The staff of writers(meaning myself) here at toddlive.net are going to be taking a little blogging break over the next couple of weeks.
Have a Merry Christmas and we’ll see you in 2010!
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We live in a world where there is this myth that everyone must agree with everyone for things to be accomplished. However, as I read Acts 15 the other day, I was reminded a disagreement that occurs at the end of the chapter. It must have been pretty heated because it led to Barnabas and Paul going their separate ways.
I can imagine the people of their day ranting about how one or the other wasn’t going to make it or was doing the wrong thing. However, if you continue to read through the New Testament, you see that God used both groups in an incredible way. They were far more effective and had more of an impact apart from each other! Both ministries were more far reaching than they would have been otherwise.
Rather than spending all your time trying to convince someone to agree with you, both sides might be better served by celebrating the differences and moving on. Who knows? Maybe God wants to use both sides to accomplish great things for His kingdom!
In Acts 15, the Pharisees are very upset because the Gentiles aren’t obeying the law of Moses, as related to circumcision (ouch!). Peter stands up for the Gentiles by basically telling the religious leaders to get over it. He also helped them to realize that they were trying to place something on the people that God didn’t require. He tries to help them to understand that they were saved by grace, not by the law of Moses.
As I read this, I couldn’t help but think about how churches operate. Often, we often condemn people for showing up to our worship services dressed the ‘wrong way’ or for not knowing the right words to say. In our minds, we expect people to be fully devoted followers of Christ by the 2nd visit!
One of the things that is refreshing to me about Freedom Church is that we realize that the starting point for everyone is different. We have to take people where they are. They have no choice but to be there. There is no condemnation for people who didn’t wear the right thing or said a word that you probably wouldn’t normally say at church. We realize that it is a process and no one changes overnight.
Our goal is to help them to take the next step in their journey with Christ. For some, that will mean they need to just admit there is a God. For some, it may be to accept Christ. For others, it may be to begin praying or reading the Bible.
My prayer is that we continue to view people as God does. In doing so, we have the opportunity to help people far from God to experience life in Christ!
I don’t usually watch The Ultimate Fighter looking for bits of wisdom, but I happened to come across one as I watched the reality show last Wednesday.
The Ultimate Fighter constestant said, ‘I realized that the enemy was the inner-me.’ The biggest problem that I have is Todd. So often, I get in the way of what I am trying to accomplish, whether is be lack of discipline, laziness, or just plain ol’ stupidity.
This is something that is a struggle every day of my life. I know who/what God has called me to be/do, now I just have to stay out of my own way:)
1. If you ever doubt the importance of children’s ministry, you should read this.
2. I agree with Carlos that this video makes the case that people do not want to show up and be sung/talked to. People desire to participate and be a part of something huge!
3. I love stories like this and this and this! It is the very reason why we do what we do! Keep up the good work Freedom Church!!
This Sunday is going to be one of the most powerful Sundays in the history of our church. That isn’t hype. That’s straight up 100% truth.
Who are you bringing with you??
From this point forward, I am going to post some links each week for your enjoyment. Some of them are helpful. Some of them will challenge you. Some of them will be just plain funny. Enjoy!
1. This video is very powerful and impactful. Check it out!
2. Gotta love Shaq!
3. This post from Pastor Perry Noble was dead on!
ENGAGE is a one day student conference designed to encourage, challenge, and motivate students to spread the good news of Christ. Our sole purpose of existence is so that students who are far from God can experience life in Christ.
This year at Engage we will be talking through the “Power of Prayer” and the impacts it can have on our lives. If we just took a few minutes to pray each day. Boldly. Unashamed. Humbly. Powerfully. What could happen if we just asked God to intervene in our lives and our situations.
ENGAGE will be THIS SATURDAY from 11:00am – 6:00pm @ Barber Middle School in Acworth, GA. You can pre-register for the event here. Directions can be found here.
Over and over again, I have had people to say to me ‘just trust your heart on that issue’ or ‘listen to your heart’. There is one HUGE problem with that…
Jeremiah 17:9 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked.”
Doesn’t seem like we should be trusting our heart so much. In fact, most of the time your heart will only get you in trouble. Yet, we do it every day. Maybe we should be less concerned with what our heart is telling us to do and actually look at the facts. Hopefully this will keep both you and me from making some stupid decisions!
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