Quiet Times Search

Search Quiet Times via a keyword or string
Keyword(s):
Number of Studies:


Searching for "father" in the Quiet Time Archive
Displaying results from "50" to "75". (215 found)

2009-06-30 - A Life of Impact - Dream Shared

Dream Shared

Mark 4:26-32

  • He did not hesitate to express his vision to those around him.
  • Jesus confidence that the Father would keep his promises fostered faith in his followers

Choice words

Mark 4:33-34

  • Did not teach over the listeners’ heads nor did he overwhelm them with information
  • Those that were already committed to follow him – he explained everything
  • The way we speak has almost as much impact as what we say.

Actions speak louder

  • They assumed that he could not help and they wondered if he even cared
  • Natural reaction would to rebuke the disciples than help – not Jesus


2009-08-23 - Wild at Heart - Wild One whose image we bear

Where do we come from?

A man must know where he comes from and what he is made of both past and family fathers

Most men are trying not to be like their fathers

Who will they derive their sense of strength?

To men God is: Distant and weak (How they would describe their father)
Jesus has become – Mister Rogers with a beard
God – gives a reason and purpose to fight

Reminds us that life lived in fear is no life at all – all will die someday
Jesus = Mother Teresa or William Wallace? Both



2009-09-02 - Wild at Heart - The wound (part 2)
Adam receives his name from God
Abraham names Issac
Jesus needed to hear those words

God renames Jacob and Paul

Racheal names son “son of my sorrow”. Jacob renames him “son of my right hand”
It took intervention by the man, it always does

A boy is brought into the world by his mother
There comes a time for the shift when he begins to seek out his father’s affection – Hard for a mother

Dad coming home is biggest event in a boy’s day
Women try to fill void that an absent father has left
Father calls his son “tiger”

Turns to mom for comfort and dad for adventure
If a mother will not allow her son to become dangerous, if she does not let the father take him away, she will emasculate him.

2009-09-03 - Wild at Heart - The wound (part 3)
Masculinity – boy craves (passed between men)

Boys love to wrestle
  • physical contact
  • sandpaper of my whiskers
  • to test their fathers
Do they have a strength like dad’s?
Is it growing, real, substantive?

Mother does not give new respect to son - hurts
Clinging mother - she feels rejected and son feels guilty
Many adult resent their mothers and do not know why
Mom did not let go and dad did not take him away

We do not grow up wondering if we are going to be a nice boy. Be wild and we need to know that

2009-09-04 - Wild at Heart - Fathers wound
Divorce and abandonment - believes if they would have done better than daddy would have stayed
Father’s silence - men become passive, doubt they are a man

Most men who are living in falsehood have this kind of wound - arrows are deep and produces:
  • Perfectionism
  • Nice guys - pushovers
  • Violent
  • Passive

Can not marry because they are uncertain of themselves
Drifting, deeply insecure, and loaded with-hatred

2009-09-07 - Wild at Heart - The enemy fears you
If you ever really got your heart back, lived from it with courage, you would be a huge problem to him
Many men have not been shown how to fight from the heart.
Failure of fathers and left men without direction
If you want the wound healed and your strength restored and to find your true name, you re going to have to fight for it.

Notice your reaction at these words.
Does another come in and caution you to stop
We need to know who we are and if we have what it takes

A man’s core question does not go away
We search for the answer of validation
  • Career
  • Belonging
  • How well he plays sports
  • Yes, even women


2009-09-09 - Wild at Heart - The fathers voice (part 2)
When we see Jesus, Joseph is out of the picture – true father God – he had to learn who he really was and made of.
Initiation involves a journey and a series of tests.
We try to make our lives easier.

What are you trying to teach me here?
What issues in my heart are you trying to rise through this?
What is it you want me to see?
What are you asking me to let go of?

Men are taught that a wound that stops you from playing is a girlish wound.
No wonder we walk with our guts hanging out
Most men minimize their wound
David did not act like this at all - openly - “my heart is wounded within me” - Psalms 109:22
Suck it up, as the saying goes

God is fiercely committed to you
Wound that goes unacknowledged and unwept is a wound that cannot heal
You’ve embraced and deserve is a would that cannot heal
Whatever is denied cannot heal
Certainly denial that it’s shaping the way they live today.

2009-09-15 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 1)
Source of real strength comes from the one that truly possess it.
It was meant from the beginning that we have a desperately dependence on God
“Apart from me you can do nothing” – We are made to depend on God
God designed the human machine to run by itself
Sin and our culture came together – prevent the wound from being healed – to be independent
We believe deep in our hearts that if we need anything from anyone is a sort of weakness
The Son could do nothing by himself – the Father and I are one
Like trying to finish the marathon with a broken leg

2009-09-16 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 2)
David, THE WARRIOR, writes
  • My strength – Psalms 18:1
  • Come quickly to help me – Psalms 22:19
  • I watch you, my loving God – Psalms 59:9
Like there is a boy inside
The father treats like his son
  • There is not shame that you need healing
  • No shame to another for strength
  • No shame to feel young and afraid inside
  • It’s not your fault
We bury our wounds deep within our hearts
False self is an elaborate defense against entering our wounded heart – chosen blindness

2009-09-17 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 3)
Wound unfelt is wound unhealed
Door may be your anger – perhaps from a girl, failure
The way to God is stopping the false self
It may a simple prayer – Jesus, take me into my wound

Jesus never seems to heal the same way twice
There are no formulas with God
Insists on working personally
Masculinity is bestowed by masculinity
Healing never happens outside of intimacy with Christ

It begins with surrender; until you have given yourself to him you will not have a real self
…to set you free – What? Your heart
So take him at his word – ask him in to heal all the broken places within you
But you can’t do this at a distance

I simply allow myself to say that the loss of my father mattered
Important for us to grieve our wound
Grieving we admit the truth, we hurt by someone we loved
Few men are ever so vulnerable as to simply let themselves be loved by God
Why don’t you just let God love you?
The imitate union with Jesus and with his Father is the source of all healing and all our strength
Unforgiveness and bitterness can wreck our lives and the lives of others – Ephesians 4:31, Hebrews 12:15
Forgiveness is setting a prisoner free and then discovering the prisoner was you.

2009-09-18 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 4)
Forgiveness is a choice
Do not wait for the feeling of wanting to forgive because it will not come
Not “It didn’t matter” and “I probably reserved it”
“It was wrong, it mattered, and I release you”

Masculinity is passed from father to son
Adam, Abraham, Jacob, David leaned who they were out of their intimacy with God the Father

New heart and put a new spirit in you - Romans 8:1
What God sees when he see you is the real you, the true you, the man he had in mind when he made you
You must ask God what he thinks of you, and you must stay with the question until you have an answer
Last thing the Evil One wants you to

2009-09-27 - One Another - Familial Love
Scripture uses the powerful metaphor of the family

God is our Father
Jesus is the elder brother
We are brothers and sisters - the word, brother, used 250x in reference to Christians

We are to keep on loving each other as brothers - Hebrews 13:11
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love - Romans 12:10

2009-10-14 - Wild at Heart - Eve's Wound
Question for her is: Am I lovely?
She needs to know that she is exquisite and exotic and chosen.
This is core to her identity, the way she bears the image of God
Will you purse me? Do you delight in me? Will you fight for me?
Wound says - No, you are not beautiful and no one will really fight for you
Wound usually always comes from the hand of her father

He has the power to cripple or to bless is just as powerful to her as to the son
Her heart is violated and the message is driven father in – you are not desired, you will not be protected, no one will fight for you.

If the father is passive, a little girl will suffer a silent abandonment – not noticed or pursued
Like so many unloved young women, they will to turn to boys to hear what she never heard from her father
When a woman never hears she’s worth fighting for, she comes to believe that is the sort of treatment she deserves

A hesitant man is the last thing in the world a woman needs.
She needs a lover and a warrior, not a nice guy

Number one problem between men and women is that we men, when asked to truly fight for her, hesitate
We are still seeking to save ourselves, we have forgotten the deep pleasure of spilling our life for another

2009-11-05 - Repentance - Jesus Opens Our Eyes (part 3)
The Purpose of Parables
  • Parables offers an opportunity to slip a message past the defenses and filters
  • Kingdom parables
    • Parable of the Sower
      • watch out for Satan, he will try to rob you of the true and understanding of the kingdom
      • church needs to honest with how worldly cares (wealth, etc)
    • Parable of the Weeds
  • Repentance parables
    • Parable of the Lost Sheep
    • Parable of the Lost Coin
    • Prodical Son
      • Vivid picture of meanoia (when he came to his senses)
      • Data did not change, his thinking did
      • Younger son objectivity saw where he was with his father
      • Reoriented heart returns a reoriented life
      • Proves his repentance by his deeds


2009-12-04 - Master Plan - Proof of Love (part 2)
  • When Jesus spoke about obedience, they had the ultimate example in front of them.
  • Jesus found joy in doing the work of His Father
    • He expected nothing from His disciples – Luke 17:6-10, 8:21, Mark 3:35; Matthew 12:50
  • Development of character is by living and seeing it each day. (Father teaches and expects them to be like him)
  • Jesus knew what they were up against
    • Half-hearted evangelism = not effective
    • Required absolute obedience to the Master’s will, with a complete abandonment of their own
  • We are engaged in a spiritual war – no missing around with God’s commands
  • A day we are indifferent with to our responsibility = day lost to the cause of Christ
  • Lack of zeal in church is a lack of obedience
  • The need of the hour is not despair but action.


2009-12-05 - Master Plan - Jesus gave himself away (part 1)
  • Disciples realized that they were responding to Jesus who was willing to give of Himself for them
  • Examples of Jesus giving himself away
    • Gave away what the Father gave to Him - John 15:15
    • He gave them peace - John 16:33
    • He gave them despite pain and suffering - John 15:11
  • Love is not love until it is given away
  • Jesus – God gave away His most precious possession
  • No greater love than to lay down our live for others
  • Jesus impressed the deep compulsion of His eternal purpose
  • It was clear that the Master considered no service too small or sacrifice too great.
  • Jesus denied Himself many of the comforts and pleasure of the world and became a servant
  • He continually gave His life “for their sakes”
  • Disciples learned not in theory but in practice (painful and hard to accept)
  • Jesus life was the measure by which they were to regard their own service.
    • To give freely as they had received – Matthew 10:8
    • Love one another as He loved them - John 13:34
    • Calvary love was the standard


2009-12-07 - Master Plan - Demonstration (part 1)
He showed them how to live
  • Prayer
    • Jesus often let His disciples see Him conversing with the Father (They ask, not forced)
    • Unless they grasped the meaning of prayer and practiced consistently – not much would come from their lives.
  • Using Scripture
    • He never ceased to use the Scripture in His conversation with them.
    • 66 references to the Old Testament
    • 90+ Old Testament references speaking to others
    • Jesus could freely recall scriptures by heart
  • Everything that he did and said had some relevance to evangelism
    • Revealing the truth
    • How to deal with men
    • Disciples may (at the time) have not known that they were being taught
  • Jesus was the Master of His own teachings
    • Presentation was not flashy; the truth was the main attraction.
  • Disciples observed how to:
    • Jesus drew people to Himself
    • Won their confidence and inspired their faith
    • He called them to the way of salvation and He called them to make a decision


2009-12-10 - Master Plan - Delegation (part 2)
  • Instructions from Jesus
    • Preach the Kingdom of God - Luke 9:1
    • Heal the sick
    • Go to the most susceptive audience (house of Israel) - Matthew 10:5
    • Do not burden yourselves with lots of baggage - Matthew 10:9
    • Find worthy, friendly people - Matthew 10:11
    • If the town resisted, shake off feet as a testament to them (worst than Sodom and Gomorrah)
  • Hardship expected
    • If Jesus received persecution, we will too - Matthew 10:32
    • We remember the Lord – W will be remember before the Father - Matthew 10:24
    • Sheep among wolves - Matthew 10:16
    • Act as wise as serpents and harmless as doves
  • A diving gospel
    • No compromise with sin
    • Jesus came by the sword (Divided good from evil) - Matthew 10:34-35
  • Two by two - Mark 6:7
    • Companionship and helping one another
    • In the spirit of togetherness


2009-12-15 - Master Plan - Reproduction (part 2)
  • The Test
    •  Could His disciples do a good job without His bodily supervision as they could with it?
    •  Human point of view: Never could be sure that His investment in their lives.
  •  Life-sustaining power of the vine was not to be given to endlessly upon lifeless branches
    •  A barren Christian is a contradiction.
    • A tree is known by its fruit
  • Principle throughout His ministry
    • Reward of His own sacrifice for the world - John 12:24
    • Distinguishing work of those who did the will of His Father - Matthew 7:16-23
    • Wages given to His disciples for their work in the harvest - John 4:36
    • What was lacking in the Sadducees and Pharisees - Matthew 3:7-8


2009-12-28 - First the Kingdom - At Ease
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth - Matthew 5:5
But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace - Psalms 37:11

Meekness is strength under the control of God
Being meek is being at ease before God and man
One looks outside himself for the power of life
Totally open with God, God will work in all things for his good

To be meek is not to be afraid...

1. Is at ease with God

Someone who worries and has anxiety reduces them to practical atheists

A child is at ease with their father/mother (in most cases)
I have stilled and quieted my soul; child with mother is my soul within me - Psalms 131:2

2. Is at ease with himself
Jesus knew exactly what authority he had been he had been given by God - John 13:3

3. Is at ease with others
Neither inferior nor superior
No longer deceived by pride, he is free to learn from anyone
At ease with God and himself - has nothing to prove and nothing to fear



2010-01-19 - Kingdom First - Handle Prayerfully (part 1)
Jesus was a man of prayer - he knew how to do it and he did it all the time
  • Prayed for the power to heal and to change others - Mark 9:29
  • In prayer in order to be at peace with God's will - Matthew 26:36-46
  • Struggled in prayer to be wholehearted submissive to his Father - Hebrews 5:7-8
  • Prayed by himself - Matthew 14:23
  • Prayed before others - John 11:41-43
  • Prayed with his face to the ground - Matthew 26:39
  • Prayed looking up to heaven - John 17:1
  • Prayed standing up - Mark 11:25
  • Prayed kneeling down - Luke 22:41
  • Prayed in early in the morning - Mark 1:35
  • Prayed throughout the night - Luke 6:12
He did NOT say:
  • If you pray
  • Please, I beg you to pray
  • I command you to pray
But "When you pray..."

2010-01-21 - Kingdom First - Handle Prayerfully (part 3)
Lord's Prayer: A brief overview:
  1. Our Father in heaven - Set our minds on personal and intimate relationship we have with our God
  2. Hallowed be your name  - Praise and honor him
  3. Your Kingdom come  - Pray for his church, disciples, leaders, people whom the gospel has not reached
  4. Your will be done - Pray for a submissive heart toward will of God in our lives
  5. Give us this day our daily bread - Pray through today's schedule, needs, relying on God
  6. Forgive us our debts - Confess specific sin
  7. As we also have forgiven our debtors - Commit before God to resolve conflict, hurts, concerns in all relationships
  8. Lead us not into temptation - Wrestle with God to be submissive and repentant in areas of weakness
  9. Deliver us from the evil one - Pray that God to stop Satan and than God for victories in him


2010-02-19 - One Another - Spurring One Another (part 1)
Let us consider how we spur one another on toward love and good deeds - Hebrews 10:24

Two unfaithful extremes:
  • We feel uncomfortable which people getting involved with our lives at all
  • We tell people what we think they should do and expect them to do it
Great blessings we have based on our relationship with Jesus - Hebrews 10:19-25
  • We have access to the Father
  • We a great high priest
  • We have full assurance
  • We have a clean conscience
  • We have hope
  • We have a faithful God


2010-03-12 - To Live is Christ - Every Tongue Confess

Jesus Christ is Lord
Everyone who lived will say these four words - Philippians 2:9-11

Whoever disowns Jesus before men, he will disown him - Matthew 10:32-33

No one comes to the Father except through Jesus - John 14:6

Give up for God = Gain
Lose for God = FInd
Bow before God now = stand

Bow when:

  • You naturally want to be selfish
  • You want your needs meet
  • You doubt his love

Each disciple must decide that he or she lives among other "for their sake" - 1 Thessalonians 1:5

 



2010-04-19 - Life to the Full - In His Steps (part 2)

Disciples are priests and ministers in function - using the righteousness of Jesus - 1 Peter 2:4-6

Preist, by definition, is holier than the common man

The clergy-laity system is flawed because of there reasons:

  • It is elitiest
  • Fosters a double-standard
  • It is unbiblical

Consider today's denominational titles:

  • Father - Jesus said to avoid this title - Matthew 23:9
  • Pope - means father; Peter was suppose to the first one but he never claimed that he was
  • Paster - Latin for shepard; refered only in - Ephesians 4:11
  • Bishop - Greek for overseer
  • Priest - corruption of the Greek presbyteros, meaning elder
  • Female pasters - Roundly rejected by the NT; See 1 Timothy 3 and 1 Corinthians 14
  • Monks and Nuns - created in the 2nd and 3rd centuries; Jesus said we are in the world but not of the world

 



2010-05-22 - Desire's Journey - Goodness

Does Christianity condemn desire? Like the Puritans

It is not a matter of desire is good or not - it is what we do with it
Christianity recognizes that desire has gone mad within us but not seeking to fix the problem by killing our desire

Something has gone wrong
God gives us commands for our own good
The point is not the law but joy

Faith on its way to maturity moves from duty to delight
If the goal is to move from delight to duty, we are going backwards and regressing

Prodigal son
Younger son desire get him into trouble
Father's desire for the lost boy is deep
He is grateful just to have his son home again
Older brother lived his entire life under duty and obligation - dealt with his sinful nature by killing desire
THose who kill desire are not the ones who experience God's embrace



2010-05-23 - Desire's Journey - Disowned Desire

Examples of desires used for bad then good

King David - passions got him in trouble, then gave us our book of worship

Peter - was hotheaded disciple always quick with a reply
First to acknowledge that Jesus was the Messiah and became a key apostle

Paul - extremely zealous for the traditions of his fathers, killed Christians
Jesus captured his zeal for good - he worked harder than all the other apostles - 1 Corinthians 15:10

Those who killed their passion altogether would murder the very essence that makes heros of the faith
Killing our desire is like the thinking of curing our sickness by bleeding out the bad



2010-06-12 - Why Jesus Came (part 1)

Preached 1998-07-05
    Most of us have lost something:
    • Losing wallet - not a good thing
      • Feels good to find it.
    God's desire is to "find" what is lost - YOU!
     
    • Problem: We are separated from God by sin

    Jesus came to...

    Save the lost

    Luke 19:10

    • Uses people to save others
    • Many people to save some:
      • Do not know they are lost
      • Are confused
      • Misguided
      • Are not interested
      • Are looking
    • Despite the what phase we are in we are still lost.
    • No excuses 
      • Those who have issues are not really searching
        • "What about those hypocrites?"
        • "I am too busy"
        • "I will but...."

    Acknowledge the Father

     John 14:9

    • To relate
    • Some think God doesn't care
      • How can God allow all these shootings?
        • Isrealites were saying the same thing in the dessert
    • Jesus = God with us
    • If Jesus was standing next to you how would you act differently?


2010-06-14 - I need to pray (part 1)

Preached on 2002-08-25 by Vince Hawkins

Ephesians 3:14-21

  • I kneel before the Father - come to God humble
  • Strength comes from how deep, wide, long of Christ's love
  • Prayer can do anything God can do

God overwhelms the mind

Genesis 41:40 - overwhelmed Joseph with the position that was given to him

1 Kings 10:7-8 - Sheba was overwhelmed by Solomon's wealth and wisdom

1 Corinthians 2:9 - He will overwhelm you by his love

Ephesians 3:20 - more than we can ask or image

  • Think about how God meet everyone of your needs
  • Think about how God go beyond everyone of your needs
  • Think about how God can bless you beyond what we can think of




2010-07-04 - Desire's Journey - The Grand Affair (part 1)

To know and to be known. It is our deepest ache.
Our bodies are an outward sign of an inward reality

Love makes us to crazy things for love. No union on earth like the consummation of love between a man and woman
Lovers reach for the stars to find words fitting enough to express what the beloved means to them - to a clue to a deeper reality

Becoming one - this is what God is seeking with us
Gender, sexually and marriage server as a lving metaphor
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother ... and the two will become one flesh... I am talking about Christ and the church - Ephesians 5:31-32
The cross is a great mystery - but in context of sacrifing animal - it became clear what they had been doing and what Christ was doing

Bible is the greatest romance ever written
God has given us the highest freedom of all - the freedom to reject him
Love is possible only when it is freely chosen



2010-07-06 - Desire's Journey - The Grand Affair (part 3)

On that day, Jesus appears and announces himself as the Bridegroom - Matthew 9:15

Jesus makes his proposal: I will prepare a place for you - John 14:2-3
Culture of the day - these very words would be used by a young man to his fiancee
He would return to his father's house and build the additonal room to be the bride suite

We have become betrothed to the Bidegroom
The bride belongs to the bridegroom - John 3:29
We are in the time of waiting for the Bridegroom to return

The whole life of the good Christian is a holy longing - Augustine



2010-07-10 - Desire's Journey - The Adventure Begins (part 2)
The first thing in the Bible is God working
The morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy - Job 38:7

Jesus said his Father is always at work to this very day and he too is working - John 5:17

  • Thunderclouds gather over the prairies
  • Plant grow or start to grow and lift heavenward
  • Maple leaves are woven
  • New stars are born every day
  • There is always a sunset and sunrise somewhere on the Earth

God loves his work
God delights in doing tall these things

2010-07-16 - Desire's Journey - Deeper Desire (part 3)
The first step in the journey of desire is to stop pretending that we would be happy with less
Recovering our heart involves facing our deepest disappointments
We do not need to fear what we find because our heart is our biggest ally

The father of lies takes many people out of the journey for life by keeping them in shallow desire
He threatens us from going to the deep waters of desire by telling us that are core desires are evil
Makes us thing that every thought and desire is our own

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; remove your heart of stone - Ezekiel 36:26
Our core desires are good: I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts - Jeremiah 31:33

We still struggle with sin with our tendency to kill desire or give our hearts over to false desires

2010-08-25 - Waking Dead - Glory (part 2)
Your story does not begin with sin but with glory
Bible does not start in Genesis 3 but Genesis 1

God is glorious
You are his offspring, his child
You bear his image

When he made all His creation before man he said "it was good"
Only after did he make humans did he say "it is very good" - Genesis 1:31
Your glory is greater than everything else made - oceans, mountains, stars, the universe

Saints in the land are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight - Psalms 16:3
Those he justified, he also glorified - Romans 8:30

The fact that you don't see your good heart and glory is proof has effective the assault has been

Lion King example
It is time for the true king to come back and take over
But Simba does not believe who he is
His father was murdered and the enemy blamed it on him
After years of loosing heart, Simba's father appears to him in a vision: you are more than what you have become

The one who is in you is greater than the one in the world - 1 John 4:4



2010-08-28 - Waking Dead - Wisdom and Heart
Our heart has been made good by work of Christ but we haven't learned how to live from it
Launching out with an untrained heart can bring disaster
We can easily be shamed into sin management and think our heart is bad

The church choose those who had both wisdom and the Spirit - Acts 6:3
We need both

Wisdom is crying out
  • Do not rush the field - Luke 14:31
  • Train yourself to discern good from evil - Hebrews 5:14
  • Live as through your life is at stake - Matthew 10:16
Wisdom is not cramming our heads with principles but developing a discerning heart
Solomon was so sharp because he had a wise and discerning heart - 1 Kings 3:9

But wisdom is not enough
  • Against "wisdom", the disciples were asked to go Saul, the one who used to murder Christians, and lay his hands on him - Acts 9:13-14
  • Would you counsel a father to sacrifice his only child?
  • Take on a fortified city by slashing your ranks from 32,000 to 300?
  • Jesus to give himself up to the authorities and let himself get killed
Wisdom is not enough, it may even hold us back
The common sense life can be the enemy of the supernatural life

2010-09-11 - Waking Dead - Spiritual Warfare (part 3)
Satan is the Father of Lies - John 8:44
His first attack on the human race was to lie to Adam and Eve
He lied about God and where life was found

He hoping we buy into whatever he is saying
The evil one is still lying to us and is seeking our agreement every day

Try to hold on to this and see much accusation you live under
Your heart is good
Your heart matters to God

We must make no agreement with him
Most of the time we don't recognize the attack because we do not live as though we are at war
We assume these impressions are our own

Any movement toward freedom, life, God, or others will be opposed
Marriage, friendship, beauty, rest - the thief wants it all

2010-09-30 - Contagious Christian - People Matter (part 2)

Jesus focused on a search for the Lost and so they could be Found

The Lost Coin - vital to the woman's survival
The Lost Sheep - represented a significant part of his livelihood
The Lost Son - wayward son who mattered greatly to his father

Each one - Something of great value was missing, something that really mattered

It also make Jesus so upset the religious leaders were discussing who matters to God who does not

When we realize how much God cares about people, we helps us to care for them too

It is worth the effort - what is missing was important enough to warrant an all-out search

Retrievals results in rejoicing

The woman found the coin and threw a party
The shepherd retrieved the sheep and threw a party
The son came home and the father threw the biggest party of all

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents - Luke 15:10

 

 



2010-10-03 - Contagious Christian - Benefits (part 3)
4. Spiritual Growth
If holding onto our faith and not advancing it much - it will become a chore  and prayer a dry routine
  • Scripture reading becomes I have to read it to understand the gospel for others
  • Talking to God suddenly takes on a new purpose - passionate pleas for friends
  • Our desire to worship grows as your gratitude grows
  • Helps maintain a high standard of purity

5. Spiritual Confidence
It is ironic that the act of preparing to show others the gospel is often the cause for us to understand it better ourselves
In the face of opposition, we gain heightened sense of spiritual confidence
Imagine what happens when one of these people becomes a Christian

6. Enduring Investments

Jesus warned his followers to not store up treasures on earth - Matthew 6:19-20
Everything will be destroyed eventually - 2 Peter 3:10-11
It is a mistake to invest so much time and energy into things that won't last

7. Honor of Being God's Agent
This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit - John 15:8



2010-10-10 - Contagious Christian - Pull of Compassion
Caring for the tangible needs of others is at the core of Christianity
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless - look at orphans and widows in their distress - James 1:27

Compassion is echoed throughout the Bible:
  • Be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor - Deuteronomy 15:11
  • Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me - Matthew 25:40
  • All I ask is that you remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do - Galatians 2:10
Uncaring Christianity does not attract inquirers
Clear and consistent demonstration of Christ-like love is a powerful magnet that pulls people toward Him

Not about who you are or what you did
It is about how you care, being a neighbor - Luke 10:36-37
In Luke 10 - when the wounded man awoke, he must have wondered, "Who did this? Why would they do help me in such a great way?"
It is when people start asking, "Why didn't he not turn away like everyone else?"

As I have loved you, so you must love one another - John 13:34-35
All men will know that you are my disciples

2010-11-28 - Mission - Baptizing Them
Heaven is a place of continual celebration

God original place for us was to with him in a state of perfection
  • He created us in his own image - Genesis 1:27
  • Satan with sin, drove a wedge between us and God
  • Sin destroyed our relationship with God and one another - Isaiah 59:1-2
  • He grieved that he had made man - Genesis 6:6

God had a radical plan to bring back into a relationship with him and to destroy the power that Satan had over us

To this point, most Bible-believing world would agree

What about baptism?
Marginal matters are not in the Great Commission
Paul included in his list of "seven ones" - Ephesians 4:4-6
We are united in baptism with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus - Romans 6

The master deceiver and father of lies has changed the road signs and send many to spiritual dead ends

2010-12-02 - Mission - Taking Up the Cross
Two questions to ask ourselves:
Is the power of the cross producing real changes in my life?
Are lost souls being radically converted as I preach?

The message of the cross will seem foolish to those we are teaching if they do not see the daily demonstration of its power for us who are being saved

Christians described in Romans 6
  • v4 - new life
  • v7 - freed from sin
  • v11 - dead to sin but alive in Christ
Taking up our cross must be each and every day
Our days are composed of countless choices and decisions
Each step that Jesus took towards the cross he took willingly

It takes 1000s of bricks to build a house, it takes 1000s of righteous choices to build a Christ-like character
Our hearts - lost world needs to know how we feel towards our Father
Our conversation - we should never get tired of telling our conversation story
Our example - Our daily temptations and victories should be only shared

2010-12-25 - Saved by Grace through Faith (part I)
Psalms 103:1-18
  • David talks about the heart of the Lord toward weak and sinful people: he is a compassionate, gracious, loving father.
  • How deeply does God love those who fear him?
  • What is he willing to do with their sins (transgressions)?
  • Is this the way you see God?
Luke 15:11-31
  • Jesus taught many things in parables, short stories created to teach spiritual truths.
  • What does this story tell you about God’s attitude toward us when we repent and turn back to Him?
  • Why did the older brother have such a hard time with his father’s attitude?
  • In what way did he fail to understand the father and his grace?

Luke 18:9-14
  • In this story, we see two very different ways of viewing ourselves and God.
  • How did the Pharisee approach God? How did he view himself?
  • On what basis did he presume to be righteous? (His goodness, religious activities, his own efforts).
  • By contrast, how did the tax collector see himself?
  • What was his appeal to God based on? (God’s mercy).
  • Who went home justified (pronounced and considered “not guilty”)?
  • Jesus taught that a person can never be good enough to be saved through his own efforts.
  • The only basis of our salvation is the mercy and grace of God.


2011-01-26 - Followup - Prayer (part I)
Introduction
  1. We must understand who we are praying to: God, the Creator, All-powerful and Sovereign, and our Father.
  2. Prayer is essential for spiritual growth.
  3. Prayer is the key to deepening our relationship with God.
  4. Prayer unleashes the power of God. - James 5:16
  5. Prayer is not natural, it must be learned - Luke 11:1-4
Jesus’ Prayer Life
  1. Mark 1:35 - Jesus, although very busy, found time to pray in a place and time free from distraction.
  2. Luke 6:12 - Jesus spends all night praying to God.
  3. Hebrews 5:7 - Jesus prays with loud cries and tears.


2011-01-28 - Followup - Relationships in the Body
John 13:34
  1. A new command
  2. Love each other as Jesus did. (Discuss how Jesus loved)
  3. This is the distinguishing mark.
Romans 12:4-8, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
  1. Members of One Body
  2. What would happen if your finger gets cut off? (ie We need each other)
  3. Must work together.
1 Peter 1:33 - Sincere love.

1 Thessalonians 2:7-8, 11-12 - Like a mother, gentle, caring or a father, encouraging, comforting, urging.

1 John 3:16
  • Jesus example
  • Self-sacrificial
  • Radical!


2011-03-13 - NT Commands (part VI)
Reading New Testament commands each day:
  • Honor your father and mother - Matthew 19:19
  • Let your "Yes" be a yes and your "No" be a no - James 5:12
  • Live in harmony with one another - Romans 12:16
  • Love one another - John 13:34-35
  • Must not quarrel - 2 Timothy 2:24
  • Pray continuously - 1 Thessalonians 5:17
  • Pray for persecutors - Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:28
  • Rejoice in the Lord - Philippians 3:1
  • Rejoice in your trails - James 1:2-3


2011-03-31 - Old Testament - Messianic Prophecy

Scriptures about Messianic Prophecy

  • Isaiah 52:13-53:12 - His form was so marred he no longer looked human
  • Genesis 22:1-18 - Abraham did not withheld his son, your only son
  • Psalms 16:8-10 - He will you let your Holy One see decay
  • Psalms 2:7  - Messiah will be God's Son
  • Genesis 12:3 - All peoples on earth will be blessed through you
  • Deuteronomy 18:15 - The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you
  • Micah 5:2 - From Judah will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel
  • Isaiah 7:14 - The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel
  • Isaiah 9:1-2 - Future: people walking in darkness have seen a great light
  • Isaiah 9:6 - a son has been given to us: Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace


2011-04-11 - Names of Jesus (part V)
Names of Jesus (continued):
  • Emmanuel - Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23
  • Eternal life - 1 John 1:2; 5:20
  • Everlasting Father - Isaiah 9:6
  • Faithful witness - Revelation 1:5; 3:14
  • First and Last - Revelation 1:17; 2:8
  • Firstborn from the dead - Revelation 1:5; Colossians 1:18
  • First-born of every creature - Colossians 1:15


2011-04-18 - Names of Jesus (part XII)
Jesus' names through out the Bible:
  • Mighty God - Isaiah 9:6
  • Mighty One of Jacob - Isaiah 60:16
  • Morning-star - Revelation 22:16
  • Nazarene - Matthew 2:23
  • Offspring of David - Revelation 22:16
  • Only Begotten of the Father - John 1:14
  • Our Passover - 1 Corinthians 5:7


2011-05-01 - Names of the Believers (part I)
Starting the study of the names of believers:
  • Believers - Acts 5:14; 1 Timothy 4:12
  • Beloved of God - Romans 1:7
  • Beloved brethren - 1 Corinthians 15:58; James 2:5
  • Blessed of the Lord - Genesis 24:31; 26:29
  • Blessed of the Father - Matthew 25:34
  • Brethren - Matthew 23:8; Acts 12:17
  • Brethren of Christ - Luke 8:21; John 20:17
  • Called of Jesus Christ - Romans 1:6


2011-05-02 - Names of the Believers (part II)
Study of names of believers - continued:
  • Children of the Lord - Deuteronomy 14:1
  • Children of God - John 11:52; 1 John 3:10
  • Children of the Living God - Romans 9:26
  • Children of the Father - Matthew 5:45
  • Children of the Highest - Luke 6:35
  • Children of Abraham - Galatians 3:7
  • Children of Jacob - Psalms 105:6


2011-05-16 - Names of Satan (part III)
Studying Satan's names:
  • Evil spirit - 1 Samuel 16:14
  • Father of lies - John 8:44
  • Great red dragon - Revelation 12:3
  • Leviathan - Isaiah 27:1
  • Liar - John 8:44


2011-05-26 - Fearing God - Slave or Son
Two types of fear:
  • Servile fear - latin meaning slave
  • Filial fear - meaning son
Servile fear is illustrated by the third servant in Christ's parable of the talents
He went out and hid his talent in the ground - Matthew 25:24-25
The devil is the author of servile fear - he uses it to haunt and disturb Christians to make our lives uncomfortable

Filial fear is loving fear of a child toward his father
A mixture of reference, pleasure, joy, and awe which fills our hearts when we realize who God is and what He has done for us

There are 150 references to the fear of God, most in the Old Testament
Ones in the New Testament convince us that fearing God is an attitude of the heart

2011-05-29 - Fearing God - Respect for His Discipline
Do not be afraid, God has come to test you, so that the fear of the God will be with you - Exodus 20:20
Moses draws a contrast between being afraid of God and fearing God
Being afraid of God will lead to distrust and disobedience
Fearing God will keep us from sinning

Live as strangers here in reverent fear - 1 Peter 1:17
Reverent fear meaning a deterrent to disobedience; a motivator for our conduct
In a family situation - children have a healthy respect for their father's discipline but are not afraid to ask for things or play with him
They do not live in dread either physical or emotional abuse

God disciplines those He loves - Hebrews 12:6
God's discipline comes to those he love when they become unrepentant not from failures in a sincere struggle with sin

2011-06-04 - Fearing God - Jacob feared
Jacob had deceived his father and stolen the birthright from his brother

Genesis 28:12-15
While fleeing to his uncle's house, God promised him 5 things:
  • I will give the land to you and your descendants
  • You will spread out to the north, south, east and west
  • People on earth will be blessed through you
  • I am with you and will watch over you
  • I will not leave you
God said nothing in the dream about Jacob's deceitful character, threaten, or punishment

When Jacob awoke, he was afraid
His fear came from the realization that he had somehow been in the very presence of God
The fear was not from being conscious of his sin but from his sense of awe

The presence created a sense of being overwhelmed by his own nothingness in contrast to that which is supreme above all creatures
He is infinitely above the powerful human beings who have ever lived

2011-06-20 - Mind of Christ - Discipleship (part V)
Christ’s encounters with people teach about discipleship

Jesus loved God with an unrivaled love
  • John 14:31 - do exactly what my Father has commanded me
  • ~Matthew 26:36-46 - Did what was needed not what he at first wanted
Jesus completely and continually emptied self of self
  • Philippians 2:6-7 - Took the very nature of a servant
  • John 5:30 - Seeked to please the one who sent him
Jesus gave up everything
  • 2 Corinthians 8:9 - He became poor so we could become rich
  • Matthew 8:20 - He had no home


2011-06-21 - Mind of Christ - Obedience (part I)
Jesus was reverently and totally submissive to God’s will

~Matthew 26:36-46
  • Three desires were expressed by Jesus in this of prayer.
  1. He wanted to have disciples join in his struggles.
  2. He wanted to forgo the bitter cup.
  3. He wanted to obey the will of God.
  • His strongest desire is to obey God, overcame the other desires of his life.
Hebrews 5:7-8 - He was heard because of his reverent submission

Jesus possessed an all consuming desire to obey God
  • John 4:34 - His food was to do the will of him who sent him
  • John 5:19 - whatever the Father does the Son also does


2011-06-22 - Mind of Christ - Obedience (part II)
Jesus possessed an all consuming desire to obey God (continued)
  • John 5:30 - By myself I can do nothing
  • John 6:38 - Come not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me
  • John 8:28 - Spoke just what the Father has taught me
  • John 10:18 - Lay his life down on his own accord
  • John 12:49-50 - Whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say
  • John 14:10 - Words I say to you are not just my own
  • John 14:31 - I do exactly what my Father has commanded me
  • John 15:10 - If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love


2011-06-23 - Mind of Christ - Obedience (part III)
The motivation for Jesus’ obedience was in his relationship with God

He obeyed God because he loved God
  • John 14:31 - I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me
  • John 15:9-10 - I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love
He obeyed God because he wanted to please God more than he wanted to please himself
  • John 5:30 - I seek not to please myself but him who sent me
  • Matthew 3:17 - This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.
  • Matthew 17:5 - With him I am well pleased. Listen to him!
  • Mark 1:11 - You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased


2011-06-24 - Mind of Christ - Obedience (part IV)
He obeyed God because he wanted to please God more than he wanted to please himself (continued)
  • Luke 3:22 - The Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove
  • John 8:29 - I always do what pleases him
  • 2 Peter 1:17 - This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased
  • Hebrews 10:7 - I have come to do your will, O God
The highest motivation for our obedience to God is also in our relationship with God.
  • John 14:15, 21, 23 - If you love me, you will obey what I command; He who loves me will be loved by my Father
  • 1 John 5:3 - This is love for God: to obey his commands
  • Matthew 22:37 - Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind


2011-06-30 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part I)
A oneness existed between Jesus on earth and His Father in Heaven

1. This truth is often affirmed
  • John 10:30,38 - I and the Father are one
  • John 14:10-11, 20 - It is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.
  • John 17:11, 21, 23 - Father, just as you are in me and I am in you
2. Jesus was one with His Father in His words
  • John 7:16 - My teaching is not my own
  • John 12:49 - For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me


2011-07-01 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part II)
3. Jesus was one with His Father in His deeds
  • John 5:19, 30 - He can do only what he sees his Father doing
  • John 8:28 - I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence
4. This oneness was possible because Jesus truly loved and obeyed His Father
  • John 5:30 - By myself I can do nothing
  • John 6:38 - I have come down from heaven not to do my will
  • John 4:34 - My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work
  • John 17:4 - I have brought you glory on earth by completing your work
  • John 14:31 - World must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what He commands
  • John 15:10 - I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love


2011-07-02 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part III)
The oneness Jesus had with His Father is revealed to us for two reasons:

1. It shows us the pattern for our relationship with God
  • John 17:20-23 - Jesus' prayer to the Father
  • John 14:15, 20-21, 23 - His obedience to the Father
  • John 6:56 - Remain in Jesus; He remains in the Father.
  • ~John 15:1-16 - Jesus is the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
2. It shows us the pattern for our relationship with each other
  • John 15:17 - This is my command: Love each other.


2011-07-03 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part IV)
Oneness with the Father is a definable concept in the scriptures:

It means to live in the presence of the Father
  • John 14:10 - It is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work
  • John 8:38 - I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence
  • Philippians 1:21 - For to me, to live is Christ
  • Colossians 1:27 - Christ in you, the hope of glory
  • Colossians 3:4 - Christ, who is your life
  • Galatians 2:20 - Christ lives in me
It means to love and obey the Father
  • 1 John 2:3-6 - We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.


2011-07-04 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part V)
Oneness with the Father means to think the same thoughts, speak the same words, do the same deeds, and be of the same kind of
character.

We must think the same thoughts.
  • John 8:16 - I stand with the Father, who sent me
  • Romans 8:5 - Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires
We must say the same words.
  • John 14:24 - These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me
  • John 12:49 - Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it
We must do the same deeds.
  • John 5:19 - Whatever the Father does the Son also does
  • John 13:15 - I have set you an example that you should do as I have done


2011-07-05 - Mind of Christ - Relationship with God (part VI)
For oneness with the Father, we must be of the same kind of person:
  • Ephesians 4:22-24 - Put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness
  • Colossians 3:10 - Put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator
Oneness with the Father is a definable concept in our own personal lives.

What it does NOT mean:
  • It is not merely being a member of the church.
  • It is not merely being baptized.
  • It is not merely observing the Lord’s Supper each Sunday.
  • It is not merely the equivalent of quiet time each day.
  • It is not merely an involvement in one or more discipling relationships.
  • It is not merely being busy in “Church work”.
  • It is not merely being fruitful in evangelism.
What it DOES mean:
  • It means that I am continually conscious of God’s presence and that I desire such by seeking God’s face throughout the day
  • It means that His thoughts are becoming my thoughts, His ways are becoming my ways (this is a continual, never ending process)
  • It means that I truly love God and want to obey His will with more of my heart each day.


2011-07-06 - Mind of Christ - Heavenly Mission (part I)
A. Jesus possessed a firm belief that he had been sent by the Father into the world for the specific purpose of bringing the lost to salvation.

1. He believed that he was on a Heavenly mission in His Father’s behalf.
  • Luke 2:49 - "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?
  • John 6:38 - For I have come down from heaven
2. He believed that the purpose of this Heavenly mission was to bring the lost to salvation.
  • John 3:17  - God sent his son to save the world through him.
  • Luke 19:10 - For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.
  • Matthew 9:13 - I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners
  • 1 Timothy 1:15 - Jesus came into the world to save sinners
  • 1 John 3:5 - He appeared so that he might take away our sins


2011-07-12 - Mind of Christ - Heavenly Mission (part VII)
The Mind of Christ in You and Me:

We need to possess a firm belief that have been sent by the Lord Jesus into the world for the specific purpose of bringing the lost to salvation.

1. We need to believe that we are on a Heavenly mission in the Lord’s behalf:
  • Matthew 28:19 - Therefore go and make disciples of all nations
  • John 20:21 - As the Father has sent me, I am sending you
2. We need to believe that the purpose of this Heavenly mission is to bring the lost to salvation.
  • Mark 16:15-16 - Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation
  • If this is not our purpose, then there is not reason for us to exist after baptism. If as disciples of Christ, we have no purpose, then God ought to take us to Heaven directly from the baptistery.


2011-08-02 - Daughter Needs - Stumbling or Building block?
Are we a stumbling or building block for our daughter?

Men have been looking out for number one at rates that are alarming
61.7% live with their biological father
82.4% live with their dad in 1960

Realize that God does measure success based on the world's standards
God calls us to raise our daughters int he nurture and admonition of the Lord - Ephesians 6:4
Then our daughters will give us peace and delight to our souls - Proverbs 29:17

Our role in our daughter's life will shape the idea of her husband and view of the heavenly Father
We have no excuse to be satisfied with mediocrity

Consider the 6 stumbling block fathers...

2011-08-05 - Daughter Needs - Father Knows Best
Father Knows Best dad = insists on always being right
Only accepts his daughter when she performs to his standard

Everyone needs to learn how to live and work under authority and need to command a certain level of respect, but sometimes we are wrong
We need to own up to our own shortcomings

If we ignore or deny our mistakes - it will create bitterness
A father who refuses to admit their mistakes has a daughter that does not trust him
How can can she rely on your advice
Your reliability is increased when you admit your mistakes

A strong man admits and corrects his mistakes

If you want your daughter to believe in her father, show her you know best and own your behavior

2011-08-06 - Daughter Needs - Sugar Daddy
It is the Father's duty to provide for the material needs - 1 Timothy 5:8
But if all we do as fathers i provide, we will miss other important parental responsibilities

A Sugar daddy is the one who spares no expense to but her toys and gifts
Her affection is his reward - likes the rush of her admiration and appreciation
Many times it comes from guilt after having spent too many hours on the job
Also comes from our emotional inability to give ourselves to our daughter

Daughters can begin to believe that the most important things in life are financial
They say "It is important to daddy, I like material things too"

Matter if adjusting our priorities
If she sees that he really values his relationship with her - she will value relationships
Give yourself to your daughter and you will teach her the value of real love

2011-08-07 - Daughter Needs - Father Figure
Father Figure is a father of daughter in name only
He is both is an emotional absentee father
He sits in front of the TV for hours

He is home but he is not really there
"I'm an adult and she is a kid - we don't enjoy the same things"

Real life does not flicker
The 'Father Figure' has to seriously question their commitment  as a father


2011-08-09 - Daughter Needs - All-Male Dad (part II)
Lots priority:
  • Sons
  • Strangers
  • Daughters
The incest that followed was likely from their self-esteem issues from their relationship with there father

There is a high cost to be paid when dad treats his daughter as 3rd rate
They are prime targets for a smooth talking guy who offers some sense of male love

Our daughters deserve 1st rate love
Don't leave them to figure out what it will cost to be loved by a man
Give them lots and lots of love, attention and time

2011-08-10 - Daughter Needs - Pushover Papa
Pushover Papa is a father who lets her get away with any thing
She is this cute little girl that can do no wrong

As the leader in your home, it is our responsibilty to sholder the discipline
Keep in mind discipline is more training and less about secondly to punishment

If your wife is reluctant to have you handle the discipline, it might be because:
  • You are too harsh
  • You are a push over
  • You are not training your daughter for the long term
A pushover pop loves his daughter in principle but hates her in practice
The Lord disciplines those he loves and punishes everyone he accepts as a son - Hebrews 12:5-6
If you are not disciplined then you are illegitimate children and not true sons

2011-08-11 - Daughter Needs - Loving Kindness
A daughter needs a father's gentleness, protective favor to intercede for her against those who would do her wrong

Two tendencies to limit their kindness:
  • Being macho, to prove we are unfailingly strong
    • They think strong is the opposite of gentleness and kindness instead of being the opposite of weak
    • Daughters needs to see your strength and kindness
  • The belief that men/boys needs are the same as woman/girls needs
    • Both need gentleness but woman generally place a higher priority on it
    • If you gentle to your wife and you would want someone to be gentle toward you, it is too little
    • Your daughter is a woman in the making - he needs are going to much closer to your wife than your own
It is important what you say and much as how you say it

Do you give your daughter far more positive comments then negative?
Say something positive, then say "do better" next time?

2011-08-15 - Daughter Needs - Listening
Typical men communicate to transmit information
Typical women communicate to further a relationship

A daughter needs to be able to fully express herself before you start dispensing information
Listen fully and be like a good customer service rep, "Is there anything else?"
Or be a good detective or talk show host

Girls from 3-11 will come to you with a series of questions
Patiently answer each one - you are fulfilling her desire to build a relationship
Giving short answers will frustrate her

If you hear your daughter talk about her feeling, do so as well
If you do - what a dividend a father will reap

Next 25 >>