revolution – part deux
the next revolution service is coming up this fri. i’m excited and a little nervous and a little excited (i said that already)
we have some great new music lined up and big expectations of what God is gonna do.
really praying that people will have a new experience with God – not a church experience – not a religious experience – a God experience!
reading this morning in Romans… – “What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.”
we really put God in a box sometimes. we compartmentalize God. we compartmentalize our lives.
i like to have fun, play tricks on people, be silly, bring confusion for the sake of a joke – but may i never do that with my relationship with God.
we have got to allow God to be God and God to change us – make us, and not to paint a skewed picture of God with tradition, religiousness, culture waves, or church rhetoric.
experience God! get to know God!
allow God to bring a revolution to you!
David & Goliath
Good message about having the right heart.
the most intimate part of your life
“Intimate” – sounds almost like a dirty word in some church circles. We relate it too much with sensuality and eroticism.
Intimate – [in-tuh-mit] adjective
| inmost; deep within. |
| of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the inmost or essential nature; intrinsic |
| of, pertaining to, or existing in the inmost depths of the mind |
Ephesians 4 (The Message) – Don’t grieve God. Don’t break His heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit fir Himself.
God wants to be the most intimate part of your life. He wants to be the closest. He wants to be the most important. He wants the be the center point of your essential nature. He wants to be the focal point in the depths of your mind.
That sounds like a lot, but it’s a step that we must choose. It’s a next level decision that’s totally up to us. How intimate we are with God is completely our doing. He’s available – are you?
40!
40 sounds old – no offense to those reading who are 40 and over. I can’t decide if I want to sink into depression or get up and do something (like exercise & save money) – the latter sounds like more effort.
I told Kristian last night, it doesn’t seem like I have anything to show for my forty years. What have I done? She said that I have two beautiful girls – she’s right, that’s enough!
I love & appreciate my family. I am blessed more than I deserve. I am thankful for 40 years and pray for at least 40 more.
I also have great friends who love to torture me…
a careful exploration
Gal 6 (The Message) – Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life…
(several verses later)
…For my part, I am going to boast about nothing but the Cross of our Master, Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, I have been crucified in relation to the world, set free from the stifling atmosphere of pleasing others and fitting into the little patterns that they dictate. Can’t you see the central issue in all this?
We all have an identity. We don’t have to be like others – just who we are in Christ. That difference is brought together in the focus of Jesus and His Cross.
Find out who you are – your place – and how that will focus into the Cross of Christ.
a clear picture
Ps 139 – “Investigate my life, O God, find out everything about me; Cross examine and test me, get a clear picture of what I’m about.”
Do you know what a clear picture of “you” looks like? A picture of you without pretension? A picture of you without misguided views? A picture of you without relying on what others say or think?
The eternal question, huh? Who Am I?????
I want to get down to the basics of my life and see myself how God sees me. I believe that God sees me – good and bad. He sees me at my worst and when I try to do good things. He doesn’t see my life through the filter of pretense or pride.
When the Psalmist prays, “Investigate my life,” he’s not praying that God would find out who he is, because God already knows. He’s praying to get down to the basics. He’s praying for a clearness of identity and a purity of intentions coming from God and not man.
I don’t want to be Paul based on what others say or think. I don’t want to do – based on pretense or pride.
God investigate me and give me a clear picture of what I’m about.
simple & honest
Zech 8 – (The Message) “And now here’s what I want you to do: Tell the truth, the whole truth, when you speak. Do the right thing by one another both personally and in your courts. Don’t cook up plans to take unfair advantage of others. Don’t do or say what isn’t so. I hate all that stuff. Keep your lives simple and honest.”
I saw “The Invention of Lying” a couple of days ago. Interesting concept for a movie. No one lies. No one knows what a lie is. Everyone tells the truth, no matter how painful or hurtful.
I don’t know if that’s exactly what this passage is talking about, but keeping our lives simple & honest with sincerity & truth is a good thing.
The whole point of telling the truth, being completely honest, and not saying what isn’t so – is supposed to keep us honest, not give us the freedom to hurt others.
Simple, honest, sincere, truthful lives are suppose to keep our actions and behavior in check.
revolutionized
we had such a great service 10-2.
great people, great worship, great t-shirts… – there’s a theme here somewhere…
can’t wait till the next one.
plunge into faith
Romans 4 (The Message) – He didn’t tiptoe around God’s promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. he plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what He said.
Why do we tiptoe around what God promised, what He said, just because it’s scary? What God promises for our lives is not always easy or safe. When it’s not safe, that’s usually when we tiptoe and ask cautiously skeptical questions.
God wants us to plunge into His promise with faith. That’s a big step. That’s really a LEAP without looking.
When there’s not enough money, but you know God’s promise – PLUNGE!
When fear is tapping you on the shoulder, but you know God’s promise – PLUNGE!
When your blood pressure is rising because of stress, but you know God’s promise – PLUNGE!
