C3K Church
Turning Back
every day and our podcast the Word of God coming in you know the Word of God is something so precious when you haven't read the Word for a while and you go back I tell you just it touches your heart sometimes it'll bring you to tears it'll strengthen you it'll encourage you it'll direct your paths and speaking directing your paths one of my clients who's been in the hospital she's a Jewish lady and I've been witnessing to her and she's allowed me to pray with her and she just sent me a text out of the blue today and said I'm out of the hospital and she'll be getting back on to the schedule sometime but she asked for prayer so we're gonna pray for her prayer need in a minute she asked for prayer for her granddaughter who's pregnant with twins and they're not sure it's kind of a dodgy situation so she asked for prayer and a calm I started texting her and we got into a conversation and she said I will pray too I said our church will pray for you you and your granddaughter and the children tonight and I said she said she sent him as in fact said I will pray too and she's Jewish she's not a practicing Jew but she's very proudly Jewish and she's a little bit into new age but I get to share the Bible with her quite a bit she's very very fascinated with it anyway I said she said she would pray so I sent her the Proverbs chapter three verse verse five and six trust in the Lord of all your heart lean not to your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths and she sent back and said I will pray that she was said I will say that every day and then I said that was said by King Solomon in the Old Testament in the Bible and she wrote back and she said I will get a Bible I want to get a Bible anyway so I said to her I might drop by and see you on Tuesday because she's not back on my schedule yet but I want to keep that contact and I was thinking I will I want to go to Qurong and buy her a Hebrew Bible because she loves to read she loves to research so once she gets a Hebrew Bible you know I think she would just eat it up and the Bible says to eat up the word of God I think she will and I've been praying for her to get saved so I believe that she will so talking to that I want to pray for her granddaughter and the two the twins to pray that they will come to full-term and be okay and got to be in control of that I also want to pray for anyone who's recovering from surgery recently or you know there's something going on in your life physically I want to pray for birthdays for how and Vanessa who've gone back to Taiwan Eddie's back safely from Taiwan William and Sandy are in Malaysia attaches and Croatia so we've got people all over and people in there so hi to everyone and I want to pray. Father we just thank you that we could be scattered all over the world but Lord you are with each and every one of us and Lord you are with those who know you who believe and receive you and are called children of God but you're also with those Lord who don't know you as yet and so I pray for my friend Merlin's granddaughter and for those two babies in the womb Lord I pray that you would be in control of this situation that you would save all of them that you would bring good things good results out of this whole situation Lord we bless you we praise you we thank you I pray for those who have in discomfort or have physical needs right now that you would touch and heal and minister to bring things back into alignment bring things back into balance Lord with his aches pains or whatever's going on that you would just touch heal and minister and bring strength and wholeness to your children and we thank you for it in Jesus mighty name amen so we have prayed pray to changes everything don't forget to pray every day even if you think you don't need it I'll tell you what somebody does so let's just pray every day and just see how God changes things as we pray that's pretty cool we can slide okay let's go let's get to the word tonight turning back oh last week we've heard about holding fast you know sometimes you need to hold fast sometimes you need to go forward and sometimes you need to turn back it just depends on the situation you know sometimes we think we have all these dreams and these things that we want to do and we really pursue it but sometimes our dreams can turn out to be our worst nightmare and so I want to share a little passage of scripture tonight a story we've looked at this before but we're going to look at it from a different angle you can look at the same passage out of the word of God and get something totally fresh something totally new because the word is not just print on paper it's living it's alive and speaks to our heart so let's go to this story in the Bible at Jesus talk he said this a certain man had two sons and the younger of them said to his father father give me the portion of goods that falls to me and so he divided to them his livelihood so this man has two sons a certain man so it's a certain person he's not named you know a lot of times people are named in the Bible and other times they are not named but they are they exist so a certain man had two sons the youngest one came to the father and said basically give me my inheritance dad I know you're not dead but I want my inheritance and I want it now and you think gosh that's rude that's so inconsiderate but apparently that was part of the culture back then that you could approach the parent the father and you could get your inheritance early okay so the father you know was he angry was he wounded in his feelings was he emotionally to score by this no it's it okay he divided to them to both the sons what was due to them at that time okay the older son didn't ask it was the younger one it was the younger one but he divided to them his livelihood not what they had earned but his livelihood he gave to them what was his so he's a very generous father very generous he could have said listen fella get out of here you rude little upstart off you go you're getting nothing no he didn't do that he gave control to him and then not many days after the younger son gathered altogether he got everything he wanted he journeyed to a far country and there wasted his possessions with prodigal wasteful living so as soon as he had what he wanted he said I'm out of here I'm leaving I'm gone and he went far away he went far away he was already far away in his heart this looked like he planned it looked like he had a plan I'm getting out of here you would think he was in a very abusive horrible place but he wasn't he was in a very good family situation but he wanted out he wanted his freedom he wanted to do things his way he didn't want to answer to anyone is anyone ever been like that yeah probably most of us he just wanted to get out he just wanted to see the world he wanted to travel he wanted money he wanted to have a good life you know that bum you don't have good times he didn't want anyone telling him what to do and so off he went but the trouble is he wasted it all that inheritance he wasted it it says but when he had spent all so he didn't think I've had to hang on to some a better save some just in case winning and spent all so it's all gone there arose a severe famine in that land and he began to be in want so instead of hanging on to something you know we say hang on to a rainy day you heard that saying hang on to something for a rainy day well there was no rain there was a famine there was a severe famine in that land and he began to be in want so everything has gone the pressure comes now he's beginning to feel the pinch as they say he's beginning to feel the pinch he's got nothing so what is he gonna do is he gonna go back home is he gonna turn back what's he gonna do it said then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country and he sent him into his fields to feed the swine to feed the pigs so he's not turning back he had no intention of going back no intention whatsoever because he spent it all he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country he didn't go home to his family he didn't go home to what was familiar he didn't go home to his house his country his village or whatever he joined himself with a foreigner and then the foreigner took control this guy left because he wanted control but now he's under someone else's control he's under the foreigners control and this one doesn't say oh sure I'll help you he sent him into his fields to feed the pigs so I don't know what he was doing before this but now he's on this downward spiral he's on this path this journey that's taking him deeper and deeper into dark places he's now in the big pen is in the fields with the animals he's being sent there he's been sent there he is totally under someone else's control you know sometimes when we want freedom we actually come under the control of someone or something else and we lose the freedom that we actually had but we couldn't see we had it okay this is the state that he's in he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate the pig food and no one gave him anything he would have been happy to eat the pig slops the pig food it had been quite happy with that but no one gave him anything it couldn't even get the pigs food couldn't even get the pigs food he is really in a bad place he's got no food he's got no self respect he's got no friends he's got no help he's got no hope he's in a really really bad place he was ready to settle for eating pig food rather than turn back and go home he was gonna settle for something like that and sometimes we like that we settled for something that's way beneath us this was obviously way beneath him but he was ready to settle for it is he gonna turn back who knows says but when he came to himself how did it take probably not long because men don't like being really hungry says when he came to himself he said how many of my father's hired servants had bread enough and to spare and I perish with hunger you know maybe it was the hunger pains that brought into himself he came to himself and he started to think before he wasn't thinking he was making really bad decisions but now he's starting to think he's starting to actually be a bit more clear minded now that he's stomachs empty he said my heart my father's hired servants now hired servants could be sacked at any time ordinary slaves were considered part of the family but hired servants they could be gone tomorrow they could be sacked in a moment's time but he said even my father's hired servants like the lowest of the low they got bread they got food and they've got enough and actually more than enough and here I am starving he's basically saying hello this is a bit crazy what am I doing what am I doing and then he makes a decision this is the turning point this is where he started to turn around he started to turn back he started to just get it clear picture I will I will arise and go to my father before he was like I will arise and get out of here now he's alive I will arise and go back but he's not just saying I go back to my house my comfortable life for anything he's saying I'm going back to my father my father is the only one I could count on my father and I'll say to him father I've sinned against heaven and before you so now this started to come an awareness of God an awareness of his sinfulness an awareness of his foolishness and his selfishness he said I'm no longer worthy to be called your son make me like one of your hired servants before he was like give me give me my inheritance give me this give me that now he's saying make me some about what you've got it's about who you are he's saying make me one of your hired servants just bring me back give me a place give me something self respect let it come back it's not self pity it's not shame it's just real he's seeing the reality of it make me like one of your hired servants in other words I'm willing to start right at the bottom just open the door let me back him let me back in and he arose he didn't just say I'm gonna do it he did it repentance is about making a decision and doing it okay he arose and he came to his father but when he was still a great way off his father saw him and had compassion it's my boy the little guy he's coming back I knew he would I hoped he would there he is he had compassion he ran culturally they never ran they just walked the dignity no he ran he ran and he fell on his neck and he kissed him my boy's back so happy son I'm so happy to see you can you imagine how the son must have felt I'm so glad I came back dad I knew I could count on you I knew I could count on you he saw him from a great way off and he ran you know sometimes we think God is saying no no no no hang on you really messed up no just wait a minute don't come too close that's what we think God is like sometimes but it's not it's like come on I'm so glad you're here here love you that's what he did that's what he did you know some guys are embarrassed by this kind of thing but this would have just healed his heart it would have done something absolutely amazing and I've more dad's would hug their sons it'd probably be less violence in the world less anger in the world less misery and depression you know hug love care forgive he'd forgiven him he didn't have to say I forgive you son he showed him he's forgiven he is forgiven everything has changed my son has changed he turned around he came back when he walked the way that time when he left I let him go I let him go and you know God sometimes just lets us go you're a girl you want to try you want to experience it you want to do your own thing off you go and if we smart turn around come back of course someone but all the smart ones are sitting here because we all came back to him right so the best part of the journey they celebrate have a great time but the elder brother he's on his own journey he didn't leave he stayed there but he's on his own journey too he was angry when he saw them having a celebration they were feasting they were singing they were dancing they were happy that the younger brothers back but no he's angry he's not going in there so his father came out pleaded with him it's interesting the father didn't plead with the younger son when he was having his struggle but he pleaded with the older son he went out to him sometimes he let us go and sometimes he'll come out to us and say come on son come on he will bring us in in whatever way we need to be brought in he comes to us he comes to us and this is what he said to the older son son you're always with me you're always with me and all I have is yours it was right that we should make Mary and be glad for your brother was dead he's alive again he was lost and he's found this was the best part of the journey the reunion the coming back the celebration the forgiveness the acceptance the celebration of all this that he did turn around you know everyone's on a journey everyone is on a journey sometimes God lets us walk it alone but then he will intervene sometimes he comes and meets us in the place of our misery and he will bring us back the father here he said son it's not all of us about the stuff and the things you had me you had me you've had that relationship you've had that security you've had that sense of identity that sense of belonging and everything I have is yours everything I've had is yours and it's the right thing to restore it's the right thing to celebrate his turning back he was dead you've never been like that he was lost you've never been like that he had nothing he had no one he had an empty stomach he had an empty heart he had an empty life when he turned back suddenly the fullness and joy came back when he was reunited with his father this is a picture that Jesus is painting you know why did this guy live in the first place because enough was not enough for him he couldn't see the blessings that were there you know we have to be content with what we've got we need to be content and grateful he thought there was more I'm missing something and sometimes the devil will tell us oh yeah you could do better than this you deserve more than this and we miss the blessing we miss it he already had what he needed he already had what he needed but he wanted to do it his way I have to learn the journeys about learning even Paul said I have learned I have learned in whatever state I am no matter what things are like I've learned to be content I know how to be a base that means live down and I know how to abound up yeah everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry to abound and to suffer need no words I've been through it I've been up down but he says I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me and I think most of us know that script to me probably said it many times I can do all things through Christ who strengthened me you know if you're going through a tough time you can get through it through Christ who strengthens you if you need healing you can get through the pain you can get through it you can break through in Jesus name because he will strengthen you amen Father we just thank you for your word tonight Lord we thank you that there's times in our lives when we need to hold fast there's times when we need to move forward but there's also times when we need to turn back help us to recognize before we come to the place of something or someone controlling us before we end up in the pigsty before we end up in that place where we've got nothing and no one help us forward to turn back and to turn to you to the Father who loves us cares about us and has always been there help us Lord not to be selfish and not to be foolish but to make good wise mature decisions and to allow you to direct our lives we bless you we thank you for your goodness in Jesus mighty name amen okay everyone anyone needs prayer I want to pray with you otherwise have a great week say hi to somebody hi everyone oh my Good. What do you think of my hair?