~ Open in Prayer ~

Icebreaker
•What was the “high” and “low” of your week?
•Do you have any Labor Day plans?
•Are you looking forward to Fall?

Message Review
Sometimes your 180 is a result of a sin, a “weight,” that you haven’t been able to deal with. The Word tells us we have to cut off our “weights” and give them no opportunity to flourish. This can be hard to do and it is hard to do without God’s help. Submitting our sin and our struggles to God lets God know that we fully trust and need Him to help us. Once submitted we can then put our faith to action by setting up healthy boundaries to prevent us from falling into sin. The flesh can have no “cracked door” …the door has to be completely shut. Our flesh can’t be trusted but our God can.

Let’s dig in more…

Read Galatians 6:7-9
All change begins with this verse. You have the power to change your future by what you sow today. We’re reminded in this verse that we must continue the good work. You don’t get weary in doing bad; you get weary in doing good. In the world it’s easy to keep “cutting up” but it’s hard to do good because our flesh wants to act like flesh…reactive. But that’s why God reminded us to not get weary in resisting our flesh and in our waiting. There is an assigned date for your breakthrough that is unique to you. What’s for you is for you. But can you sow seeds for “that” while you’re experiencing “this?” This is the hard part about this law. You’ve got sow in the now when you may be experiencing the exact opposite of what you desire. But the sowing in the now will ensure you have a better tomorrow. Have there been times you’ve gotten weary in doing good? What are some ways you overcame that weariness?

Read Hebrews 12:1
What if your 180 comes out of a weakness you’ve struggled to get control of? What if you need a turnaround from something that has you but you haven’t been able to get a hold of it? What you fail to destroy will destroy you. Just because we don’t talk about weaknesses doesn’t mean they don’t exist. The nature of a weakness is to sabotage; your weakness wants to see you fall. God will often let you know of your weakness before it has a chance to come after you but satan’s job is to make you look like a fraud. If you’re going to endure you’re going to have to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily sets you back. Everybody’s got “that one” sin that they can’t seem to shake. Sometimes a weight is a person or baggage from your past or bad habits – every weight is not a sin but every sin is a weight. You have to get rid of the weight. Do you know your weaknesses? Why is it important to be aware of your weaknesses? What are some weights you need to get rid of?

Read Romans 13:14
We talk about “what” but God talks about “who,” because “what” is always tied to “who.” If you can get away from “who” you’ll quit “what.” The person in your circle who reinforces and feeds your weakness is not your friend, but your weakness wants them around. When God wants to bless you He sends a person; when the enemy wants to harm you he sends a person. Anyone who inspires your flesh is not your friend because a true friend speaks up when they see you harming yourself. Whenever you do something your way something will eventually start deteriorating. Our flesh wants to do things “our” way but the Spirit is led to do things God’s way. It’s alright to “feel” but don’t let that “feeling” determine your actions/decisions. Do not manufacture opportunities for your flesh; do not be a supplier to your flesh. Has this been true for you (“who” determining “what”)? In what ways have you been a supplier to your flesh?

How do you cut off the thing that always wants to set you back? Make no opportunity for it. You just don’t “fall” into sin; sin is planned…we put ourselves in those situations. Shut the door! We leave the door cracked and forget that the enemy’s job is to swing it open. You can’t make any provision – you have to lock the door put a chain on it and latch it. Your deliverance would come if you would just put some space/boundaries between you and your sin. Some of y’all are too close…you keep flirting with it…shut the door! Don’t put yourself in a position to find out…put distance between yourself and it. Are there areas in your life where you have left the door cracked? What actions do you need to take to ensure the door stays closed?

Read Romans 7:11 | Matthew 4:18 | John 21:1-3
You need to know the nature of your flesh. What is your weakness looking for? Your flesh is looking for a moment. If you cut off the moments, you cut off the sin and if you cut off the sin you cut off the setback. Sin seizes every opportunity afforded it so you have to cut it off at the moment of opportunity. At the first sign of trouble an opportunity was presented to Peter to go back to what was familiar (fishing). If anything old is trying to revisit your life that means you are in the midst of being elevated to a different place. Whenever you’re being revisited by old things it’s a sign that God has brought a great shift to your life and all you have to do is shut the door. Cut off the moment at its root. Whatever you feed grows whatever you starve dies; starve it and it will die. Keep denying and it will cease. You have the power through the Holy Spirit to do all things. Seek and God will help you resist. Is there something currently pulling you back to the “familiar?” How does knowing that you could be on the edge of something greater help you resist the temptation to go back?

Scripture References
Galatians 6:7-9
Hebrews 12:1
Romans 13:14
Romans 7:11
Matthew 4:18-20
John 21:1-3
Luke 14:28-31
Acts 12:13-17

Prayer Focus and Requests
Ask your members if they have any prayer requests or praise reports. Pray that each member identifies their weaknesses and leaves no door open to sin.