Joseph seems to attract favor and trouble everywhere he goes.  God gives him a unique gift that becomes a turning point in one of his darkest moments.  What gifts has God given us?  How do we discover and use those gifts?

(Gen 36-46, Prov 3:35, I Cor 12:14-21, Eph 4:11-14, Jn 3:8)

Abraham and Sarah decide they have waited long enough, and have a child with their maidservant Hagar. They twist God’s promise to the point of justifying sin to make it happen. Our desire to bypass God’s timing will never produce the result he intended. (Sarah’s plan quickly results in her own jealousy and hatred)

This week we hear how 3 people’s stories of rushing God’s timing.

Moses looks at his own resources and knows they don’t equal the task at hand.  If Moses would dare to lift his eyes up, he’d realize his human limitations are not God’s limitations.

(Ex 3-4, Acts 7:22, Matt 14:14-21, Gen 50:20, Rom 8:28, 1 Cor 1:27, Acts 4:13, 2 Cor 12:9, Matt 21:42, Phil 3:7-8, Is 64:6, Gal 2:20, 2 Cor 5:17, Rom 8:1, Rom 8:14-15, Jn 15:15, Matt 28:20, Jn 14:16, Jn 14:7, Rom 8:9, Eph 1:3, I Cor 12:7, Jn 16:13, Rom 8:11, Jn 14:12, Rom 8:31, Matt 16:18)

In a desperate moment, Moses lets his anger get the better of him and murders a man.  This turning point may teach us some things about sin that we allow in our own lives.

(Ex 2:11-15, I Jn 1:5, Eph 5:18, Rom 6:12, James 1:14-15, Numbers 32:23, 2 Cor 5:23, Is 1:18, Lam 3:22-23, Jn 16:8, I Jn 1:9, 2 Cor 7:10, James 5:16-17, Matt 5:23-24, Ps 34:14, Eph 6, Ps 119:11, Heb 12:1-2, I Peter 5:8-9, Matt 5:29, Prov 4:14-15, Gen 39:7)

Good stories have sad chapters, good stories change you, good stories challenge you. And we know God is a good author of your story.

(John 9)

We see a picture of a perfect Garden in Genesis and in Revelation, but in between those gardens is another garden, one of suffering.  What does it mean to live a life of faith in a world where we can expect trouble and suffering?

(Mark 14:32-42, Heb 4:15, Jn 16:33, Neh 8:10, Luke 4:13, Matt 26:52-53, I Cor 10:13, Jn 17:14, Matt 5:4, Ps 34:18, Ps 147:3, James 1:3, Rom 8:28)

Jesus loves to provide invitations that beckon us beyond our barriers.  But when we ignore too many of his invitations, the opportunities God provides may start to look more like obstacles.

(Acts 9:1-19, Acts 22:3, Phil 3:5, James 4:6, 2 Chron 16:9, Psalm 23)

We are all holding tight. Jesus challenges us to let go of what we are holding onto and follow Him.

{Mark 10:17-27}

In the life of Peter, we watch the power of a submitted, struggling-toward-the-Lord, kind of life. And through Peter’s journey, we hear whispers of what Jesus desires to accomplish in each of us.

(John 21:2-19, Lk 5:1-10, Mk 5:41, Matt 14:22-33, Matt 26:31-35, Mk 14:66-72, Rom 12:1, Prov 24:16, I Cor 12:4-6, 2 Cor 12:8-10, Rom 8:28, Acts 3:12-13, I Peter 5:1-4)

Fall Retreat – Session 4 – Sunday AM