2008-10-31 - Man of Prayer - Forgiveness Forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors - Matthew 6:12 Debt = opheilema = owning money to another Colossians 2:13-14 - written charge was canceled charge or code = cheirographon = charges drawn up against a convicted criminal Roman business world - debt had been paid - "tetelsthai" was written across the note - meaning "paid in full" Some word was used to when the punishment was executed on a list of chrages Every failure on our part to do God's will is a charge against us - a long document for most Jesus cried - it is finished (John 19:30) was actually the word "tetelsthai" = PAID IN FULL |
2008-11-03 - Man of Prayer - Developing Spiritual Protection World is filled with unknown and dangerous supernatural enemies - the battlefield is out there Not against flesh and blood - but the spiritual forces of evil - Ephesians 6:12 We are part of a war of epic and eternal proportions that effect every area of our lives Many men are casualties of a war they don't know is being waged We are to prepared and equipped to wage this spiritual war One of the seven major components of prayer is developing spiritual protection Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one - Matthew 6:13 |
2008-11-14 - Man of Prayer - Meditation One may ask, where is the quiet listening part of prayer in this book God encourages us to be still and know that he is God - Psalms 46:10 Mature prayer is not intended to be a monologue, but a dialogue Christian meditation and Eastern meditation has to do with is in our minds as meditate Biblically based contemplation and meditation seeks not to empty the mind but fill it |
2008-12-12 - Raising Awesome Kids - Winning Obedience from Children (part 1) Discipline your son and he will give you give - Proverbs 29:17 From the very beginning children should learn to obey Our will and word will be supreme Repeating ourselves and louder each time is not true obedience - find ourselves frustrated, weary, and resentful
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2008-12-18 - Raising Awesome Kids - Dreary Disobedience (part 2) Israelites - if only we had meat; we never see anything but manna - Numbers 11:4-10 God met the needs of the Israelites but he punished them for their attitude - Numbers 11:33 Must teach our kids to be grateful |
2008-12-22 - Raising Awesome Kids - Power of Discipline (part 4) Be consistent - put up a fence and leave it there Parents must always be unified - never argue in fron of the kids - otherwise they will play you against each other Make a definite plan - have a family meeting and talk about your expectations Walk on the narrow/middle road of parenting - not child abuse; not a lack of discipline either |
2008-12-25 - Raising Awesome Kids - Gods Training Plan (part 3) These commandments... are to be upon your hearts (v. 6) Should train from the heart level Impress them on your children (v. 7) Training with the Scriptures must be done with great conviction, sincerity and earnestness Talk about them always (v. 7) Train consistantly - everywhere, anytime, anyplace About teaching our children how to live life - not nagging about their misdeeds Make it fun, doable, effective Most training should be spontaneous Never underestimate how many times we will have to say the same things over and over again |
2008-12-31 - Raising Awesome Kids - How to Nuture Confidence (part 1) Only proper foundation is their relationship with God Develops confidence without cockiness Stress a relationship with God Focus on character - Tell your children over and over again that heart and attitude matter to God Applaud effort than ability Two of three men were successful because of their efforts not their ability - Matthew 25 Enough openness
Search out your kids strengths - everyone has at least some It is your job to help children discover and succeed in those things |
2009-01-10 - Raising Awesome Kids - Close Family Is there any place where our weaknesses are exposed more than in our own homes? Most families are not that close Many families merely exist together without any deep love or enjoyment of one another
Four keys to having a close family:
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2009-01-21 - Jesus with People - Going Deeper We want to be know but we keep a safe distance John 4:39 - Samaritan women:
We too can be afraid of seeing who we really are To set people free, we must be like Jesus:
Jesus' love and acceptance allowed the woman/us to be real and to change |
2009-01-26 - Jesus with People - Nic at Night Some people's needs could be quickly dealt with: "Heal my blindness" or "Let me just touch your garment" But not Nicodemus, Jesus knew it would be a long night - John 3:1-3 Nicodemus, was a man looking for something:
Could this be right? Could Jesus be the Messiah? Jesus was straight to the point: I tell you the truth, you must be born again - John 3:3 Nicodemus knew he could get time with Jesus and he did Who was intrumental in answering your questions and healping you see the truth? |
2009-02-05 - Jesus with People - Realness When it comes to friendship, Jesus again sets the standard Jesus knew John:
Incredible thing about John is that it would seem that he never doubted Jesus' love He refered to himself 5 times as the "disciple that Jesus loved" |
2009-02-09 - Jesus with People - Heart Determined to Persevre Nothing test our determination like opposition Satan is trying to discourage, dissuade, distract, and divide If we get focused on the persecution or persecutors - renders us ineffective and unproductive Pharisees ____ Jesus :
His purpose was not to avoid pain but to please God - John 4:34 Must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day - Luke 13:32-33 God has not called us to defend or protect ourselves - we are then only working for ourselves and not will be doing nothing for God |
2009-02-17 - Jesus with People - Widows Physical Sacrifice Physical sacrifice is central to our commitment to Jesus Physically, priorities must be set, reexamined and set again God will help us discern what we can give physically God is capable of giving his strength when ours is failing Paul learned to rely on the Lord through physical suffering - 2 Corinthians 1:3-9 God grace is sufficient Each of us, with the help of God must live physically sacrificial lives daily - Philippians 2:12 Sacrifice is our act of worship - Romans 12:1 |
2009-02-22 - Jesus with People - Daily Unconditional Love Jesus was tempted in every way we are but was without sin - Hebrews 4:15 How could he put up with this day after day? Jesus was in complete submission of God's will:
How Jesus' heart must have ached when teaching:
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2009-02-23 - Jesus with People - Will He Find Faith? Luke 18:1-8 - Jesus tells of a parable about praying not giving up; concluding, 'will he find faith on the earth?' After Jesus was crucified and resurrected he could have gone home to the Father but chose to remain with his friends again He wanted to know their hearts. Where was their faith? - They still did not get it He did not walk away in disgust and give up on them |
2009-03-01 - Promises of God - Practical and Powerful Promises Since the promises of God can relied on, it can have powerful affect on how we view life and how we live it Psalms 119 - Shows us the relationship of God to spiritual life Psalms 119:50 - God's promises enable him to press on and not give into dispair Psalms 119:140 - Again and again he has relied on God's promises and has come to value them Psalms 119:148 - Deep conviction about focusing on the promises, keep him up Psalms 119:154 - When he is threatened and in danger, remind the Lord of his promises Psalms 119:162 - Promises of God is a treasure to him |
2009-03-04 - Promises of God - Forgiving Others By the time we are old enough to understand, we have hurt and been hurt so many times - we need forgiveness and so do others The definition of a dysfunctional relationship: the inability to solve conflict and forgive Hugh obstacle: We can not truely forgive until we have experienced forgiveness Once we are forgiven, we are obligated to forgive others - Matthew 18 Our sins against each other pale in comparison to our sins against God |
2009-03-09 - Promises of God - The Problem is Me Deuteronomy 4:29 - Find God when we seek him with all of our heart Repentance must be proven by our deeds - Acts 26:20 Praise God for his faithful correction - Proverbs 3:11-12 God hates sin, takes sin of idolatry, personally - Deuteronomy 6:15 Sin comes when we lower the standard of commitment in our lives and allow ourselves to become lazy, selfish and self-indulgent Being idolatrous and lukewarm is a serious sin against God - Revelation 3:16 Against God, his church, and the souls that are not saved as a result |
2009-03-23 - Promises of God - Run to God's Word Like sin, the very nature of weariness is hostile to radical change Running is the last thing I feel like doing with I lethargic and tired - but it is exactly what I need to do Our spirits often resist the Word when we need it the most. There is power in the Word and it can revive us over and over again I lie prone in the dust; revive me according to your - Psalms 119:25 |
2009-04-12 - Promises of God - God is Still Faithful You gave into the temptation again, you sinned It is the same one and you have never been able to completely conquer this one area of your life What are your options?
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2009-05-28 - No one like him - Conflict and Controversy (part 1) Established positions were threaten Again and again Jesus said “You have heard it said … but I say to you…” Some say Jesus was the ultimate nice person but he was a prophet (reputation for being offensive) Examples in Matthew 23:
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2009-06-22 - A Life of Impact - Nonconformist Mark 2:15-17 Nonconformist
Protector
Challenger
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2009-06-26 - A Life of Impact - Discipliner Discipliner Mark 3:31-35
Discernment
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2009-07-16 - A Life of Impact - Scout Scout Mark 8:14-21
Rebuke
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2009-07-17 - A Life of Impact - Second effort Second effort Mark 8:22-26
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2009-08-09 - A Life of Impact - The Warning The Warning Mark 13:1-37
The Spark Mark 14:1-2
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2009-08-25 - Wild at Heart - God loves wilderness (part 1) Most of the earth is not safe, but it is good. God called it good in the beginning He prefers adventure, danger, risk, and the element of surprise Most of us try to reduce the element of surprise God took a risk with Adam and Eve – they had the chance to disobey him Example of no-perfect situations:
He loves to show that he has what it takes It is not God’s nature to limit risks or cover all the bases Let the odds stack up against him! He starts with most unlikely:
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2009-09-05 - Wild at Heart - Battle for a mans heart (part 1) Jesus told us to turn the other cheek. We can not turn a cheek we do not have. Church full of such men Many have their soul hanging in the balance because no one invited them to be dangerous and to know their own strength or to discover they have what it takes I feel like I have to ask for permission Nearly every blow ends up falling in the same place - against our strength Life takes one vertebra at a time until he has no spine at all Boy are 3-4 times more likely to be diagnosed as suffering from ADD Society teaches to be a nice guy -– to be soft Women are often attracted to wilder men, but once have caught him they settle down to task of domesticating him How do I get my husband to come alive? Invite him to be dangerous Women don’t start wars Violent crimes aren’t really committed by women. Our prisons aren’t filled with women |
2009-09-10 - Wild at Heart - False self (part 1) Place of our woundedness we construct a false self People can shutdown their heart and focus on what they are good at - Spock like Can become a perfectionist An impostor - don’t ever be your real self anymore because nobody likes you as you are As a defense against pain It becomes OUR plan for salvation - will fail time and time again until we give up God must take it away Those plans to protect and save us will actually destroy us - leads to death - Proverbs 16:25 Seems right to shield ourselves from pain and to save a little love There is a critical point in every man’s life True test of a man is when he starts to longer rely on what he’s used all his life Not women want a man that just exists |
2009-09-16 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 2) David, THE WARRIOR, writes
The father treats like his son
False self is an elaborate defense against entering our wounded heart – chosen blindness |
2009-09-21 - Wild at Heart - The Enemy (part 2) A warrior is cunning. When to fight and when to run Three enemies:
We want the easy way out Your flesh is a weasel, a poser, and a selfish pig. And your flesh is not you. Paul knew the struggle within – my sin is not me – this not my true heart - Romans 7 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you - Ezekiel 36:26 There is a war within us, but it is a civil war. There is a traitor within who wars against our true heart fighting alongside the Spirit of God The real you is on the side of God against the false self. The man who wants to live valiantly will lose heart quickly if he believes that his heart is nothing but sin We are never told to crucify our heart We are never told to kill the true man with in us Never told to get rid of those deep desires for battle and adventure and beauty |
2009-09-29 - One Another - Differences (part 2) Conviction and Acceptance How we blend conviction with an equally deep level of acceptance? We need to understand that some convictions can be disputable matters Accept those whose faith is weak - Romans 14:1 Accept one another in order to bring praise to God - Romans 15:7 Example: It is OK to treat one day more special to worship God than another day - Romans 14:5-6 Even if the conviction is misguided - we sin if go against it
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2009-10-05 - One Another - Admonishing One Another "noutheteo" meaning to or counsel, translated admonish:
Not uncommon to pay to have a life couch We should have a # of relationships with people who know us and can help We must also realize that we can give others couching as well |
2009-10-10 - Wild at Heart - The Strategy (part 3) 2. Intimidation Our condition may become normal to use after a while - depression If you pray and fight against – It will get worse. Once the Enemy is discovered, he usually does not just roll over and die. Jesus says get tough and resist the onslaught Next level Satan tries intimidation and fear He wants you to agree with intimidation because he fears you Fighting back, he will lose – Resist the devil and he will flee – James 4:7 Why do so many pastor’s kids go off the deep end? Evil One is trying to an old tactic – strike first and maybe the opposition will run He can’t win, you know God is with us “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you” – Joshua 1:5 The Lord is a warrior, the Lord is his name – Exodus 15:3 How did Jesus win the battle against Satan? God was with him Doesn’t simply mean that he’ll be around - he will fight for us Satan is trying to appeal to the traitor’s commitment to self-preservation when he uses fear and intimidation. So as long as we are back in the old story of saving our skin, looking out for Number One, those tactics will work. Become a warrior The most dangerous man on earth is the man who has reckoned with his own death. All men die, few men ever really live. |
2009-10-12 - Wild at Heart - The Strategy (part 5) We don’t need accountability groups we need fellow warriors, someone to fight alone side, someone to watch our back We don’t need a meeting of the Really Nice Guys Never a more devoted group of men than those who have fought alongside one another You will be wounded To lose a leg is nothing compared to losing heart Enemy knows the wounds of your past and he will try to wound you again in the same place It is an honor to be wounded in the service of the Lord Boys are proud of their scars, they are badges of honor Kingdom forcefully advances and forceful men take hold of it - Matthew 11:12 Jesus says it is going to take every ounce of passion and forcefulness you’ve got |
2009-10-13 - Wild at Heart - A Beauty to Rescue Evil power who holds her captive Only a champion may win her Every little girl knows the fable without ever being told Little boys rehearse their parts Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Romeo and Juliet and so on Strong man coming to rescue a beautiful women is universal and human nature Why is it ten years later I wondered if I even wanted to be married to her anymore? Why do most us get lost somewhere between “once upon a time” and “happily ever after”? Our culture has grown cynical about the fable We have not been poisoned by fairy tales Many guys think that the biggest battle was asking her out She is the special target of the Evil One He turns most vicious malice against her If he can destroy her or keep her captive, he can ruin the story |
2009-10-19 - Wild at Heart - An adventure to live (part 2) Most spend the energy of their lives trying to eliminate risk Their children hear “no” far more than they hear “yes” If a man succeeds in securing his life against all risk, he will wind up in a cocoon of self-protection and wonder why he is suffocating Seizing upon some sort of competence and rejecting anything that cannot be controlled This a refusal to trust God and reach out for control – runs deep in every man False self’s desire is to have power over experience – to control events and consequences - Mark 8:36 Too may men forsake their dreams because they aren’t willing to risk or fear they aren’t up to the challenge or are never told that those desire of the heart are good Soul of a man isn’t made for controlling things His job is charter to explore, build, conquer, and care for all creation If you had permission to do what you really wanted to do, what would you do? "How" is a faithless question – How is God’s department… Ask "what" What is written on your heart? What make you come alive? Don’t ask yourself what does the world need. Ask yourself what make you come alive and go do that because what the world needs is people who have come alive I’ve met men who’ve used advice like it was permission They are deceived about what they really want Goal of Christian discipleship is the transformed heart We move from boy who needs the Law to the man who is able to live by the Spirit of the Law Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit then you won’t feed on compulsion or selfishness |
2009-11-13 - Repentance - Godly Sorrow (part 1) Are you content with four out of seven, even five out of seven? Spoude – Dispatched Diligence
Literally means “same” – “homo” = word; “logos” = reasoning |
2009-11-14 - Repentance - Godly Sorrow (part 2) Aganaktesis – Indignation Conducts a search-and-destroy mission for every potential excuse for sinPhobos – Alarming Fear Although God hates sin and not the sinner – still it is the sinner that goes to hellEpipothesis – Longing Through fear, we recognize that sin alienates us from God |
2009-11-18 - Repentance - The Church Reorients Us (part 2) Bible says if your brother sins again you – go and point out his sin Must repentance as a whole Church repentance – 41 times Individual repentance – 11 times Not usual in the world Football team at half-time Company changes due to market conditions All churches sin; not all repent Some spin their shortcoming, craft reasonable explanations, minimize damage to reputation, issue statements Questions
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2009-11-20 - Repentance - Its Time To Go Home (part 2) Where are you on this path? Are you part of “all people, everywhere”? Good, you quality for the command to repent – Acts 17:26-27; 30-31 Ignorance of Jesus perpetuates a self-focused paradigm Jesus is Lord – changes our heart, mind-set, allegiances, purpose, and agenda Subsequent repentance has lesser fan fare (like 2nd to the moon or Mt. Everest Satan doesn’t want you to know that he created your dilemma His scheme:
Shame is the greatest obstacle to post-baptismal repentance How to escape? You already have – Trust god’s grace Light is not a place of condemnation |
2009-12-04 - Master Plan - Proof of Love (part 2)
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2009-12-06 - Master Plan - Jesus gave himself away (part 2)
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2009-12-12 - Master Plan - Supervision (part 1) He kept check on them
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2009-12-18 - Master Plan - The Plan (part 1) Life has a plan
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2009-12-24 - First the Kingdom - Key to everything else The first beatitude is the key to whole sermon on the mount By ourselves we can not live out the sermon - we need help from God
Does this describe you? Would God describe you this way? |
2010-01-16 - Kingdom First - Above and Beyond (part 2) If someone forces you to go one mile; go two - Matthew 5:41-42 3. Addressed going to the extra mile Roman law said you were required to carry a certain amount of baggage to another place Such a law and its frequent use of it cause great resentment among the Jews Jesus said we should go beyond what our authorities required Message condemns any resentment we may feel against a legitimate authority If reform seems necessary, we should seek it - 1 Corinthians 7:21-23 Should be done with lawful means God demonstrates his own love for us He gave up revenge, rights, and his energy for us While we were sinners, Christ died for us - Romans 5:6-7 |
2010-01-30 - One Another - Confession Lessons Sin is still a reality - even in Christ God uses relationships to transform us Everyone who seek these relationship will find themselves either being the one sinning or the one being sinned against Christ has freed us to be real We no longer have to prove anything No longer have to pretend or conceal Love of Christ compels us and reminds us and reassures us We should not be shocked or disillusioned when someone confesses Will we look down on others like the Pharisee did in Jesus' parable - Luke 18? Or will we see we all are capable of bad things in need of grace? Sooner we can walk in the light, the better Longer something stays concealed, the more demons of darkness have time to work |
2010-02-01 - One Another - Confession Questions (part 2) What is the power of confession? a. It brings the forgiveness of sin and purifies us from all unrighteousness - 1 John 1:7-9 b. Confession brings fellowship with God and with brothers and sisters - 1 John 1:7-9 Confession is just not good for the soul, it is good for other's souls and unity c. Confession represents a strong stand against Satan Resist the devil and he will flee - James 4:7 d. Confession is contagious - one person's confession can encourage another's confession |