I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
Isaiah 43:19 NRSV
At L Street Mission, we sometimes get to witness radical transformations. After years of living with an addiction to alcohol and drugs, folks decide to commit to a different life. They enter into treatment and, with much determination and struggle, get clean and sober. This is our daily prayer at L Street Mission. From the time we meet folks on the streets, we assure them of God's love and compassion and our willingness to help however we can. Granted, this doesn't happen as frequently as we'd like, but when it does, the witness of seeing this new person free of addiction speaks of God's transforming power at work.
Think back on our acceptance of Christ. It may not have been so outwardly visible -- not all of us have the experience of those freed from addiction -- but we all have experienced God's making a new thing in us. Each one of us shares in God’s radical deliverance from a life of sin. We all become something new. Through the Holy Spirit, we all enjoy his sweet water in the arid desert of sin. When we look back on what we once were, we appreciate anew the changes God has wrought with us.
God our Creator, Savior, and Sustainer, we give thanks for transformative power. Only by your grace, your love, and compassion, you make something new of us. You forgive our sins and create within us the desire to sin no more. You provide us with a guide for living righteously. Father, please help us this day be your witnesses to the world of the changes you made within us. We pray that they also may witness your transformative power. Amen.
Peace,
Pastor Tim
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