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BOTTOM'S UP!: A PRODIGAL'S SECOND TRIP HOME
Message By Roger Dill

"So what do you think? With God at our side like this, how can we lose? IF God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything that he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us?...Do you think that anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture…None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I am absolutely convinced that nothing - nothing living or dead, nothing angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable - absolutely NOTHING can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us". Romans 8:31-39 (The Message, emphasis added).

[Jesus said], “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger one got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living . . ."           Luke 15:11-13 (NIV).

1. What Are You Afraid Of Losing?
"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in live." I John 4:18 (NIV)

If Perfect Love Evicts Fear, What Affect Does Toxic Fear Have On Love? 

2. What's That Smell?
Now that my ladder is gone
I must lie down where all the ladders start
In the foul rag and bone shop of the heart.
--William Butler Yeats

3. The Healing Pool.
"Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda, and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”  John 5:1-6 (NIV).

Do You Consider Jesus’ Question To Be A Good One?

“Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” John 5:7 (NIV).

What Defense Mechanisms Do You Most Often Use?

"Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat. ”But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, “Pick up your mat and walk.” John 5:8-10 (NIV).

“Grace is the oxygen of religious life. Without it religion would surely suffocate you.” - Bono

4. Staying In The Center Of God's "Donut."
"Stay always in the center, where God’s love can reach you." Jude 21 (TLB).

"The LORD will fight for you. You need only to be still." Exodus 14:14 (NIV).

5. Deeper Magic.
" . . .I pray that you being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:15-19.

"Now to him, who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

6. Coming Home . . .Again!
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me - watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly." Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message).

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him . . .’Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate." Luke 15:20, 22-24 (NIV).
 

 Creekside Community Church ● 951 MacArthur Blvd ● San Leandro, CA ● (510) 430-0607