Enduring Christianity

Jesus died for your sins and has forgiven you, now what? Are we suppose to just sit around and believe in Jesus like Dorthy in the "Wizard of Oz" -we just click our heals three times and believe everything is all good?  Or, is there more to the statement "all who  believe in Jesus will be saved"?
Jesus said "I am the truth, the way and the life, whoever believes in me shall be saved." If we believe in Jesus, then we believe every Word He has ever spoken! This is why Jesus says, if you love me (If you truly believe in me) then you will obey me. 
When Jesus was told that his mother and brother were looking for him, he responded with, "who is my mother, who are my brothers and sisters. The one who does the will of my Father is my mother, brother and sister. "
So, If you BELIEVE in Jesus, its not a matter of "now what" - It's a matter of diving into God's word in order to understand and obey it - The now what is to believe the truth of Jesus himself and every word he spoke, which has the power to renew, transform and save!

Do you ever find yourself asking “What’s the point?” as you relive another repetitive task, or face the same challenges of which you faced yesterday and will inevitably have to face again tomorrow... and the day after that... and the day after that? For many of us, the redundancy of each new day feels nothing like a "new day," just the same tasks as the days before. At times it can become too easy to conclude that everything is meaningless, and eventually lead us to feel as if we ourselves are meaningless too - "What's the Point?" 
In these moments we can relate to the writer of Ecclesiastes when he says “there is nothing new under the sun - everything is meaningless, meaningless”
The author of Ecclesiastes writes 12 chapters to prove how meaningless this life is, but then after proving how meaningless everything is, he ends with these words! - "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil."
Join the Trio as they discuss the reality of how every person faces the feeling of being meaningless and encourage each other to stop “flying by the seat of their pants” when it comes to placing their time and efforts on "meaningless" tasks and instead placing their focus on what really matters - To fear and love God by obeying Him!

 In a world that anxiously looks for ways to excuse sin, we will often find ourselves being influenced by the same excuses. The world regularly influences us to accept  beliefs that boldly contradict who God has told us to be through His Word.  As followers of God, we need to actively seek God's truth and to take guard of pop culture sayings, or catchy phrases that do not align with the will of God. Words have meaningful effects, and if we fail to take specific phrases captive, or write them off as "not a big deal, everyone says it" we may very well become deceived by them ourselves.  We invite you to listen in on this episode to consider your words and the effect they may have on those around you. We hope it begins to open your eyes to how often the words of the world attempt to contradict the ways of God and that phrases such as, "you do you" begin to really “get your goat” when you hear them so often referenced. 

Ephesians 5:1-2 "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 - "Rejoice always, Pray without ceasing!"
Prayer can be challenging and there can seem to be an endless amount of reasons that stand in the way of a healthy prayer life. One minute we’re focused and then suddenly “at the drop of a hat” we abandon communication with our Lord, drifting off into a world of distractions. The problems that stand in the way of a regular prayer life all stem from one place: our independent - sinful nature.  
Listen in as the guys confess their own challenges with prayer.  Have a relatable laugh with the ridiculousness of what occurs in their own heads when it comes to prayer, and discuss how to overcome the problems (us!) with prayer.  Always reminding ourselves to enter His courts with thanksgiving. For the things we pray for are often temporary, but the things we praise Him for are eternal!

In this episode we talk about prayer, using the Lord’s Prayer as our guide. It is a prayer most Christians are able to recite by memory, but reciting something by memory does not always translate to an understanding of what it means and how to live it out.
The Trio also attempts to put “A Feather in their Cap” by guessing the origin of several idioms. They soon figure out that it’s no “Piece of Cake” guessing the origins to these idioms! We hope you enjoy this episode and that it encourages you to speak more Word of God with the people in your life.

Why do you go to church? Are you prepared to answer that question? Is your answer a good one? Join us for that conversation and more in this  episode as the Trio navigates through not only giving reasons for going, but also on the honest feelings of not always being excited for Sunday mornings.  Listen in and share this episode alongside your honest reasoning of why you go to church.

• Do you see your place of work as an opportunity to live out your faith? Do you see your place of work as the mission field? Or do you “turn a blind eye” to the opportunities the Holy Spirit provides to let your light shine? In this 2nd season of Enduring Christianity, we’re excited to introduce the “Trio” to you. Peter, Billy, and Adam are just regular men who are enjoying intentional time together discussing God’s Word and how it applies to their lives. We hope you enjoy our discussions and God blesses this time!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)

In this episode we speak with Katie, who shares her testimony of Christ saving her from a life of anger and substance abuse.  In grade school, anger entered into her life when her parents divorced, then drugs became a way of escaping her reality by the time middle school hit.  Her mother prayed and pleaded for God to save her from the direction she was heading in finally came true after many years of hard decisions.
Katie's life went in many directions, but eventually after the death of a friend, who overdosed, she finally gave into God being the answer.
We hope you take the time to listen in as Katie shares a very personal journey in her life.  A journey that many could wish to forever hide, but she shares openly giving all the glory to God for making her into a new creation in Christ.

"And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18)

If it were not for our problems, how would we know Christ in the way we testify of Him today?  It is in our weakness we are taught gratefulness for His strength.  It is in our foolishness that we become grateful for His wisdom.  It is through our problems, not in the absence of our problems that the Holy Spirit reveals to us our need for Him.  Without an awareness of our problems how could we ever be molded with humility, how would we ever come to know Jesus in the way He desires to be known?  Which is with genuine adoration, praise, and gratefulness.

No one wants problems, but the fact remains that God uses problems in our life as life's continual greatest lesson, I NEED Jesus! A life without problems is not my concern. My concern is a life without knowing I need Jesus everyday! Therefore I am grateful for my problems, because they dictate to me my need for Him.

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." (1 Peter 5:6)

In this episode we speak with Richie Reese, the directory of counseling at Crossway Ministries in Anderson, SC.  He shares with us how the vision of christian counseling is not to fix , but to heal and how he challenges people to appreciate their problems, because your problems are meant to lead you to Jesus. 

 The relation between words and imagery are at the core of our existence.  With a word God created us, and with the word He created us for the purpose of being in His IMAGE. What separates us now from the likeness of God is not our correct definition of who God is, but our sinful failure to imitate the likeness, or IMAGE of who God is. 

Instead of a life which is meant to imitate an imagery of selflessness, sin's desire for us is a life of selfish imagery.  Instead of an imagery of kindness and patience, sin's desire is for us to live a behavioral life which gives imagery to rudeness and insisting on our own way. This is why the Word of God directly speaks to the utmost importance of our behavior and dying to self. Because our behavior is the image of which others see and ultimately our behavior gives witness to whom we belong.  The Word of God commands us how to live, because how we live will either reflect an imagery of self, or an imagery of God. Ultimately the imagery of which we live will give proof to a love of self, or a sincere love for God.

Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35.)  What powerful imagery!  It is an imagery of which the truth of the word is proven in the lived out imagery of the word, love. This is why love and faith require action. If love and faith are only spoken words, then they have no claim to an image. This is why it is impossible to please God without faith  (Hebrews 11:6), because without the action of faith we give no credibility to the image of which we claim to represent. 

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." 
(Mathew 15:8)

In this episode we discuss with Teresa Bauer on how her love for words and the power of their correct visualization completely changed her life.  She shares with us her practical processes of discovering the deeper meaning of words in both her private and public life.

To check out her book go to Teresabauer.com