Who am I seeking to deliberately influence for Christ? When will I spend time with them? How will I make it clear to them that I am for them? How can I get to understand them and their life better? … Continue reading Start Here: A Simple Plan for Helping Others Grow
One of the best ways to describe what it means to be a Christian is to be a slave of God. Now we don’t always think of it like that. I was reading a book by Michael Card, and he … Continue reading Slaves…
Habits. How would you define this word? A habit is something you do on a regular basis without really having to think about it. It is a practice that has become such a part of your life you do it … Continue reading Life Change
Introduction: Over the course of a month, I want to help you appreciate the Bible more by helping you get a better understanding of the story the Bible tells. As Tim Keller has written, “We usually read the Bible as a … Continue reading True Story Day #1: One month of Bible readings to help you understand what the Bible is about!
Opening Questions: Have you ever been in a situation where you thought someone was in the wrong only to find out later that you had misread the situation? Does that mean we should never evaluate what other people do and … Continue reading Charitable Corrections: A Small Group Study Guide
Lesson 1 When Life Hurts Summary This lesson shows what the Bible teaches about how to respond to the difficult experiences of life. Outline 1. Getting Started 5 minutes 2. Responding to Trials 45 minutes Goals To teach students why it is important to respond to trials in a biblical manner, to show them how to respond to trials in a biblical manner, and to help them understand why they should respond to trials in a biblical manner. Lesson Preparation As you prepare this lesson think about the difficult experiences God’s brought you through, what you’ve learned from them, the … Continue reading Handling Trials Worksheet
Selfishness can cause you to become angry. It also can keep you from becoming angry. Sometimes we become angry because we are overly concerned with ourselves, but there are other times when we do not become angry because we are overly concerned with ourselves. This is part of what I think is behind the statement Paul makes in Ephesians 4:26 and 27. He writes, “Be angry and do not sin.” There are times when we need to become angry. God is glorious. Sin is awful. Injustice is real. And we are supposed to feel something about all of this. Anger … Continue reading On Not Sinning When You Become Angry
There’s no question we have to fight for sexual purity. If we are going to experience the maximum amount of joy that God intends for our lives, we are going to have to fight for it. But how? It’s one thing to be told that we need to strive to be holy and it’s another to have a strategy for doing so. Fortunately the Scripture is loaded with resources we can use in this war for joy and holiness. We have been looking at some of the counsel Paul gives us in this regard in Ephesians 5:3-6. So far we’ve … Continue reading Ten Helps for Fighting Sexual Temptation part three
God doesn’t only tell us to fight against sexual temptation, He also helps us understand how. In a previous post, we began looking at Ephesians 5:3-6 and saw the first two of ten helps that Paul gives us. 1. Pursue a self-sacrificial lifestyle. 2. Commit to a radical approach. Today, let’s look at three and four. 3. Develop a deeper appreciation for your new identity in Christ. Paul tells us that sexual immorality must not even be named among us, as is proper among the saints. Actually there is no the there. It is just among saints. He’s reminding us … Continue reading Ten Helps for Fighting Sexual Temptation part two
Over the next several days I want to share ten pieces of counsel from Ephesians 5:3-6 for those struggling with sexual temptation and greed. 1. Sexual sins are often the fruit of a self-centered lifestyle. Paul begins this passage which calls us to put off sexual sins with the word but which tells us he is making a contrast. The contrast is with the self-sacrificial lifestyle he has called us to in verses 1 and 2. When you are struggling with sexual temptation it can act like a warning bell in your mind that perhaps you are at the same … Continue reading Ten Helps for Overcoming Sexual Temptation
