Maturity & Wisdom
May 13th, 2012Maturity is when your love and concern for others begins to outrun your love and concern for yourself. I believe God is bringing a revelation of maturity to the church. Thank you moms for helping establish this example for all of our lives.
The first commandment given with a promise is Deut 5:16, “Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you…” NAS
God’s love demonstrated through moms is a powerful force of loving, serving and giving. May we be inspired by the wisdom and maturity of moms so we become more loving, serving and giving as well.
Col 1:28 “…We teach in a spirit of profound common sense so that we can bring each person to maturity. To be mature is to be basic….” (Message)
Consumerism research and seminars designed to produce “kidults”. The basis of this research is to keep people in our culture completely self-absorbed so they remain childish making it easier to manipulate them into being customers longer.
Consumer
Corporate evangelism is called marketing and it has influenced the way the church thinks about life in general. There is a commonly accepted false Gospel that portrays God as a divine therapist who desires to be your personal trainer with your awesome life as his primary concern.
The Kingdom requires us to be producers not consumers. The very essence of our commission is that of being fruitful.
How do U know when church/person mature? It bears fruit! John 15:8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
A person can attend church all of their life and never mature. They are cranky, rude, irritable…never really developing a stronger love for people.
Progression of maturity to help self evaluate: mine! Ours but select few friends. Others. Next generation.
INVOLVED IN OTHER PEOPLE’S LIVES – GOD IS AWAKENING A HUNGER.
The proof in spiritual maturity is love! I Corinthians 13 A consumer’s world is very small, very selfish & very empty.
Proverbs 11:24 The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. MSG
Moms are the epitome of maturity. They love, serve and give so everybody around them has what they need.
Huge myth today: You can become spiritually mature on your own. We can only grow in community = Jesus established the church as a priority for maturity in the believer’s life.
We all must become mature in our conviction that people’s lives will change when they truly meet Jesus and get connected to the church. This is why you’re here. Our loving makes a difference. Our giving makes a difference. Our serving makes a difference. Together we’re making the world a better place. Our lives become amazing as a result – not objective. Make it happen for others and God will make it happen for you.
Most world’s mineral deposits are in 3rd world countries. Nigeria has the largest quantity of diamonds in the world. They are cut in rough form and sold for $100 then sold in U.S. for $10k. Why? Because they don’t know how to convert their resources as producers. Coming Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday and drink and drink and not know how to convert it into something useful for the Kingdom.
GPFRL Action Point of the week:: Find somebody this week who’s been a mature example in your life and deliberately bless and thank them.
Counterfeit Confidence
May 6th, 2012There is a confidence that clouds your perspective. University of Alabama football coach Bear Bryant was duck hunting with a friend and finally saw one lonely duck after 3 hours. Bear fired and the duck continued to fly though he was confident he had shot it. Watching the duck flap away into the distance Bear turns to his hunting buddy saying, “you are witnessing a genuine miracle. There flies a dead duck!’”
There is a confidence that clouds your perspective and this is a counterfeit confidence. Counterfeit confidence and lack of confidence lead to the same desperate frustration. Some people have no confidence believing that nothing ever works for them. God didn’t design you to live in a state of hopelessness. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as the substance of things hoped for!
Many in our world have experienced the finest things on earth yet live unfulfilled lives. Wealthy, successful Hollywood actors are continually in the news with marriages, divorces and new marriages as well as overdosing on drugs, in rehabs and some even attempting and committing suicide. Obviously having more of what the world offers isn’t what life is truly all about. Titanic accomplishments and confidence can easily bring about destruction.
The name Titanic was selected because it expresses size, strength & power. There was an amazing confidence expressed in the unsinkable Titanic!
• One passenger asked a ship’s agent for extra insurance on some valuables in her luggage. The agent replied, “Ridiculous. This boat’s unsinkable”
• The comment, “Not even God could sink this ship” was actually made by a dock hand expressing confidence to a boarding passenger.
• After the ship struck the iceberg, one passenger asked her employer if they should do something about it. He replied, “Go back to bed. This ship is unsinkable”.
• When early reports about the tragedy began to gradually reach America, Philip Franklin, vice-president of the White Star line in New York, responded: “We place absolute confidence in the Titanic. We believe that the boat is unsinkable”.
• It’s interesting to learn that the men in the crow’s nest had no lookout glasses. Their glasses were on the ship, but had been misplaced and since it was an unsinkable ship there was probably no feeling of urgency to use them.
o If the crew had seen the iceberg 10 seconds sooner, the ship would have missed it.
“Confide” is the root word for confidence. To confide in someone we have to talk to them, trust them, and build a personal relationship with them. Counterfeit “self-confidence” makes a person very difficult to have a relationship with because they are unwilling to confide in anyone but themselves.
Prov 14:26 In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge. NAS
Many don’t even realize that they have come to the inadvertent conclusion that God himself could not sink their ship! True confidence will never come from personal accomplishments but rather from understanding how all accomplishments result from using God-given gifts.
Deut 8:11-18 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God…Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God…You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant… NIV
Tithes and offerings are our routine opportunity to come face-to-face with where our confidence truly is in life.
The Titanic struck the iceberg shortly before midnight. Some passengers were asleep, but many were still partying. The band was playing. People were dancing, eating, enjoying life. The “unsinkable ship” went down just 2 1/2 hours later at 2:20 AM. Many were still in their party clothes. Others were still in their nightclothes, dressed for bed. Many died that way. None expected to die that night.
In this life wealthy people may have some advantages, but in death, all are equal. People who paid $80,000 for tickets to board the Titanic died alongside people who paid a few hundred dollars. When a rich man dies, he leaves just like the poorest man who ever lived. To be rich in relationship with God and with others is God’s plan for your life.
GPFRL Action Point of the week:: This week purpose every day to improve somebody’s life using some gift or resource God has entrusted to your care.
Eternal Perspective
April 29th, 2012We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. This understanding changes the way we view life, death and eternity. After doing dozens of funerals over the years I’ve seen a very clear distinction. When the family has a confidence in the salvation of the person they lost it changes everything. Even if a person doesn’t have much money there is such a legacy that is left to the family when they know their Savior with confidence. Life is more than this temporal life that is so very fleeting.
James 4:14 “…What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” NIV
“Five minutes inside eternity and we will wish that we had sacrificed more, wept more, grieved more, loved and prayed more, and given more.” ~ Leonard Ravenhill
2 Cor 4:18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. NIV
When we carry an eternal perspective we begin living by eternal priorities. We know that God is eternal. People are eternal and God’s Word is eternal. These three areas should be the basis of our priorities and core values.
John 12:25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. NIV
We are either making temporal payments for eternal rewards or eternal payments for temporal rewards. Eternal priorities in our temporal lives bring the perspective of a risen King into a fallen world. In the Titanic The Unsinkable Molly Brown is seen pleading with those in the lifeboat to try to help those drowning. To her dismay they would not go back to help because of fear of the boat being taken over by desperate people.
The truth is that they could not help everybody in their situation. Even with this in mind we must all remember that our inability to help everyone does not excuse our responsibility to help someone.
When the Titanic struck an iceberg, Pastor John Harper put his 6-year-old daughter in a lifeboat but refused to get in himself, even though he was her only living parent. He then went among the passengers telling them about Jesus Christ. When one man refused the offer of salvation, Harper offered him his own life jacket. “You need this more than I do,” he said. As the ship began to sink, Harper was heard to cry: “Women, children, and the unsaved to the lifeboats!”
Some who survived told that Harper preached the Gospel to the end (especially Acts 16:31), first aboard the sinking ship and then afterward converting those in the freezing water before dying in it himself. Swimming to as many people as he could, he begged them to give their lives to Christ. One survivor later told how he turned down Harper’s offer for salvation but gave himself to Christ minutes later when the preacher swam back to tell him again, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved.”
The man was rescued by a returning lifeboat and later shared his story at an Ontario church, telling the crowd, “I am the last convert of John Harper.”
Acts 16:31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved–you and your household.” NIV
Salvation involves a covenant with God that impacts an entire household. When you enter into this family relationship with God it’s as if your family becomes his concern. I firmly believe in household salvation as I’m the result of a praying great grandmother who today has a legacy beyond her wildest imagination from when she lived.
Josh 24:15 …as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD NAS – Lexi asked about my prayer journal so we prayed through my list and it hit me = 2 boys covered by hand of God because of our prayers!!!
GPFRL Action Point of the week:
Lead your house this week in eternal priorities looking to God as you get into God’s Word every morning and pray for specific people by name.
Instruction or Correction
April 22nd, 2012Life lessons can be learned by instruction or they can be learned by correction. It’s much more pleasant to learn by instruction. The idea of seeking counsel is in our self-serving culture is very misunderstood. The reality is that people tend to seek endorsement to their decisions rather than counsel to help them actually make the decisions.
Dr. Thomas Kuhn used the Duck illustration to demonstrate how a shift occurs when you are suddenly able to see and understand differently though you are still looking at exactly the same thing as before. The duck is also a rabbit when you look at it from two perspectives. One of the greatest mistakes we can make is to think that our perception of what we see is all there is to see about our situation.
There are different kinds of counsel we see in The Titanic. First we’ll see Bad Counsel. The ship was sent to sea with half the lifeboats needed in the event of an emergency. The counsel was given that it would be a waste of enjoyable deck space on this unsinkable ship. Pride and arrogance produces blind counsel that pays no regard to a complete picture.
The next form of counsel is neglected counsel. The captain was warned that there were icebergs ahead and that the calm sea would make them very difficult to see. With no water breaking at the base of the icebergs they would not be as visible. Ignoring this counsel the Titanic sped toward it’s watery grave.
Receiving bad counsel bears a great resemblance to ignoring good counsel. The absence of counsel creates an abundance of problems! Life-giving counsel begins with God. You can have a living, functioning, vibrant relationship with God that operates in your life on a daily basis. Every decision becomes a discussion with the God who is the giver of all wisdom.
Ps 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. NIV
David also discovered that God’s Word is God’s counsel! This Book is filled with mentors throughout the ages who will influence your life if you submit to the Author of their stories.
Ps 119:24 Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors. NIV
Godly counsel brings a paradigm shift in our lives producing conviction and confidence. This will change everything about the way we live. Once another perspective of counsel is introduced to your life it changes the way you process everything from that point on.
The understanding that we actually have genetic code changed every facet of science from medicine to criminal justice. It wasn’t the intention but was the conclusion. All other information was altered when this counsel was inserted into our world. Cases had to be retried with this new information because there is another way to look at the same situation.
God is all about counsel in fact He sent His Son describing Him as “The Word” in John 1. Peter was in a boat and one word from God changed his perception of that entire situation empowering him to do something he didn’t think was possible.
One word can change your perception of what can be done in your life! Your situation is not beyond God’s reach! There is an undefeated God who is fighting for you! Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. There is no force coming against you that compares to the power at work within you.
GPFRL Action Point of the week:: Position yourself before God’s counsel every day in a place of prayer and the Word. Invite somebody to speak instruction into your life on a regular basis.
Did You Survive? Will You Live?
April 15th, 2012My father recently learned from his sister that their great grandfather, Henry Architizer, was turned away from boarding the Titanic because his wife had pinkeye. Later he was so impacted by having been spared from the tragedy he became a preacher. There were 705 passengers who did survive that dreadful night: 60% of the first class passengers, 42% of the second class passengers, 25% of the third class passengers and merely 24% of the crew.
As was the case with the Titanic, and as is the case with life today, just because you survive doesn’t mean you live. Only God’s purposes can move you from merely existing to truly living.
John Jacob Astor, the wealthiest man on board Titanic. After kissing his pregnant wife goodbye on Lifeboat 4, Astor stepped back onto the deck of the sinking ship and helped a poor 19-year-old immigrant girl into the seat that could have been his.
I believe this man lived more in that moment than many will live in a lifetime. Though he is one of the many that perished he obviously understood something about using what you have to help others. Many are so totally self-absorbed that they must face mortality before they discover the true meaning of life.
Paul mentions having lived life in first class and having lived life in third class in Phil 4:12, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” NIV
To be truly connected to and dependent upon God is Paul’s secret to being content. This moves us beyond our temporal limitations to God’s eternal abilities empowering Paul to say
Phil 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
You are born for more than this temporal life of about 80 yrs. The sooner you can come to the realization that the life you’re living isn’t forever, the sooner you can begin looking for the deeper meaning of life.
Your job is what you’re paid to do. Your work is what you’re born to do. As long as the temporal nature of life captivates us we live the cycle of going to the job to make the money to buy the food to have the strength to go to the job to make the money to buy the food to have the strength to go to the job… You were created by God for more than this!
Eph 2:8-10 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast. 2:10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. NIV
There was something God wanted done that made you necessary. You are not an accident. You are not an experiment. You are a purposed assignment from God to your world!
While everybody is total survival mode the band of the Titanic played all the way to the death. They accepted their fate and purposed to provide music expressing peace to others during this very difficult hour. Surrounded by people that were given to complete survival mode they decided to just do something to make the situation better for anybody they could. This is how many are living their lives today, scrambling to survive.
Maturity is when your love and concern for others begins to outrun your love and concern for yourself. This life is a temporal journey. Look for eternal purposes to discover the reason you exist.
GPFRL Action Point of the week: Pray every morning this week asking God to bring opportunities to do something meaningful for someone else that day.
Perspective Unlocks Potential
April 12th, 2012Your perspective either locks or unlocks your potential in life determining the course of your future. POTENTIAL: Capacity to do something in the future. PERSPECTIVE: How you see something.
Your attitude determines your altitude!
Henry Ford once said, “whether you think you can or you think you can’t you’re right!”
We fail more than we succeed so our ability to handle failure is directly tied into our ability to succeed.
Here is a message I recently spoke that deals with this topic. The series was “Jesus Wants You To Stop Whining!”
Missed 9k+ shots, lost 300 games and 26x’s given the ball in the final seconds of the game to take the winning shot & missed. Michael Jordan, “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.”
Goat ill: Shake it off, pat it down and climb higher!
• Dismissed from drama school w/note, “Wasting her time. She’s too shy to put best ft forward!” Lucille Ball
• Turned down Decca recording Co, “We don’t like their sound and guitar music is on the way out” Beatles
• Cut from high school Bball team. He went home, locked himself in his room and cried. Michael Jordan.
• Fired from a newspaper because he lacked imagination and had no original ideas. Walt Disney.
• We all fell down the 1st time we tried to walk.
• Prob almost drowned 1st time went swimming.
• Most of us missed the ball the 1st time we tried.
Andrew Carnegie, “Finding greatness in an individual is a lot like mining for gold. You have to move a ton of dirt to find an ounce of gold!”
• Babe Ruth = 714 home runs / 1,330 strikeouts.
Your perspective unlocks your potential.
Don’t get discouraged by the dirt. JUST KEEP LOOKING FOR THE GOLD! IT’S IN THERE! IT’S IN EVERY ONE OF YOU!!!
God’s Supreme Point Of View
April 7th, 2012One hundred years ago The Titanic set sail with it being said, “Not even God himself could sink this ship.” The feeling of success and accomplishment can make any of us numb to our need for God. The reality is that we are all on a temporal journey as well as an eternal one. May we all learn to live meaningful lives filled eternal purposes of God for the brief season we are on this earth?
We want to introduce you to people that actually boarded the ship 100 years ago this month. Remember this is a true story about real people who were in awe of this amazing ship.
Today we’ll debut Captain E.J. Smith:
The Captain was retiring after a successful life but was first honored by wealthy New Yorkers naming him “the millionaire’s Captain” and was encouraged to take his last run on the unsinkable Titanic to achieve a greater place of success and even fame.
Mark 8:36 “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? NAS
Luke 9:25 “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? NAS
Captain Smith was one of the most experienced and successful Captains of his day. So why did Smith steer his fully loaded ship at high speed through a field of icebergs in the middle of night?
This clip gives us some insight:
Success is never satisfied. There is always one more voyage to be made. This is where we see perhaps more clearly than anywhere that God’s views are very different than our views many times. God has the supreme point of view = Remember professionals built the titanic. Amateurs built the Ark.
Many times it’s not until we are face-to-face with our temporal nature that we’re willing to consider God’s supreme point of view. Orange $6.8 mill
11 millionaires went down on the Titanic. Major Arthur Peuchen survived. Later he explained how he left $300k/inflation calc $6.8m in a box in his cabin. “The money seemed a mockery at that time.” “I picked up three oranges instead.”
God’s views are very different from ours at times. Agree? God’s view of death comes from his supreme point of view.
Ps 116:15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. NIV
Famous preacher Charles Spurgeon wrote of the death of Richard Baxter, the great Puritan preacher. Baxter was weak and obviously near death and stated, “I am almost well.” Later Spurgeon would announce, “Today Bob is well. His sickness is over once and for all!”
While playing in his grandmother backyard, a small child happened upon some beautiful little blue eggs in a bird’s nest. It was as if he had discovered a great treasure all his own. He knew enough not touch them. When it came time to leave, his Grandmother promised to keep an eye on his precious treasure until he returned. Several weeks past before the boy came again. He immediately ran to the backyard to check on his eggs. Immediately he ran back to the house with tears streaming down his face. “Grandma,” he cried, “Someone has destroyed my beautiful eggs. Nothing is left but a few pieces of broken shell. My treasure is gone!”
Grandma comforted the boy and explained, “Child, there is no destruction. There were little birds within those eggs. They have flown away. They are singing now among the branches of the trees. The eggs are not wasted, child. Your treasure is even greater now.
Jesus surrendered in the Garden of Gethsemane to God’s Supreme point of view. Not my will but yours be done. There could be no resurrection had there been no crucifixion. In life’s greatest tragedies we still find hope if we can learn to embrace God’s supreme point of view.
Ps 116:15 Precious…is the death of his saints. Death itself is not precious. It’s only when Jesus turns death into the doorway for eternal life that it’s good. Is Jesus Lord of your life today?
GPFRL Action Point of the week:: Look for God’s supreme point of view in every situation you face this week. Sign up for Discovering Destiny if you’ve not already done so.
Why Believe?
April 1st, 2012It actually takes more faith to be an atheist than it does to be a Christian. The more we study science the more we see God’s handiwork. In 2005 the academic world was stunned as a leading atheistic philosopher, Dr. Anthony Flew, denounced atheism. He stated that it is intellectually impossible to be an atheist after examining the DNA complexity in the human cell. In all actuality if the DNA from one human were unraveled and placed end to end, it would stretch from the center of earth to beyond the edge of the Solar System.
Rom 1:20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
If you’ve ever asked yourself the question, “Does God exist?” or “Can I trust the Bible?” You are not alone. Jesus invited Thomas to conquer his doubts by examining evidence.
Mark 12:30 Love the Lord your God w all your heart and w all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
This is the humorous video of Steve Martin we played in service.
If you’d like to hear some more messages I’ve prepared on this idea visit: http://destinychristian.com/prophecy.html
1 Pet 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. (NIV)
You might notice that there is no Biblical support for arguing somebody into God’s Kingdom.
Rom 2:4 reveals that God’s kindness leads us to repentance.
Your spirit and approach to the information we’ll discuss is very important! Preconceived ideas are that Christians are uninformed haters. Being informed and hateful about being right won’t further the cause of Christ. The right attitude about the right information is our focus.
You can safely assume that you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do. – Anne Lamott
Mark 12:30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ NIV
Unto us a child is born! The Messiah has come! The Bible gives us amazing prophecies about Jesus first coming that were all fulfilled in Christ. Palm Sunday is the week before Easter commemorating Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
Zech 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (NIV) – Custom for a king to be received as he was riding on a donkey expressing humility and relation to the least members of society.
To whom is this referring? – If you’re a Christian you’d say that is references Jesus Christ and His grand entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey on Palm Sunday in 32 A.D.
Understand that the original language is Hebrew. Interestingly if you take the original text and count every 22 letters you actually find a name encoded by the hand of God….the name….Yeshua – Hebrew for Jesus!
Dan 9:24-25 “The Lord has commanded 490 years of further punishment upon Jerusalem and your people. Then at last they will learn to stay away from sin, and their guilt will be cleansed; then the kingdom of everlasting righteousness will begin, and the Most Holy Place (in the Temple) will be rededicated, as the prophets have declared. 25 Now listen! It will be 49 years plus 434 years from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One comes! Jerusalem’s streets and walls will be rebuilt despite the perilous times. (TLB)
Notice that Daniel specifically states that it will be 49 years + 434 years = HOW MANY YEARS? 483 years from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One comes. Who is the anointed one? This references the Messiah. Who is the Messiah? This is where this prophetic scripture gets very specific and leaves little room for discussion.
The sacred Year known to the Jews as 360 day year based on the account of Noah and the five months (150 days) of water prevailing upon the earth. Gen chapters 7 & 8. Daniel stated it would be 483 years. If you do the math you’ll find that 483 years of 360 day years will total HOW MUCH? GIVE BOOK HERE = 173,880 days. According to this prophesy in Daniel 9:24 there would be a command to rebuild the temple and this command would set a prophetic alarm clock into motion that would introduce the Messiah 173,880 days after the command was given.
Ezra 7 tells the story of when this commandment came forth to restore and to build Jerusalam.
Ezra 7:9 For on the first of the first month he began to go up from Babylon; and on the first of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, because the good hand of his God {was} upon him.
Ezra 7:12-13 “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect {peace.} And now
13 I have issued a decree that any of the people of Israel and their priests and the Levites in my kingdom who are willing to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. (NAS)
The first of the fifth month according to the Jewish calendar would be 1st day of the month of Nissan. In our calendar this would be March 14th 445 B.C. If you take March 14th of 445 B.C. and add to that day the 173,880 days you will be able to come up with a very specific date in history – SIGNIFICANT? Remember that this is the date when Daniel prophesied the Messiah would be revealed. If you walk this out on a calendar you will land on a Sunday
Matthew 21:7-10. MARCH 14TH, 445 B.C. + 173,880 DAYS = PALM SUNDAY, APRIL 6TH, 32 A.D. AS JESUS RODE INTO JERUSALEM.
The song all the people were singing was a very commonly known song “Hosanna – blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”. This was the song they would sing to welcome their king.
One Bible scholar presented 332 prophecies of the first coming of the Jewish Messiah. All 332 prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
Peter W. Stoner, professor of mathematics for many years at Westmont College, would have his advanced math classes to apply the laws of probability to the prophecies of the first coming of the Jewish Messiah.
Their conclusions: If you took just 8 of the 332 prophecies and applied the law of probability to these 8, the odds of these 8 happening by chance is 1 in 10 to the 17th power.
Examine a comparable event. If you covered the entire surface area of TX with a two feet stack of coins and just one of these coins were marked w an “x”. Then you flew over TX picking a spot to land and selected the only coin in the entire state of two feet deep coins. The probability of this happening is 1 in 10 to the 17th power or the same odds of somebody fulfilling just 8 of the 332 prophecies revealed about the first coming of Christ.
Remember = illustrates odds of just 8 of the 332 prophecies happening by chance. Jesus fulfilled all 332 out of 332!!!
Scientists have determined that the earth was a hyperbaric chamber in its early stages.
Genesis 1:6-7 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.
Secular scientists agree tropical plants found in the N Pole = earth had a different atmosphere– EDEN! God created life to thrive in this oxygen-enriched environment of moisture that produced an atmosphere which would enable reptilian flyers to fly as they could not fly in today’s atmosphere.
After the flood the atmosphere dramatically changed. You might notice the shortened life span in Scripture following the flood resulting from a completely changed atmosphere.
Hyperbaric chambers recreate the idea of an original atmosphere where there is 3 x’s the pressure and 3 x’s the oxygen.
http://www.genesispark.com/exhibits/early-earth/experiments/
In this environment a tomato plant was documented over six months producing 13,000 tomatoes growing more than 30 feet high. Plants and people were designed by God to live in this original environment.
Laminin is a cohesion protein. Simply put it keeps our bodies from falling apart on a molecular level. It holds us all together. Amazingly God designed us with a cohesion protein that keeps us from falling apart that forms the shape of a cross!
Colossians 1:17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
God is an amazing God and He’s provided for us phenomenal evidence to be able to engage our brains having an informed faith. Aside from all of the evidence and logic we must always remember that a man with an opinion is at the mercy of a man with an experience.
Nobody can take away your experience with God. Everything else in your life may be able to be taken from you but nobody will ever take away the story of your life and relationship with Christ.
Further information for reference and study:
SCIENCE:
The physiological study of laughter =”GELOTOLOGY”.
1. increases blood pressure
2. increases heart rate
3. changes breathing
4. reduces levels of certain neurochemicals
5. provides a boost to the immune system.
Some hospitals now have “Humor Rooms,” “Comedy Carts,” and clown kids because laughter has proven to speed patients’ recovery. The Bible actually spoke of this generations before scientists ever figured it out.
Prov 17:22 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. (KJV)
Click here to see great debate between Professor Richard Dawkins and Professor John Lennox.
Myth of Atheism:
Paul Harvey:
Debate at UCO:
Debate Evolution VS Creation at UCO from Pastordude on Vimeo.
Power Trippin’
March 29th, 2012“Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t.” Margaret Thatcher
Matt 20:27 “…godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads…” MSG
POWER CAN BE DANGEROUS. A teen driver can easily get into trouble because they are typically not prepared for power that is being placed under their control.
Stop asking God for advice and start letting him have control. This is God’s prerequisite to power. Jesus most primary lesson about influence was to become broken and available to God’s purposes and love.
The only true characteristic that enables us to be useful before God is brokenness. John 12:24 says clearly that the seed possesses life but it’s only if it dies that life can come forth. The question isn’t do we possess life. The question is are we willing to do so life can come forth?
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Let It Go & Live Again
March 25th, 2012JESUS WANTS YOU TO STOP WHINING. This is the final week for the whining series. We’ve learned that people do not have a whining problem they have a worship problem. Luke 10 tells a story about Mary and Martha that teaches a valuable lesson. When we are distracted from worship we are prone to complain. As long as you worship the trendy trinity, me myself and mine, you will whine and complain. Get off the throne and serve the King. He’s in control! Bow down and worship him! If you count your blessings you won’t have time to number your complaints.
When you disconnect the heart from the hand, your work becomes a frustrating burden rather than the labor of love. Martha became distracted by all her work. It’s easy to lose sight of the Lord of the work when we get consumed with the work of the Lord.
“Lord do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone?” It appears that she was saying this right in front of Mary correcting her and making a point? It’s easier make point than it is to make a difference.
Jesus said in Luke 17:1 that it is impossible that no offenses will come. This simply means that you will be offended. The question is not whether or not you’ll be offended. The question is will you handle the offense in such a way that you don’t become toxic!
Every shot the enemy tries to make against you is blocked by Jesus much like Ibaka does for The OKC Thunder!
Jesus is blocking every one of the enemy’s shots in your life. However, if you choose to hold on to an offense it’s kind of like asking the Lord not to block a shot. This is unwise and it gives the enemy the edge in your life which will ultimately be more costly than you could ever realize.
You might notice in The Lord’s prayer, Matt 6:12 says, “Forgive us our debts, AS WE forgive our debtors.” In essence Jesus was teaching the disciples to pray a prayer that says, “God only forgive me as much as I’m willing to forgive others.” In addition to this seemingly radical notion that God’s forgiveness in our lives is conditional to our forgiving others Jesus reiterates only one portion of the Lord’s prayer. Notice verses 14-15 after the Lord’s Prayer where the only idea Jesus reiterates is the idea of forgiveness. “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive you.”
Hurt people hurt people. Offences will come but that doesn’t mean you have to nurse it to a place of strength in your life.
A good healthy offense will poison your roots and affect the way you process life. Keep you on the move so you never get planted church, job, marriage, friendships, etc.
Jesus said “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things.” There are enough big things to deal with in life without making little things into big deals.
It’s easy to get worried, bothered and worked up about things. Discerning the people around you is vital. When your dad makes you mad your friends tend to take your position helping you feel justified in being angry. When your friend makes you mad your dad tends to coach you in the idea of salvaging a healthy perspective. We need fatherly voices in our lives helping us keep the right perspective even through our anger. Eph 4:26 In your anger do not sin…
Frustration is typically a clue to your call. Once there was a family who attended Destiny that really struggled financially. Their car completely died and they were desperate for a vehicle. We were able to actually give them a car and in doing so we filled it with several bags of groceries just to add to the blessing! Within a year they left saying they felt the church simply didn’t care about people in need. Poverty is a spirit that keeps you so self-absorbed that you can’t see clearly.
It’s easier to speak up and say something than it is to get up and do something. Pain wants to cripple your life, hold your mind hostage and restrict you in every way. Manage the pain, forgive & live again!
This family should have stepped up and take responsibility to do for others what had been done for them. Instead they defaulted to the easier path of blaming others for not taking action.
A good healthy offense can effectively turn your passion into poison.
When you forgive somebody you set a person free and it’s not until after you’ve done it that you realize that person was you. The church is the family of the forgiven.
GPFRL Action Point of the week:: Take the high road when given the option to live life angry! Practice preferring others daily. Make it a point to yield this week to other drivers on the road.
The theme song for this series has been Walkin’ on sunshine!!! Special thanks to our worship team and vocalists for working up this song as a special emphasis. It’s been fun!!!