WRAPPED UP, TIED UP, TANGLED ALL UP
What are we wrapped up in? The world? Or Jesus?
Mark 5:24-34 (AMP)
24 And Jesus went with him; and a large crowd followed Him and pressed in around Him [from all sides].
25 A woman [in the crowd] had [suffered from] a hemorrhage for twelve years,
26 and had endured much [suffering] at the hands of many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but instead had become worse.
27 She had heard [reports] about Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the crowd and touched His outer robe.
28 For she thought, “If I just touch His clothing, I will get well.”
29 Immediately her flow of blood was dried up; and she felt in her body [and knew without any doubt] that she was healed of her suffering.
30 Immediately Jesus, recognizing in Himself that power had gone out from Him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched My clothes?”
31 His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in around You [from all sides], and You ask, ‘Who touched Me?’”
32 Still He kept looking around to see the woman who had done it.
33 And the woman, though she was afraid and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.
34 Then He said to her, “Daughter, your faith [your personal trust and confidence in Me] has restored you to health; go in peace and be [permanently] healed from your suffering.”
Transform = make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance, or character of:
The Greek word for transform is metamorphóō which is the root of the English word metamorphosis and if you remember anything from your science class in school, you’ll remember that’s what it is called when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly.
As I was, studying just out of curiosity I got sidetracked on the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly. In total it takes about 30 days for a butterfly to completely transform from an egg to the caterpillar, to the chrysalis (or cocoon), then to the beautiful Monarch butterfly.
And I got to thinking, God created this beautiful creature and perfectly laid out how it would transform into that beautiful creature in just 30 days give or take a few days.
30 days. And half of those days its wrapped up in its cocoon, transforming into what God created it to become.
What are we wrapped up in?
In Romans 12:2 (KJV)
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Be not Conformed to this world… Lets talk about that for a sec. Its so easy to get wrapped up in things we don’t even mean to get wrapped up in that takes all our focus off of God and his plan for us.
- Facebook… Pretty much every single person with a smart phone has Facebook. How long to you sit and scroll and not even pay attention to what you’re looking at?
- TikTok… I don’t have TikTok but everyone I know does. Don’t get me wrong … Theres nothing wrong with having it but how much of your time are you allowing it?
- Sports… Nothing wrong with sports either, I Love to watch a good ballgame, baseball, softball, basketball, whatever. I love to watch my kids play sports. I loved to play when I was in school. Went to college on a scholarship with softball. Its all good until we let it consume us
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- Girlfriends/Boyfriends… And I’m talking to the teens now… And this is a touchy subject I already know. But if your so wrapped up in a boy or girl that the He/she takes your focus off of God. YOU DO NOT NEED THEM. If your so wrapped up in Him/Her that its causing chaos in your home with your parents… YOU DO NOT NEED THEM. If your so wrapped up in Him/Her that your doing things you know is wrong and you otherwise wouldn’t do… YOU DO NOT NEED THEM. And I’ll leave that there.
- Addiction… Let’s dig a little deeper. I know how hard addiction is. I’ve been there. I was an alcoholic a pill popper and a chain smoker by the time I was 17. I done toyed with meth and eventually landed myself in the middle of a satanic group. I’ve already told this story, but this is my testimony and what the devil thought he’d won in my life, I’m giving all Glory to God. When you get wrapped up in addiction it doesn’t just stop with trying it. It bounds you before you even realize what happens. And before long you’re not just wrapped up, you are tied up and tangled up in a web that ONLY God is going to get you out of. I’ve heard several of you teens say but you only live once. I just want to experience being a teenager and have fun. My advice. Just don’t. Run after God as fast as you can and see what kind of life he has planned for you. Because that “fun” you think you want to have leads to nothing but destruction.
I got so wrapped up in drugs and working my way up the ladder as a satanist I lost myself and almost ended my own life. It literally took an act of God to pull me out of what I allowed the devil to tangle me up in.
So, what are we wrapped up in?
Things of this world or Jesus? I want to tell you this dream and ill be done.
I ask God before I went to bed last night to show me where my next step needed to be.. All while also praying for boldness. And asking for forgiveness for being disobedient up to this point.
So I dreamed. All night. The first parts of the dream I was in a crowd. And I’ve dreamed this before. But I was in the center of a satanic gathering. It’s been a while since I dreamed anything like this.
But this time was a little different. Instead of wanting to run I wanted to help. To warn them to not go any further. But they couldn’t hear me. They would look at me, but it was like they didn’t actually see me. And then it changed, and I was alone, and I knew exactly where I was it was dark and completely silent.
It was the mouth of Hell. I’ve been here to many times. But again, this time I wasn’t afraid. I just waited and asked God why I was there.
He didn’t answer at first and then very calmly I heard a whisper “Stop them”. And I waited a little longer and asked again.
Why am I here? How can I stop them? The same questions I ask when I pray. And then the dream changed again, and I was at the church and BASH was going on.
It was like I was just there to watch. So, I stood in the back. The room filled with our Bash kids. But on one side of the room was Angels and standing right outside the front door was a shadow and my stomach knotted up.
I turned to confront it all I said was nope Devil you have to no place here and went to close the door and it changed again. And the church was empty accept one man in the front.
It was Jesus. I finally seen Jesus. He was turned away from me and I just fell to my knees and cried. He said I’ve given you a work to do. I’ve shown you. And I woke up.
Its time to wake up spiritually church. For so long I ran from God. I was so messed up over my past I couldn’t see anything God had already lined up ahead of me. It took me way to long to open my eyes and realize as soon as I gave my heart and my life to Him.
I immediately was transformed. I was no longer part of that life. The Butterfly has to wait 30 days to be transformed. But for us. Its instant. Yes, we have to grow in God and study His word and learn how to apply it to our lives. But the transformation of being one with world to One with Jesus is instant. We don’t have to look back.
Lots wife looked back. And where did that get her?
But if we look back at the woman with the issue of Blood, she wrapped herself in faith. That if she could just touch the end of His garment, then she would be healed. She didn’t allow her situation to stop her and because of her faith that’s literally all it took.
Jesus didn’t even know who touched him!
Its time church. Its time to stop running. Its time to step forward. Let’s wrap ourselves in Jesus. I don’t care where you’re at today. Maybe your wrapped up in something you’ve felt you can’t get out of for a long time… Maybe you’ve been wrapped up in guilt about something, or grief, or stress, or work… If it’s not in Jesus, then today is day you make that transformation. And you wrap up completely in HIM.