Hello all, I hope you are well and have been enjoying this long weekend as we remember and honor the U.S. service men and women who have died while serving and protecting our country and our freedom in America. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who are reading this post, who have lost friends and family that dedicated their lives to serving our country so unselfishly. God bless you all and may God continue to comfort you as you think of and miss these amazing men and women who dedicated their lives to serving our country.
As we honor and dedicate each Memorial Day to our U.S. Military we have lost, we are reminded of the gift of Freedom we receive, due to their service. Freedom can be experienced in many ways, but there are also so many ways in which we cannot experience freedom. Freedom takes effort. It can take a battle to overcome what is keeping us from experiencing freedom, but it can be achieved.
I am excited to be digging deeper in my Blog with a series called The Power of Change by Craig Groeschel. There are close to 40 people so far who have expressed an interested in delving into this series with us. Today I am adding the link to part 2 of the 6 part sermon series. Each week I will also include the week before in case you are just starting this journey. Others who want to go through this series quicker, because it is so darn good and you fall into the category of being an overachiever :) can find all 6 parts on line if you choose.
On May 28, 2023 my husband was excited to rush home from church and turn on the TV to The 107th Indy 500 Race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on TV. If you have never been to any of these professional car races before, it is pretty incredible. I have been to a few Indy Races now and I have also seen NASCAR in person. I must say it is pretty phenomenal if you have never witnessed it in person. You don't even have to be a racing fan to enjoy the event. You almost can't wrap your mind around the speed and precision involved in these races.
(Watching this accident was shocking, but it had an amazing outcome)
Pre-race prayer is very common in NASCAR racing and I believe INDY racing as well. Forgive me if I have any of this info wrong or have left out any professional racing that does this as well. I already warned you I am not a die-hard fan but I do respect the sport. It is so incredibly impressive to me and so refreshing that they say a prayer before the race begins. I believe prayers were answered in the situation that occurred in the Indy 500 race on May 28th, between Kyle Kirkwood (27) who crashed into the wall after a collision with Arrow McLaren SP driver Felix Rosenqvist (6).
You can view the one-minute video link I have provided, to witness this unbelievable occurrence.
I watched it live and I remember hearing Kyle Kirkwood talking about the feeling of being "stuck" as he was turned upside down in his car, while skidding on the track, seeing sparks flying all around him. Thank you Lord this accident ended with everyone escaping, and no one hurt, so unbelievable! Everyone in the crowd also went unscathed, when the tire from the car went flying, with such force, over the fence and onto the ground away from the thousands of fans. The pit crew's and the emergency responder's acted so quickly, and all that was damaged was the few cars that were in the accidents and the one car that the tire fell on when it went flying off the race track and into the air. All the drivers walked away from the scene with the help of others. Can you imaging how relieved and blessed everyone felt when they were able to walk away?!
This is a perfect illustration of what it can feel like to experience freedom from being stuck. Release can happen and you can walk away from bondage into freedom, but it requires help as well. It is a process you must be intentional about and true change can be achieved by having a change in mindset and by allowing our Heavenly Father and His Holy Spirit to help. Change can happen, but without having the tools for real change to take place and a solid foundation, it is so easy to fall back into your old ways again.
In Part 1 of The Power of Change 1 of 6: When You Are Sick Of Being Stuck
Pastor Craig helps give the tools we need to make these changes happen and emphasizes the importance of coming up with your "SPIRITUAL WHY" It made me think of the movie City Slickers, I referenced in my last post Stay The Course, when Curly mentions to Mitch about there being "ONE THING" when he talks about the secret to life. You can go back to my last post and view a snippet of the scene, which is so classic. If we don't come up with a "SPIRITUAL WHY" to help us in our quest to change, it is so easy to revert back to our old self.
(Click the link below in blue, to see Part 2 of 6)
Part 2: The Power Of Change 2 of 6 : Stop The Negative Self Talk
Note:
(When you open the link above, scroll down to video titled Stop The Negative Self Talk
TPOC 2 Message)
Pastor Craig gives examples of what a "SPIRITUAL WHY" can be, in part 1 of the sermon series:
1. Concerning your body or health, you might use the scripture that talks about your body being the temple of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Spiritual Why: Your body is the temple of The Lord)
I was thinking on this further and came up with more scriptures you can use when you are trying to find your "SPIRITUAL WHY"
2. Concerning keeping your self from looking at or viewing content that is not good for you.
Matthew 6:22-23
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Spiritual Why: You want to be healthy and full of light
3. Struggling with substance addiction.
1 Peter 5:8-9
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
Spiritual Why: I want to be sober minded so I will be restored, confirmed, strengthened, and established.
Here are a few out of several scriptures in The Holy Bible that pertain to being in the world but not of the world. I have added a link below if you want to read more about this phrase.
Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
Spiritual Why: I want to have my citizenship up in Heaven
John 17:15-17
15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
Spiritual Why: Because I can believe Gods word, it is true.
Here is a good article that explains more about being in the world but not of the world.
I am reminded frequently that this world we live in is temporary, and we should focus on our eternity and our citizenship in Heaven rather than getting caught up in what this crazy world has to offer.
As I close, I want to encourage you to stay the course and you will see results on things about yourself you are wanting to change. These changes can come in many areas and I only went over a few of them in this post. Let's do this together!
I also want to take a moment to give a shout out to my nephews and grandnephews who are Drag Racers and Racing Coaches and car builders in the Kolb family. You guys are so amazing, focused, and dedicated to carrying on the Kolb Racing Team! I am so very proud of you and pray for you frequently. Have fun and may God cover you with safety on your journey! Pray 1st Race 2nd :)
(My incredibly talented Grandnephew's in their Drag Racing Competitions)
I hope you are enjoying this series on change. I would love to read any COMMENTS you have and what stands out to you in this series thus far. Please add them to MY POST. I will be praying for you all as we embark on this journey together :)
If you would like to know more about who I am and my vision for www.intoyourgrowth.com
you can click on the "About" section to learn more. As you choose to spend some of your valuable time on this site. I would like to invite you to click on the "BLOG" tile to see all of my posts, as only a few are shown on the front page. If you view this on your cell, you can click on the brown square menu button at the top of the HOMEPAGE to find more tabs and all my past posts.
If you are encouraged by what you see, I invite you to "SUBSCRIBE" to this Blog (if you have not already done so) and you will receive notification via email when I publish a new post :)
Keep going and don't give up!
Be Well and God Bless You All,
Jen
What can be said? When you know the truth, you’ll be set free! The comment about not surrendering that 1 thing because of a lack of trus hit different, this time.