a couple days ago i went through all of my journals and made a list of important things i've written down in the past 8 years or so... many are from people i look up to, some are from moments i've had with God... let me know which ones resonate with you
- callousness is the devil's home
- seek God first before everything else
- buy wisdom
- bow your soul
- submit to leadership
- be aware
- be careful about being too smart
- you don't learn grace only once
- obedience is highly valued
- God wants your character to rise to the level of your ability
- its about knowing the Father
- be genuinely interested in others
- be diligent with what is in front of you
- grow in competency
- it takes 2 years to work your first day and 4 years to really know someone
- confess to God and man
- as soon as you're afraid to lose it, you've lost it
- be a living tool
- the sabbath is a matter of life and death
- there is peace in serving others
- God resists the proud
- structure is key
- don't succeed at something that doesn't matter
- don't ask for "staying power", but for His power
- let God do what God will do
- a fool is full of opinions
- discipline is the bridge between desire and delight
- what will your sin cost me?
- there are no such things as secrets
- all my fountains are in Him
- feelings lie
- focusing on morality doesn't produce morality
- the kingdom of God is wherever Jesus is king
- add value to people
- stay on the altar
- being a christian is about becoming
- there are certain things that will never be your role
- in the absence of leadership, lead
- do little things well
- a spiritually bored church is boring to the lost
- judas couldn't sell the perfume, so he sold Jesus...what are you selling?
- it is always good to remember what God has done
- i get to choose how i believe
- let the peace of Christ rule in your heart
- the grumbler lives in a state of self-induced stress
- there is a direct relation between how thankful you are and the strength of your faith
- am i more concerned with God's kingdom or mine?
- couch yourself as a learner
- i am here to prepare others for acts of service
- we are unnecessarily dramatic people
- grow in awareness of the impact of every moment
- all the world knows He is God
- be supportive, not suspicious
- His words are life and breath, so breath deep
- don't go to Hagar for what is promised in Sarah
- don't live on yesterday's faith
- when we get ridiculous we see things no one has seen before
- being disciplined harvests righteousness and peace
- don't answer when not asked
- don't confuse being a witness with being a participant
- if you have a problem mouth, you have a problem heart
- we live our lives through the window of eternity because faith is what convinces us we're not crazy
- there reason some pastors don't worship is they are used to being worshipped
- the holy spirit brings rest
- integrity can be caught
- you have to be a good follower to be a good leader
- connect with God through hiddenness
- you reproduce who you are
- innocence is important
- he is not like us
- like completes love
- we don't lead people to where we are but to who God is
- you will attract more birds with bread than with stones
- we represent the Father with every moment and every word
- its better to deal with it now, not letting it define you, than to wait and always struggle
- don't worship God with something that cost you nothing
- God doesn't want our information, but our realization
- careful when "evaluating" not to be "elevating" yourself
- do your best to value the people above the process
- unity requires intentionality
- learn the difference between the need to "confront" and the desire to "control"
10 comments:
You don't learn grace only once...ouch! It's true! Our college pastor, Chuck Gifford, once said, "People who have a sense of their own unworthiness have a sense of the proper worship of God". It's only when I realize I have NOTHING to bring to God that I realize how immense His LOVE is for me!
Just 10? Dave's Top Ten
10. submit to leadership-that should be our denominational motto
9. it's about knowing the Father-I feel like I know the Son better than the Father...thnx for the reminder!
8. discipline is the bridge between desire and delight-hmmm...whoever told you that is brilliant and he got it from someone else who was brilliant!
7. stay on the altar-a living sacrifice is the only sacrifice that can get up off the altar
6. couch yourself as a learner-ask Laney, "The day you stop learning is?" and she'll say, "the day you stop leading.
5. don't live on yesterday's faith-that's good and so indicative of me sometimes
4. you have to be a good follower to be a good leader-I think this is true of leading a church!
3. you will attract more birds with bread than with stones-a brilliant worship arts pastor once said that-reminds me that Jesus is the bread of life!
2. don't worship God with something that costs you nothing-ouch!
1. seek God first before everything else-everything else will be added to that!
I'm going to do a top 10 like DW b/c otherwise I'd type on here forever. None of us want that : )
Top 10:
1. You don't learn grace only once - this is one of the biggest ones for me.
2. God wants your character to rise to the level of your ability - this one speaks volumes to me as I use my ability for the praise band, I can only hope my character is rising to that.
3. Be genuinely interested in others - This is something I've always felt like I was able to do and I still get baffled when others can't or don't want to.
4. There is peace in serving others - I don't think it's a secret that serving others can make you feel better than anything else, and it pleases God.
5. A fool is full of opinions - I am learning this now more than ever. I definitely don't want to be the fool.
6. Feelings lie - I couldn't have said that better myself.
7. I get to choose how I believe - that brings more peace to me than anything else.
8. A spiritually bored church is boring to the lost - I can relate to this so well from thinking back to before I was a Christian, and also thinking about some of my friends who are lost and I want to tell them that not ALL churches are like the ones they've been to.
9. We are unnecessarily dramatic people - I know I can be, and I know that others around me can be as well and it's so easy to get sucked in.
10. We live our lives through the window of eternity because faith is what convinces us we're not crazy - I don't even need to add anything.
1. seek god 1st before everything else will fall into place.
2.the holy spirit brings rest, is so true especially when i'm worshipping and feel the presence of the holy spirit, i feel very content and peaceful.
3.there is a direct relation between how thankful you are and the strength of your faith, i feel so blessed everyday, and feel so much joy in my life because i know i've got christ, and can do anything through him.
4. there is peace in serving others, i especially feel this when i'm serving in hospitality, greeting or whatever i'm doing, i feel very satisfied and content.
I am not certain how many times I must learn that there is a God and I am not him. Events continue to occur in my life that reminds me of how much I try to hold on to, control.
This why the writer talks about your life being a tapestry and God is continually weaving. It is never complete.
I hope I never stop learning from what God is trying to teach me.
Top Five . . .
5. We are most like him when we draw attention to His son and not ourselves.
4. The gospel is only as beautiful as its strength in witness to discipline among its practitioners.
3. In everthing, always leave room for the Holy Spirit.
2. Never confuse familiarity with intimacy and never ever confuse attendance with attention.
1. Our lives are a footnote left on the stone archway of the empty tomb.
Your perspective was religious/spiritual….. I went through the list and sorted based on a secular approach to the phrases… things that I’ve learned at work. Funny (and comforting) how God is/should be a part of every aspect of our lives.
1) seek God first before everything else – when God is first, you always win even when you can’t see the victory.
2)submit to leadership – Definitely, but make sure you have found a great leader first otherwise you’ll end up in a ditch.
3)be genuinely interested in others – most people know when you are genuine and when you are not.
4)there is peace in serving others – serving others releases your inner spirit and allows others to see who you really are….
5)structure is key – imagine playing football without structure…??? Without defined steps (structure), you will never win at anything.
6)don't succeed at something that doesn't matter – put first things first and last things last. Chances are, you’ll never complete your list of objectives before the list changes. Make sure your #1 “something” is really your #1.
7)add value to people – people are our biggest asset, adding value to your assets increases your success.
8)do your best to value the people above the process – processes constantly change. The people are what make that change seamless.
9)unity requires intentionality – being a team takes effort from all persons involved with the team; leaders and teammates alike.
10)you will attract more birds with bread than with stones – Goes back to adding value to people. Give people nourishment and they will thrive and give you much in return. No matter how small or softly thrown, STONES HURT!!!!
11)a fool is full of opinions – as my Dad always said; “If you’ll keep your mouth closed people will see your intelligence.”
MSW
callousness is the devil's home
don't live on yesterday's faith
be genuinely interested in others
good stuff...
There IS a direct relationship between how thankful we are and the strength of our faith. When we grumble and complain about the things we don't have or the opportunities that we haven't been given we are also revealing our lack of faith and trust in the fact that God knows best. Our struggle in the realm of opportunity is something that gets in the way too often by our desire to know it all, experience it all, and to have it all. But, If God didn't give it to us then we're not missing out. If we know it all there's no mystery, if we experience it all then we're tired of everything else, and if we have it all then we don't need anything from anyone and there's nothing else to accomplish. However, when we're thankful for everything, our eyes are opened to the fact that it has been given to us. Sure, we work for a living, we earn our own pay, and we get what we deserve. But what about life, what about the things we can't change, what about the things that are hard to be thankful for? Those are the things that reveal the strength of our faith through thanks.
God, thank you for my family, grace, the ability to worship you freely when and where I want, thanks for always knowing better, for protecting me in the accident last week, for helping me get over myself, for a humble enough heart to say that :), for me realizing You love me more than I could love You, for parents who love me, for the hope of dawn and a new beginning, for actually bringing the dawn and a brand new day, for today itself, for the experiences of yesterday, for showing me that boiling water is a much better weed killer than "weed-b-gone," for the leaders in my life (even the ones who make me comment on their blogs), and for a willingness to make my faith stronger through my thanks to You for what you've given me.
Jake
1. callousness is the devil's home
2. Seek God before all else
3. do little things well
4. don't worship God with something that cost you nothing.
5. don't succeed at something that doesn't matter
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