Lesson #5 Turn (2 of 2)

STEP THREE

(WHILE SEEKING FRIENDSHIP WITH JESUS) 
WE MADE A DECISION TO TURN OUR LIVES AND
OUR WILLS OVER TO THE CARE OF GOD

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy,
To offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God –
This is your true and proper worship,” Romans 12:1

PRINCIPLE TWO

CONSCIOUSLY CHOOSE TO COMMIT ALL MY LIFE AND WILL
TO CHRIST’S CARE AND CONTROL

“Happy are the meek,” Matthew 5:5

LESSON FIVE 
TURN
PART TWO

  • In this Third Step we say thank you
    • We say thank you over and over again
      • Whether or not we mean it
      • Whether or not we feel grateful
  • In this Third Step we learn to say thank you for every detail of our present  
    circumstances, including
    • What we’re going through
    • Who we are
    • What we’re feeling
    • What is frustrating us
  • Working the Third Step enables us to discover GRATITUDE can help bring
    us to a
    • Point of SURRENDER

“Do you not know that if you continually surrender yourselves to anyone
To do their will, you are the slaves of those whom you obey, whether that be
To sin, which leads to death, or to obedience which leads to righteousness
(Right doing and right standing with God)”
Romans 6:16-17 AMP

“But thank God, because now that you have found that you can be free from the power 
Of sin, and can delight in listening to God instructing you, what a surprise! A whole,  
healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard  
For sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life,
Eternal Life, delivered by Jesus”
Romans 6:22-23 MSG

“I am not ashamed of the Gospel (Good News) of Christ, for it is God’s power
Working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who
Believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance”
Romans 1:16 AMP

  • Jesus also wrestled with emotional trauma and
    • WON
  • Jesus coped by using the following tools:

1. REACHING UP

  • Jesus remained connected to God at all times.
  • He never acted independently from God.
  • The Father was His Source.
  • Jesus realized that there is only one sin
    • PRIDE
  • Pride influences a person to act independently from God and
    • Look to others for support
  • Pride creates the breeding ground for every evil that affects us all.  
  • Jesus was wise enough to never become so full of Himself that He
    forgot Who sent Him here in the first place. He said:

“My nourishment comes from doing the will of God.
Who sent Me, and from finishing His work”
John 4:34

  • Jesus was able to cope with enormous pain, even His own death
    • He relied on God to guide and strengthen Him.

2. REACHING OUT 

  • Lone Rangers do poorly when stressed
  • In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus asked His three closest disciples to
    “keep watch and pray” Mark 14:38
    • As He prayed through the night
  • Jesus created a circle of support to help at His most difficult hour
  • Now, the record shows that Jesus’ support team all went to sleep on Him
  • But, God never promised us perfect support people
  • Allowing God to be your Source gives you a cushion
  • People will let you down sometimes
    • That’s all right
      • Some people will come through for you
  • Where family and friends fall short
    • GOD WILL MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE
  • We were created for community

“A true friend is always loyal,
And a brother is born to help in time of need”
Proverbs 17:17

3. PUT ON YOUR “FAITH GLASSES” 

  • What you believe about trouble makes a world of difference in your
    ability to handle a potentially traumatizing situation
  • Jesus was always clear that no matter what happened, God was in control
  • This does not mean that unfortunate and even tragic things won’t happen to us
  • But God being in control means that when it’s all said and done
    • He has the final word, NOT your trouble that’s
    • MIGHTY GOOD NEWS
  • Looking at your problems through the lens of faith gives you an advantage
    • It develops in you the mind-set of Jesus
  • You become aware that although life circumstances may at times be unfair,
    God is in the midst of your pain bringing out good. The Psalmist wrote:

“Weeping may last through the night,
But joy comes in the morning”
Psalm 30:5

  • When you believe that God is in the midst of your trials
    • It helps you to stay out of
      • Victim-like
      • Helpless modes of thinking
  • Instead, you can say to yourself with confidence the words of Paul:

“We know that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him,
Who have been called according to His purpose”
Romans 8:28

  • God is in the midst of pain
    • Bringing out good
  • He is developing our character so
    • We can make better choices
    • We can experience God’s peace
  • GRATITUDE DIMINISHES THE POWER OF THE PROBLEM

  • GRATITUDE EMPOWERS THE SOLUTION

  • GRATITUDE RELEASES US FROM THE TIGHT, NEGATIVE GRASP OF
    OUR PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCE

  • GRATITUDE RELEASES US FROM FEAR

  • GRATITUDE HELPS US MOVE OUT AND MOVE FORWARD

  • GRATITUDE BREEDS ACCEPTANCE
    • Which helps us and our circumstances CHANGE
  • It is natural for our first response to be discomfort to want
    • The situation
    • The other person to change
  • Working this Third Step as we focus on taking care of ourselves
    • Our circumstances change
      • Usually because WE CHANGE
  • This step ends with NEW LIFE , but
    • You must first take three actions before that life can by yours
      you MUST
      • TRUST
      • UNDERSTAND
      • REPENT
  • One of the Eight Recovery Principles of Celebrate Recovery, a Twelve Step
    Program, states: 
    • Voluntarily submit to ANY and ALL changes God wants to make in my life
      and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects. 
  • Let us pray:

Jesus, when You walked the earth You did many wonderful things.
You worked mind-boggling miracles. But the greatest miracle was for You
To reveal Your humanity. In Your flesh You showed how much You loved me.
You loved me enough to be nailed to a cross. You loved me enough to allow
A crown of thorns to be pressed into Your brow.  
You loved me enough to die for my sins.

Help me today, Jesus, to realize that with Your help I can transform
My thinking. I can handle my problems. I can learn to believe that nothing is
Too hard for You. When I face my trials, I can remember that because of Your
Resurrection, I can bring that same power into my everyday life situations. I don’t have
To let my troubles have the last say; that honor belongs to You. Help me grow in faith
And trust for You so I can grow confident knowing You are in control. Thank you for
Encouraging me to repent and TURN to God, and do deeds and live my life consistent
With and worthy of Your gift of repentance. And allow You to be my Source,
So I can be at peace. Amen.

                                                                 TURN

            T  — TRUST

  • We trust our lives to complete strangers every day
  • We trust that oncoming cars will stop at intersections
  • We trust the hamburgers we eat at fast-food restaurants won’t make us sick
  • Why then is it so hard for us to trust our lives to the care of God
    • Whose eyes are always upon us
  • Wouldn’t you rather walk with God in the darkest valley
    • Rather than walk alone or with a stranger in the light
  • During this step you make the one-time decision to turn your life over
    • TO THE CARE OF GOD
  • It’s your choice
    • NOT CHANCE, that determines your DESTINY
  • That decision only requires TRUST
    • Putting your FAITH INTO ACTION
  •  FAITH IS SIMPLY TAKING GOD AT HIS WORD

“If you declare with your lips, ‘Jesus is Lord’  
 And believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead,
You will be saved”
Romans 10:9

  • For some people that’s just way too simple
  • They want to make salvation much more difficult
    • But it isn’t
  • Our salvation depends on God’s love for us
    • Not our love for Him

          U  — UNDERSTAND

  • Relying solely on our own understanding got most of us into recovery
    in the first place
  • After you make the decision to ask Jesus into your life, you need to begin
    to seek His will for your life
    • In ALL you decisions
  • You need to get to know and understand Him
    • What He wants for your life

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight”
Proverbs 3:5-6

  •  You see, our understanding is earthbound
  •  Our understanding is human to the core
    • LIMITED
  •  We operate in a dimension totally unlike that of our Lord
  •  Jesus knows no such limitations
  •  We see now
    • God sees Forever
  •  It is not necessary for us to understand everything

“For our gifts of knowledge…are only partial; but when what is perfect comes,
Then what is partial will disappear…What we see now is like the dim image in a mirror;
Then we shall see face-to-face. What I know now is only partial; then it will be complete,
As complete as God’s knowledge of me” 
1 Corinthians 13:9-13

  •  Someday we will see Jesus face-to-face
  •  The fog of interpretation will be lifted
    • Our understanding will be perfected
  •  God does not lead you year by year, not even day by day
    • God directs your way step by step                  

           R  —  REPENT                                      

  • Some people repent of their sins by thanking the Lord that they aren’t
    half as bad as their neighbors
  • That’s not true repentance
  • Repentance is how you begin to enjoy the freedom of your loving
    relationship with God
  • True repentance affects our whole person
  • TRUE REPENTANCE CHANGES OUR ENTIRE VIEW OF LIFE

  • Repentance is to take God’s point of view on our lives
    • Instead of our own
  • To truly repent two things need to be done:
    • (1) Turn away from your sins
    • (2) Turn toward God

The Bible has much to say about repentance:

“Turn from your sins and act on this glorious news!”
Mark 1:15

“Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall.
Rid yourself of all the offenses you have committed, and get
A new heart and a new spirit”
Ezekiel 1:30-31

Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold,
But let God remake you so that your whole attitude of mind is changed”
Romans 12:2

  •  It seems that most people repent of their sins more from a fear of punishment  
     than from a real change of heart
  •  REPENTANCE IS NOT SELF-LOATHING
    • IT IS GOD LOVING
  •  God isn’t looking forward to punishing you
  •  God is eagerly anticipating with open arms
    • Your turning toward Him
  •  God will joyously give you New Life
    • When you have chosen to turn from your sin toward Him

N — NEW LIFE

  • The new life that you will receive is the result of taking the three actions
    that we just covered
  1. TRUSTING
  2. UNDERSTANDING
  3. REPENTING
  • These are just a few pretty glum definitions of life

                  “Life is a hereditary disease”

                  “Life is a sentence that we have to serve for being born”

                  “Life is a predicament that precedes death”

                  “Life’s a tough proposition; and the first hundred years are the hardest”

  •  These are depressing words that you may feel as true if your life doesn’t include 
     Jesus Christ
  •  With Jesus in your heart, you will have a new life
    • You will no longer be bound to your old sinful nature
  •  God has declared you “Not Guilty,”
    • You no longer have to live under the power of sin

      Now God says He will accept and acquit us – declare us ‘Not Guilty’ – if we trust
      Jesus to take away our sins, Romans 3:22

      In Hebrews 8:12 God said, “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their
      sins no more”

      When we were overwhelmed by sins, You forgave our transgressions, Psalm 65:3

      In Isaiah 43:25 God said, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for
      My own sake, and remembers your sins no more”

      In Isaiah 44:22 God tells us, “I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins
      like the morning mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you”

      In Jeremiah 33:8 God says, “I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed
      against Me, and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against Me”

      Micah 7:19 says of God, “You will again have compassion on us; You will tread our
      sins underfoot, and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea”

      Psalm 103:12-14 says of God, “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He
      removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children,
      so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him; for He knows how we are
      formed, He remembers that we are dust”

      2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “When anyone is joined in Christ he is a new being; the
      old is gone, the new has come”
  • Here are some ways the “NEW LIFE” demonstrates itself
  • The “OLD YOU” said
  • Save your life!
  • Get, get, get!
  • Lead, at all costs!
  • Lie; the truth only complicates things
  • Hate your enemy
  • The “NEW YOU” says
  • Lose your life to keep it (Mark 8:35)
  • Give, it will be given to you (Luke 6:38)
  • Serve (John 13:12)
  • Speak the Truth in love (Eph. 4:29)   
  • Love your enemy (Matthew 5:44)
  • Once you accept Christ in your life
    • IT’S A DONE DEAL
  • However, turning your will over to Him
    • Requires daily Re-Commitment

Dear God, I have tried to do it all by myself on my own power,
And I have failed. Today I want to turn my life over to You. I ask you to be
My Lord and my Savior.
I ask that You help me think less about me and my will.
I want to daily turn my will over to You,
To seek Your direction and wisdom for my life.
Please continue to help me overcome my and habits and may that victory
Over them help others as they see Your power at work in changing my life.
Help me to do Your will always. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen