Reflections: January 25, 2009

This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Worship

Ephesians 4:17 With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. 18 Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. 19 They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
20 But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. 21 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, 22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. 23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. 26 And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
28 If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. 29 Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

This is a pretty straight forward approach to being salt and light, yet very hard to accomplish in life. What is one thing either on this list, or in your own life that you need to give to God in order to allow Him to move freely in you and make a difference in the lives of the people around you and circumstances you find yourself in every day? What is an aspect of your life that you need prayer for an increase in faith and expectation that God can move and use you to make a difference?

Reflections: January 18, 2009

This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching & Worship

This Sunday we started a new series designed to prepare us to go out in our community to love and care for others in the name of Jesus. The focus of week one was packing for our trip. We used the Beatitudes found in Matthew 5:1-12 as our packing list. As I reflect on this passage there are a couple of things that stand out.

 

First, the beatitudes are not to be seen as a multiple choice type of deal. The follower of Christ cannot pick and choose which ones they want to to live out. We are to embrace all of them. Which one of the eight is the easiest for you? Which one is the hardest?

 

Second, each of the eight are not a once and done deal. When we cooperate with God, He builds these eight qualities into our lives. We are people in process and so our list of beatitudes is something we will never perfectly achieve but are charged by Jesus to pursue as we live reflecting Him. What does this mean to you? Does it give you encouragement to try? OR Does it make you want to give up trying?

 

The last thing I want to mention is verse six. We are told that "God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied." I think this is so cool because if we come craving righteousness as a person craves food and water, the promise is that we will be satisfied. God will help us achieve doing right as we intensely pursue righteousness. What a promise of God!

 

What are you reflecting on after hearing the message this week?

Reflections: January 10-11, 2009

This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Youth

As we see the importance of getting off of our church grounds with the intention of getting involved in our community, what are some ways that you have done this in the past? What are some opportunities that you foresee having in the future? In relation to that, what are some projects that we can get involved with on February 22 for our Outward Bound day of service? Please give whatever suggestions you have and be sure to consider the gifts, talents, and resources that God may want to use in this outreach. In weeks to come, sign-ups for these projects will begin and we encourage everyone in the LBF church body to sign up and participate in any way they can or feel led.

Reflections: January 3-4, 2009

This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching & Worship

In part one of this two-week series I talked about two ways we have "hit our thumbs." One of those ways talked about how our church is getting older and that part of our focus this year will be to reconnect with a generation that, for the most part, is missing from our church. That generation is the 23- to 38-year-olds. People in this age group can be either single or married and either have young children or have no children. We are still in the learning process of how to reconnect with this age group. As you think about this age group or are in this age group yourself let me ask you to respond to a couple of questions:

 

What are the needs that you know of for this age group?

What are the questions they are asking?

What are the unique challenges they are facing?

What needs to change to help make LBF an attractive place for this generation?

 

Let me know what you think. Use the blog link below.