Tonight, I was going to originally write on "In-N-Out" Evangelism and about Bobby Blakey's, the high school pastor at my church, message but after an encouraging talk with a great friend and someone who is in some sense discipling me for a little bit I thought I would dedicate this blog to discipleship and how crucial it is to the life of every believer.
If you are serious about your Christian walk and your spiritual growth then you NEED to be discipled and if possible discipling someone. I have been discipled 3 times and have discipled someone one time and it is during these times of discipleship and accountability that I have found that I have been the most solid in my faith and grounded in the Truth(speaking of Truth read the Truth War by Dr. MacArthur I am almost done and it is amazing!)
Now we are all disciples of Christ but we also need to be disciples of other godly men in our lives. Like how Timothy was discipled by Paul so we too need to find godly, older spiritual examples in our lives to take us under their wings in some sense and help impart wisdom to us. I have been in proverbs lately(proverb of the day!) and it talks about gaining wisdom and how important wisdom and understanding is and through discipleship you can gain wisdom for the one discipling you has experienced the trials and temptations that you are encountering and he/she conqeured them so he/she can help you overcome them in a way that is consistent with the Bible and Christ's teachings.
Being discipled is pivotal to your spiritual growth for we all need examples to follow and help from those wiser than us. When being discipled you are able to look at the life of whoever is discipling you and see how they deal with problems you face and how they conquer them. Also, being discipled keeps you accountable which is necessary for proper spiritual growth. Furthermore, whoever disciples you can provide you with encouragement and teaching just how Paul encouraged and exhorted Timothy.
Now another crucial part is discipling others. If you are able to disciple others I would highly encourage you to do so. During my one year of discipling my friend I grew more spiritually that year than I had grown in previous years of my life. Discipling is a two-way street for though I was able to help teach and show my friend how Christians are supposed to live I was also held to a much higher standard. I was now an example to him and he would follow my life and my actions. Now longer, could I toy around with sin or wicked temptations for now my sinning no longer just affected me but it affected my friend who I was discipling. He was looking to my life as an example as to how to live his and so I had to make sure that my life was worthy of being an example so that I would not be someone who would lead him astray or say one thing and do another. It truly was a great time of spiritual growth for me and my friend. The best part about discipling someone is its not that hard to know how to do it because in reality all you really have to do is be like Christ. There is no crazy trick or 10 step method. What you are called to do is just be Christ-like and live in a manner worthy of His calling.
So in conclusion, if you are not being discipled, find someone who is a spiritual leader and an example to you and ask them to disciple you, 99% of the time they will love to do it! So do it, be discipled and if possible disciple someone and above all become more Christ-like.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Thierry Henry
On a non-God/Christ related blog but still on a important subject...soccer :)
I would just like to express how bummed I am that thierry henry, the WORLD CLASS striker for Arsenal, the greatest football(soccer) club ever, decided to leave the gunners for Barca. It is truly disappointing and his attacking presence and flare will definetly be missed. I just hope that Van Persie will be able to step in and fill the role of Henry as the club's tailsman. I think that next year will be another difficult year for Arsenal but there is no doubt that the young talent is there and it might just take a year or two for all the younger players to mature and become the world class stars that they are destined to be. Cesc Fabergas, Theo Walcott and Robert Van Persie are just a year or more away from becoming world class stars and I just hope that with the genious of Arsene Wenger, if he sticks around, Arsenal can again make a run for some hardware in the future. All in all, the future is not too bleak for the club but Henry's depature has rocked a boat that is already not perfectly steady, but in the end I am a Gunner till I die and I will never support those Chelsea blues who buy victories nor those classless Manchester United players, I mean come on Ronaldo is skilled but he dives like crazy!
For the 99% percent of the people who read this blog and have no idea what i am talking about...thanks for reading and if anyone asks you what soccer team you like, say Arsenal.
I would just like to express how bummed I am that thierry henry, the WORLD CLASS striker for Arsenal, the greatest football(soccer) club ever, decided to leave the gunners for Barca. It is truly disappointing and his attacking presence and flare will definetly be missed. I just hope that Van Persie will be able to step in and fill the role of Henry as the club's tailsman. I think that next year will be another difficult year for Arsenal but there is no doubt that the young talent is there and it might just take a year or two for all the younger players to mature and become the world class stars that they are destined to be. Cesc Fabergas, Theo Walcott and Robert Van Persie are just a year or more away from becoming world class stars and I just hope that with the genious of Arsene Wenger, if he sticks around, Arsenal can again make a run for some hardware in the future. All in all, the future is not too bleak for the club but Henry's depature has rocked a boat that is already not perfectly steady, but in the end I am a Gunner till I die and I will never support those Chelsea blues who buy victories nor those classless Manchester United players, I mean come on Ronaldo is skilled but he dives like crazy!
For the 99% percent of the people who read this blog and have no idea what i am talking about...thanks for reading and if anyone asks you what soccer team you like, say Arsenal.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Lawful but NOT Profitable
Today I listened to an amazing sermon by John McArthur in which he discusses Christian liberty and exactly how it should be used. He uses the verse in which Paul tellls that Corinthians that
"All things are lawful for me(Paul), but not all things profitable. All things are lawful for me but I will not be mastered by anything." (1 Cor. 6:12)
This was a very convicting sermon for Dr. McArthur lays out what Christians should be doing with their lives and ultimately it comes down not to what can I do and get away with but rather what can I do that will please my Father and Savior. We should not try to get as close to sinning as possible and not sin but rather we should turn our backs and avoid anything that even comes close to sinning or wickedness. Rather, we should focus on making sure that what we do with our time is profitable and glorifying to our God in heaven.
We have way too little time on earth to focus on the things of the world and get lost in those pursuits. We should not be using our liberty out of selfishness and do things for ourself but rather think about others and have that affect what we do with our liberties. For example, when I am 21 it will be legal for me to drink but I will choose not to because I believe that it carries a negative image and could affect my witness. Also, it could hurt another Christian if that Christian has a problem with drinking for my drinking could cause me to be a stumbling block to them. This is why we need to make sure that we play it safe when it comes to using our liberties for why would we want to get as close to be burned as possible. Instead we should practice the cliche "better safe than sorry". This why we can make sure that we maintain reputations above reproach and not cause other brothers or sisters in Christ to stumble.
Also, Dr. McArthur mentioned that with as little time as we have on this earth why would we even consider wasting our time with those things of the world. Rather, we could be reading a Christian book, building God-centered relationships, praying, reading our Bibles or witnessing. When it comes down to it, all that will matter in eternity is what we do with our lives for God so we should be more concerened with using our liberties for God and for preparing our place in heaven so yet again it comes down to being 'Future Focused' :)
"All things are lawful for me(Paul), but not all things profitable. All things are lawful for me but I will not be mastered by anything." (1 Cor. 6:12)
This was a very convicting sermon for Dr. McArthur lays out what Christians should be doing with their lives and ultimately it comes down not to what can I do and get away with but rather what can I do that will please my Father and Savior. We should not try to get as close to sinning as possible and not sin but rather we should turn our backs and avoid anything that even comes close to sinning or wickedness. Rather, we should focus on making sure that what we do with our time is profitable and glorifying to our God in heaven.
We have way too little time on earth to focus on the things of the world and get lost in those pursuits. We should not be using our liberty out of selfishness and do things for ourself but rather think about others and have that affect what we do with our liberties. For example, when I am 21 it will be legal for me to drink but I will choose not to because I believe that it carries a negative image and could affect my witness. Also, it could hurt another Christian if that Christian has a problem with drinking for my drinking could cause me to be a stumbling block to them. This is why we need to make sure that we play it safe when it comes to using our liberties for why would we want to get as close to be burned as possible. Instead we should practice the cliche "better safe than sorry". This why we can make sure that we maintain reputations above reproach and not cause other brothers or sisters in Christ to stumble.
Also, Dr. McArthur mentioned that with as little time as we have on this earth why would we even consider wasting our time with those things of the world. Rather, we could be reading a Christian book, building God-centered relationships, praying, reading our Bibles or witnessing. When it comes down to it, all that will matter in eternity is what we do with our lives for God so we should be more concerened with using our liberties for God and for preparing our place in heaven so yet again it comes down to being 'Future Focused' :)
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Blessing in Disguise
When I was home for Thanksgiving break I got in a car accident. I was on my way to playing soccer with my friends and a lady ran a red light and T-boned my car(My brother and I shared the car). Thankfully I was not injured except to cuts on the inside of my wrists kinda near the area where the nails went through Christ's hands(weird huh?) Anyways, the car was totalled and so I had to share one of my parent's cars with my brother and I. We went back to school and took one car with us and one week later the same thing happened to my brother and that car was totalled so we went from 3 cars to 1 car in the matter of 2 weeks. At first i was really distraught because the other car was stick shift, which i do not know how to drive, and i was annoyed because I thought that I had no way to get around during my month long Christmas break. God had different plans.
It worked out that one of my friends, would end up giving me a lot of rides and i mean A LOT of rides. It was really generous of him but the most amazing thing was how close were drew because of always being in the car with each other. Almost every night we hung out he would give me a ride home and we would pull up in front of my house at 12:00ish but then just talked about God, Jesus and the Bible till 2:00 in the morning!!! It was so amazing and these talks are what kept me encouraged and on fire during Christmas break. We even moved into keeping each other accountable with certain friends we hang out with and witnessing. I was so thankful for these great talks we had for it made us much closer friends and also drew us both closer to Christ. Talk about iron sharpening iron!
Anyways, I went back to school and was telling my roommate about the amazing break I had and how encouraged I was by these great discussions my friend and I had. It wasn't till after I told my roommate my story that I realized I would have never had these talks with my friend if it wasn't for the two car accidents. For the first time I saw God's plan come full circle and I can say that I was truly thankful that those two car accidents occured. It made me realize that we all need to trust in God more especially during difficult times for we can not also see the end of the road or the purpose of the trial or temptation but we need to trust that God will guide us through and work things together according to His plan. This also ties in to being more 'Future Focused' and not focusing on the "here and now" but more on the end result and the "then and there"All in all, I can say that God works in mysterious ways and the two car accidents definetly served to be a 'Blessing in Disguise'
It worked out that one of my friends, would end up giving me a lot of rides and i mean A LOT of rides. It was really generous of him but the most amazing thing was how close were drew because of always being in the car with each other. Almost every night we hung out he would give me a ride home and we would pull up in front of my house at 12:00ish but then just talked about God, Jesus and the Bible till 2:00 in the morning!!! It was so amazing and these talks are what kept me encouraged and on fire during Christmas break. We even moved into keeping each other accountable with certain friends we hang out with and witnessing. I was so thankful for these great talks we had for it made us much closer friends and also drew us both closer to Christ. Talk about iron sharpening iron!
Anyways, I went back to school and was telling my roommate about the amazing break I had and how encouraged I was by these great discussions my friend and I had. It wasn't till after I told my roommate my story that I realized I would have never had these talks with my friend if it wasn't for the two car accidents. For the first time I saw God's plan come full circle and I can say that I was truly thankful that those two car accidents occured. It made me realize that we all need to trust in God more especially during difficult times for we can not also see the end of the road or the purpose of the trial or temptation but we need to trust that God will guide us through and work things together according to His plan. This also ties in to being more 'Future Focused' and not focusing on the "here and now" but more on the end result and the "then and there"All in all, I can say that God works in mysterious ways and the two car accidents definetly served to be a 'Blessing in Disguise'
Monday, June 11, 2007
Blog Name- Future Focused
I decided to dedicate this post to explaining why my blog is named the way it is. I choose the name 'Future Focused' for my blog because that is how all Christians should be focused [I also thought it sounded cool and had a nice alliteration going on :) ] As Christians we need to be focused on heaven and our future in eternity. In reality, all mankind should be future focused for each person needs to be concerned about the state of their soul. I have been working on becoming 'Future Focused' as of lately especially since I heard two monumental sermons that were extremely convicting.
I attend The Master's College and before the spring semester my school hosts a conference called Truth & Life. It is an amazing conference in which pastors from across the country are brought in to present God's powerful and living Word(Hbrs 4:12) to our student body. This conference a pastor named Dr. Art Azurdia gave a sermon titled "Fixing our eyes on the Cross". It was an amazing sermon that challenged all Christians to not focus on anything in our life but rather on focus solely on Christ. He spoke on Hebrews 12 and running the race in a manner where your gaze is set solely on the finish. He challenged us to not think about the next exam or what career we would have but rather to remain focused on Christ and His Cross. It was an amazing sermon that convicted me to keep my focus while running this race solely on Jesus and living as He did so that at the end of the race I may receive my prize and hear well done good and faithful servant(Mtthw 25:21)
The second inspirational sermon was giving by the pastor of my church, Compass Bible Church. Our pastor, Dr. Mike Fabarez, gave a sermon on building our boat not our house. The key point to the message was the we can focus on building on riches and acquiring wealth and success on earth but one day all that will pass away and a metaphorical flood will wash away all that we have stored up on earth and all that we will have left is what we have put into our proverbial boat. We will be living in this boat* for eternity and because of this we should focus on building our boat and not our building our house which will be washed away(Mtthw 6:19-21).
These two sermons have really helped me change my focus from worrying about the things of this life(Mtthw 6:25-34) to focusing more on my future and where and how I will be spending eternity. So I am resolved to be more 'Future Focused' with my actions and thoughts as I continue to run this race. I want to keep my eye on the finish lines and store up treasures in heaven so that I may run the race well and receive my prize.
*NOTE- It is not a literal boat or flood but rather these terms were used metaphorically for boat represents our place in heaven and flood represents the destruction of the earth which will contain much than a flood
I attend The Master's College and before the spring semester my school hosts a conference called Truth & Life. It is an amazing conference in which pastors from across the country are brought in to present God's powerful and living Word(Hbrs 4:12) to our student body. This conference a pastor named Dr. Art Azurdia gave a sermon titled "Fixing our eyes on the Cross". It was an amazing sermon that challenged all Christians to not focus on anything in our life but rather on focus solely on Christ. He spoke on Hebrews 12 and running the race in a manner where your gaze is set solely on the finish. He challenged us to not think about the next exam or what career we would have but rather to remain focused on Christ and His Cross. It was an amazing sermon that convicted me to keep my focus while running this race solely on Jesus and living as He did so that at the end of the race I may receive my prize and hear well done good and faithful servant(Mtthw 25:21)
The second inspirational sermon was giving by the pastor of my church, Compass Bible Church. Our pastor, Dr. Mike Fabarez, gave a sermon on building our boat not our house. The key point to the message was the we can focus on building on riches and acquiring wealth and success on earth but one day all that will pass away and a metaphorical flood will wash away all that we have stored up on earth and all that we will have left is what we have put into our proverbial boat. We will be living in this boat* for eternity and because of this we should focus on building our boat and not our building our house which will be washed away(Mtthw 6:19-21).
These two sermons have really helped me change my focus from worrying about the things of this life(Mtthw 6:25-34) to focusing more on my future and where and how I will be spending eternity. So I am resolved to be more 'Future Focused' with my actions and thoughts as I continue to run this race. I want to keep my eye on the finish lines and store up treasures in heaven so that I may run the race well and receive my prize.
*NOTE- It is not a literal boat or flood but rather these terms were used metaphorically for boat represents our place in heaven and flood represents the destruction of the earth which will contain much than a flood
Welcome
This is my first time blogging and let me just tell you i am physced! I am really excited to be able to share my thoughts and excitement about how the Lord has been working in my life and the life of my friends. I hope you enjoy my blog and I would love any comments/criticism you guys can offer to help make it better!
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