As we begin a new year, I wanted to provide an introduction to Januarys sermon series. For those of you who may watch/enjoy game shows, there is one that hasnt been on very long but has gained a fair amount of popularity. In the game show Deal or No Deal, a contestant is asked to choose an unopened case (containing from one cent to 1 million dollars) from a total of 26 cases. They either end up keeping the original case or cashing it in for an amount of money. The amount of money they are offered (this happens at various points as they choose which of the other 25 cases they want opened) is in proportion to the number of cases left and the possible amounts left in those cases. For example, the contestant may get to a point in the game with only 6 cases left and one of the cases could still have 1 million dollars left. If that were the situation, they would be offered a fairly large amount of money to turn in their original case. Ultimately, they could choose to stick with their original case all the way to the end of the game. Their destiny is in the choices they make from the beginning to the end of the show.
This particular game show could be a microcosm of our lives as human beings. Our destinys ultimately lie in the choices we make from a very early age until the time that we pass on from this earth.
Our January sermon series will focus on the power of choice. Each day, we make choices that will affect our lives and the lives of others. Gods Word provides keen insight to the power of choice. We serve a loving and creative God who exemplifies the importance of choice. God chose a special people to work in and through in the Israelites. God chose to love us through sending His one and only Son to die for our sins. God chose a man named Paul to spread the gospel to non-Jews.
But God also chose to give us the ability to choose. In our January series, Deal, or No Deal: The Power of Choice, we will see how our free-will comes with great responsibility. We will see how our choices have life or death consequences. We will examine how our choices affect not only ourselves, but others as well.
Please be praying for this series and how God will speak to our hearts through His Word.
With love and hope in Jesus,
Pastor Bruce