August 21 2016 Honoring My Parents

Honoring My Parents

Memory Verse: Exodus 20:12 "Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land..."

I. WHY DID GOD GIVE THIS COMMANDMENT?

Because...

There are no perfect parents!

Respect for authority begins at home.

How I relate to my parents will affect every other relationship.

II. HOW TO HONOR MY PARENTS

1. As a child, I honor my parents by obeying and respecting them

Ephesians 6:1(LB) "Children, obey your parents; this is the right thing to do because God has placed them in authority over you."

Proverbs 19:26 (LB) "A son who mistreats his father or mother is a public disgrace."

2. As a young person. I honor my parents by accepting and appreciatingthem

Proverbs 23:22" Listen to your father who gave you your life and do not despise your mother.."

Proverbs 20:20 (GN)"If you curse your parents, your life will end like a lamp that goes out in the dark."

Acceptance includes:

Dueteronomy 26:11 (GN)"Be grateful for the good things that the Lord has given you and your family..."

Proverbs 23:32 (GN)"when your mother is old, show her your appreciation."

3. As an adult, I honor my parents by affirming and not abandoning them.

Proverbs 3:27" Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power go act."

1 Timothy 5:8 (LB)"Anyone who won't care for his own relatives when they need help, especially his own family, has no right to say he is a Christian. Such a person is worse than the heathen."

1 Timothy 5:4 "They should ... put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God."

A word to parents: Be `honorable'!

Ephesians 6:4 (LB)"And now a word to you parents; Don't keep on scolding and nagging your children, making them angry and resentful. Rather, bring them up with loving discipline..."

Matthew 18:6 (Ph) "Anybody that offends one of these little ones, it's better for him to have a millstone tied around his neck and thrown in the bottom of the ocean.

A word to those without parents

Psalm 27:10 (GN)"My father and mother may abandon me, but the Lord will take care of me."

June 19 2016 Restoring Harmony In The Home

RESTORING HARMONY IN THE HOME

Mark 3:25 & James 4: 1-2

Mark 3:25 – A home filled with strife and division destroys itself.

James 4: 1-2 – What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?

Five ways to manage conflict:

1.  There is my way

2.  There is no way

3.  There is your way

4.  There is half way

5.  There is our way

Six Steps to Resolving Conflict:

1.  You need to become a believer in Christ.

Ephesians 2:16 – As parts of the same body our anger against each other has disappeared for both of us have been reconciled to God and so the feud ended at the cross.

2.  You talked to God about the problem.

James 4:2 – Your quarrel and fight.  You do not have, because you do not ask God.

3.  You analyze the problem.

Matthew 7: 3-4 – Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brothers eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? Take the plank out of your own eye and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

1 John 1:8 – If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.

4.  You need to schedule a peace conference.

Matthew 5:23-24 – If you remember your brother has something against you, leave your gift at the alter and go at once to make peace, and then come back and offer your gift to God.

1 Peter 3:7

Ways to Communicate                     Ground Rules    
                
1.    Pick the right time                     *No divorce threats         

2.    Choose the right place              * No bad temper

3.    Pray before you meet                * No hatred                  

4.    Come with a positive attitude   *No abusive language                      
    
5.    Establish some ground rules     *No foul mouth                       
                                                            
                                                           *No lies      

Colossians 3:8

5.  Switch your focus.

Philippians 2:3-5 -Don't be selfish, don't just think about your own affairs, but be interested in others too. Your attitude should be like Christ who though he was God, did not demand and cling to his rights as God.

6.  You need to ask for advice.

Proverbs 15:32 – Conceited people don't like to be corrected. They never ask advise from those who are wiser.

Closing thought: It's more rewarding to resolve a conflict that it is to dissolve a relationship.

June 16 2013 Building Homes To Last

BUILDING HOMES TO LAST
Nehemiah 3: 10, 23, 29 & 30
They repaired over against his house.

1.  God intends for our homes to build a wall of prayer.
Verse 10: - Jedaiah made repairs beside his house.

HOW TO BUILD IT

* Select a specific time.

* Choose a special place.

Luke 22:39 - Jesus left the city and went, as He usually did, to the Mount of Olives to pray.
Gal. 6:9 - Let us not get tired of doing what is right, for after awhile we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t get discouraged and give up.

2.  Home needs God’s protection.
Verse 23: - After him, Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front of their house.

STORMS THAT CAN COME
* Change.

* Failure.

HOW TO BUILD PROTECTION
* Put Christ first in your life.

* Live in obedience to Christ.

Matt. 6:33 - Seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.
John 15:4 - Jesus said remain in Me and I will remain in you.

3.  We must build the wall of integrity.
Verse 29: - Zadok (son of Immer) also rebuilt the wall next to his own house.

* Soundness in our relationships.

* Sound character.

Isa. 38:19 - One generation makes known your faithfulness to the next.

4.  The home must build a wall of ministry.
Verse 30: - Meshullam, son of Berekiah, built next to his own house.
I Cor. 16:15 - Stephanas and his family were the first to become Christians in Greece, and they are spending their lives helping and serving Christians everywhere.
Acts 16:33 - The whole family was filled with joy because they had come to believe God.

5.  The home is meant to be a place of fun.
Ecc. 9:9 - Enjoy life with your wife whom you love.
Prov. 5:18 - Be happy with your wife and find joy with the girl you married.
Psalm 127:3 - Children are a gift of God.

June 3 2012 Rekindling Love In The Home

Rekindling Love In The Home

Revelation 2:4-5 - You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the tings you did at first.

Three Things To Do
•  Remember the good times.
•  Repent or change your attitude
•  Do the first things again.

Five Steps To Rekindle Your Romance:

1. You must give attention to your mate.
Philippians 2:2-4 -Live together in love, as though you had only one mind and one spirit between you, look to each other’s interest, not merely your own.

The first enemy of romance is a busy schedule.

2. There must be affirmation.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 - Give encouragement to each other and keep strengthening each other.

Proverbs 12:10 - Take delight in honoring each other.

3. There must be affection.
Ephesians 5:25 - Husbands be affectionate.

Ephesians 5:28 - the love a man gives his wife is the extending of his love for himself to enfold her.
Genesis 26:8 - Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.

4. Your marriage needs adventure.
Ecclesiastes 9:9 - Enjoy life with your wife, whom you     love.

1 Timothy 6:17 - God provides everything for our enjoyment.

5. Your marriage needs accordance.
1 John 1:7 - If we are living in the light of God’s presence, then we have wonderful fellowship and joy with each other.

How To Develop Spiritual Oneness:
•  Pray together

•  Share your life.    

Five Areas of Oneness:
•  Intellectual intimacy

•  Emotional intimacy

•  Physical intimacy

•  Recreational intimacy

•  Spiritual intimacy

May 20 2012 Managing Financial Stress In The Home

*no audio*

Managing Financial Stress In The Home

According to a Time magazine survey of a few years ago, the number one source of arguments in marriage is conflict over money. Gallup reports 56% of divorces are due to financial problems or pressure.
Financial problems always occur when we ignore God’s Five Financial Laws:

1. Keep good records.

Proverbs 27:23-24 - Be sure you know the conditions of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds. For riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.
Proverbs 23:23 - Get the facts at any price.
Proverbs 24:3-4 - Any enterprise becomes strong, through common sense and profits by keeping abreast of the facts.

Four Things to Know
• Keep track of what you own
• Know what you earn
• Know what you owe
• You need to know where it goes

2. Plan your spending.

Proverbs 21:5 - The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as hast leads to poverty.
Proverbs 21:20 - The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever he gets.

Three Things in a Good Budget
• It ought to be a mutual decision
• It ought to be a matter of prayer
• It should be based on goals


3. Enjoy what you have.

Proverbs 15:16-17 - Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil. Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.
1 Timothy 6:6-8 - But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing we will be content with that.
Hebrews 13:5 - Be content with what you have.

4. Share with others in need.

Proverbs 11:24-25 - One man gives freely, yet gains even more, another with holds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper, he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
Proverbs 19:17 - He who is kind to the poor leads to the Lord, and He will reward him for what he has done.
Proverbs 22:19 - A generous man will himself be blessed.
Proverbs 28:27 - He who gives to the poor will lack nothing.

5. Tithing.

Proverbs 3:9 - Honor the Lord with your wealth, and with the first fruits of all your crops.

Three Reasons to Tithe
• It shows our gratitude
• It’s a reminder for the present
• It’s a step of faith for the future

Deuteronomy 14:23
Malachi 3:8-10
Matthew 6:33 - Seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.