Monday, December 18, 2006
As it was in the beginning...
This Sunday David lead us in a very crafty activity looking at three portions of scripture:
A picture was created to show what the verses were describing. Then groups looked at the similarities in their fabulous creations. Check the links on the left...Steve will be uploading your images someday soon!
Here's the skinny...
God had a plan from the beginning in which he created a world in which to have a right relationship with us...guess what, man screwed it up. Banished from the Garden of Eden we go.
Eventually, God brings restoration and resides with his people again...go figure, man screws it up again. There is this incredible unity throughout scripture showing God's desire to bring us into relationship with him, but time and time again we turn our back on him.
His final attempt to draw his people to himself comes in the birth of his son...Hey, isn't that why we celebrate...wait, no that's Santa...wait, yeah Christmas! Jesus, God's gift to the world! But wouldn't you know it, we turn our back again.
Through his death on the cross, Jesus has given us the means of restoring a right relationship with him. And like the trees near the river of life in our pictures, if the gospel has taken a foothold in our lives, we should bear fruit as well.
How is your relationship with God blossoming in your LiFE? What good works is your LiFE producing? Not as a means of earning the gift of grace he has given, but because of the gift you could never earn yourself?
Does you LiFE reflect His love? Or have you turned your back on Him?
As it was in the Garden of Eden, God will restore it in the end.
- Genesis 3--Garden of Eden
- Esekiel 47--Ezekiel's Vision
- Revelation 22--The New Jerusalem
A picture was created to show what the verses were describing. Then groups looked at the similarities in their fabulous creations. Check the links on the left...Steve will be uploading your images someday soon!
Here's the skinny...
God had a plan from the beginning in which he created a world in which to have a right relationship with us...guess what, man screwed it up. Banished from the Garden of Eden we go.
Eventually, God brings restoration and resides with his people again...go figure, man screws it up again. There is this incredible unity throughout scripture showing God's desire to bring us into relationship with him, but time and time again we turn our back on him.
His final attempt to draw his people to himself comes in the birth of his son...Hey, isn't that why we celebrate...wait, no that's Santa...wait, yeah Christmas! Jesus, God's gift to the world! But wouldn't you know it, we turn our back again.
Through his death on the cross, Jesus has given us the means of restoring a right relationship with him. And like the trees near the river of life in our pictures, if the gospel has taken a foothold in our lives, we should bear fruit as well.
How is your relationship with God blossoming in your LiFE? What good works is your LiFE producing? Not as a means of earning the gift of grace he has given, but because of the gift you could never earn yourself?
Does you LiFE reflect His love? Or have you turned your back on Him?
As it was in the Garden of Eden, God will restore it in the end.
Monday, December 11, 2006
Day after thought...I won't be around mid-week
I am struck so often that I ask people, "how are you doing?" and I actually don't have time or don't really care about their answer.
Well I am struck by it when I am honest with myself that I have no intentions of really listening. I am going to begin trying something new. I will keep saying hi but begin to ask questions that are relevant to my intentions like:
Instead of how are you?
"Hi, just tell me your good so I don't waste my time, ok?"....Good...Cool
Instead of what's new?
"Hi, what's happening in the next 2 seconds as we pass bye?" ....Nothing much...Cool
-LiFE
Well I am struck by it when I am honest with myself that I have no intentions of really listening. I am going to begin trying something new. I will keep saying hi but begin to ask questions that are relevant to my intentions like:
Instead of how are you?
"Hi, just tell me your good so I don't waste my time, ok?"....Good...Cool
Instead of what's new?
"Hi, what's happening in the next 2 seconds as we pass bye?" ....Nothing much...Cool
-LiFE
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Dec. 10th Recap - I John 4:7-21 - Todd M.
Question: Name a famous person that you dislike/get's on your nerves/can't understand?
Answers ranged from Sid Hartman, Bill Clinton, Rosie O'Donnell, Michael Jackson, Robin William post-Mork & Mindy, Politicians in general...
The content:
We then transitioned in to the question of who is someone in our life that is irritating you. We shared in groups of 2 or 3. Needless to say the conversations got a little more lively.
Then we switched gears looking at I John 4:9-11. If verse 9 & 10 are the model of love(sacrifice even if poeple wouldn't have accepted it) and how God showed his love to us then in vs. 11 we are called to love others.
We then took time to list out practical ways to love others. Some of those answers were respect others, pray for them, spend time with people, understand where they are coming from and listen to people and take time to care about what they are saying.
Now, that we had that list let’s look at I John 4:19-21. I have now long stopped using the words hate when it comes to people and I would be willing to bet most of us have as well. But I use kinder words like: I can’t stand them, they drive me nuts, I dislike them, or they sure are irritating…something along those lines. I will lump all those type s of people in our lives as the “disagreeables”
Well, God’s words makes it clear there isn’t much room for whole lot except that we are to show love to people(even disaggreables) using the model he sent to us…I used to say to my youth group kids when they would complain about someone in the group. “I’m not asking you to like anyone, you just have to love them” They never answered me back verbally that I remember but they always had this look on their face, as if they were saying, do you know what you are asking of me? Nothing God hasn’t asked for first.
My final challenge was to think about that person that is irritating you and commit to loving them in one practical way even at the risk that they will not accept you grace and kindness.
See you next week!
-LiFE
Answers ranged from Sid Hartman, Bill Clinton, Rosie O'Donnell, Michael Jackson, Robin William post-Mork & Mindy, Politicians in general...
The content:
We then transitioned in to the question of who is someone in our life that is irritating you. We shared in groups of 2 or 3. Needless to say the conversations got a little more lively.
Then we switched gears looking at I John 4:9-11. If verse 9 & 10 are the model of love(sacrifice even if poeple wouldn't have accepted it) and how God showed his love to us then in vs. 11 we are called to love others.
We then took time to list out practical ways to love others. Some of those answers were respect others, pray for them, spend time with people, understand where they are coming from and listen to people and take time to care about what they are saying.
Now, that we had that list let’s look at I John 4:19-21. I have now long stopped using the words hate when it comes to people and I would be willing to bet most of us have as well. But I use kinder words like: I can’t stand them, they drive me nuts, I dislike them, or they sure are irritating…something along those lines. I will lump all those type s of people in our lives as the “disagreeables”
Well, God’s words makes it clear there isn’t much room for whole lot except that we are to show love to people(even disaggreables) using the model he sent to us…I used to say to my youth group kids when they would complain about someone in the group. “I’m not asking you to like anyone, you just have to love them” They never answered me back verbally that I remember but they always had this look on their face, as if they were saying, do you know what you are asking of me? Nothing God hasn’t asked for first.
My final challenge was to think about that person that is irritating you and commit to loving them in one practical way even at the risk that they will not accept you grace and kindness.
See you next week!
-LiFE
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Dec 3rd - Recap - David L. teaching
Ummm. Sorry I will have to recap later. LiFE is busy but if you click on the side link where it said David was scheduled to teach you will also see a PDF file that will show you what we worked on.
Brief recap: Love is Good and Hate is bad, but the world will hate you for being a Christian. That's not great but it's not bad...Does that make any sense?
-LiFE
Brief recap: Love is Good and Hate is bad, but the world will hate you for being a Christian. That's not great but it's not bad...Does that make any sense?
-LiFE
