CoffeeCupApologetics

How Should the "Good News" Be Given?

2008-12-10T10:37:00.011-05:00

This is what I sharred this pastt Friday at Group...I'll probably add a little more to since this is a huge topic and needs lots of discussion to make lasting convictions. As I said in the meeting your personal conviction of this area could change the entire world...

1 Peter 3:15-17
15.
but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence ;
16.
and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.
17.
For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.

Well...what is our motivation for giving the Gospel to others? Are we always sure that it is with the best intentions or do we have other motives for telling people a message of love? One thing is for sure though if we needed help form God to achieve salvation then we are most probably(I've been hangin around JJ a lot) are going to need his help in telling other people about it.
As men our hearts can be deceiving, Jeremiah 17:9-"The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick ; Who can understand it?" , we can not give the Gospel if our hearts are sick can we...we need God to work in our hearts to give the Gospel in the right way.
So as the verse in 1 Peter says we must sanctify Christ in our hearts. To sanctify means to set something apart and make it holy for sacred purposes. This is a process not a quick fix, this is a devotion to but Him first in your heart as soon as you get out of bed in the morning. True and meaningful grow takes time and effort, and it also might be painful for a time. This process is Jesus sanctifying our hearts so that in turn we can set him apart in our lives, without him cleansing you from the inside-out you cannot give the Gospel as he intended it.

On a side note, if you have not made a decision for Jesus Christ to be the Savior of your life then I beg you do so now. This will not really make sense if you don't and more importantly you need God's unmeasurable love in your life. If you pray to accept that Jesus paid for your sins and ask him to come into your heart then that will happen. This only takes less than a minute and the choice is yours....

Compare 1 peter with...Col 4:5-6
5.Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders , making the most of the opportunity.
you should6.Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how respond to each person.
...a big problem today in Christian culture is integrity. We say one thing and do another, which makes it hard for people to believe what we say is true. Before we go any further, remember that our God is one of grace and mercy...whatever you have done He forgives not matter what if you come to Him. Do not let the enemy confuse you, if you have believed in JC then you are His "adopted child" and have received His Spirit, he cannot reject Himself can he? (Eph1)
This is paraphrased from Ravi Zacharias-"If I were to take your clothes and rob a store would that be fair? When the police show up and see me in our clothes then go to your house and arrest you is that fair? We say someone wearing your clothes robbing the store and no one else they would say....we wear the cloak of Christ be careful how you live."
To my knowledge no one alive has physically seen Jesus so, when people want a tangible example of someone who is supposed to know him they look to Christians. We are the only example they have, if we don't have good integrity then we are lying to people about Jesus.
When giving the Gospel this issue comes up in being judgmental and angry towards people. On campus we have a group of people who use microphones to preach a message of hate to the campus. This is not the way Jesus wants his love to be told, and on the flip side "I don't need to tell people about God, I live my life as an example so they know I' a Christian," when you get down to it that is like the biggest cope out I've ever heard.
We are supposed to glorify God with our lives and our words. How does God feel when we don't and try to make ourselves look like something we're not?....
Numbers 20:7-13
7.
and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
The Water of Meribah
8.
"Take the rod ; and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink."
9.
So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had commanded him;
10.
and Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock. And he said to them, "Listen now, you rebels ; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock ?"
11.
abundantlyThen Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod ; and water came forth, and the congregation and their beasts drank.
12.
in the sightBut the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them."
13.
Those were the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel contended with the LORD, and He proved Himself holy among them.

Because Moses tried to make it look like it was him who brought the water he was not allowed to go to the promised land. In what ways are you doing this in your life now?

I will post the rest later

I am the Workmanship of God

2008-10-28T11:10:00.005-04:00

Ephesians 2:10 NAS

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

The definition of a workmanship according to Webster: 2: the art or skill of a workman ; also : the quality imparted to a thing in the process of making workmanship>

Like Mikey said, we are all made in the image of God and have value because of that. That cannot be redefined no matter what we do. If God has adopted us as children is there more for us ? There certainly is since we have to Holy Spirit to teach us and now God has direct access to our hearts(if we listen to him and are humble that is). So what is the deal about the verse saying that these works were prepared for us beforehand? Does that mean no matter what I do, I will always be within God's will?

No...of course not, that won't be until we're in Heaven with him. Secondly, what does that tid bit imply for your life? If there are people or circumstances that God has for you, what does that change for how you live your life now? Are you seeking to be the man God needs you to be/wants you to be? As I see it if you have a free will to do as you please whether it is God's best or not, and God has opportunities for you life to take hold of him and experience his best. The question being asked now is if I'm looking out for those opportunities today to find God's best.

You might ask," Well isn't God in control of everything in life and no matter what I do Heaven is still my ultimate destination right?" Yes...that is true but, why do I get the feeling that a justification is coming up for a habit that God would not approve of. I have never heard a statement like this come from person who is not falling in an area of character. A big issue with that question also is man's free will, does it matter what I do in light of God's sovereignty? Well ...I am not a very smart man but, it seems to me that I should changes the things I can and leave the stuff I am ignorant to or helpless to change up to Christ. If God controls all our actions then we are robots...if that were true then we would all be like Jesus in character, since that is not so, I'm willing to bet that we are not like robots. Generally speaking, this argument is brought up when someone is unwilling to let go of some secular habits. What sense does it make to say that prepared works means I can do whatever I want and still fulfill them? It doesn't, so we should realize that it is up to us to be humble and alert of opportunities to be more like Christ.

Guys please comment on this.

May God's Peace Rest in Your Hearts,

Kyle

Imago Dei

2008-10-14T23:25:00.001-04:00

Well, good afternoon once again! It is that time of week that I am sure you all look forward to so fervently. I am all out of lab and good to go.

I was pleasantly surprised at the response to last weeks e-mail. I know for sure it got at least one motor turning and incited an awesome, edifying discussion on the role of mercy in the government, the purpose of the government and other related topics. As I was attempting to play Devil's Advocate, I posed this question: can a non-Christian genuinely display mercy?

As I briefly tossed around the notion in my head, I concluded in the negative. I figured people from the world would always have some sort of ulterior motive that would persuade them to act mercifully and therefore that act was not genuine.

But then as I discussed this even further with 2 people at the Women's Conference, I had a rather interesting paradigm shift. You see, what I failed to recognize is that all men (i.e. people, not literally "men") were created with the imago Dei (image of God - Gen 1:27). All people, were created in the image of God, this is not just exclusive to Christians. As a result, everyone has the ability to portray all the characteristics that God does (mercy, grace, etc.). And when you think of this, it makes sense: how else would parents [who do not fear God] be able to show love and affection to their child?

I think it is critical to recognize this attribute in every person. It definitely is a great way of understanding each person's worth in the eyes of God. If each and every person has the very attributes of God, it logically follows that He cares for them -- at least enough to infuse them with His own characteristics.

This is why the claim that people make in efforts to reconcile the creation narrative with the scientifically accepted theory of evolution is false. The imago Dei is precisely what separates man from beast. Evolution essentially equates man with beast, but since we are fundamentally different from the rest of creation, it is clear to see that it is just impossible. We were created and therefore could not have evolved from lesser species'.

So yea, it was a very cool (and aided) epiphany!

MTI

"Sanctification" - Religion VS Relationship (Continued)

2008-10-11T14:11:00.004-04:00

"It's NOT about making Jesus Christ Lord OVER my life, but about making Him Lord OF my HEART. Many do the first, but few do the latter." - JJ

Let me explain…

I believe that many well meaning Christians after trusting in Jesus Christ as their Savior begin to put a good effort into changing their lives. We go to church, we try to read the Bible every day, we try to obey the Bible, we try to get as involved as we can in "ministry" serving the church, and so on... This is all good, but I believe as Christians, we have neglected and lost focus in our discipleship of new believers in the most important area…

“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.
- 1 Peter 3:15

Let me break down this verse and then continue to explain my thought above…

Step 1) Sanctify Christ as Lord in your heart (Surrender and brokenness before the Lord; total Surrender of all your life. Trusting God in all areas of your life, not just your eternal destiny)

Step 2) Be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you (your testimony and sharing the gospel)

Step 3) YET with gentleness and reverence. (Showing love, compassion, kindness and gentleness, and demonstrating God’s love to others, not just “Bible Beating.”)

Ok, so what I was saying before… I believe that our Christianity has become all about religion and we have neglected the most important process of becoming truly broken before the Lord in total and complete surrender of our hearts (lives). When someone accepts Jesus Christ into his/her life, we quickly get that person plugged into the church, we start giving them Bible studies, we begin to train them in how to share their faith with others (Step 2,3) and we complete bypass the most important step, “Sanctification of Jesus Christ as Lord in our hearts.”

I believe that the church is doing great at sharing the good news of eternal life. The Great Commission is being obeyed. God’s church is growing, but I think that not enough real true, DEEP healing is occurring in the lives of those we disciple. Don’t get me wrong, I think the healing process is occurring. God begins that process the moment we open our hearts to Him and we accept Him as our personal Savior, but I think that the Healing process has been neglected when it comes to discipleship of new believers. Why do I think so, because of my own experience, because of this NEW place in my life of brokenness before my God and King, because of the amazing healing that has occurred in my heart, because God has been showing me what the process was in my life, because as my heart has been healed, and because I now can see past my own wounds and hearts. Before, I was neglecting “step 1” because I was wounded and hurt myself. I could not see past my own insecurities, sins, hurts, pride, etc. So as I gave of myself and shared my life with others, as a man who still needed healing, I could not help others in that process of healing in them. As I stand now, healed, I look about me and I see SO MUCH hurt within the walls of the church. Yes, church is a place for those who need healing, but I find the ratio of those who are healed enough to help others in that process to those who need healing to be way off! The pastors cannot do it all...

My prayer is that God continues to do the Miracles (as He has been doing in me) and that more believers may come to that place of 100% brokenness before Him. That they may be healed to the point where they can turn around and help lead those around them to that same place of brokenness before God.

Disclaimer: Don’t miss-understand, One ONLY needs to believe in Jesus Christ and put their trust in Him for eternal life in order to be saved (Titus 3:5, Eph. 2:8-10, John 3:16, II Cor. 5:21). I just think that God as our Heavenly Father wishes to heal our broken hearts, so that we may better serve Him. God wants to do great things in us and through us (Eph. 2:10). Again, we first need a Savior, we then choose to make Him our Lord. But we ONLY need to "Believe in Him." - If you do not know how you can be 100% sure you are going to Heaven the day you die, click here and find out how you could know. I serve God, not for my salvation, but out of gratitude for what He has done for me. I serve God because I love Him!...

Disclaimer 2: The growing process is on-going. God is still working in my life. Though I find myself in an amazing place of surrender before my Lord, surrender is something that must occur daily as we make choices and continue to grow closer to God.

“For 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.” – Philippians 1:6

“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…” – Hebrews 12:1-3

Continuing: I know that for me, I continued to put a big effort into “growing in Christ” and I put a big effort into reading the Bible, and in serving, but in my heart, there were many areas that I had not surrendered 100% unto the Lord. I was trying to obey God, and I was giving Him most of my heart, but I had areas in my Heart that still needed healing and areas in my life that I was not putting my complete trust in God. I had desires I was not surrendering before the Lord. I did had a desire to serve Him, but in my own terms. I had insecurities that I was not surrendering to the Lord and trusting Him. I appeared “healed” on the outside. If you asked anyone, I have been a “model” Christian all my life, but on the inside, there was still much hurt, shame, insecurities, etc. and it took God a long time to heal me. I was “image managing” my life. Today, I am a broken person before my loving Heavenly Father. To quote Mercy Me’s song “No More No Less” …

“I'm not trying to hide anything
I wear it on my sleeve
I'm not trying to be something I'm not
This is all I've got
I'm not trying to re-invent the wheel
Just trying to be real
I'm not trying to say follow me
I'm not the one who leads

Let me introduce myself to you
This is who I am
No more, no less
I am just a man who understands
Because of [God] I'm blessed
No more, no less

I'm not trying to prove anything
It's all about the change

I hope you stare just long enough to see
The heart that's beating here inside of me
Beyond all the things you may think you know
I'm just a kid trying to make it home, that's it
No more, no less”

You know, the world does not need more religion. Most people (if not all) are religious in some way or another. This is what God calls pure and undefiled religion…

“…to visit orphans and widows in their distress…”

Religion is good, but God wants our hearts, not just our good deeds.

Friend, if you do not know where you are going the day your die, TODAY is a good day to find out. We do not know what tomorrow may bring, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the day I die, I will go to Heaven to be with God. You too can be 100% sure that you will go to heaven... Click Here and learn more. Don't wait till tomorrow, Today is the day you can put your trust in God as your personal Savior.

to learn more click here: www.jjsierra.com/theanswer

If you have any questions, if you don't understand something I said above, please feel free to send an email at: jj@coffeecupapologetics.com

I leave you with these last two quotes…

“We must give God and others their rightful place in our hearts.” – John Ortberg

“We trust God with our eternal destiny, but we have a hard time trusting Him with the rest of our lives.” - JJSierra

Religion VS Relationship

2008-09-22T13:45:00.000-04:00

"It's NOT about making Jesus Christ Lord OVER my life, but about making Him Lord OF my HEART. Many do the first, but few do the latter." - JJ

My Quiet Time

2008-09-20T22:58:00.003-04:00

14How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not
believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have
not heard? 15And how shall they hear without a preacher?
And how shall they preach unless they are sent?
Romans 10:14,15 (NKJV)

21But to Israel he says: "All day long i have stretched out My
hands to a disobedient and contrary people."
Romans 10:21(NKJV)

We have been sent by GOD to preach his gospel and his word. Not everyone will accept what we have to say. That does not mean we have to give up. We also have to be clear in what we say. If we are trying to reach out to someone one who does not share the same vocabulary we do, it will be hard to try to reach them. If we have no other way of talking to them, I think we must be clear and explain everything we say.

This is something I am currently working on. It is very is for me to be talking to someone and using words that I use among some brothers, but the person I am talking to will have no idea what I am saying.

An Old Man and His Smokes, The New Man and His Heart

2008-09-16T14:56:00.000-04:00

Man...I have not blogged in a while...here is the latest on what God has been teaching me. And this past week I bought New Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell, and I am very excited to post in the future on what I will learn.

At one of our last meetings it was Pablo, Josiah, and me at a Starbucks in Canton right after our activity at a nursing home. It was just the three of us for the meeting and a couple new people came for the first time too.

First, watch the video here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLY7yI1xV-M

We read the entire Chapter of Romans 8, and talked about the Holy Spirit.

First, the Holy Spirit that raised Christ from the dead is the same one that lives inside us. We have the power to overcome the world at our fingertips everyday. The problem however is that these tents we live in are in the way of God's will and his love. Our sinful nature or default modes as Mandy says are hostile towards God. Paul said that the mindset of the flesh is death because nothing it produces can please God and lead to spiritual death. However we are in the Spirit...which means our minds are supposed to be on peace and life, this is what it means to bring every thought captive to the throne...that we humble ourselves and check our attitude to see if it falls in line with Jesus.

The Bible says that our flesh could be compared to an old man who is depraved and has sin written in his heart. Imagine a ragged old beggar who keeps bothering you just so you can buy him some smokes or a drink. This man can look as far as his next high, drink, etc. That is who we were before we came to Christ and accepted his love, however, that does not get rid of the old man inside or his addictions. When we are reborn then a new man is created to the glory of God and he is what will be raised up on the last day. I am not going to even attempt to describe the image of this man because it would be an injustice to the workmanship of God. This is the heart of peace and life that the Father has given us, its desire is to bring a sword to evil in the world and to bring light to the rest of the lost. This man is in a war with the old man from the moment of his birth and will be until he is raised on that day. So how does this man grow from being a baby to a warrior for God? Walking in the Spirit....

How can we know for sure if you are in the spirit or not?....Well, for starters have you accepted that Christ came down and paid for your sins with his very life, and then ascended to Heaven to be with you forever? If you have not made a sincere decision for Christ then you don't have The Helper AKA The Holy Spirit, so make that choice to accept that God chose to love you and everyone else despite who we "really" are on the inside. If you are having trouble understanding this then email me, you can also ask God to give you understanding then read THE GOSPEL OF JOHN ....If you have already made that choice then this next paragraph is for you.

If you have accept Christ...TERRIFIC...NOW WHAT? Well, if you have not looked at that video then do so now. Notice in the beginning that they energetic and are just going through the motions, much like religion asks us to do...to go through the motions. When they start singing it's a bunch of mumbles and weighted hearts. So what do they do, they go back to basics and just do exercises...isn't that a waste of time and even embarrassing? Well when the start singing again it was not embarrassing but amazing at all but beautiful.

The concept is really quite simple...you have to feed the new man inside you to over power the old man. Which ever one is stronger in the moment is going to be the one who wins. So we have to feed and workout that new so the old man does not have any opportunities to grow. Because how can something grow if it does not have the means to do so? It can't...so create those moments for the new man to grow and read God's word so that you have knowledge of the truth. Finally, it won't happen unless you decide for it to happen.

God Bless'
Kyle Howington

There are ONLY TWO kinds of people in the end...

2008-09-04T21:12:00.000-04:00

"Those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Thy will be done.' "
- C.S. Lewis "The Great Divorce"

Wow...

"The Great Divorce" is a short but VERY insightful fiction book - I recommended :)

Announcement:
We are currently meeting at "It's A Grind" coffee shop at 4:00pm on Saturdays. Please contact us for more information. We don't always announce if we will not meet. For the most part, if I'm in town, I try to always meet. See you next Saturday!

Website: http://www.itsagrind.com/location/?c=152

In Spite Of...

2008-08-26T16:17:00.001-04:00

Good Afternoon!

Well, Fay is out of the way, but there is a small chance Gustav comes to visit this Labor Day Weekend. (Sorry, I tried to find something that rhymed with Gustav, but I got nothing.)

A conversation this weekend led me to think about the story of Rahab and the 2 spies she harbored (found in Joshua 2). I have been thinking about that fact that she lied to the King of Jericho and yet everything seemed to work out perfectly. The spies got away and the Israelites eventually conquered the land.

... so did God overlook that lie? Did he allow it simple because it would benefit the spies?

Brother Andrew had a policy when taking Bibles into foreign countries: he would not lie to the guards when asked if he Bibles. Why? Because lying is a sin.

So, let's call it for what it was. Rahab lied. Why then did God bless the situation? Because He is in control and sovereign and merciful and gracious.

And even when I think of my own life, isn't this true? How many times have I figuratively shaken my fist at God in defiance and received blessings in return? That's not this say that this is God's modus operandi, but in His mercy, He chooses to bless us. I look at my life now, and I see how many blessings I truly have, and I am blown away. If we truly got what we deserved, we would be in Hell, right? So this truth is applicable in our lives. In spite of our sin, God chooses to bless us, and He's the simple reason why: He loves us.

Then, don't we need to make it our effort to please Him in return? 2 Corinthians says that we should make it our goal to please God. How many goals do we have? Get an A in this class; save money; get prepared for the future. So many goals. Well, add one to the list... Please God. Make it your goal to please Him because He loves you and blesses you.

MTI

"Relational NOT Religious"

2008-08-25T22:02:00.000-04:00

"When sharing our faith, its like introducing a friend (Jesus Christ) to another friend." - Josiah Fernandez

Vanity

2008-08-21T00:21:00.001-04:00

Hello, Hello... Hola!

Then there is something about vertigo, but I guess that's just for Bono.

How are you all fairing with Fay? I thought she was held at bay. But hey, I enjoyed the 2 days off or work... mmm-kay. Tomorrow should be a great day, just like it were May.

I've spent my past to days watching foreign films and attempting to write a 16 page term paper by next Monday. Oh boy, the excitement is unbearable. But I am getting antsy and want to leave the house and do something. Hopefully tomorrow, though.

In any case, the issue of vanity has really been on my mind and how we all try to control our appearances - especially in today's day and age of photoshop and digital manipulation. We all have this perfect image in our minds of how we should look and get fussy if this ideal is not somewhat met. I think it's especially pervasive amongst women. Girls feel such an enormous pressure to control their appearance because they need to assimilate to the "girl model" that society and media idolizes. So what if a picture makes you little different, that's the beauty of it! Guys aren't exempt either. What makes this issue even worse is that we have gotten to a point where we actually let this control our actions. We forego our desires in order to control our appearance.

"Oh, I can't go because I don't have the right pants."

Sorry, can't make it... bad hair day."

"Please delete that photo, it makes me look fat."

I could keep going... but it's not just about appearance. Maintaining our reputation also falls into this category. So how do we change it?

Well, this problem is only the surface issue. The root of it extends in our identity in Christ. Knowing where we stand in God's eyes, it will not matter how anyone else perceives. Now, I am not going to cease my personal hygiene routine because I could careless what other people think; that's just absurd. But what I am getting at is this: knowing that I am created in God's image supersedes any other opinion. We were specially created in the womb by God.

Perhaps the saddest part of all this is that we have allowed this issue of appearance above the necessity to be there for friends. It's a manifestation of selfishness.

MTI

It's Friday, but Sunday is coming!

2008-08-19T11:44:00.001-04:00

Good evening all!

Here is a question to ponder: how do you think the disciples felt during the 3 days Jesus was dead? Were they dejected and depressed? Did they fully trust and rely on the words of Christ? Did they doubt? I'm sure all those elements were involved at one point or the other.

The disciples had two positions to assume on the day after Christ's death. They could believe or not believe. Notice that if the disciples had solely focused on the fact that their Lord was dead and buried in some man's tomb, they certainly would have been dejected and depressed. They would have doubted His authentic messiahship had they not taken solace in His words.

Ok, so here is my point... Lately, I get the feeling that we can sometimes get lulled into having what I call spiritual myopia. We live in the moment and lose sight of the freedom found in the liberating words of Christ. Aside from the biggies, whom we will marry and what we will study, we tend to concentrate on the here and now. It's understandable (because that is precisely how the majority of society lives) but it is not justifiable (because it's flat out wrong). Many of the commands we are given span over our entire life. They are indefinite (i.e. be holy, walk in the Spirit, pray without ceasing) so it is easy to see how we are expected to be looking ahead.

As an aside, one skill that is severely lacking in today's day and age is self-analysis. We fail to introspectively dissect our intentions and motivations. Without this technique, we cannot know what areas of our lives need improvement. Where do I constantly fall into temptation? In what areas do I need to practice more patience? This is absolutely necessary for us not to lose sight of what's ahead. How can I be expected to be constantly walking the spirit if I am not recognizing what interrupts my relationship with Christ?

Back to the disciples: In the moments following Jesus' death, His followers had to decide whether or not they were going to look beyond what they see and act upon what He had said - trusting that He would resurrect. I'm sure things seemed bleak in the moment, but they were not focusing on that day. They were looking ahead. They were looking past the 3 days he would be lifeless.

In the 18th century, if I am not mistaken, there was a Puritan preacher who delivered a famous sermon. His one and only point was this: It's Friday, but Sunday is coming.

It's Friday, Jesus is dead. There are many people mourning and weeping. It's devastating. But you know what? Sunday is coming. His resurrection is nigh. His glorious appearing to reconcile the situation is a mere 3 days away. Ecstasy and jubilation is not far off.

We must look past the here and the now and live life with an eternal and lasting perspective. Don't lose sight of the purpose in life. Don't get lost in the triviality and monotony of the everyday. So yea, let's avoid spiritual myopia. Use the corrective lens of the Bible to restore your vision. And don't worry, that analogy, albeit true, is corny even to me, the King of Corny.

MTI

Sad News - Serene Bean is CLOSING! :-(

2008-08-07T17:15:00.001-04:00

The Serene Bean is CLOSING!!! - It was where this all started...

Some of us are meeting TONIGHT (Thursday, 8.7.08) at 7pm for one last CCA get together at the Serene Bean. ALL are welcome to join us...

CCA will STILL meet on Saturdays. We just need to decide where. Do you know of any good Coffee Shop (not a StarBucks) in the Woodstock area? Let us know :)

Well, see you at the Serene Bean one LAST TIME :,-)

Acts 16:25

2008-08-06T22:05:00.003-04:00

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
Acts 16:25

What this verse makes me think is that rejoicing or how bad the situation is, is a state of the mind. When we think about it no situation is too tough or too bad for GOD to find a solution to. I think that some of the worst situations we're in do not compare to some of the things that happened to Paul and the apostles. Yet in the middle of being in jail they were singing and praising GOD.

Faith in God

2008-08-02T11:53:00.005-04:00

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
Hebrews 11:1
>
"Being sure" (convinced) is an intellectual state of being. When we are sure of something it will affect our emotions and eventually our actions. It is dangerous to reverse this process and allow our emotions to lead our intellect and our lives.
>
But how can we be "sure" that what we believe is correct or that the One we are trusting in is Real and Trustworthy?
>
All the faith-acts of the people in Hebrews 11 are based on their belief that God exists (He is Real) and that He is Good.
>
And 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.
Hebrews 11:6
>
Therefore He is worthy of our Trust and Faithful obedience.
>
How do I know He is Real? Should I just believe in Him like kids believe in Santa Claus or the ancient Greeks believed in their mythical gods?
>
No, my God - the God who had revealed himself through the Bible - wants us to use our heads (our reasoning skills) to come to acknowledge his existence and goodness (Isaiah 44:6-19; John 10:37-38).
>
Here is a very brief summary of why I believe in him:
>
1) Nature itself cries out that the Creator God exists and is good. Side by side Creationism is a more reasonable explanation of the beginning of life on earth than evolutionary theories.
>
2) Natural Law and Philosophy

2nd Law of Thermodynamics
Cosmological Argument - order and beauty in the world
Teleological Argument - design and purpose in the world
Law of Cause and Effect - "Every effect must have and adequate cause"

After we conclude that God is Real and Good, He expects us to follow his commands by faith, just like Abraham and the others did. Abraham considered God faithful (Heb. 11:11) therefore he humbly obeyed him (Heb. 11:8-11).

For me, there is enough reasonable evidence to believe in God, to believe in the Bible as his revealed thoughts for mankind, and to believe in Jesus Christ as his Son who died and rose again for the salvation of the world.

Mandy

MamaPundit - Check out this BLOG!

2008-07-29T13:01:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone... Check out this BLOG when you get a chance. My Mom finally started posting and she is full of wisdom that we can all tap into. She just wrote a good post on a book that she recommends.

http://www.jjsierra.com/mamapundit/

Glory in Knowing God

2008-07-23T00:15:00.000-04:00

Good evening all!

How are you all doing? Seriously, I want to know. I feel disconnected from some of you... it's summer though, so I guess it's only natural for us to head out separate ways.

As some of you may know, the concept of glory has really been on my mind for the past couples weeks or so. I just realized that all the past meetings I've given have been somehow connected to God's glory. Well, along those same lines, I read this verse not too long ago: "Thus says the LORD: 'Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,' says the LORD." (Jer 9:23,24 - NKJV).

Did you catch that? We are not to glory in ourselves or our accomplishments, "but let him who glories glory in this: that he understand and knows me." We are took glory in the fact that we know God! This illuminates the fact that knowing God is an extreme privilege. I am reminded of the verse in Psalms 8 (?) that questions our importance: "what is man that you are mindful of Him?" What makes us so special? Why me? Why you? Why?

I don't know; haven't you ever taken your relationship with God for granted? We've been Christians for so long to it sort of becomes second-nature. Our intimacy with Him loses its pizazz. We become so used to it that it is no longer anything special.

I'll tell you, I don't know what makes me any special and why Christ chose to die for me and the rest of humanity. I don't know why He is mindful of us. But I accept it. I welcome it. I may not understand it, but I will glory in the fact that He knows me and that He loves me. I do not want to take my relationship with God for granted, because that denies Him the glory that He rightly deserve. Remember, God will receive glory; that is not a question. The question is, then, will I be the vessel which voluntarily gives Him glory?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I still don't know why I have been thinking about this so much lately. I don't know what the Lord is teaching me yet. Obviously, I know it is about glory. But why glory? How can I apply this? I need to think about this some more... which shouldn't be a problem; I like thinking =)

As for this Friday, we will be having a Cry Out Night at the building. The theme will be giving your life to Christ. Let's go ahead and begin preparing for that time. Include it in your prayers and ask God to make that evening a special one. It certainly has the potential to be a powerful night.

I don't think there are any other group related announcements that are e-mail worthy. Just remember that we will recap and finish the second-half of the game we started on the 18th. So be there next Friday (Aug 1st) at Chelsea's house!

See you Friday!

MTI

Mission Statement

As a cell group, we exist to foster intimate relationships amongst fellow believers, united under a common desire to become spiritually mature. We desire to grow closer to God and one another, so that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 4:11)

GOD IS HERE...................HE NEVER LEFT

2008-07-20T01:08:00.002-04:00

HOLA COMO ESTAN?..................hoy estuvo interesante mi día, cansado, pero aprendí mucho.

La verdad nosotros tenemos que salir de esa religión que tenemos en nuestras vidas, porque Dios nos tiene algo mejor que es la relación con El, y tenemos que revestirnos del conocimiento a fin de saber el real propósito que él quiere para nuestras vidas. (Colosenses 1:1-14); y que no debemos esperar que venga....................................porque:

El nunca se ha ido sino que dejo El Espíritu Santo aquí con nosotros........ (Juan 14:26), (1Juan 5:7).
El mora dentro de nosotros, (1Corintios 3:16) y nos guía (Romanos 8:14) como lo hizo antes.
Que nunca cambia que tiene las mismas cualidades que las tubo desde el principio con el mismo poder divino de ser omnipotente (Lucas 1:35) que todo lo puede, omnisciente (1Corintios 2:11) que todo lo sabe, y omnipresente (Salmos 139:7-10) que está en todas partes.

Así que tenemos que tener una relación con El, que no tenemos que esperar disfrutar de su presencia, de sus enseñanzas, porque lo podemos hacer ahora y la mejor manera es orar, leer la biblia, tener comunión y entregar nuestra vida en servicio a Él.

Ya que tenemos El Poder de Dios con nosotros (Hechos 1:8) para darlo a conocer en todas partes, estemos entonces preparados para cuando llegue el día en que Dios desciende de los cielos estemos listos para disfrutar su gloria en su totalidad (2Pedro 3; 12-18).

JTM.

Welcoming Weakness

2008-07-16T11:17:00.001-04:00

Hello! Hello! Hello!

I want to mention, really quickly, that you cannot spell awesome without me ;-P. lol

Let me get off my high horse...

So how are you all doing? I've been living my life in the fast lane lately, but I've been traveling in the HOV, so it's not all that bad. Let me tell you, though, I was really surprised by last Sunday's meeting. Jerry was on the ball, on the money, off the chain, and off the wall. haha. I really like how he emphasized the fact that what matters is how we conduct ourselves in spite of our weaknesses. We are human and will be weak; that, of course, is apparent. So the deciding factor then is what we do about those weaknesses. How do we combat them? How can we make them strengths? How can we use them to have Christ build and mold our character?

Second Corinthians 12:9 says that God's "grace is sufficient for you, for [His] power is made perfect in weakness." Also, note that Paul writes how he wants "to know Christ and the power of his resurrection" (Phil 3:10). So, in order to intimately know Christ and have fellowship with Him, we must welcome our weaknesses and use them to embrace God's perfecting power. Look at Paul's reaction: "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Corinthians 12:9, 10).

So what do we do about our weaknesses? We delight in them, because it is only then that Christ can use us to the max. I must confess, this is one of those dichotomies that I do not fully comprehend. But nonetheless, I accept it as truth, and you should too!

MTI

:: Hope ::

2008-07-12T15:16:00.007-04:00

The difference between the world's hope and Christian hope...

"The world hopes in their deeds with uncertainty. We hope in Christ's deed with certainty!" - JJ

Dictionary.com
Hope - noun: the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best:

We have a "better hope!"
"...(for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God." - Hebrews 7:19

Hope in The Living God:
"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance." - Roman 5:1-3

"And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." - Romans 5:5

"For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." - Romans 15:4

Overflow with Hope - By The Power of The Holy Spirit!

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." - Roman 15:13

Hope until the end!...

"we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end." - Hebrews 6:11

"LOOK BEYOND"

2008-07-10T13:10:00.003-04:00

Estaba mirando una de mis películas favoritas THE LION KING 1 -1/2 y al verla por tercera ves miré a Timon que es amigo de Pumba, pasando por lo mismo que muchos de nosotros que seguimos a Dios nos pasa. (lucas 21:17)

Sin darme cuenta Timon antes de conocer a Pumba tomo una decision importante que iba a cambiar su vida totalmente, el quería ser alguien diferente a los demas de su misma especie, el estaba cansado de la vida que tenía: "cabar hoyos", ocultarse del las hienas, y permanecer en la oscuridad.

El sabia que habia algo más, el quería ver luz, el quería ser diferente, "vivir en paz", no correr más, estar sin temor. El se sentía rechasado por su manera de pensar, su propia especie lo rechasaba, pero el tomo una decisión, que es muy dificil ya que dejando a su mama se fue de donde vivía a un lugar que ni el sabia como era. (Mateo 10:37) (1 Juan 3:13)

Ya estando caminando el mismo se pregunto "que estoy haciendo aqui? y con llanto en sus ojos de un arbol salio Raffiki el mandril asutandolo le dijo "que es lo que quieress hacer?, a donde quieres ir?, mas claro que pongas una dirección donde quieras ir.........

y le dijo LOOK BEYOND de todo lo que ves, Mira Mas Alla de lo que ves...........el mirando lo único que vio es desierto , sol, hambre, soledad, pero el mandril insistia :....Look beyond y miando mas alla Timon vio un lugar hermoso lleno de animales, de comida y de Paz.(Apocalipsis 21:6,7)(apocalipsis 21:4)

asi que miremos mas alla de lo que vemos aunque con rechaso o en cualquier desierto que te encuentras en tu vida porque dejame decirte elijiste bien en seguir a Dios porque al final la Paz reinara en tu vida, y todo lo malo pasara................. animo.

One Spirit for a Whole Lot of People

2008-07-05T18:31:00.012-04:00

What is unity? (please tell me your opinions on this)

Hey guys, how's the week going this blog is about what God is currently doing in my life. Are we supposed to be filled with fuzzy feeling when we run into a person who rubs us the wrong way in our ministry? I can't recall a time when I felt "fuzzy" after someone undercut my opinion on something. In fact I had to suppress the urge to cave someone's face in on more than one occasion. I have not achieved the level of Super Christian yet, so I can't put a fake smile on and pretend that I agree with everyone around me when I really don't. It is ungenuine to be two faced with the closest people in your life. So how do we overcome the me-syndrome enough to still edify others without burning bridges?
If you can't back up what your saying then rejoice....God is disciplining you that very moment.By our love for one another we are known to be his disciples...what does that imply? I think it means that we love each other by the example of our Savior, who while we were still sinners died for us. He knew our lives did not honor his father and yet he still went to the cross. To a lesser extreme we should overcome the urge to exalt our opinions as an ultimate authority, none of us are prophets but we are part of a body of saints. We must hold fast to God and the Spirit of Truth that speaks to us so that we do not become conceited and believe we are our own truth.

Ephesians 4 - Unity of the Spirit - 1) Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2) with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love,3being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4) There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5) one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6) one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. 7) But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.

In Corinthians 3 Paul writes that we plant a seed ,and God waters it. It is God who brings every good thing into our lives and nurtures us to grow in his glory. That is why it is so important that we are unified under God's will and the pursuit of it, because if we are not pursuing him then we are working against him. If we trust in Him, by which all things were made, then we don't need to worry about who we are or where we are because it will be exactly where he needs us. If we are unified by faith and love then we are allowing his hand to move us and strengthen us in the body.

So...we need to need unity in truth (why are we unified in the first place) and love (the means which we can stay in unity) so that we can be where God wants us.

First things first, examine yourself...How are your prayers going these days....How often and with what attitude do you read the Bible....Do some soul searching. We serve in different units but still march under one banner....and that banner is at war with the darkness of this world. If we cannot love each other then how can we give his love to a world in pain?

God Bless-Kyle

Life, The Great Adventure!

2008-06-26T23:02:00.003-04:00

I've been thinking about life, contemplating on my life...

I've been thinking about life... How it's simply a journey. Parts of this journey are beautiful, other parts are not, but ultimately, what makes this an exciting and adventures journey is the ultimate desitnation...

C.S. Lewis said this, "You have not met a mare mortal."

Click Here to read the rest of my Post at www.JJSierra.com/LivingTheDash

Well, someone needed to break the 12 day blogging drought.

2008-06-26T11:47:00.001-04:00

Geez Louise, I have so many thoughts hurdling through my mind that I hardly know what to talk about now. I suppose what has been at the forefront is something quite subtle - so much so that it might go completely unnoticed.

I read this interesting verse: "Then they said to Him, 'What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?' Jesus answered and said to them, 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.'" (John 6:28, 29 - NKJV)

In order to do the work of Christ, we are to believe in Him. As simple as that... and of course, it makes perfect sense. That's because it is the truth. Regardless of the source, so long as what is being said is compatible with the Word of God, it is truth. I could be a one-legged wobbling drunk quoting a bible verse and I will be considered a vessel, albeit smelly, relaying God's truth. That is why we are told to filter everything through God's word, our only source of infallible truth (cf I Thess. 5:21).

If we believe in Christ then we will do His work. Again, it's that simple. Here is where it gets grayish: We sometimes get to lazy to figure out what we believe. Obviously, we have the basics down... trinity, baptism, salvation, yadda, yadda, yadda. But when it comes to the more difficult questions, we tend let someone (or something - like the church) else do all the research and substitute their opinion for our own. We abide by the convictions of other people.

By far the most debated topic I have come across which actually has relevance to the college-aged crowd is the question of dating. I think a lot of us feel this issue is too divisive, or too questionable, or too whatever, to actually come up with our own opinion. So what do we do? We let the church pick for us, then go by what they say. The problem with this is that it will not withstand the test of time once that specific conviction is scrutinized. If you merely substitute your personal belief for a credal belief, you are not taking ownership of that belief and will thus be more supple and lenient with how you conduct your life. Of course, this principle is applicable to anything, not just dating.

We must know what we believe and know why we believe it in order to be the most effective in working in God's kingdom. I'm sure it can be difficult and confusing at times, but it's benefit will surely outweigh the trouble in the long run. It will remove all doubt and ambiguity allowing us to live lives in certainty (especially in regards to how we make decisions) and removing footholds from the devil.

As a closing thought, think back to Abraham and the narrative where he was commanded to offer up his son Isaac as a sacrifice. Abraham would have been doubting God and His promise had he not truly believed in Him. He knew of God's promise to have his descendant's number more than the stars in the sky, and by firmly believing in that, Abraham was able to conduct himself with certainty and absolute faith in God.

'Tis all

MTI

"When the earth all around is sinking sand, on Christ the solid Rock I stand..."

2008-06-14T22:05:00.005-04:00

[Thank you, JJ, for such a warm welcome to your blogger’s community of dedicated acorns. =D I feel privileged to be a part of CCA. With that said…]

I’ve been learning more about postmodernism [PM] and how it relates to our culture and our church. “Postmodern Times” by Gene Edward Veith Jr. is the best source I’ve found so far. We need only read the Bible, however, to discover that PM is not new. Judges 21:25 states “…everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Matthew 7:24-27 helps give us a deeper understanding:

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

In relation to this passage, Gene E. Veith goes on to say,

“The history of modern thought consists of a succession of foundations—the rationalism of the Enlightenment, the emotionalism of Romanticism, the will-power of Existentialism. It times of crisis, however, when ‘the rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew,’ each of these humanly built foundations collapses ‘with a great crash.’ Today we see the rejection of all foundations.” (G.E. Veith 225)

The sands of time are continually shifting. I don’t think we need to concern ourselves with figuring out what rationalism, romanticism, or any of the other ‘isms’ were all about; the point is that all man-made philosophies fail, because there is no other truth apart from the character of God. All of those ideologies claimed to be the truth, but because they were not founded on the Word of God, they have all collapsed (and the same fate awaits future false philosophies). Postmodernists are now simply denying the existence of any foundation. Like Veith says, “…postmodernism seeks to live with the chaos, to avoid foundational judgments altogether.”

To put it rather simplistically (extremely simplistically, in fact, but bear with me), imagine hundreds of scholars trying to figure out the answer to 2 + 2. Some claim it is 5; others claim it is 0; still others are certain it is 100. Then a postmodernist comes along and says “Don’t be ridiculous, all of your answers are wrong.” [We breathe a sigh of relief; finally someone who agrees that all of the scholars’ answers are wrong.] Then the postmodern glibly adds, “But don’t bother looking for the answer, because numbers don’t even exist. Just go ahead and make up your own if it feels good. Or don’t. Whatever.”

Okay, it obviously involves much more than that, but that really is the core idea behind PM. And sadly, many Christians are buying into it. I would venture to say the majority of Christians in the West are buying into PM. So it is our responsibility as followers of Christ is to

“stand firm on the two foundational concepts now under attack: morality and truth. ‘The ultimate proof of the sinner,’ said Luther, ‘is that he doesn’t know his own sin. Our job is to make him see it.’ Proclaiming God’s Law can bring conviction of sin; at that point, our job is to proclaim the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ” (Veith, 228).

Jesus made our choice very clear. Anyone not for Him is against Him. There really is no “going with the flow.” If you’re not actively following Christ, you are rejecting Him. If we sit back and do nothing, we are helping the enemy. Yet the victory all ready belongs to the Lord! The only thing in question is whether or not we will join in battle.

Denzel Washington plays the role of a debate coach in the movie “The Great Debaters.” He asks his students, “Who is your opponent?” to which they respond, “He does not exist. He is merely a dissenting voice against the truth I speak.”

All of this relates to the Emerging Church and to us, as the body of Christ (more on the emergent movement later). In the meantime, I hope you take some time to pray about this and learn a little more on postmodernism. I highly recommend the book I’ve been quoting, as well as a message on CD by Stuart McAllister, “The Postmodern Condition.” I believe you can order that CD (as well as more, I’m sure) through the Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (rzim.org).

Thanks for reading, God bless!