Posts from June 2023

                         DISCUSSION: In Deuteronomy 6,   God gives commandments to the Israelites regarding his law. They are to teach the law, and how can they teach it to their children if they themselves do not know it? In order for us to learn God’s word, we must study it. Use these 3 tips by Richard Foster when studying God’s word. 1.      Repetition – who can’t recite a good ol’…

  DISCUSSION: This week we have been talking about Spiritual Bankruptcy – or being out of God’s Spirit. Praying is another practical way to invest in growing with God. Talk with your family about ways to pray differently. Maybe you always pray before a meal – what would it look like to do this differently? Being open and honest is a huge part of growth. Marriages cannot grow without honesty. For our relationship to grow with God, we must first…

  DISCUSSION: Thinking about God – sounds like a great thing to do right? On a daily basis, do we think about God? I understand that most decisions we make should be based on our relationship with God, but outside of our Bible readings and prayer times – do we spend time just thinking about God. One great method of this is memorizing scripture. Find a Bible verse and work on memorizing it for the next day or so. When…

  DISCUSSION: Declaring bankruptcy is way more than just a statement. It involves understanding that you cannot fix the problem on your own. Richard Foster describes it as Paul did with sowing and reaping. In order to sow and reap we must first break up the ground. This is our hearts. We have to understand that we are broken and need God’s spirit in our lives. Next comes putting God’s spirit in our lives. So, the question comes – what…

  DISCUSSION: In his book, Celebration of Discipline, minster Richard Foster tells the story of the first church that he worked with. He describes how for the first three months he was there, he worked and worked pouring out his soul into his ministry and at the end of the three months – there was barely any change. He attributed this to the fact that he and the church were spiritually bankrupt. There was a lack of deep spiritual growth…

                                               Spend time communing with God through nature.  Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.”  Observe the beauty in the world that God has made for us.  To see a glimpse of His power in the expanse of the ocean and its relentless waves that pound the seashore; to breath in the sweetness of the majestic mountains with their…

                                     Spend time alone with God’s Word.  Besides the spiritual growth we will gain from study, we will also come to know Him better.  Reading His word brings us in touch with Him.  Jesus tells us in John 14:7 – “If you had known Me, you would have known my Father also.”   Just studying the life of Jesus will help us to…

  2 Corinthians 12:9,10 “……….Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecution, in distress for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then am I strong.” Struggles are an essential part of our wellbeing. A young man decided that a struggling emperor moth needed help to get out of the cocoon.  He snipped off the end, making it easy for the moth to crawl out. He didn’t realize that the added struggle was necessary for the…

                                                     Besides prayer, another way we can spend time alone with God is in meditation.  “Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.”  (Psalms 4:4)  Meditation gives us opportunity to look into our lives and profit from our mistakes.  We can also reflect and meditate on all the things God has done for us.  Meditate on the…

                      In seeking God’s help, we need to spend time alone with God.  James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…”             Knowing God and being able to talk to Him will give meaning and purpose to our existence.  God truly loves us. (Romans 8:38-39)   He is always there, his hand outstretched, waiting for us to seek Him.  He has so much to…

                                                            Self-acceptance and being accepted by others is vital to maintain our self-worth and a positive attitude.  While we know this is true, at times we still have feelings of little or no self-worth.  Studies have brought out that one step in developing one’s self-worth is the need to excel in something; to feel successful; to experience growth.  If a person stops growing, he begins to decline.  Often times, especially as we get older, we may feel…

  While Jesus was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, you know He could hear them coming. In Matthew’s account he says that when they came, they brought with them a legion of soldiers, which could have amounted to six thousand men (Matthew 26.52-53). When they seize Jesus and I think we can use that word loosely, they “bound him” according to John 18.12, and they bound Him” as they sent Him to Caiaphas. Funny isn’t it? They are trying…