As we continue our look into 5 Key things that can grow your relationship, your faith and confidence in God. Tonight: Personal Ministry - how using your gifts, time and contribution builds God's kingdom and grows your faith. Stepping out to serve those around you will develop the faith growing in you. Trust God to guide in using your talents and abilities to serve others in the Church and through your life. It will impact them and grow you! It all starts when we do what we can and trust God to do the rest.

Tonight we see a pattern in Jesus' life and a couple private disciplines or habits he's teaching to help us grow in our faith (Mark 1:35 & Matthew 6). Jesus is modeling and teaching: God rewards individually and specifically those that trust in him most and seek him first. Bottom line: Give God your first few minutes and first few dollars and watch Him grow your faith and be at work in your life.

Relationships are powerful and they are one of the primary ways that God grows our faith! Relationships will wither bring you closer to Jesus or many times the wrong type will pull you further from Him.

God desires to strengthen and grow our faith in Him, so we can have an ever-expanding confidence in Him. The biblical and practical teaching of the Scriptures has a profound impact in our journey with God. The Bible has been given to us so we know about God, understand His truths, and so we can relate with Him. The application of God's truths will transform our lives. God desires us to have the best possible kind of life.

Our culture is fascinated by BIGGER, BRIGHTER, LOUDER - but frankly that doesn’t necessary catch God’s attention. God seems much more interested in the little things. The spiritual life is about living the little things for God. Our little bit + His power = BIG impact! May you embrace the life of living the little things out as worship for your Creator. May you have the eyes to see the opportunities God opens around you and the courage to step forward.

All of us have sinned and fallen short of God's perfect standard. But our loving Heavenly Father did not leave us in this hopeless state. He sent his son Jesus to die in our place and rise again so that we could have life with God forever.

In order for Elements City Church to not leave people on 3rd base and make it home, everybody has to do their part. Be the church. Bringing the hope of Jesus to the heart of the city takes ALL of us!

Is your life a living sacrifice to God or do you just keep Jesus in your pocket and take Him out on an as needed basis? Do you only come to church on Sundays and blend into the world like Mystique or turn into the Hulk the rest of the week?

We all will face hardships, struggles and problems in life, but we never STAND ALONE as we face them. We stand side by side with our SAVIOR…and that changes things! God can use problems because ultimately God wants to refine you and shape you. He can supernaturally recycle them for our good. We might struggle at times, but God will never let our momentary problems permanently sink us. He has us in our here and now and securely for eternity!

t was said by A.W. Tozer “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” Many people have tried to capture the character and nature of God in metaphors or images. Jesus gets on the scene in history, he has one predominant metaphor that He uses to help people get their minds hearts and lives around God: FATHER. Friends, that matters!