2008-10-20 - Man of Prayer - Praying for the church leaders Should pray for the influence and empowerment of the leadership in the church (full-time staff and elders) They are the primary targets in the spiritual war If Satan can effectively compromise the the leadership in the church, he may keep believers from being effective The more a leader brings to the truth of God to the church, the more problems surface Actually creates greater demand on the staff - pray for refreshment and protection Pray for leaders to experience:
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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 |
2008-12-01 - Raising Awesome Kids - Love Love is of first importance. All else is secondary. Above all we should have love - 1 Peter 4:8 Lack of love, we are nothing - 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 We may lavish upon our children the finest things but if we do not make them feel loved, it is all to no avail If there is closeness and love between us and our kids, we have a place to stand and start for the battle of their hearts Build our families on love and our kids will be strong Kids are born with the capacity to love, but not all learn how |
2008-12-07 - Raising Awesome Kids - Respect (part 1) Honor you father and mother so it may go well with you - Ephesians 6:2-3 The issue of respecting authority is critical - opposite is arrogant, haughty, cocky attitudes How can we tell if our chidlren are disrepectful?
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2009-01-05 - Raising Awesome Kids - Discipling Times These are times set to spend alone time with your child to talk with them, teach them the Bible, and pray with them Can begin as soon as your child can communicate fairly well Never let discipling times become boring and burdensome duty Try to go somewhere out of the house if possible Try to have set hours Select a topic and verse to share Realize that there may be a different topic that need to be discuss depending on the situation Compare notes with your spouse Read verses together > Talk about them > Take action > Share with the rest of the family These are incredible times to draw your children closer to God and you |
2009-01-31 - Jesus with People - No Dogs in Heaven Matthew 15 - The Canaanite Women Jesus was silent and by his silent he tested and revealed both the hearts of his disciples and the heart of this woman Perhaps the instructions given earlier by Jesus send then to find the lost sheep of Israel was still in their mind Maybe thought: "he sent us to find the lost Israelite. too bad, she is a Gentile. Send her away." Jesus did not send her away but said - I was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel - Matthew 15:24 Jesus - it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their gods - Matthew 15:26 Savior was willing to be misunderstood in order to flush out faith or faithlessness in the heart of this woman In the end, Jesus affirmed her faith and admired her grit He did not see the woman as unsubmissive or rebellious or undeserving; he saw her as full of faith Jesus was more concerned about helping someone grow in their faith than he was keep up the nice-guy image |
2009-02-14 - Jesus with People - Jesus Won When Jesus first heard the news about Lazarus, Jesus declared that his illness was not going to be fatal - John 11:4 When Lazarus died, the disciples probably thought that he really blew it this time Good thing Jesus called lazarus by nameotherwise every corpse in cemetery may have come out The story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead foreshadows Jesus' own resurrection after three days in the tomb Jesus is a victor over death While some could not pay taxes for a while; no one but Jesus can conquer death Do you fear death? How does your relationship with Jesus change the way you once thought? |
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 |
2009-03-06 - Promises of God - You Call, He Answers Call me and I'll answer - Psalms 91:14-16 I can help others when I am confident that God is listening to and responding to my prayers When we lose faith that our prayers will be answered, we lose heart and our relationship with God withers We may not always give us the answer we want; he always responds for our good We must see the answers he gives and never doubt that he loves us |
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 |
2009-03-18 - Promises of God - Produces a Harvest Hebrews 12:11 - Discipline produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it Key ways to respond to God's discipline: Get Grateful Probably the most difficult thing to do during hardships It is the very thing that will help us to learn the important lessons God is trying to teach us Hunger for Holiness Media bombards us with devices, books, etc to make our lives easier God disciplines us for our good, we may share in his holiness - Hebrews 12:10 He is willing to watch his precious children to go through temporary pain for them have eternal peace Trust the Trainer We must trust him as the perfect trainer Training = something rigorous that stretches the trainee emotionally or physically God's discipline is exact what we need and he promises it is always for our own good |
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 |
2009-04-10 - Promises of God - How We Are to Give? Do not give as the world gives - John 14:27 Give to :
Fear may cause questions:
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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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2009-05-16 - No one like him - Jesus believed promises would become reality Luke 24:44 - Everything must be fulfilled Predictions by man may or may not come true; God's promises will and must come true Jesus saturated his preaching and teaching with references to scriptures |
2009-06-13 - A Life of Impact - Preparation Preparation Mark 1:12-13
The Message Mark 1:14-15
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2009-06-25 - A Life of Impact - Radical and Reasonability Radical Mark 3:20-22
Reasonability Mark 3:23-30
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2009-06-28 - A Life of Impact - Discernment and Productivity Discernment Mark 4:14-20
Productivity
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2009-07-03 - A Life of Impact - Assertiveness Assertiveness Mark 5:35-43
Fear Sensitivity
A Simple charge
Privileging
Consideration
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2009-07-16 - A Life of Impact - Scout Scout Mark 8:14-21
Rebuke
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2009-07-23 - A Life of Impact - Ambition Ambition Mark 9:33-35
Win/Lose/Win
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2009-07-27 - A Life of Impact - People oriented People oriented Mark 10:13-16
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2009-08-21 - Wild at Heart - Intro (part 3) What makes a man come alive? 1. Need a battle to fight
2. Needs an adventure to live
3. Needs a beauty to rescue
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2009-09-11 - Wild at Heart - False self (part 2) Enemy always tempts us to take back control and to recover and rebuild false self We must remember that it is out of love God stops our imposter God disciplines those he loves, do not lose heart - Hebrews 12:5-6 We must walk away from the false self Simply accept the invitation to leave all that we’ve relied on and venture out with God No clue to what your false self may be?
If you dominate meetings - sense of worth Do you face fears head on? Losing false self is painful Like losing a close friend Journey has pain but is toward freedom, healing, and authenticity |
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. |
2009-09-22 - Wild at Heart - The Enemy (part 3) Walk right into those situations you normally run from Speak right to the issues normally remain silent over If you want to grow in masculine strength, then stop sabotaging yours. Being wronged and saying that is OK, but furious inside This will push your strength down and eventually you will believe you do not have any. When you deny your anger, it turns to fear Sabotage also happens when we give our strength away Taking a bribe, refusing to confront an issue, sexual sin Sexual struggle is sin and a battle for his strength Start choosing to live out your strength and you’ll discover that it grows each time Stand your ground and begin to taste your true strength and you’ll want more Our strength is will and fierce and we are more than unsettled by what may happen if we let it arrive “I’m afraid I will do something bad if I let all this show up” – You will do something bad if you don’t Man’s addictions are a result of his refusing his strength Let people feel the weight of who you are and let them deal with it |
2009-10-06 - One Another - Speaking the Truth in Love Speaking the truth in love - Ephesians 4:15 Really what admonishing and good couching is Not speaking harshly or with anything other than their good in mind Example of any area of life to talk about:
Input not to stand in judgment but help one another to be transformed |
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. |
2009-10-13 - 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 |
2009-11-02 - Repentance - The Prophets (part 4) Prophets Transcend Public Opinion
Prophets Get to the Root to Produce Real Fruit
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2009-11-30 - Master Plan - He Required Obedience
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2009-12-07 - Master Plan - Demonstration (part 1) He showed them how to live
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2009-12-17 - Master Plan - Reproduction (part 4)
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2009-12-18 - Master Plan - The Plan (part 1) Life has a plan
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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 |
2010-01-22 - Kingdom First - Hungry and Humility (part 1) Not "If you fast" but "When you fast" - Matthew 6:16-18 Quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach Greek word for fasting is nesteno ne = a negative prefix esthio = to eat When was the last time you fasted? Why don't we fast more? 1. Fasting humbles us because it reminds us how frail we are I have humbled myself with fasting - Psalms 35:15 It is associated with confession and repentance of sin 2. Fasting tests our earnestness to move God to action Forcing us to admit that sometimes prayer alone may not suffice - Mark 9:29 Jesus talks about motivation for fasting We must surpass the righteous of the Pharisees and fast for God and not men - Matthew 5:20 God asks the people "was it really for me that you fasted?" - Zechariah 7:5 |
2010-02-23 - One Another - Reconciling with One Another (part 3) Examples of Conflict in the Bible Euodia and Syntyche - Philippians 4:2-3 1. Conflict happens - normal part of a relationship 2. The goal is to agree 3. We may need help from a third party David and the jealous king Saul - 1 Samuel 24:8-22 David's conduct with Saul was above reproach; He did everything he could to work things out If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people - Romans 12:18 There are things that depend on us and others that are out of our conotrl |
2010-02-25 - One Another - Forgiving One Another (part 1) Matters related to forgiveness: Forgiveness often is not easy Pain creates lasting memories The more deliberate the sin or the more we have invested in a relationship, the greater the pain Greater the pain = harder it is to forgive Forgiveness may be hardest in the church When we see sin in our brothers and sisters, there seems to be a much greater temptation of bitterness Satan's top-ranked scheme may be to lead us not to forgive Paul: I have forgiven in order that Satan might not outwit us - 2 Corinthians 2:9-11 If he can get us to forget the cross and create a different standard for our brothers and sister = victory for satan Sin can blemish the church but there is no uglier blemish than one cause by the lack of forgiveness |
2010-02-26 - One Another - Forgiving One Another (part 2) Other matters related to forgiveness: Forgiveness is the ultimate 'one another' trump card Love, which always forgives, can cover a multitude of sins - 1 Peter 4:8 Forgiveness must come from a grateful heart If forgiveness comes from anything other than a grateful heart, we lack the purity of heart Rid yourself of all bitterness, rage, and anger - forgiving each other as Christ forgave you - Ephesians 4:31-32 We must help one another forgive When a person is not forgiving, they grow bitter The sin of lack of forgiveness of someone may be greater than the actual offense See that no one misses the grace of God and no bitter root grows - Hebrews 12:14-15 Pain and anger are not resolved in a moment, but let us never doubt where we must end up |
2010-02-27 - One Another - One Another In Groups (part 1) Small groups were in the center of Jesus' ministry - spent much of his time with the 12 Principles of small groups Focus on belonging and being devoted - Romans 12:5 All belong to one another - members of one another These who have been united with Christ - this is your spiritual family Be a giver, not just a taker Always need great listeners (not just being quite) - ask questions, draw people out Do your part to make the group warm, loving, supportive, open, etc "I'm not getting much out from this group" - check your heart and actions Appreciate, affirm, and encourage the different gifts - 1 Corinthians 12 God has given our brothers and sisters for our enjoyment Give special focus to those who may feel marginalized by illness/disability |
2010-04-03 - Life to the Full - Dead or Alive? (part 3) God is just, his laws are just - this should give us great confidence God justice - does not guarantee life will be fair - James himself was executed in 62AD There is quite a difference between compassion and softness - James 2:8-13 The struggles to decide what to do, only God's perfect law can guide us:
Maybe the Ten Commandments? - If so, they would be wrong
A mark of true Christianity is adherence to these two laws Total commitment and total involvement As long these are two commands are the top priority, our focus will not be warped or unbiblical |
2010-04-10 - Life to the Full - Two Wisdoms (part 4) There are two sorts of wisdom: earthly and heavenly Do you have God's wisdom? - James 3:17-18
Is why the wise may turn out to be fools and the "foolish" may the wisest of all |
2010-04-14 - Life to the Full - Got to Pray (part 2) James 5:7-11 - Addresses patience in peace and in suffering Two examples of patience in suffering:
Jewish were very fond of oath-taking - Matthew 5:33-37 James may have been referring to rash oath-taking - Ecclesiastes 5:4-7 Rather than swearing (v12), we should pray (v13) No true disciple should need to take an oath since we must be men and women of our word Simply let our yes be yes and our no be no |
2010-05-15 - Desire's Journey - The Dilemma of Desire We can not live without yearning, yet the yearning sets us up for disappointment Because of its vulnerable nature, desire begins to feel like our worst enemy Despair is the fate of the desiring soul - Sam Houston Hope deferred make the heart sick - Proverbs 13:12 How awful it feels to open our hearts to joy, only to have grief come in How do we live in a world with desire so deep in us and disappointment lurking behind every corner? Are a few arrows, dare we even desire? Do we refuse to love because we may hurt? possibility of pain? Shutting down our hearts is to die altogether Hope deferred make the heart sick... but when dreams come true, there is life and joy Most of us have chosen to reduce our desire to a more manageable size We allow it only in small doses:
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2010-05-20 - Desire's Journey - Life to the Fullest I have come so you may have life to the full - John 10:10 Not: "I have come to exhaust you with long list of demands" Not only is eternal life duration but quality In him was life and that life was the light of men - John 1:4 People who aren't very good with keeping with a program are very aware of their soul's deep thirst for Jesus' message They tear off roofs The trample each other to get closer to him Have you seen anyone acting like this in order to join a church committee or to hear a sermon about a set of rules to follow? People act like this when it is a matter of life and death When life is at stake, human desire goes into desperation mode Pharisees missed the boat on this one Hearts were hardened by the very law they claimed would bring them life They killed their souls' thirst with duty and knowledge |
2010-05-26 - Desire's Journey - Faith as Desire First two servant doubled their investment and were rewarded When we bury our desires, we saying to God = 'I don't dare desire because I fear you; I think you are hard-hearted" Is our obedience more out of love or out of carefulness? Persistent widow - won he case because she refused to let up When Jesus returns, will he find faith? - Luke 18 To live with desire means:
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2010-06-17 - Jesus - The Healer (part 2)Causes of Sickness:Break Down of System Our spiritual immune system can break down:
You must be prepared: 1 Peter 4:1-11
Ephesians 5:10-18
Will you let him? |
2010-06-22 - Amazing Grace - how fearful the sound Preached on 2003-11-13 There is nothing we can do or not do to change it Psalms 103:8 - Grace is not a new concept for God Luke 9:51-56 - the disciples struggled with grace What fears do we have about grace? 1. Grace - produces lazy Christians We cannot control the freedom of others Acts 4:33 - much grace given and produced committed disciples 2. Grace - produces sinful Christians Grace exposes our hearts and gives us the responsibility to respond Romans 5:15-19 - Regulations is not grace - Grace is a mature concept What has grace produced in you? 3. Grace - produces weak convictions John 6:28-29 - Must believe - Belief is a work you must do Luke 13:2-9 - Repent or perish - Level of repentance and faith may be different for each person but baptism is the same for all. |