Sermon Rick T.- stories

Mk 2:1-12 the story of the four men bringing the paralyzed man
Paralyzed man was stuck, dependent upon others for everything. We often get stuck like that. Began to Hope that Jesus could change his life. His friends had the same hope for him.
The Pharisees doubt that hope. They see the miracle, but question Jesus instead of praising God.
Others are not sure about Jesus. Questioning, wondering.

God can use this story to speak to our lives, our stories.
Are you stuck? Hurt? Paralyzed in some way?  God can change our lives, our stories!!

We must come to Him, and wait for his timing. We need to passionately pursue Him in faith!! Don't be lazy about your pursuit of Jesus. Be creative about getting to Him, because he is worthy! Give your life to him, no matter what, even if things don't go the way I want.
Want God to live in, through, and for me. The bible is how we get to know him.

The friends desperately wanted their return to meet Jesus, and they went to great lengths to get him there.

Watch out, because our hearts can be far from him, even if we are surrounded by the things of God all the time. Be careful not to be judgemental or hypocritical.

Always remember that others are watching what we do and say.

Sermon: away in a manger

Lk2:8-11 the little Lord Jesus - the LORD
Jesus is Lord - a person in authority and control over others,  boss
Who do I trust in more- me or Jesus? He IS the boss of me!
He's the lord of salvation - praise God! He paid the price for me! Ro10:9-10, 13 confess him as LORD Mt7:21-23. IS HE LORD OR NOT IN MY LIFE???
He's Lord of every day- Lk 6:46-49 why do you call me Lord and don't do what I say? Am I saying LORD with my life?? How do I know what he's telling me to do? PRAY Prov3:5-6, acknowledge-submit-know (Adam knew Eve)
Don't leave him in the manger!!! Rev3:14-20 you're comfortable and lukewarm
He is LORD! No matter if I say so or not, he is. Rev19:11-16, Phil 2:9-11

Sermon: O Holy Night

Written by a non Christian poet and musician based on Lk2.
The Christmas story is the answer to the evil that is in the world like in the CT shooting this week.
We are all capable of such evil, apart from the salvation of Jesus.
HOPE - Jesus is our hope Heb10:19-23, solid hope, knowing it's true. Ps 147:11 we are hopeless without Him, our hope is really all we have.
-We find hope in Jesus during the tough times. Lam3:21-25 His compassions never fail, they are new every morning! v24 Preach the gospel to myself every morning. Portion (like manna) just enough of Him. Ps42:5
-our ultimate hope is in his return.1cor10:15, 1thess4:13-18 to live is Christ, to die is gain

Sermon - Joy to the World

Joy to the World, the Lord is come.Let earth receive her king.
Pursuit of God outs commanded by God. 1 Thess 5:6 rejoice always. Phil 4:4
Joy- really a decision and action, not an emotion. Communion with God, proclamation of the salvation of God. Assurance that God is in control, making a determined choice to praise God.
-There is great joy in Christ's coming. Lk 2:8-10, it's good news for me! Acts 8:39, Lk 15:15,
-There is joy in His presence. Our joy for living life comes from spending time with Him. Ps 16:8-11, Jn 15:5-11, is Jesus your greatest treasure?
-Joy should not be based on circumstances Jas 1:1, Hab 3:17-19, Acts 16
- Sin will steal your joy. Ps 51:8-12, Mt 13:44
-there's joy in His sure return

Sermon 12/2

Gal.6:11-18
Follow the new creation and covenant.
The cross of Christ plus nothing.
Never boast in anything except the cross of Jesus Christ.
What is anyone going to do to match the cross?

Sermon 11/11/12 Gal. 5:16-26 Life is Good because I getta spend time with God through the Holy Spirit

God changes my want to
-It is beyond us to love God and love our neighbors on our own. V.13-14
V. 16 walk in the Spirit- third person of the trinity, acts 1:8 power from the holy Spirit, acts 2:37-38 salvation followed by the Holy spirit, power from the holy spirit; Ephesians 1:11-14 holy spirit helps us speak, teaches, comforts, reminds, convicts us of sins
- this is a command, DO IT! And keep on doing it every day, every hour. Sanctification. All motivated by my love for God
- v. 17 there is a battle between my flesh and my spirit every day, never ending.
Sing of walking in the spirit it's the battle v.16 the way to win is to walk in the Spirit
Remember to see temptation for what it is, not something we do because we are tired or whatever.
- V.18 led by the Spirit, spirit leads like a locomotive, He has all the power.
- v. 22-23 Fruit of the Spirit. If I am walking in the Spirit, there will be fruit!
Holy Spirit, give me the strength to walk with you, to be led by you. Amen

Sermon 11/4/12 Gal. 5:1-15

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free! Christ went to the cross to take our sins for us.♥ He did this so I don't have to be a slave to the law, but I am free to relate to others in LOVE. :-) God still loves me even when I sin.
I'm free to love God and free to love other people.

Sermon 10/28/12 Gal. 4:12-31

Paul had a previous way of life, as do we all. That was until Jesus saved him.
We need to have more intimacy with Jesus every day.

Sometimes we check get angry because people try to give us correction in love. Do not do that!! v.16

Hagar and Sarah example used to show the old vs. new covenant, slavery vs. freedom.

Sermon 2Rivers Gal. 4:1-11 God loves you and you are an heir!

Gal.4:1-3 talks about how we were like slaves until the right time. Then he sent Jesus (fully God and fully man) for our redemption.

Gal. 4:3-7 we are now adopted as his children and He is my Abba father.
Rom. 8:14-17, Matt. 10 he knows every thing, psalm 139. As God's heir, there's an inheritance waiting for me, that's beyond my imagination.

Gal. 4:8-11 we never need to go back to slavery to things that are not of God. Why would we want to? Running back to all those things, is like worshipping false gods.  2 Cor. 11:14.

God wants me as His daughter. He wants to spend time with me.

Sermon 2 Rivers

Luke 18:9-14 parable of the prayers of the tax collector and the Pharisee. Be humble, repent, be redeemed. We are not okay on our own.

Gal 3. You cannot take a promise and then change everything later. The law was given to let us see how sinful we really were, until Jesus came. Rom. 7:1-29
After Jesus came, he became our mediator. A new covenant. It's all about Jesus, he is our savior!!!
Amen!

Sick bugs GO AWAY!!!!!!

Awfully tired of whatever this is! Ready for it to be gone!

Mercy Road Prayers: A Prayer for Defeating Idolatry

Mercy Road Daily Prayer: A Prayer for Defeating Idolatry ~ Friday, October 12, 2012
~ Read 1 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17

1 Samuel 7:3-4 And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” So the people of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord only.

What do I get from my idols, Lord God? How do they add to my life? Why do I run to them for comfort when I’m troubled? When have they ever done anything for me?

If anything, Lord, my idols make it hard for me to return to you when I have been unfaithful, because they won’t let me go. They feed me lies, and tell me you don't care. They trick me into believing you won’t be faithful and true. They fill me with guilt and shame for how much I need them. They make me believe I am worthless, and vile scum. Though I take on my idols because I believe I can control them, they end up controlling me; for that’s just what idols do.

Whether they are “bad idols,” like money, power, sex, etc., or "good idols," like family, happiness, health, and so forth, idols control our lives by becoming so important to us, that we’d do anything for them, as if nothing else matters. Lord God, we’re so broken we can even turn your church into an idol by pursuing it instead of pursuing you. Our hearts, truly are idol factories, manufacturing gods for ourselves, so we don’t have to submit our lives to you.

Gracious Lord, reveal the idols of our hearts to us. Help us to put away those other “gods,” so we can return to you. Show us again how we should love you with all our hearts. You are good. You are holy. You are faithful, and you are true. Make us totally devoted to serving you through Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

Amen

The Lord is with me

I'M NOT ALONE, THE LORD IS HERE with me. Jn 14:16,18.

Do you wanna dance?

The best times in my life are when I just let go and dance with God!  In 2 Sam 6:14-15, David danced before the Lord with all of his might. He let everything go, and praised the Lord.

The sun will come out again tomorrow

Had a bit of a frustrating afternoon. Tim on JOYFM was talking about the weather, and said "The sun will come out again tomorrow." God really impressed on me that no matter how I'm feeling right now that there is always a chance for a fresh start.

Oh What a Glorious Morning!

It is so beautiful this morning! I am completely enjoying the sunshine, silence and sunbathing kitties! I feel very relaxed and much closer to you, God. Thank you for your grace and mercy that wash over me.

I've been thinking about something I posted on Facebook last night. I had posted how I cut my thumb and got stitches, and my uncle commented: Aren't you glad your body is made by someone of intelligent design. If we had to rely on random healing it may never heal.  

I quickly wrote this response: So true!! I AM very glad God knows just how to heal me!  

I sat there for a moment looking at my response and heard the Lord telling me that not only does he know exactly how to heal my thumb, but also how to heal my heart. Wow!  I am so thankful that He is the perfect, sovereign, wise and loving God, and He wants to heal me!  He cares about me and wants to draw me near to Him.  It is completely amazing to me that God puts up with me and my pathetic attitude and life and still wants to be my friend. Praise You Lord!

Day 1

My first blog day!  I've always wondered how you start a blog, and now I have one of my very own!  


I am excited and nervous to see what God will do with this opportunity, but what I am really hoping He will do is change me from the inside out.  For a while now I have felt far away from God, with small moments of time when I am able to allow myself to be drawn back into His sweet presence.  I am so thankful for those moments! 


God, help me to have an open heart and mind to give to you.  Draw me near, into the presence of your glory.  Thank you for your completely unconditional love!!