It seems to me that the cure for " the blues" is to serve other people. When I am involved in caring, praying for and serving other people I feel God's pleasure and sense a real purpose that goes beyond just surviving and paying bills.
Mark 10:45 For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
faith
Jesus said in Luke 17 that if you had faith the size of a mustard seed that you could tell a mulberry tree to move to the sea and it would obey you. Have you ever tried to move a tree before ? It's not easy. Last year I tried to move a small oleander out of our side yard and I couldn't do it. It took a large truck to move this thing after I had been digging for hours.
It seems like Jesus is saying: do you think this ____________ is impossible ? If you have faith... it can happen. I think I doubt to protect myself. I stay negative and pessimistic so I won't get my hopes up so that when it doesn't happen I can say : "well, I figured that..."
What builds your faith ? ( see Romans 10:17)
Faith comes from hearing...
and hearing by the word of Christ.
Application: how have you found ways to have Christ's word go through you ?
It seems like Jesus is saying: do you think this ____________ is impossible ? If you have faith... it can happen. I think I doubt to protect myself. I stay negative and pessimistic so I won't get my hopes up so that when it doesn't happen I can say : "well, I figured that..."
What builds your faith ? ( see Romans 10:17)
Faith comes from hearing...
and hearing by the word of Christ.
Application: how have you found ways to have Christ's word go through you ?
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
our stuff
In Luke 14, Jesus says that if you do not give up all your possessions, you cannot be His disciple.
What does this mean ?
What does this mean ?
Friday, July 17, 2009
me myself and I
I was thinking of Philippians 2 recently which talks about looking out for the interests of others and not just your own. So, I looked up some scripture that has to do with selfishness...
What are the explosives we use to destroy the tendency to act in a self seeking way ?
Explosive # 1 IDEAS
( Biblical ideas)
Biblical idea # 1 Jesus’ harshest condemnations were toward the Pharisees for being self indulgent.
“they clean the outside of the cup, but inside they are full of robbery and self indulgence..”
Do I want to align myself with the people Jesus often condemned for being self centered ?
Biblical idea # 2 God will “bring to an end” those who exalt themselves
Jeremiah 48:29-35 Moab was “self exalting”
V 35 “ I will make an end of Moab.”
Point: when you are selfish, you put yourself in competition with God
( see also I Samuel 2:10 Those who contend with the Lord will be shattered )
Even more: Nahum 1:9 “ Whatever you devise against the Lord, He will make a complete end of it. “
Self exalting people are in competition with God and He has said clearly in Isaiah 42:8, “ I will not share my glory with another.”
Biblical Idea # 3 Selfish people just make it worse on themselves
Isaiah 28:22 “ do not carry on as scoffers ( selfish people) or your fetters will be made stronger; For I have heard from the Lord God of Hosts of decisive destruction on all the earth.”
Biblical Idea # 4 the self ( the old self) is being corrupted
Ephesians 4:22 “ that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit…”
Why get on a train headed for derailment ?
What are the explosives we use to destroy the tendency to act in a self seeking way ?
Explosive # 1 IDEAS
( Biblical ideas)
Biblical idea # 1 Jesus’ harshest condemnations were toward the Pharisees for being self indulgent.
“they clean the outside of the cup, but inside they are full of robbery and self indulgence..”
Do I want to align myself with the people Jesus often condemned for being self centered ?
Biblical idea # 2 God will “bring to an end” those who exalt themselves
Jeremiah 48:29-35 Moab was “self exalting”
V 35 “ I will make an end of Moab.”
Point: when you are selfish, you put yourself in competition with God
( see also I Samuel 2:10 Those who contend with the Lord will be shattered )
Even more: Nahum 1:9 “ Whatever you devise against the Lord, He will make a complete end of it. “
Self exalting people are in competition with God and He has said clearly in Isaiah 42:8, “ I will not share my glory with another.”
Biblical Idea # 3 Selfish people just make it worse on themselves
Isaiah 28:22 “ do not carry on as scoffers ( selfish people) or your fetters will be made stronger; For I have heard from the Lord God of Hosts of decisive destruction on all the earth.”
Biblical Idea # 4 the self ( the old self) is being corrupted
Ephesians 4:22 “ that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit…”
Why get on a train headed for derailment ?
Thursday, July 2, 2009
pure joy
I went fishing in the mountains of northern New Mexico a few days ago and caught a few rainbow trout. I had a lot of time to think about life and the future. When I was younger, I would want to fish for 10 hours straight. As much as I still enjoy it, I found myself alone alot and wondering. What I discovered is that the thrill of catching fish for myself was not nearly as meaningful as watching my kids catch fish. When I finally got them into the river and they begin to catch fish for themselves, it was amazing. It made me think about enjoyment that is limited to yourself. It just doesn't mean as much. I read somewhere years ago that when we like something we want other people to enjoy it with us. The author said that "praise" not only expresses the enjoyment but completes it. We want to praise something/ someone and then tell someone else. Think about kids who want to tell you all about their new lego creation or the wife who wants to tell you about strawberries on sale at Albertson's. We have a desire for someone else to enjoy what we are enjoying. It really can't be just anyone... we want to tell our friends. I can tell a homeless person about the fish I caught... but if the right person sees me, then it means so much more.
Do you enjoy forgiveness for your sins ? Why don't we get more excited about telling other people about this ? I just wonder sometimes why we are so "into" the stuff we are into and yet we essentially ignore the commission Jesus gave us. I'm talking to myself here and wondering why I don't share my faith more. I'm tired, I've got too much to do, I'm intimidated and on and on... I heard someone say that in order to cast compelling vision you must be captured by that vision.
What are you captured by today ? Is the extent of your vision your wife's cooking and the remote control for 3 hours in the evening ? Is the extent of your vision an hourly wage and a three day weekend ? Do you ever stop to think about the reality of heaven and hell ? It's so easy to get focused on just "getting through the day" and paying the bills and mowing the lawn and planning the vacation and going to Sam's and cleaning the garage and ..... and ...and...
Luke 9 " He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God..."
Do you enjoy forgiveness for your sins ? Why don't we get more excited about telling other people about this ? I just wonder sometimes why we are so "into" the stuff we are into and yet we essentially ignore the commission Jesus gave us. I'm talking to myself here and wondering why I don't share my faith more. I'm tired, I've got too much to do, I'm intimidated and on and on... I heard someone say that in order to cast compelling vision you must be captured by that vision.
What are you captured by today ? Is the extent of your vision your wife's cooking and the remote control for 3 hours in the evening ? Is the extent of your vision an hourly wage and a three day weekend ? Do you ever stop to think about the reality of heaven and hell ? It's so easy to get focused on just "getting through the day" and paying the bills and mowing the lawn and planning the vacation and going to Sam's and cleaning the garage and ..... and ...and...
Luke 9 " He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God..."
Monday, June 1, 2009
Just John
I am reading through the book of Luke right now and came across some things regarding John the Baptist:
1. if you look at chapter 3 it lists all the important people of the time and their titles.... and then the text says...." the word of the Lord came to John... in the wilderness..."
2. When the listeners asked John, " how do we bear fruit in keeping with repentance ? " this is how he responded:
1. share your stuff
2. don't be greedy
3. don't lie
4. be content with your wages
So, the next time you are wondering what God's will is for your life, you can find it in Luke 3.
1. if you look at chapter 3 it lists all the important people of the time and their titles.... and then the text says...." the word of the Lord came to John... in the wilderness..."
2. When the listeners asked John, " how do we bear fruit in keeping with repentance ? " this is how he responded:
1. share your stuff
2. don't be greedy
3. don't lie
4. be content with your wages
So, the next time you are wondering what God's will is for your life, you can find it in Luke 3.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
mature
Colossians 1:28 says: “ We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching everyone so that we may present every man complete in Christ….”
The word for complete is “telos” or “mature.”
The same thing shows up in Hebrews 5:14 : “ But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”
I was talking to one of my friends in Birmingham and I asked him how he was doing spiritually and he said: “ how do you measure spiritual growth ? “ I thought this was a good question and when I thought about it, I went looking for answers in the Scriptures….here’s what I found:
A mature person is someone who exercises their gift in the church. ( Eph 4:13)
they are also equipped for service
they also equip others for service
2. I Corinthians 13 A mature person demonstrates love.
All of our giftings and knowledge without love amount to nothing.
3. A mature person works toward unity with other believers.
a. Philippians 2
b. I Corinthians 1;10
c. Amos 3:3
4. A mature person is a servant
a. Mark 10:45 “ For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. “
b.I Peter 4:11 ff
5. A mature person is mature in his thinking and an “infant” concerning evil.
a. I Cor. 14:20
6. A mature person is teachable. ( Colossians 1:28)
7. A mature person is able to discern good and evil even without a Bible verse. ( see also birth control, gambling, educational choices, etc…)
a. Hebrews 5:14
8. A wise man can receive correction. ( multiple proverbs)
9. A mature person brings forth vegetation. ( Hebrews 6)
- It makes sense to me that this would be related to Galatians 5 ( fruit of the Spirit)
- Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self control
10. A mature person is diligent ( not sluggish)
a. Hebrews 6:11-12
11. Mature people are people who give.
- Matthew 5:42 “ Give to him who asks you…”
12. Mature people love their enemies. ( Matthew 5:44)
13. Mature people pray for those who persecute them. ( Luke 6)
The word for complete is “telos” or “mature.”
The same thing shows up in Hebrews 5:14 : “ But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”
I was talking to one of my friends in Birmingham and I asked him how he was doing spiritually and he said: “ how do you measure spiritual growth ? “ I thought this was a good question and when I thought about it, I went looking for answers in the Scriptures….here’s what I found:
A mature person is someone who exercises their gift in the church. ( Eph 4:13)
they are also equipped for service
they also equip others for service
2. I Corinthians 13 A mature person demonstrates love.
All of our giftings and knowledge without love amount to nothing.
3. A mature person works toward unity with other believers.
a. Philippians 2
b. I Corinthians 1;10
c. Amos 3:3
4. A mature person is a servant
a. Mark 10:45 “ For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. “
b.I Peter 4:11 ff
5. A mature person is mature in his thinking and an “infant” concerning evil.
a. I Cor. 14:20
6. A mature person is teachable. ( Colossians 1:28)
7. A mature person is able to discern good and evil even without a Bible verse. ( see also birth control, gambling, educational choices, etc…)
a. Hebrews 5:14
8. A wise man can receive correction. ( multiple proverbs)
9. A mature person brings forth vegetation. ( Hebrews 6)
- It makes sense to me that this would be related to Galatians 5 ( fruit of the Spirit)
- Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self control
10. A mature person is diligent ( not sluggish)
a. Hebrews 6:11-12
11. Mature people are people who give.
- Matthew 5:42 “ Give to him who asks you…”
12. Mature people love their enemies. ( Matthew 5:44)
13. Mature people pray for those who persecute them. ( Luke 6)
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