July 24 2016 Strong Families (Part One)

Ten Values That Build Strong Families - Part 1

"Never forget these commands that I am giving you. Teach these to your children..." Deut. 6:6-7a (GN)

I. THE FOUNDATION FOR A STRONG FAMILY

"You shall have no other gods before me" Ex 20:2

The Principle: PUT GOD FIRST

The Promise: SUCCESS IN LIFE

"In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success." Prov. 3:6 (LB)

II. HOW DO I PUT GOD FIRST?

Give God priority in 5 areas

F - Finances

"Honor the Lord by giving him the first part of all your income, and he will fill your barns... to

overflow..." Prov 3:9-10 (LB)

"The purpose of tithing is to teach you to put God first in your lives." Deut. 14:23 (LB)

I - Interest

"Whatever you do, do it all for God's glory." I Cor. 10:31 (GN)

"Talk with each other much about the Lord." Eph. 5:19 (LB)

R - Relationships

"...what a man is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses." Prov. 27:19 (LB)

S - Schedule

"Make the best use of your time ... grasp firmly what you know to be the will of the Lord."Eph. 5:16-17 (Ph)

"Very early in the morning ... Jesus got up and went off to a solitary place where he prayed." Mark 1:35

T - Trouble

"Call upon Me in your day of trouble and I will deliver you and you will honor Me." Ps. 50:15

Joshua's Commitment: "As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord." Jos. 24:15 (LB)

May 1 2016 Your Loneliness And God's Presence

YOUR LONELINESS AND GOD’S PRESENCE

Genesis 2:18 – God said, it isn’t good for man to be alone.

Psalm 139:7 – Where can I go from Your presence?

FIVE CAUSES OF LONELINESS

1.  Disappointment.

Psalm 17:13 - Rise up, O Lord, confront them, bring them down, rescue me from the wicked by your sword.

2.  Mechanical world.

2 Timothy 4:9 – Do your best to come to me quickly.

3.  Commercial world.

Ecclesiastes 6:10 - Whoever loves money never has enough, whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with     his income. This too is meaningless.

4.  Busy world.

Ecclesiastes 4:8 - There was a man all alone.  There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.

5.  Artificial world.

Ecclesiastes 6:17 - All his days he eats in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.

SIX WAYS TO EXPERIENCE GOD’S PRESENCE

Isaiah 41:6 – Don’t worry because I am with you. Don’t be afraid because I am your God.  I will make you strong and help you. I will support you.

1. Receive Christ into your life.

Galatians 2:20 - I will come in to you and will fellowship with you.

Galatians 2: 20 – Christ liveth in me.

Psalm 26-14 – The one thing I seek most of all is the privilege of living in His presence every day of my life.

2. Walk with God in obedience.

John 15:5 - Apart from me, you can do nothing.

1 Corinthians 2:9 - Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.

James 1:22 - Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.

3.  Fellowship with other Christians.

Hebrews 10:25 – Let us not give up meeting together, but let us encourage one another.

Proverbs 27:9 - Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart and the pleasantness of one’s friends springs from His earnest counsel.

Ecclesiastes 4: 9-10- But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait for His counsel.

4.  Wait for God’s guidance.

Psalm 106:13 - But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait for His counsel.

John 11:12 - I still have many things to say to you but You cannot bear them now.

Isaiah 28:16 - He that believeth shall not make haste.

5.  Accept God’s will.

Noah

Abraham

The blessing does not come in discovering God’s will but in the doing of God’s will.

Ephesians 6:6 - Do God’s will from the heart.

6.  Recognize God’s presence.

Psalm 116:8 – The Lord stopped my tears and He kept me from defeat so I walk in the presence of the Lord. I kept on believing even when I felt completely crushed.

John 14:18 - I will not leave you as orphans.

Psalm 139 - Where can I get away from your presence?  If I go up to Heaven you are there. Anywhere on earth you are there. I can’t get away from you.

Psalm 26:14 – Friendship with God is reserved for those who reverence Him.

March 20 2016 The Word Of Trust

THE WORD OF TRUST

Luke 23:46-49

Verse 46 – Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit My Spirit.”

1. Christ was committed to prayer.

Mark 14:38 – Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.

Mark 11:24 – Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it will be yours.

2. Christ was committed to the scriptures.

Psalm 31:5 – Into Your hands I commit My Spirit.

Psalm 118:11 – I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You.

3. The commitment of Christ brought peace.

Verse 46 – Into Your hands I put Myself.

2 Timothy 1:12 – I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him.

John 15:5 – I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart from Me you can do nothing.

4. Christ’s commitment set an example.

1 Peter 2:21 – Because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps.

2 Corinthians 5:19 – He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

5. We need a commitment of trust.

His hands are big enough to bless us.

Psalm 139:5 – You both precede and follow me.  You place Your hand of blessing on my head.

His hands are scarred enough never to forget you.

Isaiah 49:15 – Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne.  Though she may forget, I will not forget, I have engraved you on the palm of my hands.

His hands are strong enough to hold us steady.

2 Corinthians 1:8-9 – I think you ought to know, dear brothers, about the hard time we went through in Asia.  We were really crushed and overwhelmed, and feared we would never live through it.  We felt we were doomed to die and saw how powerless we were to help ourselves, but that was good, for then we put everything into the hands of God, who alone could save us, for He can even raise the dead.

March 6 2016 Daring To Wait On God

DARING TO WAIT ON GOD

Daring Faith: The Key To Miracles – Part 9

“God does everything just right and on time, but people can never completely understand what he is

WHAT TO REMEMBER WHILE WAITING ON GOD

1. REMEMBER THERE’S A NATURAL DELAY BETWEEN PLANTING & HARVESTING!

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven . . . A time to plant and a time to harvest . . . a time to scatter and a time to gather . . .” 

2. REMEMBER THERE’S AN UNSEEN BATTLE GOING ON.

“We are not struggling and fighting against human beings but against evil spiritual forces in the heavenly realm—the rulers, authorities, and powers of darkness.” 

3. REMEMBER GOD IS PREPARING ME FOR HIS BLESSING

“There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while. These troubles test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure, just as fire tests and purifies gold—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold.” 

“Waiting does not diminish us any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We don’t see what is enlarging us, but the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy. Meanwhile, when we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He prays in us and for us . . .He knows us far better than we know ourselves, and knows our pregnant condition . . . That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” Romans 8:24-28

4. REMEMBER I’M IN GOOD COMPANY WHEN WAITING ON GOD

 “People who lived in the past became famous because of their faith.”

5. REMEMBER GOD ALWAYS KEEPS HIS PROMISES!

God says, “At the time I have decided, my words will come true. You can trust what I say about the future. It may take a long time, but keep on waiting—it will happen!” Habakkuk 2:3 (CEV) 

WHAT TO DO WHILE WAITING ON God

1. WRITE DOWN THE LESSONS I’M LEARNING

“At the Lord’s direction, Moses kept a written record of their progress.” Numbers 33:2a (NLT)

“Remember what you have learned about the Lord through your experiences with him.” Deuteronomy 11:2a (TEV) 

2. ACT AS THOUGH I ALREADY HAVE IT

Jesus said, “I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24 (NIV) 

3. IMITATE THE HABITS THAT GROW STRONG FAITH

“We do not want you to become lazy, but to IMITATE those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” Hebrews 6:12 (NIV) 

Paul: “KEEP ON putting into practice all you learned from me and heard from me and saw me doing.”  Philippians 4:9a (NLT) 

DON’T put my life on hold.

• KEEP ON  PRAYING

“Keep on asking, and you WILL be given what you ask for. Keep on looking, and you WILL find. Keep on knocking, and the door WILL be opened!” Matthew 7:7 (NLT) 

• KEEP ON SERVING

“Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.”  Romans 12:11 (NLT)

• KEEP ON GOING TO CHURCH

“Don’t give up your habit of meeting with other believers. Instead keep on encouraging each other!” Hebrews 10:25 

• KEEP ON SOWING

“Keep on sowing your seed, for you never know which ones will grow—perhaps they all will!” Ecclesiastes 11:6 (LB)

• KEEP ON BELIEVING

“You must keep on believing the things you have been taught. You know they are true . . .” 2 Timothy 3:14 (LB)

TRUST GOD INSTEAD OF PANICKING

“Even when I am afraid, I keep on trusting you.” Psalm 56:3 (CEV)

January 25, 2015 Becoming A Stronger Person

BECOMING A STRONGER PERSON

Hebrews 11:32

Judges 13:24 – The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson.  He grew and the Lord blessed him.

Three Things That Will Weaken Your Life

1. Self Indulgence.

Judges 14:1 – Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman.

Verse 2 – When he returned, he said to his father and mother, I have seen a Philistine woman, not get her for me as my wife.

Verse 3 – His father and mother replied, isn’t there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among your own people?

Galatians 6:7-8 – Don’t be misled, remember that you can’t ignore God and get away with it, a man will always reap just the kind of crop he sows!  If he sows to please his own wrong desires, he will be planting seeds of evil and he will surely reap a harvest of spiritual decay and death.

Lesson One: Strong people discipline their desires.

1 Corinthians 6:12 – I will not be mastered by anything.

Proverbs 25:28 – Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self control.

2. Bitterness.

Judges 14:18 – He was burning with anger.

Judges 15:3 – This time I have a right to get even with the Philistines.

Judges 15:7 – Since you acted like this, I won’t stop until I get my revenge on you.

Judges 15:11 – I merely did to them, what they did to me.

Judges 15:3-5 – I will really harm them.  He went out and caught three hundred foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs.  He then fastened a torch to every pair of tails, lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the standing grain of the Philistines.  He burned up the shocks and standing grain, together with the vine yards and olive groves.

Judges 15:15 – Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

Lesson Two: Strong people restrain their reactions.

Proverbs 29:22 – An angry man stirs up dissension and a hot tempered one commits many sins.

Proverbs 11:32 – Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city.

3. Carelessness.

Judges 13:4-5 – See to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, no razor shall be used on his head.

Judges 16:7   Verse 11   Verses 13-14

Verse 17 – He told her everything.

Verse 19 – Having put him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and his strength left him.

Verse 20 – He did not know that the Lord had left him.

Lesson Three: No one ever plans to be a failure.

Verse 21 – Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza, binding him with bronze shackles.  They set him to grinding in the prison.

Verse 22 – But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.