a whole new way of suffering

Yesterday's sermon notes come from Pastor Gregg Matte's message.

He spoke about the similarities between Christ and Stephen.

 

Here's a little background on Stephen:

He was a jew and was chosen by the disciples to be one of the seven deacons.

He was very faithful and was one of the first martyrs of the Christian faith.

 

Acts 7:54-60 tells us of the martyrdom/stoning of Stephen.

 

⁵⁴ Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. ⁵⁵ But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; ⁵⁶ and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” ⁵⁷ But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse. ⁵⁸ When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” ⁶⁰ Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep.

 

If you know about the death of Jesus Christ, does anything sound familiar?

 

-As Jesus hung on the cross, He looked up into Heaven.

-Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit.

-Jesus called on God, giving Him his life.

-Jesus forgave the ones who crucified right before he died. 

 

So what can we learn from this? Why was Stephen's death so much like Jesus'?

Maybe it is to show us that we can be Christ-like during suffering. That's what God wants from us and here's how...

 

"Trust the truth when others lie."

"Be Christ like in times of sacrifice."

"Look to heaven in prayer." verse 55

"The crowd usually gets it wrong." verse 57

"Place eternity in God's hands." verse 59

"Forgive." verse 60

"Your trials bring others to trust." Influenced Saul/Paul's transformation and conversion because of Stephen's Christ-like death.

"Godly sacrifice brings heavenly celebration."

 

When we are Christ-like in our suffering, people notice and are affected in a positive way.

 

Bible reading plan:

Today - Deuteronomy 5-7

Tuesday - Deut 8-10

Wednesday - Deut 11-13

Thursday- Deut 14-16

Friday - Deut 17-20

Saturday - Deut 21-23

 

Don't forget to pray for the unreached people groups today!

Learn more here

 

 

 

"If we've ever needed You..."

The people of Newtown have not left my mind.

So many tears have been shed for them.

I don't have much to say other than, I can't imagine the hurt, anger and pain that these families are feeling.

My heart is broken for them.

 

Pastor Gregg Matte talked about the shooting in Newtown today in his sermon.

One of his points really stood out to me...

"God is not to be blamed, He is needed." So many people need the love of God. He gives it freely and to anyone, but there are so many people who don't seek it or may not even know about His love.

 

He went onto talk about the pain that these families are feeling.

He talked about how there will be candlelight vigils, fundraisers and other things to support this town.

He said that although these are great things, they will not erase the pain.

Man cannot heal, only God can.

This is true because man is not always good...clearly.

These parents and family members can only heal from God's love and presence.

Of course, love from others is helpful, but only God can truly comfort them.

I'm sure it will be a long, healing process.

I'm sure there will be many nights of tears.

I'm sure there will be many bouts of anger.

So what can we do?

 

We can pray that these people will feel God's comfort, presence and love.

 

I found this video of a father who lost his daughter in the shooting. It's an amazing speech that speaks of love and forgiveness despite such a tragic time.

 

 

Cherish the times with your loved ones, pray for those who are suffering, and spread the wonderful news of Jesus Christ to others.

There are so many hurting people in this world that need some good news...news that can change lives. News that can make a depressed person, happy. News that can make a hurting person, healed.

Our world needs God and we're the messengers for the job.

 

The title of this blog comes from Casting Crown's song, "If we ever needed you"

Check it out!

 

This week we'll be reading Galations chapters 1-3 all the way to the end of Colossians.

 

 

Day 13 In Him we find...

 

Don't you just love wind? Gosh, I love it. It's one of my favorite things. Seriously. It may be weird, but oh well. I know I talked about in my Let me introduce myself post, but I just have to talk about it again. One of the reasons I love Fall so much is because I love the way it feels. I love to stick my hand out of my window while driving so that I can feel the wind through my fingers and I love sitting on my deck feeling the wind through my hair. Yesterday, I was sitting on the deck and I was enjoying it more than usual because it was quite windy. Maybe I like the wind so much because it's like a burst of energy. Whenever the wind brushes my face, I feel awakened and all I can say is "ahhh". Do you feel the same? Maybe I just have an obsession with wind, but it's just so refreshing. Maybe your idea of refreshing is a sip of Coca Cola or warm shower, but mine is wind.

 

So let's go back to what we found on Sunday...conviction. Then yesterday, we found repentance and today we find refreshment. Now, I'm not going to take credit for these ideas, because I wouldn't be writing about this if it weren't for Pastor Gregg Matte. Like I said, while I was listening to his sermons on Sunday so many lightbulbs turned on for me. I never really thought that I found refreshment in God, but it's true! Thanks Pastor Gregg for shedding the light on this topic. So God convicts us, then He offers repentance and through that He refreshes us. When we realize our sin and turn away from it knowing that God is waiting for us, that is true refreshment. I mean, when you repent, don't you feel refreshed and renewed? Through the turning, we are being refreshed because we have a second chance. Praise God for that! Acts 3:19 says, "Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." When we turn from sin and devote ourselves to God, His presence gives us refreshment. Ahh, that's good.

I think it's even better than the wind.

In Him we find refreshment.

 

Be convicted, repent and be refreshed today!

 

Today's scripture for read-your-Bible-in-a-year plan is John 9-10.

Blessings [Link Up]

 

Hey everyone! Well, it's been a busy, but blessed weekend.

I hope you've had a blessed weekend as well!

 

So I'm linking up with my fellow blogger, Kaity at (Bee)autiful Blessings blog, to talk about my blessings from the weekend.

 

Friday marked the 3rd birthday of my youngest niece. I can't believe it's been 3 years since she was born. They grow so fast, making me feel so, so old (I know I'm not really old, but I feel like it haha). So Friday night I was blessed to join my sister and her sweet family for dinner and then off to their town's football game to listen to my oldest niece play in the band and my 5 year old niece dance with the high school dance team. The weather was great, the band sounded awesome, and the dance was precious. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures...I fail.

 

Saturday was the big, Barney, pizza birthday party. The kids wore chef hats, aprons, and made their own personal pizza with their own personally picked topping, while I rested on the couch after setting up for the party with my sister. It's always an extravagant task planning birthday parties, but it's always worth it.

Definitely a blessing, to celebrate a birthday.

 

 

 

 

After the party, my parents and I went home (with no time to nap) and got prettified for my friend's wedding. I always love a wedding. Plus, it forces me to fix myself up (it's amazing what make-up can do), which also makes me feel somewhat better. It's a win-win situation, get pretty and feel better. Weird how that works. However, it takes a lot out of me to get ready. Thank you, Lyme Disease. Anyway, it was a blessing to watch another couple be united together, fellowship with close friends and talk about future weddings to come. Oh, how I love weddings!

 

 

Anywho, I've done a little too much the past few days which means I'm laid up in bed with heavy, aching legs, headache and stiffness all over so I'm unable to get to church today. Once again, I'm thankful for the creation of live webcasts so I can watch church from my comfy bed with the company of my heating pad. Another Sunday with 2 baptisms led me to tears because of the testimonies they shared. Lives that were surrounded with sin, but turned around because of God's grace. Once again, I'm reminded that God is not only moving in my life, but He is moving all around.

 Praise God!

 A quick summary of my sermon notes from Pastor Gregg Matte:

~Acts 2:42-46: unity and generosity of the church

~"Awe of God leads to unity and generosity between men."

~"Generosity is a balance to be managed, not a problem to be solved."

~What you have is from God...they are tools to be used for His glory, not for you (my words).

~"Awe of God brings praise, favor, and impact."

 

Well that's all for today! I hope you all have a blessed, restful Sunday!

If you are reading the Bible in a year with me, today is a catch up day. So far we've read the book of Matthew and Mark 1-11.

 

Have you been blessed today? I'd love to hear...leave me a comment or link up!

 

 

 

 

My life as a woodpecker

This morning my mom and I sat out on our deck for our morning quiet time. The cold front came in so it was great weather for a hoodie and a big mug of coffee. I like sitting on the deck because it gets me out of the house and reminds me of the stillness and peace that God provides us through nature. It slows me down and removes me from all the craziness of life. It also reminds me how God has specifically designed everything in this world to work together for Him and through Him. Romans 11:36 says, "For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things." I think it's important to get out of our houses, offices, and wherever that can take us away from the beauty of God's creation. So get outside for a little bit and enjoy God's creation!

While we were on the deck, we heard, "tap tap tap...tap tap tap." We looked around, through the trees and there we spotted the red-headed woodpecker . I've seen woodpeckers before, but I never really watched them longer than a couple seconds. This morning, however, was different. I kept hearing the "tap tap tap" and I couldn't focus on my reading. It was like the woodpecker wanted to get my attention or maybe I have a slight case of ADHD...who knows. Anyway, I turned my attention to the woodpecker who was determined to get his breakfast out of that tree. When you think of a woodpecker, what comes to mind first? Annoying? Loud? Determined? Well, as I watched him for awhile and realized that this is a creature of persistence. He would not stop pecking until he got his food. He was devoted. He was dedicated. He was persistent. So it made me think...

Am I devoted, dedicated, and persistent in my walk with Christ? Or do I peck for a little while and then give up? What about you?

Since my mom and I were out late for the TobyMac concert last night (which was awesome!!), we didn't make it to church but we watched church on a live podcast. It was funny because Pastor Gregg talked about how Christians called to be devoted to Christ, being consistent in growing in our faith. I automatically thought of the woodpecker being devoted to that tree full of bugs and worms. I knew then that I should blog about persistence and dedication!
Funny how God works, huh?

Pastor Gregg based his sermon on Acts 2:41-42. Acts 2:42 says, "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." This scriptures tells us that we should be devoted to learning, fellowship, and communion with the Lord.

• So how do we learn? We read the Bible, listen to teachers, and converse with others to get different perspectives. When we learn about God, we grow closer to Him.
• We should also be devoted to fellowship. Through fellowship, we have the opportunity to love and grow faith based relationships that will hold us accountable in growing in Christ.
• We should be devoted to being in communion with God, meaning in prayer, reading His Word, and participating in the Lord's Supper. When we do these things, the Holy Spirit intercedes and we are in communion with God. Our faith increases, as well as our love for God. What could be better than that?!

Psalm 37:5 says, "Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." When we dedicate ourselves to God, just like the woodpecker "tap tap tapping" at the tree, we will find promises and treasures. The woodpecker finds its food after persisting and we find what God wants for us. It could be new found talents or gifts. It could be new dreams and goals. Most importantly, when we persist and dedicate ourselves our faith increases. When we grab a hold of our faith, just like the woodpecker gets its food, we are energized to keep persisting! It's like a cycle! The main point is that we should be like the woodpecker, always dedicating ourselves to God and never giving up on Him because in Him we find life and we definitely don't want to miss out.

If you are following along with the read-your-bible-in-a-year plan, Sunday's are catch up day. So this week we read Matthew chapters 1-14.

My own personal cheerleader

I know last post I said this time I was going to write about "finding God's specific will" from Gregg Matte's book, but as I was watching the Olympics tonight, that entry got pushed back to another time. Anyway, I just finished watching the All Around Women's final in Gymnastics. I've always enjoyed watching this event, especially this year. I think we had a lot of really good talent on the team and the girls seemed real down to earth. Another part of the event that I liked was watching the parents. Boy do they get into it or what?! I loved watching all the intense emotion from these supportive people. While I was watching Aly's parents squirm and Gabby's mom yell with joy, it made me wonder if that's what God is like up there in heaven. I wonder if He beams with pride when we reach a goal? Or does He feel our agony and pain that we go through? Or does He stand up and cheer us on when we're about to give up? Or does He give us advice when we ask Him for it? What about when we mess up, does He hang his head and whisper the words "it's okay...I still love you"? I think the answer to all of those questions is a simple "yes". I like to think of God as my own personal cheerleader. He may be far up in the stands sometimes, but I know He is always there. He never leaves. Deuteronomy 31:6 says, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you." On top of that, even when I lose or screw up, He's still there. He doesn't give up on me. He doesn't storm out on me, but instead, He forgives me. He truly forgives me...He remembers my sins no more (Hebrews 8:12). He doesn't continue to remind me what I messed up on (that's not cheerleader-like), but He moves on and guides me to a new playing field. Lastly, He encourages me and motivates me to do better. He reminds me that with His strength I can do anything. Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Him who gives me strength." I can't think of a better cheerleader than that, can you? Never forget that you have a cheerleader 24/7....ready to cheer for you, ready to be there when you mess up, and ready to encourage you to move on. Check out one of my favorite songs that reminds me of mine & your cheerleader! "Your Love Never Fails" by Jesus Culture.

What is my purpose?

The past week I have been trying my hardest to rest and be a good patient. So instead of just laying on the couch doing nothing, I decided to read. My mom lent me this book called, "Finding God's Will" by Pastor Gregg Matte and she thought I would love it. She was right! It's a short, easy read and it's jam packed with a lot of good information and advice on "finding God's will". I don't know about you or where you are in your life, but I'm not totally sure what God wants me to do with my life. Like I've said in previous posts, all my life I knew what I wanted to do as a career and now that I've graduated, I feel a little lost. Can you relate? Now just because you read the book doesn't mean that the minute you finish it, God will reveal His specific will for you. Maybe He will for you, who knows, but that's not what happened with me. We can't expect God to just drop a career or whatever in your lap, we have to do some work too. The first point in the book is "to find God's will, do God's will." Let's pause for a second- do you feel like you have a purpose in this world? Wait, let me answer it for you, OF COURSE YOU DO!!! God has a purpose for everyone! He doesn't have a purpose just for the wealthy or the goody-two-shoes, He has a purpose for a each and every person on this earth. Never doubt that truth. Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." Pastor Gregg explains in the book that God has a general will and specific will. You wanna know what the general will is? It's simple....love God, love one another and share the good news about Jesus Christ. So if you feel totally lost right now, that's a good place to start. While loving others, seeking God and reading His Word, God will reveal to you His specific will for you. In the book he talks about a German proverb that goes like this..."Begin to weave, and God will give you the thread." He also says, "I believe that if we would simply walk with God in our ordinary routines, we would discover that He is present and waiting to show us His will." So no matter how old you are or what stage of life you are a in, know this....it's not too late to find God's will for you. The first step is to start living in His general will - love God, love others, and share with others the love of Christ. Before you say, "but", (I know I'm guilty of speaking that lovely word), ask God for strength, grace, and forgiveness to live in His will. Then try it out! How are you going to love someone today? Who will you share the good news with? 1 John 4:19 - We love because He first loved us. We'll talk about the "but" next time....Show some love today! :)