Yeah so here’s an interesting story for ya’ll. My youth group planned an all nighter out in the middle of a cow pasture. It was literally acres and acres of Cow Poop, Bad Smells, and Cows, which are such a stupid animal anyways. The best thing that pasture had going for it was an incredible game of ghost in the graveyard! I mean there were very little boundaries to this game and none of us new how this pasture was laid out. We had no clue which way was up, down, left or right. All we knew was that we were not going to get tagged.
So me and one of my buddys took off across this field just as fast as we could. Not knowing what was in front of us we just kept it at full speed!
The first thing we hit was a small river with mud, at that point my friend lost his balance and fell face first into the mud, (It was hilarious) he got up and looked like a Morphed Hershey Kiss.
Then It happened. I will never be able to forget this. There was a barbed wire fence that was coming fast. The coolest thing about this was the fact that the base (safe place) was dead ahead, and if we could clear this fence we would be home free in our “safe place!” So my friend was a little ahead of me and he hurdled the fence and continued running at full speed. I figured, “Hey if he can do it I bet I can do it too!” Forgetting that his legs were a Foot In A Half Taller than mine, I jumped.
And the barbed wire fence won! I was caught in the middle straddling this fence tangled in barbed wire. Face Cut, Body Sliced, and All Hopes Of Tasting Freedom Gone! All I had was a hurting body.
It’s time to stop straddling the fence of life and begin making decisions that your life is counting on you to make. It’s not easy, in fact it is one of the toughest parts of life, and in order to stop straddling, it is going to take COMMITMENT!
Romans 12:10
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
Let's be commited to one another and stay commited to one another. We have an incredible life to live, so let's live it commited.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
A Place To Serve
Remember the first time you jumped off a diving board? How scared you were. How nervous. Am I going to like this? Will it be fun? You stood on the end and wondered if you would die if you took the plunge. But eventually if you were like me you jumped in and it was awesome. You spent the rest of the day, just jumping in.
You know what?
I believe ministering in the church for the first time, is kind of like that first diving board experience. Until you jump in and serve, you just don’t know how great it can be. You don’t know if you will like it. You don’t know if it is really safe. You hope it is fun and enjoyable but it might be miserable, but you never really know till you jump in.
- You were created for ministry:
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. NIV
- You were saved for ministry:
2 Tim 1:9
It is he who saved us and chose us for his holy work not because we deserved it but because that was his plan long before the world began…TLB
- You were chosen for ministry:
1 Peter 2:9-10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. NIV
- You were gifted for ministry
1 Peter 4:10
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. NIV
- You were commanded to minister
Matthew 20:26-28
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave- 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." NIV
- The purpose of church is to prepare you for ministry
Ephesians 4:11-12
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up NIV
I just wanted to share these thoughts with you. You all are awesome!
You know what?
I believe ministering in the church for the first time, is kind of like that first diving board experience. Until you jump in and serve, you just don’t know how great it can be. You don’t know if you will like it. You don’t know if it is really safe. You hope it is fun and enjoyable but it might be miserable, but you never really know till you jump in.
- You were created for ministry:
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. NIV
- You were saved for ministry:
2 Tim 1:9
It is he who saved us and chose us for his holy work not because we deserved it but because that was his plan long before the world began…TLB
- You were chosen for ministry:
1 Peter 2:9-10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. NIV
- You were gifted for ministry
1 Peter 4:10
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. NIV
- You were commanded to minister
Matthew 20:26-28
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave- 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." NIV
- The purpose of church is to prepare you for ministry
Ephesians 4:11-12
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up NIV
I just wanted to share these thoughts with you. You all are awesome!
Monday, October 1, 2007
A Place To Give
Wow what a great Concept! The Church being a place to give! We have had many monumental people throught history demonstrate Giving -
Martin Luther King Jr - Giving his TIME to ending racial segregation, and he became the most influential leader of the American Civil Rights Movement
John Templeton - Founder of the John Templeton Foundation grants more 60 million dollars a year for research into the sciences and religioin. Time magazine placed him in their top 12 "Power Givers."
Paul the Apostle - gave his TALENT for making tents and was able to support himself as he started churches and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the land.
JESUS CHRIST! - Gave his life so that we all could experience freedom from sin and in turn give our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE toward the advancement of the Truth in God's Word.
Let's make sure that we take our TIME, take our TALENTS, and TAKE our giving to another level this year. I believe that if we remain open, God will use us for things that go beyond our own thinking.
John 9:4 Says - "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." (NIV)
Let's use day to take those opportunities to GIVE of our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE (Financial Giving).
Martin Luther King Jr - Giving his TIME to ending racial segregation, and he became the most influential leader of the American Civil Rights Movement
John Templeton - Founder of the John Templeton Foundation grants more 60 million dollars a year for research into the sciences and religioin. Time magazine placed him in their top 12 "Power Givers."
Paul the Apostle - gave his TALENT for making tents and was able to support himself as he started churches and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the land.
JESUS CHRIST! - Gave his life so that we all could experience freedom from sin and in turn give our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE toward the advancement of the Truth in God's Word.
Let's make sure that we take our TIME, take our TALENTS, and TAKE our giving to another level this year. I believe that if we remain open, God will use us for things that go beyond our own thinking.
John 9:4 Says - "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." (NIV)
Let's use day to take those opportunities to GIVE of our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE (Financial Giving).
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