Have you ever felt like a complete failure? Do you know what is right but can't seem to do it? Simon Peter is a great example for us in the book of John. In John 1:42 we watch as Simon meets Jesus for the first time. His encounter with Jesus changes him immediately. When Jesus looked at Simon, He saw him in two ways---what he was and what he could be. Because of what He saw, Jesus changes Simon's name to Peter (which means "rock" or "stone). People change their names for many reasons but the biggest reason for a name change is a new start. The Bible is full of name changes: Abram (exalted father) to Abraham (father of many), Sarai to Sarah, Jacob to Israel, Saul to Paul. Jesus' name changes are very significant. They are indicative of what God expects to happen in these lives. The name change should equal the life change.
When we see Peter again, he is making promises to Jesus in chapter 13. Jesus is sharing with His disciples about all that is about to happen. He tells them that He will only be with them for a little longer. Peter asks Jesus where He is going and asks to go with Him. Peter even makes the statement that he is ready to die for Jesus. Jesus answers him,"Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter, before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me." We make all kinds of promises to God. We promise we'll "straighten up". We promise we'll be more faithful. We make promises just like Peter. So many times we make promises out of righteous piety. We think we are more than what we really are. We think we can't fall. We make promises that we can't keep. The dangerous thing in our making promises to God is that God knows our hearts. He knows our weaknesses and He knows our failures and shortcomings.
Traveling on to John 18 we find Peter again. Jesus had been arrested and Peter had followed Him to the courtyard of the high priest with some other disciples. He was confronted by a woman at the gate who asked if he was one of Jesus' disciples. Peter answers "no". Peter then stood around a charcoal fire (remember the charcoal) warming himself and was asked two other times if he was one of Jesus' disciples. Twice more he denied knowing Jesus. The Bible tells us that immediately after this, a rooster crowed.
I can imagine how Peter felt after this. He made a promise to Jesus. He said that he would even die for Him. Now he has denied even knowing Jesus. I'm sure Peter felt like a complete failure. I'm sure Jesus' words were emblazed on his heart. I'm also sure that every single time Peter heard a rooster crow, his heart sank as he remembered and relived his denial of his friend, his mentor and his Savior.
How many times have we failed like Peter? One time, three times or even a million times? Was Peter a miserable failure or a great man of God? Are we miserable failures or men & women of God?
to be continued...
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
November 17, 2008
I'm sorry I haven't kept up this blog like I should have. We have such great times in Chapel each morning and I usually hit the ground running after chapel and am not able to take the time to blog about our morning. I promise that I will try to do better :)
This morning Mr. Randy shared with us from Ephesians 6 about the armor of God. Sometimes we forget that every day a battle is going on around us. We also forget that we are not fighting against people. Verse 12 tells us that we are fighting against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world and against the mighty powers of darkness who rule this world and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realm. Mr. Randy asked the students how many of them thought about the devil and the battle on a daily basis and most did not raise their hands. He emphasized to us that the battle is real and that we cannot fight it on our own. We have to have God's help and we have to put on our armor daily. Ephesians 6:13-18 tells all about our spiritual armor...we need the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God).
So many times we find ourselves in unbearable situations and our very last resort is to run to God and allow Him to fight our battle for us. He's always there. He always cares. And...He always wins!
This morning Mr. Randy shared with us from Ephesians 6 about the armor of God. Sometimes we forget that every day a battle is going on around us. We also forget that we are not fighting against people. Verse 12 tells us that we are fighting against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world and against the mighty powers of darkness who rule this world and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realm. Mr. Randy asked the students how many of them thought about the devil and the battle on a daily basis and most did not raise their hands. He emphasized to us that the battle is real and that we cannot fight it on our own. We have to have God's help and we have to put on our armor daily. Ephesians 6:13-18 tells all about our spiritual armor...we need the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God).
So many times we find ourselves in unbearable situations and our very last resort is to run to God and allow Him to fight our battle for us. He's always there. He always cares. And...He always wins!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Pleasing, Welcoming & Honoring
October 20
John 5:41-44
"Your approval or disapproval means nothing to me, because I know you don't have God's love within you. For I have come to you representing my Father, and you refuse to welcome me, even though you readily accept others who represent only themselves. No wonder you can't believe! For you gladly honor each other but you don't care about the honor that comes from God alone."
From the time we start Kindergarten until way into adulthood, we are so concerned about what other people think. We fix our hair like the pictures in the magazines and buy the clothes that our favorite stars model. When I was in high school I was so jealous of other people. One girl's mom owned a clothing store and she wore all the lastest fashions. Another was the popular homecoming queen while another was gorgeous and had dates every weekend. I so wanted to be like them. I so wanted to be one of them and I wanted them to notice me. The approval of my peers was so important back then and although I hate to admit it...it's still important now.
1. If God's approval is all that matters, how do we get His approval?
The passage above is Jesus talking about Himself. He states that the approval or disapproval of those who do not love God is not important to Him. His goal is to have the approval of His Father...the only One whose opinion matters. How do we get God's approval? We've got a whole book to tell us about Him but in Matthew 22:39, Jesus shares with us what He says is the most important commandment. Jesus said, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself." If Jesus himself said that these are the 2 most important commandments then we know that in order to get God's approval, we must do these things.
2. If welcoming Jesus is so important, how do we welcome Him?
When we have a guest in our home, we do our best to make them feel welcome. We give them the best seat, we offer them food or drink, we make sure they are comfortable and we spend time with them. Welcoming Jesus involves the same thing. We give Him the best seat in our lives...a front row view of what's happening in our daily lives. We offer Him our first-fruits...the very best of our time, talents and treasures. We make sure He is comfortable being around us by choosing our words and actions wisely and we spend time with Him through prayer and quiet time.
3. If honoring Jesus helps us believe, how can we honor Him?
I think of so many things when I think of the word "honor"...honor roll, maid of honor, medal of honor, honor society and so on. Honor always connotates a good thing. To honor someone means to hold them in "high respect". We honor Jesus when we live our lives in a way that shows Him the highest respect. Honoring Jesus means we make decisions that we know He would be proud of. Pleasing Him and welcoming Him are both ways to honor Him.
If a special friend came to your house for a visit, would you do whatever you could to please them? Would you take the time to "roll out the welcome mat" and give them the seat of honor? How much more so should we try to please, welcome and honor Jesus in our lives? He honored us in the highest way possible by suffering and dying for our sins. There is no greater honor than this and there is no one else on earth who would be willing to honor us in this way.
John 5:41-44
"Your approval or disapproval means nothing to me, because I know you don't have God's love within you. For I have come to you representing my Father, and you refuse to welcome me, even though you readily accept others who represent only themselves. No wonder you can't believe! For you gladly honor each other but you don't care about the honor that comes from God alone."
From the time we start Kindergarten until way into adulthood, we are so concerned about what other people think. We fix our hair like the pictures in the magazines and buy the clothes that our favorite stars model. When I was in high school I was so jealous of other people. One girl's mom owned a clothing store and she wore all the lastest fashions. Another was the popular homecoming queen while another was gorgeous and had dates every weekend. I so wanted to be like them. I so wanted to be one of them and I wanted them to notice me. The approval of my peers was so important back then and although I hate to admit it...it's still important now.
1. If God's approval is all that matters, how do we get His approval?
The passage above is Jesus talking about Himself. He states that the approval or disapproval of those who do not love God is not important to Him. His goal is to have the approval of His Father...the only One whose opinion matters. How do we get God's approval? We've got a whole book to tell us about Him but in Matthew 22:39, Jesus shares with us what He says is the most important commandment. Jesus said, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself." If Jesus himself said that these are the 2 most important commandments then we know that in order to get God's approval, we must do these things.
2. If welcoming Jesus is so important, how do we welcome Him?
When we have a guest in our home, we do our best to make them feel welcome. We give them the best seat, we offer them food or drink, we make sure they are comfortable and we spend time with them. Welcoming Jesus involves the same thing. We give Him the best seat in our lives...a front row view of what's happening in our daily lives. We offer Him our first-fruits...the very best of our time, talents and treasures. We make sure He is comfortable being around us by choosing our words and actions wisely and we spend time with Him through prayer and quiet time.
3. If honoring Jesus helps us believe, how can we honor Him?
I think of so many things when I think of the word "honor"...honor roll, maid of honor, medal of honor, honor society and so on. Honor always connotates a good thing. To honor someone means to hold them in "high respect". We honor Jesus when we live our lives in a way that shows Him the highest respect. Honoring Jesus means we make decisions that we know He would be proud of. Pleasing Him and welcoming Him are both ways to honor Him.
If a special friend came to your house for a visit, would you do whatever you could to please them? Would you take the time to "roll out the welcome mat" and give them the seat of honor? How much more so should we try to please, welcome and honor Jesus in our lives? He honored us in the highest way possible by suffering and dying for our sins. There is no greater honor than this and there is no one else on earth who would be willing to honor us in this way.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Jesus Heals a Sick Man
October 16th
Middle & High School Chapel
We were in John 5 this morning. This is the account of Jesus healing the sick man by the pool of Bethesda. The pool was surrounded by many sick, lame and crippled people because it was known to have healing powers. The story was that sometimes an angel from the Lord would come down and stir the waters and the first person to get into the pool would be healed. Jesus saw the man and realized that he had been crippled for a long time and asked him, "Do you want to be healed?". The man answers that he didn't have anyone to put him in the water and that someone always beat him to it. Jesus promptly told the man to pick up his mat and walk and he did. Jesus did a miracle in the life of a man who had been sick for 38 years! It's an amazing story...you need to read it!
There are so many things we could learn from this account but some of the things we talked about today are:
1. Jesus expects us to do our part.
I find it interesting that Jesus told the man to pick up his mat and walk. He is Jesus...He could've just touched the man where he was and healed his body instantly. I've always wondered what would have happened if the man had said "Well, I'm just too ______ to pick up my mat and walk." (You can fill in the blank...sick/tired/weak/grumpy.) Would he have been healed? God will always do His part in changing our lives but He expects us to do our part.
My friend and her husband made a deal with their daughter on her 15th birthday that they would match whatever she raised in a year toward purchasing a vehicle. They assumed she would come up with a couple thousand dollars but they were wrong! At the end of the year, their daughter had raised $9000 and they had to match it so she got a REALLY nice car!
All throughout the Bible, God asks His people to do their part. He told Noah to build an ark so that He could save his family. He told Moses to hold out his stick over the Red Sea before He parted the sea. He told Joshua to march his troops around Jericho for 7 days before He delivered the city into his hands. What if Noah didn't feel competent to build the ark or if Moses was too tired to hold out the stick or if Joshua thought it was too ridiculous to march around Jericho? God expects us to do our part and He ALWAYS does His part!
2. Jesus expects us to obey Him fully.
Jesus told the man to do 2 things: pick up his mat and walk. He said this to a man who had been sick for 38 years. The Bible doesn't note that there was any hesitation in the man's obedience. It says that he picked up his mat and walked. I can imagine the celebration!!! Chip & I tell our kids all the time that delayed obedience is disobedience and partial obedience is disobedience. If I tell Chase that he needs to take out the trash and load the dishwasher and he only takes out the trash, he is disobedient. If the man had not obeyed God fully, would God have healed him? Because we are human, we usually only do what we think we need to do to get by. Even though we know what we should do, we have a hard time obeying "fully". Sometimes I wonder if God has so much more He wants to bless us with but our partial obedience thwarts those blessings.
3. Jesus expects our lives to change.
Did the man take Jesus seriously? I would assume so. I've been alive for as long as the man had been sick....38 years. I can imagine how I would feel if I were sick for 38 years and Jesus healed me....grateful, humbled, amazed, excited. After the man did his part and Jesus did His part, where did Jesus find the man? In the temple! In God's house! He had encountered Jesus and His life had changed! After we encounter Jesus, our life should change...it should be different. So different that other people notice. So different that our friends and acquaintances ask questions.
Sometimes I find it so hard to do my part. I know that God wants to bless me but I make excuses in order not to do what God expects me to. He tells us in His word to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). He promises to bless us and we can fully rely on His promises!
Middle & High School Chapel
We were in John 5 this morning. This is the account of Jesus healing the sick man by the pool of Bethesda. The pool was surrounded by many sick, lame and crippled people because it was known to have healing powers. The story was that sometimes an angel from the Lord would come down and stir the waters and the first person to get into the pool would be healed. Jesus saw the man and realized that he had been crippled for a long time and asked him, "Do you want to be healed?". The man answers that he didn't have anyone to put him in the water and that someone always beat him to it. Jesus promptly told the man to pick up his mat and walk and he did. Jesus did a miracle in the life of a man who had been sick for 38 years! It's an amazing story...you need to read it!
There are so many things we could learn from this account but some of the things we talked about today are:
1. Jesus expects us to do our part.
I find it interesting that Jesus told the man to pick up his mat and walk. He is Jesus...He could've just touched the man where he was and healed his body instantly. I've always wondered what would have happened if the man had said "Well, I'm just too ______ to pick up my mat and walk." (You can fill in the blank...sick/tired/weak/grumpy.) Would he have been healed? God will always do His part in changing our lives but He expects us to do our part.
My friend and her husband made a deal with their daughter on her 15th birthday that they would match whatever she raised in a year toward purchasing a vehicle. They assumed she would come up with a couple thousand dollars but they were wrong! At the end of the year, their daughter had raised $9000 and they had to match it so she got a REALLY nice car!
All throughout the Bible, God asks His people to do their part. He told Noah to build an ark so that He could save his family. He told Moses to hold out his stick over the Red Sea before He parted the sea. He told Joshua to march his troops around Jericho for 7 days before He delivered the city into his hands. What if Noah didn't feel competent to build the ark or if Moses was too tired to hold out the stick or if Joshua thought it was too ridiculous to march around Jericho? God expects us to do our part and He ALWAYS does His part!
2. Jesus expects us to obey Him fully.
Jesus told the man to do 2 things: pick up his mat and walk. He said this to a man who had been sick for 38 years. The Bible doesn't note that there was any hesitation in the man's obedience. It says that he picked up his mat and walked. I can imagine the celebration!!! Chip & I tell our kids all the time that delayed obedience is disobedience and partial obedience is disobedience. If I tell Chase that he needs to take out the trash and load the dishwasher and he only takes out the trash, he is disobedient. If the man had not obeyed God fully, would God have healed him? Because we are human, we usually only do what we think we need to do to get by. Even though we know what we should do, we have a hard time obeying "fully". Sometimes I wonder if God has so much more He wants to bless us with but our partial obedience thwarts those blessings.
3. Jesus expects our lives to change.
Did the man take Jesus seriously? I would assume so. I've been alive for as long as the man had been sick....38 years. I can imagine how I would feel if I were sick for 38 years and Jesus healed me....grateful, humbled, amazed, excited. After the man did his part and Jesus did His part, where did Jesus find the man? In the temple! In God's house! He had encountered Jesus and His life had changed! After we encounter Jesus, our life should change...it should be different. So different that other people notice. So different that our friends and acquaintances ask questions.
Sometimes I find it so hard to do my part. I know that God wants to bless me but I make excuses in order not to do what God expects me to. He tells us in His word to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). He promises to bless us and we can fully rely on His promises!
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Who is Jesus?
We have been studying through the life of Jesus from the book of John in Chapel each morning with the middle & high schoolers. I thought I'd share some thoughts with you each day about what we are studying that might spur "Jesus" conversation with you and your teenagers. All of us at Skipstone have been soooooo burdened about families....especially our school families and we want to do everything we can to help you! I know that many of you are not attending church right now for a variety of reasons. I also know that a lot of you are hurting...maybe even searching for something significant in your personal and family lives. We are praying for you everyday. Praying that God will make Himself REAL to you and to your family.
Yesterday we were in John 3 and we talked about Jesus' encounter with the woman at the well. You can read it or watch it here. We talked about 3 different characteristics of our encounters with Jesus.
1. Encounters with Jesus are not accidental.
Just like Jesus didn't accidently bump into the Samaritan woman at the well....He doesn't just bump into us. He knows WHO we are in our heart of hearts. He knows WHERE we are (physically & spiritually). He knows the "real me"...the good and the bad. He knows that specific sin that I am tempted by everyday! He intentionally meets us where we are.
2. Encounters with Jesus are life-altering.
They are not just "day-altering" or even "year-altering"....they are life-altering. After encountering Jesus, we should never be the same. How amazing is it that we can have an encounter and a relationship with the creator of the world??? One of the problems that we have is that we miss those encounters. We are so inwardly focused that most of the time, it doesn't even register when we have a Jesus encounter. I imagine myself as that Samaritan woman and I can just see me hurrying to draw my water so I could get out of there so I could get the next thing on my list accomplished. It's so easy to disregard Jesus in our daily lives. He wants to alter our lives but we ignore His work in our lives.
3. Encounters with Jesus are not something you can keep to yourself.
The woman told everyone she knew. She was compelled to share. One of our students had the opportunity to meet Matthew Stafford (quarterback for the GA Bulldogs) this weekend. Guess what she said to everyone she saw on Monday morning??? She told us all about her "encounter" with Stafford. He can throw a football but he can't save our soul. He is a great quarterback but he sure didn't suffer and die so that I could have eternal life. How much more should be be compelled to share about our encounters with Jesus?
For so many of us (myself included), Jesus is something we "do". We go to church. We send our kids to Christian school. We feel pretty good about our goodness when we compare it to our neighbors and friends. All the while we are playing a game. We don't KNOW Jesus. We don't do the things we know that we should do to get to know Jesus.
"Elf" is one of my favorite movies. The part I love most about that movie is when the department store manager tells Buddy that Santa is coming to the store. Buddy gets all excited and screams out "I KNOW HIM". I want so much to have that same kind of excitement and awe when I talk about Jesus. I want to be the one that "knows Him" and more than anything...I want Him to know me too!
Yesterday we were in John 3 and we talked about Jesus' encounter with the woman at the well. You can read it or watch it here. We talked about 3 different characteristics of our encounters with Jesus.
1. Encounters with Jesus are not accidental.
Just like Jesus didn't accidently bump into the Samaritan woman at the well....He doesn't just bump into us. He knows WHO we are in our heart of hearts. He knows WHERE we are (physically & spiritually). He knows the "real me"...the good and the bad. He knows that specific sin that I am tempted by everyday! He intentionally meets us where we are.
2. Encounters with Jesus are life-altering.
They are not just "day-altering" or even "year-altering"....they are life-altering. After encountering Jesus, we should never be the same. How amazing is it that we can have an encounter and a relationship with the creator of the world??? One of the problems that we have is that we miss those encounters. We are so inwardly focused that most of the time, it doesn't even register when we have a Jesus encounter. I imagine myself as that Samaritan woman and I can just see me hurrying to draw my water so I could get out of there so I could get the next thing on my list accomplished. It's so easy to disregard Jesus in our daily lives. He wants to alter our lives but we ignore His work in our lives.
3. Encounters with Jesus are not something you can keep to yourself.
The woman told everyone she knew. She was compelled to share. One of our students had the opportunity to meet Matthew Stafford (quarterback for the GA Bulldogs) this weekend. Guess what she said to everyone she saw on Monday morning??? She told us all about her "encounter" with Stafford. He can throw a football but he can't save our soul. He is a great quarterback but he sure didn't suffer and die so that I could have eternal life. How much more should be be compelled to share about our encounters with Jesus?
For so many of us (myself included), Jesus is something we "do". We go to church. We send our kids to Christian school. We feel pretty good about our goodness when we compare it to our neighbors and friends. All the while we are playing a game. We don't KNOW Jesus. We don't do the things we know that we should do to get to know Jesus.
"Elf" is one of my favorite movies. The part I love most about that movie is when the department store manager tells Buddy that Santa is coming to the store. Buddy gets all excited and screams out "I KNOW HIM". I want so much to have that same kind of excitement and awe when I talk about Jesus. I want to be the one that "knows Him" and more than anything...I want Him to know me too!
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