End of Religion, Beginning of Christianity

[S] Acts 25:19 --
 ¹⁹but they simply had some points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a dead man, Jesus, whom Paul asserted to be alive.

[O] Just this morning, a pilot crashed a small plane into an IRS office building in Austin, Texas intentionally after leaving a suicide note.  I was quite saddened to hear this news in the first place and wanted to find out more about the cause.  Glancing through this note online it was clear his bitterness toward this society and government mounted up over many years leading him to take this path as the only way out to voice his mind to the world.  I felt very sad as I was reading his note because in this person's mind there was no other hope.  The resurrected power of Jesus to alleviate us from this type of hopelessness in this world was too distant from him just like how Fetus commented about this "dead man, Jesus."  In light of this backdrop, Paul was doing all he can to tell others about this particular power and hope Jesus provides and it appears not much has changed in 2,000 years -- there are still too many people who think Jesus was just a dead man from 2,000 years ago.  I need to be more like Paul where I can let others know that there is HOPE in this world regardless of how depressing we can get in the midst of turmoils of our lives.  The religious part of our faith ended with the death of Jesus because by His resurrection, He's provided the love relationship with Him to establish the Christianity.

[A] Find ways to apply the fact that Jesus is not left in death but has risen from the dead to give me the newness of life in His power.  Here and there I get overwhelmed about pushing through with the small group ministry.  I am encouraged by today's passage to move onward by tapping into the power of the risen Lord, not on my own efforts.

[P] Dear God, I am asking You to let Your power of the resurrection carry me forward in our small group ministry at our church.  Please let it be the sole power to carry this ministry onward and not of any one of our own efforts.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.