Pastor Hughes shares a story of a stolen painting. The thieves painted over parts of the picture to disguise it, but experts discovered the actual work and recovered it. Life has a way of covering us over with the results of the things that happen to us. God is in the recovery business. Our text tells us that Jesus came to save those that are lost. Like that piece of art, God’s original masterpiece is still there but covered with things that He did not put there. Jesus came to seek and to save that which is lost. The parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin reminds us that God is not content with losing any of us. The shepherd went to find the one. The woman swept the house to find the lost coin. He wants to save ALL of us. God is concerned with lost things because they are valuable to Him. It is too easy to become content with the nine, but God gave us ten. God wants us to have everything that He has spoken and promised. How easy is it to lose hope because life becomes too complicated or chaotic. God wants us to regain that lost hope because it is not over until God says it is over. God does not want us to crawl over the finish line, having barely made it; he wants us to walk triumphantly into our reward. Like the prodigal son, God wants us to come to ourselves and decide it is time to recover. The secret to recovery is getting up. The devil does not want us to get up because he knows that he will lose if we keep getting up. You cannot beat a man who keeps getting up. The truth is that we do not need a devil to defeat us; we can defeat ourselves by giving up. God is waiting for us to reach out to him for recovery. The time for recovery is now. God wants us to have it all back. He wants it for us right now. God wants us to recover what we have lost or laid aside. There are things that God wants us to get over. There are too many lost people because they cannot get over something that happened to them. Sometimes the only way to get over things like that is to swallow it and get past it. We have too much to lose by staying lost. God is waiting. It is time to recover.

Everything that happens to us in life shapes us; the good and the bad. Life has a way of pressing us into its mold, but Paul writing to the church a Philipai tells us be not conformed. Paul admonishes us that there is a better way than allowing life and the things that happen to force us into a shape inconsistent with our Christian walk. Paul says to be careful for nothing. The original Greek word means pulling in different directions. On the one hand, there are hopes, desires, and dreams that pull us one way, but on the other hand, fear, uncertainty, and doubt pull us another. We know what the Word says, but we also have the pull of doubt from our lives. Doctors tell us that worry affects our bodies, but it also affects our spiritual well being. There is no greater thief than worry. It steals peace, joy, and contentment. In our text, Paul tells us that the answer to life’s stress and strain is prayer. He tells us that the secret is to pray about everything. Paul used three different words when he said to pray about everything. Prayer begins with the concept of adoration and worship. For many, prayer is about asking, but the first step should be worship. It is incredible how, when we begin to worship, our problems start to shrink. Worship is the preparation that helps us move to the next dimension. After beginning with worship, Paul tells us to move to supplication. When we worship first, we are prepared to bring our needs to God. Finally, Paul tells us to pray prayers of thanksgiving. By being thankful, we acknowledge all that God has done: All the protection, all the provision, and healing. We must be grateful for it all. Prayer will help shape our lives. It will direct our thoughts and our emotions about life. When we follow this simple formula for prayer, God will transform our lives.

Our world lives in fear. Our world does not focus on all the good things that happen; they focus on all the challenges. If we are not careful, we can fall into the trap of believing all the bad things we hear. It is all too easy to let life define us rather than allowing our relationship with God to define us. When we are baptized, our sins are forgiven. The bible says that He erases the record, but we still keep a record in our own memories. The only thing that has a record to that record is our flesh. We listen too much to what our flesh says and not enough to what God says about us. Did the truth not free us? The fact is that the truth has limitations. Unfortunately, those limitations start with our own minds. When we go down in the water, He forgives all the sins we have committed. However, He does not forgive those sins committed against us. God can forgive our sins, but he cannot forgive others for us. We have to do that on our own. The only way to forgive is not to say “Jesus, I give it to you” The only way to do it is for us to ask Jesus to erase their sin and cast it into the sea of forgetfulness. Until we do that, we give our flesh permission to drag up our past, and our past will keep us in constant turmoil and angst. The way out of this cycle is to truly forgive those that have wronged us and allow the truth to set us free.

Brother Hughes misplaced his wallet today. As he began to look around his office, he became concerned because he could not find it. He called Sister Hughes to look for it at home, but as he talked to her, he found the wallet in a place where he had just looked. At that moment, God spoke to him and said, “What else are you not seeing that is right there?” Our text is another case of not seeing what was there. The servant went out to find themselves surrounded by the enemy and was alarmed. He began to speak to the man of God in distress and fear, but Elisha prayed, “O God, open his eyes and let him see.” The servant looked up to find the hills full of men and horses to come to their defense. The servant was blinded to the protection and power that were all around him. There was glory beyond the worry. What are we not seeing because we are too focused on our situation? What are we missing because we are distracted by the things around us? The enemy will always place distractions in our way. He will use fear and worries to keep us from focusing on the blessings and promises of God. No matter our surroundings, God will never abandon us. Brother Hughes looked diligently for his wallet, but could not find it. It was there all along, but he did not see it until he looked a second time. God’s protection is there, even if we cannot see it. Are we focused on the worry or looking for the wonder.