BLACK SHEEP

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BLACK SHEEP By Rick Terletzky & Michelle Terletzky

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Black Sheep

Written By Rick Terletzky & Michelle Terletzky

©2015

Devotional created in coordination with: High School Ministry, Sunset Presbyterian Church 14986 NW Cornell Rd Portland OR 97229 www.sunsetpres.org

Scripture unless noted taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations from THE MESSAGE. Copyright © by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

Second Printing: 2015

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Introduction

If you met me you wouldn’t believe what I’m about to tell you. It’s not that I’m arrogant. I’m just confident in the way people perceive the type of girl I am. Comments include gentle and sweet. Quite often I’ve been told I’m an incredibly good listener, thoughtful and caring throughout. How I’ve heard this shouldn’t come as a shock if that last sentence is true. I’m not gloating, not if my husband is helping me write this. His words, not mine. If you met me, it might come as a surprise to you, but I am the black sheep in my family.

We tend to look at the stereotype of the label known as the “black sheep” as the stubborn mischievous rebel.

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Bound for disaster. But a better way to understand the idiom is for its basic observation, as one who stands out from the flock. This definition does not necessarily have to constitute a negative impression. In terms of the recessive gene in sheep, I can’t speak to that. I’m not a scientist. But from my experience, conformity is not always the answer. And when following Christ, who we should strive to reflect, we are not going to look like the world around us. And our wool will stick out just as that of a black sheep in the flock.

Flashback. High School. The year…let’s not do the math. It became more and more evident that I was fighting my family’s culture. Their priorities shifted in my sight and the direction they were headed I didn’t want to follow. There was a time in my childhood when we did attend church services every Sunday as a family. I loved going to sunday school and learning everything I could about Jesus. I became more involved with my church and was active in a big youth group. It became more than attending but being the church. My relationship with Christ started. No longer learning about Him but being with Him. I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior during a youth summer camp. Then weeks later I was baptized. My excitement to live a life for Christ was at an all-time high. My family rejoiced with me and it seemed, as a family, that we were all growing closer to God. But the actions didn’t match the words.

Slowly there after my family stopped going to church all together and I didn’t understand why. This made me upset and frustrated. I was livid because I loved the

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conceptual picture of my parents and sisters going to church with me. I desperately wanted the perfect church-going family. But the excuses began to pile up and reasoning for our absence became uninspiring and lazy. As each Sunday approached I continued to ask my family to go. “Not this week” is not a valid explanation and created such high hopes that were continuously dis-hearting.

I got very tired of hearing “no”. And I was never satisfied with their answer. Not when my life had this relationship with Jesus that compelled me. So I made a decision. I concluded that their answer didn’t have to be mine. So I decided that I was going to church anyway, even if it meant going without my family.

Each Sunday I found a way to get myself to church. Sometimes I went with friends or other families that would go out of their way to get me. Sometimes I just walked. That quote of grandpa’s about walking for five miles in the snow, uphill, I learned was an actual thing. My driver’s license was a sight for sore…legs. However necessary, I was unwavering in my decision to just get there. And the accomplishment of getting myself to church sometimes meant sitting in the service alone. Regardless, I was determined.

And mostly I was this way because of how upset I was that my family wasn’t going together each week. The truth of my determination was fixated on the actions of my family and their un-interest in something I knew to be life changing. And with the realization of that truth I soon began to unravel the knot buried in my own motivations.

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Although I was captivated by my relationship with Jesus I realized that I was going to church for the wrong reasons and with the wrong mindset.

I was deeply hurt by my family and that weighed on my heart a little too much. It had consumed my intentions in going. I was going to church as if I needed to prove something to my family. Like a silent scream that their decision wasn’t going to stop me.

But it was being in church that revealed this truth. I realized that my faith had a dilemma. It was its first growth spurt, one that made me examining my motives and Christ’s throne in my life.

Is my faith my own or does it belong to my family? Do I choose to have my faith based on what my family does or based on Christ because of who He is? Do I, and this is important, want my identity to be based on being in a Christian family or being a part of God’s family?

As I asked myself these questions I realized that my relationship with Christ and my faith in Him needed to be my own. That regardless of the context in what my family chooses, my trust belongs to Jesus Christ.

My identity is not in my family or my unconformity to their ways. My identity rests outside my culture, community,

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and circumstances. It does not rest in who I am but in Christ Jesus and who He is.

Michelle

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An Actual Car Conversation

2 year old Noelle Oh no.

Rick What happened?

Michelle I think she just discovered peanut butter doesn’t come out of the upholstery.

Rick (sarcastically) That’s wonderful.

Michelle (laughing) It’s like artwork on a car seat.

Rick I don’t even want to look.

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Michelle It’s such a mess. Her sandwich is now between the door and the seat.

Rick Can we just not think about it? I just would like to get there. We need a good distraction.

Michelle We could talk about the “culture” thing.

Rick How are we wording it?

Michelle Being a … Living a different culture… I think?

Rick Right. So the important thing when anyone is discussing this is that living a different culture does not translate to removing yourself from culture.

Michelle Right. You’re still in it.

Rick You still are heavenly… heaven…

Michelle Heavily… involved but at the

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same time set apart from the culture?

Rick Well…like your family. At a time when you were choosing to be a part of church during a period when they weren’t…with the culture that was being created, it’s not like you left them. You were still a part of your family; doing things with the family but yet you lived differently then they did.

Michelle And that reminds me of the verse in Romans. “Do not be conformed any longer to the patterns of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Rick Right…this is our act of worship…doing this daily. So what does it mean?

Michelle Well…The simplest terms really are, that we are here living in a broken world and yet a part of God’s kingdom, a part of His family which means we are just going to

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live differently than a culture that isn’t.

Rick Which I believe should be very noticeable.

Michelle yep. Take the next exit.

People should be able to identify who…

Well, in the way we act. The way we speak. The way we live out our lives.

Rick Look at it holistically.

Michelle Morals, Ethics, Values…

Rick Right, and I think that ties into what being a black sheep really is. The black sheep doesn’t shout out or call attention to the fact that it’s different from the rest of the herd. It doesn’t go up to the other sheep and say, “Have you seen my wool?” It’s just as others observe they notice that one is different. That person stands out. It’s not our job to walk around and tell others “we’re better” or “we’re set apart” “we’re more holy”. Those

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words should never be exiting our mouth.

Michelle Or thinking them.

Rick K. Good point. So as people look in this world they notice something different about the one following Christ. I think that’s the thing we need to take the most time pondering, what is that thing that does make us stand out?

Michelle I’ve actually already been spending some time on this and okay, here is the thing. We would think it’s our actions and words but most of the time that’s as far as we’d process that. But actually in the end we stand out because they see the Holy Spirit moving. They don’t see the person first, if that makes sense.

Rick So not the person but the Hope of Christ.

Michelle Yeah.

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Rick Our words and actions, gives us too much credit.

Michelle I was listening to the radio and the guy on Air 1 came on and was just talking about the observations about Christians in situations when we stand out. He was discussing how easy it is for us as Christians to have this agenda. To come too prepared with what we think are “the right words” to successfully impact others. He points out, in the end it’s not a prepared antidote that reaches them to change a person’s heart towards God. What is going to transform them is if they see the Holy Spirit moving in us. And in seeing that, who God is revealed to them.

Rick Rather than some descriptive response.

Michelle Rather than us going into conversations trying to

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convince. It has to be the person figuring it out. That happens as you build relationships.

Rick This is why this topic is so important. It is crucial for us just to be living Christ out rather than prepping and preparing it for public display.

Michelle Right.

Rick Simply living it out without worrying if this world is seeing it. To live for God and not let that be conformed by a culture disconnected from Him.

Michelle And I think that is easier said than done. It depends on which circumstances you find yourself in. When you think of not conforming to this world…this culture we live in… we are just as broken and can crumble to influence…to being accepted and go along with everyone else. I remember in school

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that being so tough. Just the desire to want to dress and act a certain way to be rewarded with what others viewed as treasure. To feel, in a lot of ways, accepted by others.

Rick I think that is exactly what the high school experience is destined for. Some crazed social experiment that defines a generation’s norm. Not to say in every way we have to be different but no one in leadership of that cultural society is helping stabilize that norm in righteous living for Christ. So when you have nothing spearheading that…

Michelle This makes you sad all the time.

Rick (ok. Maybe teary eyed.) Yeah. I mean, and I know you and I were blinded by it when we are in high school but I watch kid after kid still doing the same thing.

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Michelle And I feel like it’s only getting worse. And that’s where my heart gets broken.

Rick I just wish it wasn’t a lesson everyone had to learn the hard way. I would hope that we were doing enough in the Church today to combat the struggle in the moment and help people realize that they need to stop following the world and looking to it on how to live their life. To look to God and His direction first…before the influence of sports, friends, media, and school. Even the family as harsh as that can sound, God’s direction should be first.

Michelle And there is pressure from all those things.

Rick And yet God puts the least amount of pressure on us, which makes us de-emphasize Him as an option. Such irony. God loves us enough to let us freely

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ignore Him.

Michelle And still He offers you grace…and this world leaves you with hurt

Rick Why do we spend so much time on something that leaves us hurting?

Michelle Honey, I didn’t want to say anything but you missed our exit.

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Devotional Instructions

1. Read the Verse for the Day.

2. Read the surrounding Passage.

3. Read the Devotional.

4. Process and begin to apply it to your life.

5. Pray. Bring it back to God.

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Sheering Off the False Wool

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when pride

comes then

comes disgrace but with humility

comes wisdom

proverbs 11:2

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DAY 1 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Proverbs 11:2

Being humble is not something you can claim to be. In watching a contestant on “The Bachelorette” apologize for saying some harsh words towards the sought-after bride on the show, I was left with this uncomfortable feeling.

He said he was sorry. He tried to convince her that it wasn’t the real him that said those hurtful things. The way he acted wasn’t really who he was. He then got down on his knees and stated, “I am humble.”

I was disheartened by this and felt that he misunderstood what it meant to be humble. The truth is, it was the real him that said those hurtful things. How we act, regardless of the situation, reveals our very identity. How we act most of the time or around certain people doesn’t balance out these other mishaps. We are who we are in all situations, even in situations that have gotten the best of us. Our efforts to distance ourselves from our worst moments by claiming “it wasn’t actually the real me” only ends in our disgrace and robs others of justice.

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Living righteously with God isn’t just about trying to live a life holy and pleasing to the Lord. It is also about owning our faults and allowing Christ to shower His grace over us. To live humbly is to admit weakness, without trying to change our stature on our own, but to simply allow God to be the one to raise us out of it.

What does being humble look like?

How could have the contestant apologized humbly?

What is holding me back from living a righteous life with God?

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what a wretched

man am I who will

rescue me from

this body of

death

romans 7:24

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DAY 2 What a wretched man am I; who will rescue me from this body of death?

Romans 7:24

Sin is sin. In our ever-tiring efforts to label ourselves as good we tend to try to overlook the true weight of sin in our life. We do this in order to prop up our standing with whomever on the tipping scale. Our nature is to justify ourselves; to deny the reality of the sin. When that doesn’t work we try to make up for it with super good deeds. That compensates for it, right?

But by living a culture centered in Christ we can live without condemnation. We can live free from the slavery of sin knowing that in Christ our sin is placed on Him, taken to the cross, and paid.

So as we live we do not need to live with the weight and guilt of our sin. However, we should not forget that because of that sin we need Christ’s grace and mercy. The further we try to justify our own righteousness and diminish the cost of a sin; we will lose sight of our need to be rescued from our rebellion towards God.

Paul’s declaration that he is a wretched man is an acknowledgement that we cannot save ourselves. Paul

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recognized where he stood in order to see the full significance of Christ’s redemption given to him.

We are pardoned from our sentence of death (which is to be without God) and Christ has made it possible to be reunited with the Father. In Christ we need not live as a sinner, but we can live as a sinner redeemed.

How do we live as a sinner redeemed?

Have you experienced the realization of Christ’s redemptive work on the Cross?

As a Christian, already redeemed, do you try to strive to live a holy life?

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the mind of sinful

man is death

but the mind

controlled by the

spirit is life

and peace

romans 8:6

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DAY 3 The mind of sinful man is death but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.

Romans 8:6

I once observed a woman serving at a community clean up. She stopped her work to snap a “selfie”, the latest trend. However, the angle of her auto-pictography wasn’t quite right and she began to be absorbed by the need to find that perfect chin. She repositioned her arm; shot after shot. Ten minutes flew by and as others continued to work, her tools remained on the ground.

Now, I’m not against documenting our life, or even having our picture taken while helping others. But I would like us to examine our desire to capture “the selfie”.

Who is it for? What are we capturing? I love The Message translation of Romans 8:5-8:

Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. That person ignores who God is and what He is doing.

Our tendency to get caught up in our own image causes us to lose sight of the world around us. Somewhere along the way, we have conditioned ourselves to pursue the image of us. Even when we are at work for God we can focus on how it makes us look for ourselves or for others. We need to focus

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on how Christ looks and engage the real work He has for us even if it is not picture glamorous.

Romans 8 warns that a culture living for its self is headed for destruction; all while thinking that it can rescue itself from its sinful nature.

We must be led by the Holy Spirit. We will come alive, active in God’s righteousness. Our love for ourselves will become a love for others and seeing God’s image in them.

How do you let the Holy Spirit lead you?

How does this change you?

What actions can you take today to focus more on how to reflect Christ?

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we are

unworthy servants

we have only

done our

duty

luke 17:10

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DAY 4 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, “We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.”

Luke 17:10

Why do we serve the Lord? What is there to gain in living for God? Is it His favor? Is it Glory?

Jesus shared a parable after He was asked by apostles to increase their faith. The parable was complicated yet profound in its message about the attitude of our faith and how we should live.

The more I study the requested words “Increase our faith” (Luke 17:5), I tend to think these words are not asking for aid; but coming from a demand for proof. Almost as to say “Convince us” or “Solidify our reasoning to listen to what your telling us to do.”

Jesus doesn’t bite and instead reminds them of a true servant’s heart. We constantly are looking to get recognized for anything we do. That type of focus in serving God is driven by how it benefits us in view of others, God, and ourselves.

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Our servanthood should be grounded in who we are in Christ and who God is. He created us to glorify Him; to live in an active worship in all we do. We should approach our faith by seeking to draw closer to our Creator with a humble understanding of our place in His kingdom. Understanding our role in serving. Understanding our duty to our King.

In this we will act out of love for the Lord, content with the one true God who loves us.

What does being a servant for God mean?

How am I actively living out my worship?

In this passage what is Jesus saying is our duty?

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whoever wants to

be first must

be slave

to all

mark 10:44

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DAY 5 Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be slave to all.

Mark 10:43-44

Somehow the Zebedee brothers got caught up in the world’s pursuit to achieve great stature and they saw Jesus having the power to enable this for them. After all, Jesus had been talking about building a kingdom to come and James and John wanted to have a big role secured for themselves.

Gently Jesus tells them they have no idea what they are asking for. His response may come across as instructions on how to obtain first place, but it is also a warning. One we should take to heart.

To be first you must be last and to be last, the slave/servant of all, comes with a weighty responsibility. Jesus was not directing them on how to become first. Here He is explaining that being first means baring the cost to be last. For who ever is to be the servant of all will have to die for all. Only then will everyone be truly served in the thing we all need; salvation from our sins.

None of us can pay for another’s sin; we are not even able to do that for ourselves. There is only One who is blameless and holy, who’s blood can be sacrificed for all. That person is

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already first; Jesus Christ. And He became last; the slave/servant of all, across all of time so that we could be brought close to God the Father.

So often we look at this statement as how to move up, but Jesus knew it was a statement of how God brought Himself down to us so that we can now be blameless and holy in Christ.

The pursuit to be a servant for Christ shouldn’t be the pursuit after the throne, but the act of recognizing only He is worthy of being first.

Why do I desire to be first?

If it’s not first or last, what position am I?

What should I be focusing on to be a servant today?

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call to me and I will

answer you and tell you

great and unsearchable

things you do not

know

jeremiah 33:3

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DAY 6 Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

Jeremiah 33:3

Prayer

Almighty God,

You alone are worthy. You hold my identity and are making me who I am.

Lord, help me to rely on your mercy and grace. I confess I am a sinner in need of your forgiveness. Teach me what it means to be humble. Help me to not live with the weight of guilt but to live in your loving presence as I am redeemed because of your sacrifice on the cross. I ask that you would help me be your servant. I desire to put you first and seek your ways.

Amen.

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Prayer Notes

Prayer Requests

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a day

of rest

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Staying with the Shepherd

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in Him was life

and that life

was the

light of men

john 1:4

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DAY 8 In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

John 1:4-5

Regardless of how we may feel towards ourselves; as a Christian something so amazing compels us to be filled with hope and still contagious to those we cross paths.

Others and even our confused selves may simply interpret this as what we get out of being a Christian. Like a reward, being happy just comes with the territory. That we have experienced change and now we just wish to share with others what being a Christian has done for us.

This is not entirely the full story. This hope does not come from the feelings we get from just our experience. In fact, we have nothing to do with it. The hope that fills us, in difficult trials, sorrowful times, or ordinary days is Jesus Christ. Not the knowledge of Jesus and what He has done for us but Christ Himself. This hope comes from our transformation in redemption. The living Lord through His Spirit ignites us with His hope, joy and strength. And with His power calls us into a life to be His light in a world of darkness. He calls us to share His love, not ours, with the world so that they may know Him as you do.

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If you are not experiencing Christ in this way perhaps it’s best to start by asking yourself,

“Am I purposefully living for Him?”

Who’s hope are you truly seeking? And in a culture that needs to know Christ do you live as a light in the darkness? This can be a moment to be down on yourself for failing. But know that Christ wants your failings so that He can turn them into His beauty.

Am I purposefully living for Him?

Reflect on how to live as light in the dark world. Can you really hide your essence of hope?

Who’s hope do you turn to first most of the time? Be honest.

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for the jar of flour was not used up and the jug

of oil did not run dry in keeping

with the word of the lord spoken

by elijah

1 kings 17:16

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DAY 9 For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.

1 Kings 17:16

God is always pouring into us. In the story we find the widow in Zarephath and her son in turmoil over life’s rough circumstances. God brought Elijah to her so that she would experience the promises God has for her. The overflowing amount of oil and flour, which was abundant and lasting, was a sign of how God is the sustainer of life.

Now, if this miracle happened to you, you would most likely have a dramatic change in the way you live your life. You might live with an attitude that God always provides without hesitation. But just like the widow, time allows us to forget how God reveals Himself, especially when faced with another difficult circumstance.

It wasn’t until the widow’s son was healed on his deathbed that she believed the living God for herself. That God was more than Elijah’s beliefs but active in her own life and on her side.

Let us not wait for a difficult life tragedy to happen in order to convince us that God is here. He is real. He is a provider.

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Let us live a life rooted in His promises. Promises that stem from knowing God pours into us daily and fulfills so much in us for His kingdom. Finding Him at work every day needs to be a priority in how we live regardless of our circumstances.

We can either welcome Gods pouring into us or have apathy until God breaks down our doors. Let us open our flood gates in faith even if there is no flood.

What are some ways God is pouring into your life?

What makes us apathetic to God’s work in this life?

What are some ways you can start looking for God at work in your life?

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He poured

out on us

generously through

Jesus Christ

our savior

titus 3:6

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DAY 10 He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.

Titus 3:5-6

God will continue to pour His Spirit into those in Christ, regardless of what the believer does with that salvation. His pouring will always outweigh what we can pour back into His Kingdom.

How do we stay with God when it feels like the pouring has stopped? Why can’t we see it? We should live with eager anticipation to be poured into by God but not based on our own expectations.

We must live with faith that God is indeed pouring into our lives, even if in the moment we cannot feel it. His pouring does not always come with emotional happiness. Sometimes it will hurt or we will struggle with it. Nevertheless, it is generously given. God pours into us with what He sees we need in order to grow closer to Him.

Expecting Him to pour into us what we want is not faithfulness to God but is more like the actions of ordering from a waiter.

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In a culture that is focused on goals, achievement, and personal success, we must be a light for Christ so others may see that those things flourish when the Holy Spirit is directing them.

How we treat our relationship with God reflects how we will live our life. It reveals whom our life will serve. And in moments where the pouring challenges us to grow, will we live as a servant who sees obedience as a blessing?

How do you live as a servant who looks forward to being obedient?

How do you deal with God closing a door on an opportunity you wanted?

How does this way of living stand out in today’s culture?

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for where

your treasure

is there your

heart will be

also

luke 12:34

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DAY 11 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Luke 12:34

What is your most prized possession? Everyone has something; we are built this way. Verse 34 may sound like a warning (believe me it is) but it is also a true statement about our nature.

Our hearts belong attached to something else. All of our passion, an essence of self, are drawn to identify with something. The more we invest and give our time to it, the more it becomes our treasure. However, our misguided idea that the treasure is the physical possession causes us to lose sight that it is the meaning and purpose it brings that we hold dear. As we focus more on the treasure we must ask, “Do we possess the treasure, or does it possess us?”

The car you worked so hard for, your clothes, or a sentimental item given to you may fill our void for a moment, but our hearts yearn for more. So what are those feelings of meaning and purpose that we get from these items? They are the outlet for your identity to be expressed. So if your identity is your real treasure than where that is stored is extremely important. See where this is going?

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Our treasure should be our identity in Christ. The most prized possession we can obtain is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. A relationship that redefines who we are: that captures our hearts, molds us, and directs our heart for His glory. As our heart is stored in the One who gives eternal life, our meaning and purpose will express that.

Does your relationship with God show your true identity?

What would your friends say your treasure is?

How can you show Christ as your most prized possession?

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provide purses for yourselves

that will not wear

out a treasure in heaven

that will not be

exhausted

luke 12:33

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DAY 12 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

Luke 12:33

The world also realizes that material objects are not qualified for our real treasure in life. The world says that relationships are what matter even if commercials tempt us to think otherwise. But relationships here on earth cannot replace the unconditional and eternal relationship that God offers with creation and its Creator.

So to live out a life that reflects that eternal relationship is to actually invest in it. By looking at this passage for a second day with an eternal perspective, hopefully Christ’s words become essential to how we should live. Surpassing immediate gratification we should be thinking long term; like forever term. Not just our long term but also others and what we want for them.

Possessions can take many forms, like physical objects, status, knowledge and relationships. Christ is calling us to give these things away to those who need them so they too may see the need to invest eternally. It is the command that He gives if we want to experience eternal perspective. It is the actions of letting go of this world. So, it is in obeying His

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commands where we experience fulfillment. The more we place our heart (trust, essence, passion, deeds) in Christ, the more we will take on His heart and experience what He desires. His Words will not be unwanted orders, but joys of discovering His kingdom.

When our heart beats to the rhythm of His eternal Word, we will stand out in this world like the black sheep, secure in who we are and living out Christ to a world looking for whom their heart belongs.

What does it mean to have an eternal perspective?

Do I have possessions or habits that control me?

Do I have relationships that compete with Christ?

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if anyone

loves the

world love

for the Father is not

in them

1 john 2:15

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DAY 13 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.

1 John 2:15

Prayer

Heavenly Father,

You are the life and hope everlasting. There is nothing that compares in this world to your glory. I pray that through your Spirit you would ignite in me your hope, joy, and strength. Teach me how to be your light in a world of darkness. Lord, your promises are true, help me to cling to your Word. Give me the wisdom to see that you are pouring into my daily life no matter the circumstances.

Amen.

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Prayer Notes

Prayer Requests

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a day

of rest

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Living as His Flock

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in this world

you will have

trouble but take

heart I have

overcome the

world

john 16:33

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DAY 15 I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

John 16:33

How does a disciple handle crisis? One would expect in this culture that in crisis we are allowed to act out. It would be acceptable to give into our anxieties and fears. How ever irrational our behavior is, we expect to be comforted or rescued.

Yet the addiction of worrying or even the support of others can never satisfy our true state of mind.

“Hope is lost and it all rests on me.”

In all that effort nothing really changes and now we’ve allowed the pattern of relying on the world’s terms to be reinforced.

However large the crisis may be it is always an opportunity to place all we have in Christ. Let us not forget He has defeated death. It is He that has ended our greatest crisis, our separation from God the Father. No other crisis can ever change that.

Amidst trials in our life let us create a healthy pattern of relying on Christ’s strength to see us through the storm.

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Focusing on our own capabilities in crisis will only hinder us from seeing Christ as the answer. May our attitude in crisis reveal He who has overcome.

How did I handle my last crisis?

Is the first thing I do, when a crisis hits, is question my faith?

How can I prepare my heart to follow Christ in the storm?

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do not conform

any longer to the

pattern of this world

but be transformed

by the renewing of

your mind romans 12:2

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DAY 16 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Romans 12:2

It is always amazing how influential conformity really is. The very nature of imitating others plays out in us daily. Each day our culture asks us to conform to something. If you have ever stayed a while in a different part of the world it is easy for you to acquire their accent. Even without realizing it. Conformity tends to work in a similar way to how our voicebox slowly pronounces differently. Over time and with saturation it just happens. We may not realize its effects until there is a real noticeable change.

Our imitation stems from our desire for belonging. It can send us into a tailspin of emotion. We can create a sense of fear of rejection and isolation. And in our conformity we lose our identity.

Yet Christ has already firmly established our identity. Who we belong to is Him. We must not lose sight that Christ is the image in the mirror to reflect. And just like our recently acquired accents, once immersed back home, rooted in Christ, in our understanding of who we are and who He is, the false pieces of identity lose hold and dissipate.

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Our belonging is in Christ who grounds our identity in His righteousness and takes every bad imitation of ours to the cross so we can be restored.

What ways at school do I see myself being pressured to conform?

What is Christ asking of me in order to conform to Him?

What do you think renewing your mind means?

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95

His sheep follow

Him because

they know

His voice

john 10:4b

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DAY 17 His sheep follow Him because they know His voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.

John 10:4b-5

The word “moral” is a controversial word in today’s culture. The term “moral relativism” is widely accepted, saying there is no ultimate right. This really then doesn’t give any ground to stand on for any moral issue. So for a believer to stand behind his/her morals and values, which are grounded in God’s righteousness as absolute truth, you’re going to need integrity.

Integrity is the willingness to do what is right in the face of opposition. It means that God’s morals can’t just be a statement for you. You have to actually live them out; consistently. Doing them when it’s easy is practice for standing up for them when it’s tough.

A believer who has integrity is someone who has taken the time to know the morals and values God desires of us. The way to know what these are is the same answer to knowing how to uphold them when faced with a decision. It is the ability to recognize what is the falsehood (lies) behind earthly desires. It is the ability to see why a sin is a turning away from what God says to be holy, to call it out for what it really is.

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To have integrity is to not recognize the tempting voice of this earth’s lures but to hear God’s voice in the midst of temptation. We must take the time to be attentive to the Shepherd’s voice by study His Holy Word. In Christ’s Word we will find absolute truth.

Where have I seen an example of someone with integrity?

Where do I see integrity in my life?

How can I be attuned to hearing Christ’s voice better?

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I will

remove from you

your heart of

stone and give

you a heart of

flesh ezekiel 36:26

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DAY 18 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26

Even in my walk with Christ, when my faith feels as strong as an ox, being completely vulnerable can stop me in my tracks. Somewhere on the road towards our willingness to be exposed there is a point where we all start to have hesitation. It reveals how much we cling to self-preservation.

The world’s model is to think first of personal survival in relationships and situations. Being open and honest comes at a cost that is frightening to accept.

However, I believe our vulnerability, to delight in our weakness and boost in His strength, is the key to a deeper relationship to God. It is also the key to being a stronger beacon of light that points others towards Christ. So this is one subject God isn’t done working on us yet.

With the Holy Spirit in us, we can begin to let go of self-preservation and take on His heart. A heart of stone only keeps us from examining our real condition. We think it’s protecting us from hurt, but is actually doing eternal damage.

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But with a heart of flesh, we appear weak. We can bleed. Yet there is someone stronger holding us.

Being vulnerable with others, even with those who haven’t earned it, can cause us to lose people and things we love. But not lose out with Christ.

Christ, God Himself, who did not need to examine his standing took on a heart of flesh so that His blood may be spilt instead of ours. Jesus offers a new spirit that moves us away from a life of sin and self preservation. He moves us towards an ever-lasting life of Honesty with Him.

How honest am I with myself?

In what relationships am I afraid to let God work?

How can I take on Christ’s heart today?

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these people honor

me with their

lips but

their hearts are far

from me

matthew 15:8

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DAY 19 These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.

Matthew 15:8

What is one of the biggest things that keeps us from being vulnerable with someone?

It’s the fear of being exploited. The moment we let down our walls people may use it against us. Maybe not right away, but they’ll use it in the future when it can hurt us the most. And we’re terrified of being hurt in this way. Perhaps we’ve already experienced this and it hurt us in such a way that never again will we open our soul, not even to God.

How others have treated us can reflect our willingness to be open with God. But instead of focusing on us right now and how we have been hurt; can we rest in the truth that God is our comforter and in Him is our true joy. Knowing that, can we look to our neighbors and examine how we are treating them?

When others have a moment of vulnerability, what are we doing towards them?

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We must never take advantage of someone’s susceptibility or use it for our gain. For how we treat others in their weakness reflects the king we serve.

And if we claim Christ as King but serve ourselves for our gain, others will associate the two. Thinking of our own self-preservation is self-glorification. Showing mercy and Christ’s love towards others glorifies God. Let us show others that Christ’s strength covers their weakness.

This is the gospel of grace in action.

Who have I taken advantage of in their weakness?

Have I asked for God’s forgiveness yet?

How can I show others their weakness can be used for God’s strength?

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107

as the

heavens are

higher than the earth so

are my ways

isaiah 55:9

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DAY 20 As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55:9

Prayer

Merciful Lord,

In this moment I desire to be vulnerable with you. I long to be forever changed by your ways. But if I can be honest Lord I am scared of what lies ahead. I am scared I might become distracted or fear what change you would ask of me. But right now, I choose to live for you. Your ways are higher than any I can comprehend.

I surrender my anxieties of my future choices. I trust that you have plans only to bring me closer to you. So give me the strength to fend off temptation. Help me to live for Christ the rest of my days.

Amen.

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Prayer Notes

Prayer Requests

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111

a day

of rest

112

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Searching for the one

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rejoice with me

I have

found my

lost sheep

luke 15:6

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DAY 22 Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country until he finds it?

Luke 15: 4

This passage is probably one of the toughest to swallow. Direct from Jesus’ mouth, He would ditch ninety-nine of his flock in pursuit of the one who is gone astray.

As the Shepherd leaves to retrieve the lost sheep, one would assume he left the others in a sheep pen. The scriptures just say the open land, with some translations being rougher to the flock, as He leaves them in the mountains. But even if the Shepherd left them in their pen unintended the entrance would be left vacant, for He uses his physical body as the actual gate. He even lies down across the entrance at night so that no harm may come to the sheep. So without the Shepherd the flock can fall victim to wolves or more can wonder off, becoming lost themselves for the Shepherd to find when He returns.

It sounds like the dumbest investment plan imagined. Consultants would say forget the one and protect the ninety-nine. This is how the mentality of the world thinks. Jesus’ words don’t sit well with us because we consider being one of the ninety-nine. We love that our God is a protector, comforter and rock. This doesn’t sound anything like Him.

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Yet, Jesus does not want to keep us; He wants us to follow. The mountain to the sheep pen is not our rock, but Christ Himself is the rock. So when His focus is on the one who is lost His true flock will follow. The parable is about the lost, not instruction for the faithful. When you look at the Bible holistically Jesus calls us to follow. It is hard to get away from the concept of Jesus always focusing on ourselves. Instead we need to focus on the fact that Jesus brings us into His work.

For those of the ninety-nine that get lost, they weren’t ready to follow when the attention wasn’t on them. They will go astray. But Jesus, the true Shepherd, will continue to go back out after the lost until they are found.

Who is the “one” Jesus and you are in pursuit of?

Am I willing to focus on who Christ is after, rather than on myself?

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blessed is the man who does

not walk in

the counsel

of the wicked

psalm 1:1

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DAY 23 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

Psalm 1:2

King David had made a few big mistakes in his time. He was not exactly the most righteous to really be given the title, “a man after God’s own heart”. The surrounding parties didn’t always help him focus on following God and living a righteously various times in his life. And yet God gave him this title because of his contrite heart. (psalm 51:10)

How could David forget there was a time when he knew better? Isolated in the desert wilderness, David wrote His psalms as he focused on his relationship with the Lord. Is it possible that he forgot what he wrote? It was the message he needed in his later years to realize that his circle of influence had been absent of the Lord and His instruction.

Our surroundings can most certainly influence us. We seek the wisdom of others naturally, at the very least picking up their behavior. And the most trusted source of wisdom comes from those with whom we spend the most time.

We need to take the time to examine where and from whom we are seeking counsel. Who is the one guiding how we live

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this life? Is our counsel in the opinions of man or in God’s breathed Words?

God longs for us to listen to His counsel and no longer be under the influence of man. Our desire should be to go beyond the surface of Scripture and live out God’s Word.

David saw this at a time when all he had left was God. It is so easy then to see how the advice of the ungodly has steered us away from the Lord’s direction for us. I pray that it doesn’t take that for us to realize it. God asks for faith in His counsel amidst our presence in the world. We must seek only what is righteous so others may see the holiness of God’s counsel.

How do I delight in the Word? What does that even mean?

Who is in my circle of influence? Does that need to change?

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my grace is

sufficient for you for my power

is made perfect

in weakness

2 corinthians 12:9

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DAY 24 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

2 Corinthians 12:9

Our society continually requires us to strive to repair, fix, solve, and achieve perfection and only then can we be made complete.

The ultimate struggle for mankind is to see God actively present in our accepting His warm merciful gesture, to just come home. Similar to the story of the parable son, it is not easy for us admit when we are wrong, yet alone the difficulty of accepting our state of brokenness. Grace seems too good to be true and we desire to make it right by any means necessary; prolonging God’s gift of mercy and then missing the point entirely.

It is part of God’s character to be righteous and just. We have been made in His image, so these are traits we want to see played out. It’s only natural that we desire to fix our state of brokenness. But our sinful nature prohibits us from seeing this as something we can’t fix. We don’t get that the problem is between two un-equals. Our sin is the action of rejecting one who is holy and blameless. It takes a reconciliation that we cannot make right because we do not stand on equal ground with God.

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And in His mercy of the circumstances, God shows grace that abounds. The sacrifice of His son, who is holy and blameless, restores us. It is an undeserved gift that cannot be repaid.

We can either embrace grace or become bitter about it. Our unwillingness to let God’s grace sustain us is a sign of us not yet realizing the cause of our sin in the first place.

Where am I unwilling to let grace abound in my life?

In what ways am I still trying to earn grace?

How can I serve the Lord without making it about earning salvation?

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127

Lord to

whom shall

we go you

have the

words of

eternal life

john 6:68

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DAY 25 From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him. “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the twelve.

John 6:66-67

There are times when it is going to be a challenge to follow Christ in this culture. And without a doubt, know that this culture is watching what believers do when following Christ’s message gets tough.

To be a follower of Christ asks us to give up so much in this life. However it should be easy if we truly believe that Christ is the bread of life, the substance that sustains us. It becomes difficult when we enter this world’s mindset and think that we need more; an outlook that pressures us to think our identity needs to be fueled by other things.

As Jesus shared the message that He alone offers life, many found it too hard of a message to follow. Their hearts were concerned with the distractions of this world. Jesus asks if this was the same for His closest friends. Peter’s question of where would they go, now that they knew the truth, was enough for him. He knew that wherever Jesus was, so too they would find life.

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And yet Judas was present, and maybe even agreed in that moment. But, he did come to a point where he lost sight that Jesus offered more than immediate satisfaction.

May we trust that Jesus has chosen us and offers rest in what He freely gives from Heaven. And when hard moments come, may we remind ourselves of Peter’s question, “Where would we go now that we know what we know?”

What did Jesus mean by His statement that He is the bread of life?

How do my needs and wants conflict with following Christ?

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131

I am Jesus

whom you are

persecuting now

get up and go

acts 9:5-6

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DAY 26 Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men & women and put them in prison.

Acts 8:3

All around the world, believers are faced with persecution. And yet many still choose to follow Christ into this darkness because they know that He will shine His light there. How can they have such hope when things look so hopeless?

In the United States, our conformity is not as defined as life or death. Perhaps it is subtle choices with large ramifications. Yet there are times when it is clear that we can show the world a different culture. However, we may choose not to, for the road appears to be too hard.

When things do appear too difficult to follow Christ we must remember that Christ is ahead of us, working in our future. Wherever He calls us to go, He is already there.

Dark moments are not an unknown to the believer. In Acts 8 things looked hopeless as Saul was determined to extinguish the Light from this world. Such a man would be seen as an enemy and considered a lost cause. But if we continue to read into Acts 9 we see that Christ was already at work and

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He knew that Saul would one day glorify Him. A lost cause was not hopeless for the Giver of Hope.

So as you set out to live a different culture, one that follows Christ, know that He has taken care of everything. And at a time that may seem dark and sorrowful, He will use this for the Glory of His Kingdom. He will show the world that His light can overcome the darkness.

What appears too difficult for me to follow Christ?

How can I remind myself that God is already at work?

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135

the harvest

is plentiful

but the

workers are few

matthew 9:37

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DAY 27 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his field.

Matthew 9:38

Prayer

Jesus,

You are God and I praise your name. I long to follow you with complete surrender. Today belongs to you and is meant for your glory. Open my eyes to see your harvest. May you use me as you desire. I am ready to be your worker. Send me out so that those who live in darkness may be witness to your light.

I pray that this world may see your truth; that we are made for you and your glory. May your Word be spoken. May your mercy be known. May your Kingdom come and your will be done. Forever.

Amen.

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Prayer Notes

Prayer Requests

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139

a day

of rest

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A Reminder from Jesus

If you find the godless world is hating you, remember it got its start hating me. If you lived on the world’s terms, the world would love you as one of its own. But since I picked you to live on God’s terms and no longer on the world’s terms, the world is going to hate you.

John 15:18-19 (The Message)

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