Message:
GRACE
Grace could be defined as unmerited showing of mercy or kindness.
- Grace is love in action
- Grace is showing compassion
- Grace is faithful
- Grace gives hope
- GOD IS GRACE
Scriptures:
I am what I am by the grace of God (1 Corinthians 15:10)
My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Message:
FEAR
Fear is defined as “ a feeling of being afraid”.
- Fear can force you to move cautiously
- Look for God’s Word for comfort when you are afraid
- Face fear confidently knowing that God is ultimately in control
- Trust that God is always near and is greater than any evil I might face
- Learn to have an attitude of prayer and to pray often when afraid
- Know that life isn’t guaranteed to be free from danger
- Realize that there are positive aspects to fear
Scripture: Hebrews 13:6
We may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
Message:
HURTING
Are you hurting today? Welcome to the “club” . God is our comfort Hurt is defined as “to give pain or cause damage”.
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:4
God comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.
- Understand that I ought to comfort others as God comforts me
- Know that people are going to suffer pain and hurt
- Recognize that people who are hurting can benefit from my comfort
- Learn to be available for someone who is hurting
- Offer to listen when someone needs to share about a painful experience
- Help redirect a friend who is hurting when it’s best to do so
- GOD DOES NOT COMFORT US TO MAKE US COMFORTABLE, BUT TO MAKE US COMFORTERS
Message:
GIVING
Giving is “to let someone have”
- Realize that God desires the first and best of what I earn or own
- Know that God challenges us to test Him in this area of giving
- Look forward to the faith adventure that comes with learning how to be giving
- Know that giving isn’t a monetary issue, but a spiritual one
- Understand that churches need donations in order to survive and thrive
- Examine my attitude toward giving
- The basic question is not how much of our money we should give to God, but how much of God’s money we should keep for ourselves
- There is a blessed kind of giving, which, though makes the purse lighter, makes the crown heavier.
Scriptures:
The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein (Psalm 24:1)
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21)
Let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God love a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7
Message:
FRIENDSHIP
QUOTES:
- Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart
- When it hurts to look back and you’re scared to look ahead, you can look beside you and your best friend will be there
- Friends are like money in the bank, the longer you keep them, the more they are worth
- True friends can grow separately without growing apart
- We are all travelers in the desert of life, and the best we can find on our journey is an honest friend
- Since there is nothing so well worth having as friends, never lose a chance to make them
- True friends are like a mirror which reflect back on us the kind of image we cast
- Friendship takes time
- Kindness is the foundation of a lasting friendship
SCRIPTURES:
You are like an unfaithful wife who loves her husband’s enemies. Don’t you realize that making friends with God’s enemies- the evil pleasures of this world- makes you an enemy of God? I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy the evil pleasure of the unsaved world, you cannot also be a friend of God. (James 4:4)
A true friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need (Proverbs 17:17)
There are “friends” who pretend to be friends, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18: 24)
Message:
JOY
- Joy is being able to smile through the tears
- Joy is having peace in the midst of the storm
- Joy is having Jesus Christ on your side
- Joy is knowing that God has your best interest at heart
- Joy is the assurance of God’s love
- Joy is J…… Jesus first O…..OthersY….Yourself
SCRIPTURES:
Restore to me the joy of my salvation (Ps 51:12
Godly ones sing for joy (Ps. 132:9)
Everlasting joy will be theirs (Isaiah 61:7)
For I will turn their mourning into joy (Jeremiah 31: 13)
Make my joy complete by being the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose (Philippians 2:2)
Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength (Nehemiah 8:10)
Message:
OBEDIENCE
To be obedient is to do what you are told.
- Delayed obedience is disobedience
- Obedience is not based on your feelings
- Obedience is following orders as given
- Correcting an act of disobedience does not remove the disobedience.
- Obedience though might be painful; in the end leads you away from destruction
Scripture: 1 Samuel 15: 22
…Behold to obey is better than sacrifice.
Message:
PEACE
- A life of peace gives life to the body (King Solomon)
- God make His people strong. God gives His people peace
- If there is to be any peace it will come through being, not having
- A happy life consists in tranquility of mind
- You will keep in perfect peace whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in God
- Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid( John 14:27)
- We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ
- True peace is found by man in the depths of his own heart, the dwelling place of God
- Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. GOD IS AWAKE!
- For peace of mind, resign as the general manager of the universe
- Pray for the Lord to grant you the serenity to accept the things you cannot change; the courage to change the things you can; and the wisdom to know the difference.
Scripture: Phillipians 4: 6-7
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
Message:
PERSONAL DEVOTIONS
EACH born again believer should begin each day with God. Psalm 46:10, Be still and know that I am God…. We should have a daily quiet time. We should have this quiet time alone, away from the cares and interruptions of the world. To do this, you may have to cut the ringer off on the phone! There are three sides to the Christian life:
1. God speaks to us through His Word. Start here first. God needs to speak to us about ourselves, about His will, and about the day we are to face. The Word of God is our food.
2. Prayer – we talk to God. Prayer is our rest.
3. And we need spiritual exercise – talk to men about God.
Many never talk to men about God because they never talk to God about men. Let us note some things about personal devotions:
1. Read the Word of God. Read it carefully and prayerfully. It is a blessing to allow God to speak to us through His Word. Memorize a portion of the Word of God. Psalm 119:11. God’s Word will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from God’s Word. Meditate on God’s Word. Josh 1:8; Ps. 1:2. Take a verse-go over and over it in your mind and allow the Holy Spirit to teach you. God will give you something fresh each day.
2. Pray. Spend some time talking to God about whatever is on your heart. He will give you the desire to pray and what to pray for.
3. The time of personal devotions should be in the morning before the day begins and before the cares of this life have a chance to rush in upon us. Our minds are fresh in the morning, and we need to go to God first, giving Him the best part of the day.
Message:
Unprofitable Anger
Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:9 Every day of our lives we are placed in situations that engage us with other people, whether it is in the office, our homes, or in public places. Do you recall the last time someone cut you off in traffic, or you were forced to wait in line because someone up front got held up? Perhaps your employer did something that was downright unfair. Anger can result from many circumstances.
A friend once told me that anger is like warning lights on the front of your car dashboard. They signal that there is something going on under the hood, and we should take a look to examine the source of the problem. Anger can be traced to a few sources. First, when we lose control of a circumstance that we have placed certain expectations on and those expectations do not result in our desired outcome, we are tempted to get angry. The source of this type of anger is both fear and protection of personal rights. You see, when we believe we have a right to something, we have not given the Lord permission to allow an outcome different from what we want. If an outcome is different from our expectations, this may stimulate fear.
For instance, if a vendor failed to deliver an important job on time due to something out of his control, you may respond out of anger. Please know that the source of your anger is the fear of what might happen to you or what this might say about your abilities to manage a project. You no longer are in control of the circumstance and this creates fear in
you. The next time you get angry ask the Lord what is the source of that anger? Did the Lord allow that failure to let you see what is “under your hood”? God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind (see 2 Tim. 1:7). Give up your rights to expectations that God never gave you. You will find a new freedom in Christ you never knew you could have.