March 15 2015 Managing Conflicts Under Pressure

MANAGING CONFLICTS UNDER PRESSURE

1 Peter 3:8-11

Verse 8 – Live in harmony with one another.

SIX SECRETS TO REDUCING CONFLICTS

1. Be sympathetic.

Verse 8 – Be sympathetic.

• Makes you feel understood
• Validates your feelings

How To Be Sympathetic

• Use your ears more than your mouth.

James 1:19 – Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.

Romans 15:2- We must bear the burden of being considerate of the doubts and fears of others.

2. Being loyal.

Verse 8 – Have brotherly love.

Romans 12:10 – Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.

1 Corinthians 13:7 – If you love someone you’ll be loyal to him no matter what the cost.

Romans 15:7 – Accept one another, just as Christ accepted you.

3. Through generosity or compassion.

Colossians 3:12 – Cloth yourself with compassion.

Ephesians 4:29 – (Speak) what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.  That it may benefit those who listen.

1 John 3:18 – We should love people not only with words and talk, but our actions and true caring.

4. Being humble.

1 Corinthians 13 – says that love is not proud.

Proverbs 13:10 – Pride only leads to arguments.

Proverbs 28:13 – Anyone who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful, but if he confesses and forsakes them, he gets another chance.

5. We must have mercy.

1 Peter 3:9 – Never pay back one wrong with another, or pay an angry work with another one.  Instead, pay back with a blessing so that you inherit a blessing yourself.

Colossians 3:13 – Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

1 Corinthians 13:5 – Love keeps no records of wrongs.

6. Show maturity.

1 Peter 5:10 – If you want a happy, good life, keep control of your tongue and guard your lips from telling lies, live in peace.

Proverbs 12:18 – Thoughtless words can wound as deeply as any sword, but wisely spoken can heal.

August 25 2013 Trusting God When You Need Guidance

TRUSTING GOD WHEN YOU NEED GUIDANCE

I.  Five Unreliable Sources Of Guidance

1.  Don’t rely on culture.
Romans 12:2 - Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Exodus 23:2 - Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong.

2.  Don’t rely on circumstances.

Jonah 1:1-3 -The Word of the Lord came to Jonah…go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.  But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.

Acts 27

3.  Don’t always rely on counsel.

Psalm 1:1 - Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the wicked or stands in the way of sinner or sits in the seat of mockers, but his delight is in the law of the Lord.

4.  Don’t rely on the counterfeit.

II Cor. 11:14 - For Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
I John 4:1 - Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

5.  Don’t always rely on conscience.

Prov. 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

Psalm 119:105 - Your Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a Light unto my path.

II.  The Completely Reliable Source
·  God’s will is found in God’s Word.
·   God’s will never contradicts God’s Word.
·   God expects me to obey His Word before He shows me His specific will.

This Is God’s Will For Me

1.  That I have eternal life.

John 6:40 - My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life.

2.  That I be filled with the Spirit.

Eph. 5:17-18 - Understand what the Lord’s will is:  Do not get drunk with wine, instead be filled with the Spirit.

3.  That I live a pure, disciplined life.

I Thes. 4:3-4 - It is God’s will that you should be holy, that you should avoid sexual immorality, and learn to control your own body in a way that is holy.

4.  That I maintain an attitude of gratitude.

I Thes. 5:16-18 - Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you.

5.  That I be a law abiding citizen.

I Peter 2:13-16 - Submit your selves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men, for it is God’s will that by doing good, you silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.

6.  That I bring others to Christ.

II Peter 3:9 - The Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that everyone comes to repentance.

7.  That I commit myself to God and others.

II Cor. 8:5 - They gave themselves first to the Lord, and then to us in keeping with God’s will.