2008-08-17 - 30 Days at the Cross - Do not Come Down! Jesus was tempted with the words, "save yourself, come down from the cross If they understood the eternal significance of the moment, they would have cried "No, Jesus! Do not come down!" Jesus was tempted:
Our mission is the same (Luke 9:23) - must deny self and lose our life for others We must quit looking for some new,easy approach and decide to love The world is screaming out: "Save yourself! Come down from the cross!" Jesus cries: "Do not come down!" |
2008-09-01 - Teach Us To Pray - Hungry and Thirsty (part 2) We must Desire God Alone Many people fail to have satisfying prayer lives because they are double-minded when they pray Must do our best to rid ourselves of distractions Unless you passionately fight for time alone with God, it will not happen God Blesses the Hungry Heart When we pray righteously, it allows God to work powerfully in our lives
No hungry heart will ever be turned away |
2008-09-05 - Teach Us To Pray - Eager to Act Nehemiah 4:6-9 - Nehemiah prayed to for the walls of Jerusalem to be rebuilt Nehemiah turned his theology into biography He prayed to a powerful God, but it did not end there; he was ready and eager to act Many times we pray (talk) and then sit back (no walk) waiting for a miracle to happend Nehemiah prayed often and spontaneously - 1:4, 4:4, 5:19, 6:9, 13:14, 22, 29, 31 He is prayers were followed by:
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2008-09-14 - Teach Us To Pray - Our Daily Bread Many of us have little concern about having food Other things can distract us like: finding a job, paying off debt, development of our children Satan schemes to blind us God Worry definition:
If the enemy can get us to be preoccupied, it destroys our effectiveness as disciples He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom - Isaiah 40:28-31 Our Father is the God of the universe; nothing is too great for him |
2008-10-05 - Man of Prayer - Name In Jesus' day, a person's name reflected one's character God had powerful encounters with an individual, he would change the person's name with the change in them Halllow mean to treat with great reverence Focusing our thoughts helps lead to a response of worship Many focus on telling God their needs, need to focus on God Seek first his kingdom - Matthew 6:33 In interpersonal communication, remember a person's name is very important Moses asked God, "Who shall I say sent me?" God answered, "Tell them I AM has sent you" YHWH (Yahweh) is the proper name of the living God God is the God who is, who causes to be, and who will be who He will be Thinking about God in this way gets my focus on Him |
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 |
2008-11-05 - Man of Prayer - The Flesh (part 2) Sinning is easy; it comes naturally Fruits of that new nature - Galatians 5:22-23 Jesus fought the battle with scripture - He said "It is written" many times while responding to others God promises that we will not be tempted more than we can bear - 1 Corinthains 10:13
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2008-11-11 - Man of Prayer - Perfect Pattern (part 1) People don't get into shape because they don't know what to do or how to get going Learning how to start slow and build gradully plays a critical role in getting into shape The practice if prayer has the same dynamics 1. Am I properly positioned to pray?
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2008-11-12 - Man of Prayer - Perfect Pattern (part 2) Continued for yesterday's review of the book 3. Where Do I need divine intervention? Ask Him to bring the power of His kingdom to:
Many of our anxieties in life are related to wants rather than needs Learn to live in God's kingdom provision with contentment 5. Where have i failed/sinned? - confusion 6. Have I developed spiritual protection?
7. What do I need to remember today? |
2008-11-19 - Raising Awesome Kids - Husband and Father Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her - Ephesians 5:25-6:4 Our relationship with our father is, in many ways, the defining relationship in all of our lives Our response to authority and our self-confidence comes from our father Responsibility of training children squarely upon the father Fathers...bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord - Ephesians 6:4 |
2008-12-03 - Raising Awesome Kids - Love Your Children For some, children are a burden Some, kill the unborn Withholding your love is killing them from the inside Many children their parents problems simply because they do not feel loved To those who are failing to love their children - now is the time to repent Otherwise you will ruin your children, wreck your life, and lose your chance of going to heaven Whoever welcomes a little child welcome me (Jesus) Whoever causes one of them to them to sin - better to a large millstone around your neck and drown in the sea - Matthew 18:5-6 |
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 |
2009-01-08 - Raising Awesome Kids - Evangelistic Lifestyle Something the whole family should think about constantly Each child has a role in reaching another family Too many of us separate our families from our outreach to others Our families are the brightest light that God can use to illuminate a dark world
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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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2009-01-12 - Raising Awesome Kids - Genuine Appreciation Appreciation for one another does not come about by accident Must teach it, talk about it, show it and confront the ways the kids are not expressing it - only way Cultivate appreciation by creating as many situations as possible where it expressed in words Encourage your family to begin expressing respect, appreciation, and encouragement - whole atmosphere will change Pleasant words are sweet to the soul - Proverbs 16:24 Teach your older children how to lead and teach your younger ones how to follow
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2009-01-22 - Jesus with People - Finding Faith Jesus was in ahuge crowd and suddenly a Roman centurion walks up to Jesus - Matthew 8:5-10 NT centurions are often mentioned with honor:
Lord, my servant lays paralyzed and in terrible suffering - Matthew 8:5-6 Jesus was moved by the man's heart - I will go and heal him Lord, I don't deserve to have you under my roof - Matthew 8:8 Say the word and he will be healed - Matthew 8:8 Jesus did not find anyone in Israel with such faith |
2009-01-23 - Jesus with People - Touching the Untouchable Jesus had compassion and healed the man with leprosy - Luke 5:12-18 Jesus was different:
What Jesus did we can also do (beside healing):
Society shrinks back - hospitals are not our favorite place Somehow, we think that the person is responsible for his or her condition Job "friends" did not understand what God was doing How can I imitate Jesus by "reaching out" in compassion to the sick? |
2009-01-24 - Jesus with People - Feeling the Pain Luke 7:11-17 - He said, "Don't cry", Jesus chose to be vulnerable to everyone's pain:
Jesus compassion knows no bounds Are you praying to stretch the capacity of your heart to feel deeply with many others? Is your lack of openness (rooted in fear of the sin of pride) blocking your passion and compassion? |
2009-01-29 - Jesus with People - God Come Looking John 9:25 - One thing I do know, I was blind and now I see
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2009-02-02 - Jesus with People - Seeing and Not Seeing Luke 7:36-50 - Simon, I have something to tell you Jesus is able to cut through the muck - right to the heart He had outspoken clarity - Luke 7:40 In truth Simon saw neither the woman or himself for how they really were Jesus did see the woman - Her sin was obvious as her brokenness He actions came from her new sense of reality Once she saw Jesus, she responded the only way she could have - compelled by love - 2 Corinthians 5:14 Jesus' words should have cut Simon deeply - But he who has been forgiven little lives little He wants to have a relationship with us Think of trying to have a relationship with ant - talking with it, caring for it and especially dying for it - it is unfathomable! How many times did Jesus change people's view if God? Who am I most like: Simon or the sinful woman? |
2009-02-03 - Jesus with People - Give or Take? World seem to be divided into givers and takers Usually we feel as though we are the givers and everyone else is a taker We can draw back and become cynical - before long we cling to possessions, our rights or our feelings At that point we have become takers We would never admit it - and many of us do not see it Jesus meet a man that was a taker - Matthew Matthew was no different than us - he probably had a family with mouths to feed As he left the office and crept closer toward the crowd surrounding Jesus He heard the words - You must deny yourself and take up your cross and follow me Jesus then walked up to Matthew and said "Follow me" His life changed forever - became a disciple of Jesus How did Jesus know? do it? Jesus knew that he was sick and need to get well - Mark 2:17 We need to see people as they ready are and what they can become Is there some in your life you can share with but haven't because you don't think they are open? |
2009-02-25 - Jesus with People - Faithful Thomas John 20:24-29 - Thomas with Jesus Thomas selection as a disciple was solid:
Yet something happened to his faith during Jesus' death... |
2009-02-27 - Promises of God - Standing on Promises For no matter how many promises God has made, they are all "Yes" in Christ - 2 Corinthians 1:20-22 Promises from others and one we have made > can make us highly skeptical about promises They represent efforts to pacify us at the moment; the promiser does not usually have to fulfill the promise immediately Does he promise and not fulfill? - Numbers 23:19 God fulfills his promises - every last one of them God is:
A promise from God is as good as fact |
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 |
2009-03-16 - Promises of God - Strength From Prayer Jesus had to overcome unfathomable temptation - Matthew 26:36-36 If he chose to follow through with his Father's will: humiliting insults, excruciating beatings, and agoninzing crucifixion would follow Jesus: If it's possible, may this cup be taken from me We should ask ourselves: How many hours have I wrestled with it in prayer? We must turn to God at the moment we are tempted - it may take hours but we will have great power to resist sin |
2009-03-20 - Promises of God - Lord Delivers May have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all - Psalms 34:19 Three types of trouble:
Our job is to trust God - John 14:1, 27 He may deliver us from trouble or he may deliver us by using the trouble to teach us important lessons Our eternal glory far out weights our momentary troubles - 2 Corinthians 4:17 |
2009-03-24 - Promises of God - Remember Gods Heros Scriptures have many examples of those who were tested, humbled, exiled or disciplined by God:
There was far greater blessing in store for them in God's own time |
2009-03-30 - Promises of God - God Sees and Cares When feeling that no really understands.... Did God cause this situation? Is here angry with me? Is he disappointed in my reactions? Does my fear mean I don't trust him? David displayed many of these emotions Even with these emotions, we also see a firm trust in God God so aware of the pain David was suffering that God kept a record of every tear that was shed - Psalms 56:8 |
2009-05-01 - No one like him - Differences from Jesus and the prophets (part 2) 4. Forgiving sins Prophets – God can forgive your sins5. Called himself “Son of Man” / Savior Prophets – God saves6. He is a judge Prophets – God judgesNo genuine prophet ever preached like this
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2009-05-07 - No one like him - His servant heart (part 2) Many ways to set our mind
Not looking for comfort Not about the way he looked Jesus saw himself as a servant, leading others to be servants How would this thinking change – marriage, family, church, workplace, neighborhood? Jesus was about meeting needs
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2009-05-10 - No one like him - His Courage Submissive yes, Timid and fearful, no. Submissiveness, not cowardly or silence – gave up self for others Wanted loyalty over their families and friends (Luke 14:25-27) They must give up everything for salvation (Luke 14:28-33) Who can accept it? (John 6:60) Many no longer followed him (John 6:66) 1. Rich young ruler found that Jesus’ message would not change for anyone (Luke 18:18-30) 2. Jesus never held back – Jesus and turning over tables of thieves
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2009-06-06 - One Another - Center of the Target Many people look at everything in God's will is the same weight - this leads to endless controveries over smaller details Jesus looked at God's will as a target Ex. Pharisees gave 1/10 of their spices but neglected the more important maters of the law - Matthew 23:23-24 Scriptures does not spell out what the second and third rings are Made it very clear what was at the center of the target |
2009-06-13 - A Life of Impact - Preparation Preparation Mark 1:12-13
The Message Mark 1:14-15
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2009-06-16 - A Life of Impact - Initiative and Authority Initiative Mark 1:21
Authority Mark 1:22-28
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2009-06-18 - A Life of Impact - Compassion Compassion Mark 1:40-45
Humility
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2009-07-06 - A Life of Impact - Forcefulness The Sending Mark 6:7-13
Forcefulness
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2009-07-09 - A Life of Impact - Toughness and Excellence Toughness Mark 6:45-46
Unwavering Excellence Mark 6:47-56
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2009-07-11 - A Life of Impact - A passion for truth Mark 7:14-23 - He had no stomach for the misdirection spread by the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law High Expectations
Blame
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2009-07-22 - A Life of Impact - Retreats Retreats Mark 9:30-32
Openness
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2009-08-01 - A Life of Impact - Anger Anger Mark 11:11-19
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2009-08-03 - A Life of Impact - Subtlety Subtlety Mark 12:1-12
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2009-08-11 - A Life of Impact - Connections Connections Mark 14:12-16
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2009-08-15 - A Life of Impact - Emotional Transformation (part 2) Openness
Deliberation
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2009-08-27 - Wild at Heart - Question that haunts every man (part 1) Men look in their hearts but they don’t discover something valiant and dangerous Find fear, lust, and anger "All men die, few men really ever live" Women - Many have given up hope for a true man. Real life of the average man seems a universe away from the desire of his heart
Why are men addicted to sports? - biggest adventure many will ever taste Careers? Same reason Trading stock – taste of excitement and risk Guys have been told to be responsible |
2009-08-29 - Wild at Heart - Question that haunts every man (part 3) What is a man for? Why does God create Adam? Desire reveals design – our design reveal God command to Adam – rule, subdue, be fruitful and multiply Explore, build, and conquer – take risk and danger (the catch) Something hinders us from living to the level of risk God invites us to God has a enemy and so do we There are many, many battles to fight on many different battlefields Before Eve is drawn from Adam’s side and leaved that ache that never goes away until he is with her. God does not tell Adam what he has done. No warning or instructions – temptation of eve God believes in Adam – he does not need a play-by-play book – this is what Adam is for Hebrew word “with her” – means elbow to elbow Adam was watching the whole thing unravel What does he do? Nothing He won’t risk, he won’t fight, he won’t rescue Eve |
2009-09-03 - Wild at Heart - The wound (part 3) Masculinity – boy craves (passed between men) Boys love to wrestle
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 |
2009-09-05 - 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 |
2009-09-07 - 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
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2009-09-12 - Wild at Heart - False self (part 3) Waling away from the false, we will feel vulnerable and exposed Tempted to turn to our comforters for relief Stop looking for women to validate you Passive men tiptoe around their wife for years, never wanting to rock the boat Violent men release anger on her Some dating men make her the sun of their universe but man needs a bigger obit than that He needs something to invite her into Many men do not offer her strength, but do drink from her beauty and are unable to commit |
2009-09-23 - Wild at Heart - The Enemy (part 4) The world is a carnival of counterfeits, counterfeit battles. Counterfeit adventures, counterfeit beauties Men should think of it as a corruption of their strength Battle your way to the top says the world and you will be a man World give a false sense of security
Want to know how the world really feels about you – start living out your true strength Say what you think, stand for the underdog, challenge foolish polices Many of us have actually been afraid to let our strength show up because the world doesn’t have a place for it |