Lessons for Living (Audio)

Sometimes we get this mindset that the “mission field” is in another country, far from our regular lives. Pastor Mark will be teaching us that Jesus told His disciples that the mission field was all around them; it was everywhere they went. As Jesus’ followers, we need to understand that what Jesus told Peter and John applies to us as well. The passage in Luke that Pastor Mark will be sharing will tell us that we have an advantage those around Jesus didn’t have at the time in the story – we have the Holy Spirit living inside us. We need to take advantage of that.

In our American society there is an amazing amount of importance given to celebrities. They are thought to be smarter, better looking, and what they say is paid attention to more often. This seems to have had an effect on the church. We, who are members of Christ’s Body, His Bride, think of ourselves as unimportant simply because we don’t have that “spark” of position or riches, or whatever it is we think we lack. Pastor Mark will be teaching us that God’s ways of doing things are not only not the world’s ways, they are 180 degrees opposite. He will encourage us to change the way we look at ourselves and think about ourselves more like God does.

In our American society there is an amazing amount of importance given to celebrities. They are thought to be smarter, better looking, and what they say is paid attention to more often. This seems to have had an effect on the church. We, who are members of Christ’s Body, His Bride, think of ourselves as unimportant simply because we don’t have that “spark” of position or riches, or whatever it is we think we lack. Pastor Mark will be teaching us that God’s ways of doing things are not only not the world’s ways, they are 180 degrees opposite. He will encourage us to change the way we look at ourselves and think about ourselves more like God does.

The American church, it seems, has been focusing on the wrong thing for a very long time. Instead of helping the Christians inside its walls become more like Jesus and then sending them out ready to be beacons of light, it has focused on keeping people satisfied, or trying to entice people into accepting a walk that seems to be less that what Jesus describes in scripture. Pastor Mark will be teaching things that we may be unused to hearing, but that doesn’t make it untrue. We’re hoping that as a result of hearing this message that you will be challenged to become a more active member of Christ’s body.

The American church, it seems, has been focusing on the wrong thing for a very long time. Instead of helping the Christians inside its walls become more like Jesus and then sending them out ready to be beacons of light, it has focused on keeping people satisfied, or trying to entice people into accepting a walk that seems to be less that what Jesus describes in scripture. Pastor Mark will be teaching things that we may be unused to hearing, but that doesn’t make it untrue. We’re hoping that as a result of hearing this message that you will be challenged to become a more active member of Christ’s body.

The Bible in several places in the New Testament likens the universal Church to a body, with each person serving as a part of the functioning whole. We’re warned against being a malfunctioning part, and encouraged to ask God where our place in the local body is, and then to get in there and do the work we were called to do. Pastor Mark will be teaching about Jesus’ sending out of the seventy-two disciples to do work in His Name. We’ll learn the importance of having the proper attitude in seeking our proper place as well as understanding that all of the success is to make Jesus look good and not for personal ego strokes.

The Bible in several places in the New Testament likens the universal Church to a body, with each person serving as a part of the functioning whole. We’re warned against being a malfunctioning part, and encouraged to ask God where our place in the local body is, and then to get in there and do the work we were called to do. Pastor Mark will be teaching about Jesus’ sending out of the seventy-two disciples to do work in His Name. We’ll learn the importance of having the proper attitude in seeking our proper place as well as understanding that all of the success is to make Jesus look good and not for personal ego strokes.

We’ve all been hurt. The older we get, the more hurts we seem to accumulate. Jesus understood this when He confronted the men that had excuses for not following Him, despite their stated desire to become His disciples. Pastor Mark will be teaching about our need to do something that’s really hard for we humans to do: let go of the past, particularly hurts, wrongs, and the like. He’ll explain how they’re like chains that weigh us down and keep us from finding our ultimate purpose in Jesus. We’ll see how the cares of these mens’ lives and their unwillingness to discard them ultimately cost them a place in God’s family.

We’ve all been hurt. The older we get, the more hurts we seem to accumulate. Jesus understood this when He confronted the men that had excuses for not following Him, despite their stated desire to become His disciples. Pastor Mark will be teaching about our need to do something that’s really hard for we humans to do: let go of the past, particularly hurts, wrongs, and the like. He’ll explain how they’re like chains that weigh us down and keep us from finding our ultimate purpose in Jesus. We’ll see how the cares of these mens’ lives and their unwillingness to discard them ultimately cost them a place in God’s family.

Our society seems to want us to make everything about ourselves. All around us, people trumpet their successes, intelligence, beauty, in attempts to give the impression that they’re special or superior. Jesus, the Creator of the universe, came as a baby to a poor family. Pastor Mark will be teaching from the book of Luke, telling us about the importance of letting God work through us and our circumstances. We will be reminded of the fact of God’s orchestrating of events with the intent of praise going to Him alone.