Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Great reminder…
One Thing I Tell My Kids Daily - http://inspiredtoaction.com/2012/07/one-thing-i-tell-my-kids-daily/
“Did you know God has a Great Adventure for you?”
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Monday, June 4, 2012
Sunday, June 3, 2012
We met at Wes and Pam’s place. Noah was a little under weather. Jordan was having a pyjama day. Teri and Ray were not able to make it. Vana was here and kept the teens on their toes with all her great questions. It was a good day. :)
My notes are kind of sketchy for this lesson because we kept going off on rabbit trails and having interesting discussions.
1. What was the basis of Paul’s confidence in the Christians in Rome?
- Johanna – “1 they were full of goodness and knowledge and able to instruct each other”
- Nicole – “1. they were good”
- Vana had issue with the concept of “instruct each other”. So we worked on that idea for a bit. What did it mean? And then it was asked “what happened from what we see happening here in the NT to what we have today?” We see the people sharing their lives, their God stories… passing them down from generation to generation. We don’t see this much any more in the greater Christian culture/religion. We have cherry picking the verses of Scripture, but nothing personal being shared. I offered that we moved from being families to institutions with religion. And in the religion we stopped having encounters with God, because now we had a person as a go between… a person (“professional Christian”) who we went to with our questions and would get word for word Scripture answers, those expected “boxed answers”. I see the need for God’s people to share more of their personal experiences with God and let go of what is expected as answers and lifestyle and choices Christians are burdened with in todays world.
- I don’t remember exactly how we got on the concept.. but I think we were talking about how we no longer fit into the typical church going people box. And someone threw out that we are now “Free Range Christians”. We all had a good laugh about that.
2. List some of the things God has accomplished through Paul’s life.
- Johanna – “He preached Christ from Jerusalem to Illyicum”
- Nicole – “2. he brought lots of people to Him”
3. What things have you seen God use your life for?
- Johanna – “3. I don't know :\”
- Nicole – “3. .....”
- Pam – “the forming of this community we now find ourselves in. I remember back in 2007 when I had been reading about home churches and Lori saying that they would be interested in being part of one. My response was I was not going to be starting a home church!!! And Wes pointed out that it started with a group reading a book and the it took off from there.”
- Wes shared that being part of Teri’s journey when she finally realized that God loved her, and seeing that weight lifted off her and the revitalization Teri had with her new found freedom and revelation. It was was such an awesome thing to be a part of.
4. Why did Paul prefer not to minister where others had already ministered? Was this a wise decision?
- Johanna – “4 because he didn't want to start with someone else's teaching. Didn't Jesus say something about one sowing and another reaping? The idea of going where no one else has preached has its merits because no one gets missed. So yes”
- Nicole – “4. ...”
- I think it was a good decision at the time. No one needed to have “competition” in the teaching department in a certain area. And if they spread out, there was hope that all peoples would get to learn about Christ and the good news of freedom he brought to all people. However, I offered that in todays world I might not have the same rule because I have experienced that so many people live under so many false teachings/understandings of who God is and what He wants for his people that many haven’t actually been told the “good news” of Christ. They are victims, prisoners of religious teachings and still need to be set free. People may know the name of Christ and why he came BUT they don’t KNOW him yet.
5. What principles of evangelism from Paul’s life could you apply in your life?
- Johanna – “5 He encourages a lot... I don't encourage people enough””
- Nicole – “5. Yeah same as Johanna..”
- Wes answered with this verse --
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
New International Version (NIV)
2 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
6. What do you think it means to “witness for Christ”? Share your understanding and/or experiences with evangelism. (Either you engaging in evangelism or someone trying to evangelize you.)
- Johanna – “6 I have never really talked about God with anyone... I have tried once or twice but it never got very far. Once I got asked about creation and God and I felt very ill prepared”
- Nicole – “6. to "witness for Christ" is telling people about the Good News”
- I knew that most people would understand this question as telling people the good news story with the hopes of convincing them or converting them to being Christian. Most people think of witnessing and evangelism this way. But earlier this year I had read something about witnessing that was eye opening for me. What is a witness? The dictionary says – “One who can give a firsthand account of something seen, heard, or experienced.” So I would offer that true witnessing would be sharing with others how Christ has worked in our lives, how we have seen him work in others lives. Sharing what we have experienced, not what we know or can quote from Scripture.
- So take time to reflect on what YOUR story with Christ is. Seek Him. Pay attention to what God has done or is doing in your life. Ask not – what would Jesus do? but instead look around to see what Jesus is doing now. :)
- this blog post shared this thought (http://biblelovenotes.blogspot.ca/2012/06/thank-god-for-taco.html) --
When I’m honest and use God’s name naturally with unsaved friends, it’s sometimes the very thing that makes them initiate deeper discussions about the Lord. Evangelism rarely consists of sharing the whole Gospel at once--something most of us fear because it's usually unnatural. The most effective and most natural way we witness is by talking about God in our everyday conversations.
"Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone" Colossians 4:6, NIV
7. Are you reluctant to talk about God with others?
- Johanna – “7 depends a bit on the person but I don't think so”
- Nicole – “7. No I'm not”
- Paul started out by saying he was reluctant to talk about God with others. He didn’t want to be the one to bring God into the conversation. And I think again when we first hear this question, we think of talking about God to people. But I read the question differently. Are you reluctant to talk about God WITH people? And I would have to say from what I have observed of people in our community that none of us have trouble talking about God with people. However it is different story to talk TO others about God, where you bring God up in conversation with an agenda on why you are bringing God up. I have seen Christians do this in my past, they talk to someone with the agenda of evangelizing them or trying to convert them or convince them of something.
- It has been my experience that quite often someone who I am with will bring God into the conversation and I always see this as an divine appointment by the Spirit and I try to be a listening ear for the person and try to figure out why this moment has been orchestrated by the Spirit and what part I am to play in the conversation. Is it just a listening session, is it to share about the freedom and love I know of God, is it to encourage this other person?
8. If you would like to share… do you remember who shared the gospel message with you? Tell us about your walk with God up to this point in your life.
- Johanna – “8 um I've kind of always known about God. I know I accepted Christ when I was 5 and got baptized a while later. I had a lot of trouble with whether or not I was saved and what kind of a "Christian" I was right up until we started coming to fellowship and talking about salvation etc.
I've grown a lot in my walk with Christ since then mostly because I nominally proud ra place where I can ask all my questions and they get answers. And now I'm working on keeping up my relationship with God when there is no meeting of our family for that purpose. “ - Nicole – “8. i don't really know when it happened. it's a thing in my life that has always been there. ”
- I have had the same experience has Nicole and Johanna. I don’t remember a time in my life without God. In my teens, spectacular testimonies were a big thing at the church I attended. And I questioned whether I was a Christian or not. So when I was at Bible camp I decided to accept Christ, but I did it privately. There were no fireworks or excited feelings. So I figured I must have done it wrong. So next at an evangelical meeting in our town, I went there and when the altar call came I went to the front to accept Christ. I figured I needed to do it publically to make it real. But guess what, still no fireworks nor an emotional response. So after that I figured God didn’t want me. I didn’t know why and I wandered lost (spiritually) for a long time. I never gave up on God, I continued to go to church. I even remember going to a prayer meeting one night at my church. We all went to the front of the church to pray. We stood in a circle and the pastor went around the circle and would stop in front of someone and start praying and prophesying. I remember thinking… “do not stop in front of me!” But he did. I was mortified! But what he said struck me – he told me that God had great plans for me and was going to use me for Him in a mighty way. I was gobsmacked! He was going to what???? Me!? No way! And for many many years… nothing happened. I looked for ways for God to use me but nothing came about. But now looking back, I wonder if maybe these past 4 years or so have been that time my pastor was speaking about. I do feel like God has used me to help people and bring people together and grant me the privilege to have people in my life that I can share my God journey with. For so many years I had no one to be a family in Christ with. I am so thankful for God bringing us all together and I excited to see what else He has in store. <3
Sunday, June 3, 2012
I read some great posts this morning…
1. Show me your faith apart from your works -- http://www.alanknox.net/2012/05/show-me-your-faith-apart-from-your-works/
- “The English term “faith” carries a range of meanings from trust and confidence to adherence to a set of religious principles. But, in Scripture, faith tends toward the former meaning: a strong trust or confidence in someone. In particular, faith is concerned with trusting or having confidence in God.”
- “In verb form, translators often use the English term “believe.” Today, the term “believe” is often used to indicate a mental assent or agreement.”
- “Those who are saved trust God, and those who trust God are saved. Similarly, those who trust God will demonstrate that trust by their actions, their works.”
2. That God kind of love -- http://www.alanknox.net/2012/05/that-god-kind-of-love/
- “the Samaritan’s love was not simply an emotional response, but instead it resulted in action that benefited the other individual. Jesus is saying that this is the kind of love that we should have for anyone that we meet: a love that goes beyond differences and cultural standards and generously gives and serves for the benefit of the other, that is, for the one who should be hated.”
3. Trust and love… now what? Fellowship and discipleship… -- http://www.alanknox.net/2012/06/trust-and-love-now-what/
- “Trusting God results in loving God and loving others. When we love God and love others, that love will be demonstrated in our lives. How is it demonstrated? In Scripture, two terms are used as umbrella terms to describe the “now what”: fellowship and discipleship. Not only are these two a direct response to trusting God and love, they are also related to one another.”
Good stuff! 
Hmmmm, what do you think?
About 5 years ago I learned that all sins are equal, that there are no sins worse than another. And we have discussed this together before. We as humans like to think that someone else’s sin is much worse than ours. The other day I came across a guy’s blog who says that not all sins are equal. You can read his thoughts here – http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2009/09/all-sins-are-equal-in-gods-sight-and-other-stupid-statements/.
What do you think?
Christian Ethics
from Dave Black’s blog: http://www.daveblackonline.com/blog.htm
the basics of Christian ethics:
Be committed to truth and mutual respect.
Watch your words and guard your tone.
Be ready with a positive solution.
Make sure you're using the right weapons. This involves the Word, kindness, tenderness, and forgiveness.
Remember: When we attack the person rather than the problem, we are setting ourselves up for disaster. Make sure your weapons don't cause you to sin.
This post shares an experience that showcases what Dave Black wrote about Christian ethics:
You can read the story here (http://www.wadeburleson.org/2011/06/militant-homosexuals-loving-them-to.html), and it starts under the heading “The Meeting with the Militant Homosexual Organization” (starts part way down the page). It is a very touching story and it has given me a great lesson on how to love people. This part of the story really taught me –
“I then said, "To be candid, I don't think I am the one with the agenda. You asked me to meet. You have stated it is your desire to change my mind. You are planning on picketing the church I pastor to convince our people that we are homophobic. My only agenda is to get to know you and to love you. If you ask me what I believe about homosexuality, which you did earlier in our meeting, I will tell you. But it is beyond my ability to convince you that what I am saying is true. Only God can convince you that what feels so right to you is in reality disapproved of by Him. I am simply called by Heavenly Father to love you where you are and that is precisely what I intend to do." ”
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Lesson 12 --- LET IT SHINE
Last lesson for this book! 
Go ahead and read Romans 15 and 16. This lesson’s questions focus mostly on Romans 15:14-21.
** If you want, share about how the positive example of a another believer encouraged you.
1. What was the basis of Paul’s confidence in the Christians in Rome?
2. List some of the things God has accomplished through Paul’s life.
3. What things have you seen God use your life for?
4. Why did Paul prefer not to minister where others had already ministered? Was this a wise decision?
5. What principles of evangelism from Paul’s life could you apply in your life?
6. What do you think it means to “witness for Christ”? Share your understanding and/or experiences with evangelism. (Either you engaging in evangelism or someone trying to evangelize you.)
7. Are you reluctant to talk about God with others?
8. If you would like to share… do you remember who shared the gospel message with you? Tell us about your walk with God up to this point in your life.
----------
More bible passages on evangelism:
Matthew 5:13-16
Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 28:18-20
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Acts 1:8
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
2 Corinthians 2:14-17
14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16 To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task? 17 Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent from God.
1 Thessalonians 2:8
8 so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.
1 Peter 3:15,16
15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Just for a giggle today....
This is a very good read i think you will all enjoy it luv mom/lynda
Subject: Fw: Shirley & MarcySubject: Shirley & Marcy
> >
> > A good email. This is a good one......
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Shirley & Marcy
> >
> > A mother was concerned about her kindergarten son walking to school.
> > He didn't want his mother to walk with him.
> > She wanted to give him the feeling that he had some independence but yet
> > know that he was safe.
> > So she had an idea of how to handle it.
> > She asked a neighbor if she would please follow him to school in the mornings, staying at a distance,
> > So he probably wouldn't notice her. She said that since she was up early with her toddler anyway,
> it would be a good way for them to get some exercise as well, so she agreed.
> > The next school day, the neighbor and her little girl set out following behind Timmy as he walked to school with another neighbor girl he knew.
> > She did this for the whole week. As the two walked and chatted, kicking stones and twigs,
> > Timmy 's little friend noticed the same lady was following them as she seemed to do every day all week.
> > Finally she said to Timmy ,
> > 'Have you noticed that lady following us to school all week?
> Do you know her?'
> > Timmy nonchalantly replied, 'Yeah, I know who she is.'
> > The little girl said, 'Well, who is she?'
> > 'That's just Shirley Goodnest ,' Timmy replied, 'and her
> daughter Marcy .'
> >
> > ' Shirley Goodnest ? Who is she and why is she following us?
> > 'Well,' Timmy explained, 'every night my Mum makes me say the
> 23rd Psalm
> > with my prayers, 'cuz she worries about me so much.
> > And in the Psalm, it says, ' Shirley Goodnest (surely goodness
> ) and Marcy
> > (mercy) shall follow me all the days of my life', so I guess
> I'll just
> > have
> > to get used to it!'
> >
> > The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine
> upon you,
> > and
> > be gracious unto you; the Lord lift His countenance upon you,
> and give you
> > peace.
> >
> > May Shirley Goodnest and Marcy be with you today and always
> >
> > I know you smiled!
> > I sure did, Pass this on
> > And brighten someone's day!
> >
> > Please pray that Shirley & Marcy go with everyone you love
Love people, not projects.
I think this blog post will fit in with this week’s lesson as well. I will post the new lesson tomorrow.
http://www.theveryworstmissionary.com/2012/05/love-people-not-projects.html
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Monday, May 28, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
We spent the weekend at Paul and Lori’s. We dragged our new ‘baby house’ there to give it a test run for the weekend. Plus there was Josh’s 17th birthday party and their garden to plant. It was really nice to get away for the weekend.
This week we tackled lesson 11, the definition of acceptance, and Deanna opened up about some of her reservations about acceptance, feeling loved, being judged, feeling unloved and more. It was a really great afternoon. And after all that we tackled a large platter of bbq ribs. :)
Here are the few notes I took this week:
- read Romans 14 and discussed
- Paul shared how he sees the word “righteous” now… “it is how God sees me, not anything I do or how I view myself”
- We discussed the idea of pleasing God. Lori had said that we cannot please God, and Jordan raised his eyebrow in question to that statement. He had a hard time swallowing that we cannot please God. So we discussed back and forth and I think what we came up with was that without Christ, we cannot please God. (If somebody has more memory about how this discussion went, please chime in in the comments section. Thanks.)
- Paul shared (I think to do with the above discussion) that, “I don’t do things to gain God’s love, I do things because I love God.”
- Wes said we needed to continue to read into chapter 15 because it pertained and wrapped up what was being taught in chapter 14.
Lesson 11 questions:
1. What issues caused division amongst the believers in Rome?
- Johanna – “1 Eating/not eating certain foods, What was clean/unclean, which days are holy, etc.”
- Nicole – “1. ditto Johanna”
- Lori – “judging others”
- Josh – “difference of opinion”
- Jordan – “eating”
- Jordan – “petty arguments”
- Paul – “Holy days”
- Paul – “disputable matters”
- Wes – “wrestling with Jewish law”
- Lori – “are you doing it right? are you doing it like me?”
2. How did Paul counsel the Roman believers to deal with these issues?
- Johanna – “2 Respect each others boundaries, Don't deliberately do things that go against what your fellow believers believe.”
- Wes – (in his best New York gangster voice) – “forget about it!”
- Pam – “meet people where they are in their journey with God. If they say that today is holy, then take the time to celebrate the holy day with them.”
3. What is the key point Paul made in this passage?
- Pam – “accept one another for where each is on their journey with God”
- Jordan – “don not judge others or do things to make them stumble”
- Johanna – “3 If someone believes that Certain things are holy or unholy we should respect that and not cause a fight over it, in the interest of keeping the church together”
AND it was about this time that we followed a rabbit trail in our discussions and did not get back to the questions but yet when we read the last few questions out loud we saw that we had answered them in our own way throughout our rabbit trail.
I don’t have much for notes at this part of the discussions but we did start the rabbit trail with the question – what does acceptance mean? Does it mean that I approve of all a person chooses? Can I accept a person but not approve of their choices? What does acceptance look like?
Wes came up with this statement – “When an issue/choice/topic destroys the relationship between people, acceptance has left and judgement has taken its place.” So from that we can see that acceptance preserves the relationship. We can accept a person for who they are, and have relationship with that person, but it does not mean we agree to all their choices, opinions or actions.
From here we had a very revealing discussion that seemed to revolve mostly around Deanna but was very informative to everyone there.
This morning Vana posted a poem, I am sure that was inspired by our conversations yesterday. (http://sundreone.blogspot.ca/2012/05/safe.html)
Safe
So many people
Have entered my life
Some having consoled me
With some, came strife
But each person
That I have met
Taught me something
On that, you can bet
They have taught me
Compassion, peace
Tolerance and restraint
Giving me a new lease
I may not agree with
All the things that are said
Each person will state
Their pleasures or dread
The best I can do
At any given spell
Is to listen openly
At what they may tell.
If it is discussed with love
Acceptance and grace
Then there is nothing
That anyone can't face.
A community is safe
Where one is not judged
No matter what the situation
An inkblot or smudge
People that have entered
As I look on my past
Teaching me lessons
That I hope will last.
And then this morning I listened to the latest podcast from The God Journey. It fit right in with our latest lesson and discussions yesterday. It is called “With You, God Is Pleased!” Here is a description from their website:
“Both the cruelty of the world and the conformity demands of religion teach us to live inside a shell of our own self protection and only present to others the illusion we think they want to see. Shame and fear combine to make us feel lost and isolated in the world, unable to be who God simply made us to be. Wayne and Brad find themselves talking about how God is not waiting for us to crawl out of our brokenness before initiating relationship with us, but that the Incarnation itself testifies to his desire to crawl into our shell with us, and as he wins us into his affection, to invite us out of it without fearing how others might respond. He has always been pleased with his creation and seeking to win it back into his wholeness.”
I encourage you to listen to it. (http://thegodjourney.com/2012/05/25/with-you-god-is-pleased/#comments)
Here are a couple of things I wrote down while listening:
- what will the power of acceptance do in a person’s life?
- Yesterday Deanna had shared that in our community we talk a lot about love and being happy and it irritates her. I don’t remember where we went with that discussion but in this podcast Wayne shares an experience about being in Russia, in a room full of believers, and they are all talking in Russian and he cannot understand and feels left out. As I was listening to Wayne share this experience I thought of Deanna’s statement yesterday about how all this “love” talk irritated her and wondered if it was like Wayne in that room… she is part of the community but doesn’t feel like she belongs, like she is left out and doesn’t understand, and does not feel like she has experienced this love we are talking about all the time.
- In the podcast, this thought was shared – that our interactions with others either leave us like we they have been “life giving” or leave us with the feeling we have been shut down. I think this tied in with what Wes said about acceptance or judgement.
And that is all I have for you at the moment. Loved our discussions yesterday. I am appreciative of Vana’s role right now, she is able to ask questions and “poke” my kids in a way that would not be well received from me. And I have seen Deanna open up with Vana that has been great to see. Thanks Vana!
Time to take on the day. I am off to town to take mom for her Mg infusion today. TTYL
Friday, May 25, 2012
Lesson 11
We did not get around to discussing lesson 11 this past Sunday, so I won’t post the last lesson of the series till next week.
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