lifechurchgb

[lifechurchgb]

Out of Order - Women in Ministry Pastor Shawn Hennessy

Good morning. Welcome. So glad that you guys are here. I want to look at 1 Corinthians chapter 14 today as we do wrap up this series of messages that we've been in on the book of 1 Corinthians getting through what you're going through. And if you want to follow along, you can do that on the Bible app. If you don't have that app, you can scan this QR code up here and it'll take you there, download the app. Of course, if you want a traditional Bible, we've made plans for you too. Literally given away thousands of Bibles over the last decade. And if you want one, we have that as a free gift.

If you'll just stop at the welcome center before you leave, it is our gift to you. If you're watching us online, welcome. Love you guys. So glad that you guys are with us. And love you guys, and so glad that you guys are with us in this beautiful... Summer is finally here. It's beautiful outside. If the weather were like this all the time, then we'd be overcrowded and overtaxed. So enjoy it while you got it.

I love when we do series based on biblical books. I think it lets us help you to dig, to drill down past the pages and into the content, the context, the meaning, the meat of that particular book. And I think a lot of people go too fast when they read scripture. They're in a hurry. It's almost like it's a homework assignment. It's like, "Let me check this off the list." Some people will read a whole book of the Bible in one sitting.

And over 30 years, what I've learned is that I really need to slow down. Sometimes I'll get stuck on one scripture and it'll just be like jerky in my teeth where it's just there and God won't let me move past that because it must mean something. It's beautiful that... Scripture is like a kaleidoscope that depending upon the angle of your life at that particular time, it can say something different to you at that particular time and yet still be the one constant absolute truth that we have in this world.

I know that like I don't know about you, but when I read other kinds of literature... I am a reader. And so there are times when I'm reading a different kind of book and I'll get two or three chapters in and I'll forget who the person in the book is. I'll be in chapter 3 and I'll go, "Wait a minute, who is Jimmy?" And then I'll have to go all the way back to chapter 1 and I have to go, "Oh, I've been thinking for two chapters that Jimmy was Johnny." And so it kind of changed the whole book. So sometimes you just have to slow down. So that's what we're doing in these kinds of series, and I hope that you have learned a lot over the last two months, and I hope that today is no different.

I wonder if you've ever skipped a step. Sometimes instructions can be confusing, can't they? Have you ever tried to build a piece of IKEA furniture? What are these instructions? It's one sheet of paper with pictures but not enough words. And sometimes the guy in the picture is scratching his head like he's confused because sometimes the instructions can be confusing. Sometimes all the instructions can be crushing. When my son, Isaiah was little, he saved up all of his money and he bought the Lego Death Star. And so I tried to help him build it. And the keyword there is tried.

It is 4,016 pieces. The instruction manual is 324 pages, and the Death Star is built in sections. And if you skip a step, you have to take all the pieces off and you have to start that whole section over. Can I just say it is not easy to take two Lego pieces apart. There are dentists who love Lego because how many of us have broken our teeth trying to take two pieces of Lego apart? In fact, they have a special tool for taking Legos apart, but they don't put it in any their sets. You have to go on their website and you have to buy this sold separately.

I wonder if you've ever skipped a step. I want to talk about that today in a message we're calling out of order. Let's pray. God, we love you. I mean, that could be the whole prayer, honestly. We love you. But we love you because you loved us first. God, before we ever loved you, before we were ever committed to you, before we ever started serving you. You loved us, you were committed to us, and you've been serving us our whole lives. And so today, I pray as we submit ourselves to your word for a few moments, that your word would multiply in our hearts and our minds that we'd be changed, that when we leave here, not only would we be enlightened, but that we would be changed. In Jesus' name. Amen.

You ever going to use something and discover that there's a sign that says out of order? I was in a place the other day and they had one of those soda machines that only God could have given us. It is all of the different kinds of soda and then all the different variants of what that soda may be. There's Coke and Diet Coke, and Coke Zero. And if you want a Coke Zero, you can have a Coke Zero orange or a Coke Zero lime or Coke Zero lemon or a Coke Zero grape or a Coke Zero cotton candy. There's like 5,000 different variants of what you could have.

And when I see one of those machines, I get so excited. So I went over to the machine and the only thing that it dispensed was water. I've spent my whole life trying to avoid drinking water. And the lady came out and she put a sign on the machine and it said out of order. I was so disheartened, so discouraged, so distraught. And when you see that sign, it doesn't necessarily mean the entire machine is broken. Clearly that machine was still functioning. It would distribute the one thing that people didn't want.

What that sign might mean is that there's just one piece, a switch or a hose that needs to be repaired or that needs to be replaced. But if you just replace or repair that one thing, everything starts working again. Paul is talking about that here in relation to the church. The idea that one piece being broken can make the whole thing out of order. Listen to this. He says, "What then shall we say, brothers?" When you come together, everyone has a psalm or a teaching, a revelation, a tongue or interpretation. All of these must be done to build up the church.

If anyone speaks in tongues, have it be two, three at the most and they need to speak in turn and someone has to interpret. But if there's no interpreter, the person speaking tongues should remain silent in the church and speak only to himself and God. Two or three prophets should speak and the other should weigh carefully what's said. And if the revelation comes to someone who seated, the first speaker should stop.

And while they were saying this is because there were prophets who were sitting in the congregation who were examining what the other people were saying prophetically. So if the person standing up was speaking prophetically and he was speaking out of turn, it was the responsibility of the elder who was in the congregation to speak over the person who was speaking prophetically and bring correction to that person so that that person didn't bring confusion to the people.

For you can all be prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and everyone may be encouraged. The spirit of prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not a God of disorder, but he is a God of peace as in all the churches of the saints. And what he's saying here is that he's addressing a church that's out of order. The church in Corinth was out of order, but Paul knew that they all knew people from other churches that he had started. And so saying, "Listen, Cat, the church in Corinth say they're in order. The church in Ephesus, they're in order. They are no different than you, and you are no different than them." And so if these churches can be in order, if these churches can have peace, then you need to be in order and you need to have peace.

And then he says, "Women are to be silent in the churches. They're not permitted to speak, but they must be in submission as the law says. If they wish to inquire about something to ask their own husband at their home, for it's dishonorable for a woman to speak in the church. Did the word of God originate with you? Were you the only ones that it's reached? If anyone considers himself a prophet or a spiritual person, let him acknowledge that what I'm writing to you is the Lord's command. But if anyone ignores that, he himself shall be ignored.

So my brothers be eager to prophesy and don't forbid speaking in tongues, but everything must be done in a proper and orderly manner. Now, when God asked me to talk about this, I said, "Fool, you must be tripping. There's two more chapters. Why? Why could we close on this?" Sometimes I wonder why God always asks me to talk about the difficult passages because this passage is one of the most misunderstood portions of scripture in the entire book, and it has caused so much division.

Entire theological and doctrinal systems have risen up because of this portion of scripture. But I want to start today by saying be careful when you interpret things through your own narrow experiences. When I graduated from my undergrad, I hadn't taken a job yet because I'd been walking through the process of playing in the Canadian Football League. And so for a period of time, I went and I worked on Pastor Sonny's parents' ranch that is half in Montana and half in Wyoming. And they had a group of ranch hands, guys who'd spent their whole lives doing this stuff. Guys who were born wearing snap front shirts, belt buckles, and having Copenhagen in their back pockets.

I mean, their diapers had dip rings in the butt. I'm just saying, these guys had been doing this their whole life and they were the biggest bunch of narrow-minded, opinionated, sarcastic jerks I had ever met in my entire life. I'm just journeying here just for a minute. And it was these guys' goal to demean me or to diminish me. Because of their insecurities, they would talk down to me or they'd talk real slow.

Gosh, I can't stand when people talk slow, when they slow down. Anybody ever slow down talking for you? You know they're making fun of you. You know they think you're dumb. I'm just saying, "I'm Shawn. I'm here to encourage you today." And right away when I got there, they gave me a nickname. The nickname they gave me was Crawl from the Pauly Shore movie, from Son in Law. To this day, I can't stand Pauly Shore. "Hey, buddy." I can't do it anymore.

They constantly tried to make me feel stupid because I didn't just know how to do this stuff like this one thing that they were experienced at because they'd done it their whole lives. But listen, I wasn't stupid. I was highly educated and accomplished athlete and very well-spoken. Now, I'd never mended a fence or branded a cow, but these guys had never flown on a plane. They'd never traveled more than a hundred yards from their area. They'd never even read an entire book. I'm just saying you need to be real careful when you try to elevate your experiences over others.

These are the same guys who thought it was ridiculous for someone to drive a Ford or wear Levi's because their dad and his dad, and his dad's dad, and his dad's dad before him had always driven Dodgers and worn Wranglers. They were living their lives through their narrow experiences. But you can't live your life in a vacuum and you can't view scripture in a vacuum. And so many people have been looking at this passage of scripture through a vacuum, through a narrow view, and it's caused so much division. And Paul is talking about three things here.

A lot of people have made it about one, but he's really talking about and confronting three things, the tongues, prophecy, and women speaking in church. And all these issues have divided the church. Speaking in tongues, for example. Speaking in tongues is a gift. And not everybody has that gift. It's one of the gifts that Pastor Dallas talked about last week, one of those special abilities that are inside of us. And Paul really talks about nine of them in various places in his letters. And here, just a few chapters after what Pastor Dallas talked about last week as Paul is addressing these three things that we're dividing the church then, and quite frankly are still dividing it now.

He starts with tongues, which he says he does more than anyone else, and it's this beautiful gift. Scripture tells us that it is the initial evidence of what's called the baptism in the Holy Spirit. In Acts chapter 2, after spending this extended period of time praying and seeking God, the Holy Spirit descended upon them and they spoke in what's called other tongues, but those tongues had a purpose and Jesus tells us what that purpose was meant to be. He said, "When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will receive power." Why? To be my witnesses.

So the primary purpose of the Holy Spirit's presence in our lives is for us to point people toward Jesus. But like Pastor Dallas said last week, some people have used that power to point people to themselves. When I was in my undergrad, we used to have to go to chapel every day, five days a week, and then church on Sunday. And like today, worship was really powerful in those times. It was a Pentecostal Bible college, so it was very free-flowing, and sometimes the music would crescendo and you'd really feel the power of the Holy Spirit.

And then sometimes the crescendo would scoop down and you'd come into this lull in the music where it was maybe just a keyboard and it was quiet, and it was a time for people to reflect and to meditate on Jesus. And you could really feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in those moments. And about once a week there was a guy, same guy who just as it got quiet and as people really started to really feel the presence of the Holy Spirit, he would put his head down, and he always had the same intro, "Thus saith the Lord God of hosts. Yea thou, thee eyes [inaudible 00:15:56]." And I'd say, it's like, "God, I didn't even know you spoken King James anymore. I didn't even know you ever spoken King James."

But he would always give these long and tirades of thees, and thous and thuses." He just became a joke to the people because when you would walk by his house, there's a 50-50 chance you're going to hear him yelling at and cussing his wife out or that it was kind of known that he had a little bit of a problem with alcohol. But once a week he would, "Thee, thou," It wasn't the Holy Spirit. That was emotion. That was a guy that was trying to point attention away from the Holy Spirit and point attention towards themselves. There's always been people that have been abusing God's power, disruptors, providers.

I mean, we've had Pentecostals who have been trying to diminish non-Pentecostals because they don't speak in tongues. Years ago I was at this meeting of denominational leaders of a huge denomination in America of the mainstream church, and the guy who was in charge of the meeting, he called it to order and he said, "Brothers, we need to pray for the Baptists."

So I might not should have been there anyway. So I raised my hand up and I said, "Brother so-and-so, did you just say that we should pray for the Baptists? It feels like we should be praying for the lost because why are we praying for the Baptists?" He said, "Because, Brother Shawn, they don't speak in tongues." "Huh? Well, do you have to?" "Well, you can't go to heaven, folks, [inaudible 00:17:45]." I said, "For real? I never even read that. I've read the whole book. It must been like when I was reading Gresham and I forgot who Jimmy was. I must have forgot that you had to do this to get that because dang, I don't hardly never speak in tongue."

I said, "Then why are their churches bigger than ours? Why are their marriages better than ours? Why are their finances better than ours? They may not be speaking in tongues, but it feels like God's blessing everything that they do." This is the last time that I was ever invited to one of those meetings. That's all I'm saying. But we've also had non-Pentecostals, demeaning Pentecostals because they thought that they were weird and that they were going to have these out of control services.

So before I was in Green Bay, I used to just travel and preach in a different church every week. And one time a guy invited me to come preach a revival thing for him, which really just means four nights of church in a row, but they feel like it's going to be something. And so I didn't know this guy, which I didn't normally speak for people that I didn't know. And so we were on the front row. I remember it. He was about to intro me. He leaned over to me and he said, "Hey, I don't want you talking about none of that Holy Spirit stuff."

I said, "Hey, I didn't even know the Holy Spirit was stuff. I thought he was God. You don't want me talking about..." So I spent four nights trying to figure out how to not be filled with the Holy Spirit. It was because sometimes we want to diminish or demean what we are not. And so knowing that, Paul says, "I get it. Some of you have the gift of speaking in tongues. I love it. I speak in tongues all the time, but it needs to be done with a purpose to point people to Jesus." And so he said, "In the church, I'd rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than 10,000 words in tongues."

And so he said, "If you're going to speak in tongues, you either need those tongues to be interpreted so everybody can understand and benefit, or you need to keep them to yourself. You need to sit down and stay silent in the church because there are tongues for you and there are tongues for others."

Then he talks about prophecy. And he says, "Bro, I love prophecy. If you have the gift of prophecy, please use it." In fact, he says, "He who prophesies speaks to men for their edification, encouragement, and comfort. The one who speaks in tongues, prophets himself, but the one who prophesies, edifies the church. I wish you could all speak in tongues, but I would rather you all prophesy. He who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, watch this, unless he interprets those tongues so the church may be edified."

And prophecy is interesting. It can only be quantified in one of two ways, waiting and weighing. Waiting to see if it happens and weighing it against God's word. And there's been all kinds of false prophets throughout time. I mean, you could find them all over YouTube today, people sharing prophecies or making predictions that'll never come true when all they're doing is misleading people.

And so Paul says, "Guys, I love prophecy. I love that some of you have that gift and I want you to use it, but I don't want you to abuse it. So I need you to do it in its proper place and in its proper time. Otherwise, I'm going to need you to sit down and stay silent in the church." And then he addresses something that just might have become the most divisive issue within the church community, women speaking in church. And this is one that's obviously close to my heart, not only because I have a wife who speaks in church and a daughter who's called to do the same, I also have a bunch of spiritual daughters at this church who God has given a voice to. Pastor Shelby, Pastor Stephanie, Pastor Jessica, Pastor Tara, Pastor Megan.

I also have a spiritual sister who has written a program that has literally transformed the lives of thousands of people in Pastor Becky. And so this one for me is a non-negotiable. For me, this one is an impasse. If you don't speak in tongues, that doesn't bother me one bit. If you don't prophesy, homie, we can roll together. We can do ministry together for the rest of our lives. But if you are against women in ministry, if you are against female pastors, you and I cannot agree to disagree.

You and I cannot do ministry together because your outlook and your vision is too narrowed. And we have a subculture within the church at large that is trying to silence women, and it is ungodly and it is unbiblical. And so I don't want to read your books. I don't want to listen to your podcast. I don't want to speak at the same conference as you. I don't want to be friends. I don't want to sit next to each other at Lambeau because you are using God's name in vain.

And they're using this verse... And I wish somebody would see this online and send me a message and challenge me to debate about it because their evidence for this argument is this scripture, and it is non-contextual. They're saying, "Well, Paul said that women should be silent in church." And the problem with their viewpoint is it is lazy theology. And they are taking these words out of context because they're viewing them through a vacuum.

Whether that guy was a believer or not, he would be a masochist. Whether that guy was a believer or not, he would be a misogynist. And so that guy took his problem with women with a hurt or a wound that some woman gave him somewhere along the line, and then he stood behind a pulpit and had the nerve to act like it was God. I wish you would. I'll throw my iPad across this room.

You say, "You're a little bit worked up." Yeah, I am. You ever get that stroke vein in your neck? You say, "Why you worked up?" How do you know that what you are saying is right and what they're saying is wrong? Why? Because I have read every single word that Paul has written in this book multiple times. And time and time again, Paul not only endorses women in ministry, he places them in ministry.

In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul talks about women's right. This is two chapters, three chapters before. He talks about women's right to prophesy in the congregation. Three chapters before he's endorsing women in ministry and endorsing women speaking in ministry. When Paul was living in Corinth, he lived with Aquila and Priscilla, and he assigned Priscilla, the woman to teach Apollos, one of the most well-known preachers in the world at that time who happened to be passing through Alexandria. And Paul said, "Homegirl, I need you to correct this cat because he's off-target theologically."

So Paul assigned the wife, not the husband to correct the preacher man. When the church in the harbor town of Cenchreae needed a leader, Paul chose Phoebe, and he assigned her to be the deacon over the church. Not a deacon, the deacon. And the Greek word used to describe her position is diakonos. It literally means minister. It means pastor. Phoebe was clearly the leader, the minister, the pastor of that important church in a strategic town because Paul not only endorsed her, he also placed her.

Now, not only did Paul endorse and empower women in ministry, the Apostle Peter. You know the disciple that Jesus said he'd build his church upon and the gates of hell would not prevail against it, who the Catholics believed was the first ever pope? On the day of Pentecost, Peter said, "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my spirit on all people, your sons and your, uh-oh, daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants," wait for it, "both men and women, I will pour out my spirit. And in those days, they men and women will prophesy."

Luke, the writer of the gospel and the acts of the apostles and Paul's constant ministry companion in his gospel recorded what's called the Song of Mary. And in doing so, he affirmed Mary as a teacher of theology and social ethics for the entire church, for as long as his gospel shall survive and be read. Now, if Paul, Peter, and Luke aren't authoritative enough for you, when Jesus was resurrected, the first people he appeared to were women, and he sent them to the men to spread the same message that he's told us to spread the most important message that will ever be spread, that he is alive.

Do we really think in our passage from 1 Corinthians, do we really think in our passage from 1 Corinthians 14 today that Paul is overthrowing all of this? Can we really assume that Paul would be sitting in Priscilla's house where she housed and fed him for 18 months and that he'd be writing these words and insulting her by telling her and her fellow women doing ministry in that community that they can do ministry, they could play the piano, they can work with the kids, they can cook meals, but they can't speak?

The same Priscilla who he had already assigned to prophesy in the temple. Can we really think that he has just now thrown all that out? Only if you're viewing it through a narrow lens. So the question arises, how can we understand the text? Like any other text, we have to zoom out. We have to look at the context, the culture, and the community that these words were written into.

Corinth was the largest, most diverse city in Greece. People came literally from all over the world to live and work there, but they lived in pockets. And those pockets were based upon their nationality and upon their language. It's like old-school New York City, or when I was a kid, Detroit used to still be segregated into pockets. You used to have the Polish part of town. You used to have the Italian part of town. You used to have the Mexican part of town. Used to have the Puerto Rican part of town. That's why I said Mexican. It wasn't a Latino part of town. You had a Mexican part of town, you had the Colombian part of town, you had a Cuban part of town, you had Chinatowns, all that stuff.

Listen, if you wanted some good egg rolls, don't go to Polish part of town. They got dope pierogies, but they don't got good egg rolls. But don't go to Mexican village looking to get pierogies because when you get there, you're going to get the most bomb burrito you've ever had in your whole entire life at Xochimilco's downtown Detroit. That's a free advertisement in Jesus' name. Greatest burrito you'll ever have in your whole entire life. So when you go to Detroit this year to Ford Field to watch us beat the Lions, make sure you go to Xochimilco's in... Don't I sound like a radio commercial right now?

I'm just saying at Corinth, it was the same thing. They were all connected, they were all segregated, they were all in pockets. And the women and children almost never went outside their pocket, which meant they had almost no need to learn or speak Greek. I mean, even the men would've only learned functional Greek just enough to be able to function in their jobs. Plus less than 10% of people in the first century Mediterranean world were literate. Less than 10% of the people in the Mediterranean world at that time knew how to read or write.

So everything was processed orally and it was often processed orally in real time. So even now at universities in the Middle East, students often will lean over to each other during lectures and ask each other questions to better understand the professor's information. In fact, when the professors will turn his back to write on the board or whatever, it is common that the students, a roar of the students will begin to break up because they take that as their opportunity to be able to ask each other questions. And it's not because they're being disrespectful, it's because they're being respectful enough to try to understand the information that's being given to them that was worked so hard at by the professor.

So in first century Corinth, when they went to church, the challenge of comprehending what the speaker was saying in their second, maybe their third language, especially taking the speaker's accent into account, it was beyond challenging. So when the speaker said something that wasn't understood, people, especially the women who were more social and had their kids sitting around their feet would inevitably lean over to each other and it would start to murmur or they would start to chatter to one another saying things like, "What did he just say? Or what does that word mean?"

And the chatter would begin to build, making it impossible to hear the speaker. So one of the senior elders inevitably would stand up and in a desperate voice, he would shout, "Let the women in the church be silent." And when they got calm, the speaker would proceed. That's what Paul was proactively trying to do here. In fact, the Greek word that Paul uses for speak in verse 34 is the word laleo. It literally means to chatter.

So he's saying, "Ladies, before we even get to the church where incidentally men and women were sat separately, there was a six-foot divider in between them, and they were sat separately so that the men wouldn't be distracted by their kids so that the men could focus better so that they could retain the information and share it with their family, which guys start retaining the information so that on the way home, you're not talking about the NHL Stanley Cup or you're not talking about cars or something that your wife has already tuned you out about."

What if you got in the car and you had retained some of this information and in the car on the way home, you started regurgitating the things and you guys talked about this so that it would stick with you. I'm just saying, I'm just saying, Father's Day is next week, and can I say we have a dope men's ministry? The men's thing is so... Like Called to Greatness, I wish I would've been a part of that when I was growing up and developing and seeing these men rise up and seeing these men become leaders within this church and within their family, it is dope.

And it is time for us as men to take the information and grasp our responsibility and to be able to regurgitate it, feed it to our little baby chicks that are in the car because they're going to imitate whatever it is you do and talk about whatever it is you talk about. And so Paul was saying, "Ladies, before you even get to the church, if you don't understand something, don't lean over and chat with each other, it's going to be a distraction. Wait, till you get home and ask your husband." Not because the husband was superior to her, but because he just by the nature of his job, understood more of the language than she did.

Now, that context in and of itself should be enough to let us know that Paul isn't saying that women can't lead or that women can't preach in churches or that women can't be pastors. But just in case it isn't, Dr. Kenneth E. Bailey, one of the most revered theologians the world has ever seen, who spent over 30 years as a professor at elite universities across the Middle East, including the prestigious University of Jerusalem, published a groundbreaking paper establishing the fact that in verses 34 and 35, Paul was likely being sarcastic. He was actually quoting and confronting an errant Corinthian slogan like he did in 1 Corinthians 6:12, 7:1 and 10:23. Remember the one I talked about a few weeks ago that all things are lawful?

He was doing that same thing here toward a Corinthian slogan, women should be silent. That was being propagated by this new Christian group who started out trying to guard themselves, particularly the married men from the overly sexual culture that pervaded Corinth. And so they were trying to keep married men from being seduced by sexual women within the Corinth community. And so they were telling the men that these women, these hussies, they should be quiet.

And I'm sure that the intentions were good in the beginning, but just like all other intentions, it didn't take long before it became a sexist group who blamed women for their temptations and shortfalls and insisted on a strong subordination of women where they were suppressed, where they suppressed all women because of the promiscuity of some. But you need to be real careful when you try to elevate your experiences over others.

And Paul's sarcasm is actually proven and supported in the following verses. It's like, Paul was like this. "Oh, oh, I get it." Oh, women shouldn't speak, they should be silent in church. Watch this. Did the word of God originate with you? Are you the only ones it's reached?" Listen, if anyone considers himself a prophet or a spiritual person, let him acknowledge that I'm writing to you something that's from the Lord's command. But if anyone, watch this ignores this, what he just said, if anyone ignores this, he himself will be ignored.

I mean, see how much richer scripture becomes when we zoom out, when we don't rush, when we don't hurry, when we don't look at it through our own narrow viewpoints. He wasn't saying that we shouldn't speak in tongues or that we shouldn't prophesy or that women can't minister in churches. He was saying, "You can do all of that. You just have to do all of it in order." I mean, we're all out of order in some way, aren't we? I mean, for me, I've spent most of my life being in and out of order with food, with my eating.

For some of you, it's your anger or your attitude, or your anxiety. For some of you, it's alcohol or how you use prescription drugs. For some of you, you work too much so your family is falling apart. I mean, no matter what it is, it's normally because we're looking at our lives through a narrow viewpoint. Like for me, somewhere along the line, I determined that I thought that food would make me feel better. Maybe you thought alcohol would chase away the memories or that you working 12 hours a day, seven days a week would give your family a better life. And those thoughts are out of order.

But the good news is they may not be completely broken. It may just be one piece, and if you just replace or you repair that one thing, everything will start working again. I wonder where are you skipping a step? Where are you functioning through a narrow viewpoint that's got you out of order? I wonder if you'll do the hard work of figuring out where you're skipping a step of finding that one piece or that one part that's broken and replace or repair it today. I hope so. Because if you will, everything else will start working better.

Would you close your eyes all across this place? Salvation is just the idea of fixing one thing. There's one thing that's dominated your life. There's sin in your life, and the minute that you confess that and profess that Jesus can change you, everything else, doesn't get perfect, but it does get better. I wonder if you're here today and your life is a bit of a wreck. You've been trying to figure out how to navigate through being a good man or a good woman, and you've just tried everything else. And so today you found yourself here and you thought, "I need Jesus."

I want to give you the opportunity to receive him into your life, to welcome him into your life, to make him your Lord and Savior. Lord just means that he has all authority and Savior just means that you acknowledge that he rescued you. So doing that really requires two things, confession and profession. Confessing that you have unresolved sin in your life, and then confessing that you believe that Jesus can eradicate you of that. And so I'm going to give you the opportunity to do that in just a moment. We're going to do two things.

First is in a minute with every head bowed and every eye closed. I'm going to ask for people who don't have a relationship with Jesus, but want one to raise their hand and make eye contact with me. Once you do that, you put your hand down. That's your act of confession. Then I'm going to say a few lines in a prayer. I'm going to pause, and when I pause, I would like everyone in here to repeat what I just said. And if you are part of those everyone and you repeat it and you mean it in your heart, the Bible says, "You will be saved."

So if you're here and you say, "Shawn, I don't have a relationship with Jesus, but I'd like one." If that's you, with nobody looking around, would you raise your hand and make God contact with me? Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks. Anybody over here? Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks. Did I miss anybody? I already went long. I'm not in any hurry. Thanks. Thanks.

Okay. I'm going to ask everybody in here to say these words. Say, "Jesus, I've got sin in my life. I don't want it. Please take it. Please forgive it. Come into my life. Be my savior. In Jesus name, amen." Secondly, before we go, maybe you're here and you say, "Shawn, I'm a believer. I'm a Jesus guy, or I'm a Jesus girl, but there's something in your life that's out of order. For me, a couple of months ago, I was in my prayer time and I felt like the Lord said, "You've spent 50 years of your life being out of order when it comes to food. I need you to stop. You're better than that. You are smarter than that. You are stronger than that. I don't want you to live your life in the insecurity of being fat anymore. Stop."

After I was sad because my friend insulted me. I said, "How?" God said, "Just stop eating sugar. It's poison for you. It doesn't work for you. Just stop eating sugar." And so two months ago, I just did that. I just said, "Okay, fine." It became a spiritual thing for me, honestly. I said, "Okay, God, I'll take out the sugar." Now, was I going to go to hell for eating sugar? No. That's ridiculous. Am I going to be kept out of heaven because I'm fat? I mean, listen, the Bible says we're going to get a new body. Why am I wasting my time working out now? It's ridiculous. And God was like, "Don't be dumb. That's dumb. That's out of context."

And so I just thought, "Fine, God." That is one thing that was robbing me of my affection. And so I don't know what your thing is. It could be sugar. It could be anger. It could be lying. It could be exaggerating. I don't know what that thing may be, but I can guarantee you that some of you have some things here that aren't going to send you to hell, but that are wrecking your marriage and that are affecting your kids, or affecting your parents, or affecting your job. And so my question is, do you have anything in here in your life that is out of order? And if you do, I want to pray for you.

So if that's you, would you just pop your hand up? You got anything in your life that's out of order? Wow. Yeah. God, for my courageous friends, thank you, God, that they're willing to acknowledge that there's just a tweak. It's not a complete remodel. It's just a tweak. One thing that needs to be repaired or replaced that give them the courage to do that. Give them the strength to do that. Give them the foreknowledge on how to do that, Lord, that you would bless them and keep them, that you would make your faith to shine upon them and that you would give them peace. In Jesus' name, amen.

[lifechurchgb]

What to pray & fast for 2023:

We're glad you are joining us for the churchwide Daniel fast that we have moved up in urgency. Here's what we are fasting and praying for and asking you to also be:

1. The Holy Land war and for God's plan be fulfilled. We pray people align with the will of God! That their minds be in synch with the Holy Spirit. We get ready for Jesus return! No time to waste. 

2. The Spiritual War we are waging. Pray that all strategies of the enemy are annihilated, in our homes, church, workplace, schools, nation and world. We daily pray God's armor (out loud) to stand as a unified church and under the spiritual authority of the house since there is an urgency to get in alignment under spiritual authority. 

3. We take ground. Claiming and reclaiming territory of the (920) and beyond. We are asking God to reveal where we have been distracted and we refuse to listen to the accusations the enemy wages against our mind, our family and our mission. He thrives on accusing more and more in the last days according to Revelations. 

[lifechurchgb]

2022 Fasting - Pastor Shawn Hennessy

The Fastest Way

I write this little article at exactly the half way point of our 2022 churchwide fast. Here at Life Church Green Bay, like at many other churches across North America, we begin every year with a 21 day fast.  It’s a bit of a reset.  We figure, people are already planning on giving things up, so we may as well capitalize on that mindset and channel it for spiritual purposes. 

This is the sixth year we’ve started our year this way, and it never gets easier. I don’t know about you, but, honestly, I hate fasting. I never look forward to it. It’s terrible. It’s hard. It’s inconvenient. It’s uncomfortable. The problem is – it works! I don’t know any other way to say it - fasting moves the hand of God! In all the years I’ve been serving Jesus, I’ve discovered - it’s the fastest way (pun totally intended) to see miracles break forth in your life. I don’t know if it’s the sacrifice, or the focus, but the results cannot be denied. I can’t believe how long it took me to submit myself to the process though. 

When I was a young believer I refused to do it. Partially because I was weak, and partially because I knew a lot of older, mature, very accomplished Pastors who told me they weren’t “fasting people.” It seemed like their lives and ministry were going fine without it, so what was the point? Then I read the story of Jesus casting a demon out of a boy and His disciples asking Him why they hadn’t been able to drive that demon out. Jesus responded; “This kind can come out only by prayer and fasting” (Mark 9:29 ISV) When I heard that, it made me pause for a long time. It got me thinking about all the works the disciples had been able to do and all the miracles they had been able to perform, but still they were limited. They were obviously disciplined prayer people, but it seems there was an entirely new realm that was available to them through adding fasting to their prayer life. 

I wanted access to that new realm. Not only because I wanted to see miracles break forth in peoples’ lives, but because of what Jesus said to His disciples. I paraphrase it – some things only come out through prayer and fasting.  I had stuff in my life I didn’t want in my life. Things I had prayed about many times that were still lingering. Attitudes and frustrations. Unforgiveness and negativity. I hated those things. I was embarrassed about and by those things. Every time they would surface in my life I would feel such shame, like I was a hypocrite. If there were things that only came out when you add fasting to the mix, I at least needed to try it. 

So, I started out small and slow. I think I fasted soda for 21 days. And it was hard! But it worked! I saw breakthrough immediately. So, the more times I fasted, the more I fasted. Sugar, or social media. Not watching television or using my cell phone after I left work. I’ve done the Daniel Fast a number of times. It’s more complicated than this but, in a nutshell, that’s where you don’t eat meat, sugar, or dairy. It’s really supposed to be nothing but what grows from the ground. Anyway – I’ve done that one a bunch of times. I’ve done liquid only, which, that’s one God has to really tell you to do, because it’s no joke! I did that once for 40 days. I thought I was gonna die! But you know what? I didn’t die. But a lot of stuff inside me that I didn’t like did. Because fasting moves the hand of God! 

I wonder if you have anything inside of you that you don’t like? Have you prayed about it and felt like it didn’t work? Have you tried fasting about it? Have you gotten desperate enough that you were willing to deprive yourself of something in exchange for deliverance? I know you probably don’t want to, but, some things only come out through prayer and fasting. Plus - fasting is the fastest way to see God move. Will you try it? Or if you started the fast but broke it, will you start again? Start out small. Get rid of one thing for three days and see if it works. I promise you it will. When you finish will you tell me about it? I can’t wait to hear!    

[lifechurchgb]

2022 Fast - Pastor Becky Alcantar (J2W)

Have you ever attended a seminar, read a self-help book, or listened to an inspirational speaker and walked away compelled and ready to conquer that one thing that has been holding you back?

You signed up for a class, bought the equipment, made the appointment, cleared your calendar.  Yet, in between that rush of adrenaline to take over the world and the day you had determined to begin, the catalyst seemed to evaporate into thin air?

You had a good start-- but a few weeks or months in you realized you’d forgotten all about it?  And there you were in your old ways, living the same life, working the same job. You resorted to dreaming and thinking about it again, counting your regrets and being hard on yourself rather than taking action steps.

Why is it that we know what we need to do, but have trouble doing it?

It’s an age-old question, really. One that Paul pens in the Bible. In Romans 7:19 we find the all-star apostle asking the same question: I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. Beyond our motivation, intent, or desire to make changes in our lives, there is a real struggle.

Scripture tells us in Romans 12:2 to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

Science tells us that every conscious thought we have is recorded in our cerebral cortex. When we have the same thought again and again it creates a memory trace. The more it’s repeated, the deeper it forms, creating a pattern of thought. So, with intentionality, we can create new words, thoughts, and patterns of thought creating a new mind!

So if scripture and science agree that we can change our thoughts, and therefore our actions, what are the obstacles we need to overcome?

●      We’re stuck. Our patterns and behaviors are learned. And if these were learned from a negative experience, we can be stuck, unable to take action. A negative experience can stop emotional development. Emotional development makes up the building blocks for growth. Without these building blocks, we may not have learned responses for moving from A to B. In order to move forward, we have to look back and address those negative experiences that are paralyzing our progress today.

●      We’re moving too fast. Rather than being stagnant, we’re moving too fast. When we move too fast, we press on even when we lack. Lack of sleep, lack of hydration, lack of nutrition, lack of support, lack of a stable emotional state, lack of knowledge, and a reserve of wisdom to draw on. Lack is fuel for unconscious impulsiveness rather than logical, conscious, rational thoughts and emotions. Impulsiveness will sabotage every good intention. Can we slow down long enough to allow the reflective part of our brain to assess, make a plan, and take action? Can we outsmart our impulsive system by filling up our reservoir with life-giving thoughts, habits, and processes long enough that when we are hungry, angry, lonely, tired, or overwhelmed we don’t topple what we are building in our lives?  

●      We’ve made some agreements - Action starts with belief. Often, our ability to act is more limited than we realize, not because of any inability or deficiency, but because we may be locked into thought patterns to which we have a stronger allegiance than we realize. Books and mentors can assist us in finding the paths that can take us to the goals we desire, but they can’t address for you the beliefs you harbor that are committed to resisting change. These are limiting beliefs that sabotage the possibility of change and can talk you out of any decision you’ve made, triggering failure before any action has even happened. What limiting belief have you agreed with? What have you made an agreement with that needs to be broken?

●      We tend to hide what most needs changing. The parts of our character that most need change are what we work hardest to conceal. Scripture says that the heart is deceitful and prone to all manner of harmful acts and behaviors (Jer 17:9). We are hardwired to avoid pain, it’s our survival mode. But breaking old habits is uncomfortable and redirecting negative thought patterns is challenging and takes intention, persistence. and consistency. And so we tend to keep our old habits. Even when they’re unfulfilling and unwelcome, the familiar is more comfortable than the risk of exposing our anxiety, insecurities, and worries. What old habits are you holding on to, just in case change gets too hard? There’s no room for the new, when the old is filling up that space.

●      We’re afraid. Fear will physiologically hold us back. It doesn’t decide how our lives will go, but it can keep us from going forward if we allow its unchecked voice to run in our mental dialogue. Fear only exists in our thoughts of the future and 90 percent of our fears are emotional. If you fear discomfort, if you fear failure, if you fear success, or if you fear rejection, you activate stress and anxiety, telling your mind and body that there is a threat. Just like we’re hardwired to avoid pain, we are hardwired to avoid a threat.  Fear will freeze change. It’s why scripture tells us not to fear over 200 times in the Bible.  What do you believe that is making you afraid?

How do we overcome these obstacles?

●      Pray. There is no better way to slow down impulsiveness, and confess some beliefs we’re harboring, or admit to some fear in our lives than in prayer. Often just voicing these, and placing them in the light, gives us better perspective, which takes us to the voice of God in scripture where it encourages, strengthens, and provides truth when we’re struggling. Make this your first step when seeking direction.

●      Write them down. If fear is your obstacle, ask what are you afraid of? Why are you afraid? When are you afraid? If you’re moving too fast, ask why won’t you slow down? When don’t you slow down? What do you believe will happen if you slow down? And so on and so forth. Uncover the experiences, beliefs, agreements, fears, and hidden self that need to be addressed.

●      “Do” it all away. “Letting go” can seem so abstract, but the process of doing-- acting, failing, learning, adjusting, then acting again-- is something most of us can respond to when our instinct is telling us to “hold on.” Start by committing to “do” two minutes each day for a week. Then work that up in increments until you’re fully immersed in a new habit.

Practicing these three steps will give your brain the evidence it needs to convince yourself that you not only know what to do, but you have been, and can be successful. So that the next time you’re challenged to conquer a new area in your life and you know what it is you should do, you’re ready.  

[lifechurchgb]

2022 Fast - Pastor Sonny

One definition of commitment that is fitting for our fast is: “The state of being bound emotionally or intellectually to a course of action..." American Heritage Dictionary, 4th Ed.

I would also add, "Being bound spiritually to make a conscious choice to act in order to create a desired result."

During a corporate fast, we go from being "interested" in seeing God do more through our sacrifice, to being "committed" to sacrifice in order to see God do more.  

Often our interest wanes when things get tough, like when hunger yearns to be resolved. But when you are committed and have made it known, you accept no excuses, only results.

But, did you underestimate the cost of fasting?

Do you feel like you didn't count the cost to take on 21 days of denying yourself? I sure second and third and fourth guess myself about the second third and fourth day. Fasting requires mental and spiritual strength.

It's like when I underestimate the weight of a barbell as I start to pick it up. I realize how much more muscle mass I need to accomplish the lift or to make the weight easier the next time.

We are strengthening our spiritual and our mental muscles by fasting. We would never tell someone it's unnecessary or silly to work out and strengthen our body for a long life and more energy. So don't give up now or be angry that you began the process of maturing your spiritual muscles. That would be like getting upset that you're beginning to see abs pop through or unimpressed to see your biceps more clearly without flexing.

You are developing a muscle that you never used before or growing a muscle that you started growing last time you fasted and prayed. Don't forget to pray... every time it feels hard stop and pray. That's the whole point! The reminder to pray.

- Pastor Sonny Hennessy

[lifechurchgb]

You Are Not Alone

As I think about my life, I think who else really cares about my life -  besides my Mom, of course because she has too, and maybe my teenage son if it involves feeding him or putting gas in the truck!  But then I started to think about women and maybe there is another woman that is a little like me and is living in the "it's all good" life, when really "it's not so good".  

I am a Jesus loving girl, that loves her family and friends. A single mom who travels all over this country to watch her son play baseball and loves every minute of it! I have a story behind what everyone sees on the outside, and I am compelled to share it.

I was in an abusive marriage for several years, and only a very few people knew just how bad it was. I was ashamed, embarrassed and very emotional about it. Every day I woke up, I knew I had a choice to make. My choice was to be happy, raise my son to be happy and just figure out how to get by each day and stay alive. Yes, staying alive was a real situation I had to face every day. During these years of being afraid, I learned to just focus on Jesus.  I knew He was with me. There were several nights I would be praying in a dark bedroom, and even though my eyes were shut, I could feel I was surrounded by brightness. He was right there listening to my prayers.

I didn't think at the time that I would ever share my story, and now I just want to help anyone that is going through something similar to know one thing: You are not alone.There are others just like you. Others that think there is no way out. Others that wrestle with the thought that they could die and leave their child alone. Others that go to work and say, “it's all good”, when it's not.

The big question is always, "How do I get out, and get out alive?” I didn't know that answer for several years, and I mean years. I still don't think I have the answer, because each situation is so different, but what I learned was this:

I learned I should have spoken to the right people about what was going on. I learned that it was not me and I should not have been embarrassed. I learned it's ok to be not ok all the time. I learned that there is a way out from abuse. Surround yourself with and God and listen, in time, will show you the way. He probably gave me several ideas along the way and I just ignored them.

We all have a story to tell, what is yours? Are you choosing to be happy and joyful? Are you thinking there is no way to get out? Are you afraid of the future - don't be.  I'll always remember what my Pastor said to me when I was going through my divorce, he said, "You don't know why this is happening, but I think someday you will be helping other ladies that are going through this too."  His statement surprised me. I never told anyone during the 9 years of abuse what I was going through, so why would I ever tell anyone after the divorce?

I look at where I am at today and see how God can take what was meant for evil and turn it to good. Here I am writing a blog (I hate writing) for people I don’t even know. What I am trying to say is - you can too.  You have a story, it may be 5 chapters, or 25. It's a story you and God are writing together.

In the end, “it is all good” is just how you make it good along the way.

Smiles,

Dana

[lifechurchgb]

The Book of James

I have been hearing a lot of great feedback about the series of messages we’re in on James.  It’s been an easy series to write because I’m just letting the scriptures speak for themselves.  It’s however not been an easy series to preach, because I’m letting the scriptures speak for themselves.  James is an incredibly practical book while simultaneously being an incredibly provocative book.  It’s challenging isn’t it?  I only have one regret when it comes to this series.  I wish I had more time to go through it.  Planning is really important to me so I try plan my preaching schedule well in advance.  I gave myself 7 weeks to journey through James – I wish I had given myself more.  With that thought in mind I am going to periodically jump over sections of the book on Sundays but I will supplement those times by writing an article or blog about the portions that have been passed over.  Today I want to come out of James 2:1-11 and talk to you about Judgment & Favoritism.  I pray that God will use these words to continue to challenge you from His Word.

Have you ever been judged?  Of course you have.  And, none of us like it.  No one likes being sized up.  No one likes being analyzed or criticized or categorized.  Yet, we do it every day.  We size people up.  We look at people and affix an endless number of labels to them.  We judge what people wear, what they drive, how they walk, the size of their waistline, how they wear their hair.  The list of examples could go on and on.  This is a serious problem in our culture, and it was during James culture as well.  So much that James takes this topic head on.  I want to look at what Pastor James has to say about judgment & favoritism as well as what his older brother Jesus had to say as well.  Let’s start with James.

Look at how Chapter 2:1-11 reads in the New Living Translation:

“1 My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others? 2 For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. 3 If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, 4 doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? 5 Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? 6 But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? 7 Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear? 8 Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 9 But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law. 10 For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws. 11 For the same God who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law.”

I don’t think there’s anyone who would be reading this blog who hasn’t thought about judgment.  However, many of our thoughts on judgment have focused on the effect it has on others.  We’ve likely considered the lasting hurt our judgment has inflicted on others, but James has an interesting angle on this issue. James considers the effect judgment has on us – the actual source of the judgment.  He lets us in on an insight that I have never considered.  When I judge someone, it actually creates more pain on me than it does on the person I am judging.  Many times, when you judge someone they have no idea you’re judging them at all.  Judgment has a lot to do with assumptions.  We assume things we have no idea about.

Years ago I had an amazing kid in my youth ministry.  Even to this day there have been few people God has placed under my leadership who have more natural talent or potential.  He had a clear call on his life to serve God in full-time ministry.  He dove into serving in our youth services and on our service teams.  He acted in dramas and served as an intern to Sonny & I.  I was so excited to see him growing and striving to fulfill his potential.  I served at that church for a few years before I transitioned to another church to serve as their youth pastor.  When I left the church this young man was in he almost immediately took several steps backward.  Before long he wasn’t attending church at all.  It took a few years but I was finally able to connect with him and got to ask him why he wasn’t serving God anymore.  His answer caught me a bit off guard.  He told me point blank – “It’s because of you.”  I didn’t even know how to respond other than to ask him what I had to do with it.  I had mentored him.  I had spent countless hours pouring into him.  I loved him like a little brother. He went on to tell me that I had told him I was going to be at his church forever, but the minute an opportunity was presented for me to go work at a bigger church with a bigger youth ministry I broke my promise and walked away leaving him and his friends in the rear view mirror.  He felt like I was a fake and a hypocrite.  What my young friend did was make an assumption about my actions.  He judged my motives based upon my actions.  He had no idea what went into me making that decision from my end.  The truth was, I wanted to serve as the youth pastor at his home church my whole life, but unfortunately that decision was not left entirely up to me.  When my Senior Pastor retired after leading the church for 30 years, a younger Pastor from another state was brought in to lead the church and that Pastor had a team of his own that he wanted to lead with. I was given my notice to find another place of ministry.  In case you’re not catching my drift, I was fired.  I hadn’t communicated that fact to the students or the church because I wanted to protect their view of the new Pastor.  I didn’t want their view of him to be hindered by their love of & loyalty to me.  When I explained that to my young friend years later he understood, but it had cost him years of hurt and disappointment and unfortunately had changed the trajectory of his life.  The point is, by making an assumption about me and judging my actions, he hadn’t brought any hurt to me, he only brought hurt to himself.    

Dr. Jim Richards defines judgment as; “Assuming to know why someone did what they did or said what they said.” Knowing what happened is an observation; trying to figure out why it happened takes us into the realm of judgment.  We have to be able to separate facts from the presumed motive.  

What does Jesus say about Judgment & favoritism?

In Matthew 7:1-5 He says;

“1 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. 2 For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. 3 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.”

It’s so much easier for me to see your speck than it is for me to see my log.  It’s natural for me to see what’s wrong with you, while hoping you don’t see what’s wrong with me.  I want you to view me as perfect because I not only judge you, I also judge myself.  I want you to look at me like I’m perfect because of my own understanding of my deficiencies.  I make the assumption that, if you knew about me what I know about me, you may not want to know me at all.  I am judging myself right out of my own reality and our potential relationship.  If I can see what’s wrong with you maybe it’ll be a relief for what’s wrong with me.  Unfortunately, we don’t only judge others and judge ourselves, we also judge God.  We try to assume to know why He did what He did.  When something bad happens to us or someone we care for, we immediately begin to ask why He caused it, or in the very least why He allowed it to happen?  When we assume God’s motives we put ourselves into a position of judgment or authority over Him.  We fail to remember that God has but one motive.  God’s only motive is Love.  His only motive is good.  His ways are higher than ours, His view is higher than ours.  He sees the end from the beginning.  He understands the outcome when we don’t.  We simply can’t judge His motive when we don’t have all the facts.

So, a question arises; what do we need to do?  How do we stop?  How do we stop judging others, ourselves & our God?  I wanna give you:

4 Things To Combat Judgment In Our Lives

Here’s the first.  We need to…

Value People

Philippians 2:3 says;

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves”

The great theologian and Apostle of the Church Paul tells us that the act of valuing others requires the characteristic of humility.  Judgment is the complete opposite of humility.  As soon as we judge someone we elevate ourselves above them.  We become the authority on their actions.  We assume to know why they did what they did or said what they said.  We assume we know why they hurt us.  I hate to break it to you but that’s not humility.  It takes humility to value people.  Now, it doesn’t take a lot of humility to treat someone good if they have something to offer you.  But, when there’s nothing to gain from that person we tend to not value them.  

When I was attending college in Minneapolis, I met a guy named Red.  I met Red because he was a regular “customer” at the Walgreens by my apartment.  I put the word customer in quotes because there was a 50/50 chance that Red wasn’t going to be paying for the items he needed from the store.  Red was homeless and a seemingly hopeless addict.  He would use whatever resources he could to escape his current reality.  One of his primary sources of alternate reality was Lysol.  You read that right – Lysol – the air freshener.  Red would get the biggest can of Lysol he could from the store and spray it into a paper cup then drink it.  Apparently, not only does Lysol instantly remove 99% of germs, but it also immediately gets you 100% messed up.  It would have been easy for me to assume Red was just some loser base head, but even back then, before Jesus, I valued people.  Let me take a side note and say, we have to be careful who we devalue, because God values every single person.  God knows something about that person that you don’t know.  Every person is the way they are for a reason.  We may not know anything about that person but God does.  God knows every moment of their life.  For example, God knows that Red wasn’t always drinking Lysol on the streets of Minneapolis.  God knows that Red used to be police officer in Phoenix Arizona and was a member of the SWAT team.  God knows that one-day on a raid of a drug house Red was distracted by a sound for a split second.  He was distracted just long enough to take his focus off the partner whose back he was responsible to watch.  He was distracted just long enough for that partner to be shot in the head by one of the drug dealers inside the house.  Red turned around to watch his partner fall to the ground dead.  Red shot and killed the dealer who shot his partner then in a fog he walked out of the drug house.  He didn’t stop walking until he hit Minneapolis.  I don’t know why he picked Minneapolis, but in listening to his story, I can understand a little better why he wanted to escape reality.  So, while Red is pan handling for enough money to buy another can of Lysol, God knows the back-story and values him while you judge him.  My point is, the more we get to know about people, the more our grace goes up & our judgment goes down.  We go from zero to judgment so quick but 1 Samuel 16:7 says;

…people judge by outward appearance, but the lord looks at the heart.

Don’t you think there are people in your life you could value more?

Here’s the second thing to combat judgment in our lives…

Accept People

Romans 15:7 says…

“Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory.”

Acceptance is so simple, when you understand the outcome.  God will be glorified when we accept each other.  It is the model of Jesus.  Jesus clearly communicated that you don’t have to change anything about you.  That’s what Jesus does.  He accepts us as is.  We don’t have to change a thing to be accepted.  It’s throughout the New Testament.  Jesus accepted sinners.  He accepted a woman caught in the act of adultery and a man possessed by demons and the list goes on.  He accepted them because, from His eternal perspective, they had great worth.  Let me give you a picture of acceptance.

If I took a $100 bill and handed it to you, almost all of you would readily accept it.  Now keep in mind, you have no idea where that $100 bill has been, whose dirty hands have been on it, or what it’s been used for.  That $100 bill may have been a part of a drug deal or a hit on someone’s life or paid for pornography or prostitution.  We have no idea the evil or the good that $100 bill has been used for.  When I hand you the money, you don’t care in the least how dirty or wrinkled it is, you immediately think what you could do with that money, because no matter how wrinkled or dirty it is the value of that $100 Bill is still $100.  The $100 bill hasn’t lost one ounce of value since the day it rolled off the press.  It would probably never even cross you mind where that money has been or who that money has been with when you decide whether or not to accept the $100 bill.

The same is true of you.  Regardless of how wrinkled or dirty you are, regardless of the journey you’ve been on or the current location in which you find yourself, none of that determines whether or not Jesus will accept you.  Today Jesus will accept you and assigns the same value to you as He did the day you were born.  Do you live by the same virtue?  Do you accept people in their current tattered condition as to be glory to the God who accepted you in your most tattered condition?  

Don’t you think there are people in your life you could accept more?

Here’s the third thing to combat judgment in our lives…

Forgive People

This is the most difficult, but if we don’t forgive, we will stay locked in a box of judgment.  We will never get free if we don’t forgive.  In the Gospels, Jesus’ disciples ask Him to teach them how to pray.  Jesus responds by reciting a prayer that is now famously referred to as “The Lord’s Prayer.”  Look at how it reads in Matthew 6:9-13…

9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ’

If you’ve been a Jesus Person for very long, you probably know that prayer, and may even be able to recite it from heart.   But, check out what Jesus says next.  In the verse right after “The Lord’s Prayer” Jesus says this…

14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Not only is it important to forgive, but according to Jesus it is necessary.  Jesus says that because He knows that forgiving others is a matter of the heart.  If you can’t forgive others, you ultimately can’t forgive yourself.  If you can’t forgive yourself, you can never see yourself through the lens of Jesus.  You are not who you think you are.  You are more than you will ever see yourself to be, but you have to forgive yourself, and for that debt to be forgiven, you must first forgive your debtor.  You have to forgive those who have hurt you, abused you, disrespected and dishonored you.  We’re hesitant because we think we’re giving the offender power, but in truth, when we forgive we’re taking the power back.  That person no longer has the power to minimize your life or hold you hostage by their actions.  We’re hesitant because we think we’re giving the offender our trust back, but we’re not.  We’re actually taking our trust from them and putting it in God.  When we forgive we acknowledge our trust in God to heal our hurts and hearts.  Forgiving people isn’t based on our feelings but on God’s heart.  Even after enduring unimaginable torture, from the cross Jesus said; “Father Forgive them…” and the “them” He was talking about included me and it included you.

Don’t you think there are people in your life you could accept more?

Here’s the fourth thing to combat judgment in our lives…

Get Close To People

Relationship is essential.  The closer you get to people, the further you get from judgment.  On the flip side, isolation is a breeding ground for judgment.  Some of the most critical people I know have no meaningful relationships.  It’s no wonder they sit around and think of everything that’s wrong with everyone they know.  They probably think those people are sitting around thinking about what’s wrong with them.  It’s a vicious circle.  Relationship is the antidote to judgment.  It’s why we have Life Groups.  If you can surround yourself with people who care about you, suddenly the overwhelming problems of your life become more manageable because now you have someone with whom to share the burden.  There’s a fascinating portion of scripture in the book of Luke.  You’ve probably heard it or read it before, but let me try to give you a different perspective on it today.

Luke 6:38 says…

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Like you, I’ve heard that scripture as a pre-offering message about money.  Let’s be honest, I’ve used that scripture as a pre-offering message about money.  In truth, that scripture can be used in regard to money because of the principle of sowing and reaping.  But, in this scripture Jesus is actually talking about relationships.  Reading the verse before will help you see the context.  Look at John 6:37-38

37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

That’s the picture of a beautiful relationship.  People respond in direct accordance to how we treat them.  If we treat them with generosity, they’ll respond with generosity.  If we treat them with love, they’ll respond with love.  Treat them with acceptance, they’ll respond with acceptance.  If we treat them with cynicism, they’ll respond with cynicism. If we treat them with criticism, they’ll respond with criticism.  Treat them with judgment, they’ll respond with judgment.  It’s interesting to note that when you give, you generally get back more than you gave.  That rings true for the positive as well as with the negative.  Today I want love, so I will give love.  I don’t want to be judged so I won’t judge.  How do I do that?  I get close to you and I let you get close to me.  The closer I get to you, the less I’ll judge you because I begin to understand why you are the way you are.  

Again, relationship is the antidote to judgment.  A relationship with other people, but more importantly, a relationship with Jesus.  He’s the only one who knows you, understands you, and yet still values you, accepts you, forgives you and longs to have you close to Him.  Are you close to Him today?  If you’re not, you can be.  All you have to do is ask.  If you’ve never done that, will you do it now?  All you have to do is read these words and believe them in your heart:

Dear Jesus, I’m sorry.  I’m a sinner.  I repent of my sins and ask you to forgive me.  Would you come into my life and make it new.  I can’t live the way I’ve lived any more.  Save me from myself.  Empty me of me and fill me with you.  I receive you as my personal Lord and Savior.  In Jesus name Amen.

If you prayed that prayer we want to help you walk the Jesus Journey.  Will you do us the honor of emailing us to tell us you’ve received Jesus as your Lord and Savior?  I want to personally connect with you.  Thanks.  

See you Sunday;

Shawn

[lifechurchgb]

Are You Ready For Game Day?

A sports team typically knows what they are doing and why they are doing it. They know their plays, they know the game plans, and they know they’re doing it to win! In sports, if someone fumbles the ball you know right away and the team rallies together to recover. If someone is hurt, the whole team knows. If someone doesn't make the clutch play we replace them. Teams have coaches and trainers to help their players be the very best. Being the best teammate you can be makes for the best team.

In church, if somebody fumbles the ball we may not know for 2-3 weeks. If someone is hurt or in trouble, we may not be aware of it. If someone messes up or doesn’t make the clutch decision we may just add more people. We think we do a service to people by coddling instead of making the honest and sometimes awkward moves. If you are a leader or coach you may not always spend the valuable time and energy to train your players to make them the best teammates they can be.

Being AWARE that fumbles, trouble, hurt, and mistakes happen in a church makes us ready to help with the recovery as soon as it happens. That’s TEAM. If we silo ourselves, we separate from the team and the game. We hurt the team and ourselves. If we are going to lift our lid of capacity, we have to realize it doesn’t all rely on us.

WE NEED TO THINK MORE LIKE A SPORTS TEAM AND LESS LIKE A CHURCH

WE HAVE A GAME PLAN

We bring the life giving message of Jesus to the people of the (920) and now beyond. “Life giving” means the whole team (the church) shows interest in people and engages them with love and kindness. 100% kindness and 0% drama. Keep the game plan of pointing to Jesus your primary focus.

WE HAVE A PLAY BOOK

Our play book is the Life Church Culture. Our culture gives us a clear vision of our “what” and our “how” we bring the life giving message of Jesus to the people of the 920.

WE ARE THE TEAM, WE HAVE A GAME PLAN AND A PLAY BOOK

Think about your goals for the upcoming year. State clearly what you want to achieve, make sure your whole team knows. Take your goals and break them into measurable steps. Uncover the why, dig deeper, and determine the reasons for your “why”. Add a deadline, so that you have a timeframe for achieving your goals. Practice makes you strong.

WE HAVE TO ORCHESTRATE AND EVALUATE EVERYTHING                                                        - ANDY STANLEY

After you have created your plan for becoming the best team player you can be, track successes and failures. Then follow up with an autopsy of your successes. If you don’t know why something is working well, then when it fails you won’t know how to fix it. Be aware of the game plan details as a team so that if you quit accomplishing or winning, you know how to fix what is broken and get it back quickly.

ORCHESTRATE = PLANNING FOR SUCCESS EVALUATE = LOOKING FOR FAILURES

Orchestrate out of your success, and evaluate looking for the failures. Think; what can you change? Why was it successful? Know what works well and what needs more practice. Follow up and follow through makes a strong player. Remember, it’s a work in progress, expect to make changes and don’t stop working on it. How are we moving the ball “down the field” in people’s lives? Keep playing to WIN!

Pastor Barry

[lifechurchgb]

The YUCK Rises to the Top

During a fast God reveals things to us that we were either too busy or not sensitive enough to see before. One visual I got, during our 2018 twenty-one days of fasting, was of a huge black pot of green "yuck" boiling. It was like the big black cast iron pot that the villain Gargamel, from the Smurf's cartoon, would stir as he plotted evil. (I know...I must have watched a lot of Smurf episodes to remember his name :)  In this vivid picture that came to me, thick green goop was bubbling to the top as surprising impurities that we didn't even know were below the surface. I knew this was a warning and also an answer from God on relationships for myself and others only 6 days into the fast.

Two lessons from the goop vision

1. Divisive Spirits are hard to see and often far below the surface

Divisive spirits attempting to bring discord and kill unity will forever be after our family, our marriages, our friendships and our workplace. The confusing part is this; a divisive spirit doesn't come to us openly calling itself, "a bad spirit". Satan never shows his hand...why would he? Satan doesn't use people you don't like, he uses people you do like! But fasting opens up our spiritual eyes when the eyes of our stomach are finally not busy.

2. Satan is patient and crafty

Satan is calculated in sending divisive spirits into Jesus people territory.   Because he knows we can easily identify nasty people, he instead uses divisive spirits in "good" people who just have a crack in their armor. They are most times carried by people who are unsuspecting and even unaware of what their words and actions are doing. People who are good people but who are still carrying hurt, offense, or wounds from the past are most likely to allow a divisive spirit to use their tongue as a weapon.

Satan has to be more stealth to get to healthy and whole Jesus people. He knows that we have sealed up the cracks and are routinely inspecting our prayer life and our thought life and, at Life Church, looking at our capacity to be trusted by God with more. Satan has to come in from the outside, get a foot in the door, and sometimes be clothed in "friendship" or "servanthood".

This last year I, personally, have bumped into this half a dozen times! Time for me to wake up and time for us to all outwit the devil and be quicker about it. With the staff and friends who surround me, I don't worry about gossiping. We historically don't have drama among the staff because we all just walk up to each other in the hall and say, "Hey, I wanted to let you know...." or "Question about this situation I had." That kind of open communication is our Life Church culture and keeps us 100% Kind with 0% Drama.

We should continue to build people, and not become guarded or hardened. But this is also a warning to not allow blind spots and keep some people around when humility, character and teachability aren't growing in them. We wait to have the hard conversations and call it "grace" or "long-suffering." Let's not confuse compassion with love, because if we really loved people we would confront immediately.

Good people who feel they have good intentions have to ask:

1. Am I going to a listening ear?

and/or

2. Am I being a listening ear?

Here are some other gages when talking about a person and NOT to the person:

1. Is this conversation life giving?  2. Is this conversation happening to find a solution or just under the guise of, "finding a solution" or "prayer request?" 3. Have you gone to the person you are talking about? Even so, why are you talking about them without them being present?

Truths

Truthful feedback not given to your brother or sister but mentioned to anyone else, IS gossip. Gossip is like witchcraft according to the Bible.

Gossip grows the offense and adds a 2nd offense to the listener. Then bitterness or suspicion can develop in both people.

Matthew 18:1-7 says, At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

2Jesus called a little child to stand among them. 3“Truly I tell you,” He said, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me.

6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

7Woe to the world for the causes of sin. These stumbling blocks must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!

Final Application

When you see/hear someone who already knows Jesus doing any of the above things, call them out and direct them within seconds to the person they are talking about so you don't become a listening ear. Don't get trapped, and love enough to confront early.

Pastor Sonny

[lifechurchgb]

Rustout...The Silent Killer

The below blog is an excerpt from an article called “The Rustout Syndrome” written by Richard Leider and Steve Buchholz.

There is a silent killer that stalks America. It’s called ‘rustout” and it’s far more deadly and scary than burnout. Sure, burnout can wear down your body, but rustout can wipe out your soul and spirit.

Rustout is the slow death that follows when we stop making the choices that keep life alive. It’s the feeling of numbness that comes from always taking the safe way, and never accepting new challenges, continually surrendering to the day-to-day routine. Rustout means we are no longer growing; at best, are simply maintaining - it implies that we have traded the sensation of life for the security of a paycheck. 

Rustout is the opposite of burnout. Burnout is overdoing. Rustout is underbeing.

Rustout occurs when our lives deteriorate through the disuse of our potential. And just as rust can eventually weaken and destroy the strongest of structures, so can rustout lead to the destruction of even the strongest and most secure human beings.

People who are experiencing rustout feel afraid to act. They're unwilling or unable to do the very things that would make them feel alive. They end up sitting on the sidelines, while the dance of life goes on without them.

Perhaps life has presented them with bigger challenges than they could solve. Perhaps a failure caused a major blow to their self-esteem, from which they couldn't seem to recover. Or maybe they just worked too hard for too long.

Rustout occurs when we feel we're not using our gifts and talents in support of something we believe in. In many cases, it's because we're afraid to let go of what we have, in order to reach for something more. But in the effort to hold on to what we've got, we lose a precious gift - the gift of purpose. Our life lacks purpose; nothing moves us. Our relationships lack commitment; no one touches us. Our work lacks promise; the routine has stifled our growth.

Choices or ruts. When we observe the level of satisfaction people have (or don't have) in their lives, we see the same thing over and over again - the people who are satisfied are those who have made a conscious decision to keep growing and to keep developing new options. Those who are dissatisfied feel stifled and trapped. More than anything else, people want to feel that life is offering them choices. It's discouraging for us to look forward and see nothing but an unending stretch of sameness over which we feel we have no control. 

Of course, not everything that's routine leads to a rut. Many routines are useful - they save energy. They only become ruts when fear inhibits us from making corrective choices. So, we need to examine our routines periodically to make sure we have chosen them carefully.

Grow or die.

- Richard Leider and Steve Buchholz from “The Rustout Syndrome”

[lifechurchgb]

His Calling, My Response

Often we ask the question:  "Am I even eligible to have a mission or calling on my life?"  We might not even know what a calling looks or feels like.  Shawn and I explained it to our daughter Aubree this way: "When God puts a dream in our heart or tells us to do something for Him, that’s a calling."

Women automatically have a calling to teach and minister to our children. Check out this post called: "Jesus Thinks in Families & Legacies".  

How do we step up into other kinds of ministry as well?

“A calling is: a cause worth living for, a dream worth dying for.”

In 1 Timothy 2:11-12 it says:  “A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man;she must be quiet.”

History tells us Paul was not prohibiting women from ministering in the church, he was saying women shouldn’t be drawing attention to the themselves by not being decent and through immodesty.  In 1st century Jewish culture, women weren’t able to study, while men learned God’s word from a very young age.  Paul was saying women WERE to START to learn so that they could go about teaching…but should be quiet and submissive in their attitude until they learned the Word of God.

Paul himself acknowledges that women were publicly praying and prophesying in 1 Corinthians 11:1.  However, the women in the Ephesian church were abusing their newfound knowledge.  They were so excited in what they were now being allowed to learn, that they were being disrespectful to men.  Paul did not forbid women from ever teaching, and frequently mentioned women who worked in the church.  

It matters WHO we are trying to teach and HOW.  I don’t want to be my husband, Shawn’s teacher or pastor, I don’t want to “lord it over him” or be disrespectful to him, or “tell him like it is”. I want him to be my pastor and the priest of my home…I want him to teach me, and I want to focus on where I’ve been CALLED to teach.  

I feel my calling in life is to help others find their calling so they can leave a Jesus legacy in the right order: God, self, spouse, kids, family....then others.

Women are important and we all have callings on our lives.  Look at the story of Rahab.  According to tradition, she was 1 of the 4 most beautiful women in history.   When the children of Israel were finally going to go into the Promised Land, spies went out first, and Rahab (who was not an Israelite) let them stay with her while they ran reconnaissance.  Rahab said to the spies: “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.” - Joshua 2:12.

Did you know that Rahab was in the lineage of Jesus?  If she had not hid them, the Israelite spies would have died.  Had she not asked them to save her family, she would not have been in the lineage of Christ.  Tell me a woman is not instrumental to Jesus!

In fact, look at the many women who followed Jesus, listed in the scriptures when we read of His disciples.   “Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means” - Luke 8:2-3.

These women PROVIDED.  They provided for the disciples out of their means and went out and learned with the disciples.  It’s very clear that women are completely capable and totally allowed to be doing ministry.  They weren’t all quiet and submissive!  But they weren’t condescending or disrespectful either.  We are told to come alongside of Jesus, not overtake Him or others.

Not too long ago, I sat down and read a great book called 7 Women by Eric Metaxas.  Out of the 7 women, there were 4 that really stood out to me as having clear callings.  They used their dreams and their gifts to make an impact in the world.  

Susanna Wesley:  

Her dream, her calling:  Was to plan for her children and their future.   Her gift:  Was to teach them well.  

Susanna Wesley was the mother of John and Charles Wesley (part of Wesleyan revival that was focused on learning more about God and focusing on the Bible).  She was also called the mother of Methodism.  Through her calling, 2 church movements, the Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Church began.  She was also called the “Inventor of Homeschooling”.

Her kids couldn’t understand the King James Bible, so she rewrote it so they could understand.  She wanted to train them in the Word of God even if it was at home.  

She felt children were to be taught to fear the rod because it would be selfish and cruel of her to raise them otherwise.  She often said, "Cruel parents let their children develop bad habits by not correcting them in the moment, so that they later have to correct themselves in life which is so much harder to do."

Hannah Moore:  

Her dream, her calling: Was to abolish slavery in Europe by making “goodness fashionable”.   Her gift: Was understanding culture and being in the creative arts. 

Hannah Moore worked in the theater industry, was a playwright, and wrote articles.  She believed, "The culture you live in is as much or more influenced by the arts of the day than legislature".  She did not wish to retreat from culture into the religious sphere.  She said:  “I hope the poets and painters will at last bring the Bible into fashion.”

When it came to slavery, most of Hannah’s readers had never seen an African. They thought slavery was just an economic necessity.  But through Hannah’s writing, hundreds of thousands of people’s eyes were opened to the inhumanity behind slavery.  It caused them to push for their countries to have no part in slavery.

Hannah was able to open people’s eyes, while at the same time making Jesus famous, just like we are supposed to be making Jesus famous in the 920 and in our children’s eyes.  Not by being angry and political about everything going on in the world.  It’s not about saying what you stand against, it’s about standing FOR what is life changing; Jesus! Too often we share and add our opinion about culture instead of creating culture. We need fewer commentators and more innovators.  We need to quit complaining about what’s wrong and do something that makes a difference.

Rosa Parks:  

Her dream, her calling:  Was pursuing quality.   Her gift: Was seizing the moment.    

Rosa Parks was in the right place at the right time.  The day she refused to sit in the back of the bus was not the first time she ever rode the bus and the first time she just got off the bus when told to move to the back!  In fact, it was a long time before she decided to take the stand she is now known for.  It was a process of her getting more and more educated and more and more bold over a long period of time.  

We live in a world where we compare ourselves to people’s “best” on social media…where we see they “made it” and think they made it TODAY.  We think everything in our own life has to be perfect, we have to be perfect, and we have to be perfect now.  But that’s not really true, that’s not reality.  We don’t see their messy moments, so we feel alone.  Satan wants you to feel alone!  

Mother Theresa:  

Her dream, her calling:  Was to care for the least of these.   Her gift:  Was to be a bold observer and then a humble doer.  

Sometimes we think of old, frail Mother Theresa, and we forget that she was once a child, that she had her own mother.  And here is the life altering part of her story many have never heard: Theresa, as a little girl watched her mother care for the poor and dying for years.  Her mother was her example.  Her mother brought people in off the streets into their childhood home.  It was Mother Theresa’s mother that started a legacy that has had a worldwide impact.  It took years and years to become the “Mother Theresa” we know today, it didn’t happen overnight.

She spoke later in life about the spiritual poverty of wealthy nations, where parents are too busy working to pay attention to their children.  Even in her meekness, she was bold.  She stood up for what she believed in.  She was bold but humble and loving.  

Your dreams are possible because of the dreams that were dreamed before you! “Our dream predate us, they were born long before we were.  Our dreams also postdate us, they make a difference long after we are gone.” - Mark Batterson

The domino effect of your calling (your dreams + your gifts) will be felt for generations.

God chose you.  He put good seed in you.  The devil is prowling around trying to pluck that very seed.  Satan may even be trying to overtake you by letting weeds of bitterness and envy grow, he wants anger and unforgiveness to overtake you like weeds.  

The minute my seed starts to die, is the minute I quit being the mom, daughter or leader I'm called to be.  It’s the minute I stop striving for a healthy marriage or purity prior to marriage. You are a spiritual mama to someone.  It’s to your biological kids, but you are also a spiritual or emotional surrogate to those admiring you from close or afar.  

I need to be walking out my calling by putting God first in my life and protecting the good seed that God desires to grow in me. How about you?

Pastor Sonny

[lifechurchgb]

Resources for the Teachable Spirit and Curious Mind

The Bible is our number one resource to know and understand God more and more each day.  Getting into the Word daily and learning to hear God’s voice is imperative as we grow on our Jesus Journey.  That being said, there are also several great resources out there that are based on the Bible and can help you get a better or deeper understanding of biblical principles.  The staff at Life Church are often asked what books or resources we enjoy or recommend.  Below is a list of some of these resources...

MOVIES:

The Song -  about loyalty and accountability in marriage

What Macy Saw - about fighting in front of your children

ONLINE RESOURCES:

Life Church Green Bay Blog - with posts from Ps. Shawn, Ps. Sonny, Eye Heart World, and more:

www.blog.lifechurchgreenbay.com

Free Spiritual Gifts Test: 

www.giftstest.com

We also offer this test in a physical packet in Growth Track Class at Life Church Green Bay

Five Love Languages Tests:

Love Language for Adult or Child: www.5lovelanguages.com/profile

Apology Language: www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/apology/

Anger Profile: www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/anger/

Appreciation Language: www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/appreciation/

BOOKS:

Some Favorites:

Love Does by Bob Goff

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson

Keep Circling Devotional by Mark Batterson

Chase the Lion by Mark Batterson

The Peacemaker by Ken Sande

The Gravity of Grief by Shawn Hennessy

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero

Emotionally Healthy Leader By Peter Scazzero

Marriage/Family Books:

Love and Respect by Emerson Eggerichs

Mother and Son, the Respect Effect by Emerson Eggerichs

Anger: Taming a Powerful Emotion by Gary Chapman

The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman

The Five Love Language of Teenagers by Gary Chapman

Women Only Books:

Uninvited by Lysa TerKeurst

The Best Yes by Lysa TerKeurst

Unglued by Lysa Terkeurst

Made to Crave: Satisfying your deepest desires with God, not food by Lysa TerKeurst

Women, Food and God: An Unexpected Path to almost Everything by Geneen Roth

Getting out of the Pit by Beth Moore

Taming the To-Do List by Glynnis Whitwer

Undaunted by Christine Caine

Unashamed by Christine Caine

Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer

Power Thoughts by Joyce Meyer

Prayer/Spirit Life Books:

Too Busy Not to Pray by Bill Hybels

The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

The Blessed Life by Robert Morris

What’s so Amazing about Grace? by Philip Yancey

Relentess by John Bevere

Bait of Satan by John Bevere

Divine Direction by Craig Groeschel

Soul Detox by Craig Groeschel

Fasting by Jentezen Franklin

Sexuality/Pornography Help Books:

False Intimacy by Dr. Harry Schaumburg

Undefiled by Dr. Harry Schaumburg

Leadership Books:

Any Book by Patrick Lencioni

Any Book by John Maxwell

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Keep It Simple by Joe Calloway

The Creative Habit by Twila Tharp

Classics Books:

My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers

The Seeking Heart by Francois de Salignac de La Mothe Fenelon

Confessions by Saint Augustine

[lifechurchgb]

The Principle of First - Understanding the Tithe

Check out Part 1 of this blog: “First Things First”.

In Exodus 13:1-2: it says “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Consecrate [that just means – set aside] to me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and beast; it is mine.” 

God says: “It is Mine! It belongs to Me! It’s My property!”  Wow...

This phrase in the Hebrew is symbolic of the Passover. Since God already set aside or set apart the first born of Israel, since He had already spared them, He wants that sentiment returned to Him. He says you only have what you have because I gave it to you. It is Mine! I’m just letting you manage it, or steward it, but don’t forget: it is Mine!

Look at Exodus 13:12-13: “That you shall set apart to the Lord all that open the womb, that is, every firstborn that comes from an animal which you have; the males shall be the Lord’s.”  [Now, this next verse gets a little Old Testament, but I’ll explain it in a minute...] “But every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb; and if you will not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. [Let me put it this way – you’re going to lose it anyway. You’re going to ‘lose’ it if you bring it to God, and if you don’t bring it to the house of God – you’ll still lose it anyway] and all the firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem.”

So I have 3 points from Scripture to explain the Principle of First and how to apply it to your life.

1.  The first born must be either sacrificed or redeemed

In this Scripture, He uses a donkey to represent unclean animals and a lamb to represent clean animals. The principle is: if your unclean animal has a first born, you have to redeem it with the sacrifice of a clean animal. But if your clean animal has a first born, you have to sacrifice it to the Lord.

What in the world this means to us today? Most of us don’t sacrifice animals today but everything in the Bible points us to Jesus. 

Let me ask you this: spiritually, were you & I born clean or unclean? The answer is that we were born unclean.  We were born with a sin nature. Don’t believe that? Ask a parent!  Ask them if they had to teach their children to be bad. Nope, it just came naturally. We have to teach our children to be good. 

We were all born unclean, but Jesus, on the other hand, was born clean.

When it came to the animals, the clean animals had to be sacrificed so that the unclean animals could be considered clean (or redeemed) and when it comes to us, Jesus had to be sacrificed so that you & I could be redeemed.

This same principle is true when it comes to your finances. It’s called the tithe. God said if you give me your first money, then the rest of your money will be redeemed. He didn’t say wait until you get 10 hundred dollar bills and then give me whichever one you don’t like. He said give me the first one. Give me the best one. Before you get more, give me the first. Because that’s faith. 

Jesus is God’s first. Jesus is God’s best. The clean sacrificed to redeem the unclean. Jesus is God’s tithe. The Father gave His Son first. He gave Him while we were still sinners. He didn’t wait to see if we’d get cleaned up first. In fact, Romans says God gave Jesus in hope that we would come to Him. 

Malachi 3:10-11 says: “Bring the tithe to the storehouse – and I will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing - the likes of which you won’t be able to contain [But wait! There’s more!] I will pour out a blessing you can’t contain and I will rebuke the devourer - for your sake.” 

God wants to redeem your finances out from under the curse.

2.  The first fruits must be offered

Sowing & reaping.  Seed time & harvest.   These are huge repetitive principles throughout Scripture  

Exodus 23:19 says “The first of the first fruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God.” Again, when it comes to your finances, this is referring to the tithe. The Bible is abundantly clear, not just about the delivery of your tithe, but about the destination of your tithe...where it’s supposed to go. Not to a charity or a college or a Christian school or parish school. I think we should give to all those places, but the tithe has a designed divine destination: the house of the Lord, your church.

And just like we can’t choose the destination, we can’t choose the designation. We can’t say I want 5% to go here 2% to go there 2% here & 1% there. He said bring all the tithe to the storehouse. The reason you can’t choose the designation or the destination is because the tithe doesn’t belong to you. 

Notice the word bring. When talking about the tithe, God always uses the word bring not the word give, because you can’t give what doesn’t belong to you. You can only bring it or steal it. When the children of Israel didn’t bring the tithe, God said they’d stolen it. That they’d taken, used, spent what didn’t belong to them...because the tithe belongs to God.

Just in case you’re not getting uncomfortable enough, let me give you another one: if you’re not giving it first, by definition, it’s not a tithe. It’s an offering. Let me show you a place in Scripture where God receives one offering but rejects another offering. Genesis 4:3 says: “And in the process of time [very important] it came to pass that Cain brought an offering [very important] of the fruit of the ground to the Lord.”  Now watch in verse 4:4: “Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but he did not respect Cain and his offering.”

Abel is a rancher and he brings the first born. Cain is a farmer but he doesn’t bring the first fruit, he just brings an offering over the process of time. Let me say it this way, he gave what he wanted when he wanted. You know how many church people have told me that? “Well Pastor I give as I feel led.” The problem is that’s not biblical. You’re not only robbing God, you’re also robbing yourself. God gives the prescription for giving: first born, first fruit.

It wasn’t just that God didn’t accept Cain’s offering. Theologically, God couldn’t accept Cain’s offering! Whoa! Wait a minute! Let me explain that...because a lot of people don’t realize this, but there are some things God can’t do.

For instance, God can’t act outside of himself. He can’t act out of his character. He cannot change. That’s called the immutability of God.

Here’s another thing: God can’t think the way we think. We think to figure things out, but God’s not trying to figure anything out. That’s called the omniscience of God. He has all knowledge. He knows everything at the same time. Nothing has ever 'occurred' to God. He’s never said “You know what I just thought of?”

Something else God cannot do: God cannot be second! This is called the preeminence of God. He is higher than all, above all, before all, and first of all. God is first!

So the reason God couldn’t receive Cain’s offering is because it wasn’t the first offering. God is first! He gives the best and he accepts the best.

3.  The tithe must be first

We just touched on this, but let’s drill down a little deeper. Leviticus 27:30 says: “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord.” It’s his property. The word 'tithe' comes from the Hebrew word massrah (maws-rock) which means 'one tenth'. I love that God chose a percentage. This way it would be equal for everyone. No matter how much you make, it’s the same. Whether you make $30,000 or $30 million, it’s one penny on every dime you earn. And it’s the first penny because God wants to see if you’ll put him first in your life. It’s a test.

Throughout the Bible, the number ten represents testing: the 10 Commandments, God tested Israel 10 times in the wilderness, Jacob’s wages were changed 10 times, Daniel is tested for 10 days. The number 10 is representative of a test. In Malachi 3:10 God says “Test me and see if I don’t open the windows of heaven.”

How does this work practically? If I give you $1,000 in ten $100 bills how many of those ten bills is the tithe? Just one $100 bill, right? How many of you would trade me $100 to get $1,000? That’s what God is offering! He’ll give you ten $100 bills if you’ll give him one back. But which one is the tithe? The first one! It’s the first one that goes out, it's the first one that goes back. The mortgage isn’t first, the car note isn’t first, not your utilities, not your school loan. God is first!

This is how I do it: on my pay day, the first thing I do is pay my tithes to the church then I pay the other stuff. I don’t even want to get gas before I tithe, because I’m not trying to give God my leftovers. I give to God first because God is first. I know this whole first thing may sound legalistic but it’s not about legalism, it’s about love & loyalty. 

Let me make it personal. Let’s say somebody kidnapped your son or your daughter then called you and required a ransom. Would you say let me pay my mortgage, car note, medical bills & get some groceries, then if I have enough left over I’ll pay the ransom? You must be trippin'! I would gladly pay whatever it took to set Isaiah free, to set Aubree free. And I would do it first!

Our money has been taken hostage. You have the ability to set it free. Look at one last beautiful verse from Exodus 13:14-15: “So it shall be, when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘what is this?’ that you shall say to him, ‘by strength of hand the lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. And it came to pass, when pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, that the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all males that open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’”

The son is asking: “Why is it if our unclean animal has a first born we have to redeem it with the sacrifice of a clean animal and if our clean animal has a first born we have to sacrifice it? Dad - we’re ranchers you know how much money we’re losing every time we kill one of these animals? We can’t afford to sacrifice our first born.” And the dad says: “Son we weren’t always ranchers. There was a time when we had no land and no animals. We were in bondage. We were slaves. But God, with a mighty hand, freed us. Redeemed us. Therefore we gladly give to God the first of all our animals. We can’t afford not to sacrifice our first born.”

Now apply this to your life today. When my son asks me: “Dad - why would you give 10% away!?! We can’t afford to do that, we’re barely making it now.” I say “Son - I wasn’t always a Jesus person. I was in bondage. I was a slave to my sin. But God, with a mighty hand, freed your daddy. Redeemed your daddy. Therefore I gladly give to God the first of all my increase. I can’t afford not to.”

What about you? Has God delivered you with His mighty hand? The #1 reason people give for not tithing is that they can’t afford to tithe.

Listen, you’ll never be able to afford to tithe until you tithe. Tithing is what removes the curse. Commit today, the next time you get paid, give your first 10%.

Pastor Shawn

[lifechurchgb]

First Things First – Understanding the Tithe

Our culture is deep in a financial crisis.  People are consumed with thoughts of their finances. People are worried. Perhaps that worry is warranted. Perhaps that fear is founded. There’s a simple truth in action in all our lives: our lives are built on a foundation of one of two things…

Our lives are either built on a foundation of fear or a foundation of faith. Now fear & faith cannot function in the same space although they are crafted & created from the same ingredients. Fear & faith are both a belief in the unknown.

So many people have built their lives upon the foundation of fear. Walled in by ‘what ifs’: physical, relational, emotional, spiritual ‘what ifs’. But as Jesus people, we are neither destined nor designed to be held captive inside a fortress of fear.  2 Timothy 1:7 tells us “God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love & self-control.”

While we’ve been living inside the fortress of fear, we’ve been duped by a system of diabolical thinking. Thoughts & concepts crafted & created to manipulate our thinking. Things that seem good, but ultimately aren’t helpful. Harmful things that reveal themselves in tumultuous & tragic ways. Like when we hear about a segment of religious leaders who were inappropriate with kids. Or when we hear about the CEO of a charity who takes a performance bonus of $30 million from funds that were raised by the sale of goods that you donated. Diabolical thinking then infects & impacts your life going forward causing you to be injected with a Spirit of Fear.

But we just read God doesn’t give us a Spirit of Fear. So who does? Who gives us a Spirit of Fear through diabolical thinking? Diablo = the devil. He gives it. So when we hear about religious leaders messing with kids, we determine we’ll never put our kids in church. Or when we hear about CEOs of charities receiving improper benefits, we determine we won’t donate to any charity anymore. Diabolical thinking. Fear. It’s not from God.

What is from God is a Spirit of Power that leads to peace. And the path that leads to peace is paved with proper priorities. We all know life is better lived when we have our priorities arranged & assembled in the proper positions. So let me ask you a question: how many of you would say when it comes to your priorities that family comes first? Caring for your family is your top priority? Would you believe me if I told you that thinking that is a form of diabolical thinking? That saying caring for your family first is creating a foundation of fear?

How could that be a form of diabolical thinking, you wonder? Well what about when family fails you? When your husband fails you? When your kids fail you? When your folks fail you? Living for you family’s approval is creating a foundation of fear. 

We need to build our lives on a foundation of faith. The only way to create a foundation of faith is to put first things first. In the Bible, it’s called the Principle of First. When we put God first in our lives, everything can come into order. 

When God’s not first, everything else is out of order. 

Long term life cannot work when we don’t live out the Principle of First. That’s not my opinion. It’s a truth laced throughout Scripture. The Bible tells us dozens of times. First things first.

Putting God first is not only a solid life principle, it is without question, the greatest financial principle I’ve ever come across.

Check out my next blog post as we dive into this concept even further.

Pastor Shawn

[lifechurchgb]

Slept Through It

Have you ever slept through something? Maybe you slept through your alarm and were late for work? Maybe you overslept on the weekend and woke up in the afternoon.  Or maybe you put on a movie and fell asleep right when it started.

Whatever it is, we have all experienced it at one time in our lives and each of these times has one thing in common: we missed out on something.

The book of Ephesians talks about something similar.

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:

“Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

Be very careful, then, how you live —not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” -  Ephesians 5:8-16.

Just like missing your alarm clock, we can sleep through our Jesus journey. Many of us have asked Jesus into our life but then stopped right there, thinking that salvation was the end.  But salvation isn’t the end, it’s only the beginning.

This portion of Scripture was written for the church in Ephesus, so the people reading this were already church-goers.  But the problem that Paul was seeing in the church at Ephesus back then is still happening today.  Too many Christians who have accepted Jesus and left it there; sleeping through the rest of what Jesus has for them.

Psalm 51:12 says:  “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”

A lot of us can’t even grasp that there is joy in salvation.  To us it’s merely just a “get out of hell free” card.

So how do I find the joy in my salvation?  How can I make the most of every opportunity?

There are a few things we need to do in order to wake up and stop sleeping through our relationship with Jesus:

1. Expose The Sleep Aids

Its funny what things will put us to sleep. My friend Jason told me he could drink energy drinks and still fall asleep.  Parents put kids in cars to get them to fall asleep. I've even heard that people will drink Nyquil when they’re not sick to go to sleep.

It's crazy the things people will do to sleep, but I think there are spiritual sleep aids that we need to expose.  These things have taken your focus away from your relationship with Jesus and therefore have put you spiritually asleep.

For some of us it could be:

Unforgiveness

Guilt

Our past

Addictions

There are so many things that have become spiritual sleep aids that we need to identify and expose in order to continue growing in God.  

2. Move Away From The Lazy Chair

2 Corinthians 5:7 says: “For we live by faith, not by sight.”

Matthew 17:20 says:  “Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Hebrews 11:1 says: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

Faith promises life-changing things, but requires us to get out of our comfort zone.  We can’t say, “I want to give God my life!”, but then say “But I’m not comfortable with worship”.  Or “I want to know Jesus more”, but say “I don’t really like reading the Bible”. Real change requires us to move away from what we are currently doing and to try something different.

Hebrews 11:6 says: “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

Walking in faith causes us to stop trusting ourselves and to begin trusting Him, this isn’t always comfortable, but it's needed.

3. Quit Hitting The Snooze Button

If there is one thing that everyone in my family hated about me growing up, it was my addiction to the snooze button. I would hit it at least 4 times a morning. One thing I’ve noticed about hitting the snooze button is that with every hit, I would reason with myself “I really don’t need to….” (Shower, shave, brush my teeth etc.)

And the more I pressed it, the less I will do.

What is our spiritual snooze button? It’s our excuses.

The Parable of the Great Banquet

“Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquet in the Kingdom of God!” Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I now have a wife, so I can’t come.’ “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet." -  Luke 14:15-24

Because of their excuses, they missed out.

I’ve seen too many people walk away from their Jesus journey because of excuses. Is having an excuse bad? Not at all. In fact, we will have some really good excuses, but if we live by excuses we are essentially keeping ourselves from experiencing everything God has for us.

I remember the night my wife, Shelby’s, water broke. It really wasn't night, it was super early in the morning and all she had to say was, "My water broke" and we were off to the hospital to welcome our daughter, Kennedie, into our lives.

There are two things I know about waking up: it’s not easy, but it’s important otherwise you’ll miss out.  My daughter looks nothing like the way she looked the day she was born, but because I was there for her birth, I’ll never forget that face.

God has so many supernatural plans for you.  You just have to wake up and really start your Jesus journey. How do you do that? By completely surrendering everything to Him.  By giving Him full reign of your life.

There is so much more to the Christian life then just getting saved, we just have to wake up and see it.

Pastor Dallas

[lifechurchgb]

A Mother’s Heart: The Untold Story

I first became aware of my emotions in Motherhood. I often joke that I was like the grinch, and on the day my daughter was born my small heart grew three sizes that day!  I didn’t know that I had such capacity to love, feel, connect, share laughter and have empathy. I could share all my golden moments and the beautiful memories we’ve created.  But I don’t want to give you my highlight reel today.

Because I also didn’t know the plethora of other emotions I would experience as a mom. The beautiful picture I had painted when planning for a family wasn’t quite what I experienced when I first brought my bundle of joy home.  I struggled with the dark side of my emotions.  

Maybe you’ve also encountered the other side of your emotions - when the baby has been crying for what seems like hours. When you haven’t slept and no amount of rocking, singing, shushing has been able to console your baby and you have found yourself frustrated, anxious, crying, yelling, sad or falling apart.  

And you’ve questioned - how am I going to do this? How am I going to be a good mom? Or even why did I want to be a mom in the first place?

You are not alone.

Motherhood is full of highs and lows - the question is - how do we keep our emotions balanced in motherhood so that we can be the Mom’s we know we can be?  So that we can be good Jesus Mom’s?

In John 8:31-32, Jesus says: “If you abide in My word ... you are truly My disciples. And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free” (AMP).

It’s easy to spot a friend’s problems or my children’s problems. It’s more difficult for me to see my own problems, which means I have to SEEK the truth about me. It takes a little more work and a little more time.  But with the help of the Holy Spirit, each of us can face the truth, obey God’s Word and make positive changes for our own emotional well-being.

Our emotions can overwhelm us when we don’t understand where they are coming from.  So the first step is to KNOW the TRUTH and we do that by:

1.  GETTING TO THE ROOT

Our emotions are a blessing - they our red flags which let us know when there is a problem beneath the soil of our hearts. Hosea 10:12 verse tells us to break up the unplowed ground.  Because our external (emotional) responses are an indicator of an internal issue.

Once we are aware of what the underlying issue is, we can dig, deal and dispose of it - making room for truth and positive thoughts and  the emotions that come with being a mom.  

Motherhood gives plenty of opportunity to discover what seeds are in the soil of our hearts. Seeds we were unaware of, that were planted in our own childhood experiences or expectations, or something that was said or done to us that is affecting our responses.

Galatians 5 talks about the fruits of the spirit as well as fruits of the flesh and basically communicates one simple truth:  All seeds bear fruit.  When placed under pressure, and as a mother, you will feel pressure, what seed is it that will bloom into action?

You can’t change the fruit of your life until you change the root.

2.  BREAKING THE CYCLE

Did you enter into motherhood with high expectations?  Or maybe even unrealistic expectations?  Have you felt devastated or been hard on yourself when things didn’t turn out like you imagined?  

Or maybe you’re living by OTHERS EXPECTATIONS.  We tend to suppress a lot of negative feelings and experiences because of the pressure to live up to others’ ideas of the kind of mother we should be. God forbid they would find out we are not perfect.

It’s not wrong to feel frustrated, disappointed or upset, the problem becomes when we cling to these emotions and allow them to control us and prevent us from moving into what God has planned for us.

Hosea 10:12 tells us to reap the fruit of his unfailing love.  Meaning, He knows you’re NOT PERFECT.  He knows you’re a work in progress.  You didn’t surprise Him and you don’t disappointment him.  

So how do we BREAK THE EXPECTATION CYCLE?  

Acknowledging your feelings: There’s healing in the naming. Just acknowledging your feelings resolves 90% of emotions.

Seek Wise Counsel: An experienced mom can help correct your perspective and expectations.  Isolation is the enemy!

Seek God: When the storm of emotions start picking up we need to seek out our ANCHOR (“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure Hebrews 6:19)

3.  KNOWING THE REAL ENEMY

The WAR ROOM movie makes a great point:  Know the Real Enemy.  Your kids, your husband, your emotions, your mistakes, and YOU are not your enemy.

In the wild, a predator will seek out the young and young mothers. And the same is true with our real enemy.  

The Bible says the serpent is crafty, like a lion seeking whom he may devour - watching, waiting.  HE often knows our potential, as individuals, mothers, wives and leaders, far before we ever discover who we are. And if he can distract us and influence us and convince us of arguments and pretenses that contradict God’s truth about who we are (2 Cor 10:5), then he can influence your influence.

And the TRUTH is - Your influence as a mother is powerful. The bible says that the power of life and death is in your tongue - to teach, love, support, help, encourage.

James 4:7 says “Submit yourselves then to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” So don’t be discouraged. Don’t be distracted.  Don’t get derailed. Instead: Decide. Be determined. Seek God in the moments you are tempted to submit to the negative emotions. Seek his truth to combat the negative thoughts.

Be encouraged today! Because like Philippians 1:6 says “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Becky Alcantar

[lifechurchgb]

Moving Forward

Isaiah 61:1 says: “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted ... He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

As Jesus people of the 920 we are called to love like Jesus and share the good news of salvation to those who are brokenhearted. But, before we can do that - we ourselves need to learn to pause and take time to grieve.

Grieving isn't just something we do when there is a tragedy in our lives. It's also a tool that is available to us to help us cope and process every change or transition in life.

Life is a series of transitions.  We’re either getting through or entering into change almost daily.  Birthdays, milestones, graduations, new houses, new jobs, new cities - the clock ticks and we experience another change. With change we can experience personal losses, hurts, disappointments and stress that give us ample opportunity to grieve.

I love the analogy of grieving as sorting through the treasure and the trash. It's the process we go through when we have to move from a house. We don’t want to carry any unnecessary baggage, so we sort through and get rid of some things and keep others.  

Grieving help us through the in-between, when we are both remembering and hoping.  

We are relational creations, that love.  When we genuinely love we attach ourselves to people and places that are finite. We can avoid attaching ourselves to people and places, but we know that is not what we are called to do.  We are Life Church: we love God, we love people. So in choosing to love, we must also choose to grieve.  

Every good thing comes to an end.  And some things that are not good must end. We can deal with it in one of two ways.  We choose to either:  1. Avoid it  or 2. Go through it.

Most often, we tend to avoid it.  We tell ourselves that we have to be strong and we don’t have time for the uncomfortable process of grieving.  And in the process of pressing down the memories building and anticipation rising in us, we exhaust ourselves and aren’t able be our best.

But Ecclesiastes 3:4 says "...there's a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance."  And in each of these the time of mourning and weeping is put first, telling us that BEFORE we can laugh and dance, we must first sow in tears and mourning.

In Jewish culture, their practice of mourning is called "Sitting Shivah" in which they invest 7 days of mourning after a burial.  They confine themselves to their family home, removing every distraction and go straight through it.

They do this because they know that grieving allows us to be free from the burdens of hurt, pain, fear, anxiety, guilt, depression and sorrow.  And to move forward, we need to make space for what's ahead.  When we don't grieve, we risk hoarding items that no longer belong. We risk carrying baggage that has no place in the future we are passing into.

Even Jesus on his way to healing and raising Lazarus from the dead, stopped to take the time to weep and mourn his friend’s death.  Why would Jesus mourn?! He is GOD, he knew his friend would be raised up.

But he also knew the necessity of grieving, and so he wept to encourage us to do the same, to unburdened ourselves so we too would be free to receive and celebrate the miracle to come.

When we choose to bypass the pain of grief, we may also bypass the subsequent joy.  

Isaiah 61:2 says: “He has sent me to tell those who MOURN that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”  It doesn’t say, to the boldest or to the strongest, or the busiest, it say to those who mourn.

The person that has made the choice to go through the process of grieving is one that has made room to receive God’s favor and the joy He has ahead for us, as we move forward.

Becky Alcantar