John 15:13 TPT

Join us as we discuss Aaron's journey to faith and how he is working to direct those hurting toward fulfilling their new mission in Christ.   

In 2015 God had been calling Sgt Q to share the healing he had found on the mission field with his fellow warriors. He had ignored this calling until he had a close friend and fellow Marine go off the grid and feared that he would become part of the 22 veterans that commit suicide every day in America.   

Sgt Q prayed that his Marine would not become a statistic and that Sgt Royers death need not need to be the catalyst for his ministry. 6 months later Sgt Q led his first team of veterans on Operation Restore Hope.   

Sgt Royer is still with us and Sgt Q has made it his life’s mission to bring veterans to the mission field to promote healing thru a comprehensive spirit filled process. He partners with Homes of Hope a ywam ministry and Semper Fi Fund to accomplish this mission.   

” Being a Marine and being a missionary are very similar. 1. You are still working long hours for little pay. 2. You are going to dangerous places most people would never consider going. 3. Everywhere you go there is a certain part of the population that wants to cut your head off. The needed skillset is the same but the mission has changed. We are not going to kill people and destroy buildings, we are going to save souls and build infrastructure.” -Sgt Q  

https://www.qmissions.org/

It's amazing how God speaks to us. I am currently in Haiti right now, doing my job, which often entails trusting God for my safety......but there is so much more to it than that.   

How many times have we seen God's direct intervention in our lives? When I say direct, that typically means miraculous and without human involvement. Parting the red sea type stuff. It does not happen often. I can honestly say that I have never seen his direct intervention.   

I have however seen him use exceptional human beings who were willing to listen, trust, and act when prompted. Every day God uses us in our daily tasks to influence and save lives. Whether in a physical or spiritual manner, it does not matter. He uses those that listen to his voice and capitalize on the talent he has bestowed on each of us individually.   

We are unique. God created us with individual skills and ambitions. He did not take that task lightly. When you were created, he had a strategic view of all creation without time or space constraints. He created you with a specific purpose, not only to carry out the great commission, but as a specific task within that mission.   

Matthew 10:16 says, Look I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves.   As a Christian, we often internalize that scripture to think that it's addressing our own safety....Its not. It's not about you. It's about those that God puts in your path to protect, rescue, warn, or disciple.   

Be smart how you do that. Be on the lookout for the wolves and most importantly, watch your brothers six.

Prov.27:17As iron sharpens iron… so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. NKJV 

so a friend sharpens a friend. NLT 

so one person sharpens another. NIV 

and one man sharpens another. ESV 

You use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another. MSG

It takes a grinding wheel to sharpen a blade, and so one person sharpens the character of another. TPT 

Here’s the thing, many of us see ourselves as the hero or the top dog.  We think we are the best example, the one who gets it, the favored or the ideal.  

But the truth of the matter is that we don’t have a clue!  And when we think we have arrived, we then discover that we have only just begun!    We need each other to become who God wants us to be on the earth.  

And in light of our theme scripture and an understanding that sparring helps us work on our weaknesses together, the scripture earlier in Proverbs 27 makes a ton more sense…  Prov. 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” NKJV or in The Passion Translation: “You can trust a friend who wounds you with honesty, but your enemy’s pretended flattery comes from insincerity.”  

Guys we need each other to be anything in this world.  And when we are line with God, that “anything” will be everything to the one who needs it.   I want to challenge you today to listen to hear, hear to obey, obey and do!  Let’s get to work.  

I’ll leave you with Micah 6:8 “He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?”

At Iron Edge we all have something in common. We are attempting to find and fulfill our mission in Christ. We have come together under that common theme. We feel that there is something more than going to church every Sunday and getting fed.   

Although that is an important aspect of our journey, it's not our specific mission. Listening to a message on Sunday or going to a Bible study is not going to be a factor when we stand before the God of the universe and answer for what we did or did not do.   

We are already redeemed. There is nothing we can do to add to that or take it away. God sent Jesus to pay that price long before we were born. So what's the point of going to church?   

The great commission is about more than feeling fulfilled. Is not at all about how we feel. If it was, there really would be no reason for us to be here on this earth after we receive Christ. If it was about us, we would receive Him, and go straight to heaven.   

Jesus set the example. He came here as a man, lived among us, and reached millions and millions after being in the spotlight for only a few years. He did that so we could understand how to do the same.   

Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  

Going to Church on Sunday is important. It gives the opportunity to get refreshed, motivated, and educated on how to reach others during the rest of the week. Our lives are meant to shine so others may see and hear the love of God through our example. Just like Jesus did. Don't forget that our mission is so much more than being a spectator. It not about us. Its about the lost that are waiting to meet Jesus through us.

1 John 1:7- fellowship is vital to living the truth of who God is. God is light so if we say we are in God then fellowship must be a part of that lifestyle. Fellowship is gathering frequently, communion, community, sharing our lives with one another.  

I encourage each one of us to have those men in our lives that we can have true fellowship with. Make Jesus the center of you conversation and activity and we receive cleansing, strengthening and courage to continue walking this journey in Christ. Because God is light there is no darkness in him, we can therefore have no fellowship with darkness.

As men, that is a difficult question. It's one of the most difficult things for us to admit to ourselves let alone anyone else. Admitting that we are fearful shows that we are vulnerable and maybe even cowardly.   

We live in an age of information. Not only can we see all of the craziness of the world through the numerous media channels, we can experience it through our ability to travel globally.   

I personally have traveled the world. To some of the darkest places you could possibly imagine. I have had to acknowledge my own fear because my life depended on it. If I did not, I would likely have been victimized, maybe even killed.   

It was through this process that God revealed a few things to me. First off, fear is not permanent. It can be overcome. The same goes for cowardice. Acknowledging fear and reaching out to my network of warriors is how I overcame it enough, to go to the dark places that God was directing me to. To reach those that lived amongst the evil of this world without a choice.   

Psalms 34: 4 says I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.  These are the words of one of the most renowned warriors in history. David, the man who took out warrior giant with a stone. The man who took the throne and conquered numerous enemy forces.   

If David, a man who appeared to be courageous admits that he was not....not without God's help. Not only does he proclaim it to God, but he does so in a very public way.   

We all have fears, and without God, we would most definitely make life decisions based in it. Fortunately for us we have the power and authority of the Holy Spirit and all of the forces of heavens army's.   

Don't let your ego keep you from acknowledging fear, expressing it to your brothers, and overcoming it through the power of the holy spirit.   You are a warrior. Don't go into battle blinded by your fear. Because the only thing we have to fear is.....fear itself.

Recently I heard my friend Pastor Amanda Conner say Kingdom stewardship is, ”how well you handle something God has put in to your hands and whether or not it can still honor God.”

Join Pete and Shad as we discuss our role as men in our communities and local churches. 

Chris Russo has been on staff at Seacoast for over 14 years. His greatest passion is motivating and encouraging people in their relationship with Christ. In his time at Seacoast he has served in college, young professional and marriage ministries. Chris also led Seacoast’s Columbia campus for four years and has been the West Ashley campus Pastor since July, 2017.  

Chris has been married to his wife, Abbi for over 11 years and they have amazing sons named Isaac, Jonathan and Samuel. Chris also serves as an adjunct instructor for Southern Wesleyan University and South Eastern University. He loves coffee, Chick-Fil-A, playing golf and traveling as much as he can.

What is authenticity? How does it manifest in my life? Is it even possible to be authentic while living in a culture that encourages fake it until you make it.  The word authentic is defined by Webster as true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character. The definition is centric on being who you are. What you see is what you get. Although that might appear to be self-centered, it all depends on our base morals and values, or as we at Iron Edge like to call them, Ethos.  

If I were to go back in time and look at my authentic self before I was following Christ, I would say its likely a good thing that I did the whole fake it until you make it thing. I can imagine that I would have offended a lot of people, and really hurt more than I helped them.   

Authenticity is not a fixed target. Its not something we hit and then relax because we’ve reached our goal. Being authentic is an ongoing mission with multiple moving targets. Finding it requires constant analysis and planning.  If we are seeking God, and constantly purging sin and weakness from our lives, and then being honest about where we are in our mission with our brothers, our authenticity will be evident to those around us. 

Phillipians 4:8 says Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.  Being authentic is a journey that does not end…we have to continually seek it and part of being authentic is being vulnerable enough to allow others to see your weakness. Otherwise we are the opposite of authentic because we are lying to everyone including ourselves.