The Fruit of Jesus - Pastor Erik Kutchen

Thank you for listening to this message from Lifehouse Church.

How are we all doing today?

Good.

Good.

Yeah, it's so good to be here with you guys today.

As you can tell, I am not Pastor Kipp.

If I was, I probably would have taken a lot of anti-aging medication.

Just kidding, I love them.

I love them.

Anyway, yeah.

Sorry Pastor Kipp.

But no, they're on vacation, much, much deserved.

Like I said earlier, much warmer climate, so I pray they have a wonderful time, relax,

and when it's time to get back here, they'll be powerful.

I don't know what the word is.

Refresh is the word.

Yes, yeah.

Thank you.

But last week, we just kicked off our series, Pursuing Jesus, and Pastor Kipp had talked

about the hot pursuit of Jesus.

And that is going to be our big mission this year is chasing after Jesus.

How do we do that?

What does that look like?

How do we establish rhythms of grace in our lives?

Like the style that Jesus did as he was walking throughout his life, what were his patterns?

How did he stay so in tune with the Father?

How was he able to just hear God and do his will?

That's what we want to accomplish in our hearts this year because God's grace is all that

matters.

That's the only thing that we're even able to do anything with because of his grace.

What we can do of our own abilities, it's empty, it's nothing, it's vain.

It's not eternal.

But when his grace gets in the picture, it becomes eternal.

So the desire to pursue Jesus is great, but it won't be enough if that's where it ends.

The desire that remains dormant in us is wasted.

It never gets out into the public where it actually does something.

I can say that I want something, but unless there is action involved, then I prove I don't

really want that much.

Scripture states in Proverbs, a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

A desire cannot be fulfilled unless action is taken.

Storyteller Megan McKenna captures this reluctance to claim and act on our desires.

In a wonderful parable, it goes like this.

There was a woman who wanted peace in the world and peace in her heart, but she was

very frustrated.

The world seemed to be falling apart.

She would read papers and get depressed.

One day she decided to go shopping and she went into a mall and picked up a store at

random.

She walked into it and was surprised to see Jesus behind the counter.

She knew it was Jesus because he looked just like the picture she'd seen on holy cards

and devotional pictures.

She looked again and again at him and finally she got up the nerve and asked, excuse me,

are you Jesus?

I am.

Do you work here?

No, Jesus said, I own the store.

Oh, what do you sell here?

Oh, just about anything.

Anything?

Yeah, anything you want.

What do you want?

She said, I don't know.

Well, Jesus said, feel free.

Walk up and down the aisles, make a list, see what it is that you want and then come

back and we'll see what we can do for you.

She did just that.

Walked up and down the aisles.

There was peace on earth, no more war, no hunger or poverty, peace in families, no more

drugs.

There was harmony, clean air, careful use of resources.

She wrote this down furiously.

By the time she got back to the counter, she had a long list.

Jesus took the list, skimmed through it, looked up at her and smiled.

No problem.

He says, and then he bent down behind the counter and picked out all sorts of things,

stood up and laid out the packets.

She asked, what are these?

Jesus replied, seed packets.

This is a catalog store.

She replied, you mean I don't get the finished product?

Jesus says, no, this is a place of dreams.

You come and see what it looks like and I give you the seeds.

You plant the seeds, you go home and nurture them and help them grow and someone else reap

the benefits.

Oh, she said, and she left the store without buying anything.

So in this story, this woman desired good things.

She wanted the stuff that we would say is good in this world.

Peace on earth, no more war, harmony, no more sickness.

She longed for those things.

And likewise, pursuing Jesus in your life will involve action.

It's one thing to desire him.

It's another thing to pursue him in action.

Amen.

So we find a great passage in scripture where a man had such a desire and did what it took

to see it fulfilled.

And this man was Zacchaeus, whom we read about in Luke 19, verse one through 10.

So as you open up to Luke, or we have them on the screens here, I'm going to pray over

the word.

So Father, we just thank you for your holy word, that your word carries all authority

on heaven, on earth, throughout the universe.

Lord, your word is powerful.

It creates, it sustains, it holds things together, Lord.

And we just ask that your word would create in us a clean heart today, Lord, that we would

receive from you your precious word to fill us with your grace and power, Lord, to serve

you acceptably.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Amen.

Luke 19, starting at verse one, says, Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the

town.

And there was a man there named Zacchaeus.

He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich.

He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd.

So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going

to pass that way.

When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name.

Zacchaeus, he said, quick, come down.

I must be a guest in your home today.

Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy.

But the people were displeased.

He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner, they grumbled.

Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, I will give half my wealth to the

poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times

as much.

And Jesus responded, salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself

to be a true son of Abraham, for the son of man came to seek and save those who are lost.

So we see this man, Zacchaeus, right?

He is a chief tax collector and had become very rich, which, by the way, tax collectors

in those days, not exactly the people that you would like to be around.

They cheat you.

They are one of the most hated people groups because they would ruin you financially.

But this guy wasn't just a tax collector, he was a chief tax collector, right?

That means he has hated that much more.

So if a tax collector did that to humanity, imagine the crowds that Zacchaeus is in, where

people are surrounding Jesus in a crowd and you have this guy who is the most hated person

because of what he has done.

But Zacchaeus had something stirring in him, this desire, right?

Zacchaeus wanted to get to Jesus, but due to his small stature, he can't even see over

the crowd.

And I don't know what that height would actually be, what the standard was back then, you know,

six feet, five foot six.

I mean, maybe I am the same size as Zacchaeus and everyone else is six foot six.

I don't know, but it just says that he is small and he can't see over the crowd.

He knew he was going to have to take some serious action in order to meet Jesus.

So what did he do?

What actions did he take to pursue Jesus?

Well, he first took action by running ahead of the crowd.

We learn from him, we should take action by getting ahead of the crowd.

We have experiences for ourselves, right?

You really want to get something done and it just seems like anything and everything

is getting in your way of doing that.

Think about it, if you were going to meet up with a friend, right?

You're scheduled for 2.30 and it takes 15 minutes to get there from your house.

And you're thinking, easy, 15 minutes.

I'll be there right on time.

I'm leaving at 2.15.

I'll be there at 2.30.

Does it ever really play out like that?

No, rarely, right?

And instead, you get into that mentality, you play it cool, calm, confident, driving

down the road and then you hit your first red light.

That red light and you're staying there, you're staying there, you got the radio on, maybe

you're worshiping a little bit.

It's like, man, how is this still red?

I think we just finished one full song on the radio and it's still red.

All right, okay, let's get a move in here.

Let's get a green.

And then you're waiting and you're waiting and there's literally nobody crossing the

other intersection.

You're like, okay, there's nothing coming across here.

Why aren't you green yet?

Please just turn green.

Finally turns green.

Whew, what a relief.

What a relief.

Now I can get back on track.

I think I can still make it there on time.

You see in the distance as you're driving down the road, a yellow light.

You're like, please, please no.

Please, please stay yellow so I can just pass right through.

And it turns red.

Here we go again.

It turns red and eventually you go and at this point you're just anxious.

You're antsy.

You know, I'm gonna get road rage in here.

Now the person that has to take a turn, you know, it seems like the slowest possible turn

where they just take their time.

You come to a complete stop, you're still waiting and then they finally get in there

and then you start all over again.

But it's one thing after another, eventually you get to your destination, but you arrive

much later than you expected.

And maybe you're even embarrassed to show your face to whom you're meeting with.

You say, hey, sorry, I'm late.

Traffic was terrible.

Was traffic really that bad?

No, could the whole scenario have been avoided?

Yes.

What could they have done to avoid it?

They could have taken the action to be prepared and leave a little earlier.

Life doesn't seem as chaotic and dramatic when you simply get ahead of the crowd to

get ahead of the traffic.

And that's what Zacchaeus did.

He said, hey, this trying to get through the crowd thing to see Jesus, it's not working

for me.

What I need to do is I need to run ahead of the crowd and meet him there.

So he gets ahead and eventually Jesus draws near to him.

It reminds me of when scripture says, draw near to God and he will draw near to you.

Amen.

That's a strong promise.

I would hold on to that one.

When you draw near to God, he will draw near to you.

Zacchaeus took the action to get ahead of the crowd to see Jesus, knowing that Jesus

was going to meet him there at that point.

He drew near to God.

And what happened?

Jesus met him there.

Jesus who is God drew near to Zacchaeus.

Promise fulfilled.

Bam.

It's like a date.

You're expecting to meet up with them.

You get there a little early before they do and they arrive after you.

You're anticipating them coming to you.

You just got to take the action to get there and meet them at that place.

And that's what pursuing Jesus involves, taking action.

Because if you don't, life will happen and you will never meet with him.

And the say to mine, you desire when we don't take the action to get ahead, we feel that

late arrival embarrassment.

You know what I'm talking about?

That moment when you, you, it's been a while since you spent some time with Jesus and you're

just like, Oh, hey, Jesus, sorry.

It's me again.

I know it's been a long while since I've, you know, talked with you and stuff and I'm

really sorry.

I had a lot going on, which is fine.

That happens.

You know, we're all late at some point in our lives.

You don't have to have guilt in that moment, but don't let that be the norm in your life

where you're always apologizing whenever you meet somebody, you know, he's just happy to

spend time with you.

He's not going to give you a hard time about it.

But life will happen.

Do you know where that meeting place is with Jesus in your life?

It's that place where we get alone with him.

We read his word and his word isn't just like some like holy term.

His word is literally his word.

He speaks through his word to you.

And so if you're trying to understand what he's saying, you have to lean into him because

he'll speak it to you.

He'll give you the understanding.

It's not an obligation.

It's a date with him.

He loves us and wants to spend time with us.

He wants to hear our heart and in return he gives us his heart.

Amen.

You may say, yeah, but it feels awkward and I don't think he speaks to me.

Dates can be awkward.

There may be concern if your date will even show up.

But I assure you with Jesus, he says, I'm coming soon.

He says, wait, I'll be still in my presence and I will speak to you.

So how do we take the action to get ahead?

Maybe that means first thing in the morning before I even eat, I take the action to spend

time with Jesus.

Maybe that means before I watch TV, I'm getting ahead and open up my Bible.

Or maybe it's your drive to work.

You can listen to a message, pray, have the Bible read to you while you're driving.

You're getting ahead before the crazy crowds take place.

If it's hard to take the action, just do bits and pieces at a time.

Don't put so much pressure on yourself.

Read one verse a day, two verses a day.

Spend some time talking with somebody about the word or something, your question that

you had.

But it's all about establishing those godly rhythms that establish God's word in us, that

we can have a stronger relationship with him and establish peace on earth as his will is

to do.

It was a very intentional thing for Zacchaeus to run ahead of the crowd.

And not only did he run ahead of the crowd, but he climbed a sycamore tree, which I looked

it up, because I have no idea what a sycamore tree looks like.

Its sycamore tree is really sturdy and durable and reaches over 40 feet in the air.

Now I don't know if he climbed to the top of that 40 foot sycamore tree, but at least

he went a considerable distance so he could see Jesus in the distance.

And Jesus arrived when he was on that sycamore tree and spoke to him.

Zacchaeus.

Zacchaeus didn't even introduce himself.

Jesus just knew his name.

Amen.

Jesus knows your name.

You don't have to introduce yourself.

I thought that was cool.

But Jesus says, quick, come down.

I must be a guest in your home today.

What an honor, right?

The Lord Jesus, the very word that holds all of creation together is being hosted by the

wee little tax collector in his own home.

The crowd around Jesus already hated Zacchaeus' guts.

Now they were really disgusted that Jesus would have anything even to do with him.

For this reason, the actions we take to pursue Jesus will actually almost inevitably bring

pressure against you.

We must take the action to stand firm in the pressures we face for pursuing Jesus in action.

Look what it says again in verse six.

Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy,

but the people were displeased.

He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner, they grumbled.

So Zacchaeus just went through this big adventure, being in the crowd, running ahead of the crowd,

climbing a 40-foot tree, and in his actions produced a beautiful moment with Jesus calling

him by name and having the opportunity to host him in his very own house.

If Zacchaeus doesn't take those actions, he doesn't see Jesus.

Scripture said he took Jesus with great excitement and joy.

Modern lingo, he was pumped.

He was pumped to know that his actions finally paid off.

The desire was fulfilled.

But in that moment, just as he experienced all this joy and excitement, he is met with

the crowd's displeasure with him, secondhand.

You know, they're not even acknowledging Zacchaeus.

They're saying, Jesus, what's with this guy?

Why are you going to his house?

Of all people, his house?

Seriously?

Imagine the person right there listening to that like, oh, I didn't mean to cause any

trouble.

He can see and hear all that displeasure they're talking about.

And Zacchaeus, excuse me, Jesus taught about this kind of occurrence because he knew that

once Jesus gets into the picture into somebody's life, pressure automatically comes.

The devil doesn't like you having a relationship with Jesus.

He doesn't like your opportunities to have with Jesus.

So the enemy comes in.

And Jesus explained this in Mark chapter four with the parable of the sower.

It says, the seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately

receive it with joy.

Okay.

Zacchaeus had that joy and excitement, but since they don't have deep roots, they don't

last long.

They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God's word.

And in here, the seed is the word of God.

Jesus said that when someone hears or experiences the word of God made alive in them, they receive

it with joy.

But that seed that was planted must have deep roots.

Otherwise, they will fall away as soon as they have problems or get persecuted for believing

God.

In Zacchaeus' case, the living word of God, Jesus Christ, was being planted in the house

of Zacchaeus.

And as a result, Zacchaeus was ecstatic, filled with great excitement and joy.

But then a problem arose.

The crowds expressed their displeasure with Jesus.

In that moment was an opportunity for Zacchaeus to feel a lot of guilt, a lot of shame, a

lot of inferiority.

He could have said, you know, Jesus, I see this is causing a big issue right now.

You don't have to come to my house.

You guys have a great mission in mind.

You have a large following.

I don't want to be the person that breaks it all up and ruins it for everybody.

I know I've done a lot of wrong in my life.

I know I'm not worthy to have you in my house.

I understand.

If Zacchaeus had had that belief, the seed, the word of God planted in him would not have

been planted firmly into his house, which is actually symbolic for his heart.

So when you see home in this passage, it's actually symbolic of the heart.

It would not have been firmly planted into his heart.

But what action did Zacchaeus take?

Meanwhile, it says in verse eight, meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said,

I will give half my wealth to the poor Lord.

And if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much.

Are you serious?

While this pressure is happening, he's not even concerned about what they're thinking.

He's not.

Yeah, that's a problem.

But Holy Spirit spoke something into Zacchaeus at very moment.

He said, make it right with them.

Pay back to them four times as much.

People that you cheated give to the poor.

And then meanwhile, another way to put it is Zacchaeus stood firm in the Lord.

It says he stood before the Lord.

But the fact that he was stood before the Lord, not wavered by what they were thinking

or saying or their displeasure, he stood before him, just focused on what he was saying to

him, what he was inspiring him to do.

And Jesus is just watching.

Jesus doesn't have a response until after this, and he goes before him.

And Jesus says that salvation has come to this house.

So right off the bat, Zacchaeus loves his enemies.

These guys weren't friendly to him.

They didn't give him a pat on the back, hey, welcome to the family or anything like that.

He loved his enemies despite the pressures.

He reconciles with them by faith.

How many of you know it's not easy to give everything away?

Pursuing Jesus will always involve taking action, but the enemy fears the actions that

you take as a result of an ongoing pursuit of Jesus.

The moment we are inspired to action, the enemy comes in and gives you problems and

pressures and that is the moment that we must stand firm in faith and move in the action

Jesus has called us to.

If we do not act on the words he gives to us, then what he has planted in our hearts dies

out.

And as a result, his desire and will is not fulfilled in this life.

The devil has a hold on people, but Jesus is more than willing to set them free from

his dominion.

But no action as we pursue Jesus means less and less people experience truth and freedom

in their life.

Was there something that Jesus placed in our hearts recently to do?

But maybe the pressure of failing, the pressure of being mocked or made less than, stopped

you from doing that action.

Was there a moment where you were pursuing Jesus and then he spoke something to you and

you received that joy and excitement, you experienced it firsthand, but soon afterwards

joy turned into depression and discouragement.

That was the enemy coming into your life.

Coming into your life to steal the joy that God had just placed in you.

So prayerfully consider what that was that Jesus revealed to you.

Because if you did, get that stolen from you and go back and have him speak it to you again

and that desire will be there, but this time no matter what happens, take that action.

Zacchaeus' idea to give his wealth and pay back four times as much was an action inspired

by the Holy Spirit.

And Zacchaeus without hesitation, unfazed by the crowd went for it.

For Jesus, that action was evidence, right?

That was evidence that he had truly received him as Lord and Savior.

Jesus said salvation has come to this home.

Remember I said home means heart.

For this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.

For the son of man came to seek and save those who are lost.

Jesus makes the statement that Zacchaeus has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.

That's going to be our last point here.

What does it mean to be a true son of Abraham?

Anybody know?

No, I don't think anybody does.

But it doesn't make sense.

If you know Abraham in the Bible, let's start there.

Abraham in the Bible is in the Old Testament, his name means father of a multitude.

He and his wife Sarah were unable to produce a child.

But God spoke that they would have a child.

And so in faith they believed God for a child.

They took the actions, kept doing it, and eventually the promised child had come.

And then that promised child had a child, and that promised child had a child, and that

promised child had a child.

Eventually you have the nation of Israel.

That's how Israel was formed.

So all of Israel, Abraham is a father to, father of a multitude, the nation of Israel.

So to be a true son of Abraham was not talking about lineage or heritage, because they're

all descendants of Abraham.

To say true son of Abraham does not make sense.

Rather, he was saying that they were righteous, they were godly.

Their actions would get people thinking, hey, is your father Abraham?

That's how you know you're a true son of Abraham.

When you get people thinking, hey, is this your father?

In a similar manner, Jesus is saying Zacchaeus has shown he has been born again, that he

gave evidence of the faith working inside of him, that he is, a matter of fact, a child

of God now.

By his actions, people would be inclined to ask, are you a child of God?

Do you know Jesus or something?

Because that action that you just did, nobody I know would do that.

Let's take some note of some scripture here.

John the Baptist in Matthew chapter three says, prove by the way that you live that

you've repented of your sins and turned to God.

Don't just say to each other, we're safe for we are descendants of Abraham.

That means nothing.

For I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones.

Even the acts of God's judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees.

Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into

the fire.

So there is that descendant of Abraham part again.

Abraham lived a life of faith and not somebody else's faith.

Somebody else's faith does not make up for your faith.

My dad can have faith in God, but that doesn't mean that I automatically have faith in God

because he does.

And that's what Jesus is telling these guys here, hey, just because Abraham's your father,

doesn't mean you're actually a child of Abraham in the spiritual sense.

He says, hey, prove by the way that you live that you are a child of God.

He is saying pursuing Jesus will involve taking action.

And Jesus reinforces later when he says in Matthew seven, you can identify them by their

fruit.

That is by the way that they act.

Can you pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?

A good tree produces good fruit and a bad tree produces bad fruit.

A good tree cannot produce bad fruit and a bad tree can't produce good fruit.

So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down, thrown into the fire.

Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their

actions.

Amen.

The actions we take give evidence to what we truly believe.

If our actions are not in agreement with Jesus, then we're not taking the actions that actually

pursue him.

An apple tree produces apples.

An apple tree doesn't produce oranges.

If it produces oranges, you would say it's an orange tree, not an apple tree.

Is this making sense?

Good.

Zach and the worship team, if you come up.

Desire is not enough.

The desire only gets fulfilled when action is taken place.

Do our actions provide evidence that we are pursuing Jesus in this life?

If not, the grace of God is here for you.

Because like I said earlier, it's only by the grace of God that we're even saved.

We didn't do anything to earn that salvation, but by God's grace, he planted his holy word

in you, his holy spirit, and he's the one that's doing the work inside you, but we have

to let him out.

It's his desires inside us when we get his heart.

But action is required to let peace manifest on earth.

If you've been struggling to take action in what Jesus has called you to do, or he's stirring

something in your heart, you have a new desire.

Maybe it's a new desire in this season and you're just like kind of scared about it.

That's okay.

Talk to somebody about it.

Get some assurance, get some confirmation that this is God's direction for you.

And new actions are scary.

When God calls us to action, it's not like we were already doing that action, right?

Otherwise, he wouldn't have said anything.

But it's a new thing.

It's new territory.

It's scary.

But that's where trusting God takes us.

Put him to the test.

If he's proven faithful in the past, proven faithful today, why wouldn't he be faithful

tomorrow, in the new thing, the new action that he's requiring of us?

You can say to yourself, Jesus, I just want to get close to you.

I want to be close to you.

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.

I take a step, he takes a step.

I take a step, he takes another step.

We're in charge of how deep we want to go with Jesus.

That's our responsibility in this relationship.

If we do not spend time in God's word, or we don't spend time in God's word because

it's a good Christian thing to do, that's how you get the desires of God inside of you.

His desire is in the power to take the action that's required of us.

And we all need that accountability.

Are we doing life together, pursuing Jesus in action?

Because I think this is where in the past maybe we failed, is that we got hopped up

on scripture, but we just stopped taking action.

We became minds full of the word and was not taking action.

But guess what?

That's where it dies.

That's where it stays.

And when we get a community of people that are mutually pursuing Jesus and they have

this standard, I'm not going to let it just be knowledge of Jesus.

I want it to be a personal knowledge that propels me to action, that allows his will

to be accomplished on this earth.

God's desire is for community.

God's desire is for love to take place.

God's desire is for peace to be instilled into a chaotic situation.

God's will is that there would be an expansion of him being known.

Because the more he's known personally, the more the kingdom of God is advancing on earth.

And he prayed that.

He wanted that to be a thing.

Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

Your kingdom come, your will be done.

God's will, his desires are to be done and the kingdom of God is made real in this life.

And that's what we're kicking off in 2025.

LH3 is just the start of it.

Where we spend three minutes, three friends, three months, we are igniting community.

We're igniting passion for Jesus where desire is just not the end threshold.

It's the beginning, not the end.

And when you get people that take those risks, I've heard that faith is spelled R-A-S-K.

But there's no risk.

Does it really require faith?

Life is risky, but Jesus is consistent.

He's safe when he has your hand.

So it's going to take getting ahead of the crowd.

How can you get ahead of the crowd?

How can you prepare yourself and make sure you have that time with Jesus, that encounter

with him?

It's going to take standing firm in the pressures that come in our life.

Because you will, if you're doing the will of God, you will have pressure against you.

It's just a fact.

But it's also worth it.

The joy of being a child of God far surpasses the lack of joy of not being a child of God.

Far surpasses it.

To know him every day intimately, to dwell in his presence all the days of our lives,

it's so worth it.

So are you ready to pursue Jesus in action today?

If he's speaking to you today, write that action down.

Don't let it just go in your head and then write it down.

Show somebody, I dare you to show somebody that action and have accountability with it.

But if you need prayer today, we have the prayer team in the back.

And I can also pray with you.

But don't leave this place without sharing with somebody what God's speaking to you.

Because it just makes it more real.

Amen?

Amen.

So, I'm going to pray and then Pastor Lissa is going to close us out.

So Father, we just thank you for your indwelling presence, Lord, that we can have that strong

relationship with you, that we can walk all the days of our lives according to your truth,

where freedom is found.

And Lord, we don't have to be afraid.

You say many, many times, do not be afraid in scripture.

Rather be strong and courageous.

We can't be strong and courageous in our own strength, Lord, so we put our faith in you

to be strong and courageous, knowing that the end goal is far greater than what is the

current reality in our lives.

That you're leading us to a greater place, a greater destination, far into your glory,

where you are known and experienced and loved.

Everybody here, Lord, I just ask that you'd lavish them in your love.

Melt away the fears, melt away the insecurities, melt away the shame and the guilt, Lord, because

you paid a price for all those things.

You paid the price.

We're fully forgiven, fully paid for true sons and daughters of the Most High.

God our desires for you.

Fill our hearts with your grace that we may serve you more acceptably.

In the name of Jesus.

Amen.

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