Today, we will conclude our 3-part devotion.
A little re-cap of the first two: part 1 I talked about where are we looking? Where is our focus? We need to have a hunger for God and part 2 I talked about We should be going to youth group not only because of friends (or whatever reason) but because we want to know more about Jesus so that we can be doing for Him.
Today I want to talk about Verse 3 of Colossians which says: “For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God”. Or this version: “For as far as this world is concerned you have died. And your (new, real) life is hidden with Christ in God”. I have been talking about an article of this girl that was going to youth group for the wrong reasons and when her youth pastor preached on this passage (Colossians 3:1-3) at a youth camp that she decided to go because she and her “best” friend was not getting along (this was the reason that she went to youth group). That’s when she realized that she was missing out on Christ.
These are some of her words that she was thinking: “I felt totally convicted. I didn't have a hunger for God. I was totally focused on earthly things. Thinking back to my relationship with Jaimee, I realized I had a tendency to make my friends into idols. I had often let them take the place of God in my life. During a morning devotional time, I stepped into a canoe with only my Bible, a journal, and a pen. I paddled a good distance away from shore and soaked in the stillness.
The lake was calm and the morning breeze cool as I started thinking and praying. I opened my journal and wrote a prayer: Lord, I've learned I can't depend on people. I can only depend on you. I confess that I've idolized friendships and I want to change. Forgive me for my sins, and help me to walk with you and put you first.
Well in Vs. 3 “The passage says you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. Is that you? Have you died to yourself? You'll know by how much you hunger for God."
Well she left that camp with a new hunger for God that she was just pretending to know.
So my question to you is this do you hunger for God? Have you died to yourself? My prayer for you as we close is that you will spend time alone with God and to ask Him to put that desire and hunger in you so that you will be able to share with your friends what Jesus Christ is all about.
I hope that you have enjoyed this devotion. I would like for you to comment on this and if you would like to see more of these please let me know as well. God Bless and go MAD
(Make A Difference)
Monday, June 15, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
EDGE Students
Tonight be on time 6PM SHARP!!!
We will have our 20 min. Bible Talk then off to RITA'S
Remember if you are late, you will NOT be able to go to Rita's with us (NO EXCEPTIONS)
Don't forget to bring money for Rita's
Any questions call me
We will have our 20 min. Bible Talk then off to RITA'S
Remember if you are late, you will NOT be able to go to Rita's with us (NO EXCEPTIONS)
Don't forget to bring money for Rita's
Any questions call me
Part 2 of 3
As we continue part 2 of 3-part devotion, let’s recap what we said last time. Where are we looking? Where is our focus? We need to have a hunger for God Colossians 3:1 says we are to seek God and not on earthly things.
Today I want to talk about Vs.2 of chapter 3. The verse says; “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth”. Another version says “set your minds and keep them set on what is above (the higher things)….” So what is that telling us? In the article the girl said that “We knew we should have been paying attention to Giles's sermon, but we had no desire to listen to our youth pastor. There were movies and song lyrics to quote, boys to discuss, and inside jokes to crack.” So as the verse says to set our minds on above, what Paul is telling us is that we should be doing everything because of Jesus.
We should be going to youth group not only because of friends (or whatever reason) but because we want to know more about Jesus so that we can be doing for Him. There are a lot of earthly things that will distract you from doing what is right and it is your job (If that is what you want) to keep from those earthly distractions and stay focused and setting our minds on Jesus.
Again my prayer is that you spend time alone with Jesus and ask Him to help you with the distractions that this earth has and to put that energy into listening and doing for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We will conclude this 3-part devotion on Monday.
Today I want to talk about Vs.2 of chapter 3. The verse says; “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth”. Another version says “set your minds and keep them set on what is above (the higher things)….” So what is that telling us? In the article the girl said that “We knew we should have been paying attention to Giles's sermon, but we had no desire to listen to our youth pastor. There were movies and song lyrics to quote, boys to discuss, and inside jokes to crack.” So as the verse says to set our minds on above, what Paul is telling us is that we should be doing everything because of Jesus.
We should be going to youth group not only because of friends (or whatever reason) but because we want to know more about Jesus so that we can be doing for Him. There are a lot of earthly things that will distract you from doing what is right and it is your job (If that is what you want) to keep from those earthly distractions and stay focused and setting our minds on Jesus.
Again my prayer is that you spend time alone with Jesus and ask Him to help you with the distractions that this earth has and to put that energy into listening and doing for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We will conclude this 3-part devotion on Monday.
Monday, June 8, 2009
3-part devotion
Going to youth group for the wrong reasons was an article that I read and I was wondering how many of us do that whether we go because we want to learn or we go because of our friends or maybe it is something else. Part of the article the girl in there stated that she felt totally convicted. She said that she didn't have a hunger for God. She was totally focused on earthly things.
Colossians 3:1-3, has some interesting words that we should be looking at.
The first part of Verse 1 says: “Since you have been raised to new life with Christ”. To me Paul is telling the Colossians that hey you have Christ in your life now that things should be different.
The later part of that verse states: “set your sights on the realities (rich, eternal treasures) of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. To me that is telling me that our sights, whatever that might be should be focused on Christ and what He has done and what He has in store for us.
This will be 3-part devotion. This obviously is Part 1, with Part 2 coming in the next couple of days.
My Prayer for you all is that you take time alone with God and see where are your sights at and ask God do re-adjust your sight that will start focusing on Him.
Colossians 3:1-3, has some interesting words that we should be looking at.
The first part of Verse 1 says: “Since you have been raised to new life with Christ”. To me Paul is telling the Colossians that hey you have Christ in your life now that things should be different.
The later part of that verse states: “set your sights on the realities (rich, eternal treasures) of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. To me that is telling me that our sights, whatever that might be should be focused on Christ and what He has done and what He has in store for us.
This will be 3-part devotion. This obviously is Part 1, with Part 2 coming in the next couple of days.
My Prayer for you all is that you take time alone with God and see where are your sights at and ask God do re-adjust your sight that will start focusing on Him.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Stranger Than Fiction
Thousands of bees crowd airplane in Massachusetts
Maybe these bees were too tired to fly for themselves. A gang of honeybees landed on the wing of a plane used for flight school training at Beverly Airport. At first, the 10,000 or so bees swarmed over the left side of the aircraft, then landed on top of the left wing. The owner of the flight center called police, who said to call local bee removal expert Al Wilkins.
Wilkins used a specially designed vacuum to suck the bees off the plane, and then relocated them to hives where they will produce honey.
Wilkins guessed that the queen may have stopped to rest on the plane, and the other bees congregated around to protect her.
Maybe these bees were too tired to fly for themselves. A gang of honeybees landed on the wing of a plane used for flight school training at Beverly Airport. At first, the 10,000 or so bees swarmed over the left side of the aircraft, then landed on top of the left wing. The owner of the flight center called police, who said to call local bee removal expert Al Wilkins.
Wilkins used a specially designed vacuum to suck the bees off the plane, and then relocated them to hives where they will produce honey.
Wilkins guessed that the queen may have stopped to rest on the plane, and the other bees congregated around to protect her.
Monday, May 18, 2009
The Prophet of Flying bugs
The Prophet of Flying Bugs
A fake interview with Joel about God's wrath, judgment, and … mercy.Sam O'Neal
For a long time, I've been wanting to interview a genuine fire-and-brimstone prophet who got to forecast doom and death to sinners. But, the prophet Joel wasn't what I expected.
Is it true that you're a real Old Testament prophet?
Yes, that's correct.
You were sent by God to pronounce judgment on the nation of Israel?
I was sent to the Israelites, yes. But I'm one of the minor prophets—Habakkuk, Obadiah and so on. People usually have a hard time remembering guys like us.
But you got to do the doom and judgment thing, right? You went around shouting, "Thus saith the Lord!"
Oh, yes. I told the Israelites to weep, mourn, and despair. I told them a day of darkness and gloom was coming because God was going to send an army to punish their sins.
All right! This is getting good. And was it a big army?
It sure was. I remember saying, "Before them the earth shakes, the sky trembles, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine."
Wow—was it the Assyrians?
No.
It had to be the Babylonians, then. I heard those guys would go nuts with their bronze swords and …
Actually, it was a big army of locusts.
Um, you mean those mutated freak locusts from Revelation? The ones with heads like lions and tails like giant scorpions?
These were regular locusts. They were a couple of inches long and ate plants.
Wait a minute. You, a big time doom and gloom prophet, threatened Israel with flying bugs? What kind of punishment was that?
There were millions and millions of locusts, and they ate up every piece of vegetation in the whole country! They even stripped the bark away from the trees, so the branches looked like white bones rattling in the wind. That meant the animals had no food to eat, which meant the people ran out of food pretty quickly, too.
That's kinda inconvenient, but …
Also, the fact that God sent locusts was a very big deal because of what the bugs symbolized. Locusts were one of the 10 plagues God used to free the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, remember? So when they attacked Israel, it was like God was saying, "You guys have become as bad as the Egyptians because of your sin."
That makes sense. I guess it was pretty cool punishment after all.
Are you crazy? It was a horrible tragedy; there wasn't anything "cool" about it! I think you've got the wrong idea about prophets. We never enjoyed telling people that bad things were going to happen—except Jonah, I guess. That guy was a little off.
But wasn't it a little satisfying to be a messenger of God's wrath?
You're missing the point entirely. God didn't send us to yell at the Israelites. He sent us to warn them about the consequences of their sin, and to give them a chance to ask for forgiveness. He was being merciful, not angry.
Yeah, I guess I do appreciate God forgiving my sins instead of sending flying insects after me.
Exactly.
Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Ignite Your Faith magazine.
A fake interview with Joel about God's wrath, judgment, and … mercy.Sam O'Neal
For a long time, I've been wanting to interview a genuine fire-and-brimstone prophet who got to forecast doom and death to sinners. But, the prophet Joel wasn't what I expected.
Is it true that you're a real Old Testament prophet?
Yes, that's correct.
You were sent by God to pronounce judgment on the nation of Israel?
I was sent to the Israelites, yes. But I'm one of the minor prophets—Habakkuk, Obadiah and so on. People usually have a hard time remembering guys like us.
But you got to do the doom and judgment thing, right? You went around shouting, "Thus saith the Lord!"
Oh, yes. I told the Israelites to weep, mourn, and despair. I told them a day of darkness and gloom was coming because God was going to send an army to punish their sins.
All right! This is getting good. And was it a big army?
It sure was. I remember saying, "Before them the earth shakes, the sky trembles, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine."
Wow—was it the Assyrians?
No.
It had to be the Babylonians, then. I heard those guys would go nuts with their bronze swords and …
Actually, it was a big army of locusts.
Um, you mean those mutated freak locusts from Revelation? The ones with heads like lions and tails like giant scorpions?
These were regular locusts. They were a couple of inches long and ate plants.
Wait a minute. You, a big time doom and gloom prophet, threatened Israel with flying bugs? What kind of punishment was that?
There were millions and millions of locusts, and they ate up every piece of vegetation in the whole country! They even stripped the bark away from the trees, so the branches looked like white bones rattling in the wind. That meant the animals had no food to eat, which meant the people ran out of food pretty quickly, too.
That's kinda inconvenient, but …
Also, the fact that God sent locusts was a very big deal because of what the bugs symbolized. Locusts were one of the 10 plagues God used to free the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, remember? So when they attacked Israel, it was like God was saying, "You guys have become as bad as the Egyptians because of your sin."
That makes sense. I guess it was pretty cool punishment after all.
Are you crazy? It was a horrible tragedy; there wasn't anything "cool" about it! I think you've got the wrong idea about prophets. We never enjoyed telling people that bad things were going to happen—except Jonah, I guess. That guy was a little off.
But wasn't it a little satisfying to be a messenger of God's wrath?
You're missing the point entirely. God didn't send us to yell at the Israelites. He sent us to warn them about the consequences of their sin, and to give them a chance to ask for forgiveness. He was being merciful, not angry.
Yeah, I guess I do appreciate God forgiving my sins instead of sending flying insects after me.
Exactly.
Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Ignite Your Faith magazine.
Monday, May 11, 2009
What We Don't Deserve
What We Don't Deserve
What Jesus means when he says "Blessed are the merciful."
by Mark Galli
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." —Matthew 5:7, ESV
At first, Matthew 5:7 seems to imply that Jesus is making a deal with us: If we go out and show mercy to others, God will show mercy to us.
And it seems like a good deal. I mean, how hard could it be to show mercy to others?
So we'll practice a little mercy, and then God will act the same toward us, and all will be well with the world. And for eternity.
Except that it's not that easy to be merciful.
Your brother borrows your iPod, and when he gives it back, it doesn't play. He says, "Sorry."
You say, "'Sorry' doesn't cut it. You need to replace what you broke."
He says, "OK. That's fair. But I don't have any money till next week. And then I need to buy a gift for Mom's birthday, and I need to start saving money for the prom."
You say, "I don't care. You ruined my iPod, and you need to replace it."
He says, "I know. I'm sorry. But things are tight right now. Can't you give me a break?"
And that's when it's really hard to forgive. To let it go. To be merciful.
Just as it's hard to leave your own friends to sit down by the class reject sitting alone at lunch.
Or to give your last $15 to the food drive for the hungry when you had your heart set on going to a movie with friends that afternoon.
Or to want to even talk to the person who made the cut on the basketball team when you didn't.
That's when "Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy" doesn't seem like much of a good deal. It feels like a curse.
All we can think about is how unmerciful we can be when we're self-centered, or indifferent, or even cruel. Then we're thinking, I'm in trouble. I'm never going to receive mercy at this rate. I don't deserve it.
And that's when the turning point comes. It's at that point that the mercy of God starts making its way into our lives. It begins by us turning that hopelessness into prayer:
"Lord, I'm in trouble. I'm self-centered. I don't deserve your mercy, but I need it."
And the Lord gives us a break. He forgives. He shows mercy.
And that's why it's easier to give your brother a break. And to practice mercy in all sorts of difficult situations.
Not because we're trying to prove something, or get something from God, but simply because God has proven something to us by giving us something we didn't deserve: mercy.
We become merciful because we've been shown mercy.
When Jesus says blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy, he assumes that you really can't be merciful until you've received mercy in the first place. Mercy is not a deal, but an ongoing lifestyle.
We receive mercy then we show mercy and as a result we receive more mercy, and as a result, we then show more mercy—and on and on.
It's like we're rolling a snowball downhill. We start with a small one, maybe the size of a baseball. As we toss it down the hill, immediately gravity starts to pull it farther downhill. As it rolls over, of course, it collects more snow. Now it's bigger and heavier, and so gravity pulls it even harder. It rolls over even faster, and collects more snow, and gets heavier, and rolls faster. And so on. Before you know it, it's a huge ball, bounding down the hill.
That's how it is with mercy: The more we receive mercy, the more we give mercy.
Because we get distracted and have long bouts with selfishness, we collect sticks and branches in our little ball, and that slows us down. Sometimes we come to a complete halt, stuck halfway down the mountain. So we find ourselves remembering that we didn't deserve to roll as far as we had in the first place, and that without God's mercy, we'll go no farther.
And that's when God comes along, trims off the branches sticking out from us, and gives us that little push to start us rolling downhill again, so that we can practice and enjoy mercy upon mercy upon mercy upon mercy.
What Jesus means when he says "Blessed are the merciful."
by Mark Galli
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." —Matthew 5:7, ESV
At first, Matthew 5:7 seems to imply that Jesus is making a deal with us: If we go out and show mercy to others, God will show mercy to us.
And it seems like a good deal. I mean, how hard could it be to show mercy to others?
So we'll practice a little mercy, and then God will act the same toward us, and all will be well with the world. And for eternity.
Except that it's not that easy to be merciful.
Your brother borrows your iPod, and when he gives it back, it doesn't play. He says, "Sorry."
You say, "'Sorry' doesn't cut it. You need to replace what you broke."
He says, "OK. That's fair. But I don't have any money till next week. And then I need to buy a gift for Mom's birthday, and I need to start saving money for the prom."
You say, "I don't care. You ruined my iPod, and you need to replace it."
He says, "I know. I'm sorry. But things are tight right now. Can't you give me a break?"
And that's when it's really hard to forgive. To let it go. To be merciful.
Just as it's hard to leave your own friends to sit down by the class reject sitting alone at lunch.
Or to give your last $15 to the food drive for the hungry when you had your heart set on going to a movie with friends that afternoon.
Or to want to even talk to the person who made the cut on the basketball team when you didn't.
That's when "Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy" doesn't seem like much of a good deal. It feels like a curse.
All we can think about is how unmerciful we can be when we're self-centered, or indifferent, or even cruel. Then we're thinking, I'm in trouble. I'm never going to receive mercy at this rate. I don't deserve it.
And that's when the turning point comes. It's at that point that the mercy of God starts making its way into our lives. It begins by us turning that hopelessness into prayer:
"Lord, I'm in trouble. I'm self-centered. I don't deserve your mercy, but I need it."
And the Lord gives us a break. He forgives. He shows mercy.
And that's why it's easier to give your brother a break. And to practice mercy in all sorts of difficult situations.
Not because we're trying to prove something, or get something from God, but simply because God has proven something to us by giving us something we didn't deserve: mercy.
We become merciful because we've been shown mercy.
When Jesus says blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy, he assumes that you really can't be merciful until you've received mercy in the first place. Mercy is not a deal, but an ongoing lifestyle.
We receive mercy then we show mercy and as a result we receive more mercy, and as a result, we then show more mercy—and on and on.
It's like we're rolling a snowball downhill. We start with a small one, maybe the size of a baseball. As we toss it down the hill, immediately gravity starts to pull it farther downhill. As it rolls over, of course, it collects more snow. Now it's bigger and heavier, and so gravity pulls it even harder. It rolls over even faster, and collects more snow, and gets heavier, and rolls faster. And so on. Before you know it, it's a huge ball, bounding down the hill.
That's how it is with mercy: The more we receive mercy, the more we give mercy.
Because we get distracted and have long bouts with selfishness, we collect sticks and branches in our little ball, and that slows us down. Sometimes we come to a complete halt, stuck halfway down the mountain. So we find ourselves remembering that we didn't deserve to roll as far as we had in the first place, and that without God's mercy, we'll go no farther.
And that's when God comes along, trims off the branches sticking out from us, and gives us that little push to start us rolling downhill again, so that we can practice and enjoy mercy upon mercy upon mercy upon mercy.
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