20 posts tagged “christ”
Our church has been going through the book of Ephesians each Sunday and the series has been called "Life Rocks". Learning how to take a life that is on the rocks and turning it into a life that ROCKS! Pastor Todd Clark has been doing an amazing job over the past few weeks, but this morning Pastor Scot Irwin preached and man was it powerful and convicting! We went verse by verse through Ephesians 4, learning about having friendships/relationships that Rock!
Scot gave us five "rocks" to build on:
1. Live Authentically (Eph. 4:25)
2. Respond Patiently (Eph. 4:26-27)
3. Act Selflessly (Eph. 4:28)
4. Speak Positively (Eph. 4:29-31)
5. Live Graciously (Eph. 4:31-32)
I need a lot of work in each of these areas!
He stressed living a life of GIVING not TAKING from others. And one big thing that hit home to me was that we need to build a new strong foundation on Christ to be able to put these "rocks" to good use. Because if you put these "rocks" on a weak and weathered foundation, it will only crumble. But if these "rocks" are put on the firm foundation of Christ you will be living the life God meant for you to live. A life that truly ROCKS! Thanks Scot for letting the Lord speak through you in such a powerful way. I needed to hear this sermon!
Love Jesus and worship Him with your Life!
Tonight Daniel and I went to Canvas, our church's High School youth group. We are checking it out for a few weeks to see if this is where God wants us to be serving. This group of kids are great, they had about 50 kids there and they have about 14 leaders. A very different feeling from the youth group we used to work it, about 12-15 kids and only two leaders. Not to mention that the staff were so welcoming. We felt so wanted and needed and the Youth Pastor really made a point to show interest in us and really has wanted to get to know us as friends. Pastor Dan has been doing a great job with these kids and you can easily see his passion for teenagers
and telling them about Christ. We have so enjoyed getting to know and become
friends with Dan and his wife. We have a lot in common and we enjoy
hanging out together. I also enjoyed meeting a few of the kids and getting to chat with one of the leaders for a while. The worship was amazing, one of the students lead an awesome time just spent singing praises to Jesus. It was a great first experience, and we look forward to next week. Please pray for us as we try to figure out if this is where God wants us to be. We want to follow the plan the Lord has set before us, so pray that we are wise and have an open ear to hear God's voice. I so want to be in the place that God wants me to be in. The events of the past few months have made me timid about jumping into anything, and I want to be sure we are doing what the Lord wants not just want we want. Thank you all so much for your on going prayers and for your wonderful kindness to me.
Tonight at church we sang "In Christ Alone". I have this song on a worship CD and I love it. However i had never sang it in church before and heard the sound of so many believes singing it together. It was touching and breath taking. At the end of the song we sang the last chorus with out any instruments.The sound of a group of believes lifting their voices and singing with all their hearts to their Savior was amazing. I had chills all over my body, it was a feeling I haven't gotten in church in a long time. I felt God in that place, and I could feel Him working on my heart and others in the room. Wow, that's pretty much all I can say, it was awesome. The church service was beautiful and powerful. I'm bummed that we will be missing church next week, while we are at camp. However I am looking forward to when we get back and hear the last few weeks of Todd's "Summer on the Mount" series. So I hope you read the words to this song and listen to it as well. Let it touch your heart and feel the love that Christ has for you. I am in awe of Christ's love and what He did for me. Praise Jesus for loving me even though i don't deserve it!
In Christ Alone
In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when striving cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
'Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand
"The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God, the Rock, my Savior!" 2 Samuel 22:47
I praise God for sending His son to die for my sins on the cross. I thank Him from the bottom of my heart for finding me as a young girl and for showing me His love. God picked me up from the depths and gave me life. I know I am the person I am today because of the Lord Jesus Christ. I have soot to honor Him and bring glory to His name. This song made me cry the first time I heard it and i still get goose bumps when i hear it's powerful words. I am proud to say My Savior Lives!
My Savior My God by Aaron Shust
I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand
Stands one who is my Savior
I take Him at His word and deed
Christ died to save me; this I read
And in my heart I find a need
Of Him to be my savior
That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior
Chorus (2x’s)
My Savior loves, My Savior lives
My Savior’s always there for me
My God: He was, my God; He is
My God is always gonna be
Yes, living, dying, let me bring
My strength, my solace from this spring;
That He who lives to be my King
Once died to be my Savior
That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior
Chorus (2x’s)
(Instrumental)
Chorus: (2x’s)
My Savior loves, My Savior lives
My Savior loves, My Savior lives
Join me tomorrow as I send red envelopes to President Barack Obama.I found out about this event from my friend Sarah over Facebook. It's a LARGE group of people who feel that abortion is wrong, getting together to show the president that we are not the minority, that we have a voice and we are going to use it! Red Envelope Day is an event where on March 31 everyone who opposes abortion and wants to let President Obama know about it will send a Red envelope addressed to:
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington , D.C. 20500
On the back you should write:
"This envelope represents one child who died because of an abortion. It is empty because the life that was taken is now unable to be a part of our world."
I am Pro Life and feel that every child should be given a chance. I know that tomorrow as the white house mail room is flooded with Red Envelopes God will smile with joy, that His people were not afraid to stand up against this injustice. Stand with me tomorrow and send in your red envelopes!
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully
made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139: 13-14
He will defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy; he will crush the oppressor. Psalm 72:4
Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Psalm 127:3
Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Psalm 127:4
I have been working in our Youth Group at the Chatsworth Lake Community Church for five years now. Daniel and I do everything from planning events, teaching lessons to attending the kids school events. These teenagers are a big part of our lives. There is nothing I wouldn't do for them. I have a passion for teenagers and telling them about Jesus Christ. Well last night after a long time of waiting, Daniel and I received out Christian Workers Card. It's a card that we can keep with us as proof that we work at our church as well as identification in cases of emergency if anything were to happen to any of our youth group kids. It also helps in letting us have verification in hospitals and jails when other people can't get in. However in the 7 years Daniel and I have worked at various youth groups we have never had occasion to need to visit someone in jail or the hospital, but now we can. hehe!
My heart is on fire for youth ministry, so this card isn't just a little piece of paper, it's validation of years of hard work. I was once asked by a pastor, if i really believed that a teenager could have a deep personal relationship with Christ. I told him right then and there that I wouldn't be working in youth ministries if i didn't believe that. My heart broke when I heard him ask me that, because i saw in his eye's that he really didn't believe that teenagers could experience Christ. The world has pushed this idea on to us that teenagers are not worth fighting for. And I have one thing to tell the world, I AM FIGHTING FOR THEM! If we don't invest in the next generation then there won't be anymore churches. Christianity is just one generation away from being forgotten. Even though i don't get paid for what i do in our Youth Group, I see this as being my most important job (behind being a parent). I want to thank the Advent Christian Conference of Southern California for acknowledging my work and for pushing me to be the person that God meant me to be!
This is my prayer today. That the Lord would be enough for me. That no matter what happens in our world today, no matter what change is to come, that the Lord is enough for me. That Christ alone is my fulfillment. I did a lesson in my Youth Group based on this song a few months ago, and for some reason it came to mind this morning as i was getting ready for my day. The words are so meaningful to me. It is my hope that today and everyday i remember that Jesus Christ is all I need. My favorite line in the song is, "You are my reward, worth living for, and still more awesome then I know." Christ is my reward! I hope today a mist all that is changing that we remember who stays the same. That the Lord is, was and forever will be God.
Enough, by Chris Tomlin
All of You is more
than enough for all of me
For every thirst and every need
You satisfy me with Your love
And all I have in You is more than enough
You are my supply
My breath of life
And still more awesome than I know
You are my reward
worth living for
And still more awesome than I know
All of You is more
than enough for all of me
For every thirst and every need
You satisfy me with Your love
And all I have in You is more than enough
You’re my
sacrifice
Of greatest price
And still more awesome than I know
You’re the coming King
You are everything
And still more awesome than I know
More than all I
want
More than all I need
You are more than enough for me
More than all I know
More than all I can say
You are more than enough for me
I was listening to a sermon on Saturday night and the pastor was teaching on Giving. And i was truly pushed to think harder about how i give. Here are three things that stood out to me in his sermon:
"Generosity is not a measure of your wealth, Generosity is the measure of your heart."
"Giving is the quickest way to transfer your trust from yourself to God."
"Our giving illuminates the one we trust."
These three things just got stuck in my head, i kept saying them over and over. The pastor had talked about giving of our time, energy, resources and money. It really made me think of how i give and who i give to. I am praying that the Lord will give me strength to be able to give more and share the Love of Christ to more people. Take some time today and think about who you put your trust into, yourself or in the Lord.
He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls on will be crushed. Matthew 21:44
The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God. Psalm 51:17
After watching the Passion of the Christ I had the kids from our Youth Group come outside and sit behind a ceramic tile. By the time we finished the Movie it was pitch black outside. I liked that the kids couldn't really see each other and made for more of a personal experience. I read verses from the bible that talked about being broken before the Lord: Jeremiah 18:2-10, Isaiah 64:8, Psalm 51:17 and Matthew 21:44. I said to them, "You just watched what Christ did for you, so what will YOU do for Him?". I talked about letting the Lord use you as He sees fit and to do that we need to let go of our lives and become broken before the Lord, and to offer our selves as a sacrifice.
After I was done talking we listened to a song by Third Day called I Can't Take the Pain. I had asked them to pray to open their hearts and be willing to be broken. If they were ready to make that kind of a commitment then they could pick up their tile (life) and throw it on the ground, shattering it into pieces. It was a amazingly moving thing to hear tiles break on concrete. Even I was suprised on how emotional it made me, when I broke my tile. It was this feeling of release, I felt at peace with the Lord being in control of my life, not me being in control. It was also emotional to hear the kids praying and crying, however I rejoiced and praised God every time i heard a tile break. I know that a few people did it just for fun, however I know that it meant something to most of the kids and that they truly made a commitment.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:5-6
This encouraged me today:
Ephesian 3:14-21 For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
