The 5 Minute Discipleship Podcast

Episode 418 - Show Notes I wonder how many, right here in my own community feel alone, isolated, and forgotten. How many feel invisible to God and others? Proverbs 15:3 says, “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” No one is out of God’s sight. God sees all. He knows all. No one is forgotten or ignored. Our Heavenly Father loves and cares for us all. God...

Episode 417 - Show Notes One of the big things that keeps Christians from living in the freedom Jesus provides is our past…our old life. There is history, from which, we have a hard time letting go. The truth is, we all have a “past.” There are sins, mistakes, poor choices, and failures in our story. The guilt and shame of our past can keep us from the life Jesus has for us. Through the power of G...

Episode 416 - Show Notes Persecution for our faith comes in various ways. In its lesser forms persecution can include scorn, rejection, ridicule, hatred, and isolation. Sadly today, there are believers around the world who are facing Christian persecution in tragic ways. Persecution can include the confiscation or destruction of property, arrests, imprisonment, beatings, torture, murder, and execu...

Episode 415 - Show Notes So many today are living their lives without any thought for God. It’s possible to live as though God doesn’t even exist. You can live your life with no knowledge of God, no pursuit of a relationship, and no relying on his help or strength. But when we are in trouble things change. In an emergency, when life is suddenly difficult, those who had no thought for God suddenly...

Episode 414 - Show Notes There are some who do not believe God speaks today, but I believe God speaks to his children. The struggle is often recognizing God’s voice. How do we know when God speaks to us. After all, the impression we receive could be our own thoughts, or it could even be the devil. Our God is not distant. He is close and personal. He wants to have a personal relationship with Him....

Episode 413 - Show Notes Jesus used the metaphor of light because it carries enormous influence. Light makes an immediate impact.  It is noticed instantly, and it’s very difficult to hide.   Jesus says you and I, as his disciples are the light of the world. It is not given as a suggestion. This is our calling.  This is our purpose. It's who we are and why we live in this world.   Many Christi...

Episode 412 - Show Notes What about you?  If you really believed that Jesus would return tomorrow, what would you do differently from what you are now doing?  Would you maintain the same schedule you have set for yourself?  Would you adjust your plans? Yes, as believers, we are waiting for Christ’s return, but our waiting is not passive. It is an active waiting. I believe there are three primary t...

Episode 411 - Show Notes Some today believe God doesn’t do miracles anymore. Others say that miracles were reserved only for the Bible times. The intellectuals, the philosophers, and the educators say, there are no such thing as miracles. Definition: Webster – “An extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs.”   Christianity is a religion of miracles. If you take miracles o...

Episode 410 - Show Notes Lately, during my prayer time, I hear the voice of God calling me to be courageous. I believe God is looking for courageous Christians. He’s looking to his followers to be people who live out their convictions with courage. He’s searching for those who will trust God with a bold faith. He is looking for men and women who courageously share the gospel message with others. T...

Episode 409 - Show Notes We all know what it feels like to be physically hungry.  But our hunger in life is much deeper than our need for the next meal.  Our greatest hunger is spiritual.  This hunger is what drives all of life.  It impacts our search, our ambition, our goals, and our direction in life.  We will do just about anything in our search to satisfy this hunger, and it can get us into a...

Episode 408 - Show Notes Have you ever reached a point where you thought, “I just can’t take it anymore?” Maybe you felt like you couldn’t deal with the problems, the conflict, the stress, or the anxiety. You had reached your limit. Most of us listening today can identify with that feeling. Life has a way of overwhelming us. As I read scripture this morning, I’m reminded that God doesn’t want us t...

Episode 407 - Show Notes Communion is important for us because it is about remembering.  We are forgetful people.  Jesus left us with a tangible, visual to help us remember what our faith and our shared Christian experience is all about Communion is about the church community, but it is also personal.  It is a look back, a memorial.  It is a look inward, a time to search our hearts, a time of conf...

Episode 406 - Show Notes Psalm 150:6 says “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” Doctors tell us that on average you take 20.000 breaths each day. Your lungs are working all day and all night. By the time you are 50 years old, you will have taken around 400 million breaths. When was the light time you thanked God for your lungs and the breath he has given you. Our lives depend on our ab...

Episode 405 - Show Notes I believe that being a disciple of Jesus comes down to a personal decision. Have you made this decision? Have you decided to follow Jesus. Have you drawn a line in the sand and said, “no turning back?”  What I love about Jesus is that everyone is invited to follow. “Whoever wants to be my disciple… Jesus doesn’t begin with a list of pre-qualifications. This is great news b...

Episode 404 - Show Notes I believe the old saying is true: “No man can live without worshipping something.” Whether you are religious or non-religious, you still worship. You will worship as a Christian, an agnostic, or even as an atheist. Everyone worships something. Even a casual glance around reveals what people worship. Some worship success, achievement, money, or reputation. Others worship sp...

Episode 403 - Show Notes God has created us with emotions. You have emotions of joy which include happiness, contentment, peace, love, relief, and satisfaction. You also experience emotions of sadness, which may include feelings of disappointment, grief, heartbreak, loneliness, and misery. It’s perfectly normal to feel and share our emotions. Throughout scripture we see people expressing the emoti...

Episode 402 - Show Notes God has given you a beautiful mind. It’s an incredible thing. You can reason.  You gain knowledge, you have a powerful memory. You have imagination. Experts say you and I have between 60,000 and 80,000 thoughts per day. That is a lot of thinking. As Christ followers, even our private thoughts matter. Paul says we should intentionally think on things that are true, noble, r...

Episode 401 - Show Notes God's love for us is not dependent on our actions and there is nothing we can do to make him stop loving us. This of course, doesn’t mean that our actions always please the Lord or that he won’t discipline us, but his love for us is firm and unfailing. But God’s love comes without human cause.  He loves because that is the kind of God He is.  Nothing in us causes him...

Episode 400 - Show Notes Where do you go when you face trouble? Where do you go when life is hard. It’s true that without hope in Christ, you’ll turn to the things this world offers. Have you ever heard someone in a moment of stress or anxiety say, “I need a drink.” Or, “I need a cigarette?” They are turning to these things for comfort. But I know of another comfort. In fact, it’s a superior comfo...

Episode 399 - Show Notes Even if others treat you unfairly, how you behave is more important. We represent Christ when we treat others with generosity. As we grow in the character of Christ, it’s his love that compels us to do more than expected. Anyone can do the minimum. Anyone can meet the lowest standard of expectation. Jesus is challenging us to serve others with love. He’s calling us to give...

When we come together in unity, we have the ability to share the beautiful message of Jesus with a hurting world. But when we are out of tune, the result is chaos and confusion. In John 17, Jesus prays what appears to be his final prayer before his betrayal, arrests, and crucifixion. Imagine knowing what was ahead, what would be his final prayer request. Would it be for safety or protections? Woul...

Episode 397 - Show Notes Over the last generation, pastors, preachers, and speakers have been telling audiences that God has a great purpose for their lives. The audience inevitably will clap and cheer. It’s inspiring to believe and know that we are here for purpose. Our lives are planned by God. He has a great plan for our lives, we’ve been told.  But how? How do we know what that purpose is? Why...

Episode 396 - Show Notes As people who read and understand the Bible, we believe it’s true that Jesus Christ was crucified some 2,000 years ago for the sins of the world. Jesus died in our place. He took our sins upon himself and became our substitute. His death on the cross satisfied the justice of a righteous and holy God. Jesus death on the cross was motivated by his love, but it was necessitat...

Episode 395 - Show Notes We are afraid to die.  We are afraid of what happens when we die.  Death is the fundamental human problem. Life is short and so uncertain. “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14).  1 Corinthians 15:54-57 - "“When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the s...

Episode 394 - Show Notes Your spiritual and emotional heath is directly connected to what you consume. Did you know that you can feed your anxiety? You can feed your anger. You can feed your frustration. You can feed your depression. What you feed get stronger. For example, if you feed your anger, you’ll only experience more of it in your life. It’s so easy to become consumed by the stress, frustr...