Riverway Church Sermon Podcast

What we say is so much more than just words. The words we speak have power & influence, either for good or for destruction. And what we say carries weight; it leaves an impact on others.

Even though our mouth is only a small part of us, it can do a lot! We can cause great damage or speak new life, all through our words. - Learning to think before we speak is something easier said than done, but it is a discipline that God desires to help us grow in. No matter the situation, we can always ask Him for the right words to say.

What has got your attention? - Our attention can be caught by many things, including both very good things & very destructive things. We must be aware that our attention has the power to take us in a certain direction. That direction will become a path, which will lead us to a destination.

It’s important that we fix our focus on the direction we want to go in life. God has promised to help us out in this! As we follow His commands, our focus stays to the path that He has made clear for us. Our best direction in life comes from His guiding, because He keeps us from danger & bring us to a GOOD destination.

We can start taking the best path as we guard our focus and become more aware of exactly what has caught our eye.

It's often hard to admit that we need help, but in life we are all dependent upon something... or someone. We tend to think that our path in life depends on our own understanding, so we seek out the best information in order to make the best decision possible. But what about when our understanding comes up short?

We'll never have enough information to prepare for every situation in life, but God promises to faithfully lead us as we stay close to Him. Submitting to God's direction for our life allows Him to make our path clear and protect us from dangers that we can't see. Even though we may never have all of the answers to life’s questions, we can trust God to care for us as we learn to humbly & freely lean on Him.

As we go through life, the path we take will eventually lead us to encounter both joys & challenges along our journey. Depending on the path we choose, certain dangers could have a destructive impact on our life. - Is there a way for us to avoid that danger and head towards something better for our lives?

Choosing a better future might require sacrifices from us, but it will also give us a life built on freedom. As we stay close to God, obey His leading in our lives, and ask for His insight, He will teach us His wisdom so that we might walk confidently as we face the road ahead.

Life is a journey, and we all want to arrive at a place we truly want to be. The path we take will always determine our destination, no matter what our dreams, hopes, and intentions are.

How can we be assured that we stay on the path that leads us to the right destination? God wants to speak to us on our journey and guide us on that path He has for us. We will reap the benefits of staying on the correct path, as it leads us to our destination.

Our faith is based upon our confession of who Jesus is - who we say He is.

What kind of impact does our belief in Jesus make on our lives? How does that change the way we live in connection to others around us?

Jesus calls us to follow Him & join Him in the mission that He started here on earth: the mission called the Church.

On our journey in life, one of the most significant characters we can develop is Self-Control. It leads us to become more dedicated, focused, and grounded in life.

Self-control is so much more than avoiding bad things, it's an active choice to choose GOOD things and continuously chase them down as our primary goal. As we grow closer to God, His Spirit develops Self-control in us. He empowers us to live faithful, committed lives that honor Him.

As we grow in life, God intends for us to be healthily connected to others. We have an influence on each other, and the way we treat others shows the value we place on them. Nothing demonstrates this better than the character of Gentleness.

Gentleness is a powerful character which reflects the way that Jesus reaches out to us. And as we become closer to Christ, His life in us changes the way we reach out to each other. Through gentleness we have the potential to comfort those who are hurting and heal those who are broken.

We all want to place our trust in something or SOMEONE reliable, someone we can depend on. How can we become that person who models Faithfulness, and be the one that others can trust?

Life & the culture around us pressure us to freely run after whatever makes us most happy, and fear tries to cripple us into believing that we have no future.

God wants to show us His Faithfulness. We can trustingly open our lives up to His guidance and trust Him with our darkest fears. God's life & His love will change our lives, as we faithfully keep growing our relationship with Him.

Just as fruit develops on a tree, developing healthy and positive traits in our lives requires our dedication to continue growing. As we stay connected to God, He causes good things to grow in us.

Kindness & Goodness are characters that require our intentionality to grow. We become good through actively choosing to do so, and we become kind by stretching ourselves to extend kindness to someone else.