At least a couple times a week I check in on a few of my favorite blogs. Sometimes they are encouraging, sometimes funny, but almost always convicting.

Perry Noble is the Senior Pastor at NewSpring Church in South Carolina. His blog perrynoble.com is one of the blogs that I frequent. He seems to always challenge me, so I thought I would share one of his latest post:

Jesus made it pretty clear in John 13:34-35 as to how the world would know we are His disciples…notice He did NOT say, “They will know you are my disciples…

#1 – By the way you forward really stupid, ridiculous emails to one another…and if you refuse to forward them to everyone you have in your contact list then you don’t love me.

#2 – By the way you yell at people who don’t know me for living as if they don’t know me.

#3 – By your T-shirts and bumper stickers!

#4 – By the music you listen to!

#5 – By the political party you support.

#6 – By the denomination you belong to.

#7 – By the way you protest.

#8 – By the products and companies you boycott.

#9 – By the way you look down on those whom you perceive aren’t as good as you.

#10 – By the way you take from one another!

Nope…John 13:34-35 is clear, Jesus didn’t mix His Words…we are called to live this out.

EF

Primal Week 2

(Leaders start by reading the story from the email)

Think back to your early days as a follower of Jesus Christ. How did you have a new appreciation for life?

How did you begin to feel differently—feel what Christ feels?

Define “Compassion”—-A human emotion prompted by the pain of others. More vigorous than empathy, the feeling commonly gives rise to an “active” desire to alleviate another’s suffering. Where would we be today if God had not felt compassion for us?

When was the last time you felt compassion for someone? Did you act on it? If not, why? What kinds of things keep us from acting?

(Quote from the book Primal—In my experience, it’s much easier to act like a Christian than it is to “react” like one. But your “reactions” reveal what is really in your heart.)

(Quote from the book Primal — Don’t let what you cannot do keep you from doing what you can do.  Put your money where your heart is. It’s just a drop in the bucket.  Every act of generosity creates a righteous ripple effect that can change the course of history. It will also change your heart.)

Matthew 6: 21 says—For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. What particular needy individuals or groups or places has God given you special compassion for?

As a group, discuss something you can do to show the heart of God in a real way!

Primal Week 1

Ice Breaker: what is the most important thing in your life? What did you learn from the sermon?

Mark 12:28-31 V.29 see deut. 6:4

Why is the commandment given here the greatest?

How do you love the Lord your God with all your heart?  Is it possible?

Does your heart break for the things that break the heart of God? (question from the book “Primal”)

If not, why and what do you need to do to change this? If so, how do we show this?

How do you love your neighbor as yourself?

Can we love the Lord with all of our hearts etc and “not” love our neighbors as ourselves? (or vice-versa)  look at 1 John 3:10, 4:19-21, I Peter 1:22, 4:8.

Do we “really” love others “deeply”?  How can we show our love for others?

Do you love your wife like this, your kids or other family? Why or why not? What if we do not love ourselves? How can we show our love for God? What happens when we do this?

Its the weekend! (insert confetti and favorite party song)

Here are a couple of things to be looking for this Saturday night at CrossPoint:

Iowa Trip – There will be a meeting immediately after worship Saturday night w/Cheryl Cooke to talk about some details for next weekend. If you are interested in going or you have already signed up, plan to stick around to get the scoop.

April 24th – We will be having a parents class right after worship on the 24th. This meeting is for parents of all ages of kids. Hopefully we can be a resource for you in raising Children who know that God loves them and teaching them to love Him back. This meeting will also address our plans and philosophy of Parents and Childrens ministries for CrossPoint now and in the future.  Put this one on your calendar for sure!

See you tomorrow night!

EF

Oh The Web We Weave!

I have a new post-it-note on my computer. It simply says:

Word
Before
Web

The insight is not especially deep; the inspiration is lacking, and the construction of the composition is pre-school level at best! So let me explain why this note is important enough for me to be on here blogging about it.

I enjoy facebook, email, and my bookmarked blogs. It is just part of the day to check up on the new entries, post and happenings in the life of people I know. It causes no harm to my day. In fact, often times I find myself praying for people and giving words of encouragement! Ok, maybe sometimes I linger too long or pop in too much, but it is really good stuff!

But then recently I found myself in a two-way, one person, conversation (In other words I was talking to myself!). How is it I can get to the end of the day and have not spent even a moment in the Bible but have spent time on the web? Or why do I sometimes rush through my time with the King of Kings and linger at the computer taking in who is doing laundry today and looking at vacation pictures of people I sometimes don’t even really know? What would happen if I treated my time with Jesus like I do my face book. Anxious to see Him and what is happening, lingering, enjoying, praying, rejoicing and searching? And what would happen if I made time for the creator of the world before the web of the world?

Need I say more! I think not! Word before Web! Not deep, not inspiring and very basic! And right now the most important post-it-note strategically placed on the edge of my computer screen!

“The Gospel” Week 5

Ice Breaker: What are you favorite Easter memories?

Are there any questions or thoughts on this week’s sermon?

Read John chapter 11: 1-26

v. 6: Why did Jesus stay where he was 2 more days when he knew Lazarus was sick?

Why did Jesus perform this miracle involving people who already knew and believed in him? Or did they?

v. 20: Why does Martha run to Jesus and Mary doesn’t (given Mary’s past relationship with Jesus)?

What is the difference between the “resuscitation” of Lazarus and the “resurrection” of Jesus?

v. 25: What is the difference between the resurrection and life?

Read v. 45: Some believed, some did not? What would make ALL people believe? Is it possible? Refer to Luke 16: 30-31

The Gospel Part 4

Icebreaker: What is something someone has said to you that changed the way you live?

Read Luke 23:34 Luke 23:43

Who was Jesus most concerned about here? Why? (they may have had no idea who he was or what he may or may not have done).

Have you ever had to forgive someone that wronged you and they did not even know it?  Why?

What is paradise to you? What is paradise in the text?

What did this criminal see that the other did not see in Jesus?

Why is forgiveness so important? (Beyond the fact that it is part of how we get to heaven.)

Psalms 22- Psalms 69:21

Why would Jesus quote Old Testament scripture? Have you ever felt forsaken by God? Explain?  What was the result?

John 19:26-27 John 19:28

How do we take care of those earthly things and take care of those spiritual things? What are your thoughts on the humanity of Jesus in these verses?

Challenge for rest of week: Find someone you do or don’t know and say something to them you feel like will leave a lasting impression?

Here’s what to look for this weekend:

College World Series Mission Trip – June 18-20 is a date to set aside for a road trip. We are going to Omaha, NE to hand out bottles of water to people who are thirsty. The bottles will have a label that explains who Jesus is and how he is the only one who can quench our thirst (John 4:13-14). If you have never been on any kind of mission trip or you or would like a way to help people with your whole family (all ages), then this trip is for You! There is a sign-up sheet at the back of the chapel and there will be more information there for you this week.

GPS Lunch, Divide, and Conquer – This Sunday the 28th. Come to Webster at 12:30pm for lunch and to get to know your staff and their God story. After lunch we will divide up and take the 500 GPS packets all over town. We need your help!

Remember the Cafe is open from 5:30pm until worship starts and will be open after worship until 9:00pm. Bring a friend!

EF

Hey All!  I’m starting a series on the implications of worship.  Most of my blogs are just afterthoughts derived from the book “Worship Matters” by Bob Kauflin, so if you want to understand what Biblical worship better looks like, you should definitely check this book out (it’s not just for worship pastors).  This particular blog is about worshiping with our hears: what do we love?  Let’s jump right in!

For those of you who don’t know, a couple weeks ago Pastor Eric cut his finger  with a mandolin knife.  For the record, I have no idea what a mandolin knife looks like or even how sharp it is, but what I can assure you of is this: Jesus’s words cut far deeper than the sharpest of instruments this material world has to offer.  As we turn to Matthew’s Gospel we’ll find some of Christ’s heart piercing words.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

I don’t know if that falls heavy on you or not, but it sure does me.  To “treasure” something simply means “This is where you place your highest value.”  In knowing that we can say, “Whatever it is that you place highest value in, ‘there your heart will be.’”   Alright, now lets look at the meaning of the word “heart” in the second part of the verse.  According to Dictionary.com someone’s heart is “the center of [their] total personality.”  So if  the definitions I gave for the words “treasure” and “heart” are correct then we can rightly say, “Whatever you place highest value in, there the center of your total personality will be also.”

So what is it that you spend your time, energy, and money on?  If it’s not spent on Jesus, then you’re simply not finding your highest value in Him. Period.  Read these words from the heart of King David as you take a minute to let the Holy Spirit examine what you really treasure in life:

Whom have I in heaven but you?  And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.  My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
(Psalm 73:25-26 ESV)

Jesus paid too high a price for our half-hearted lip service.  We can’t fix our problems by merely reading our Bible, praying, or having fellowship with other believers.  The purpose of these disciplines is to cultivate affection and adoration in our hearts for the greatest love that ever lived: Jesus Christ.

Let the words of Bandon Heath’s song, “No Not One” stir your hearts in the worship of our great God.

\”No Not One\” – A Brandon Heath Cover

One of the biggest concerns of a pastor (whether or not it’s right) is to keep the status quo. We don’t want any one that comes to the worship service to feel uncomfortable or out of place. We don’t even want that in our weekly encounters and relationships. The problem is when it comes to following the spirit, there is no status quo. And comfort, that’s out the window. When things get awkward…well…it’s just weird. Anxiety sky rockets, blood pressure rises, and panic usually ensues. Awkwardness, surprisingly enough, isn’t a feeling that always need to be avoided. On Evotional.com, Mark Batterson gives a new perspective on feeling awkward:

I think awkwardness is one key to spiritual growth. Are you willing to do things that feel awkward like kneel at an altar or obey a spirit-prompting or have a hard conversation? If you are, then God can use you! Those things involve a degree of awkwardness but they often lead to spiritual breakthroughs. I’m at a place in life and ministry where I crave awkwardness. I want to look awkward. I want to feel awkward.

On Friday I met with a group of students and something came over me as I prayed for them. I’d never even met any of them before but I cried as I prayed. It was a little awkward. But sometimes that is the difference between generic prayers and prophetic prayers. At our Saturday night service, I didn’t feel like God was done with us so we went into overtime. I felt like there were things that people needed to submit to the Lordship of Christ. It was a little awkward. But one of our prayer leaders told me that she prayed with someone who gave her life to Christ during that time.

Let’s not avoid awkwardness. Let’s create it, cultivate it, and celebrate it.

You can check out Mark at Evotional.com

EF