Sunday, November 11, 2007

How to see God Work - Do what He says

More teachings from the Pulpit. Today, Pastor Mike was going more into depth on his Jonah teaching. It was a GREAT sermon and really hit home to me. Here are some of the verses that are amazing:

"So you see, it isn't enough just to have faith. You must also do good to prove that you have it. Faith that doesn't show itself by good works is no faith at all - it is dead and useless" - James 2:17 NLT

"...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve... but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

Both of those verses are incredible because each discuss the responsibilities of our faith. Questions arise like: am I living the best life so others see something different in me? How is my faith a part of my daily life? And who am I serving... my own selfish desires, or am I serving Christ with everything I do?

Pastor Mike gave us 4 points to remember on how we can do what God says:

1. Commit to thanking the God of 2nd (and 3rd, and 4th, and 5th, etc) Chances.
2. Commit to Unlimited Obedience to Christ's plans
3. Commit to Joyfully serving
4. Realize that the things God commands me to do are his absolute Best for my life.

Points to also remember:

*God's plan for our lives is infinitely better than ANY plans we as humans make.
*Choose if you're going to be hot or cold - Don't be a lukewarm Christian - it's all or nothing.
*Our behavior must follow our faith - actions, words, etc.

And last, but definitely not least, BE GENEROUS! There are 4 different types of people in the world, and God calls Christians especially to be generous to those around us. The 4 types of generosity are:

1. Not at all generous - self focused
2. Sometimes generous - when it works for you
3. Frequently generous
4. Sacficially generous- giving by faith.

I just thought that today's sermon was too great not to pass along to others. Pastor Mike also shared a personal story of him when he thought he met the woman he was meant to be with. Even though the two of them had nothing in common and constantly fought with each other - he would still pray daily that his relationship with this girl would be blessed and that God would bring their hearts together. That story, definitely hit home for me. I definitely thank God for unanswered prayers. Although, the prayers were answered, God just said no to them. Because there is something better and more fitting for me in my life. My future is in His hands, and as we said earlier, God's best is the ONLY best I want. I can't make my life what I want it to be, it can only be what God wants it to be. And I pray I'm a blessing!

I'm praying for you blog friends tonight, and for everyone I know and love. You all mean so much to me, and I hope you know it. :-)

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