Podcast

Friends Church, Yorba Linda, CA

Friends College Ministry

Follow us on Instagram: @FriendsCM

Pastor Kevin Livermore (3-ology.com)

Psalm 46

We must trust in God’s power, provision, and presence for he is always ready to help us even during the worst of times.

Where can you “mark yourself safe” from the turmoil we face in this life? Where do you go in the chaos to find protection or peace?

Repeat the following statements slowly:

Be still and know that I am God

Be still and know that I Am (everything you need)

Be still and know (experience this presence – experiential knowledge)

Be still (just rest in this presence)

Be (be aware of your existence, you’re alive, you’re here on earth, life is a gift, you’re here in his presence)

We all need to hear the voice that can silence the threat of any and all enemies in the chaos of our lives. Are you listening today?

Small Group Discussion:

1. Verse 1 of this passage says “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” In the story Kevin shared, the father asks the son, “Have you used all the strength that’s available to you?” Do you ever try to do things on your own without asking God for help? What is your “refuge and strength”?

2. 1 Kings 19 talks about how Elijah heard God in “a sound of sheer silence.” What prevents you from listening to God?

3. Close your eyes and spend 2 minutes in sheer silence. In the first few seconds of the silence, tell God this time is for him and you are here to hear from him.

Pastor Kevin Livermore preaching (@kevinlivermore1 on Instagram, Youtube: 3-ology.com)

Psalm 139-God’s great knowledge of us. Seeing God with awe and wonder.

God knows us intimately. He knows everything about us. God knows our thoughts, motives, and our true self. He knows our past and our future. He has always known our name even before we were born.

“Since it is God we are speaking of, you do not understand it. If you could understand it, it would not be God.”

— Augustine

The Psalms give us permission to be honest about the challenges we face in life. But they also show us how we need to be honest with ourselves. We need to reveal to God our true heart and let him clean us out.

When praying, we tend to only bring our requests to God. However, David shows us the following pattern:

1. Praise and give thanks

2. Make our requests

3. Ask God to search our hearts and change us

Group Discussion (Part 1):

Have someone read Psalm 139:1-18 again. How does it impact you? What stands out to you and why?

What does God’s great knowledge of you tell you about him?

Group Discussion (Part 2):

How do you typically pray? Does it follow David’s pattern?

Are you honest with God? Do you allow him to see the depths of your heart and change you accordingly? Why or why not?

Friends College Ministry at Friends Church in Yorba Linda, CA. We meet every Tuesday night at the Chapel at 5151 Lakeview Ave. Yorba Linda, CA. (on Instagram: @FriendsCM)

Philippians 2:12-18

Pastor Kevin Livermore preaching (@kevinlivermore1 on Instagram, Youtube: 3-ology.com)

"Work out what God worked in."

Be like an athlete who has been given all the talent but doesn’t waste it. Someone who works hard and trains and becomes the best athlete he/she could possibly be.

Don’t waste the good gift of Salvation God has given you. Don’t waste your life. Don’t let life pass you by.

Be Active and not Passive.

Exercise the gift of faith you’ve been given.

People who make the most of what they have been given, end up experiencing the most satisfying life.

As a Christian, God works in you and enables you through his Spirit to “work out” your salvation. What are some of the biggest challenges you need to overcome to “work out” your salvation?

How can you “Work out what God worked in” this week through serving the world and knowing God with awe and wonder?

What does Paul mean in Phil. 2:15 when he says “shine among them like stars”?

“If we have no desire to live for the Lord, we have no right to say we know the Lord.” –Roger Ellsworth. Do you desire to live for God? Do you desire to experience God’s love and presence? Why or why not?

Friends College Ministry at Friends Church in Yorba Linda, CA. We meet every Tuesday night at the Chapel at 5141 Lakeview Ave. Yorba Linda, CA. (on Instagram: @FriendsCM)

Philippians 1:12-26

Pastor Kevin Livermore preaching (@kevinlivermore1 on Instagram, Youtube: 3-ology.com)

God’s kingdom is more important than my problems. Paul chose to see life this way. God can always work good through difficult situations. We need to set our minds on advancing God’s kingdom and not dwelling on our past or present problems.

God is a master at redemption. God is a master at restoration. God is faithful. God never stops using our situations to try and bring good into the world somehow, someway.

God can always work good through difficult situations. All human circumstances are in God’s hands and God can use them for good.

Whether in life or death, our lives need to be all about Christ. If Christ is all we care about, we will always be at peace.

Friends College Ministry at Friends Church in Yorba Linda, CA. We meet every Tuesday night at the Chapel at 5141 Lakeview Ave. Yorba Linda, CA. (on Instagram: @FriendsCM)

Philippians 1:1-11

Pastor Kevin Livermore preaching (@kevinlivermore1 on Instagram, Youtube: 3-ology.com)

Paul longs that the church in Philippi will know God more and more deeply, to understand his ways, grow in holiness and share his love with each other.

GOD HAS NOT GIVEN UP ON HIS CREATION AND HE HASN’T GIVEN UP ON YOU.

He hasn’t given up on you, so don’t give up on yourself.

Partner with God and each other to produce fruits of righteousness and give glory to God.

Partner with God and each other.

Erwin McManus: "We could do more together than we could ever do apart."

God is faithful to complete the good work he started in you, so that you may be humble and united in Christ, always growing in your love for others.

God’s good work in us of mercy, grace, peace, truth, purity, and transformation will not run dry, will not fail, will not give up for He is faithful.

He hasn’t given up on you, so don’t give up on yourself.

Allow the Potter to continually shape you all the days of your life.

Partner with God. Imagine a world where the church was united and we all partnered with each other and God.

What kind of world would that be?

The College Ministry at Friends Church in Yorba Linda, CA. Follow us on Instagram: @FriendsCM

Pastor Kevin Livermore (www.3-ology.com)

How are you participating with God to advance and further his kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven"? What role is God calling you to play in His Story?

John Ortberg said, “Jesus never told anybody—neither his disciples nor us—to pray, 'Get me out of here so I can go up there.' His prayer was, 'Make up there come down here.' Make things down here run the way they do up there.” The request that “thy will be done” is God’s invitation to “join him in making things down here the way they are up there.”

Imagine Jesus just won the Presidential election. What would he value? How would He want people to live? How might society look different? See Psalm 15, Mark 4:30-32 and Luke 13:18-21.

In light of what you believe Jesus would value as President, how does your life demonstrate His Kingdom now?

What is one area of your life that doesn’t quite match Jesus’ Kingdom now?

How would you like to reflect God’s Kingdom more?

The College Ministry at Friends Church in Yorba Linda, CA. Follow us on Instagram: @FriendsCM

Pastor Kevin Livermore (www.3-ology.com)

New series called "Kingdom Manifesto" based on the Sermon on the Mount. This week covers Matthew 5:1-6, the first part of the Beattitudes.

Do you want to be happy? When Jesus talks about happiness, he is not talking about external circumstances making us happy...rather he is talking about an inner happiness and sufficiency that does not depend on outer circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is also known as the kingdom manifesto or “The King’s Speech” where Jesus Christ (The King) sets out his plan — the way in which the world should be according to the King. Like a President’s inauguration speech, it is an ideal statement of what life would look like for a kingdom citizen.

The kingdom of God is a matter of the heart before it can become anything else. Most of the Beatitudes are about the condition of our hearts. It all starts in the heart. How is God trying to shape your heart? Does God have your heart?

Friends College Ministry (Instagram @friendscm)

Friends Church, Yorba Linda, CA

Pastor Kevin Livermore (www.3-ology.com)

Prayer is more about changing ourselves than it is about God changing our circumstances. Prayer is not about changing God, but about changing us. Prayer is also about connection to God…it sustains our souls like oxygen sustains our lungs.

“Prayer is a mighty instrument, not for getting man’s will done in heaven, but for getting God’s will done on earth.” -Robert Law

“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.” - Martin Luther

Prayer is primarily about:

1. Changing us, not God

2. Connecting to God (listening)

3. Becoming more aware of his presence throughout the day

We pray to:

1. Know God more

a. Giving God glory and us freedom

b. Making us more aware of his presence throughout the day

2. Submit to his will, and deny our own

a. Gradually changing our heart’s desires from deep within

3. Be sustained in our hope in Christ alone

a. Encouraging us to press on in our journey with Christ

What is the most difficult aspect of prayer for you?

Consider the interview with Mother Teresa about her listening to God, and God listening to her…Do you view prayer as connection/communion with God? If yes, describe an example from your life.

“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” - Corrie ten Boom

Matthew 6:9-13

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

10 your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one."

Endnotes: I first heard the decaf coffee analogy from Hank Fortuner. Also, I heard "Thy kingdom come, my kingdom go" from Richard Rohr.

Friends Church College Ministry

College Pastor Kevin Livermore (www.3-ology.com)

Follow Friends College Ministry on Instagram: @FriendsCM

Trust and believe in what God says you are - his son or daughter who he will never stop loving. Trust in who he keeps insisting you already are: an inherently, dearly loved child of God. This is your true self.

Identity in the kingdom of God is not something you achieve, it is something you receive!

Can you accept that you are already accepted? If not, what is holding you back?

Col. 3:12 “…as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

You are:

• God’s beloved Son or Daughter

• Totally and completely forgiven

• Justified and redeemed

• No longer a slave to sin

• Set free from the bondage of sin and death

• A new creation

• Chosen, holy, and blameless before God

• A citizen of Heaven

• Predestined to obtain an inheritance

• Not an accident - God has always known your name and has a purpose and plan for your life

• The place where the Holy Spirit lives

• God’s incredible masterpiece, his work of art

• Created in the image of God

• Made alive in Christ

• Salt of the earth

• Light of the world

• Unconditionally loved by the God of the universe

Which one of the above points do you have trouble accepting about yourself but know you need to embrace?

What false identity have you hid under in your life?

Friends College Ministry

Friends Church Yorba Linda, CA

College Pastor Kevin Livermore (www.3-ology.com)

Matthew 22:34-40

Loving God, ourselves, and others is our highest priority and ultimate purpose.

There were 613 Old Testament commands/laws but Jesus says the priority is loving God with everything you are, and loving others as you love yourself.

The Pharisees were trying to prioritize the commandments for the purpose of finding a deep insight as to what really matters in this life! We do the same thing.

You love what you prioritize! Priorities determine destinies.

What are you loving? Based on your current priorities, where do you find ultimate meaning and fulfillment?

Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer"

What is the answer to humanity’s search for meaning and fulfillment?

Invest in eternity, invest in what matters most: God and people.

Re-Prioritize your life

How will you do this? What will change in your life? Do you need to change your perspective?