Bite Your Tongue
Have you ever said something you ended up regretting? Just because we think something doesn’t mean we need to say it. This list will help you know when to bite your tongue.
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Are You Qualified?
Who or What has the ability to qualify you? If you are a success or failure?
1st Qualification system: grades
Schools around the world spend a ton of money and resources to develop standards and tests.
They summarize student academic progress with a universal system of letters or numbers.
Do you remember the days your universe revolved around grades? Maybe it didn’t and your parents thought it should. Do you remember report card day?
Preview of “judgment day minus the cherubs and the big white throneâ€
We get performance reviews every year and you are reminded either you are above or below a certain line for creativity, team work, or accomplishments.
Based on our performance we start labeling ourselves in our heads.
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A Guilt Driven Life
Guilt is good.
You may think I meant to say, “God is goodâ€, but I actually said what I meant.
I believe Guilt is similar to pain.
Do we like pain? No. But, it is good for us. If we ignore pain, we can really damage our body worse than it already is. If there’s no pain when we pierce our skin, we won’t look to see if we’re bleeding or clean up the cut. If we don’t clean up the cut, we’ll get infected, and it will hurt. It will hurt because we’ve let foreign germs enter our body that are not good for us. It hurts so that we’ll do what we can to remove the infection. And if we don’t take care of the infection, it could get worse. The very worst is that we could lose a body part; have to remove it because it’s beyond repair.
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Of Earth And Clay
The Golden State Warriors finished their regular season last night, with a 73 and 9 record that set a new record. And remember, Coach Kerr was a member of the 1995-96 Bulls that had set the previous 72 win record. Stephen Curry would surpass the 400 3-pt mark and end the season with 402, crushing his own previous record-setting pace of 286 3 pointers last season.
But this team understands where true power comes from.
Long before the Golden State Warriors earned their peerless place in the NBA record books … they held a chapel session that included an apropos message.
“YOU HAVE THE WINNING HAND,” the program cover that also featured the Warriors logo read. “II CORINTHIANS 4: 5-10.”
Sam Amick – USA TODAY Sports
So let’s look at that passage.
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The Cross – What It Means
While it’s not quite Easter, and tomorrow is Good Friday, they day we commemorate Jesus being crucified, we’ll focus on the Easter message, Jesus raising from the dead.
Do those words sound almost mythical do you? When you think of someone raising from the dead. It’s probably one the reason’s many have a hard time believing in Christianity.
But if you think about it, bringing back the dead should be no harder than turning water into wine for the creator of us, this world and indeed, this universe.
Our whole salvation hinges on us believing that Jesus did rise from the dead. But if you had a hard time coming to this before you became a Christian, or if you still do, you are not alone.
Let’s look at these scriptures before we take communion.
Don’t Stop Short
Do you remember a time when you stopped short of something?
Sometimes we are that way with our prayer.
The Power of Truth
What do you think is something that keeps you from being close in your relationships and home and at work?
How does pride create distance in relationships?
What is it like to work with (or be married to) someone who is proud?
What can we learn from bad King Ahab?
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. 30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him. 31 He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. 32 He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria. 33 Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him.
Do you think King Ahab started out intending to be the most evil king Israel ever had? Do we start out intending for evil in our lives?
Let Down Your Nets
A Bible Lunch In Two Parts
2 and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake; but the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets.
3 And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the people from the boat.
4 When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.â€
5 Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.â€
6 When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break;
7 so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink.
8 But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!â€
9 For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken;
10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men.â€
11 When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him
It happened this way:
2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together.
3 “I’m going out to fish,†Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.†So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?†“No,†they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.†When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!†As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,†he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water.
8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.
9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.â€
11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn.