For the second week, we were blessed to have Marty and Betty Proctor come and talk with us about their lives, and their wisdom for us as young people.  We are grateful to have leaders in our church who care as much as Marty and Betty.  They had so much to say... it will be impossible to put all the good thoughts in one single post.  (I may have to split it up.)

I don't think they meant it as a common theme... but something that Betty Said early on that resonated in my mind:

“We are Spiritual Beings on a Human Path – Not Humans on a spiritual Path.  God made us to last forever”

I LOVE to think about the lessons and wisdom she has learned from her life experiences..... unless we BELIEVE AND TRUST that we are spiritual beings... it makes it so much harder to trust in God when bad things happen.  From what I can tell, that’s not just a comment, that is their living testimony.  They opened up their lives to us... I'm sure they would do the same for you if you ask them.

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I want to make sure I cover the Challenges that Marty and Betty gave us though the evening. 

• Challenge:  Don't forget about Friendship Evangelism.
• What a privilege it is to get to know people.  It's a privilege to get to know people even if you don't "Bring them to Christ."  Pass on scripture to others, take them out to lunch, invite them over, etc.  Show the love of God in everything you do.
   
• Challenge: Find your "Go"
• In Matthew 26.  God gives us a challenge to:
  "19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,"
  God specifically tells us to "Go." And the question that Marty wanted to raise is "Where is your Go?"  What are you doing to "Go" and be out there.  We don't need all the answers, we can let the holy spirit do the work.  Our Go might be around the corner.  Our Go might be in the workplace.... We just need to GO!!
• Challenge:  Be careful to say "I'll Pray for You"
• In our daily lives, It is so easy for us to say… "I’ll pray for you" and then walk away.  But it is so hard for us to just stop and pray? There is nothing that is stopping us from saying a quick prayer, whether outside, in public or wherever.  Just stop and do it.   
• Even if we are over email/Facebook/text.  Say it.... Let them know you are praying for them. Actively.

When the Proctors left us, they ended it on something very profound... and something we should always gauge our life by.  "The Ultimate Test of Maturity"

Hebrews 5:11-14
 11We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. 12In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

In this passage, there is a description between what the mature need, and what the infants need.  However, the key to what a maturity is in the very last sentence.  "Have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil."
The ultimate test of maturity is the ability to discern “the difference between Good and Evil.”  And in turn, this can become such a key indicator of when someone is or isn’t ready to be a leader.  In our lives, in our study, in our relationships, and friendships.... we should always remember that.  We are to train ourselves to be mature leaders.... to do so.  We need to be trained to distinguish between good and evil.

I love it when God's word gives us clear advice.

Thank you to our leaders for pointing this out.

Tonight we had our first Church Leader come by for the bible study tonight, Joel Cacek, an Elder, leader, local business owner, and good friend of mine. The night had a good discussion, several life lessons, a study of Romans 14, and a couple of thought provoking challenges. It was a great night to learn more about our leaders and learn more about our faith. Joel and Myself shared our testimonies. If you would like to hear more, feel free to ask. I'm sure Joel would love to talk to you, I know I would.

To summarize our evening, the following are a series of challenges that Joel gave us throughout his talk. I hope each of you reading will take into heavy consideration the wisdom and love that Joel has placed before us.

Challenges from Joel:
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• Focus on God's Word
• Even if only 5 minutes a day.. read something
• The book of James is a great, simple study to start on. Read a chapter a Day!!
• Simplify Your Life
• Set goals for yourself
• Remove idols in your life - think about non traditional forms (Internet,Facebook,Email,Sports,Cell Phone,Texting)
• Let God Speak to You
• Be a disciple
• Don't condemn yourself for God's work. (Romans 14:22-23)
• Serve Others... it might just turn out to be a great experience

I want to again thank Joel for stopping by our group tonight. I know I received a lot of wisdom from a man I personally respect. Thanks again!

1 Cor.5:7  "If any man be in Christ, he is a NEW creature; old things are passed AWAY; behold, all things are become NEW."

"Change is never complete, and change never ceases. Nothing is ever quite finished with; it may always begin over again. And nothing is quite new; it was always somehow anticipated or prepared for."
 - C.S. Lewis

Our purpose for the next study series is to prepare and plan for these changes, while we utilize the wisdom of the church elders and leaders. We have several topics that have been identified, and we have asked several church leaders to come in and talk to our group.

The topics may cover "Church Leadership", "Finances and Faith", maybe "Discipleship." But the topics will sure to cover something that is close to the leaders heart. I'm looking forward to this study. I will continue to blog to these subjects as well.   The complete study will last around 5 weeks (depending on availability of church leaders.)

If you are looking for a time to join our study, this would be it!!   Monday nights @ 7:00 PM.

1 Peter 3:15   "In your hearts, set apart 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."

How to Outline Your Story:
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1.  BC (Before Christ became a part of your life)
   - A. What was your early spiritual background, and how did it affect you as  you grew up?
   - B. What caused you to begin to consider following Christ?

2.  CHRIST  (How did you meet Christ)
   - A. What realization did you come to that finally motivated you to recive Christ?
   - B. Specifically, how did you recieve Christ?

3.  AD  (After Christ became part of your life)
   - A. How did your life begin to change after you trusted Christ?
   - B. What other benefits have you experienced since becoming a Christian?
   - C. [End with a followup/concluding open ended question]

"The important thing to remember is Christ will return" (Colson).


Here's a dose of real life: this world is moving towards urban living. In the near future, nearly 80% of the population will be in cities compared to just 2% a century ago. We've all heard statistics suggesting that _________ (insert random percentage here) of stats are untrue. Still, this should serve the purpose to alarm you. It means things are changing and relatively quickly at that. We've got work to do!


The Great Proposal makes sense of all reality. Christianity has the greatest hope of changing the world. People will keep seeking truth and transcendence. The beauty of it all? It fits! The end fits human needs just as well as the journey does (the end does, in fact, justify the means here people). People have a desperate need for justice, a desperate need for the scales to be balanced. Think of South America...the people there turned to Pentacostalism and evangelism because it worked!


Backtracking to the opening quote, He's gonna return. The Kingdom will come in all its fullness, and guess what. Satan. Yeah, he's outta here. Fo sho. Forever.


Church (the body...not the building) has been in expectation that He will return. Now, that's a wonderful sentiment. To some degree, we (the church) need to be living in the now (anyone else hearing Edna from The Incredibles, "You have to live in the now dahling."?). We cannot be hung up on WHEN He's coming. He's coming. Keep living in anticipation of His return; otherwise, we are left predisposed to slack off until we have a better idea when to start pumping out those good works in His name. So...why not just strive for it all the time and have it be more of a living the Christian life attitude where it's more natural to just serve God rather than an "oh crap! I've really sucked at being an honest Christian" sort of mindset?


At the final balance of the scales (final justice), people will be satisfied.


Shalom- we will live in perfect peace and harmony. Heaven on Earth will be witnessed as He will pitch His tent around us.




Acts 17 focuses on how Paul delivered his message to wise men of Athens from Mars Hill (also the name of a mega church). Only a few people actually followed him. Still, the flag there is flown half staff on Good Friday and is full again by Easter Sunday. Why is that important? HE MADE AN IMPACT.




We should be practicing the Joy of Orthodoxy according to Colson. This means we should believe the same thing the people comprising the First Century Church gave their lives for.


Christians have always fought for human dignity. It has succeeded in winning people over. Capitalism. Democracy. The Scientific Method. God's Creation is meant to be explored and fought for.


Revelation 1:1-3 represents a dual blessing. The Jesus in Matthew was a loving servant as compared to the Jesus in Revelation as the Lion of Judah coming back for His people. Thanks Cody for sharing this sentiment from your favorite biblical book. It represents something to, again, be anticipated and not feared.



Ask us questions if you've got 'em. Thanks for reading!



Blessings,



Kevin

"The main goal of the church is to make disciples which means she guides us in the pursuit of holiness" (Colson).


A healthy church is defined by who we are, not just by who or what we go to. OK. So define 'church'. A meeting of God's people called to fellowship as His own (facilitated by the presence of a building).

Let's unpack this a little bit. This says nothing about a building. Sadly, buildings...institutions...churches (emphasis on the plurality)...prove to be the face of Christianity to people. When there is a breakdown here that affects both believers and nonbelievers alike, we MUST work that much harder to be the church.

Whoa whoa WHOA! Just these two statements make me further examine how much I fail. Why is there such a lack of congruence in what I say I am and how I am living a life that is supposed to support those words? I am not obeying. I am seeking to fill a void with church and not with God. Hmmm...

Explore this a little further with me. Politics are important, but a culture needs to be built. Culture is religion incarnate according to Colson. If culture is flawed, it's because the Christians are. That makes sense. We have the greatest propensity to bring about change. In the world, there is exposure to corruption and exposure to The Fall, but we must remain anchored in Christ. Corruption has come as a result of The Fall. In the world but not of the world. We need to be noting this stuff and then trying to change it.