If.
Two letters, one word.
Jesus said: If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. (Matthew 16:24)
What is it to be a disciple of Christ?
It is to come after him. A true disciple of Christ is one that follows him in duty and will follow him to glory. A disciple…
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Added by Doug Morrell on November 28, 2010 at 2:23pm —
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The Lamp of ADONAI
“The human spirit is a lamp of ADONAI;
It searches one’s inmost being.”
-Proverbs 20:27
Paul once said, “Who knows the inner workings of a person except the person’s own spirit inside him?”(1 Cor 2:11a) This is true of every person who has surrendered all of himself to the LORD because only those who belong to GOD are
truly…
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Added by Federico Aguelo on November 27, 2010 at 11:39am —
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“One who doesn’t think believes every word, but the cautious understands his steps.”
-Proverbs 14:15
When you hear the news on TV, what goes on in your mind? When you read the newspaper, especially the editorial, do you ever question their line of thinking? When you read the newspaper account of
supposed events or published economic data, did you ever stopped to ask if
these information…
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Added by Federico Aguelo on November 27, 2010 at 11:36am —
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Added by Miguel Labrador on November 27, 2010 at 9:04am —
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Tomorrow our family will gather, like most of yours, to celebrate
Thanksgiving. I'll be giving thanks for many things this year, but one of the tops is for my kids.
I'm particularly thankful that not one of my kids will ask me to cut up their turkey for them or feed them their cranberry sauce tomorrow. In fact, the girls are ready to help prepare the meal. We won't have any babies with us this Thanksgiving, but if we did, they could feed them their Gerber Turkey and…
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Added by Michael Mack on November 24, 2010 at 9:30pm —
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I just need to be fed.
I love hearing people say this when they are very young followers of Christ. Babies need someone to feed them. My role and responsibility as a mature follower of Christ in the church (and by that, I mean the body of Christ, not an institution) is to help feed those babes in Christ.
I despise hearing people say this when they are mature followers of Christ. And…
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Added by Michael Mack on November 24, 2010 at 9:27pm —
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I once tried ice skating. It didn't go so well. I once tried the trumpet. No so good either. I have tried to grow watermelons in my garden. Vines look great but nothing remotely edible makes an appearance. After going to the pet store four times and replacing ten Africa Dwarf frogs (aquatic frogs for a fish tank), I gave up on the amphibians and bought a betta.… Continue
Added by Jeremy Amick on November 23, 2010 at 10:34pm —
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Ministry is really not rocket science nor is it complex. At least it does not have to be. Over the last few years, I have read a couple of bookshelves worth of books on church leadership. Everyone has a theory about how to get people involved in ministry and how to keep them there. There are no lack of strategies and advice in the Christian bookstore.
What if the process is very simple? What if God just gave us a gift for ministry and then provided a place for us to use this gift to…
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Added by Jeremy Amick on November 23, 2010 at 12:06am —
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I have been chasing after and not capturing the joy Jesus claims He can give us in our lives. Some have told me, and I think it is part of it, that I feel I don't deserve joy. What I keep being brought back to is that surrender is what brings joy, peace, and contentment.
That is hard, because being in control of your own life is hammered into us from a young age. Never surrender. Never give up. If it is to be, it is up to me. I don't know about you, but a lot of the things…
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Added by Mary Elizabeth Whitlow on November 22, 2010 at 5:06pm —
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Years ago, our family was headed out of town on vacation after some really difficult days at the church. My husband asked that we not discuss anything about the church while we were gone. I snapped, "Well, if we don't talk about the church, there's nothing left for us to talk about." He responded by creating a two-page, single-spaced list for me of discussible topics. The list reminded me of how deep our relationship ran throughout our lives.
A friend of mine has put forth…
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Added by Margie Williamson on November 22, 2010 at 11:08am —
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When was the last time you were asked to do something at church? How did you respond? Your response to being asked makes less of a statement about your commitment to the church than many leaders would want you to think. If you ask me to fulfill a task in which I have been spiritually gifted to do, you will not have to beg me to do it. The worst enemy to this desire is the distraction of other opportunities.
I love to teach. When I was saved at age 19, I did not receive a grand…
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Added by Jeremy Amick on November 21, 2010 at 3:48pm —
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Henry David Thoreau wrote, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout…
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Added by Doug Morrell on November 21, 2010 at 9:45am —
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Let me introduce myself (since I just joined this network). My name is Jeremy Amick and I am an Associate Pastor of Discipleship and Outreach. My job is to mobilize the people of God to do the work of the Kingdom. I have a deep passion to equip believers for the task of ministry. I am absolutely convinced that the every aspect of Christian growth (salvation through glorification) is a work of the Holy Spirit. Lastly, by way of introduction, I am completing a doctor in ministry research project…
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Added by Jeremy Amick on November 20, 2010 at 11:16pm —
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I'm preparing to teach Bible study tomorrow on verses from Genesis 12 and 13. One thing sticks out to me tonight . . . when God called Abram, He didn't give him any details. He only told Abram to go "to the land I will show you" (Gen. 12:1). There are times in my life when a couple of words or a phrase jumps out at me. This is one of those.
I've talked to a lot of people lately, some through this network, who have lost their jobs and are struggling to know what to do next.…
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Added by Margie Williamson on November 20, 2010 at 10:12pm —
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We know that Jesus was the greatest disciple maker who has ever lived, but how did He begin?
Though Jesus had many who followed, He chose only twelve ordinary men with a mixture of backgrounds and personalities to be His disciples. Jesus’ entire ministry depended upon these men who would go on to start the Christian Church. He began His discipleship ministry in prayer:
“One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to…
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Added by Doug Morrell on November 20, 2010 at 12:00pm —
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“I tell you, even if he won’t get up because the man is his friend, yet because of the man’s hutzpahhe will get up and give him as much as he needs.” (Luke 11:8)
What is hutzpah? It is a Hebrew word meaning shameless persistence. In the Greek, it is “aneideia” meaning impudence. It is a picture of…
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Added by Federico Aguelo on November 20, 2010 at 11:40am —
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Ever hear a song or jingle and just not be able to get it out of your head? Not too long ago, I attended the Fall Leadership Conference at Jack Hayford's Church on the Way. The worship leader led us in a worship song called, ONE WORD FROM GOD.
One word from God can make everything new again...everythings better with one word from God...so speak Lord and I will listen, show me your word...guide me today.
That song has blessed me SO much. I have it…
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Added by Jerry Linnins on November 19, 2010 at 10:00pm —
1 Comment
I used to envy the thief on the cross. He accepted Jesus and was immediately told he would be in the kingdom of God. He didn't have to figure out this Christian walk, this path of discipleship.
Growing up I didn't understand the concepts of righteousness by faith or the power of grace. Having been a "good little kid," I also found my moment of conversion a bit hard to pinpoint. But with a good bit of guilt, repentance, prayer, devotional reading, and more guilt, I plodded on--a battle…
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Added by Kathy Beagles on November 19, 2010 at 4:34pm —
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A.W. Tozer wrote:
"The facts are that God is not silent, has never been silent. It is the nature of God to speak. The second Person of the Holy Trinity is called the Word." (The Best of AW Tozer)
Do you believe that? I do. Do I always live out that belief? No... do you?
So, if God is speaking to us - if it…
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Added by Paul Dawson on November 19, 2010 at 1:12pm —
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Do we live with the commitment and confidence that we will never be ashamed of Jesus Christ? Do we have the freedom and the courage to bring glory to Christ in all that we do? Will our life honor Him no matter what, whether we live or die? These are the questions of ultimate satisfaction.
A Christian’s life is to be consumed with Christ. If we are living, we are…
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Added by Dave Shepardson on November 19, 2010 at 12:46pm —
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