START OVER

So tonight our topic is START OVER

We talked on Keeping the fire burning last week

We continue from there today with Start Over

It's really very easy to sit in my bed and type telling everyone not to miss their prayers, to make sure they are active spiritually.

Everything is of course easier said (typed 😄) than done

You receive a message and you are so charged up.

Your spiritual life goes from 0 - 100 immediately

You are excited about your walk with God

You are looking forward to meeting with Him daily

Then all of a sudden there is no zeal to continue.

The last place you want to be is in the place of prayer.

You are so busy and there is really no time and this seems like a valid excuse

Or probably:

situations in your life are bad, really bad there is no energy to pray.

You are sinning and you are waiting to stop that thing so you can continue

You've procrastinated so much that you are not even sure you know how to do this prayer thing again

For some of us, we can't even spot the problem. We just know we are not praying.

We can feel the gap being created

Some of us go ahead to pretend that all is well.

While others just give themselves to isolation in this lack of Holy Zeal

For some people, the word of God becomes boring when it is preached

Or you listen to worship songs and they are just words meaning nothing, stirring nothing in you

Where ever you belong in this long list (which I know extends beyond), you are not alone

At different points in our lives, we feel this way

Starting over is a part almost everyone struggles with.

But we like it or not, it's a place we always have to come back to whenever we notice our spiritual fervour is not there or on days we are low

I've read books on prayer (will surely be reading more till I die).

I've been to trainings of prayer.

I've given sermons and taught others about prayer

But even I sometimes stop praying for a while, sometimes it's tiredness, boredom, no zeal, sin or even social media distractions

Before, it used to take me a long time to come back but I've learnt one secret in the past few years: God wants to meet with me even more than I want to meet with Him

💣💣

And He really is not looking at all the things holding me back

He also understands them

Infact, He understands my reasons more than I do. My high priest is in touch with my reality

Let's read Hebrews 4:14-16

Hebrews  4:14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.  4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.  4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

We do not have a high priest that is not in touch with these feelings of infirmities, inadequacies, sins, name it

14-16 Now that we know what we have—Jesus, this great High Priest with ready access to God—let's not let it slip through our fingers. We don't have a priest who is out of touch with our reality. He's been through weakness and testing, experienced it all—all but the sin. So let's walk right up to him and get what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help. MSG

Whatever it is that is keeping us away, Our High priest understands it perfectly.

He doesn't berate us for it.

What does His understanding do?

Come to me and take what I am so READY to give

Take the mercy. Accept the Help

When He says we should take and accept, it means this help has been available even before we lost it.

He actually knew we will (might) lose it along the line

So Help has been there even before we ever missed it

He keeps stretching His arms to us with Help, take it, accept it.

Stop struggling

Don't stay down

It's alright

Just accept my help and let's start again

There is nothing you have done that God cares about. NOTHING!

He is not holding you to it one bit

Especially when it comes to sin and guilt

A lot of us stay away from praying cos we don't feel adequate

So we postpone till tomorrow when that guilt is off (sometimes it's even very little things o)

I've been here plenty times

But check this scripture out

All that passing laws against sin did was produce more lawbreakers. But sin didn’t, and doesn’t, have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it’s sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that’s the end of it. Grace, because God is putting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life—a life that goes on and on and on, world without end.

Romans 5:20‭-‬21 MSG

God's forgiveness is Agressive. Heyyyyyyy 🔥🔥🔥

When whatever it is you have done stands where Grace is, it is knock out.

Grace always wins, hands down

The winning is even more superb than that quick beating AJ received

Probably you are thinking,  Christ doesn't know how the guilt of sin feels like.

He carried the sins of the world, of everyone at once.

Forget, He is in touch with this reality too.

Trials, tribulations, temptations, lack, name it

Let's read 2 Peter 1:5-9

(we focus on verse 9)

2 Peter  1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge 1:6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;  1:7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.  1:8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  1:9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

Look at the last sentence

Those that lack these qualities, it is because they have *forgotten* they have been made whole, they've been cleansed

They've forgotten God doesn't count scores

He doesn't hold our wrongdoings

Even when we are praying for forgiveness, God is just there like okay, can we continue from where we stopped

Nothing like, let me think about your sins first if it is forgivable

Let's just continue

A lot of us forget this part and it keeps us away from praying, from pursuing intimacy with God.

We feel we've not really been active or doing as we should, so we just shy away

Hey you Help is calling out to you. Accept it today.

Don't wait till tomorrow. Don't postpone it

If you ever hear an accusation, it is from the devil

Sometimes you want to even open this WhatsApp group but because you've missed for 5 days, you just leave it.

It's the devil

Same with church. You stop going for some days and the day you really want to go, you don't because of the days you didn't go

The enemy is the only one that makes us feel we are not enough or adequate for anything God.

He makes us think we are not Holy. Even if you did bad thing or sinned, And so?

The good things we do is not what makes us Holy. Holiness has little to do with how we behave or act right. It is not about the quality you possess, it is about your proximity to the Holy one (Intimacy!)

Holiness is more about where you are than what you do.

So it's fine if you've not been doing it well

Because our high priest is a correct guy, He doesn't leave us to find our way to where we need to be, He helps us to.

Where you are determines what we do

The seraphim are called Holy ones not because of who they are but because of where they are: they abide in the presence of the Holy one

So when the enemy tells you, " you've sinned, you can't pray.. You didn't pray yesterday you were watching Yoruba film bla bla

Tell yourself " Yes, I have sinned. Yes, I have missed prayers for stupid reasons. Yes I am down mentally. I am not even Holy at all, I need help that is why I have to come to God to take what He is ready to give: Mercy"

For some of us, the reason we don't pray is because we like sleep too much.

I know plenty Christians that are here. The minute it's time to pray, sleep must knock sha 😭😭

Let's go back to when Christ asked the disciples to pray and 3 times he met them snoring away

Matthew 26:40-46

Matthew  26:40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?  26:41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.  26:42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.  26:43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.  26:44 And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.  26:45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.  26:46 Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.

Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. 44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.

45 Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Jesus woke them up 3 times. One would think Jesus would be angry at them

Ordinary pray and don't sleep, they cannot do and they were His disciples.

Maybe you've been sleeping off every time you try to pray or when it's time and you feel bad or guilty, watch Christ's reaction to the disciples.

He didn't punish or send them away

He didn't say I'm tired of you

He woke them up and picked up from He stopped. He even shared with them what is about to happen: The betrayer has come

Look at Jesus sharing revelation with people that were just asleep

No matter how long you've been away, your high priest is trying to wake you up, trying so hard to draw you back, hoping that you accept the Help and mercy He gives, so the relationship can continue

No accusations in between

Tonight, I beg us all

If for any reason we've stopped praying as we should or our intimate walk with God is not as it should be, *START OVER*

Start Over wherever you are, no matter how imperfect your worship or prayers might be at that point. Just start!. Your imperfect is lost in the ocean of His perfect

You just allow Him take your hands and help you. Receive the help that He gives

Don't forget, if you ever miss it at any point: START OVER!

Let us pray

Dear Lord, we thank you for your word
We thank you for your help that is ever available. We pray for everyone reading this that is stuck or moving backwards, they accept your help and pick up with you. They are strengthened.

And for those that do not need this teaching at this moment, Spirit of God we pray you be their reminder on the day this message will be valid for them.

This is not just a preaching for us Lord, it is a call to action. We respond adequately.

Amen!