Goals

As we draw near the end of another year, I'm starting to think of things that I will consider as goals for next year. I saw a list on another blog today and thought some of them were great. Here's the list:

• Take a 10-30 minute walk every day and, while you walk, smile. It’s the ultimate anti-depressant.
• Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes a day.
• When you wake up in the morning, complete the following statement, ‘My purpose is to _________ today.’
• Live with the 3 E’s - energy, enthusiasm and empathy.
• Play more games and read more books than you did last year.
• Make time to pray.
• Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6. Appreciate their genuine nature, strength and innocence.
• Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
• Try to make at least 3 people smile each day.
• Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid.
• Smile and laugh more.
• Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
• Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
• You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
• Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.
• No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
• Frame every so-called disaster with these words: ‘In 5 years, will this matter?’
• God can heal any hurt.
• However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
• Your job won’t take care of you when you’re sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
• Envy is a waste of time.
• No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
• Do the right thing!
• Call your family often.
• Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
• Enjoy the ride. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.
• Glorify God with your life.

Can you add any?

Wednesday November 25th

Read Genesis 4:8-10.

• How would you describe the mindset of Cain in verse 8?
• How do people often use the popular phrase in verse 9?
• Is there an attitude or sin you need to confess to God and to a sibling/friend related to how you feel about him or her?
• How should Cain have responded to Abel? What would God have you do in your relationship with your sibling/friend?

Tuesday November 24th

Read Genesis 4:4-5.

• What was the real problem with Cain’s offering?
• Does God need whatever you might give Him as an offering?
• What does God really want from you?
• What is the important value of bringing an offering to God?
• Is there an attitude you need to lose or develop related to giving an offering to God?

Monday November 23rd

Read Genesis 4:1-3.

• If you have siblings, are you the oldest, youngest, or somewhere in between? How well do you get along with your sibling(s)?
• What things tend to make you angry?
• What kind of relationship do you think Cain had with Abel?

Sunday November 22nd

Read Genesis 3:22-24.

• Why did Adam and Eve have to leave the garden after God forgave them?
• What consequences of sin have you suffered even though you were forgiven of the sin?
• Write a short poem or prayer to God thanking Him for His forgiveness and the boundaries He sets in your life.

Saturday November 21st

Read Genesis 3:20-21.

• How did God demonstrate His love and forgiveness to Adam and Eve?
• Why is this often described as a sign of the coming death of Jesus Christ for our sin?

Friday November 20th

Read Genesis 3:16-19.

• What were the consequences for the woman after her sin? Are they fair?
• What were the consequences for the man after his sin? Are they fair?
• Is having to work a consequence of sin? (See Gen. 2:15.)
• Talk with your parents today about the pain of childbirth and the labor of work.

Thursday November 19th

Read Genesis 3:14-15.

• What were the ramifications of God’s punishment for the serpent?
• What does “strike your head” mean?
• How does it make you feel to know that Satan will not have the final victory?

Wednesday November 18th

Read Genesis 3:8-13.

• How would you describe the relationship Adam and Eve had with God before and after they gave in to temptation?
• How does giving in to temptation affect your relationship with God?
• How did God feel about Adam and Eve after they gave in to temptation? (Did He want to be with them?)

Tuesday November 17th

Read Genesis 3:4-7.

• How do these verses compare with 1 John 2:15-16?
• What parts of the temptation attracted Eve?
• List the temptations that are the most difficult for you to resist. Pray for God to help you recognize the temptations and provide you the strength to resist them.

The Serpent

Monday November 16th

Read Genesis 3:1-3.

• Who do we recognize the serpent to be in these verses?
• How did the serpent approach the woman? Was she expecting the serpent?
• When does Satan most seem to tempt you?

The Perfect Union?

Sunday November 15

Read Genesis 2:21-25.

• What does this passage tell you about the permanence of the marriage relationship?
• If a man and a woman were made for each other for a permanent relationship, what does this say to you about how you should treat someone—anyone—of the opposite sex?

Companionship

Saturday November 14

Read Genesis 2:18-20.

• What makes an animal, such as a pet, a great companion?
• What does a human companion provide that a pet cannot?
• We were created to live in relationship with God and with other people. What will you do today to strengthen your relationship with God? with another person?

Eating With Restrictions

Friday November 13

Read Genesis 2:15-17.

• What stands out in your mind from this passage: the freedom or the prohibition?

Focus on the blessings and freedoms you have in Christ. It is easier to abide by the prohibitions—the things God commands us not to do—when we focus on the good things He provides and the good things He calls us to do.

The Garden

Thursday November 12

Read Genesis 2:8-14.

Compare this brief description of the garden of Eden with the picture of heaven in Revelation 22:1-5. God’s plan is to restore us to paradise as He originally intended us to live.

• What would be the best part of living in a paradise, the garden of Eden?
• How can knowing there is a paradise waiting for you make a difference in how you live today?

God Knows Us

Wednesday November 11th

Read Psalm 139.

• Why do you sometimes want to hide from God?
• Because God knows you intimately and loves you deeply, are you willing to trust Him with your life today?

WOW! God really spoke to me this morning through these verses. I beg you to take time and read through Psalm 139. He knows us completely, loves us unconditionally, goes with us wherever, and has prepared our way before us. He truly has an amazing love for us.

Creation

Tuesday November 10th

Read Psalm 8.

• What , in your opinion, is the most incredible thing in God’s creation?
• Yesterday, you considered your role as a part of God’s crowning creation. How do you feel when you compare yourself to whatever you consider to be the most incredible thing in God’s creation?
• There is humility in the psalmist’s words. How are you humbled by God’s view of you?

Genesis

We are beginning a study " LXVI: A study of the sixtysix books!—LXVI "

As you can imagine we started in the book of beginnings; Genesis yesterday, and covered the creation account through chapter 1 and the first few verses of chapter 2.

We will be utilizing both the church website as well as this blog as we go forward. Any suggestions would be appreciated. The young adults page of our church site is located here.

http://www.crossoverchurch.net/youngadults.html

The weeks devotional scriptures that follow along with the lesson will be posted here.

Monday November 9th

Read Genesis 2:4-7.

• How does this passage express to you that humans are God’s crowning creation?
• If you are God’s crowning creation, how will that be reflected in how you live your life today?

It is absolutely amazing that with everything God formed and created, He saved man for last. It leaves the impression (and I think rightly so) that it was all planned and put in place for man and His purposes for man.

Father,

Thank you for loving me as you do, fill me with Your Spirit and guide me in the direction you want. I will yield to Your leading and direction.

Pastor Rick

Please join me in prayer for the Young Adults program @ Crossover. I am convinced God has plans to work in and through this group. I was tempted to use the phrase "great plans", but all God's plans are great and I felt it "cheapened" (is that a word?) somehow His plans for others and exalted us to use it.

Anyway, we are at a place of decision (doesn't it always seem to be) as we continue. There is progress as the young ladies of the group are pulling together and forming a bible fellowship group of their own to meet on Wednesday's. I pray this bind's this group of young ladies heart's to God, His word, and each other.

Thank you Lord for the young adults you have allowed to touch our lives as we had tried to touch theirs. Shaun, Travis, Jenna, Jessica, Franklin, Nathaniel, Mellisa, Kayla, Chad, Nathan, Chris, Robin, Josh, Alicia, Brad, Ashley, Samantha, Sarah, Stephanie, Stephen, Johnathon, Tim, D.J., James, Ashley, Jason, Scott, Joe, oh Lord I know there is some I am leaving out. Speak into each heart, convict and encourage as they continue on their journey.

Lord, help Linda and I we grow and seek your will and plan for this group. Our Sunday mornings still seem to be a struggle for some, and we are not sure how Sunday afternoon is going to turn out, but You have control...do as you will!

In total surrender to YOUR will,

Rick

God's Will In All Seasons

Sometimes it seems that we as Christians would be happy and content seeking God's will by casting lots or placing a fleece outside. But just as we learned earlier in this series knowing God's will and doing God's are two different things. In Judges 6 we see the angel of the Lord telling Gideon he is a "mighty man of valor" and that "The Lord is with him". God tells Gideon he will use him to deliver Israel, but he still doubts. Even after God miraculously wets the fleece but leaves the surrounding ground dry he says "Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece."

Now before I make Gideon out to be this spiritual loser, let me acknowledge I've done the same stuff. All of us have! God says to us clearly through his word.........and yet we say, but Lord if this be your will......... We ask for a sign, an open or closed door. Certainty of his will is not a guarantee of obedience to his will. Signs don't lead to obedience.

Romans 12:2 speaks of being transformed by the renewing of our minds. As God's word becomes more and more a part of our lives it will set our minds in the proper state, renew them to where they ought to be. Too many of us think we have to check our brains at the door in order to live a life of faith and walk in His will. But God says he wants to change our mind, He wants us to have the mind of Christ. As we gain knowledge of His word, His thoughts become our thoughts. His ways become our ways. We are able to make decisions in accordance with His word and His will.

Living in God's will also involves living in constant communion with the Holy Spirit. In John 16 Jesus tells his disciples several important issues:

He is going away

The Holy Spirit will come

He has more to teach tell them, but they won't be able to bear it

The Holy Spirit will teach them all things.

Living a life filled by, controlled by, and walking in the Holy Spirit is what God has planned and desired for us. He (Holy Spirit) will guide us and direct us in all things. He will instruct and teach us all things. He will provide a peace that we are living God's will. He is critical to our "spiritual" life. Without Him we don't have a "spiritual" life.

Next week we will look at grey areas. Are there grey areas in your life? I bet there are......

Let's see what God has to say about them and how the Holy Spirit can help eliminate them in us.

Read Romans 14:1-23

Does God care about grey areas? Why or why not?

How does the Holy Spirit turn issues of conscience into issues of conviction?

Read Galatians 5:16-23, Romans 12:6 and 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

How does God use the Holy Spirit to accomplish His will in us?

What would your life look like if you were fully living according to the spirit?

Rick

GOD'S WILL FOR EVERY DAY

Searching God’s will on BING drew 257,000,000 results. Contrary to what most would think, it appears there are a lot of folks interested in God's will. God has made it clear what His will is for our everyday lives.

Scripture is intended to communicate God’s desires, will, and plan for the world. And because of this, reading, knowing, studying, and applying God's word is central to discovering God's will for our everyday life.

2 Timothy 3:16-18 points out why we should look to scripture as our primary source for discovering God’s will.

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Scripture will:

Teach us when we lack knowledge
Rebuke and correct when necessary
Train us to become more Christ like in our day to day lives
Prepare us for every good work

If God’s word is the ultimate source of truth for our lives, why don’t we look there? Think about the last time you were seeking God’s guidance on a matter. What did you do?

Sometimes we depend on others rather than seek God ourselves. It is much easier to let others do the work for us, rather than search the bible for ourselves. If we aren’t careful we can become more committed to our favorite writers than to the author of our faith.

"looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" Hebrews 12:2

Books, friends, and pastors are all helpful; we don’t seek God’s will in a vacuum. But if you search without consulting His Word, you’ll never find what you are looking for.

Pastor Rick

The nature of God's will

GOD'S WILL IS MORE ABOUT US ANSWERING HIS QUESTIONS THAN HIM ANSWERING OURS.

Augustine, Bishop of Hippo in North Africa was not an easy convert to Christianity. His road to Christ was not a short, direct, or easy path. He understood from his mother's raising that to undertake Christianity was to give yourself fully to it, and frankly he loved the world too much.

Eventually, God won out and after coming to Christ became a tremendous theological contributor to Western Christianity. In the Confessions, he chronicled his journey to Jesus and the path that proceeded from his conversion. It was said his worst fears had come true - he had to give himself fully to the will of God if he was to have any relationship with Him at all. His journey reminds us that though "MANY OF US MIGHT ASK TO KNOW GOD'S WILL, VERY FEW OF US ARE READY TO FULLY EMBRACE IT."

"There is a joy which is not given to the ungodly, but to those who love Thee for Thine own sake, whose joy Thou Thyself art. And this is the happy life, to rejoice to Thee, of Thee, for Thee, that is it, and there is no other." Augustine

Isaiah 6:1-8 gives us a pattern and Isaiah is a great role model when we consider God's will for our lives. Isaiah was an eye witness to the throne room of God and the scene he observed rivals anything we can even imagine. He saw God high and lifted up on His throne, and there were heavenly creatures flying around God covering their eyes and proclaiming "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts." At their voices the foundations of the temple shook.

Isaiah immediately confessed his sin, and one of the heavenly creatures grabbed a hot coal and flew straight toward him. He placed the hot coal on Isaiah's mouth and told him his guilt had been taken away and his sin atoned for. Then Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord saying "Who shall I send? And who will go for us?"

God clearly communicated his will through these two questions. You know exactly what God wants. The God who has forgiven you, cleansed you, and removed your guilt has shown you His will. Would you respond as Isaiah did?

He responded with faith. No excuses. No looking back. He knew God's will and was willing to act on it in faith. Notice God didn't tell Isaiah where to go, or what his role would be, or what to say or do once he got there.

Instead of questions, Isaiah responded in faith - "Here am I. Send me."

Once we understand the nature of God's will and that God's desire is for us to respond to Him in faith instead of absolute certainty, we will find ourselves desiring a relationship with God that is lived out through our "intentional" spiritual disciplines.

Then the adventure of discovering and applying God's will for our lives begins.

Pastor Rick

New Study

Connect The Dots

It is a study about understanding the ongoing will of God for your life.

Week 1 Introduction Beyond The Big Three -

Does God really want to answer my big questions?

Week 2 The Nature of God's Will -

What am I looking for anyway?

Week 3 God's Will for everyday -

How can I hear God's voice?

Week 4 God's Will in All Seasons -

What about fleece's, doors, and signs?

Week 5 God's Will Through His Spirit -

How does the Holy Spirit help me find God's will?

Week 6 God's Will Through Community -

Is it O.K. to listen to other people?

Week 7 The Silence of God -

What about when there is nothing to hear?

We will begin the week of July 27th and it will last for 7 weeks (if we stay on track) Here is a short video talking about this study.

Introduction- Week 1

Beyond The Big Three

Who should I marry?

Where should I work?

Where should I live?

Asking these questions usually leads to one simple question for most Christians. "What's God's will for my life?"

If you're asking these questions, you certainly are not alone. If you've already spent a few years in the work force or college these questions seem to loom a little larger. It's natural, it's part of growing in wisdom, it's part of figuring out how you will live your life and what it means to be you on your terms.

But perhaps we only want to know God's will as long as it lines up with our ideas of what we think life should be. That's usually why the big three prompt us to ask the question concerning God's will for or lives...we have our hearts and minds already set on what our plans look like. If that's true, then our question really isn't "What's God's will for my life?" It's actually "Does God's will for my life line up with my vision for my life?"

Most never see the proverbial skywriting telling them the direction God desires for them. For a lot of folks my age (55) this is represented by a life of searching for answers to these same questions, and at the end of the day many have no answers and simply make the major decisions of their life with little more than a sense of which direction God wants them to go. The search for certainty or confidence in God's will has become little more than a pipe dream for most.

Despite this, I firmly believe God cares deeply about the major decisions of your life. I think he cares about every aspect of our lives, so much so that perhaps we should start our search with a slightly different question than the one most of us ask.

Instead of: "What's God's will for my life?"

We should first ask: "What's God's will in my life?"

The difference is huge. Over the next several weeks maybe you can rediscover that God not only has a plan for you, but cares deeply about you. His greatest call on all our lives is for us to follow Jesus and become conformed to him. In other words, god is far more interested in who we are than in what we do. It's not about finding answers as much as we seek to find and know God Himself.

I pray that the end result of CONNECT THE DOTS will be a greater love for, hope in, and commitment to the will of God in all our lives.

Rick

Exerpts taken from the book "Connect The Dots" by Mike Hurt and published by Lifeway as part of their "Threads" ministry to young adults.