The Journey
December 7, 2008
Ephesians 1:15-23 (Thanks to Lamar Younginer for these great notes!)
What is this portion of scripture saying?
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
1. Their faith is strong and their love for others is evident.
2. Prayer is not something that we do once and forget about it.
3. God is not an ATM machine. We need to take time to give Him thanks and praise. He deserves it.
What is this portion of scripture saying to me?
1. Does anyone know about my faith? If so is what they know positive or negative?
2. How often do I thank God for the fellow believers He has brought into my life?
3. How long am I willing to spend before the Throne of God?
What does this portion of scripture challenge me to do?
1. Make a difference.
2. Take time to thank my brothers and sisters in Christ for what they do.
3. Thank God for the people He has brought into my life.
What is this portion of scripture saying?
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
1. Sometimes we have to continually ask for what we need.
2. There is a purpose for wisdom and revelation.
3. We can always know Him better.
What is this portion of scripture saying to me?
1. Am I persistent in my prayer life?
2. Am I studying God's word with purpose?
3. Do I know Him better today than I did yesterday?
What does this portion of scripture challenge me to do?
1. Pray with purpose.
2. Study with purpose.
3. Repeat 1. and 2.
What is this portion of scripture saying?
18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
1. Paul's prayer is focused on the spiritual and not on the physical.
2. Our hearts need to be enlightened by God.
3. He has called us to hope.
4. In Him we are wealthy. Our wealth and inheritance is a spiritual one.
5. There is no power like His power.
What is this portion of scripture saying to me?
1. Where is my prayer life focused, on the physical or spiritual?
2. Am I allowing God to enlighten me through His word?
3. Is my day to day focus on acquiring physical wealth or spiritual wealth?
What does this portion of scripture challenge me to do?
I need to be purposeful in redirecting my focus. It needs to be redirected from the physical to the spiritual.
What is this portion of scripture saying?
19b That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
1. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead is within us.
2. His power far exceeds ours.
3. His power and authority far exceeds that which has been established here on Earth.
What is this portion of scripture saying to me?
1. Do I really believe this?
2. Why am I timid and afraid to pray in public, share my faith, lead a Bible study?
3. When am I going to step out of my comfort zone?
What does this portion of scripture challenge me to do?
Take God at His word.
What is this portion of scripture saying?
22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
1. God has always been in control and will always be in control.
2. The church needs to recognize that God is the ultimate authority and not man.
3. We are the body of Christ. We need to be doing the work He left us to do.
What is this portion of scripture saying to me?
1. In the midst of all the craziness in my life and in the world, do I still believe God is in control?
2. Is my loyalty to man or to God? In other words, Do I fear man more than God?
3. Are we actively involved in doing what God called us to do?
What does this portion of scripture challenge me to do?
Get busy.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Who Is On The Journey? December 7, 2008
Below is a list of the men who are on The Journey of Prayer:
Rodney Weaver, Earle Sims, Jeff Hoffart, Jo Nell, W. K. Lee, Mitchell McClam, Greg Miller, Joel Shealy, Jon Alexander, Gordon Weaver, Thomas Winburn, Fred Gore, Joe Macchio, David Easler, Lamar Younginer, and Denny Bates. These men are on The Journey. Will you join them next month?
Ephesians 1:15-23
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Rodney Weaver, Earle Sims, Jeff Hoffart, Jo Nell, W. K. Lee, Mitchell McClam, Greg Miller, Joel Shealy, Jon Alexander, Gordon Weaver, Thomas Winburn, Fred Gore, Joe Macchio, David Easler, Lamar Younginer, and Denny Bates. These men are on The Journey. Will you join them next month?
Ephesians 1:15-23
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Who Is On The Journey?
On Sunday, November 2, for an hour, these 17 men listed below gathered around the Word of God to pray and give testimony for what the Lord is doing in their life. These men are on a spiritual journey. You can join them next month on December 7 at 5:30 in the senior high youth room. Please contact any one of these guys for more information.
Tommy Everett
Jo Nell
Lamar Younginer
Fred Gore
Joe Macchio
Earle Sims
Denny Bates
Robby Peed
Dobby Grossman
Bejamin Blanks
Randy LaCross
Steve Hayoe
Greg Miller
Chuck Black
Joel Shealy
Marty Beall
Mitchell McClam
You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. Psalms 16:11 (NASB95)
Tommy Everett
Jo Nell
Lamar Younginer
Fred Gore
Joe Macchio
Earle Sims
Denny Bates
Robby Peed
Dobby Grossman
Bejamin Blanks
Randy LaCross
Steve Hayoe
Greg Miller
Chuck Black
Joel Shealy
Marty Beall
Mitchell McClam
You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. Psalms 16:11 (NASB95)
Praying Psalm 25--Part 1
Part 1: Praise for His character: He is Faithful and True
1 To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, in You I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed; Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.
Observation—Learning What The Author is Saying
The Big Ideas in this Passage are…
• God can be trusted—completely, entirely
• The Lord will not abandon me
Interpretation—Learning What the Scripture Means
Some Questions to Ponder…
• What does it mean to lift up my soul to the Lord?
• Who are my enemies, the ones who would seek to exult over me?
• What does it mean to wait for the Lord?
Application—Learning What the Scripture Means to Me!
Some Truth to Apply…
• The recipient of my troubled soul needs to always be directed to the Lord, not to my own solutions.
• Trusting in the Lord will never be a cause for personal regret. He is always faithful.
Proclamation—Learning How to Share the Meaning and Personal Application of Scripture Through My Life!
Some Things I Have Learned That I Can Share As A Disciple Of Jesus Christ…
1. We can trust our most intimate feelings and experiences to the Lord.
2. Trusting in Him does not make the problems go away, but we can rest assure He is the answer to any one of our issues.
3. God has a marvelous way of bookkeeping where justice will be served to those who are treacherous—sooner or later.
Part 1: Respond and Reflect:
INSTANT IMPACT THOUGHTS FOR YOUR JOURNAL
From this session, the truth that impacted me the most was…
Growing A Little Bit Deeper…
When is it most difficult for me to lift up my soul (the very essence of my being) to the Lord?
Have I ever been misunderstood and unfairly attacked? What was / is my predictable outcome?
The Disciple’s Prayer
1 To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, in You I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed; Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.
Observation—Learning What The Author is Saying
The Big Ideas in this Passage are…
• God can be trusted—completely, entirely
• The Lord will not abandon me
Interpretation—Learning What the Scripture Means
Some Questions to Ponder…
• What does it mean to lift up my soul to the Lord?
• Who are my enemies, the ones who would seek to exult over me?
• What does it mean to wait for the Lord?
Application—Learning What the Scripture Means to Me!
Some Truth to Apply…
• The recipient of my troubled soul needs to always be directed to the Lord, not to my own solutions.
• Trusting in the Lord will never be a cause for personal regret. He is always faithful.
Proclamation—Learning How to Share the Meaning and Personal Application of Scripture Through My Life!
Some Things I Have Learned That I Can Share As A Disciple Of Jesus Christ…
1. We can trust our most intimate feelings and experiences to the Lord.
2. Trusting in Him does not make the problems go away, but we can rest assure He is the answer to any one of our issues.
3. God has a marvelous way of bookkeeping where justice will be served to those who are treacherous—sooner or later.
Part 1: Respond and Reflect:
INSTANT IMPACT THOUGHTS FOR YOUR JOURNAL
From this session, the truth that impacted me the most was…
Growing A Little Bit Deeper…
When is it most difficult for me to lift up my soul (the very essence of my being) to the Lord?
Have I ever been misunderstood and unfairly attacked? What was / is my predictable outcome?
The Disciple’s Prayer
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