THEMATIC BACKGROUND from: Encountering The Risen Christ
“Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the
women had said; but they did not see him."

Then he said to them, "Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to
believe all that the prophets have declared!”  (Luke 24:24-25)

If you would meet God - if you would encounter Christ and recognize
him in that encounter read the scriptures and study them, listen to 
them being proclaimed where the saints gather - at Church and in 
Bible classes, and pray over them with others, and at home alone 
by your bedside

And reach out to others.  Open your homes and your hearts to others
as did the men who travelled the road to Emmaus.

 
CREATIVE CLOSING
Today is about having your eyesight adjusted so that you can see the risen
Jesus. It is about having your heart prepared to believe in the risen Jesus
when you read scripture, when you study the Bible, when you gather with
those that believe, and when you open your homes to others.

Do you find your heart mixed up? Do you find your heart slow to believe? Do
you find it hard to recognize Jesus in your everyday life? Are you like the
little girl who needed glasses – everything is fuzzy?

Then, I would like you to imagine that you are that little girl – or a
little boy – who needs glasses. Imagine that wherever you go everything is
fuzzy. Then, one day you meet Jesus. When you are with Him everything
becomes clear. You find that you have no trouble believing when He is there.
In fact, you get real excited when you are with him.

Then you realize that Jesus can make it so that you can see clear like this
all the time. You have an idea! You could ask Jesus for clear sight and a
believing heart.

I am going to give you a minute to see yourself doing this. Imagine that
you ask Jesus to let you see clearly all the time. You tell him that you
want a heart that is quick to believe. Just do that now while we are all
silent. And imagine how Jesus responds to you.   After the silence I will
continue.

(silent minute. Then continue.)


copyright - George Hartwell, 2002, 2005
            Rev. Richard J. Fairchild - Spirit Networks, 2002 - 2006
            please acknowledge the appropriate author if citing these resources.