Lessons for Living (Audio)

Everyone has been hurt at one time or another. And everyone has, at one time or another, hurt someone else. These events leave scars. They create warped attitudes toward others. But when Jesus was on the cross, an innocent man tasked to take the divine judgment for all of mankind - past, present and future - He forgave. Pastor Mark will be teaching about your example, Jesus, and how He could only have had an attitude of forgiveness through the power of God. The power that made it possible for Him to forgive a disinterested and hostile world is available to you – if you want it.

Unless you’re in what people normally think of as leadership positions, you probably don’t think that others are watching you and taking their behavioral cues from you. The fact of the matter is, though, that if there’s someone with less seniority than you have, you’re being observed. Pastor Mark will be teaching about David’s influence on his men. You might not have six hundred men watching the decisions you make, but the principle is the same. As a Christ follower, it’s important for you to be seeking God all the time, just as David did. That way, you’ll be showing others what godly decision-making looks like.

Did you ever feel like God had given you a plan, a direction for your life which was so clear that it seemed like it had already happened? Did you then jump right into whatever the plan was, only to crash and burn? That really hurt, didn’t it? David had the same dilemma; God had already anointed him as the next king of Israel! As Pastor Mark will be teaching, the challenge for David and for you is to wait for not the “obvious” timing, but God’s timing. Running ahead of God almost always leads to mishaps. Waiting to move until God moves first will help to ensure success in the ways that God judges success.

You may have heard stories of missionaries or other Christians being put in jail for their belief, many times being placed in solitary confinement. It’s nearly impossible to imagine the mental stress that results from such a situation. And yet, often their testimony is one of God’s grace and supernatural care for them. Pastor Mark will be teaching about such a time in David’s life. He was betrayed by a second city and his men were beginning to grumble. He needed help and the first thing he did was call out to God. God brought Jonathan to him to encourage him and build him up in the faith.

Too often, prayer is used or thought of as, “I’m gonna make God my genie and make Him give me what I always wanted.” OR, prayer is prayed with a fatalistic, “God doesn’t really care about me, so why bother praying” attitude. Both of these mindsets are incorrect. Pastor Mark will be teaching about the proper use and role of prayer, using David’s life as an example. You will learn that prayer is primarily a way to communicate with God, both talking and listening. Having a consistent and vibrant relationship with God is the key to having a successful prayer connection with Him.

When you’re in a seemingly tight situation the tendency is to make a quick decision, isn’t it? More often than you’d like to admit, that doesn’t always work out well. David was in a sticky situation; some of his countrymen were under attack and he had to decide what to do. Pastor Mark will be teaching that while David went through the same emotions you would go through, he did what the Bible encourages you to do: consult God first. Yes, his case was a literal life or death one. Even though you probably won’t have that critical of a choice to make, the thing to do first is to ask God for direction.

Do you pray regularly? If you do, do you expect God to answer your prayer? Be honest. Many times people throw prayers at the ceiling not expecting them to go any further than that. David didn’t have any time for that kind of praying; Saul was hot on his trail and he was running out of places to hide. His prayers were serious. Pastor Mark will be sharing that God gave David the answers he needed, at the time he needed them. God didn’t answer David because he was “David”; God answered his prayers because they already had a relationship and God was keeping His end of the deal.

One of the hard things about being a Christ follower while living in this world is the pressure to compare your accomplishments to those around you. Maybe you see yourself as a relative failure because your peers seem to have attained more success or notoriety than you have. Well, Pastor Mark will be reminding you that using the world’s standard is the wrong one for you to use; you need to be using God’s standard. He reminds you that He didn’t choose the most talented or charismatic people for His kingdom – He chose you. And He chose you so that He would get the credit for what He’s making you into.

It’s amazing to contemplate that as a Christ follower you can actually talk to the Creator of the universe! That’s so humbling and awe-inspiring. So much so that many people don’t spend much time in prayer. If you’re one of those people, Pastor Mark’s teaching will be encouraging to you. He will be reminding you that God wants to communicate with you. He is the one Who created prayer. His goal is for you to reach for the potential He has for you, and you can’t find out what that is unless you are paying attention to what He’s trying to say to you. He loves you so much!

Sometimes life comes at you so fast; you have to make a decision NOW – no time to spend thinking – or praying – about it. This is the situation David thought he found himself in. In trying to escape the long arm of Saul, David seemed to make one poor decision after another. Pastor Mark will be teaching that life is never too rushed to take time to seek God and ask Him for His wisdom. He Who has the answers to everything certainly has the answers to your situation. David eventually takes this step. After he does so, things begin to turn for the better, even though he’s still an outcast.