Monday, July 31, 2006

Sermon

If you were there yesterday let me just remind you ...

Don't wear the coconuts!

Remember, as Aaron said, it is not working harder for God but walking closer to God.

God's Will Is Done

Your love, God, fills the earth! Train me to live by your counsel.
Psalm 119:64, The Message

"Taking into account the rebellious passions ... and slothful wills of millions of people, along with the good intentions, misguided helpfulness and ill-timed ventures of other millions -- not to speak of the disciplined love ... and sacrificial service of still other millions -- our Sovereign presides over and works with all this material, personal and political. With it and out of it he shapes existence. He seems to be in no hurry. But prayer discerns that leisure is not indolence. Slowness is not slackness. In the end the sovereign will is done."

Where Your Treasure Is

God's Will Is Done, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

The Need for Silence

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

It is always easier to add to the noise of the
world than to be silent. Silence is a very
precious thing--"There was silence in heaven
about the space of half an hour" (Rv 8:1 AV),
when the seventh seal was opened in the Book of
the Revelation. Thunder and horses and martyrs
and earthquakes had preceded the opening of this
seal. Hail, fire, blood, and fearful judgment
followed it--but in between, angels stood in the
presence of God and there was utter silence.

Have we learned to stand in God's presence,
mouths shut, hearts open? "Lord, what do you want
me to do?" We must be quiet in order to know Him
and to hear Him and to hear Him answer us.

"If any of you lack wisdom let him ask his
friends." No. That is not the Word of the Lord.
"If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God"
(Jas 1:5 AV) is his Word to us. There is a place
for asking wisdom of godly friends, but let us
always go first to God.

"Be still"--that is, shut up--"and know that He
is God" (Ps 46:10 AV).

Friday, July 28, 2006

Songs Everywhere

I'm whistling, laughing, and jumping for joy; I'm singing your song, High God.
Psalm 9:2, The Message


"Worship sings. There are songs everywhere in Scripture. The people of God sing. They express exuberance in realizing the majesty of God and the mercy of Christ, the wholeness of reality and their new-found ability to participate in it. Songs proliferate. Hymns gather the voices of men, women and children into century-tiered choirs. Moses sings. Miriam sings. Deborah sings. David sings. Mary sings. Angels sing. Jesus and his disciples sing. Paul and Silas sing. When persons of faith become aware of who God is and what he does they sing. The songs are irepressible."

Reversed Thunder


Songs Everywhere, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Steadfast Love

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23, RSV

"The five poem-prayers in Lamentations ... express the suffering God's people experienced during and after the fall of Jerusalem, the most devastating disaster in their history. At the very center of this dark time, and placed at almost the exact center of these five poems ... is this verse: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end. ... "

God's persistence is not a dogged repetition of duty. It has all the surprise and creativity, and yet all the certainty and regularity, of a new day. Sunrise -- when the spontaneous and the certain arrive at the same time."

Run with the Horses

Steadfast Love, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

What Can I Do For God?

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

Most of us would like to do something special in
life, something to distinguish us. We suppose
that we desire it for God's sake, but more likely
we are discontent with ordinary life and crave
special privileges. When Israel asked if they
should offer some spectacular
sacrifice--thousands of rams, ten thousand
"rivers of oil," a firstborn child--the answer
was, "He has showed you, O man, what is good; and
what does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly
with your God" (Mi 6:8 RSV).

There is nothing conspicuous about those
requirements. It is not a "special" service for
which one would be likely to be decorated or even
particularly remembered. But it is worth more to
God than any sacrifice.

Lord, deliver me from the delusion of imagining
that my desire is to serve You, when my real
desire is the distinction of serving in some way
which others admire.

Waiting

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

I wonder if you ever thought about this: When God has you in a waiting room where there is absolutely nothing you can do but wait, and it looks disastrous to you, then He's got you backed into a corner where you finally can learn to trust Him.

When we can accept our waiting periods, even though we don't understand what's happening, and tell the Lord that we choose to trust Him anyway, we then transfer the responsibility for the situation over to God and the monkey is off our backs. You fight it and fight it, but finally you stop the questioning, end the struggle, give up and turn it over to God, and it then suddenly dawns on you that you are free. You say to yourself, "Why did I fight so long?" And you start to learn how wonderful it is to trust God and walk by faith, especially during those waiting periods of your life.

Frequently before God responds to our need, He has to adjust us to the trouble and cause us to learn a much-needed lesson. Maybe He wants to teach us that we can face and endure trouble as long as He is with us in the trouble. Then He will take us out of it. But it will not happen until we have stopped being restless and fretful about it. He may be waiting for us to be calm and quiet. Then He can say, "It is enough."

David wrote, "I waited patiently for the Lord and he turned to me and heard my cry" (Psalm 40:1). That's a great secret–waiting patiently. Many times we are forced to wait, but we don't do it patiently. How are you handling your waiting period? Losing sleep, biting fingernails, pacing the floor, snapping off heads? That's not trustful, patient waiting. We need to learn to wait patiently for Him. That means we're truly trusting Him.

Paul Billheimer wrote in Adventures in Adversity: "There can be no testing of character without delays...It is easy to be impatient with God when we fail to understand the purpose of his delay. However, God is willing to be misunderstood in the universe he has made, in order to achieve his purpose of character development."

Don't we frequently misunderstand God when He puts us in the waiting room? We may even doubt His love and care for us, for our minds tell us that if He really cared, He'd move on our behalf right now. But God is willing to have us misunderstand Him in order to achieve His goal for us: teaching us to walk by faith and not by sight.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Levels of Prayer

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

"I have observed three developing and deepening levels of prayer: first is petition, where you let your requests be made known to God; second is personal, when you're comfortable in God's presence and don't feel obligated to talk but willingly listen; third is true intercession. True intercessors hear from God, know how to pray, and know what to pray for. If you become deeply personal and intimate with God, you'll come to sense His presence and hear His voice."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Friday, July 21, 2006

Harvest Hands

" ... On your knees and pray for harvest hands!"
Matthew 9:38, The Message


Then Jesus made a circuit of all the towns and villages. He taught in their meeting places, reported kingdom news, and healed their diseased bodies, healed their bruised and hurt lives. When he looked out over the crowds, his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. "What a huge harvest!" he said to his disciples. "How few workers! On your knees and pray for harvest hands!"

Matthew 9:35-38, The Message

My Own Fault

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

Someone who is suffering as a result of his own
foolishness or failure may read these words.
These griefs are hard indeed to bear, for we feel
we might easily have avoided them. We have no one
to blame but ourselves, and there isn't much
consolation there. Sometimes we imagine that we
must bear this kind of trouble alone, but that is
a mistake. The Lamb of God, slain for us, has
borne all of our griefs and carried all of our
sorrows, no matter what their origin. All grief
and sorrow is the result of sin somewhere along
the line, but Christ received them willingly. It
is nothing but pride that keeps me from asking
Him to help me to bear the troubles which are my
own fault.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,
take away mine.
I take Him at His word indeed,
Christ died for sinners--this I read--
And in my heart I find a need
Of Him to be my Savior.
(Dora Greenwell)

The Work of Spirituality

God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God's holy best.
Hebrews 12:10, The Message

"The work of spirituality is to recognize where we are -- the particular circumstances of our lives -- to recognize grace and say, "Do you suppose God wants to be with me in a way that does not involve changing my spouse or getting rid of my spouse or my kids, but in changing me, and doing something in my life that maybe I could never experience without this pain and suffering?"

Sometimes I think all I do as a pastor is speak the word "God" in a situation in which it hasn't been said before, where people haven't recognized his presence."

The Contemplative Pastor


The Work of Spirituality, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Thursday, July 20, 2006

One Good Apple

" ... God has this strange idea. We know that if you have a sack of good apples and you place one rotten apple in the sack, when you come back after a few days, you'll find the bad apple has tainted all the good ones. We know that -- but God doesn't. He doesn't understand the principle, and I don't know how it got past him. He honestly believes you can take a sack of rotten apples and put a good apple in the center, come back in a couple of days, and find that the rotten apples have improved because that one good apple is in there. Can you believe it?

Now, you may be the only good apple in the rotten sack of your job or your neighborhood; but God says the place is better because you're there."


The Monday Morning Church by Jerry Cook.

Bread and Wine

"This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." Luke 22: 19, NSRV


"Jesus was fond of using the common setting of meals, dinners, and wedding suppers both for telling stories and engaging in conversation. ...

We know that Jesus worshiped in synagogues and temple, the standard places where God was worshiped and Scripture taught. But most of his teaching and prayer took place in streets and fields, on the mountains and in the homes where he gave and was given meals. When he established a way for his followers to maintain what they had experienced, received and been commanded by him to do, he did it by telling them to have a meal together of bread and wine. They did it. And we keep doing it."

Reversed Thunder

Bread and Wine, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Temptation Escape Route

The Christian Working Woman Transcript

Thursday, July 20, 2006

"Well, I just couldn't help it; that's my weakness." Did you ever hear an explanation like that for yielding to some temptation?

Think of Adam and Eve and their infamous temptation. How could they have avoided falling for Satan's lies and eating that forbidden fruit? Well, the first time that evil serpent spoke to them should have been a clear warning, because he started with, "Did God really say...." Oh, Adam and Eve, there's a red flag as big as you please. When some temptation starts to cause you to question God's Word or God's authority, look for your escape route fast.

Eve could have said, "Yes, God said it and God is right–so get out of here Satan. I'm not falling for your lies." If we resist Satan he must flee from us. Or, Adam could have stepped in at any point and refused to be a part of this deception. He was there the whole time. Why didn't he say, "No, Eve, wait a minute, you know what God has said and we're going to obey God. Get out of here Satan." But he willingly went along with her suggestion to eat the forbidden fruit.

Maybe they never thought they'd be tempted in such a way, and they weren't prepared. Maybe it was easier for Adam to go along and not upset Eve by refusing to cooperate. At any rate, they both bit hard and the consequences have been with us forever.

Think about how Joseph handled temptation. A woman–his boss's wife–tried to seduce him many times, and once even grabbed him physically. But Joseph had decided ahead of the temptation that this was not right and had determined never to yield. He knew being alone with her was the wrong thing to do, so when she grabbed him, he ran and ran fast, leaving his coat behind him in her grasp. He didn't stop to persuade or explain, he just got out of there. Joseph knew how to get away from temptation, and he didn't treat it gingerly or diplomatically. He ran.

How do you handle temptation? Are your escape routes carefully planned?



Give Way to Truth

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

Through a disagreement with my husband Lars
yesterday I suddenly recognized an instrument
used powerfully by the enemy to drive a wedge
between two people who love each other (and there
is nothing which fills the enemy with such glee
as destroying unity). It is reason. I had good
reasons for my argument and so did he. Reason
comes very close to being an idol to me at times,
and I am tempted to make sacrifices on its altar.


"Be faithful to Reason!" whispers the Destroyer.
"Do not let go!"

"Be faithful to Me," Christ says, "give up your
reasons, give way to Truth."

Reason is one of God's great gifts. We have
intelligence and the faculty of reason, to be
employed in the service of God and other people.
Faithfulness to Christ (who is Truth) does not
negate reason, but purifies it, raises it to a
higher level.

"Pure" reason, logical argument, stood between my
husband and me, as it stood between Job and his
friends, and Jesus and the Pharisees.

"Knowledge gives self-importance--it is love that
makes the building grow. A man may imagine that
he understands something, but still not
understand anything in the way he ought to!" (1
Cor 8:1,2 JB).

Perceiving God and His Word

The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Thy faithfulness. Lamentations 3: 22,23

"If you are not perceiving God and His Word properly, you will lose your hope. In Lamentations 3:1-6, Jeremiah expresses despair because he wrongly perceives God, and in verses 7-11, 18 he vents fear. But as soon as he recalls God's lovingkindness (verse 22), his attitude changes. His circumstances do not change, but his perceptions are corrected, and therefore he has hope."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Hope of Holiness

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional


The "openness" that is often praised among
Christians as a sign of true humility may
sometimes be an oblique effort to prove that
there is no such thing as a saint after all, and
that those who believe that it is possible in the
twentieth century to live a holy life are only
deceiving themselves. When we enjoy listening to
some Christian confess his weaknesses and
failures, we may be eager only to convince
ourselves that we are not so bad after all. We
sit on the edge of our chairs waiting to grasp at
an excuse for continuing to do what we have made
up our minds long ago to do anyway. The Lord is
ready to forgive sin at any moment and to make
strong servants out of the worst of us. But we
must believe it; we must come to Him in faith for
forgiveness and deliverance and then go out to do
the work He has given us to do.

"Charity rejoiceth not in iniquity" (1 Cor 13:6
AV). Let us be willing to call iniquity what is
really iniquity, rather than to call it weakness,
temperament, failure, hangups, or to fall back on
the tired excuse, "It's just the way I am."

Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a
right spirit within me. (Ps 51:10 AV)

People of Destiny

One of God's purposes for your life is that you live "for the praise of his glory." You have a purpose. You have a destiny. So if anyone asks you today what is your purpose in life you have an answer!


In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.

Ephesians 1: 11-12, NIV (emphasis added)

Feet to Our Faith

Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
James 2:17

"Faith is an action word. When using faith as a noun, we're talking about what we believe. But if we're talking about faith as a verb, then it is expressed in the way we live. We demonstrate what we believe by how we live our lives. If we believe it, we will do it. As children of God, we are called to put feet to our faith every day ... and demonstrate what we believe by our works."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Monday, July 17, 2006

Cans to Rejoice In

The righteous man shall live by faith. Romans 1:17

"Scripture gives believers more cans to rejoice in: we can know liberty from bondage as well as condemnation; we can always know the presence of Jesus; we can always know the Spirit's help; we can learn contentment in everything; we can know worth in Christ; we can know support in persecution; we can know peace in confusion; we can live as conquerors with Christ; we can know courage because Christ has overcome the world and its tribulations."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Desperate Prayer

For those who prayed last night let me encourage you with this verse:

"For nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:37

Sermon

Yesterday's sermon was "Sermon on the Amount"

Two quotes:

" .. we use legalism to prop up shallow discipleship.."

".. not struggling with an obligation but with trust .. is God trustworthy? .. will God provide?"

Malachi 3:10 " .. test me in this .."

Friday, July 14, 2006

God Alone

The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever.
1 John 2:17

"Satan is out to usurp God's place in our lives. Whenever he gets us to focus on ourselves instead of the cross and prefer material and temporal values to spiritual and eternal values, he has succeeded -- and consequently, he is pleased. May we deny Satan any such satisfaction by making God alone our Lord and King."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Thursday, July 13, 2006

When Your Dream Dies

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Thursday, July 13, 2006

God's ways are not our ways. You've heard that said, I'm sure. For me, one of the first lessons I learned in the grieving and healing process of a shattered dream was that the way to find relief and healing was by giving of myself to others. I began to see how totally self-centered my mind had been as I watched my dream die. There is a very strong temptation to curl up in the fetal position, close your door, shut everyone out, and throw a major pity party! My mind was consumed with my loss and I could hardly focus on anything or anyone else.

But as I began to spend time in God's Word and get back into a close relationship with the Lord, my sensitivity to others began to grow. And, really without consciously recognizing it, I began reaching out to help others in various small ways. Then I became involved in some ministries at my church, and one thing led to another, and before I knew it, I was busy with things other than myself.

I see now how crucial that was to my healing and relief from the pain of the death of my dream. If I hadn't become involved in the lives of others, I wonder where I'd be today.

How about you? Are you in retreat mode right now? Well, you may need a short time for recuperation, but please, don't spend too much time there because the healing and joy you seek will be found as you get out of yourself and start focusing on others. Often we tend to think that we are only able to help others when we have it all together ourselves. But nothing could be further from the truth. We help others the most when we are able to empathize with them, and what better time to demonstrate true compassion than when you're wounded yourself.

I can think of so many people I know who are going through great pain in their personal life, but in the midst of it, are ministering with great effectiveness to those around them. And in the midst of giving to others, their own pain is lessened. In Proverbs we read that when we refresh others, we are ourselves refreshed. It goes back to the principle of reaping what you sow. If you need encouragement and help today on your journey back from a broken dream, then give it out to someone else. God will pour it back into your life in ways you've never imagined.



Cause and Cure

For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved.
Colossians 1:13


"Western Christians tend to separate the reality of the spiritual world from the natural world. In this mentality, the spiritual world has no practical bearing on the natural world. But this fails to recognize the spiritual cause behind man's natural problems (sin) and the cure for those problems (redemption). Let your life show to others that victory over darkness comes from walking daily in the light."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Death of a Dream

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

All of us have to go through the death of a dream, and recovery is a grieving process. This process has to be experienced, but the great news is, God can use it for marvelous growth in our lives if we allow Him to Jesus told us:

” . .unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds" (John 12:24 ).

Life comes from death, and you can find new life even from the death of a dream. I went through the painful death of a dream some years ago, and my journal reveals some of the lessons God taught me. There were moments when I seemed to have a grip. I wrote:
I want to learn that God is enough. "Even if he doesn't" give me what my emotions say I need, I will trust him. I want to learn to love him more than anyone or anything else.

But there were other days when I really wanted to quit. I wrote: In a sense the days get harder. I wonder and worry and fear. The impact of the loss is more obvious. The temptation to call it quits is ever present. Now, I'm learning to walk by faith. There is nothing good on the horizon. Everything looks bleak. I don't feel God's presence.

One of the surprises on this journey back was that I had to make daily, sometimes hourly, sometimes momentary decisions to stay on the road. I can't even begin to count the number of times I came so close to giving up and going back into "control mode." At various points in many days, I had to reconfirm my initial decision to let go and let God.

My faith was small, but it was growing. The phrase that I heard God say to me in that still small voice inside my head was: "Can't you trust me?" At each of these subsequent decision points, as I would be ready to quit the fight, that question would ring in my head: "Can't you trust me?" It was the beginning of learning that the most important thing I can ever do for God is to demonstrate to Him that I trust Him.

Are you in that place today–you've let go of the dream but the pain seems to intensify? God knows and understands, and believe me, He has good plans for you. Don't give up; don't lose heart. Run to God for refuge. He will see you through and bring beauty out of your ashes–I promise.

God's Power in Our Lives

Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times; I'll rescue you, then throw you a party. Psalm 91:15(TM)

When an enemy army arrived intent on wiping out Israel Moses said to Joshua, "Take your best soldiers and go out to meet them. I am taking two men, we are going to climb the hill that overlooks the plains where I will raise my hands toward heaven and pray for victory." As Moses' hands stretched heavenward, Joshua's troops prevailed in battle. But when Moses' arms grew weary and he dropped them to his side, the tide of battle shifted before his eyes.

Joshua's troops were losing the battle so Moses again stretched his arms toward heaven, bringing the matter before the Lord. Immediately the battle's momentum shifted back to Joshua. Then it struck Moses - he must keep his arms stretched toward heaven in prayer if he wanted to open the door to God's supernatural intervention here on earth.

There is a lesson here for you and I: if we are willing to invite God to involve Himself in our daily living, we will experience His power in our homes, our relationships, our workplaces and wherever else it is needed.

But the other side of the equation is sobering: it is hard for God to release His power in our lives when we put our hands in our pockets and say, "I can handle this on my own." If you do that, don't be surprised if you get the nagging feeling that the tide of battle has shifted against you and that you are powerless to do anything about it.

Too many of us are willing to settle for lives like that - don't be one of them!

(c)2006 Timothy L. Hudson, UGA Christian Campus Fellowship

Spirituality

True spirituality is distinguished from the broader terms (faith, morality, or religion) in that it involves an ever-evolving, authentic, and personal relationship with God that is not bound by race, ethnicity, economic status, or class.

This relationship promotes the wellness and welfare of others and of self.
It includes the beliefs and values by which an individual lives; it results in the visible spiritual fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
The concept is clearly outlined in the Bible and is often referred to by Christian theologians as true spirituality.

Researchers have shown that those who internalize biblical teachings —who frequently pray, apply what the Bible says to their lives, believe they have a close relationship with God, and practice what they preach—have high levels of satisfaction in life, a sense of well-being, and overall happiness.

True spirituality is also more likely to be associated with a wide variety of positive physical and emotional health outcomes.

Walt Larimore, M.D.

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Biblical Thinking

"The cross centered life starts with biblical thinking. Will you therefore build you life on what is real -- or merely on what you feel?

Please don't misunderstand. I'm not advocating that we completely ignore our feelings. Nor am I criticizing genuine spiritual experience, the kind of vibrant passion for God that Jonathan Edwards referred to as "religious affections". Quite the opposite! I'm in fact a passionate advocate of genuine spiritual experience and religious affections -- it's just not where we're meant to begin.

"We think with our feelings," Ferguson has said. It's true. We allow our feelings to guide our thinking, and we shouldn't. Emotions are a wonderful gift from God, and our relationship with God should bring strong godly affections to our lives. But our emotions shouldn't be vested with final authority. This should be reserved for God's Word alone.

Let me ask you: Where do you consistently direct your faith? What does it rest on? Is it your emotional state ... or the objective realities that the Word of God and Spirit of God have revealed? When you read or hear biblical truth proclaimed, what internal conversation takes place in your soul? Is your first reaction, What do I feel about that?

If so, do you plan to continue submitting everything ultimately to your feelings? Or will you instead trust in God's testimony, so that whenever you encounter biblical truth, your initial question will always be, Do I believe it? That the only reliable way to transform your emotions .. and to take them into a realm of love and adoration for the Lord that you've never before experienced."

Living the Cross Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney

Wait Quietly

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

Few of us enjoy having to wait for something we
want. It is human nature to desire instant
gratification, and it is divine nature to do many
things very, very slowly. Growth is always
imperceptible. But the farmer exercises long
patience in waiting for his crop. He has done his
work and is assured of the result, hence he waits
quietly. He is at rest because the outcome
(barring disastrous "acts of God") is certain. If
we could simply remember that this is true of
everything--that God's purposes are slowly being
worked out for his glory and our good--we would,
like the farmer, keep faith and wait quietly.

Lord, take from us all fretting and hurrying and
teach us to rest our hearts in the "ultimate
certainty" (Jas 5:7 JBP).

Fruits of Faith

He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard -- things like affection for others.
Galatians 5:22, The Message


"Fruits are not something made, manufactured or engineered. ... They are the results of a life of faith created by God.

The person who lives a life of faith finds fruits appearing in unlikely places at unanticipated times. That is, we find that there is far more to our lives than we bring to them. Fruit is the appropriate metaphor. We do not produce it by our own effort. We do not purchase it from another. It is not a reward for doing good deeds, like a merit badge, a gold metal, a blue ribbon. Fruits are simply there. Sometimes we experience them in another, sometimes in ourselves."

Traveling Light

Fruits of Faith, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Monday, July 10, 2006

Being Jesus in Our World

"Most Christians have been trained quite well to be the church on Sunday. But what does it take to train believers to be the church on Monday?

The first step is to help them recognize their strategic placement. By "strategic placement" I mean this: each redeemed, Spirit-filled Christian has been strategically placed by Jesus Christ, the Lord of the church. Where each believing man or woman lives and works is part of that strategy. Christians are people of destiny, purposely placed by God deep inside our culture. They are his points of incarnational penetration. Because of them Jesus is present at the very heart of society. And it is this strategic presence of Christ that opens the door for his revelation as Savior to an unbelieving world."


The Monday Morning Church by Jerry Cook.

My Refuge

O Lord my God, in thee do I take refuge.
Psalm 7:1, RSV


"In David's prayers refuge refers to a good experience, but what got him to refuge was a bad experience. He started out running for his life; and at some point he found the life he was running for, and the name for that life was God. "God is my refuge."

This happens all the time. It's one of the fundamental surprises in spirituality. Whatever we start out feeling or doing or thinking can lead us to God, whether directly or meanderingly. ... We rarely start with God. We start with the immediate data of our lives -- a messy house, a balky car, a cranky spouse, a recalcitrant child. ... We start out being desperate in the wilderness of En-gedi, and before we know it we're ecstatic in the wilderness of God."

Where Your Treasure Is


My Refuge, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Sermon Yesterday

Aaron encouraged us to "give until it feels good"

One phrase from yesterday was .. when giving is dutiful, the gospel isn't beautiful

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (NIV)

The Way Appointed

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

One aspect of the mystery of God's sovereign will
is how the calculated evil of men is not only
permitted, but actually becomes a necessary part
of the divine plan. We are tempted to think of
the wrongs done to us as hindrances,
frustrations, interruptions. "What has this got
to do with the will of God?" we ask, irritated
and, we suppose, justifiably impatient with human
interference. But the truth is that both our time
and our way are in God's hands--they are
"appointed." Surely it is so for all his sons as
it was for the Son of Man. When He was on the
verge of being "handed over for crucifixion," and
betrayed by one of his own disciples, He said,
"My appointed time is near....One who has dipped
his hand into this bowl with me will betray me.
The Son of Man is going the way appointed for
him" (Mt 26:18, 24 NEB).

Out of the deepest depths of human evil the good
God brought salvation--the very salvation of man
whose sinfulness killed the Son He sent.

Nothing can reach us, from any source in earth or
hell, no matter how evil, which God cannot turn
to his own redemptive purpose. Let us be glad
that the way is not a game of chance, a mere roll
of dice which determines our fortune or
calamity--it is a way appointed, and it is
appointed for God's eternal glory and our final
good.

Friday, July 07, 2006

God's Secret Purpose

Elizabeth Elliot Devotional

Whatever the enemy of our souls can do to instill doubt about the real purpose of the Father of our souls, he will certainly try to do. "Hath God said?" was his question to Eve, and she trusted him, the enemy, and doubted God. Each time the suspicion arises that God is really "out to get us," that He is bent on making us miserable or thwarting any good we might seek, we are calling Him a liar. His secret purpose has been revealed to us, and it is to bring us finally, not to ruin, but to glory. That is precisely what the Bible tells us: "His secret purpose framed from the very beginning [is] to bring us to our full glory" (1 Cor 2:7 NEB).

I know of no more steadying hope on which to focus my mind when circumstances tempt me to wonder why God doesn't "do something." He is always doing something--the very best thing, the thing we ourselves would certainly choose if we knew the end from the beginning. He is at work to bring us to our full glory.

Clear Your Calendar

How long has it been since you let God have you?

I mean really have you?

How long since you gave him a portion of undiluted, uninterrupted time listening for his voice?

Apparently, Jesus did.

He made a deliberate effort to spend time with God.Spend much time reading about the listening life of Jesus and a distinct pattern emerges. He spent regular time with God, praying and listening. Mark says, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35 NW)....

Let me ask the obvious.

If Jesus, the Son of God, the sinless Savior of humankind,
thought it worthwhile to clear his calendar to pray,
wouldn’t we be wise to do the same?

Max Lucado

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Everything That Hinders

Transcript, Christian Working Woman

Thursday, July 6, 2006

Are you training for the Olympics? Not many of us can qualify to run in the prestigious races of the Olympics. But we're all qualified to run in the race that God has marked out for each of us. And it's much more important to run in that race than in the Olympics.

Hebrews 12:1 says: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Can you imagine a runner at the Olympics coming on the track with a coat on and a backpack and a purse? No way! They get rid of anything that will slow them down even a millisecond. In the same way, if we're going to run our race effectively, we must throw off everything that hinders us. What is hindering you today?

Maybe it's laziness and lack of discipline.You just haven't yet disciplined yourself to study God's Word and pray like you know you should. Oh, you keep intending to and you really want to. But somehow, when the alarm goes off, it's just too easy to roll over and go back to sleep. Without the Word of God firmly entrenched in your mind and heart, you're never going to run the race to win.

Are you hindered by the cares of this world?Do you let money or people or jobs or other circumstances get you down all the time? If you worry and fret a lot, you can't run the race very well. Don't you hear all those people in the stands encouraging you: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God (Philippians 4:6).

Could it be that you're hindered by busyness?Maybe your life is full of all kinds of things and activities. Not necessarily bad things, but they crowd your life so much that there is no room left for the things of God.

Or perhaps you're entangled with your past, or your low self-esteem, or your failures.Can you hear Rahab calling to you now? She's saying, "Forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead."

What sin is entangling you?Could it be lack of sexual purity? Is it an unforgiving spirit? Have you been dishonest or deceptive? It is a tongue that is out of control, complaining, criticizing, judging? Can you hear the Apostle Paul saying to you: "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?" (Galatians 5:7) We're surrounded with the saints of old, watching us run our race, and because they know the joy that is set before us, and they know we're going to miss the prize if we keep trying to run with all that stuff holding us back.

Living Water

My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
Jeremiah 2:13

"D.L. Moody said about the Bible, "This Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book." Jeremiah knew that too. When people neglected God's Word, when they stopped drinking from the stream of living water, they started digging their own cisterns in the sand."

William Peterson

God's Love

". . . Encircled by God all day long, within whom God is at home." Deuteronomy 33:12 (TM)

God will never love you more than He does at this very moment. Accepting this truth is the key to overcoming feelings of unworthiness. Instead, we pray longer, work harder and vow to do better. But trying harder hasn't helped, has it? That's because trying harder to make God love you more is useless because He already loves you completely! That is the foundation for a positive self-image. Trying harder to make God love you more is like renovating an old house with a cracked foundation: we can redecorate every room but the floors and ceilings will just keep sagging until eventually it collapses - unless we fix the foundation. Fixing the foundation of self-image means seeing yourself as God sees you! Only then will you experience the stability, fulfilment and the peace He wants you to enjoy.

When God looks at you He sees a person who is:

Loved: ". . .you are precious.and I love you" (Isaiah 43:4 NLT). God loves you! ". . .Encircled by God all day long, within whom God is at home." (Deuteronomy 33:12) Sounds like a pretty secure position to be in, don't you think?

Valued: ". . He purchased our freedom through the blood of His Son" (Ephesians 1:7 NLT). If you grew up feeling ignored or unwanted, you likely transferred those feelings to your relationship with God. But they are false feelings because you are so valuable to God that He sent Jesus to die for you, You are worth Calvary and that will never change!

Enabled: ". . .given you special abilities." (1 Peter 4:10 TLB). Without a supportive environment to grow up in, you can end up with a diminished sense of enablement. That is why so many of us try to compensate by overachieving. God knows exactly what we are capable of and loves us enough to give us the prods we need to achieve our best. He does this not because if we achieve our potential He will love us more but rather because He loves us perfectly and wants the best for us. Don't let anybody tell you your life doesn't matter - it matters, because God loves you as you are right now!

(c) 2006 Timothy L. Hudson, UGA Christian Campus Fellowship

Support

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.
1 Peter 5: 6-7

"Some Christians look for support from everybody and everything but God. Scripture, however, calls us to cast our anxiety on the Lord and depend on Him, for He can meet our every need. Thankfully, we don't take that step alone; the indwelling Christ is eagerly willing to walk with us each step of the way."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Desire Nothing but God

From John Piper's Do Not Love the World based on 1 John 2: 15-17

"And against the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes the Psalmist says, "Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides thee." Therefore let us desire nothing but God. Possess nothing but God, pursue nothing but God.

But someone will ask, Should I not desire dinner? Should I not desire a job? Should I not desire a spouse? Should I not desire the child in my womb? Should I not desire a healthy body or a good night's rest or the morning sun or a great book or an evening with friends?

And the answer is no—unless it is a desire for GOD! Do you desire dinner because you desire God? Do you want a job because in it you will discover God and love God? Do you long for a spouse because you are hungry for God and hope to see him and love him in your partner? Do you desire the child and the healthy body and the good night's rest and the morning sun and the great book and the evening with friends for God's sake? Do you have an eye for God in everything you desire? (See Colossians 3:17, 1 Corinthians 10:31)

St. Augustine captured the heart of our text when he prayed to the Father and said, "He loves thee too little who loves anything together with thee which he loves not for thy sake."

Therefore, brothers and sisters, do not love the world or the things in the world. If any one love the world the love of the Father is not in him. But if the love of the Father is in you, if you love God with all your heart, then every room you enter will be a temple of love to God, all your work will be a sacrifice of love to God, every meal will be a banquet of love with God, every song will be overture of love to God.

And if there is any desire of the flesh or any desire of the eyes that is not also a desire for God, then we will put it out of our lives, so that we can say with John and with the Psalmist,

Whom have I in heaven but thee,

and on earth there is nothing

that I desire besides thee."


Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Set Free

It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1

"You are not the helpless victim of a tug-of-war between two nearly equal heavenly superpowers. Satan's attributes are limited compared to God's omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience -- and you are united with God! It is His Son that sets you free from the bondage of sin. Don't fall under the bondage of legalism; live as a liberated child of God under grace."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.

Incarnational Christianity

"Incarnational Christianity doesn't try to get people to God. Large numbers of men and women don't want to get to God. Others are unaware there is a God to get to! The incarnation was God coming to us; in a similar way, incarnational Christianity brings Jesus to men.

That's the basis for true evangelism: in the believer the presence of Christ reaches out to the unbeliever. It's also the basis for true discipleship: in the believer the presence of Christ walks alongside the new believer. Thus, the two main activities of the church -- conversion and discipling -- are wed, as they were meant to be. The Great Commission, after all, does not simply say to go into all the world and make converts; we are to go and make disciples.

Jesus said simply, "I am the way. If you have found me, you have found God." Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the church added a debilitating step to the divine program. We said, "Jesus is the way to God, and the church is the way to Jesus. Come to the church to find Jesus, then Jesus will take you to God." Any training that we do, any leadership we exert, must correct this error. We must never allow the church institution to be the way to Jesus. Jesus himself is the Way. The goal of the church on Monday is to make the Way present and visible in a world where people are lost. And, through incarnational Christianity, he is!"

The Monday Morning Church by Jerry Cook.

Monday, July 03, 2006

Run

A good follow up to the lesson we had last Wednesday night in our DVD series:

Transcript, Christian Working Woman


Running Your Race


Monday, July 3, 2006

I'm sure we're all familiar with the Olympic games and enjoy watching the many different races they have. It is amazing to see how hard and long those athletes work to qualify for the Olympics. I want to talk about the race that you and I are in, and it's a lot more important than the Olympic races. It's described in 1 Corinthians 9:24-26:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly. . .

I want to point out three important guidelines Paul gives us here about running our race.

First, he says to run in such a way as to get the prize. Lately I've heard lots of reports of how some schools are trying to eliminate any system that has winners and losers, so that nobody's self-esteem will be wounded by not winning. Well, let me tell you, that's not the way we are exhorted to run our race for God. We're out there to win. Just participating and making a show isn't enough.

Second, we have to go into strict training. I think this is the part where lots of us lose our races; we haven't yet gone into strict training. What does that mean in our Christian race? It means purity of life; it means building our spiritual muscle and endurance through Bible study, prayer, fellowship. It means imposing on ourselves the sacrifices and disciplines that will make us strong.

Third, we are not to run aimlessly. We should have purpose, goals, and a strong commitment to get to the finish line. We can't flit from one thing to another; we must stay focused and run with a purpose.

All of our hearts stop beating when we see the Olympic ceremonies where those medals are awarded and the national anthems are played. When you're in the winners' circle, all the hard work and discipline are worth it.

I think if we could really get a vision of the prize that awaits us–that eternal prize–we'd get more serious about running our races. Can you imagine standing in God's winners' circle, hearing Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant," and winning a crown that you can then cast at the feet of Jesus? That scene makes the Olympics look like kid's play. Don't you want to be in that winners' circle? If so, you have to run to win, you have to go into strict training, and you have to run with a purpose.

A Marriage

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
1 Corinthians 13:4, The Message


"When I talk with people who come to me in preparation for marriage I often say, "Weddings are easy; marriages are difficult." The couple want to plan a wedding; I want to plan a marriage. They want to know where the bridesmaid will stand; I want to develop a plan for forgiveness. They want to discuss the music of the wedding; I want to talk about the emotions of the marriage.

I can do a wedding in twenty minutes with my eyes shut. A marriage takes year after year after year of alert, wide-eyed attention."

Run with the Horses

A Marriage, God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson.

Protection or Pursuit

If you cling to life on your terms, you'll lose it. Luke 17:33(TM)

Old age is no place for sissies!

But just because you're near the top of the hill doesn't mean you've passed your peak. Some of God's oldest are among His finest. The older, mellower Abraham was wiser than the brash, younger one. Caleb was defeating giants and claiming territory at 85. Anna, an elderly widow, didn't just pray for the Messiah, she was wise enough to recognize Him when He came. And on Patmos, isolation became inspiration and old John the Revelator wrote the last book of the Bible.

Douglas MacArthur said, "You only grow old by deserting your ideals. Years wrinkle the skin; giving up wrinkles the soul." Jesus said:
"If you cling to life on your terms, you'll lose it..."

Life can be approached in two ways: Protection or Pursuit.

The voice of safety says Protect your life: "Build a fire in the fireplace and stay in where it's warm." The voice of adventure says Pursue life: "Build a fire in your soul, then go out and pursue your passion." Some older folks sit quietly and cling to what life brings them; others go hunting, pursuing what they have always wanted to do - I'm thankful that my parent's example in youth and old age has always been to pursue life! Even now, when disease has limited what they can do they have a thirst for life. You are never too old to go "further up and further in". Asked why he began studying Greek at age 94, Oliver Wendell Holmes replied, "Well, my good sir, it's now or never!"

Regardless of your age how do you approach life? Are you playing it safe today? Are or you pursuing your passion? It is said that wisdome comes with age - but the truth is that wise people are not necessarily those with the most years in their life, but those with the most life in their years.

My parents have packed a lot of life into their 60 years together! Follow their example and you won't be disappointed when what hair you have left is "gray as a 'possum"!

(c)2006 Timothy L. Hudson, UGA Christian Campus Fellowship



Ambassadors for Christ

We are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
2 Corinthians 5:20

"You will know fulfillment in this life only when you become the person God has called you to be. You can be an ambassador for Him where you are right now; you are in a niche no one else can fill. Let Him do His miraculous work through your mind, heart, and hands in the ordinary situations of daily life."

Neil T. Anderson, Freedom in Christ.