel the struggle inside to determine who you are at the core. It is normal to want to discover why you do what you do. You desperately hope that there is a higher purpose and a moral value that drives you forward. Surely, there is a grand reason you are alive.

What if you could harness the drive and passion that is inborn away from selfishness into alignment with your life’s purpose? The key is to discover your true identity. To find the truth you must be willing to search.

Gary Kendall
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 4, Love People, Day 1, Devo 16

S.O.A.P.

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Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 NLT

Now that you are learning to pray, let’s also learn to listen. The written Word and prayer are meant to fit together like a hand in a glove. We need both the written Word and conversational prayer to make the best decisions. This is how we share life with God who is our Friend.

A practical way to relate to God through His Word is to use the acrostic S.O.A.P. Record your thoughts in a journal so you can keep them as a ready reference.

S. Scripture: Ask what does it say?
Read a chapter of the Bible, or even a paragraph or verse, slowly so you can comprehend it. Let it sink in. Roll it over several times in your mind. Read it out loud to give it priority in your
thoughts. Process it until it makes sense to you.

O. Observation: Ask what does it mean?
Notice the details, like names, places, and notable events. Put them in the context of the message. Take the time to form a frame of reference in order to better understand the meaning. You can find many Bible helps online including commentaries, Bible dictionaries, maps, concordances, and more.

A. Application: Ask how should I apply this?
What are the obvious applications? Think general then think specific. Write down the principals. Ask God what applications are specific to you. Write down some ways you can begin to put this into practice in your everyday life.
P. Prayer Ask God how do I personalize this?
Form the thoughts you’ve collected into a prayer with specific next steps. Invite the Holy Spirit to speak to you specifically. Pray for guidance so you can put the Word into practice in your life.

As you learn to pray and listen you’ll find your love for God growing naturally and continually.

Gary Kendall
www.livingsent.net/devotionals
Week 3, S.O.A.P. Day 5, Devo 15