Jesus Changes People

Do you ever find yourself doing or saying something that you later regret? We all have things in our lives that we wish we could change about ourselves, but find it impossible to do. Yet, real change is possible and in this week’s message we’ll talk about where to find the power to make those changes.


Scripture: John 2:1-11
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

“Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.

Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.


Renewing Reflections
It is our prayer that Renewing Reflections will be a blessing in your life this coming week. This quote is taken from the sermon "He Will Change My Lifestyle. I’m Not Interested" delivered on Christian Crusaders July 15, 2012.

What if I am one of those people who doesn’t want to change my lifestyle? I want to go to church on Sunday, be considered a religious person and all the rest, but I don’t want to risk persecution. Jesus was crucified, John the Baptist was beheaded, and many others in lesser ways along the way have had to pay the price when they identified themselves with Jesus Christ. I pray to God that we will have the courage to really look into our lifestyle, as individuals, as a congregation, and as a Church at large and ask what needs to be done. Then, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we may see that it is done.


About Christian Crusaders
Christian Crusaders is governed by a policy-making board of directors. This eighteen-member panel makes many of the decisions of Christian Crusaders, including our yearly budget, where we broadcast the program, future plans of the ministry, and personnel issues. This year we welcome five new members to our Board of Directors: Rev. Mark Decker of Hudson, Iowa; Fred Morris of Evansdale, Iowa; Jim Potts of Hudson, Wisconsin; and Jan Reisetter and Richard Vande Kieft of Cedar Falls, Iowa. These persons, along with our remaining board members, represent a broad spectrum of business backgrounds.

We are thankful for all our board members and ask that you help us pray for them as they direct Christian Crusaders to better serve our listening audience.


On the Light Side
Those Were the Days – This Date in History, January 20

1885 - The roller coaster was patented by La Marcus Thompson of Coney Island, New York. His coaster was 450 feet long with the highest drop being 30 feet.

1929 – In Old Arizona was released. The movie was the first full-length talkie to be filmed outdoors – mainly the great outdoors of Utah and California.

1937 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the first U.S. President to be inaugurated on January 20th. The 20th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution officially set the date for the swearing in of the President and Vice President. The amendment was ratified by Congress in 1933.

1942 - Harry Babbitt sang as Kay Kyser and his orchestra recorded, “Who Wouldn’t Love You,” on Columbia Records. The record went on to be a big hit for Kyser.

1953 - A television show was transmitted from the United States to Canada for the first time. The CBS Television production of Studio One was transmitted to CBLT-TV in Canada.

1958 - Elvis Presley got a little U.S. mail this day with greetings from Uncle Sam. The draft board in Memphis, TN ordered the King to report for duty, but allowed a 60-day deferment for him to finish the film, King Creole.

1964 - This was a big day in U.S. record stores as the first album by The Beatles was released. The LP, Meet the Beatles, became a huge success and was #1 on the charts by February 15, 1964. The British Invasion had begun.

1965 - Alan Freed, “the Father of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” died in Palm Springs, CA. Freed was one of the first radio disc jockeys to program black music, or race music, as it was termed, for white audiences. In the 1950s, Freed – called Moon Doggy at WJW Radio in Cleveland – coined the phrase, “Rock ‘n’ Roll.”

1986 - New footage of the 1931 horror classic, Frankenstein, was found. It depicted the monster, played by Boris Karloff, throwing a girl into a lake and showed a hypodermic needle in the monster’s arm! The scenes had been cut because they were considered too shocking for the 1930’s theatre crowd. They have since been put back in and the film has been rereleased.