(Sundaycast) Prospering Through Our Pain (Haggai 2:9; Mark 11:17) (Trust)

Yesterday we were swimming in the Mediterranean off the coast of Malta about 20 miles from where St Paul was shipwrecked as it’s recorded in Acts 27. Every follower of Jesus has shipwrecks in their lives. It’s a part of following Him. The book of Job helps us understand that these shipwrecks are God’s way of getting His message into places where they may never have come otherwise. But as in the case of Job, we will always have friends who want to blame the shipwreck on us. And we may also feel that way. Our purpose in the Forgivin’ Livin’ ministry is to free you from the curse of blaming yourself when things go badly in your life. Jesus has taken that curse upon himself on the cross. The cross of Christ now cuts all the connections between cause and effect. It’s not that we don’t have problems, but we no longer have to bear the guilt for them. And when you’re free from the guilt, you’re free to be a witness to the Risen Christ, who works everything together for His good (Romans 8:28). And of course it is for our good too since it’s no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us. We are the temple, the house of prayer, in which Jesus lives.