Lies Even Seasoned Christians Believe — Uselessness :: PODCAST
Presented at Curwensville Alliance Church by Pastor Steve Shields on 2/25/2018
While playing for the Minnesota Vikings, defensive end Jim Marshall did something embarrassing.
In a game against the 49ers, he recovered a fumble and ran it 66 yards — the wrong way — into his own end zone.
Because he thought he’d scored a touchdown for his team, he threw the ball away in celebration, only to have it go out of bounds, giving a safety for the other team.
Despite this error, Minnesota went on to win the game 27–22, with the victory provided by a touchdown return of a fumble caused by Marshall.
I am sure there are a lot of people who know Marshall’s pain.
And I am sure there are a lot of people who, upon failing so miserably, left the arena. They allowed their failure to be fatal.
Sometimes Christians can feel this way. We see our own failings as tragic, and retire from serving God.
They believe a lie that they are useless in the Kingdom.
This podcast speaks about this and gives insight into why failures don’t have to be fatal.
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You’re Not Alone :: PODCAST
So, there’s this guy – we’ll call him Willis – and he has a problem. It’s between him and his wife, Wilma. They’re not getting along well.
And he doesn’t know who to talk to.
Even though he has good friends at work, he’s not telling them. He knows that, at times, his workplace seems like a gossip processing house.
Even though he has a good relationship with his pastor, he won’t talk to him. He doesn’t want to because, frankly, he’s too embarrassed.
He’s afraid to tell his family. If his parents found out, they would immediately take his side, and that would injure their relationship with his wife, Wilma.
Willis feels helpless. And he is helpless. He’s helpless because he’s believing a lie:
A lie that tells him he is alone.
This concept of feeling aloneness is pretty universal.
It’s more than just being alone. It’s more than occasional loneliness. It’s a feeling of aloneness — like you have been abandoned or you are isolated from anyone who can help you.
If you’ve never felt it… well, I don’t know what to say to someone whose never felt it. We all feel it.
This podcast speaks of aloneness, and how Christians should respond to these feelings.
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