December 28 2014 Building Confidence In Prayer

Building Confidence in Prayer

Luke 5:16 – But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Seven Principles Towards Confidence In Prayer:

1. Make sure all known sin is confessed.

Psalm 68:18 – If I regard sin in my heart the Lord will not hear me.

Isaiah 59:1-2 – Your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.

Principle to live by: Before I pray for change in my circumstances, I should pray for a change in character.

James 5:16 – The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

2. Keep a forgiving spirit towards others.

Principle: A forgiving spirit is not an act, it’s an attitude.

Matthew 5:23-24 – First go and be reconciled to your brother.

3. Keep a surrendered will at all times.

James 4:3 – You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly.

Principle to live by: If God lays a burden on our heart, He also purposes to grant it.

Psalm 33:13 – From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind.

Principle: When God sees me He also sees the crowd and does what’s best for the whole group.

4. Understand God’s Sovereignty.

Principle to live by: I must accept the Sovereignty of God in my life of prayer.

5. I must have faith.

James 1:5 – But let him ask in faith, with no doubting for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

Matthew 9:29 – According to your faith it will be done unto you.

Matthew 17:20 – If your faith is as small as a mustard seed you can say to this mountain move from here to there and it will.

Principle: To make prayer a force, I must look for question marks in my life.

6. I must have persistence.

Jacob
Ask, Seek, Knock

Principle: Persistence in prayer does not change God, it changes me.

7. Put action with your prayers.

James 2:14 – Faith without action is dead.

Principle: My great need is not faith and works, but faith that works.

June 22 2014 Taming My Dragon Of Anger

God On Film: Taming My Dragon Of Anger

FIVE DRAGONS OF ANGER

Ž1. The Raging Dragon (Proverbs 29:11)
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2. The Silent Dragon (Psalm 55:21)
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3. The Passive-Aggressive Dragon (Proverbs 26:18-19)
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4. The Pouty Dragon (Proverbs 29:22)
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5. The Sarcastic Dragon (Matthew 5:22)

Matthew 5:21-22 (Jesus) “You have heard that the law of Moses says, ‘Do not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the high council. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.”

Ecclesiastes 7:9“Don’t be quick-tempered, for anger is the friend of fools.”

HOW TO TAME MY DRAGON OF ANGER

1. IDENTIFY WHAT Triggers MY ANGER.

2. Pause AND Pray WHEN MY TEMPER IS RISING.

James 1:19-20“Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight.”

Proverbs 19:11“People with good sense restrain their anger; they earn esteem by overlooking wrongs.”

Proverbs 13:16 “Wise people think before they act; fools don’t and even brag about it!”

Proverbs 14:29 “Those who control their anger have great understanding; those with a hasty temper will make mistakes.”

3. Repair the damage CAUSED BY MY ANGER.

Proverbs 15:1 “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but harsh words stir up anger.”

Matthew 5:23-26 (Jesus) “So if you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifice to God, and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there beside the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God. 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.”

4. RESPOND WITH Love INSTEAD OF ANGER.

Memory Verse: (Jesus) “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.” - Matthew 5:9

Romans 12:18-20 “Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God. For it is written, ‘I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it,’ says the Lord. Instead, do what the Scriptures say: ‘If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you.’”

March 17 2013 Relationship Rescue: Dealing With Divorce

Dealing With Divorce

Mark 10:2-12 “Some Pharisees came and tried to trap [Jesus] with this question: ‘Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife?’ ‘What did Moses say about divorce?’ Jesus asked them. ‘Well, he permitted it,’ they replied. ‘He said a man merely has to write his wife an official letter of divorce and send her away.’ But Jesus responded, ‘He wrote those instructions only as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness. But God's plan was seen from the beginning of creation, for 'He made them male and female.' 'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them, for God has joined them together.’ Later, when he was alone with his disciples in the house, they brought up the subject again. He told them, ‘Whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and remarries, she commits adultery.’”

Jesus On Divorce:

• Divorce Breaks the heart of God
• Divorce is allowed in cases of adultery, abandonment, and abuse but not necessitated
• Do whatever is possible to avoid divorce

5 Decisions For Dealing With Divorce

Psalm 144:7 “Reach down from heaven and rescue me; deliver me from deep waters.” 

1. Commit to a Forever view on marriage. Mark 10:6-9

2. Deal with problems Proactively

Matthew 5:27-28 "You have heard that the law of Moses says, 'Do not commit adultery.'But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

• Date/Marry A Believer
• Date My Spouse (Keep the Romance Alive)
• Defend My Marriage From Temptation
• Marital Counseling

3. Do whatever I can to reconcile.

Mark 10:8-9(Jesus) “Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them, for God has joined them together.”

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

4. Break my destructive patterns

Jeremiah 8:5 “Then why do these people keep going along their self-destructive path, refusing to turn back, even though I have warned them?”

Proverbs 26:11 “As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.”

5. Trust God to bring healing & Hope

Psalm 147:3-4 “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.”