Faithful

1 Corinthians 1:9
"God , who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful."

Sometimes thats all we need to know. Sometimes that's all we need to grasp. Sometimes that's all we need to think about. I'm so guilty of trying to over think what I read or "go deep" that I don't just stop and let the basic truths really sink in. God is faithful! He is faithful to himself. How would my life look different if every area of my life was wrapped around this truth?

I would love to hear some thoughts on how God has proven this in your life.
Love a good discussion.

Andrew

Preparation as worship by Ravi Z

This was Ravi Z's answer to a question posed to him at Wheaton College in reference to  using preparation as worship if you feel called to the ministry 

RZ: You will never find anyone of any impact globally who was not prepared. You see Moses, the Apostle Paul, our Lord himself – long before he had his public ministry he was being prepared. If you are going into your calling without preparation, you are going in through your own strength, without recognition of the sacredness of the calling with which you have been trusted, without the work that it takes to become an instrument fit for God’s use. Worship is pulling every facet of your life together in an expression of commitment to God. Traditional wedding banns include the phrase, “With my body I thee worship,” which is another way of saying, “I surrender my body for sacred use.” Preparation as service and worship is true surrender to God’s calling.

Inter-squad Games

I was in Church Sunday and I thought about how Church is a lot like an inter-squad game (a game where you play with/against your teammates as a means to sharpen your skills to get better as an athlete/player/person). Everybody gets a chance to play on Sunday, it's like its mandatory because if you show up then the coach wants to give you a chance to see your ability. So each Sunday God will speak to us in a message or in a song that urges us to take it out into the real game/life so we can have an impact for the Kingdom. Now I'm not making Church out to be competition but I am relating it to God getting an opportunity to see you at your best (Sunday best). The convicting part is that during the week I ride the bench and often mix in with Joe Public and rarely exercise my God given ability to perform or better yet use what I have been learning and practicing on Sunday's. Occasionally I'll get thrown into the game (an opportunity) during the week but instead of shooting or swing the bat (standing up for the Kingdom, words, action, or thoughts) I pass the ball or look at the heater down the middle (a pitch I could/would have crushed). So my point of this post is to encourage us to move from Sunday Christians to everyday Christians or graduate from practice squad players to game ready all-stars. I pray that we all have a home church where we attend and get fed and I pray that we would take that knowledge and use it for His glory. Be blessed fam!


Ben

Who is leading

"I don't want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know that I couldn't be doing this by my own power. I want to live in such a way that I am desperate for Him to come through"-Francis Chan, "Forgotten God"

When I read this short paragraph, ironically enough, the spirit really stirred in my heart more depth. This is a topic that can get long winded, so I will try and keep it short depending on what the spirit wants to say.....(ha, winkie).   This season of life for me has been a season about growing and learning in the acknowledgement of the Holy Spirit. As a christian, it is so easy for us to "walk ahead of God"and we can get worn out, frustrated, confused, deflated,  etc trying to do the christian life in our own strength. We can also just not be submitting to the power of the Spirit in our lives.  I love how graceful God is that He still chooses to love and delight in His children despite how prone our hearts are to wonder and even when we think "I got this thing figured out"....Praise Jesus!!  God is about His glory, not ours. I believe that in our journey in life, God allows us to go thru things that will detach ourselves more from this world, and attach ourselves more to Him.  This leaves us at a place of humility and joy because He is powerful and trustworthy to carry the load.  "Humble yourself before the Lord, and He will lift you up (James 4:10). "Come to ME all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "- Jesus ( Matt 11:28)  When our perspective changes and we begin to realize  this world is broken and man is limited, the thirst for the Holy spirit is water for the soul. I want to encourage you my brothers and sisters to keep pressing into the heart of this mysterious, but mighty Triune God. We don't have to nail it  or wait to make ourselves feel worthy enough before his presence. "God demonstrates His love for us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)   So run to the Lord with all your joy, pain, confusion, un answered questions, sin, etc. and let the spirit lead. God never gets tired of us pressing in, but our joy and His glory is at stake.  Stay in the vine, and be reminded that we are just pieces of clay as He produces the fruit in our lives by the TRANSFORMING power of the Holy Spirit.

Francis goes on to say, " I don't believe God wants me (or any of His children) to live in a way that makes sense from the world's perspective, a way I know I can "manage". I believe He is calling me- and all of us- to depend on Him for living in a way that cannot be mimicked or forged. He wants us to walk in step with His Spirit rather than depend solely on raw talent and knowledge He's given us"

I love that last reminder that everything is All His to begin with, we are just stewards.  Praise Him for this kind of  grace!
Blessings,
Brett Carroll

The New iPhone 5 is Here!!!

"I love her so much, I don't need nobody else

Try to put her down but can't help myself."

(Trip Lee - iLove)

So Apple just released the new iPhone 5 the other day and just like every other Apple product, it's going to be awesome. I currently have never owned an iPhone, but I've been considering getting one here in the near future which I'm sure is going to transform my life. You can pre-order the new iPhone now online, and I'm sure there will be lines a mile long when it is first sold in stores. So before I say what I want to say next, I do want to be clear that iLove Apple products and will probably have an iPhone in the near future.

Now, that being said, I think moments like these need a dose of fresh perspective in regards to our extreme consumerism here in our culture. We are so quick to become discontent with what we have in hot pursuit of the next best thing. The iPhone 4s is old news and now we need the iPhone 5. The iPhone 5 is going to cost $200-$400 based on which one you get. That doesn't seem too bad for such an awesome Apple product, but it got me thinking... what else could I do with $200?

Here's two things:

1. $200 will buy 1,000,000 gallons of safe water for 4 different children and their individual families. 900,000,000 people worldwide lack access to clean water and 4,000 children die every single day from water related diseases such as cholera and typhoid making unsafe water the 2nd biggest killer of children worldwide. Many more experience severe sickness from unsafe water.

2. $200 will buy 20 mosquito bed nets to protect children from the deadly spreading of malaria. A child dies from malaria every 30 seconds. 5 children will die from malaria before you finish reading this email.

Now, this is not intended to be a slap in the face or the cops crashing the party, but maybe it is a little. There is a lack of awareness and so this is a small attempt to raise some awareness, and I personally thought the timing was perfect. One more thing, a typical iPhone monthly plan cost anywhere from $80-$200.... what else could I do with $80 per month?

Here's one thing:

1. For $80 per month, I could sponsor 2 children through Compassion. This would provide:

a) Education - including school clothes, school supplies, and tutoring

b) Health - including teaching on hygiene and maintaining personal health as well as food

c) Church - including love and personal attention for each child, recreation and fun, Bible training and encouragement

So do you really need that new iPhone 5? Maybe. Should you buy the new iPhone 5? Sure. This is not meant to say iPhone's are bad because they are certainly not. In fact.. their awesome. This is just meant to raise your awareness and encourage you to not fall into the temptation of this constant covetous consumerism that surrounds us within this particular culture we live and operate in. There's a whole other world out there that we easily forget about and how we spend our money can impact that forgotten world more than any new App that we may download onto our latest accessory.

With Peace,

Terry

A disciple

I'm going over a few notes from our last bible study and wanted to share this.... A disciple.... Someone who does the right thing, for the right reasons, with the right spirit. A disciple is someone who does what Jesus would do if He were there. I pray that this group would do the right things, for the right reasons, with the right spirit...

-waino

Community

So me and my wife and a few couples are in the beginning stages of starting a couples study. The more I read in the Bible the more examples I see of how we are meant to live in community. I was speaking with my cousin in reference to their study and his response to the idea was great for me and my wife as we have become new parents. He said that as we get older and we become busier and busier with children and work and sports teams that our community is essentially created for us. The people we work with and who our  kids play with and our neighbors becomes our community. Now there is nothing wrong with this but we also need to be intentional about our community of believers. We  need to set aside time to fellowship and eat and share life together. We have to be intentional about our "inner circle". I'm sure many of you already have an inner circle of people who you run big decisions of life by and people who keep you accountable. For me this is a relatively new idea and I love it. We need to have people in our everyday life that challenge us to be better men as we are called.

Would You Like to Help?

In my last email, "Please Read... Please Pray," I briefly discussed the roller-coaster journey that my sister Donna and her husband David have been on for the past year and a half. This journey has led them to the path of adoption which is an exciting process that both of them are extremely grateful to be embracing. However, as some of you may know, this is not a cheap, quick or easy process either. Its a process that takes a good bit of time and energy to complete and one that is tough to prepare and plan for since you could get the call that you've been selected next week or next year. That being said, I wanted to do what I can as my sister's big brother (and soon to be uncle) to help her be as prepared as possible for the exciting new addition that God will soon graciously bless them with. So that's why I'm writing this email. I wanted to inform everyone and provide any of you guys that would like to help as well with an opportunity to help. Here's some ideas I had:

1) If we have any old baby stuff (clothes, toys, anything) that we don't need then we could send them to Donna and David.

2) We could buy small gift cards that they could use for diapers and stuff like that.

3) A friend of theirs is taking Donna to register for some things at Target and Babies R Us sometime in the near future so friends and family would be able to help in that way too. We could wait for that and help in that way if that might be easier. I'll provide that information if and when she registers.

4) We could write an encouraging card or email simply letting Donna and David know that we are praying for them. You could also write on the blog that they made here.

5) We can simply take a few minutes out of one day this week and pray specifically for them and the child that God will soon bless them with. There are many very specific things we could pray for.

Some of you have already helped in different ways, and I really can't even explain how much that has encouraged Donna and David. I guess you could say that this is my creative way of throwing them a baby shower before I get back home with them in a few weeks. There is obviously no obligation here because God has provided for them already in some pretty awesome ways. This is not a situation where they need help or they can't adopt. This is simply an idea that I had in order to maybe help them out some and encourage them at the same time. Thanks for taking the time to read, and I'll provide their address below for anyone who wants to join in to help.

With Peace and Anticipation,

- Terry

You can send whatever you'd like to:
DAVID AND DONNA FEUERBACH
312 AZALEA CIRCLE
CUMMING, GA 30040

PLEASE READ..... PLEASE PRAY.

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ (Matthew 25:40 ESV)

My sister (Donna) and her husband (David) have been on quite the roller-coaster ride of emotions over the last year. However, God promises us in Romans 8:28 that he will work ALL things for the good of those who love him and Donna and David can now testify to this truth more so than ever. After dealing with infertility treatments and lab tests and Dr.'s visits and ultrasounds and blood work and disappointing phone call after disappointing phone call, God has made it clear to them that their firstborn child is supposed to be born somewhere else. They must simply trust him and wait for him to reveal the child he has planned for them. I am personally so excited for the joy that God has in store for them and their child when he finally brings together this family that he has assembled according to his good and gracious purpose. Please read their story on how God has led them to adopt a child...

We wanted to tell everyone about the journey that we have been on for over a year.  We decided that being open about everything going on will help us handle all of the emotions surrounding our struggles.  We have been dealing with infertility and I have been seeing a fertility specialist for a while now.  They discovered that I have polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), which is a very common infertility problem, but it is not common in thin women.  Therefore, the typical treatments that people do for this disorder will not work on me.  We have done every type of oral medication you can think of at extremely high doses, had an IUI, and I had surgery to remove a large polyp but no pregnancy.  I am constantly at the doctor’s office doing ultrasounds and blood work.  Every trip and phone call is a disappointment, as we never seem to have good news.  I feel like I have not been myself because the medicines completely alter my moods and hormones.  They cause me to feel depressed, and I do everything I can to hold it together when I am around people but am a mess when I get home.  We have spent countless hours praying for God to provide us with a child and.....

Please read the rest of their story here

With Peace and Much Anticipation,

Terry

Arrested

"But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." (Matthew 10:19, 20 NIV)

So this is the end part of the decree to the disciples. I find it pretty amazing that it says when you get arrested, not if you happen to get arrested. Then they are told not to worry about what they will say because the words will be given to them. They will be filled with the Spirit when the time comes. 

What an amazing couple of sentences. Would I sign up for this journey if these were just some of the stipulations coming into it? Sometimes I need a reality check when it comes to what it really means to follow Jesus. 

Thankful for this community,

Andrew. 

"Belief is Not the Whole of Christianity"

I recently had to write a brief explanation for my Theological Seminar class on why theology is important and how I plan to approach theological study. I thought I would share two excerpts from my writing:

In an age and culture that demands instant access and immediate results, theology seems to be an ancient practice and a lost art. Even though we all make theological assumptions - simply meaning that we all have our own opinions about God and express those opinions in a variety of ways - many of these assumptions are not made as a result of careful study and examination of what the Bible has to say about God. For example, we have heard it been said that “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 ESV). Therefore, we conclude that if we believe in God and his Son then we will gain eternal life. The problem here is that “belief is not the whole of Christianity.” Charles C. Ryrie says it well, “There is nothing wrong with being an amateur theologian or a professional theologian, but there is everything wrong about being an ignorant or a sloppy theologian.”.....

.....In his final commission to his disciples, Jesus instructs them to go and make more disciples and to teach them to observe all that he had commanded (Matthew 28:19-20). This final order was not to simply make believers but rather to make disciples. A true disciple is someone who respects, studies, and conforms to the teachings of his particular leader. How can we consider ourselves a true disciple of Jesus if we do not make a commitment to know more about him and study his teachings? How can we make an effort to observe all that he commanded if we do not know or understand his commands? James Orr explains, “He who with his whole heart believes in Jesus as the Son of God is thereby committed to much else besides. He is committed to a view of God, to a view of man, to a view of sin, to a view of Redemption, to a view of the purpose of God in creation and history, to a view of human destiny found only in Christianity.” Simply believing in God, Jesus, or facts about Jesus does not necessarily make you a disciple of Jesus (James 2:19-20). Christianity is not simply a belief. “It is a way of life, a kind of behavior, a style of living.” The apostle Peter encourages us to make every effort to supplement our faith with knowledge so that we might be effective and fruitful. He warns that whoever lacks knowledge is blind and will constantly stumble (2 Peter 1:5-11). Jesus commanded us to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37 ESV). May we embrace this call by making a commitment to the study of God and his teachings.

With Peace, 

Terry 

Dependent freedom

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. (Galatians 5:13 NIV)

I feel like I say this everytime, but what a powerful verse! It lays the truth out. 

1. "We are called to be free". So we should be aware of anything that moves us away from that truth. 

2. "Don't use your freedom to indulge the flesh". We should be intentional.

3. "Serve one another humbly in love". This is a huge verse for me. We are called to serve one another, and serve HUMBLY and serve IN LOVE.

I thank God for this verse because it challenges me to reexamine my motives in service. 

Serve one another humbly in love is a big verse to digest. It goes on later to say that the flesh desires what is contrary to the spirit. So we are called to serve others humbly in love yet we desire to gratify the flesh and are working contrary to the spirit. So how do we shorten the learning curve and get back to that place of dependence on God and being led by the Spirit. I think it all goes back to the first verse that says we are called to be free and that freedom is meant to be experienced in a state of dependence on God. Staying in the word and prayer enhance my dependence on God.  You?

Obviously these are just my thoughts on this. Please comment.

- Andrew

Explicit Gospel Bite

Finished this book called "The Explicit Gospel" by Matt Chandler and found several things to highlight along the way. The illustration that your about to read hit me pretty hard for several reasons... I think you'll agree, enjoy!

The True Heart of the Father 

There is a magical thing that happens in homes all over the world. When you have a child, you want your child to crawl, and then you want your kid to walk. My first child, Audrey, pulled herself to the coffee table. When she got to the coffee table, she began to bounce on her knees, and then she began to coast along. From there she started letting go and just being wobbly. At that point we began to get excited about the fact that Audrey was about to walk. Eventually she took her hands off of the coffee table, and we watched physics in motion. 

God has created children, specifically young children, with gargantuan heads and tiny little bodies. So when Audrey let go of the coffee table, her gigantic head fell forward, and suddenly she had a decision to make. She could stick that foot out to catch herself or she could die. So she stuck her foot out, and then she had momentum. It was step, step, step, fall. Do you know what we did? We exploded in celebration. We picked her up, spun her around, and kissed her face. Then we sat her down and pleaded with her to walk toward us again. After that we began e-mailing, Facebooking, taking pictures, tweeting, and all sorts of other things to get the word out that Audrey was walking. We did that with our son, Reid, and we’ve done that with our daughter Norah. 

What I have learned as I watched all of our friends have children is that there is always an epic celebration around the kid walking. This is news to be declared. “This kid is walking!” 

For all the people I have watched go through that process, I’ve never seen anybody watch their kid go step, step, step, fall and then say out loud, “Man, this kid is an idiot. Are you serious? Just three steps? Man, I can get the dog to walk two or three steps. Honey, this must be from your side of the family, because my side of the family is full of walkers. This must be some sort of genetic, shallow gene pool on your side of things.” 

No father does that. Every father rejoices in the steps of his child. The father celebrates the steps of his child. I think what we have here is a picture of God celebrating us walking. So we step, step, step, and fall, and heaven applauds. At what? At the obedience of taking those three steps. The Father in heaven is crying, “He’s walking!” “She’s doing it!” And maybe the Accuser’s saying, “No, he only took a couple of steps. That’s nothing.” 

But the celebration is in the steps, even if there are still falls. Here’s what I know about all of my children: they start to walk farther and farther and farther, and they begin to skip, they begin to run, they begin to jump, they begin to climb, and they begin to tear the house up. It’s beautiful. I knew even when they were step, step, step, falling that that process was the beginning of what would result in climbing trees, dancing, and sprinting. Knowing in my mind what’s to come, the three steps and the stumble were a celebration. 

Moralists see the fall and believe that the Father is ashamed and thinks they’re foolish. So, more often than not, they stop trying to walk because they can’t see the Father rejoicing in and celebrating his child. 

Church of Jesus, let us please be men and women who understand the difference between moralism and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s be careful to preach the dos and don’ts of Scripture in the shadow of the cross’s “Done!” Resolve to know nothing but Jesus Christ crucified. We are not looking to conform people to a pattern of religion but pleading with the Holy Spirit to transform people’s lives. Let us move forward according to that upward call, holding firmly to the explicit gospel.

Matt Chandler (2012-04-09). The Explicit Gospel (p. 221). Good News Publishers/Crossway Books. Kindle Edition.

- Blake

The Good News

"For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:22-24)

If you have gone your entire life up to this point without committing a single sin then you have no reason to read this email. However, for what its worth, the apostle John said, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8).

In his letter to the believers in Rome, the apostle Paul declares that there is no one who has not sinned. Everyone has sinned. Would you argue with that? Since we sin then it seems obvious to admit that we fall short of the bar set by an Almighty Perfect God. Right? However, thanks to the grace of God displayed by Jesus humbling himself to the point of death on a cross, we are justified and redeemed.

How could this truth not change your entire perspective on life and radically transform the way you live your life? The fact is... this truth does radically change your life when you truly believe it. Its such a simple message of good news full of hope and joy. Don't complicate it - You either believe it or you don't. There is no middle ground - You're either following Jesus or you're not.

"For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:7-8). God loves you! - Do you believe that?

With peace,

Terry

"God made you and he rose for you... So you rise!" (Lecrae - Rise)

Awesome Ministry