Hello Trinity!

 

Ever feel powerless?  Last night, as I watched the inevitable spin machines launch into full force after President Trumps “State of the Union” address, I felt a bit helpless.  Yes, I had my opinions about the evening, but the bad lingering aftertaste had little to do with any actual speech given by either side, but rather how the default response of virtually every media outlet was to bring in a democrat, a republican, tee them up against each other, and let the blame, accusations, and acrimony fly.  What can a person do to push against this rapidly rising tide of bitterness in our culture?  Wouldn’t it be cool if you possessed some super power that would allow you to teleport onto the political stage, or newsroom, and force the people there to be completely honest and respectful?  You know, kind of like Wonder Woman’s lasso that forces people to tell the truth?  But alas, we think, there’s nothing we can do about all this bitterness and acrimony, because we possess no such powers.

 

Unless we do.

 

What if I told you that we all possess immense power to bring about change in the people around us?  To really fight the ever increasing culture of dishonor and disrespect?  As individuals, we might not be able to change the person on the TV screen, but we have amazing powers of influence over the people in our own circle of influence.  What would those powers be?  What would they look like?

 

If you’ve been tracking with our current message series, you know where I’m going with this.  We absolutely have super-powers, or better put, supernatural powers.

 

The power of patience.  Go ahead, try throwing out that super power in your next family argument.

 

The power of kindness.  The self-aware power to intrinsically value another person, and really care for them.  Really listen to them.  Wonder Woman’s lasso has nothing on this.

 

The power of a humble spirit and countenance.  Want to be a secret agent, welcomed incognito into almost any context?  Try on the supernatural cape of sincere humility and integrity.

 

And for this Sunday’s super power, think of a person who is disrespectful, angry, selfish, and keeps grudges.  Then, don your super-suit of spiritual and emotional maturity, and be the opposite.

 

You want super powers? Next time you find yourself feeling helpless over the darkness of dishonor, disrespect, and just plain old mean-spiritedness, break open a secret vial of Romans 12:18-20 (go ahead, look it up!).  You’ll be amazed at the results.

 

Last week a friend sent me this awesome cartoon (click link to see it).  It’s sums this up perfectly.  So Go on! Give it a try. Shine in the darkness! Put on your super suit and let those powers flow! 

 

By the way, these super powers have another name.  They are called the Glory of God.

 

Jesus: “…I am the light of the world.”

John 9:5

 

Jesus: “You are the light of the world.”

Matthew 5:14

 

Love… does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,

it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

1 Corinthians 13:5

 

Growing with you,

Pastor Ethan