The Bible tells us the book of Proverbs that the power of life and death are in the tongue and in James we are reminded of the sad reality that sometimes we are guilty of praising God and cursing our brothers and sisters with the same tongue. With Facebook, blogs, and the ability to reach almost any one at any time with cell phones and texting there are a lot of words being sent and received these days. Are the words you take in giving you life or are they bringing death? Are the words you send to others giving them life or are they like poison arrows that have lodged in their heart taking life?
In this week’s sermon we were warned about toxic words that we can give or receive. The challenge was presented, as it has throughout the entire Toxic series, for us to truly examine the level of toxicity that exists in the various influences in our lives. Here’s what I love about this week’s message though. Just as there is incredibly destructive power in words, there is even more life giving power and it is such a simple thing for us to use our words to encourage, build up, and bring life to ourselves and everyone arounds us. Pastor Craig said something like, “Speak life giving words at every chance you get.” If we were to take this to heart the possibilities are amazing.
Just this week I was contacted by an old friend who had seen this message on Toxic words and he was convicted for the incredibly destructive things he had said to a former friend in one particularly heated argument about 2 years ago. He told me that after this sermon he felt a leading to contact this person, to apologize, and to speak words of encouragement. The message he sent was met with forgiveness and encouragement as well and the effects of this simple exchange have been profound on my friend. He was crying tears of joy telling me that he had believed that he was “over and past” the bitter argument that occurred so long ago but after making amends he experienced a surge of life and freedom as the toxicity of past bitterness was removed from his life.
What are words of life that you need to give today? Are they words of encouragement for someone that you see everyday? Or maybe words of apology and forgiveness to remove the sting of a toxic encounter from long ago? I pray that as you read these words you are inspired by God to step out and take hold of the amazing life that he desires for you in the words of your life.
August is always full of excitement with the start of another school year! I want to let you know about a couple of exciting things happening this week:
Quad Day: Sunday, August 22 is Quad Day at the U of I and we will be there to meet some of the outstanding young men and women and let them know about our wonderful Grace Community. Be sure to pray for the volunteers at this event and be on the look out for new faces to welcome over the next several weeks!
Middle School Lock-In: Friday, August 27 the area youth ministries are teaming up with the Champaign YMCA to host a Back to School Bash lock-in for middle school students. The hours of the lock-in are 8:00 PM through 6:00 AM and admission is $10 per student for the cost of facilities, activities, pizza, a live band, and more!
One of my favorite stories in the Bible is Jesus healing a blind man in John 9. The reason I love it is that after the man is healed he is questioned by the religious leaders about Jesus so that they can discredit Jesus. The healed man’s response is awesome as he tells the men, “Whether he is a sinner or not I do not know, but I do know that I was blind and now I see.”
Isn’t it great that so much of our faith simply boils down to the facts. The facts of how we as people with broken lives are made whole again by a God who loves us so much that he sent his son. When we let this amazing fact sink in, we become like this man who simply can’t be bothered by all the distracting questions because he can’t get past what God has done for him. What’s your story? How are you sharing it with others?
Work is such a funny thing. We dream about the days that we don’t have to work. But it seems like, even when we’re not at our “work” we usually find something that we can “work” on. I guess in one way or another there is always work to be done, sometimes more enjoyable than others, but always with a great possibility for reward.
One of the recurring themes in One Prayer has been that of God stirring new works in our lives. Philippians 1:6 gives reassurance that God begins and sees through the good he is working in our lives. I like that, but I sometimes forget that it is still work and get discouraged when the working out process is more difficult than I’d hoped. Sometimes that process takes me places that I just don’t like, but this verse makes me think that even in those times God can work something great in me. So whatever you’re working through today, I pray that you will be blessed by God as he completes work in you.
That simple word can cause a lot of chaos.Some folks get physically ill at the thought of change while others seem to thrive on constant change. Sometimes change happens and no even realizes it, other times it seems to rock our world because we didn’t see it coming.
I tend to look at things practically; I like to look forward and try to predict needed change.Sometimes I’m right, other times require something different than I imagined.These are the bread crumbs I am following right now.Grace Community Church is growing, this is a good thing! We believe there is always “one more” that needs to be transformed by Jesus and this is changing the way we look.As I continue down this trail there are a few realities I come to.Eventually we will have to figure out space issues, probably in our children’s area first.Someday parking will be an issue to figure out and there will come a day when we don’t fit in the auditorium.Don’t panic…..nothing is changing today, but as long as we stay healthy and focused on our mission to see transformation happen, eventually we will have to make some adjustments (code word for change).Pray for your staff, elders and management team as we prayerfully seek wisdom regarding the best adjustments to make in days, weeks, and years ahead of us.
Tuesday: Fasting Day Fasting Topic: Make a difference by giving.
Give: In remote corners of the globe, in villages where very few people know Christ, in regions where gathering to worship God can put your life at risk… One Prayer has been spreading the Gospel, helping new churches take root, and seeing countless lives change. When we’re fasting today, let’s focus on this year’s Giving initiative—catching up on what’s been happening, learning about this year’s plan, and preparing for what God wants to do through us.
Prayer focus: People who are in need of food, clothing, and shelter
Prayer Verses: Psalm 40:17James 2:14-17
Wednesday: People who are in need of healing
Prayer Verses: Psalm 30:2James 5:16
Thursday:Guidance and strength for parents and caregivers around the world
As most of you may know on Sunday, Grace Community, like many other churches around the world, began the One Prayer series. In John 17:20-24, Jesus prayed that we, the church, would be one. During One Prayer, thousands of believers are coming together as the church to share, to serve, and to give.
As we are uniting as the Unstoppable Church made up of Unstoppable People, it is important that we unite together and pray. Below you will find daily prayer topics. On top of a daily prayer guide, every Tuesday of the week there is a fasting guide. I wanted to pass this along to all of you because I will be following this daily prayer guide and every Tuesday of One Prayer I will be fasting. You should join me…not just me, but hundreds and thousands of other believers around the world who have one prayer for their lives, churches, communities and the world we live in. Because when the Church unites, it’s UNSTOPPABLE!
This week’s daily prayer focus: Wednesday: Peace Among Nations prayer verses: Isaiah 2:4 & Luke 2:14
Write these down. Put them somewhere that you can see them. Visit http://2010.oneprayer.com/calendar for more information about joining together for Four Weeks with One Prayer.
This Monday was one of those that gives Mondays a bad reputation. There were just a lot of things going on around me and I just felt a lot of emotional heaviness by 8:00 when I logged off of church online. So I loaded my little girl in the stroller and went for a jog while Amanda was at life group. As we jogged around the neighborhood I told God about my heaviness and was a little relieved as I saw the simple symphony of fireflies. I mean it’s pretty cool that God had the attention to detail to make flies that their butts light up! But, I still was left with a longing for something more. Then, as we got back to the house and I got Emma ready for bed we began to pray and she started naming all sorts of things that she wanted to thank God for, and as we prayed she sat and looked me in the eyes with simple smile that stirred something life changing deep in my soul. And I realized as much as I love her, God’s love is so much greater!
After she went to bed I found a couple of scriptures that came to mind with some great truths. In Isaiah we see that God knows first hand what it means to suffer heartache as he was rejected by his own creation and died for our sins. In Hebrews 4:13-16 we see how Christ’s familiarity with our humanness gives us a path to “draw near to the throne of God to receive mercy and find grace to help in a time of need.”
Life can sure be messy sometimes; and there are a lot of things that hurt in this world. I’m so glad that God knows our hurt, is with us in our pain, and loves us so much that he desires to give us great things!
Another school year is coming to a close and another summer is almost underway! I remember always being so excited for May to come when I was in school and remember anticipating the glorious time of being free to spend days with family and friends, swimming, playing, and doing all the fun things that kids do in the summer months.
Although my summers are much different these days I still love this time of year as a time to rest while the pace of life slows and to press in to God as he restores my soul. For whatever reason, my life still seems to run in a higher gear from August to May and I have learned how crucial it is to have times of renewal to gain vision and strength. I pray that this summer you will be blessed with rest and growth.
So I’ve talked for months about the upcoming Illinois Marathon and how I am going to participate in the half marathon portion of the race. This is part of what I called my unfinished business in the weeks before Easter during the Red Letter Day series. Not so I can celebrate an accomplishment of my own power, but that I can know the joy that comes with finishing the race.
Through my training I have learned a few things and one of them is something that Craig pointed out during his discussion of horoscopes in this week’s FAQ sermon. During the sermon he pointed out the crucial truth that we should never put our faith in anything but God. As I’ve trained to finish my 13.1 mile race, I’ve learned that it is God who gives me strength and that even when my body wants to fail me, my faith in Him can keep me moving to see what else He has in store for me.
I strive to apply this truth throughout all aspects of my life as I desire to be more in tune with God and to achieve the satisfaction that comes with being a more fully devoted follower of Christ. What lessons have you learned about the importance of putting our faith in God as opposed to anything else? How has God sustained you when you felt there was no way to keep moving forward?
