"Play it Again Sam"

"Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies." (Psalms 69:18) So, how many times did you give your life to the Lord? I think I gave my life to Jesus at least two or three times more, and that was before I was released from jail; that's was a period of three months, so it was like a monthly ritual. After my release, it became more like every six months, or once a year, depending upon how things were going at home; many times, my wife and I would go forward together; it was like we were looking for it to take hold, or expecting there to be a result that would stop us from sinning or arguing, or better yet, cause us to love the way we wanted to love each other. After several years, and countless times of giving my life to Jesus, it finally came to my attention that there is no magical thing that stops me from sinning, because I still have free will. We are going to sin, it's just not possible to stop sinning altogether; and if you think that it is, then you are sadly going to be disappointed with your relationship with Christ; mostly because you are going to keep doubting if there really is one. I think what changed for me was a retreat that focused on the Book of 1 John; the whole Book, not just a chapter or two; because if you don't study the whole letter with the entire message, then you are not going to get the complete message. I remember there was one part of the retreat where things got really strange for me; mostly because I an answer to a question that was totally different than anyone else. We were split up into groups of about six men per table, and each table was to decide what a letter meant, and choose a spokesman to share what they came up with. My table chose me to represent them because my interpretation seemed good. There was about twenty tables in the room, so we had more time to discuss the question than we did to explain our answer. The letter went something like this: 'There was a certain accountant that was doing the books for a wealthy merchant; and as he was figuring the totals, he discovered that there was more there than otherwise listed; so he took the excess money and put it in an envelope for himself. He never really spent it, he just held onto it, and kept it in his pocket. Long story short; one day while teaching Sunday School, he discovered that he had difficulty reaching the children, and had lost something that had once made it easy to share the Gospel to the kids. So he determined that it was that envelope he had in his pocket.' The question was about what the envelope represented. Every other table in the room said that it was sin that had not been confessed; but my answer was totally different; I said that it represented the Gifts of the Spirit. You can imagine the looks I got from the other tables; it was like I had just totally stepped off the planet. Unfortunately, the other men at my table no longer wanted to stay with my explanation; although they had once agreed, because of the opposition, they changed their minds. Funny how that works, don't you think...
 "If I speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn't love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God's secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn't love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn't love others, I would have gained nothing. Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (1 Corinthians 13:1-7) NLT