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Showing posts from October, 2007

Resist ONE sin

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I have been reading the Imitation of Christ by Thomas A. Kempis slowly over the past few months. There is so much rich material in there that I can't possibly take it all in by reading it through in a few days like I would like to. So, periodically I have been sharing a few thoughts from the book here. On how to aquire peace and on the desire to improve: "Resist one sin for a year!" Simple. We tend to look at all the things we need to do better in and then end up not doing well in any of the areas. If we became truely disciplined in ONE area of our life that needs attention, in a few years, we would cover some of the hardest things we deal with and be victorious. This idea reminds me of dieting. When I go on a diet, I tend to say "Ok, I am going to eat right, drink my water, exercise every day, and get good sleep" Yeah right! And day two of the diet, I am overwhelmed and discouraged because I can't change all those habits overnight. But....what if

My Last FLAME

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I forgot to post before I left that I would be gone for a week of classes last week. Sorry about that. It was the last required FLAME that I have to go to, but I will most definitely be back for ReKindle, as the time spent there is so valuable to ministry. It was an amazing week. I took Philosphy/Ethics and left there with one presiding thought.....KNOW WHAT YOU BELIEVE AND WHY....otherwise you will make decisions based on the situation rather than what is truely Biblical. It seemed that every question we faced brought up another opposing, sometimes just as good as the last. Frustrating, yes, but helping us own our faith. For those of you who know me...this kind of stuff makes me nuts, but I recognize the value in it, so I persevere through it! And then I was off to Spiritual Formation. It might better be called Revival 101. What an amazing time with the Lord. We were able to take some "time outs" to search our hearts and pray. When we were together in prayer, God&#

Complete Surrender

We are doing a sermon series based on the movie "Facing the Giants" and today I preached on Complete Surrender. We ended the sermon with my first communion service that I have performed. I felt so unworthy to be serving. What an awesome privilege I have been given. Here are some of the notes from my sermon: What does it mean to love God more than anything else? The first time “love” is used in the Bible is when Genesis speaks of Abraham’s love for his son Isaac. Isaac was Abraham and Sarah’s only child, born to them when they were past child-bearing age. God promised to Abraham that Isaac would continue the legacy and ancestry of Abraham for future generations. Did Abraham love Isaac more than God? God was going to test Abraham’s commitment to Him by asking Abraham to do the unthinkable. Let’s read about it in Genesis 22...... Genesis 22:1-18 1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. 2 Then God said

Give Us A Greater Hunger

Give us a greater hunger, Lord, Thank we have ever known. Help us to wait in one accord Until Your power is shown. Keep us, Your children, on our knees Beseeching You with mighty pleas Till floods of blessing like the seas Sweep over all Your own. Give us a sense of urgency That will not be denied. Give such desire your work to see Till ease we cast aside. Give us soul-hunger and soul-thirst Till hearts with longing almost burst, Till we could wish ourselves accursed (Rom.9:3) If souls but reach Your side! Lord, now begin Your mighty work; Make bare Your holy arm. O God, forbid that we should shirk Or to this age conform! Reveal Your Spirit's mighty power; Oh, come upon Your Church this hour! By Your own working, Lord, empower Till Satan's forts we storm. Help each of us to do our part; O Lord, may we not fail. Give clearest guidance to each heart Till highest mounts we scale. Use us however You may choose; We would no burden, Lord, refuse; But get us, Lord, where You can use A

William Booth on evangelism:

'Not called!' did you say? 'Not heard the call,' I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters, and servants and masters not to come there. And then look Christ in the face, whose mercy you have professed to obey, and tell him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish his mercy to the world.

How to read books:

I read the blog of Bob Franquiz , a church planter of Calvary Fellowship in Miami, Florida . He reads a lot of books and here is how he gets it done: 1. I like to read - if you hate reading, there's no cure that I know of. I used to not like reading, but I was so hungry to learn, I got over it and dove into books. 2. Bring a book everywhere with you - People have tons of time that get wasted (waiting for someone, late appointment, etc...). If you bring a book, use the time to get into it. 3. Give yourself "reading time" every day - I read for 30 minutes every day. Just like I schedule exercise into my daily routine, I schedule reading in as well. If it's not scheduled, it probably won't happen. 4. Read while you're watching TV - Believe it or not, Monday Night Football can be watched with a book in hand. I rarely watch a sporting event without a book in hand. Your brain can handle both activities. 5. Set goals - I try to read 2-3 chapters a day in the books

Praise You In This Storm

This song means a lot to me with all that our family seems to be encountering right now. Listen here.