Quiet Times Search

• Hospital worker = God's minister to the medical professionals
• Factory worker = sweating it out for the Lord
• Programming = designing and mental stress for the Lord

God wants you to grow up - some grow older but never grow up (Ephesians 4:14-15)

Nothing shapes your life than the commitments you make
Many are afraid to commit to anything and drift through life

God's part and your part

Our part is to: Continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling - Philippians 2:12-13

Our role = "work out" salvation (grow - in a body workout we have our body but we make it better)
God's role = "work in" us

Changing your autopilot

Becareful what you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts - Proverbs 4:23
Changing what you think, changes you

Going on a diet, exercising does not work if you do not change your thinking - "I am going on a diet"

The way you think determines the way you feel - which influences how you act - Ephesians 4:23

Babies by nature are completely selfish
Many never grow beyond that kind of thinking

It is not the amount of biblical information and doctrine you know
Deeds must be constant with our creeds / Beliefs backed up with Christlike behavior

1. We are slow learners - Israelites are a great example of this
2. We have a lot to unlearn (bad habits) - Taking off the old self and putting on the new self - Romans 13:12 

• We can not grow without a humble, teachable attitude

3. Growth is often painful and scary

• There is no growth without change
• There is no change without fear or loss
• There is no loss without pain
• Must let go of old ways in order to experience the new way

4. Habits take time to develop - Practice and devote yourself to growth - 1 Timothy 4:15
   

• Abraham was old
• Jacob was insecure
• Leah was unattractive
• Joseph was abused
• Moses stuttered
• Gideon was poor
• Samson was codependent
• Rahab was immoral
• David has an affair and many family problems
• Elijah was suicidal
• Jeremiah was depressed
• Jonah was reluctant
• Nomi was a widow
• John the Baptist was eccentric
• Martha worried a lot
• Samaritan women had several failed marriages
• Peter was impulsive and hot-tempered
• Zacchaeus was unpopular
• Thomas had doubt
• Paul had poor heath
• Timothy was timid

It is important to understand certain principles apply to receiving our daily bread
If we meet God's conditions, we can have confidence that He will provide

1. Need  to have a proper relationship with God - Become a Christian
2. Fellowship with Christ - authentic spiritual communion with Christ
3. Obedience and faithfulness to God's commands

Haggai 1 - we need to consider our ways

• Planted much, but harvested little
• Eat, but never have enough
• Drink, but still thirsty
• Put clothes on, but never warn
• Earn wages only to put them in a purse with holes in it

Because of there repentance, they were rewarded:

• I am with you - Haggai 1:13
• I will bless you - Haggai 2:19
• I will provide for you - Haggai 2:15-19

• Mocked
• Questioned him (harshly)
• Spied on him
• Confronted him
• Laid traps for him
• Falsely accused him
• Threatened him
• Joined forces with their opponents to plot against him

There were a lot of relationship issues that needed to be corrected in first book of Corinthians:

1. They were divided into cliquish groups - Chapter 1-3
2. Became arrogant in their relationship with Paul - 1 Corinthians 4:18-19
3. Lawsuits with each other - Chapter 6
4. Left their spouses just because they were not Christians - Chapter 7
5. Offending other's conscience - Chapter 8
6. Acted insensitively toward the poorer members - Chapter 11
7. Who had the greatest gift (selfish competition) - Chapter 12-14

Expectation

Mark 1:1

• He expected a lot out of Himself
• He knew he was born to save the world
• Wallow in self-pity, to cower in fear, or simply giving up is inappropriate behavior

Mark 1:2-8 - People consistently live up to the perceptions others have of them

Encouragement

Mark 1:9-11

• He told him that he was special
• God is a god who initiates love
• How would we change if we realized the amount of love God has for us

Gentleness

Mark 1:29-34

• At times we need to raise our voices and push in order to get things done.
• At the same time using gentle tone and pitching in to help will accomplish far more good.

Fueling

Mark 1:35-39

• People who love sleep don’t usually change the world
• Jesus slept when he had the time
• Jesus was extremely eager to pray
• Most of us live with only a vague idea of purpose
• Our personal ministries – can be tempted to lose the fire, to settle down, and get comfortable
• We laugh and patronize at younger friends who are “idealist, zealots, and radicals

Reinvestment of Dividends

Mark 5:18-20

• Jesus didn’t surround himself with people who owed him a great amount of debt.
• We viewed their gratitude to him to channeled to help others
• Few people are grateful for the Lord when He work powerfully, yet fewer accept their obligation to proclaim.

Tenderness

Mark 5:21-34

• The women was afraid that she had done an evil thing in touching Jesus’ clothes
• She had suffered from the effective treatments that the doctors had given her.
• Greek word for healed = saved.
• He didn’t babble but told the woman what she needed to hear.

Assertiveness

Mark 5:35-43

• He took charge of the situation and his surrounds
• Why have we not acted as Jesus did?

Fear Sensitivity

• Jesus didn’t say a word to those who doubted
• Assertiveness without sensitivity can be offensive and counterproductive

A Simple charge

• “Don’t be afraid, just believe”
• He didn’t burden him with lots of words
• Excessive amount of teaching may cloud the main issue

Privileging

• Peter, James, and John were closest to Jesus
• Jesus narrowed his focus to help the build leaders to their full potential.

Consideration

• A little consideration can go a long ways
• Ideas: buy someone lunch, remember people’s birthdays
• Be alert to meeting other people’s needs

• Where are those ideas coming from?
• Where are those feelings coming from?
• We are unaware of his schemes – 2 Corinthians 2:11
• We look for a psychological or a physical explanation for every trouble we meet

• 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

• On the job training – let followers have experience or make some observations of their own
• Gave them greater awareness of their deficiencies
• Kept disciples going toward the goal He had set before them.
• He did not expect more from His disciples than they could do
• He did expect their best
• We never assume the work is done. Ask lots of question / probe.
• There are many things that can happen to frustrate, discouraged or defeated.
• The goal is world conquest.
  • Never dare to let a lesser concern capture us.
  • No further training or inspiration needed.
  • Focus can easily be on us.
• The ability of a worker is not developed if there is no supervision
• Our little efforts can be a excuse for not doing more.
• We can lose the advantage years of hard work and sacrifice.
• Disciples must be brought to maturity
• We have not been called to hold the fort but storm the heights.

• Strict observers of the law
• Walked around in flowing robes
• Offered prayers in unnatural holy voices
• Advertised their benevolence
• Majored in the minors yet forgetting the heart

• Boring clergy in odd clothes
• Preaching burdensome dos and donts
• Unrelatable sermons
• Unrelatable lives

• Have you created your own system of salvation?
• Do people say you are a people pleaser (Galatians 1:10)?
• Are we steeped in our own traditions or preconceived notions about the truth?
• What if no one was watching, would you still: give, sing, pray, study the same?

Although is righteousness that is not our own becomes laziness, we show we have the grace of God - Philippians 3:12-16

Despite all that Paul went through and has done - he pressed on
Greek word, dicoko = used in both hunting and foot racing

There is certainly a time to remember what we have done - 2 Thessalonians 2:5
But there is also a time to forget

Paul did not cling to the fact that he planted a lot of churches
He purposely "forgot", so he would not see himself as arriving

Paul was looking forward to the next thing God had in store for him
All who are mature, should think this way

The way to take it higher is to hold on to what you have already grasped and then reach for more

• My upbringing is less than perfect
• I'm different
  
• I need lots of sleep
• I am a young Christian
• I am an old Christian
• I used to be worse

Zealot = a man who aims at overthrows

Jesus mission was to overthrow Satan's ruling government over the earth

1 John 3:7-8
• Jesus came to destroy Satan
• A zealot has a cause
• What was Jesus' cause?
  • Save man from hell
  • Save man from himself
  • Save man from Satan
Matthew 26:50-55
• They saw Jesus as a renigade

Cause worth living for

Luke 9:25
• What good is it?
• What would you write down as things that you are trying to gain?
• Living for Jesus is living life to the full

Luke 10:10
• Sometimes life is not fair
  • Through salvation (Judgement) comes fairness
• We hurt ourselves with the question "WHY?"
  • Like we can demand an answer from God
2 Corinthians 5:14
• Love compels us not out of duty