“Then fear came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being performed by the apostles.” (Acts 2:43)
“And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47b)
This past week we've looked at the early Christians as described in Acts 2:41-47 and used that description as the inspiration for our spiritual resolutions for this coming year. We should also remember why we desire to set these types of resolutions: that God may be glorified. If you look in verses 43 and 47, we see that among the early Christians God performed things that only He can take credit for: wonders, signs, and salvation. May our motivation to be more like these early Christians also be that God may be glorified and work wonders, signs and salvation in our midst.
This Sunday, we'll review our inspirations from the early Christians and spend the time committing our resolutions to God in prayer. Please read the previous 6 posts before you come.
“Now all the believers were together and had everything in common. So they sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had need.”
(Acts 2:44-45)
To this point, we've talked about the message that the early Christians received, the activities to which they devoted themselves, and the attitude of humility and fear that permeated their lives. In these verses, we see a combination of devotion to the fellowship and a proper importance placed upon their possessions. The early Christians believed and acted as though the physical needs of the entire group were more important than the accumulation of possessions and property for oneself. They were good stewards, they understood that everything that they had was given to them by God and that they did not “own” it.
So what does this passage mean for us? Well, thankfully we are in a group where everyone's basic needs are being met: food, shelter, clothes, and other essentials. As far as I can tell, God has blessed our group to where a lot of the things we feel we “need”, we really just want. So the immediate lesson for us from this passage is that if someone in our group ever has a need that's going unmet, God has placed that responsibility on us first. We must place the proper importance on one another's well-being so that none of is hindered from growing spiritually.
Is that all we are to take from this passage? I don't think so. First, as was mentioned yesterday, you have to put the proper importance on your possessions; your possessions are less important than God and other people. Second, we must learn to steward our possessions and not “own” them. This is a very contrary idea to the way our culture acts, but we must view our things as though they belong to God and are to be used for His glory. This includes our income, which plays itself out first by tithing. There is no better way that we show that what we have is God's than by giving a percentage of our regular income as a tithe. Tithing is a reminder that everything that we have is God's. Another way we can be good stewards of our possessions is to manage them in a way that we can give to those who need it. A general approach to this is to understand how much of something we actually need or use, so that it is available to give away when the opportunity presents itself (e.g. giving blankets for the homeless, canned goods for the food pantry, money to an organization that is doing God's work in a place where we can't, etc.). There are numerous ways to approach and use your possessions as though they were God's, and I can't attempt to list them (or pretend that I could list them), let the Holy Spirit guide you in these decisions.
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
Pray for those in our life group. Be prepared to meet our needs, if they arise.
Tithe with the understanding that all you have is God's.
Become a better steward of what you have:
Learn to manage your possessions with the understanding that God “owns” it.
Look for opportunities to use your possessions and income to honor God.
“Then fear came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles.” (Acts 2:43) “They ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people.” (Acts 2:46b-47a)
The past few days' commentaries have taken a look at the activities (study, fellowship, remembering Jesus, and prayer) that the early Christians were described as being devoted to, but there was no mention how they approached these activities or with what attitude. In verse 43, we read that “fear” came over these early Christians, the first description of any emotion or attitude in this verbal picture of them. Additionally, at the end of verse 46, we are told that the attitude in which they ate their food was “gladness” and “simplicity of heart”. The early Christians' attitudes also seemed to evoke praise toward God and likeability from men, a combination that may seem to be in opposition.
First, what is this emotion or attitude of fear? In context, the fear that the early Christians felt seems to come out of their devotional activities: study, fellowship, remembering Jesus, and prayer. All of these activities teach us about God, and by them He draws us into closer intimacy with Himself. It would seem that by understanding God more, we begin to fear Him. What is fear, then? It is the emotion or attitude that we gain out of a healthy understanding and genuine respect for who God is. It does not mean we are scared of Him, but we know that we should be; we're not completely comforted by our understanding of Him either, but a substantial amount of comfort is found in Him. C.S. Lewis probably sums this thought up best in his book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, “Safe? Who said anything about safe? Course he isn't safe...but he is good. He's the king I tell you.” It's a great paradox that we should be comforted by and fearful of God. One last word, we do not gain this fear on our own, but as we continue in our devotional activities the Holy Spirit builds this fear in us through the things we learn.
Second, what does it mean to have gladness and simplicity of heart? This seems to be a from of humility that comes from a proper fear of the God; an appropriate importance is placed on everything. When we eat our food, we understand that it is by God's provision that we have something to eat, so we are glad. This why many of us say a prayer at meals. Additionally, when we think about God, our heart is provoked to praise Him because we know He is the most important. And, when we interact with people, we realize that they are important to God, and therefore are important to us, and that attitude is conveyed to them. We should use caution with humility because it can be imitated, but we are not naturally humble and require the strength of the Holy Spirit and a proper fear of God to maintain humility.
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
Continue in your devotional activities striving to understand more about God.
Pray that the Holy Spirit would give you a proper fear of God.
Apply a proper importance to everything.
God is the most important.
People are important to God, so they are important to us.
Everything we have is from God and given to us to steward.
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayers.” (Acts 2:42)
These early Christians were “devoted” to studying scripture (apostles' teaching), to one another (fellowship), and to sharing Jesus with one another (breaking of bread). The last activity listed in Acts 2:42 to which these Christians devoted themselves is prayer. If all these things were worthy of the early Christians devotion, and the Holy Spirit saw it fit for the author of Acts to write this down, then we have the duty to examine what devotion to these activities means.
So, what does it mean to be devoted to prayer? First, what is prayer? The Westminster Shorter Catechism, a document written to help lay persons understand matters of doctrine and belief, defines prayer like this: “Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies.” To state it more simply, prayer is a privilege given to us by Jesus where we thank, confess to, and ask from God. So back to the original question, how do we devote ourselves to prayer? This is a serious question, because in other places in scripture we are commanded to be devoted to prayer (1 Thes. 5:17; Luke 18:1). If we're honest when it comes to prayer, as it may be with a lot things, we just need to be more intentional. With the mercy and grace that God has given us, how can we not be more intentional to pray? Intentional to pray privately and intentional to pray with others.
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
Establish and practice the discipline of prayer: letting God know your desires, confess your sins, and thank Him for His mercy.
Schedule a regular prayer time(s). This time may be for you or you may choose to make it a family time.
Be intentional to pray with other Christians when you get together.
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread...” (Acts 2:42a)
Yesterday, we started a list of activities from the early Christians describing how they walked. These activities are some things God uses to make us more like Jesus, a process we called sanctification. The list of activities in which the early Christians participated begins with Acts 2:42. It says that they were “devoted” to these activities. The first item in the list was the apostles' teaching, which we equated to study of the Bible, but the list of devotional activities continues: fellowship and the breaking of bread.
The word “devoted”, as we defined yesterday, implies a continuing, serious and reverent commitment. So what does it mean to be devoted to fellowship? First of all, if you were to check this verse against other translations of the Bible, many translate this as “the fellowship” and not just “fellowship”. An important distinction, because as Christians we are not devoted to the act of getting together and sharing life, but as Christians we are devoted to each other and out of that devotion comes the motivation to share life. In addition, it's our love and common bond of Jesus that draws us closer to each other, and because of the bond we have in Jesus we devote ourselves to encourage, share with, and help one another as we seek to know Him more.
We are also to be devoted to the breaking of bread. This is a direct reference to communion or the Lord's supper, and we should not neglect this sacrament and approach the Lord's supper with devotion. If you take a step back from the sacrament of the Lord's supper, you see that this is really a time of fellowship where we remember and share in the life of Jesus together. If we are to be devoted to one another, sharing life along the way, then a part of that fellowship should be sharing and remembering what Jesus has done for us.
So how are we to be devoted to the fellowship? Practically, you have to be around Christians to fellowship in the same manner as these early Christians did. For some, that may mean more regular attendance of church and life group, not that it's the goal; it's just a starting point. For others of us, it means putting more value on the Christians that God has put around us, and seeking to be available to sharing life and encouraging them on their walk with Jesus. Lastly, for all of us, whomever we have fellowship with, we should always be remembering and sharing Jesus with each other, and not sharing Him out of shallowness but rooted in Scripture. As we get together in fellowship, we should ask questions about what God is teaching us through our devotional times and sharing accordingly. Along this line—let's be honest—if we are uncomfortable sharing Jesus with fellow Christians, how will we ever be able to share with non-Christians?
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
If you don't already, make yourself available for fellowship.
Maybe that means putting a more regular emphasis on church and life group attendance so that you are available for fellowship.
Maybe that means attending more church and life group gatherings so that you are available for fellowship. (Honestly, there's not much time for fellowship on Sunday mornings.)
Maybe that means making an effort to spend time with others outside of organized activities. (This is where most fellowship should happen.)
Put a new or renewed emphasis on sharing Jesus with each other. Encourage each other to know Jesus more and share what He's teaching us and what He's doing in our lives.
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching...” (Acts 2:42a)
In Acts 2:41, we read how 3,000 people heard the message of Jesus that Peter preached, received the message, and were baptized. It's at that point that we traditionally begin to call someone a Christian, but we also know that Bible tells us that there is a way in which a Christian should walk, or, in other words, there are activities that a Christian participates in that incrementally change the heart, mind and soul to be more like Jesus. This process is called sanctification and it is expected that all Christians participate in this process. Unlike salvation, which is a work that God (Father, Son, Spirit) does alone, sanctification is God's work in us as we discover life in Him. Acts 2:42 begins the description of these activities that the early church participated in, and they were “devoted” to them.
“Devoted” is a strong word. It implies a continuing, serious and reverent commitment to these activities, and the first item in the list that these early Christians were devoted to is the apostles' teaching. So what were they teaching? Thankfully, we not only have the basis of what they were teaching (Old Testament), but we also have a number of historical accounts and letters they wrote to encourage others in their walks with Jesus (New Testament). The teaching that these early Christians devoted themselves to is readily available to us in the form of the Bible to devote ourselves to, no guess work involved.
So what does it mean for us to “devote” ourselves to the apostles' teaching? First, we can establish a regularly scheduled time where we read the Bible in such a way—seriously, reverently, devotionally-- that there is something to be learned from it. This time of devotional reading should also be mapped out (i.e. reading through a particular book of the Bible) so that when you read a passage of Scripture, it has a context. Having a devotional reading time and knowing how to approach this time is one of the most important disciplines you can have as a Christian.
There are many other ways that we can devote ourselves to Biblical teaching, especially with the technology and resources available to us today: your pastor's sermons, books, podcasts, vodcasts, Bible Studies, etc. A word of warning, you should be rooted in the truths of the Bible (or ask someone who is) before pursuing and devoting yourself to any teaching or teacher. Devotional reading is going to be your safest option.
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
If you have accepted the message of Jesus, you should learn the discipline of devotional reading. If you haven't learned the discipline of devotional reading, or are even the least bit uncertain in what you know, here are a couple of options:
“Thrive” - A Sunday night study given by Pastor Stephen that begins January 16, 2011. In the study, he'll teach you why devotional reading is important and how to do it. Maybe a group of us can go.
If you are time limited and can't make it to “Thrive”, the Village Church in Flower Mound has a recording and study guide online of a similar study that they do entitled, “How to Study the Bible”.
If you've had a devotional reading time in the past but don't do it anymore, resolve to pick up your devotional time. Maybe you need to be reminded of its importance by attending the “Thrive” study.
If you have a devotional reading time but are just going through the motions, commit to approach it more seriously and reverently.
If you have a quality, regular devotional reading time, maybe it's time to look for an additional resource (e.g. Bible study, podcast, book, etc.) to encourage or challenge you in addition to your devotional time.
“So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about 3,000 people were added to them.” (Acts 2:41)
Note: You may want to pull out your Bible and turn to Acts 2.
The apostles and friends had been praying continuously since Jesus' ascension to heaven, waiting obediently for the sending of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit arrives on the Day of Pentecost, causing a scene like any of us has ever seen, but the people in Jerusalem had definitely never seen this before. So, with people standing around trying to make sense out what they are seeing, Peter steps up and delivers his first sermon to describe to the thousands that were there what is happening. He explains how the Holy Spirit was prophesied about in the Old Testament, how Jesus was prophesied about, and how the Holy Spirit is a gift made available to those who repent (turn away) from their sins and accept Jesus because of Jesus' life with us. And following this message, the Holy Spirit moved in 3,000 people's hearts to accept the message of Jesus.
So what are we to take from this? Let me start with the reflections that I've had about Christmas this year: God HATES sin. Seriously, that was the summary of my Christmas devotions this year. I mean we all know this much, a good portion of the Old Testament is God giving parameters to what sin is and how He reacts toward sin. God hates sin so much that He sent Jesus, and Jesus clarified parts of the Law by saying things like, “You've heard it said, do not commit (murder, adultery, etc.), but I say to you that if you've thought about it, then you're guilty of sin.” But, thankfully, as Peter also points out in his sermon, God also sent Jesus that our sins may be forgiven for all times and that we may live in communication and community with God. And the 3,000 people who accepted Peter's message were each baptized as their first act of obedience and, in effect, became the earliest church.
There is another thing that we can infer from this one verse. The passage says that the 3,000 were added to “them”, who's “them”? If you go all the way back before Peter started his sermon (Acts 2:14), you'll find the answer: “the Eleven” or the apostles. If you look at the end of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), you'll find that Jesus tasked the apostles with sharing this message with the whole world, starting in Jerusalem. And as you go on to read the rest of Acts, you see that the mission of spreading the gospel message leads them throughout much of the Roman empire. Then, the book of Acts ends with no resolution, as if to say that the “acts of the apostles” and the mission are still ongoing. So when the 3,000 were added to the apostles, they were not just added for them to be saved and made right with God; they were added to the apostles so that they might join in the mission of sharing the gospel message with the whole world. And like an invitation, as the book of Acts ends not having complete resolution, those that have accepted the message of Jesus are to join the apostles' mission of being sent to share this message to the whole world. Like the apostles were sent, so were the first 3,000 sent, and so is everyone who has accepted Jesus' message since then is sent...until Jesus' resolves the book of Acts.
So as we approach the new year and begin to make resolutions for ourselves (as is our modern day tradition), what possible resolutions can we derive from these early Christians:
If you've never truly accepted this message, then please do accept it. And if you find it hard to accept, plead with the Holy Spirit to accept the message of Jesus the way the 3,000 people did here.
If you have accepted the message of Jesus but have not been baptized, then you need to be baptized. This is your first act of obedience in the new year.
If you have accepted the message of Jesus and have been baptized, then know that the path you walk is not about you but Jesus, and you are called to share the the message of Jesus as Peter and the other apostles did. For the new year, pray that the Holy Spirit helps remove whatever hinders you from sharing the message of Jesus and work to share the good news.
Hey guys and gals, let's have a little bit of time to just enjoy each others company and celebrate the season. Bring your favorite breakfast item to share, and we'll enjoy the food and play a little quiz game.
Join us this Sunday as we will have a visitor from the International Mission Board (IMB) talking to us about her work in East Africa. We will get an overview of the mission environment and needs in the area and have time to ask questions about anything you may be curious about.
Also, this will be a special emphasis week at NFWBC for international missions. There will be a missionary presenting the sermon during both worship services and we will having the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, a special offering for international missions. Please pray as to how you will give to this offering above your normal tithes.
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
NOTE: If you have any suggestions of where we can meet in the future (i.e. enough high chairs and space), we'd be happy to hear them. Just leave a comment on this post.
Silent night, holy night All is calm, all is bright Round yon Virgin Mother and Child Holy Infant so tender and mild Sleep in heavenly peace Sleep in heavenly peace
Silent night, holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight Glories stream from heaven afar Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia! Christ, the Saviour is born Christ, the Saviour is born
Silent night, holy night Son of God, love's pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth
Hopefully you can join us this Sunday as we are encouraged by the joy that comes from Jesus birth, "the dawn of redeeming grace". Otherwise, enjoy your time of Thanksgiving with family friends.
"And the angel answered and said to her [Mary], 'The Holy Spirit will come
upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also,
that Holy One who is to be born will be calle the Son of God.' "
What?! It's only November and we're talking about Christmas! Yep, that's right. With the way our church holiday calendar falls, it doesn't allow us to spend a lot of time for us to take a look at the birth of Savior. So we'll spend the next two weeks trying to "cram" a few devotions surrounding the birth of Jesus. This week, we'll examine aspects of hope and peace.
We will be doing things a little bit differently this week. Instead of watching a video or having teaching, we will be using our time on applying the guidance that received from this most recent series, "Discovering God's Will" by Andy Stanley. We'll have a study guide to work through in writing down a vision that God may have already given or not. I hope it the study proves useful and fruitful.
Hope to see you there!
Also, if you need a little bit of a refresher from the series, the podcasts are listed HERE.
So we've reached the end of another study. What have we learned? Hopefully we've realized that God has a context for us to discern His will in making personal decisions (somewhere between His providential will and His moral will). Additionally, we were encouraged to seek wise counsel when approaching decision making and to know and understand the principles of how God thinks through the searching the Scriptures. Lastly, the challenge for us all is to pray about and write down a vision for each aspect of our life (family, financial, spiritual, etc.) so that we have a specific direction to aid us in making a decision.
This week we'll be challenged further along having a vision for our lives, and we'll be challenged through an excerpt from Nehemiah's life to be able to say "no" with purpose.
Hope to see you there...
Note: If you missed the previous weeks (or want to get a sneak peak at this week), then check out the FYI post.
Last Sunday we talked about how relying too heavily on our own intuition can be a dangerous thing -- even if it appears to draw its direction from Scripture. Just because you can find a passage of Scripture to support a view doesn't mean God is leading you in that direction. Using Scripture to affirm God's will on specific issues requires balance and discernment. And learning God's mind may require more than simply discovering a Bible verse.
This Sunday, we'll be challenged on how to approach the Scriptures when discerning God's will on the issues in our life. It should prove to be extremely practical and, hopefully, powerful for the decisions we have to make in the future. Hope to see you there!
Note: If you missed last week (or want to get a sneak peak at this or future weeks), then check out the FYI post.
The past few weeks, we've been talking about making decisions or discovering God's will for our lives. We started by framing the discussion with boundaries. The personal will of God we seek is somewhere between His providential will and His moral will. Next, we discussed how God wants us to seek out wise counsel to make decisions. This week we begin the will-discovering process by examining whether we can learn to think more like God. Hope to see you there!
Note: If you're to miss this week (or want to get a sneak peak at past or future weeks), then check out the FYI post.
and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel."
Proverbs 1:5 (NASB)
"He who walks with wise men will be wise,
but the companion of fools will suffer harm."
Proverbs 13:20 (NASB)
This past Sunday we looked at 1 Kings 12 and the example of where Rehoboam sought advice and how he regarded it. This Sunday, we'll be confronted with some practical advice on how to seek good counsel and what it's relation is to finding out God's will for our lives.
Note: If you missed last week (or want to get a sneak peak at this or future weeks), then check out the FYI post.
For those who like to know a little more about the studies, FYI is a feature where posting additional information about a Sunday morning study to help if you'd like to "further your investigation" of the study or speaker outside of life group.
About the Speaker:
Andy Stanley is senior pastor at North Pointe Community Church outside of Atlanta, GA. In addition to his pastoral duties, Andy encourages next-generation church leaders and emphasizes the keys to leadership in many of his books and conferences.
Hello, it is time to move on to our next series of studies for our group. Though not forgetting our previous lessons from the past couple weeks, we will move forward. Our next several weeks will be on "Discovering God's will" by Andy Stanley. How many of us have asked this question before: What is God's will for my life? It is one of the most common questions and sometimes the answer seems so far away, like God is hiding it from us. I want to encourage you that God is not trying to make it difficult. We will look at week one and talk about decisions. The key thought is that we are the sum total of all the decisions we make. I know this series will be revealing and very educational as we look at the Scriptures for what God has to say about discovering His will.
What If....we failed? I got to be honest, this is a tough one to prepare and teach. What if we fail or have failed? We have to look at ourselves in light of what the Scriptures teach and let it shine through to our issues. We are all broken and at least have that in common but all broken in different ways. This week we will look at how we have failed and how that affects our relationships both with Christ and one another. We will see how or if it still affects us today. Though as we heard last week in the Worship service, we must "reclaim hope" and hope does exist and always will no matter how far we have fallen. See you Sunday.
Do you have someone you go to who keeps you pointed towards Christ? Is it your spouse, your father or mother? This week we will look at this and more on how we can be honest with one another and take off the masks. Prayerfully consider sharing a "mask" you are wearing if you are, and ready to hear one shared. See you Sunday.
What if....is a series of lessons on life groups and how they function. What is the purpose of our life group? Does being in a life group really change anything in my life? This and many more questions will be attempted to be answered during our next 4 weeks together. What if...we cared? What if...we were honest? What if...we failed? What if...we got of the couch?
This first week the question that comes is "what if we cared?" Honestly from my view I think we do just fine showing that we do care for one another but are we doing enough? Are we really showing we care for one another? Come this first week to look at this together and discover if we can do better. See you this Sunday.
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
How quickly can we get something new and it satisfies and we find contentment, yet that new thing grows old quickly. It's how our culture works: new things become old things quickly.
How easily we become discontent in a society that has everything.
"for better, or for worse, for richer or for poorer, In sickness and in health."
Lovely sentiments spoken at weddings...or at least my wedding. I don't know if I understood (or understand still) the meaning of those words and extremes of either perspective. I mean, I remember thinking, "Times won't always be 'better', but there will definitely be more 'better' times than 'worse'," or, "I know we won't be the richest, but surely we won't be poor." And in all likelihood, very few of us will go through prolonged periods of either extreme.
Even though we will most likely not go through extreme lows and highs, it doesn't mean that we can't learn from somone who did. This week, we'll be challenged by Paul's word's again in a letter to the church at Philippi, and one can argue that Paul definitely is someone who experienced extreme highs and lows in his walk with Christ.
Children can be pretty stinking cute sometimes. They can do some things that make us laugh because of their innocence. Other times we may find it adorable the way they cling to their bottles or clutch their favorite toy as they go through the day...but their ways don't stay adorable forever, right?
What if we went around drinking our coffee from a bottle or sucked on a pacifier to get through the afternoon without a breakdown? There comes a time when everyone grows up and has to leave those childish things and ways behind, because it's the way life works. It's the same in the Christian life. As we mature as believers, there are things that we leave behind because we have moved beyond...or should have moved beyond. Hebrews 5:11-14 also attests to this.
We are not to be stagnant and stupid, but to faithful and flourish.
God knows all things. He knows every fact about all things. Everything is for His glory, and He is in control. The verses talk about rejoicing always in Him. We will look at what they means this week as we come together to study God's Word. Notice what it does not say, it does not say that we only rejoice in the good times. He is near to us in the good and in the bad. Rejoice that God is in control. God owes us nothing, we have received so much from Him already - our salvation. Anything beyond that is even more of a gift. Oh How He loves us so....
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
Its all temporary. Things in this world for this world, are temporary. We are here for a while and then we get to go home! Home is where we belong. Home is where we will reside with Our Lord Jesus, the Christ. It is sometimes difficult to raise our eyes to heavenly things and not to look at the temporary things, but it can be done. It is about perspective, ours versus His. The bracelets of WWJD were famous for a while and it reminded us to think about "What Would Jesus Do" well how about even what will Jesus think about this situation or that situation, how would He act here. Can we live like that all the time? With His help, focused on Him, there should be no reason why we cannot. It may seem weird to your neighbors, your co-workers at first, maybe even your family, but try it every once in a while - live like this world is temporary and see the results and responses of those who cling to this world. For Him....
Never Satisfied Phil 3:12-15 Forgetting what lies behind we press on towards the goal that is Christ Jesus. Paul teaches us to never be satisfied with being where we are but to continue striving after Him. I sometimes cannot imagine living this way, to totally strive after Him in everything, in all I do. This is very foreign to me with today's distractions of the world contstantly teaching us to strive for these things we can see here. I want, I want, I want, but in all reality I need Him, and Him alone. There is a pretty neat quote that has touched me that I will share this next Sunday over the holiday as we come together to Worship God in our Independance. Happy 4th early and see you Sunday.
So, what is love? Why do we love the people that we do? Is it because it's a feeling that we have? Or do we love because of the way people treat us? Or do we love someone because we're compatible and never fight?
Think for a minute about why you love your spouse...your children...your family. Hopefully you don't love them for any other reason than that they are yours. They don't have to do anything to earn your love, you just love them. It's the same as God's love for us. He loves us simply because we're His and this Sunday we will be reminded (and challenged) by that thought.
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
How many of you play video games? Think real quickly about how many buttons and joysticks those things have. Think about how complicated a game must for someone picking one of those joysticks up for the first time to play a game since video games had just one button and one joystick. The old Atari 2600 (1 button/1 joystick) was a lot simpler to play. Now think, is the way you view your Christian life more like the new controllers or like the good ol' Atari controller? Come this Sunday as we listen to Matt Chandler challenges us with a simpler Christian life.
Have you ever known someone that so strongly displayed one quality that it made you admire them or want to spend more time with them? What was that quality? Did the quality that person displayed keep your admiration over time or did your admiration dwindle, possibly to the point of annoyance? Well, this week we are going to focus on a quality that we should all strive for that will attract others and never be complained about: humility.
Also, because I tend to be a little more of a visual person, here's a clip to remind you of little of where we've been in this study and a little of where we are going.
"The One God Exalts", also see Luke 1:39-55 for reading ahead of time
We have been forgiven...much! If you get nothing else this coming Sunday remember that. God's love has covered us with the blood of Christ Jesus Our Lord. The attitude we should display should be a humble gratitude. We should be thankful in all things, good times and the bad. Again I repeat a very common theme, To live is Christ, to die is gain. The idea is we have received such a great mercy from God by His Son's death and life. He did it all for us, our neighbors, our friends, our family, our enemies, and any person we come across. Be glad for the Lord has granted us mercy. See you Sunday to discuss gratitude. Those who fear God, he gives mercy. JC
Rebecca here. Rob has graciously allowed me to share this with you. I'm not sure how many of you know much about Matt Chandler or his story, but I have been so encouraged to see how God is working in his life. Here's a video from the Together for the Gospel (T4G) conference a couple of months ago. Matt speaks about his church and what God has been doing in his life for the first half of this video (about 25 minutes). I know it may be a bit long, but I would encourage everyone to take some time to watch this. I watched it two months ago, and can't seem to get it out of my head. So, watch, and be blessed!
Hello again, this time we will actually get into the book of Philippians beginning with chapter 1: 1-30. If you wish to read ahead please do and come ready to go over this first chapter. Bring your Bibles and be ready to highlight, underline, and mark your way through the book. God's Word is a great study tool to refer back to. Look forward to learning with you as we go.
Hello, over the summer we wil be diving into the book written by Paul, inspired by God, to the church in Philippi. The running title each week is "to live is Christ and to Die is Gain". Based on the viewing so far this will be a challenging but rewarding study for each of us. I would ask you to treat each session as an actual interactive Bible study. Bring your Bibles and be ready to follow along as Matt teaches us. We will still have time for small group as well. The section this week will be Acts 16:6-40 for those wanting to read ahead. I look forward to learning alongside each of you this summer as we go through the study. See you then.
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
NOTE: If you have any suggestions of where we can meet in the future (i.e. enough high chairs and space for 25 or so people), we'd be happy to hear them. Just leave a comment on this post.
So this past Sunday we were introduced to the principles of story: Lead Character, Objective, Conflict, Resolution. It was also suggested that our lives could be mapped to these principles of story and that, ultimately, our lives tell a story.
This week, we'll be challenged by what we actually map to these principles to our lives and how we do that actually effects the quality of our life stories.
Today, we listened to Donald Miller talk about the principles of story. This week, to help lead into next week's meeting, map the events and other goings-on into the principles of story. Below are the principles:
Lead character
Objective
Conflict
Resolution
If you have any insight or funny thought you'd like to share along these lines, feel free to post a comment.
Thanks to everyone that helped out today. Here are some pictures for us to remember the work that we did. I wish we would've taken "before" pics and maybe even some action shots, but we did a lot of work in the 2-3 hours we worked.
Above: A picture of the front of the house. Great job, ladies!
Next: Mrs. Edna wanted to be able to see her window box.
Above: 6-8 large paper yard bags and 4 to 5 large plastic bags under the tarp.
What is your favorite movie or book? What about that particular story keeps you going back? Do you sometimes wonder why you life couldn't be more like movies and books that you like?Are there principles to story that we could possibly map to our lives?
Come this Sunday for the first in a two-week study entitled "Let Story Guide You". In this light but thought-provoking study, Donald Miller (author of Blue Like Jazz) with his witty humor presents the components present in every story and challenges us to apply those to our lives.
Or maybe that should read, "Help a senior adult." Either way, Rebecca and I stopped by the Thompson's house earlier this week to see what work they wanted done. After sweet ol' Edna ran through the list of things she wanted done, I replied, "That's it?" Edna then proceeded to show us a few other chores that needed to be done, as though she was anticipating my answer. All of that being said, I need your help next Saturday, May 8 (yes, I'm pushing our Senior Adult weekend back a week).
Here are the details:
When: Saturday, May 8, 8:45 a.m. - noon -- childcare provided (need number of children and ages by Sunday afternoon) Where: Meet at church and leave for the Thompson's house -- directions provided to the Thompson's house, if needed What: Do various chores in the yard and around the house -- cut up and move some logs -- weed an overgrown flowerbed -- fix a screen cover on the chimney -- potential cleaning jobs inside the house
A friendly reminder that the items that were signed up for to go in the "Blessing Boxes" are due this Sunday. Also, if you need to write a check, make it out to Shannon Ely.
This final week of this study will be about God's provision. Every time we see a difficulty whenever we are leaning on God we often ask the question "how?" How God will you provide in this instance, or how will you provide for my family in this area of our lives? Remember the first week was God's call - the "where" The second week was God's Covenant or Promise - the "what" The third two weeks ago was God's Timing - the "when" This final week about Facing the Unknown ends appropriately with - the "how"
I look forward to this coming Sunday as we explore this last question in more detail. To read ahead, we will be looking at the story of Isaac being sacrificed by Abraham (see Genesis 22).
On Saturday, May 1 our Life Group will be working at the home of Howard and Edna Thompson, planting flowers and placing a cover on the chimney (to prevent squirrels from getting in).
The time has not yet been finalized. Please leave a comment on the blog post, or on the Facebook update if you will be able to help out.
A preview to this week is to think of something you have had to wait on for a long time. Does anything come to mind? If you are like most people you may think of a time as a child when you had to wait on your birthday present or a Christmas present. Maybe other thoughts come to mind...that you have waited for?
God's timing can be somewhat frustrating to us when we are not trusting on him. One thing to remember is that he is in control so we can always trust in him and his timing. Last week we looked at God and his thoughts and ways being so much higher than our own, it helps to have this high-view of God to remind us once again of how big he is and how small we really are. I look forward to Sunday and our discussions on God and his timing. See you there...
I mispoke on Sunday saying we had just 3 lessons, when in fact we do have 4 with one coming after our 120th anniversary Sunday. So this week we will look at God's Covenant. Review Romans 8: 22-27 for study ahead of time if you would like as we talk about his covenant in the life of Abram and it applies to us.
Many people feel like their life leads them from one path to the next with no certainty. Is this the right job? Is now the time to have kids? Am I on the right path?
Over the next few weeks we will look at the life of Abraham and how it would look in today's world. He took steps of faith toward what God was calling him to do. How about us?
I am looking forward to what the Lord will do in each of our hearts as we focus on the great unknown, to hopefully find out for each of our own life's what HE is calling us to do.
We just finished taking a look at the need in the world and our call to take action on God's behalf. When we met this past Sunday, I challenged you (albeit hurriedly) to discuss as a family what stirs your heart, dream big, figure out what missions and outreach could look like for you, and take a small step in that direction. How's that going? To help you and our life group as we search what mission looks like for us, I've added the "Our Mission Plan" as a tab at the top of our blog. I hope that you are able to take advantage of it.
So I hope your dreams are big and that you begin to take steps in that direction. I would love to hear your family's dream if you're willing.
It's all well and good to talk about helping those in need, but what can we do? This Sunday morning March 28 we will talk about some specific and practical ways we can make a difference in the world.
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
NOTE: If you have any suggestions of where we can meet in the future (i.e. enough high chairs and space for 35 or so people), we'd be happy to hear them. Just leave a comment on this post.
We've talked in the previous weeks about preaching the gospel AND serving those in need, but what should our motivation be? This Sunday morning (Mar. 21) we will dive into how we should match those things that we are called to do with genuine, heartfelt compassion. Think about what "compassion" means; now, how does that definition change when you add "biblical" to it?
This Sunday morning (Mar. 14) we will examine God's "Plan A" for the church in ministering to the poor and oppressed. We will also take a look at where in history the evangelical church strayed from this plan.
Also, if you haven't had a chance to see the preview of the "No Plan B" series, the take a look at the post for last Sunday.
This past Sunday we began to look at God's plan for us to take action and make a difference in this world for His name. Out of that, the following challenges were issued:
Search your Bible - Using your Bible's concordance or an online Bible search engine, look for scriptures that deal with the poor, poverty, oppression, etc. Of those, find two passages that you can memorize and put in your heart. Additionally, share what you've found with someone...maybe your spouse or friend.
Pray and Seek - As we begin continue through this study, pray that God would change your heart to be more compassionate to the plan that He has for us all. Also, pray and seek for the people (and their situations) that you feel compassionate for, so that we may see as a group how God could have as act.
Count your blessings - Take a look at what you spend money on and the things that you already have around the house. Offer a prayer of thanks as you realize how blessed you are. Additionally, you may begin to pray about where you may have flexibility to give to organizations that are already doing the Lord's work. (NOTE: I don't have in mind(nor will I ask you to give to) a Christian organization, but I'm just asking you to pray.)
Sorry if this is a little later than anticipated, but better late than never, right?
This Sunday morning (Mar. 7) we are going to take a look at a new, 4-week video series entitled "No Plan B." The premise is that since the beginning of time, God had a plan for his people to be at te forefront to make an impact in God's name and change the world. Today, there is still absolutely no Plan B when it comes to our calling to serve the physical and spiritual needs of the world in which we live.
The first installment of this series we will be introduced to God's plan for us to take action and make a difference in this world. Did you realize that there are some 2,000 scriptures where God calls us to care for the poor and oppressed as we share with them the love and hope of Christ? 2,000 scriptures!
I hope you're up to seeing how God challenges our group over the next four weeks. See you Sunday!
As a life group, we are designating the fourth Sunday of each month to meet and eat for lunch after church. You don't have to make a reservation, but we will coordinate a casual restaurant (with plenty of high chairs) where you order when you get there, sit, eat, and can feel free to move around and visit the different people who come.
This Sunday morning (Feb. 28) we will be watching and discussing another one of the Nooma videos entitled "Store". What makes you angry? I mean, what makes you really angry? Do you get angry over the littlest things in life, or is your anger reserved for bigger, more meaningful issues? Is anger the issue, or is what you get angry about.
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It's no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled on by men.
"You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house."
Mathew 5:13-15
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If you are like me, yesterday's sermon and life group times were very convicting and challenging. I really don't want to play the part of the Holy Spirit in people's lives, but I did run across this and thought the heart of the message was the same as what was presented on Sunday morning. The walk called the Christian life that we signed up for is a walk on a narrow road.
This Sunday in Life Group, we'll be sharing our room with other groups to listen to a speaker from the IMB who's focus is on Northern Africa and the Middle East. Come, be encouraged, and learn something new about missions in this area.
"Taste and see that the LORD is good. How happy is the man who takes refuge in Him! Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing." Psalm 34:8-9
This morning the question was asked, "Do you feel God is good? Always?" Whether you truly believe that God is good hits at the foundation of how you view the world. Is God 100% good or is there a part of God that is not good? If God's not 100% good, then how do we define evil? Where does right and wrong come from? Our tough times get interpretted as God hating us or finding pleasure in our misery. If we don't believe that God is good, then the difficult periods of our life become very discouraging very quickly; but if in our heart of hearts we believe God is good, then the difficult times don't get any less difficult but become more palatable because of our trust that God knows what is best for us (Luke 11:11-13).
Let me dispell any doubt quickly: God is good...All the time. How do I know this? The Bible? Jesus? Yes and yes, but he's proven it time and time again in my life. I love what the psalmist say in verses 34:8-9. He states a command, because he knows that God is good. Moreover, I like to read that verse as a dare, "I dare you to try a piece of the goodness of God. You'll understand that God is good and He'll change your outlook on life for the better."
So, I dare you! Live this week like you believe with all your being that God is 100% good 100% of the time.
This Sunday morning (Feb. 14, Valentine's Day) we will be watching and discussing another one of the Nooma videos entitled "Kickball". We all know what's best for us, right? If I only had this, then I could do that. If only this happened, then I would be much happier about something else. We've all had these thoughts, whether we'd like to admit it or not.
Or, "Beginning." For those of us who speak English.
No, the title doesn't imply a new life group study on Sunday mornings. This post is to introduce the beginning of our life group's new blog. The hope is that this blog will be a place where the "Life Group Formerly Known As Adult 1" can keep a schedule of upcoming events, provide a glimpse into what we will be studying in the near future, and hopefully offer up the occasional encouragement. Think of this as blog as the life group's "Online Refrigerator Door," a place where virtual magnets hold notes and reminders that get looked at as you enter and leave the "information kitchen" we call the Internet.
I hope you enjoy, and I look forward to seeing our group grow.
P.S. Keep in mind that this is a work in progress, so feel free to offer up suggestions for improvement. Thanks and God bless.
We are a Life Group at North Fort Worth Baptist Church that meets at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings in Room 303. Our group consists mainly of families with preschool and early elementary school-aged children. Whether you're there, you've been there before, or aren't quite there yet, we'd love for you to join us. Our goal is to "share life" through Bible study and fellowship, and to "share Christ" through missions and evangelism.
