Message (Page 9)
Temptation
An overweight man decided to go on a diet. One of his New Year’s resolutions was to take a different route to work so he wouldn’t pass his favorite bakery. He told all of his coworkers about his resolution. He felt the accountability would help. So, all his coworkers were surprised when he shuffled in one morning, carrying a huge coffee cake just oozing with frosting. “This is different,” He explained. “You see, I accidentally drove by the bakery, and…
As Lisa and I have begun our family and had kids, yes a few kids. We have had many discussions on the family traditions that we both grew up with. Some were big deals to one or the other of some were just things that we always did, no real passion behind having them continue. As we discussed many times we have found ourselves continuing some of these traditions and some we stopped. We made a plan to continue many…
Notes from Mark
Desiring excellence when it is rooted in the love and knowledge of God is a gift from God. Having a passion to be your best is needed in our world. Working on that which pleases God and having respect for quality are found in this desire for excellence. When we let our sinful desires lead, the passion for excellence will be replaced with a passion for power which focuses on my wants and my needs. It can be a subtle…
Notes from Mark
Praise is an integral aspect of worship. It comes in a myriad of forms. There is praise in our prayers, in our words, in our actions and in our songs. We have thoughts of praise and sometimes there is praise in our silence. When we talk about worship and it is directed to and about God then praise is the outpouring of our love of God. Praise is the recognition that God is supreme in our lives. Praise is our…
Not everyone in our office drinks coffee and with one of those individuals gone this week making a whole pot of coffee just seems like a waste, so this morning I changed things up a little bit and got my coffee from our Keurig at our church coffee bar. The hope was that I could get my own cup fast and get upstairs to write this article. I waited for the spinning wheel to stop and tell me the water…
One Little Nail
There’s a story about a congregation that built a new church building. People admired its beauty! Up on the roof, a little nail heard the people praising everything about the lovely structure. But the nail felt no one appreciated him. “If I am that unappreciated, nobody will miss me if I quit!” So the nail released its hold, slid down the roof, and fell in the mud. That night it rained and rained. Soon the shingle that had no nail…
“Genuine discipleship is less classroom and more living room; it is less teacher/student and more parent/child.” @micahfries Then… When I was younger I remember my dad always dragging me around to do work projects. My dad was always volunteering all over the place from church to a friend of a friend, to my cousin’s sister’s friend, it didn’t matter. Once I was old enough to be a help to him he would take me with him. I hated it. It…
Ambassadors
Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, “(God) has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” What a thought! We actually represent God here on this earth. Ambassadors are representatives…they are delegates…they are substitutes for the one the represent. Ambassadors can speak for those they represent. As we live our lives, we act on God’s behalf in this world. An old poem says it well… Christ has…
God Speaks
I read a joke the other day about a new Christian and it reminded me of our struggle sometimes. The new Christian wasn’t sure how God speaks to us, so he opened his Bible and put his finger on a random verse. It happened to say, “Judas went out and hanged himself.” “Wow!” he thought. “Something’s wrong. I’d better do this again.” So, again he opened his Bible and the first verse his finger happened to fall on said, “Go…
Notes From Mark
Continuing with our look at worship remember we worship with extravagant love and extreme submission, worship is dependent on our heart. The love we have for God is impaired if it is without action. Action is weakened if it is without obedience and none is possible unless God has hold of our hearts and we believe completely. With this in mind worship occurs in the home, on our drive to work or at school. There is worship when we are…