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In Jesus' journey to Jerusalem, Jesus had the knowledge of where He was heading and what was going to happen. He knew the opposition that was facing Him and yet there was a bigger picture that brought His endurance... He was determined to go in spite of the intense events that were awaiting Him.
Have you ever felt obligated to do something when you really didn't want to? Have you ever had something that when you had to give it up, you were very reluctant? If we can look to God on how He has dealt with money and possessions, we can potentially gain a perspective on how to deal with them in our own lives. Hear how the Apostle Paul found himself in some dire straights that lead him to write from a prison setting to pen some profound words that can help us in our understanding about giving.
How do you respond to conflict? We all tend to individually think our own perspective is the right one. Our own bias is usually behind the matter. What is it that is behind that bias? How can we know? Discovering the source and getting to the true root of the issue of what is behind conflict and opposition can better equip us with a toolbox of resources from God that can help us to better handle the challenge of conflict when it comes our way.
What are you focused on? Having goals is important and vital to keep us moving forward. Do you have a champion? Do you have someone who is an encourager in your life? Listen to become strengthened in the race and keep pressing on toward the goal of the prize in Christ Jesus.
Have you ever been in a difficult situation where you didn't have enough money to make ends meet? The Bible gives us guidance on finances and we can understand how He provides and offers us the gift of giving.
During the NFL Superbowl, there are commercials that feature some of the highest paid marketing projects. There is something in us that we can be drawn into something even when we are unaware something is going on. We even have feel-good chemicals such as dopamine that can be released in our bodies to make us feel good. This is what happens when we shop or do things that are exhilarating. The Apostle Paul gives us the way to live in a culture that is saturated with various dopamine raising experiences and not be drawn into the undercurrent.
Have you ever pushed the limit and found yourself focused on self-directed pursuits? How do we get past this? Jesus had power and yet emptied Himself. What can we learn from the way Jesus humbled Himself to become a man? Hear how the combination of strong humility and strong power can co-exist together.
All of us have a sense of fear. We can feel it perhaps before public speaking or perhaps from a high position. For Christians, the idea of sharing your faith with others is often mentioned as a source of fear in how to share the Gospel. Perhaps a sense of inadequacy or a sense of not wanting to be rejected all play into the sense of fear. Hear how the word of God provides a way to deal with our fears and be courageous.
Hear about one of the world's most popular toys and how it can help us to think about how we each have a desire to connect with one another. Because each one of us individually flawed as human beings living in a fallen world, we find that we need help to be able to love one another and overcome anger, conflict, jealousy, and disagreements.
Hear the story of missionary Jim Elliot and the powerful impact about what appeared to be a life lost for no reason and the miraculous events that transpired after his death in the rainforest of Ecuador at the hand of the Auca tribesmen.
When Moses was overwhelmed, he had to have help. Perhaps you're at the point right now where you realize you too need help. God is there to help us because even Jesus who had many people pressing in to reach him and he had a schedule to keep. He knew how to properly balance all the issues that he faced. Ultimately, there is a higher purpose beyond what we see in the here and now. Your life is important and you will want to hear how you can discover purpose and overcome the stress, busyness and weight of concerns and issues and find a way to invest your life in something beyond yourself.
After Christmas, there is a tendency to find gifts and all the preparations for the event fade away, don't work anymore, or have some kind of technical issues you can't resolve. There is the reality of things that returns after a holiday and find we have dead pine needles and broken toys in our life that we didn't plan on. Where do you go when things fall apart?
Would you be excited if you found 1 million dollars in a gift you received at Christmas? There is something even more valuable and you can experience it too. At the very essence of the Christmas story is the salvation message. Jesus Christ came on mission to save humanity. The love is packaged in a gift. A gift is of no use unless it is unwrapped. Hear how you can unwrap the most incredible gift of all time.
Ever notice that you can see things from one perspective and then see it from a different perspective and you are surprised by how you could have missed it? There is an unseen spiritual realm and we need to be have a heavenly vision of the world around us. Hear how we can find out how to acquire a heavenly vision.
We all don't particularly like to wait. Whether we have to wait in line at the checkout or waiting for answers to prayers, we all want what we are requesting. Hear how God goes silent between the Old and the New Testaments for 400 years and there is a waiting period between God's fulfillment of His promises. God is actually working in your circumstances also. Find out how.
Some things have some very meager beginnings and you would never have expected that it had the potential to be amazing and incredible given the time. Have you ever considered how there is a Christmas Tree as part of Christmas? Hear how you can find the greatest gift of all and it is under a tree.
When a ship sets anchor, it has a place of steadiness and consistency. When we have God as the anchor of our life and Him at the center of our life, we are able to pursue His calling for our life. Hear the story of Pastor Steve McCoy, author of SmallCircle discipleship ministry tools share how his life intersected with God's call to author some disciplemaking tools and release them to the world.
What do you do when nobody is looking? Often, when we have a higher purpose and a recognition that someone is watching, we tend to try harder and do harder in our work. God's desire for us to avoid hypocrisy and aim for authenticity is about direction and not about perfection. Hear how the fact that God is watching and that there are rewards after death can motivate us to strive for authenticity.
The world calls us to be on top and do all you can to succeed. Do whatever you want and be number one. Jesus came into this world not to rule, but to serve. It was in losing His life that He could save us. Hear about the unique thing about Christianity of losing to gain and how it can apply to your own life.
We all need rest from time to time, but what happens when we pause too long and become stagnant in our lives? t is easy to dismiss ourselves from the task that God has planned for our lives. It is easy to relax and rest when we've had some successes. Hear how to become motivated to make the latter years of life even more fruitful that your earlier years.
Have you ever been on a long journey and you need to pull off along the way to take a break? We all need to recharge and be able to relax from the stress and challenges of life. Stress can be have an impact on your body and your soul. We can take physical rest to rejuvenate, but how do we spiritually rest? Where do we go for energy and restoration?
We say that we "love" this or that and use it in some pretty generic ways. The Bible uses different words for the word we translate as love. The sacrificial love that the Bible talks about is explained and presented to help us understand the importance of it in our lives and be bold with love at the core.
Have you ever made your own plans and then found yourself realizing that it probably could have been done a better way? We tend to start out with good intentions, but sometimes our path gets more complicated with personal interests. God has a plan and purpose and we can play a part in that plan by yielding to His plan for our life.
When we face difficult times, we often search for ways to cope. We can look to our own ways to try to solve them or we can turn to a higher power. Hear how God works to enable us to endure and persevere through difficult circumstances and face more and more opposition.
We tend to hide our shame and problems because we tend to want to show our best side and hide our bad side. Sin has it's greatest power in our hidden sin. Learn what overcomes these issues and the way you can escape from living an isolated life.
This message explores the transformative power of God's eternal and unconditional love. No sin is too great to separate us from divine grace. It serves as a poignant reminder of the all-encompassing nature of Christ's sacrifice, inviting both believers and seekers to recalibrate their understanding of God's love. The message offers a renewed sense of spiritual connection and peace. Perfect for anyone looking to deepen their faith or find solace in the concept of unchanging love. Message Notes: click here.
Message Notes
Sibling rivalry can have it's roots in favoritism by a parent. In the Bible, Joseph was sold into slavery and by his brothers because of their envy for the favor that his father had for him. But what is the difference between envy and jealousy? Hear about a subtle difference between the two different terms and how it applies to your life. Message Notes
Discover how God intervenes in the lives of two different women (Mary and Martha) to discover the priorities in their lives.
Can you think of a pleasing memorable moment and then think of one of your most difficult memories? We have the capacity to remember both the good and bad. Even in the midst of the situations, God was there. Over and over again, the people of God sought to remember special events and moments. Hear how remembering God can help us in our walk with God.
Have you blown it? Not feeling like you can be used by God because you feel that you are not worthy to be used by God? If you're wondering if you can be usable by God, you'll find this message inspiring to help you be ready and available to be used by God.
When you are a parent, you care about your kids. They can easily become more important than any other area in your life. When Mary and Martha were both focused on hosting Jesus, only one of them picked the right priority. What do we when we find ourselves with God in second, third or somewhere much later in the list? Hear how we can re-orient our lives to put God first once again.
In a world of social media and so many sources of information at our fingertips, where are we getting our influences? Whether we like it or not, being in a bad environment or social setting can impact us. How can we learn to walk worthy in a world that is headed toward destruction? We need positive models and relations with people who are walking closed with God.
In a world that is bent on the psychological concept of loving yourself, there is a sense of selflessness that is given to us to better understand what it actually is like. Hear how God Himself, even in the image of the Trinity, is an incredible picture of selflessness.
In a European country, there is now a Ministry of Loneliness to focus on the problem of loneliness in the country. Men tend to be loners more than women, but with a digitally connected world, we are more than ever in need of one-to-one relationships and discipleship in order to walk out this thing called life.
Plants require soil to grow. Fish require water to thrive. When we spend time around certain things, we carry the scent and aroma of the environment. If you're living in the world, you'll smell like the world. To what are you connected as your source? Hear how to connect to God, the only true source of life and how you can spread the scent of life wherever you go.
There are 12 notes in music and there are 12 major colors, but if you arrange those in various combinations, you can get a myriad of possibilities to make various songs and unique pieces of art. Your own unique personality can be an asset to pour into the life of another in discipleship. Are you growing in your Christian walk? Hear how God wants you to grow in your walk with Him.
What is your source of power? Is it trying harder through extra effort with religion? Is there some particular exercise or effort you need to engage in to be able to reach God or re-ignite the fire? Religion will tell you try harder and make the effort to reach Him, but there is a better way... here how you can be connected to the True Light.
With all the spiritual leaders throughout world history like Buddha, Mohammad and Joseph Smith, each of them had a certain death and their tombs are full of bones... except one. Jesus. He alone has an empty tomb and has risen from the dead and His tomb is no longer occupied. The real difference between Him and other gods is that He is alive today and we can individually reach out to Him.
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