May 3 2015 Freedom From Our Hurts

FREEDOM FROM OUR HURTS

Isaiah 57:18 – I have seen how they acted, but I will lead them and help them and I will comfort them that mourn.

DENIAL BUSTERS 

1. Crises

2. Confrontation

3. Catastrophe 

Hebrews 11:6 – Anyone who comes to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.

THREE STEPS TO GET HELP FOR OUR HURTS

1. Acknowledge God’s existence.

Romans 11:20 – Since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen.

Psalm 19:1 – The heavens declare the glory of God.

Psalm 14:1 – The fool says there is no God!

2. Understand God’s character.

Colossians 1:15 – Christ is the visible expression of the invisible God.

• God knows all about my situation.

Psalm 31:7 – You have seen the crisis in my soul.

Psalm 69:5 – You know how foolish I have been.

• God cares about my situation.

Psalm 103:13-14 – He is like a Father to us, tender and sympathetic, for He knows what we are made of, dust!

Jeremiah 31:3 – God says I have loved you with an everlasting love!

Romans 5:8 – God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us.

• God can change me and my situation.

Ephesians 1:20 – I pray you will begin to understand how incredibly great His power is to help those who believe Him.  The same power that raised Christ from the dead.

Luke 18:27 – What is impossible for men is possible with God.

3. Accept God’s offer to help you.

Philippians 2:13 – For God is at work within you giving you the will and the power to achieve His purpose.

2 Timothy 1:7 – The Spirit that God gives us fills us with power, love and self-control.

HOW TO PLUG INTO GOD’S POWER

• Believe Christ died on the cross to save me and help.
• Believe that He cares and has power to help me.
• Surrender my all to Him

Isaiah 43:2-3 – When you go through deep waters and great troubles, I will be with you, you won’t drown!  When you walk through the fires of oppression, you won’t be burned up!

April 26 2015 Dealing With Difficult People

Dealing With Difficult People

“Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible.” – Romans 12:18  

*The Story of Zacchaeus the Tax Collector (Luke 19:1-10)*

When faced with a difficult person I should...

• Consider God’s Purpose.

“So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely.  For when your  endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.”  – James 1:4

• God want to expose me
• God want to grow me
• God wants to deploy me

“And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own?”  – Matthew 7:3

• Communicate Kindness.

A gentle answer turns away rage, but a harsh word stirs up anger.  “– Proverbs 15:1

“But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Here there is no conflict with the law.”  – Galatians 5:22-23

• Confront Conflict.

“For the spirit that God has given us does not make us timid; instead, his Spirit fills us with power, love, and self-control.””   – 2 Timothy 1:7

“Come to terms quickly with your enemy before it is too late and you are dragged into court, handed over to an officer, and thrown in jail. I assure you that you won’t be free again until you have paid the last penny.”  – Matthew 5:25-26

• Cultivate Jesus’s Heart.

“I'm challenging you.  I'm telling you to love your enemies.  Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with prayer….If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that.”   – Matthew 5:44,46

Memory Verse: “Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.”   – 1 John 4:11

February 8, 2015 - How God Turns Nobodies Into Somebodies (Goehner)

How God Turns Nobodies Into Somebodies

Hebrews 11:32 and Judges 6 & 7

Judges 6:11 – The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press to keep it from the Midianites.

Verse 12 – The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.

Four Steps To Becoming Somebody Usable:

Step One: Affirmation.

Verse 12 – You are a mighty warrior.

Verse 13 – But sir, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all His wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt? But now the Lord has abandoned us and put His hand into the hand of Midian.

Verse 15 – But Lord, Gideon asked, how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Mannasseh, and I am the least in my family.

-The wrong village.
-The wrong family.
-The wrong guy.

Verse 14 – Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?

Verse 16 – I will be with you, and you will strike down the Midianites as if they were but one man.

-I am sending you.
-I’m going to be with you.
-You can’t fail.

Step Two: Revelation.

Verse 22-24 – When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, Ah, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face. But the Lord said to him, peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die. So Gideon built an altar there, and he called the altar, the Lord is Peace.

Altar: A personal commitment to God.

Lesson: Before you are ready to fight external battles, you must have internal peace.

Step Three: Confrontation.

Three Tests:

-God may test you spiritually.

Verse 25-27 – Tear down your fathers’ altar to Baal, so Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the Lord told him.

Exodus 20:3 – Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

-God may test you emotionally.

Lesson: Service for the Lord always begins at home.

-God may test you physically.

Judges 6:30 – The men of the town demanded of Joash, bring out your son. He must die, because he has broken down Baal’s altar.

Verse 31 – But Joash replied to the hostile crowd, are you going to plead Baal’s cause? If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself.

Step Four: Transformation

Verse 34 – Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon.

Lesson: Power always comes after testing.

Luke 4:1 – Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, was led by the Spirit into the desert.

Verse 14 – Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.

September 8 2013 The Art Of Confrontation

Memory Verse: “Wounds made by a friend are intended to help, but an enemy’s kisses are too much to bear.” – Proverbs 27:6

Confrontation: A meeting between two friends for the purpose of restoring godliness.

THE ART OF CONFRONTATION: NATHAN AND DAVID - 2 Samuel 12:1-14

1. FOLLOW GOD’S LEADERSHIP CAREFULLY

Verse 1 “So the LORD sent Nathan….”

2. REQUEST A PRIVATE MEETING

Verse 1, “So the Lord sent Nathan, the prophet, to tell David.” Matthew 18:15-23.

3. PREPARE TO TACTFULLY  SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS.

Verse 1-4 “So the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to tell David this story. There were two men in a certain town. One was rich and one was poor. The rich man owned many sheep and cattle. The poor man owned nothing but the little lamb that he had worked hard to buy. This poor man, he raised this little lamb and it grew up with his children, ate from the man’s own plate and drank from his cup. He cuddled it in his arms like a baby daughter. But one day a guest arrived at the home of the rich man. But instead of killing a lamb from his own flock for food, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it and served it to his guests.”

4. STATE THE TRUTH COMPASSIONATELY AND  TRUST THE SPIRIT.

Verse 5-13a David was furious. “As surely as the Lord lives, he vowed, any many man who would do such a thing deserves to die. He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole, and for having no pity.” “Then Nathan said to David, you are that man. The Lord, the God of Israel said, ‘I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. I gave you his house and his wives and the kingdom of Israel and Judah. If that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more. Why then have you despised the Word of the Lord and done this horrible deed. For you have murdered Uriah and stolen his wife. From this time on, the sword will be a constant threat to your family because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own. Because of what you have done, I, the Lord, will cause your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man and he will go to bed with them in public view. You did it secretly, but I will do this to you openly in the sight of allIsrael.” “Then David confessed to Nathan. I have sinned against the Lord,”

5. OFFER  GRACE AND SUPPORT

Verse 13b “Nathan replied, ‘Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you and you won’t die for this sin. But you have given the enemies of the Lord great opportunity to despise and blaspheme Him, so your child will die.’ God’s preferred way of restoring Godliness in your life is to do it one on one, you and God.

Hebrews 12:5-6. “My dear children, don’t shrug of God’s discipline. But don’t be crushed by it either. It is the child that He loves that He disciplines. The child He embraces, He also corrects.”