revking88

Well first, God already knows what we are going to request. However, He wants us to have a personal relationship with Him so we have to make our requests known to Him. When we pray we are trusting God that he will answer our prayers. They may not always be answered the way that we want but they will always be answered the way that God wants and we must trust that what He wants is the way that it needs to be. We have to open a channel of communication so that we know and trust and have faith that He is hearing us and so we will know that He will do what is best for us. He wants us to ask, to talk to Him. Then He wants us to trust Him, that He will do what He says that He will do. Give us peace, security and the list goes on, and on, and on. Gods promise of peace, that surpasses all of our understanding will take away the anxiety, the worry. He will guard us, give us security. Guard our hearts...what a soothing thought. God, the Father will take care of us. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE ABSOLUTELY, PASSIONATELY LOVES YOU!!!

I think that thanksgiving makes the request more real. What I mean is that asking with thanksgiving in our hearts can bring the prayer down to the nitty gritty, what we really need deep down. Praying with thanksgiving acknowledges that God will do what He said that He would. God knows the desires of our hearts before we even ask Him, even before we know what they are. Praying with thanksgiving in our hearts causes us to think with our hearts when we pray, not just our heads. Our faith becomes stronger because we believe and see results. I think that thanksgiving opens a door of real communication with God. Our faith can only grow stronger. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE ABSOLUTELY, PASSIONATELY LOVES YOU!!!

I think that rejoicing in the Lord is a little bit of both, feeling and action. To be in a state of happiness and well-being. What is that? It is an inward feeeling of joy that is overflowing just waiting to burst outward. Nothing wrong with a real loud "PRAISE THE LORD!!!" as far as I am concerned. Rejoicing is a state of mind as well as an action or feeling. Rejoicing 24/7/365 is very hard if not impossible to do. When I feel down in the pits and rejoicing is the farthest thing from my mind I employ what I call "Fake it til' ya' make it." Not to deceive anyone except for my own mind. I will fake the joy, the rejoicing, the whole attitdue of salvation until my mind and body are filled with the true desire to rejoice always. The joy becomes real. It is like willing yourself to be well. You wouldn't believe the results and how close it can bring you to Christ. You gain more love for the Lord, more love for others, more love for yourself. Rejoicing can effect the body, mind and spirit. It uplifts the sick. It uplifts the church. It uplifts God. The list could go on, and on, and on. Rejoicing makes you want to rejoice, jump up and down and bask in the light of the SON. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE ABSOLUTELY, PASSIONATELY LOVES YOU!!!

Recognizing and affirming our citizenship cements our relationship with God. Conviction is vital to discipleship. How can others follow if theY don't see it in you? When we recognize and affirm our citizenship we have something to hold onto. We will not want to let go of it. We will do whatever it takes to keep it. We are strangers walking this earth, not of it. Our citizenship gives us a sense of belonging which in turn gives us a reason to turn away from the temptations of this earth. God has specific plans for our lives and if we get too attached to this world we will lose sight of that plan. We are to follow the laws of the land but we have to be mindful of the laws of God and not let the world pull us away. If we get caught up in the world we as a people, as a church will fall. Fight the good fight. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!

Paul is grounded in Christ. He knows that he is not perfect but he can still be an effective witness. We are hesitant because of the unknown. What will happen if I step out in the same kind of faith that Paul has and tell others to imitate me. What if I get it wrong? What if I stumble and what if I fall? When people claim salvation they think they have to be perfect examples which is impossible...just be the best example you can be. The Bible...we are to imitate the disciples and apostles, how they lived their lives for Christ. He also puts people in our lives that we can imitate until we are ready to take our own steps. Also God helps us to learn from our mistakes so we can help others from making them. Who is likely to imitate me? If I am lucky, my dog. As a minister I pray that I am worthy of having others imitate me and learn how to become one who can be imitated. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

To be called "upwards" or heaven ward is a great feeling. It is a call to come and get to know Him on a more personal level. To hear what He says that He wants for our lives. It is a call to spiritually stand up straight' To receive Christ into our hearts so we can do His will, so you know there will be a crown of righteaousness awaiting you. Yes I have. I was very stubborn about it but I was called to do. God has called me to do many things and I stand (most of the time) and do what He has called because I know it is all in preparations for finishing the race. There are times that I think God is out of His mind and I don't stand but He keeps at me until I do the right thing. Many things can cause our call to become dim. Being around unbelievers. Second guessing what you think God is calling you to do. You name it, there are stumbling blocks all over. You must keep a sharp eye at all times for Satan is cunning and it is his job to trip you up. Get back into the Word. Pray and pray often. To get ourselves right with God - salvation and be examples for others that they might come to know Him and the calling He has for them. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

When we look back in many cases we are looking at the things that defeated us. It seems as though that we can remember the mistakes better than we can remember our successes. Depression can set in. Second guessing is a big problem also. "If I had only done this instead of that, then my life would be so much better." Hind-sight is 20-20. If we continue to look at our defeats we will continue to be defeated. And how can we get past that to see the good that Christ has for us and truly get to know Him? You can really never forget the wrongs we have done in our lives. Forgiveness is the key. I need to get over myself to see my faults so I can forgive myself, forgive others and ask for forgiveness from those who I have wronged so I can focus on Christ. Once I do this I try put that wrong in a box in my mind and put that box on a shelf. When the thoughts of the contents of that box come out at me I remember that the box has to go back on the shelf. I remember that Christ has already forgiven me for what is in that box. When the temptation to open that box gets really bad I focus more on God and what He has done for me. I reach for Him and grab on tight. Yes, there are some things that I still need to forgive and ask forgiveness for. I started this process 25 years ago. I haven't reached some of the people I need to and some I won't be able to reach so I ask God to forgive me. I also need to forgive others for the wongs that were done to me. By asking for forgiviness and forgiving others I can get on with my walk with Christ. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU.

Hello everybody. A growing personal relationship with God. To know. I have faith in Christ that He will do as He promised. Knowing Christ is to know and understand what He did for us and why. To have and intimate relationship with Christ, that He is in your heart. Yes, because we have to believe, have faith that He did what He set out to do and that he offers us forgiveness and salvation. Yes, to know God is to have a personal relationship with Him and He knows us to. You must have faith that He exists to have that personal relationship. I don't think it is a relationship at all if you don't have faith. How can you if you don't understand why He did what did for you? If you don't know Him intimately the relationship is more like an aquiantance relationship than a personal one and those types of relationships do not last long. How can we have a personal relationship with Christ if we don't know Him. That is like saying our best friend is someone that we have only met once. We have to believe that God is going to be with us through thick and thin just like a true best friend. Once in a while your true best friend will let you down but God will never let you down and that is where faith comes in and where your personal relationship with Him becomes real. I have a personal relationsip with God. I believe that He came to save me and that if I were the only person on earth He still would have gone to the cross for me. It took a long time to grasp that concept. I know that He is my best friend and that He will never let me down. My relationship is not perfect because I still try to take control but he is always there waiting for me to come back to Him.There is so much more for me to learn so I can get to know Him better. The quest is never over.JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

Hello everybody. Righteoustness through the law is like living a good life, doing awhat is right in man's eyes. Righteousness by faith is standing and basking in the light of the Lord and putting all of your faith in Him. Doing what is right in God's eye, righteousness by faith, is not always acceptable by man's standards. At times righteousness by law observance effects us badly. Unfortunately we begin to think our "works" are more important. Also we have had a couple people brag about being the "only one's". They may be right by God's instructions but their motives are wrong. Our motive should be on doing God's will and be righteous because that is what He wants. Society's view of Christianity is not necessarily a good one. [U]"The most common cause of atheism is Christians, who acknowledge Him with their lips behind closed doors and not in their works in the open. That is what our unbelieving world simply finds unbeleivable."[/u] Righteousness is difficult to understand because our minds can't grasp the concept. It is hard to distinguish, at times, righteousness of the flesh and the righteousness of the Lord. Righteousness by faith falls on the narrow path that we are supposed to chose to walk on. Faith that God took our sins is hard because often times we wnat to take them back by saying that He can't forgive us for the awful things that we have done in our lives. Our minds can't wrap around this. When He took our sins He made us righteous so we need to give it up and let him have it for good. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

Hello everybody. Paul rejects who he was because he knows that he was leading a life of sin even though it was profitable. His "pedigree" set him higher than everyone elso and he saw that he was no different. He chose Christ and I think he saw that he could use some of his 'pedigree" to help advance the Word of God. Because his 'pedigree' was based on man's standards not Gods. If I dwell on it, it makes me question my worth which directily effects my faith..."God can't help me because my past has been so bad." Bad syndrome.[/size] JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

Hello everybody. At times "confidence in the flesh" shows up in the hearts of those who try to exalt themselves above others because they gave more money or more time or more of anything than anyone else. Mankind's heart is self-righteous and boastful. Oh, heck yeah. Most anybody would be lying if they say no. I struggle with it everyday. As hard as I try. There are times that I believe that I am the only one that is right. I am the only one that can do something and can do it right. If you want it done right, do it yourself. I am a perfectionist. I can do everything and all that I do is correct. My way is the only way and if you don't like it you can leave. I AM ALWAYS RIGHT, NEVER WRONG. I struggle with it everyday. I sometimes forget to include God in the equasion. I pray each day for the Lord to take the day and make it what He wants it to be. When I give it to Him I have much better results. I thank the Lord for giving us a Board of Directors that keeps me in check so I don't get a swelled head and can be a good example to those in HIS congregation. Confidence in yourself is not a bad thing because you have to know that you can do it, too much confidence can give you the swelled head that God does not want us to have. JESUS LOVE YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU!!!

It sounds as though it is serving Christ in a manner that is worthy of Him. They showed the outward love for Christ but inside they were selfish and needed instruction from Timothy and Eaphroditus on how to become worthy. Paul describes Timothy as a bond-servant, one who wholeheartedly serves Christ and is a mentor for the church of Philippi. Paul's description of Epaphroditus is as a brother, fellow worker, fellow soldier, messenger, and minister shows all of the qualities that the church of Christ should have. Paul wants the Philippians to honor Epaphroditus for the good work and faithful service he has given to the Lord. They are not to call him a failure because Paul is sending him home but that they are to listen to him and follow the example that he brings home with him.

In this passage the word slave is accompanied by the words wholeheartedly and serving God. We are to serve others as though we are serving Him in everything we do. (The parable of the Sheep and the Goats comes to mind.) A slave is one who does the will of his master. Serving Him as a preference gives you the idea that it is a choice. The question is, are you serving God and giving Him the glory or are you serving yourself and leaving God out of the equasion. It is to be done wholeheartedly. Timothy proved himself because he learned from Paul and made himself worthy to teach and preach the word of God, wholeheartedly. We must commit ourselves to the service of our Lord in everythingwe do. Serving the Lord has become a chore to them. It can be seen and felt in someleaders. Their hearts aren't in it. They will hurt the Church of Christ. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU

I have been very fortunate to have many mentors in my life. I was an athiest for a long period in my youth and God always put somebody in my life to change my way of thinking. At times I was very angry about that. The minister across the street, my college phys. ed. teacher, teachers at ORU. I could list a hundred people through out my life starting at the age of 14. God had blessed me with many people to shape and mold me into what God wants me to be. From being a devout athiest to a full-fledged minister was quite a trip. Our churches Lead Usher has much potential to do more of God's work but is a little timid about taking the first step. As Lead Usher he is responsible for coordinating the ushers duties each week. He greets everyone that comes through our doors with a smile and is very knowledgable in regards to what the Bible says about service to others. He responds well to direction. Our deacon has taken him under his wing to teach him and help him become a leader in our church. Yes I do. I am mentoring as a church member to a person who serves the Lord. (Not as a Minister). He has not taken the giant leap to belief but we talk about the finer points of God and have "arguments" together. He has taught me a thing or two about how to reach an analytical and extremely skeptical person. He keeps coming back to church so with the Lord's help I am doing something right. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU

Timothy genuinely cared for these people in the church. He was not looking for others to love him. He didn't want anything for himself while the church leaders knowingly or unknowingly are seeking to elveate themselves above others. Perfectionism-everything has to be perfect and I must be perfect or I am not effective. I know in my heart that I cannot be perfect and I have to fight it because it has a bad effect on me too. Also, I tend to believe that I am better than anyone else. Not because I am a minister but because this is how I was raised. Believe it or not having the last name King has a lot to do with it. I fight that feeling everyday because I know I am no better than the person sitting in the last pew who isn't sure they want to be there. I know that by trying to be a humble servant of the Lord I set an example for others to see. Also, I used think that I had to carry all of the load. I am a control freak. Everything falls on my shoulders and I am very reluctant to give some of it to others to handle. I have learned that I can't do it all. It has made me physically ill at times. I now keep only the things that fall under my "job description" and a few other things and I let my leaders do the rest, usher control, greeting, programs, getting music together things like that. Once I learned to let that stuff go to someone else my stomach stopped aching. Every once in a while God will allow something to happen in my life to knock down a peg or two. (I don't mean this in a negative way.) At times we all need a little re-direction. At times it seems as though He has hit me with a 2x4. He has taught me that I am to "strive" to be perfect and let others see so they may learn. When I begin to get "puffed up" he deflates me and humbles me so that I can serve Him better and become selfless as He is and so I can focus on helping others. My deacons are very loving and kind but have no trouble in telling me what they think. Thank God it doesn't happen as much any more. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU

I think it can honor God by the way we handle our struggles. We are going to have them whether we like it or not. If we handle them in a poor manner (Oh, poor, poor pitiful me) you are not showing a good witness to Him. If you handle your struggles in a Christ-like manner and know that Christ is going to get you through it then it will honor God because it is a good witness. If I know that I am struggling and if I keep the faith then my struggle is not in vain. If during the time of my struggle someone is watching to see how I react and I handle it in a Christian manner then I have been a good witness and have hopefully planted a seed. My struggle has had a purpose therefore it has much value.

We need to "hold fast" to the Word so that we don't lose it, so that it remains forever in our hearts. We are also to "hold forth" the Word of Life so that others may see it and come to believe. A church is supposed to be bonded to the Word of Life. The Word is the Truth and if the church doesn't show the world, teach the Word, live the Word, the church will fall and the message forgotten. The church will fall away from its calling. A church is to stand on the Word and live the Word. Hold Fast and Hold Forth. A church is to be bonded with the Word and reach out to the world at the same time. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU

When you stop the complaining and bickering and let God's love shine through the Church others will see it and glorify God. Shine the "Light" so that all may come and see what the Lord can do for them. It shows the love of God, star are light and the "Light" is Jesus. In the church that I attended in Tulsa, arguing and complaining kept people from coming back after one visit. They could feel and see that the church was not unified. The church also lost many members. Finally it split. People could tell there was no love even when they couldn't hear the grumblings going on. In the church that I am pastoring now we are very open. Board members often ask the congregation members what they think and feel. What kind of ideas do they have have that might make our church more appealing to others, not in physical appearance but in the ways that we, as a church can shine so that others will see the love and the light of God and come to know Him. We encourage our members to keep us in check and they expect the same. We are a very small church but we are growing a little bit at a time. Our members enjoy being a part of our church growth and see the results when someone comes back a second time. As a board we try to work together and let the congregation see how we work so they have an example to live by. JESUS LOVES YOU, HE REALLY LOVES YOU.

Each person goes through their own experiences as far as meeting Christ and asking for salvation. I do believe that it is referring to salvation from sin. Both individuals and churches need the same salvation or deliverence or to be rescued by God for their sin. As individuals it is the personal relationship that you have with God. As a church it is letting Christ into the sanctuary, the offices, meetings etc. The church needs to follow the teachings and collectively ask for forgiveness and salvation so that they it may be able to do God's will and act according to God's purpose.

Because the Word says it over and over again. Jesus leads the way by example and through His own teaching. Jesus said it Himself. It is in our very nature. We want our rewards NOW! That is the way most of us were raised. Exalted is a kingly word and we all want it right now. Impatience is our nature, patience is learned. It is hard to wait for our exaltation an even harder for us to remain humble because we are human and we tend to exalt ourselves over everything. Sin, exalting ourselves over others, not serving others as we a supposed to do.

If Jesus was pretending to be human He would have been a deceiver and the only deceiver I know of is a snake in the grass. Jesus suffered the same hurt, the same pain as we feel. He was tempted as we are. He dwelled with us, slept with us, ate, all the things that we do that makes us human. He bled for us. I would say that He was by all means human. Jesus came down from heaven, born of a woman. God made man. By birth and by appearance. By becoming human He could truely understand what it is that we go through every day of our lives. He needed to be here to bear our sins. He had to understand.

Jesus came from heaven to be with us here on earth as a human, to take our sins to the cross. God is the Father. Jesus being the Son, does not cling to the equality because "Father Knows Best". He asks the Father to take the cup but shows his humility by saying, "Not my will, but your will be done." He came to earth to serve the Father but most importantly to serve us by giving an example of how we should live. 2:6 states that Jesus is very nature of God. This shows that He is divine and equal to God.

Humility shows that we do not think of ourselves as better than anyone else. It encourages us to look beyond ourselves and toward the needs of others and of the church. Not only does the individual need to show humility but the congregation itself as a whole needs to show humilty. We need to humble ourselves as a church so that we may be able to serve others. Lack of humilty in my church eight years ago caused the church to split. Each side was looking to their own wants, needs and desires and since neither side would humble themselves and work together to find common ground it split with much animosity. Not only was the church split but lifetime friendships and in some cases marriages were destroyed. It was a sad time for all. I am now the pastor of a different church in a different state. I learned that first and foremost we are to teach and preach the love of Christ. To show Jesus'example of forgiveness and humilty. We try live they way of humilty and show others the love and service we have for others. We frequently ask the question "What would Jesus do?". We as a congregation try to serve Him by doing and by doing so we "promote" humilty because we put down our pride, our selfishness to help others in the things that they need.

Fear keeps us from doing the things that God wants us to do. W cannot be confident in what we say or what we do. If we try to witness and have fear in our heartss it will be seen and the person we are witnessing won't be able to believe. Because we are ashamed to speak the gospel. It effects our confidence. Its a win-win situation. We have lost our life to Christ on this earth and we can walk this earth with Him in our hearts. He will supply alll of our needs. On the other hand if we suffer physical death for Christ we have a great place to go. What fear? Just about everything on this planet. No, it is not that bad. I work in a field that does not allow to talk about Jesus unless they ask me a specific question. My fear is that with my current failures, if they ask I will steer them in the wrong direction. I am also afraid that I will go beyond the boundaries that I have been given. The fear is the balancing act that I must adhere to. Most of all though, my fear of failure, past, present and future. It is hard to have a clear witness when you are always afraid that you will fail.

Because with God being in control He gives us something to hold onto. It gives us strength to be able to do His will in whatever kind of cirgumstance we are in. We must believe "that ALL things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose." I KNOW that God has a purpose for my life. When I became a Christian I was an atheist and not an easy atheist to "corrupt". It took months for my friends to "break me". I saw Christ in them, not because they were relentless (and they were) but because of all of the crap that I threw at them they never wavered and the still loved me. At times I stilll don't understand why they didn't give up but even with my short-comings and my struggles right now God still loves me. I know he has a purpose for me because I have seen it. He has laid the path before me... I just need to stay on it. How do I know? To quote a once great evangelist, "I know, that I know, that I know......."