Faith

  Connecting The Dots // Created for Connection   1.       You are a part of God’s family.  2 Corinthians 6:18 (NIV) "I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord  Almighty."   Acts 5:42 (NIV) “Day after day, (they met) in the temple courts and from house to house.”   Acts 2:42-47 (NIV) “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the...

Let My Son Go     Exodus 4:1-5 (HCSB) “Moses answered, ‘What if they won’t believe me and will not obey me but say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?’ The Lord asked him, ‘What is that in your hand?’ ‘A staff,’ he replied. Then He said, ‘Throw it on the ground.’ He threw it on the ground, and it became a snake. Moses ran from it, but the Lord told him, ‘Stretch out your hand and grab it by the tai...

Connecting the Dots // The Second Most Important Thing to Do   Matthew 22:34-40 (NIV)  The Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’ Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the seco...

Connecting the Dots // Created For Relationship     Romans 12:16-18 (NIV) “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”   Revelation 22:17 (NIV) “T...

Relationships: Connecting the Dots // The Foundation of All Relationships   1 Corinthians 16:14 (ESV) “ Let all that you do be done in love.”   1 Corinthians 13:1 (NIV) “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.”   1. Your words without love are unproductive.    1 Corinthians 13:2 (NIV) “ If I have the gift of prophecy an...

Raise An Ebenezer     1 Samuel 7:7-13 (ESV) “Now when the Philistines heard that the people of Israel had gathered at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the people of Israel heard of it, they were afraid of the Philistines. And the people of Israel said to Samuel, ‘Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that he may save us from the hand of the Philis...

Christmas Eve – No More Darkness     Isaiah 8:21-22 (NIV) “Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness.”   Isaiah 9:2,6 (NIV) “The people walking...

 Advent // The Love of God     John 3:16 (NIV) “ For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   For God so loved you, He gave His one and only Son.      1.       To remove your wrong views about Him.    Exodus 34:5-7 (NIV) “Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed His  name, t...

Advent // Joy   John 15:11 (NIV) “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”   Luke 1:26b-30 (NIV) "God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with y...

Advent // Peace Luke 2:14 (NLV) “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, and goodwill toward men!” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV) “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” The invitation of Christmas  1....

Advent // Waiting in Hope   Exodus 13:17-22 (NIV) “When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, ‘If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.’ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.”   “Moses took the...

Giving Thanks by Faith 2 Corinthians 6:8-10 (NIV) “through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV) “Rejoice always, pray continual...

Against The Grain // It’s Not About You, It’s All About Jesus   Romans 8:31-39 (NIV) “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who...

Against The Grain // Living By Faith   Hebrews 11:1 (ESV) “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”   John 3:8 (NIV) “The wind [Spirit] blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going.”   Galatians 5:25 (ESV)  “ If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”   Romans 4:17-22...

Against the Grain // Au Contraire Living a Life of Love In a Revenge Culture     Romans 12:2 (ESV) Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.   Romans 12:9-21 (ESV) Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brother...

RESTLESS     Matthew 11:28-30 (ESV) “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”   How Jesus Entered Rest   Jesus left the crowds to get quiet    Jesus read and thought about the scriptures   Jesus spoke to h...

  Against the Grain //  The Pathway to Internal Peace       Matthew 5:38-48 (NIV) “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with t...

Against the Grain // What is A Christian’s Role in Politics?   Proverbs 14:34 (ESV) “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”   John 12:31-32 (ESV) “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”    Revelation 1:5a,6 (NKJV) "Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, t...

Against The Grain //  The King’s Heart       Matthew 13:44-46 (NIV) “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”   2...

Against The Grain // The War of Worldviews   1 Peter 2:9 (ESV) “you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV) “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it und...

Parables // The Parable of the Elder Brother       Luke 15:25-32 (NIV) ““Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ “The older brother became angry and r...

Parables // Lost & Found                                                                                                Lost & Found     Luke 15  The Lost Sheep The Lost Coin The Lost Son   Two Kingdom attitudes to embrace.   1.      Compassion   2.      "For the Son of Man [Jesus] has come to save that which was lost." LUKE 19:10 (NKJV)   Celebration "The Lost Sons”  God seeks sinners and...

Parables // Jesus Wants To Do A New Thing In Your Life     Luke 5:27-39 (NIV) “Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the te...

Parables // Have You Found What You Are Looking For?     Matthew 13:44-46 (NIV) “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and boug...

Be Radical Like Jesus                                                                                                  1 JOHN 2:6 “Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.”   MATTHEW 9:36-38 “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers...