Who is God and what does He want? What are the tasks He desires Garden Ridge to accomplish during 2008? How can we continue to grow to become more of what the body of Jesus ought to be? How can we use our talents, passions and different personalities to further the work of the Kingdom of God? These are all questions in which we need to seek the answers from God. That is the purpose behind our time of prayer and fasting.
The reports I received from those who participated several months ago when we did this were both positive and exciting. There were none who said they wasted their time by coming up to the building for a special time of prayer on behalf of the church family at Garden Ridge (of course, most people probably wouldn’t say that out loud in front of the new preacher). However, there were several individuals and families who commented on how this was a special time for them to focus their prayer life and get back into a habit of worship and prayer. Several people commented that they needed to slow down once in a while and be more intentional in giving time to focus on God. Other comments dealt with the joy of seeing the church come together in a bond of love and unity to pray for direction and guidance from God so we could fulfill more of the good works He desires us to accomplish as His ambassadors.
We invite you to please come take part in this special 24-hour period of seeking the will of God. As part of the church family here, we need you to join with your brothers and sisters in lifting up before God our petitions for His will to be done here on earth as it is in heaven! Will you please set apart a time of 30 minutes to an hour to come to the building and join in the prayers of this congregation?
Once again, we will have sheets of butcher paper in the foyers to write down general ideas for people to pray about concerning the spiritual growth and service of this body throughout 2008. However, we are also asking you to fill out cards with personal prayer requests that will then be prayed over by those who come to the building to pray. It is great to be part of the Garden Ridge family, and with that comes a responsibility to seek the will of God and to follow it as best as we can. This is what the Day of Prayer and Fasting is for—to help us be united in our quest to serve as the true body of Jesus in this community!
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Understanding the Problem
For more than 20 years, Professor Edwin R. Keedy of the University of Pennsylvania Law School used to start his first class by putting two figures on the board, “4” & “2”. Then he would ask, “What’s the solution?” One student would call out, “Six.” Another would say, “Two.” Then several would shout out, “Eight!” The teacher would just shake his head “no”. Then Professor Keedy would point out their collective error. “All of you failed to ask the key question: ‘What is the problem?’ Ladies and gentlemen, unless you know what the problem is, you cannot possibly find the answer.”
A young couple wanted to buy a home, but felt it to be too expensive for them. They told God, “If you want us to buy it, 1) have the contractor accept only 1/2 of what he's asking for the down payment, and 2) have the bank approve our loan.” Both events happened and they bought the home. They soon began to go into debt. Is this what God directed them to do? How do you know? What is the real problem here?
If we get real honest with ourselves, we all know we live this way. We try to tackle the situations we are called to face through our own human wisdom, and sometimes even do it in the name of seeking God’s will. After all, living in a world with a limited perspective means I must make decisions based upon what I do “know” or else I would never move one direction or another. And who is to say that in the situation of the young couple mentioned above, God didn’t lead them into this in order to teach them some valuable lesson for later in life. Or, He wasn’t concerned with what this young couple would go through because He was trying to use the results of this situation to accomplish something else in His kingdom. (Stop it—my head is starting to hurt!)
Can you see the dilemma here? If so, then you are ready to study the material we are going to look at this morning during our sermon concerning the life of Abram. You see, Abram had some choices presented before him and from what the Scriptures say and don’t say, he set himself and his wife up for some real heartache (not to mention the strife we still have in our world today as a result of his choices!) A simple series of decisions that really lead back to ONE primary decision set a course that has influenced billions of lives since the time he made his decision!
What decision could be so crucial? Well, I will give you a couple hints: It is found in Genesis 12 and it deals with the second part of our development of faith quest—learning to surrender our present to God! Last week we saw the importance of surrendering our past and how debilitating it can be to carry those burdens with us. This morning we will see the necessity of giving God our present. Will we try to solve life’s problems without stopping to ask God what the real issue is? If so, we may find ourselves in the predicament of Abram!
To listen to sermon, click Developing Faith: Surrendering Your Present.
A young couple wanted to buy a home, but felt it to be too expensive for them. They told God, “If you want us to buy it, 1) have the contractor accept only 1/2 of what he's asking for the down payment, and 2) have the bank approve our loan.” Both events happened and they bought the home. They soon began to go into debt. Is this what God directed them to do? How do you know? What is the real problem here?
If we get real honest with ourselves, we all know we live this way. We try to tackle the situations we are called to face through our own human wisdom, and sometimes even do it in the name of seeking God’s will. After all, living in a world with a limited perspective means I must make decisions based upon what I do “know” or else I would never move one direction or another. And who is to say that in the situation of the young couple mentioned above, God didn’t lead them into this in order to teach them some valuable lesson for later in life. Or, He wasn’t concerned with what this young couple would go through because He was trying to use the results of this situation to accomplish something else in His kingdom. (Stop it—my head is starting to hurt!)
Can you see the dilemma here? If so, then you are ready to study the material we are going to look at this morning during our sermon concerning the life of Abram. You see, Abram had some choices presented before him and from what the Scriptures say and don’t say, he set himself and his wife up for some real heartache (not to mention the strife we still have in our world today as a result of his choices!) A simple series of decisions that really lead back to ONE primary decision set a course that has influenced billions of lives since the time he made his decision!
What decision could be so crucial? Well, I will give you a couple hints: It is found in Genesis 12 and it deals with the second part of our development of faith quest—learning to surrender our present to God! Last week we saw the importance of surrendering our past and how debilitating it can be to carry those burdens with us. This morning we will see the necessity of giving God our present. Will we try to solve life’s problems without stopping to ask God what the real issue is? If so, we may find ourselves in the predicament of Abram!
To listen to sermon, click Developing Faith: Surrendering Your Present.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Learning to Walk by Faith
What do you want from your relationship with God? Are you hoping it will result in eternity in heaven? Perhaps your desire is to experience life to the fullest? It may be that you want your life to have purpose, direction, and guidance from a source beyond our limited earthly view? Could it be that you are looking to mature in a way that your life demonstrates the fruit of the Spirit and reflects the shekinah glory of God Himself? Or, are your sights set upon developing a healthy family with relationship skills that lead to better friendships and other interpersonal bonds that are fruitful and uplifting?
These all sound like good things, however, there is a serious problem with this thinking! Our faith walk with God should never be about what we want. When this is how we determine what is best we are thinking according to the flesh! Does this mean that the things listed above are bad—of course not! However, what makes them truly good is they are things God wants for us!!! By walking with Him, He leads us to these things!!! So often, our own attempts at striving for these things winds up in disaster or heartache or frustration because our perspective is limited and our motives are not pure. The real question is whether we have the trust in Him to get beyond what we want to allow him to bring about what He wants!
The Scriptures call us to live a life of faith in God. However, what does this look like? How do we develop faith? Fortunately, God provides an example to follow in the life of Abraham. This morning we will begin the last three weeks of our series on Who is God and What Does He Want by looking at the development of faith. By considering the struggles of Abraham from his call by God in Genesis 12 to the offering of his son as a sacrifice in Genesis 22, we will see that faith involves our ability to surrender to God our past, our present, and our future. These things are very hard to surrender when we are trying to be in control!
Several times in the story of Abraham we see how following his own ingenuity to achieve the types of things listed in the first paragraph of this article actually led to pain and frustration for him and his family, and even separation from God. Even the part of his calling in which God said all the families of the earth would be blessed in him was hindered or forfeited when he tried to walk by his own sight instead of trusting in the guidance of God. These provide painful lessons, however, recognize that God never gave up on him! This is because God wants all these good things for us, even more than we think we do! So, how is your own faith walk going? Are you still holding the reins? Consider surrendering your past, present and future to Him and see where that leads you. I know Abraham is glad he did! Will you be a true child of his and walk by faith?
To listen to sermon, click Developing Faith: Surrendering Our Past.
These all sound like good things, however, there is a serious problem with this thinking! Our faith walk with God should never be about what we want. When this is how we determine what is best we are thinking according to the flesh! Does this mean that the things listed above are bad—of course not! However, what makes them truly good is they are things God wants for us!!! By walking with Him, He leads us to these things!!! So often, our own attempts at striving for these things winds up in disaster or heartache or frustration because our perspective is limited and our motives are not pure. The real question is whether we have the trust in Him to get beyond what we want to allow him to bring about what He wants!
The Scriptures call us to live a life of faith in God. However, what does this look like? How do we develop faith? Fortunately, God provides an example to follow in the life of Abraham. This morning we will begin the last three weeks of our series on Who is God and What Does He Want by looking at the development of faith. By considering the struggles of Abraham from his call by God in Genesis 12 to the offering of his son as a sacrifice in Genesis 22, we will see that faith involves our ability to surrender to God our past, our present, and our future. These things are very hard to surrender when we are trying to be in control!
Several times in the story of Abraham we see how following his own ingenuity to achieve the types of things listed in the first paragraph of this article actually led to pain and frustration for him and his family, and even separation from God. Even the part of his calling in which God said all the families of the earth would be blessed in him was hindered or forfeited when he tried to walk by his own sight instead of trusting in the guidance of God. These provide painful lessons, however, recognize that God never gave up on him! This is because God wants all these good things for us, even more than we think we do! So, how is your own faith walk going? Are you still holding the reins? Consider surrendering your past, present and future to Him and see where that leads you. I know Abraham is glad he did! Will you be a true child of his and walk by faith?
To listen to sermon, click Developing Faith: Surrendering Our Past.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Whose Job is it to Share the Good News?
How many of you feel confident sitting down with someone and sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ in order to lead them to a covenant relationship leading to salvation for their soul? Where do you start and what do you say? I would imagine there are many who would say, “I am not sure I feel confident with this. It would probably be better for someone else to teach them because I might mess things up, or they might ask questions I wouldn’t know how to answer.” Does this sound like an accurate portrayal of your feelings?
Now, if this is where you are in your spiritual walk, then so be it. However, if in one year’s time from now you are still in the same place in your spiritual walk, should it be time to recognize that there is something wrong? Paul told the church at Corinth that God “gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God!” The same Paul who wrote this also told Timothy to be ready in season and out of season to preach the word. Peter adds that we should be “ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you”.
One of the reasons for studying about who God is and what He wants is to lay a foundation for the work God calls us to as ambassadors in His kingdom. Most of us already know the basic teachings of God, but do we know how to share them with the lost in a way that helps them see how God and His ways are relevant to the things we face in this era? Seeing God as the One who can put order to our chaos; as the One who knows our needs and provides for us; as the Father who will punish us in order to call us back to a right relationship with Him; as One who is hurt by our sin; as One who warned mankind for almost 1000 years prior to the flood; and as the One who will hang His bow in the sky to show us He is at peace with us should help us realize we worship a God who is actively involved in this world and who desires to have a bond of covenant with us! Will studying these stories equip us so we begin to see more outreach to the lost?
This morning, as we consider mission work done throughout the world, let’s not forget our own backyard! Our neighbors, co-workers, fellow classmates and others we come in contact with need someone to share the Good News with them! Can they count on you? If you are not ready for that now, will you be ready in a year? Or, if God grants us another year on this earth, will we be promoting another Mission Sunday asking for the same things because we have not grown? The answer to the question in the title of this article should be obvious! How will you be better equipped by next year to call people to reconciliation with God?
Now, if this is where you are in your spiritual walk, then so be it. However, if in one year’s time from now you are still in the same place in your spiritual walk, should it be time to recognize that there is something wrong? Paul told the church at Corinth that God “gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God!” The same Paul who wrote this also told Timothy to be ready in season and out of season to preach the word. Peter adds that we should be “ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you”.
One of the reasons for studying about who God is and what He wants is to lay a foundation for the work God calls us to as ambassadors in His kingdom. Most of us already know the basic teachings of God, but do we know how to share them with the lost in a way that helps them see how God and His ways are relevant to the things we face in this era? Seeing God as the One who can put order to our chaos; as the One who knows our needs and provides for us; as the Father who will punish us in order to call us back to a right relationship with Him; as One who is hurt by our sin; as One who warned mankind for almost 1000 years prior to the flood; and as the One who will hang His bow in the sky to show us He is at peace with us should help us realize we worship a God who is actively involved in this world and who desires to have a bond of covenant with us! Will studying these stories equip us so we begin to see more outreach to the lost?
This morning, as we consider mission work done throughout the world, let’s not forget our own backyard! Our neighbors, co-workers, fellow classmates and others we come in contact with need someone to share the Good News with them! Can they count on you? If you are not ready for that now, will you be ready in a year? Or, if God grants us another year on this earth, will we be promoting another Mission Sunday asking for the same things because we have not grown? The answer to the question in the title of this article should be obvious! How will you be better equipped by next year to call people to reconciliation with God?
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