KELLY'S MESSage

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

I was sitting and chatting with my friend Kelly yesterday. I love my friend Kelly. We met under some of the most stressful and tension filled circumstances. And while she lives a few miles away and we only catch up a couple times a year, our conversations are always some of the best.

Yesterday was no exception.

On the surface, Kelly’s life growing up was “perfect”. Big house, lots of cash, an elite school, the “crème de le crème” of“stuff”. But inside, underneath the cash and flash was a home wrought in addiction, mess and hurt. Kelly suffered for years in all of it.

Her life was a mess.

Then she met Jesus.

And Jesus has turned that mess, the challenges, the abuse, the pressures, the failures, and the hurt and crafted a wonderful and amazing MESSAGE.

It is a message of redemption, restoration, hope and grace. It is a message of forgiveness, passion and persistence. It is a message stacked full of the wonderful and power truth of restoration and possibilities that are only found in Christ Jesus!

1 John 5:4

For everyone who has been born of God OVERCOMES the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

Now we have all seen the bumper stickers and heard the clichés.

“GOD WILL MAKE YOUR MESS a MESSAGE”

“GOD WILL TAKE YOUR TEST AND MAKE IT YOUR TESTIMONY”

And we don’t pay much attention.

But Kelly is proof positive of those little sayings and nuggets.

But knowing what I know about Kelly and her amazing journey, I was so surprised that during our conversation, Kelly felt nearly the opposite about her mess. For years she had believed that there was no message in her mess at all.

That is why I was glad and led to remind her of an important passage, one that confirmed that GOD can and WILL use those trials and messes in her life to deliver hope and possibilities to others!

1 Corinthians 1:4

…God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us.

Like Kelly, we should never discount one moment of our journey in life as wasted motion or lacking value. Even the “bad” ones have a purpose. And while there are days I wish I never would have picked up that first drink and put me and family through the trial of my addiction, GOD feels differently and daily inspires me to share that story.

Why? Because in that test is my testimony and that coupled with the blood of CHRIST helps me and others to OVERCOME!

Revelation 12:11

they overcame…by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony…

For Kelly it is the same. Her life-journey has begun to open doors of new opportunities and ministering that NEED her experience; those hard times when GOD showed her Himself so that she can now counsel and help others!

The simple “message” today is we must remember that in our darkest hours, in the pains of our lives, in the struggles we go through; we will grow, we will be strengthened, and somewhere down the line we WILL be called to help someone else who needs to know that they are not alone in what they are going through.

That is the truth.

So be on the lookout for the message in your mess and cultivate that testimony in your test.

James 1:12 (V)

Happy is the person who can hold up under the trials of life. At the right time, he’ll know God’s sweet approval…

And GOD will let you know when it’s time to share it!

I love you all!

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney