08.30.2009 Making Progress

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08.30.2009 Grace Summit Worship from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University – we will have a preview after church.

Marianne will be sharing a testimony with us:
Marianne Smith: - Just wanted to share a special time I had with my Dad this past summer – I’ll be reading a portion of this. He was always active in church – sang and directed the choir – was on committees and volunteered and our whole family was part of the church. He never had a real relationship with God – and the family was mostly atheists or agnostics – he had never had a heart change until Monday, July 20 – 2009. He has Parkinson’s – and doesn’t always live in this world – he goes through memory lane – and that is kind of fun. There is a lot of memory from the past – it comes and goes – you don’t know if he is hallucinating or remembering. That particular Monday, he was very ‘with it.’ We were talking about final arrangements when the time comes. A simple service – not a big to-do. Then he got quiet – very quiet – and I wasn’t sure if I lost him and he was on to something else. Then he boldly said – GOD! I am not very satisfied with the way my life has been with Him. It is not too late – I told him. I asked if he wanted to pray. He thought that would be advisable – he grabbed my hand and bowed his head. I waited. Nothing – then I said – Dad? I’m still here, he said. Do you want me to pray? Yes. I told him that I already had a relationship with God – and that he should repeat what I prayed. And so we prayed – and then I asked – Dad, do you accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior? I do. I definitely do. And now at the age of 91 – My dad has a relationship with God and when he passes from this world to the next, I’ll see Him again.

Mike Marette: Let’s pray – Lord, we thank You – You are a great God – You can do the impossible =- things we can’t imagine – we want to have that hope. You can work on our behalf. Stories can encourage us and help us to share our stories with each other.

I want to ask a question – How are you doing? Usually when you ask that – it means – did you have a good day/week/life. But that is not what I am asking. The reality – some of us have more bad days than others. That is just a reality. I don’t think that is a sign of spiritual maturity. Sometimes it is circumstances. I want to look at that – here is a quote by leadership guru John Maxwell – and while God calls us to growth, not success – here is the quote:
Success is the progressive realization of a predetermined goal.

The issue is not that you have arrived – but are you progressing? Are we moving forward? As long as you are moving forward, you are moving in the right direction.
Predetermined goal – not the goals that we set – and if you meet those – fantastic – but I believe there are predetermined goals that God wants from our lives. It is critical to be making progress in God’s purposes for your life. God’s will.
Phil. 1:6 – I am sure of this…
God started a work in your life – for Marianne’s father – it was at 91 – and God will complete what He has begun. This purpose – what He wants to accomplish – these predetermined goals – he started it and will complete it! Your progress is guaranteed – but not completed until the day of Christ. In this world we’ll never see it finished – just progress and movement.
Westminster Catechism – the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. This is God’s predetermined goal for us. What does it mean?
3 things that God wants from our lives – what is the work He is trying to complete – not necessarily the specifics – because those are different for each of us.
I’ll talk about these three things over the next three weeks – what we are to be about as people and as a church
1) To know and Love God.
2) To serve the church community
3) To win the world to Christ
To share what Christ has done that they might have life. When I say -How are you doing? I am asking – how are you doing in these three areas?

All the other things in life distract us from these things. We find ourselves just trying to survive.
Today we will focus on knowing and loving God
Deut 6:4
When it comes to loving God, we are to love Him with our whole being. All that we are is being directed to loving God more. All aspects of our being. It is pretty simple – but how do we do it?

To love God, you have to know God.
When I say KNOW GOD – I don’t mean – know about God. To know God – as an experience of our lives – like Marianne was sharing – she knew God as an experience of her life. It means to know, understand and believe that God loves us – that is the beginning of it all. As simple as that sounds, it is most critical in us loving God. If we don’t we won’t love God. To the extent we know and believe it – we’ll love God.
I have found, for myself, my progress in my walk and faith is directly tied to my belief and understanding and acceptance of God’s love for me. AT times, if I doubt that, I am not progressing to what God is calling us to.
God Cares for you: And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you? You have so little faith! Mat. 6:30
God is merciful: "For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not be shaken," Says the LORD who has compassion on you. Isa. 54:10
When He looks down at your circumstance, there is an overwhelming amount of compassion and mercy that fills Him up. Especially in the Old Testament, we see His mercy and compassion. That is one thing that will not change. No matter what else changes – the mountains may be removed – and that doesn’t happen easily! There is a song – I have on my iPod – David Crowder – This is all that I can say right now – He is having a bad day – and there is this line – aren’t you the one I gave my heart to? Could you tell me where you put it? Then at the end – I didn’t know it was You standing there – I didn’t know it was You washing my feet. When we are going through it – Jesus is there going through it with us. We don’t have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness – He comes alongside of us. That is who He is and what He does. He walks with us – and you pass through the waters, I’ll be with you – when you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched.
God is good: For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Jer.29
Do you believe that God is good and has your good in mind? He desires your good.
God Forgives: I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake. 1 John 2:12
All of your sin – that you ever have or ever will commit – have been forgiven. Here is
Jeremiah 24:7
‘And I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.
God takes the lead.
Jeremiah 24:7
Jeremiah 24:7
Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Learn how to bring your sin and guilt and shame to the cross. We get gripped by guilt – but we need to get in the habit – at the cross He bore our guilt and sin and shame. We need to take it to the cross. Rather than holding it in ourselves and trying to work it out – that is the only place it can be dealt with.
Sing hymns and praise songs about the cross. There are many about the cross. It is important to sing these songs on our own – not just at church – to make them a part of your life
O Sacred Head – When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, and many others.
Even some Christmas Carols – if you listen to them – and sing with an attitude of understanding – they point to the cross – born to raise the sons of men – born to give them second birth – He was born to die. It is about the death of Christ –
Speak the message of the cross.
Paul determined to know nothing except Christ and Him crucified. The power is in the message of the cross. Everything is seen in what it means that Christ died for our sins.
Bring
Sing
Speak the message of the cross.


These commands are to be on your heart.
Study His word – that doesn’t mean just coming to church on Sunday – it is not enough – PLEASE! You need to get into it on your own – not just a little bit here and there – it is not just for Pastors – to just study the Bible and work one day a week – it is for all of us – YOU NEED TO GET IN AND STUDY IT! You won’[t have the time I have - but do your regular reading – and then find one of the shorter books if you life – read it over 4,5,6,7,8 times. It is the Bible – it is not Harry Potter and there are those that read those that many times. Sure, it is easy enough that a child can understand it – but it also says that you have to dig deep as if finding hidden treasure.

Put it all together – God loves us and it creates a desire for us to love Him.

Romans 12: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God--this is true worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.

In view of His mercy – all of His great mercy – there is a response – to offer your body as a living sacrifice – This is true worship.
The natural response to understanding God’s love is to love Him and give Him our lives. – With our heart, soul, mind, and strength.