Ever feel like the world revolves around you?  Like everyone is looking to you for answers?  All eyes are on you and people are just waiting for you to make a move so they can follow you?  Well, they're not.  Maybe we have become the center of our universe, but we are not the center of it all.  Many times we get excited about God's plans because of His inclusion of us, but we are missing the point.  What God appoints you to, the positions He raises you up for and installs you in, and even the gifts you have are not rewards but are your responsibilities.  A reward is for you to enjoy but a responsibility causes your life to make an impact bigger than yourself.

Ever feel like you have had a Goliath challenging your life?  It can be daunting.  As David entered the camp he found an army frozen in fear and a king who had no plan. Fear keeps us from moving forward, or seeing what God can do.  It is paralyzing. God is looking to use some people who have a fire in them to take on the challenge with God-directed purpose and faith. David was God's man for the hour, but what is God calling you to do right now?  How does He want to use you?  Has He put a fire in you for something specific?  Then step out in faith and see God move!

We get caught up with people....we all do.  We put our hopes in them, are confident in their decisions and how they'll impact our lives, and trust some without question.  We assume if their outer image satisfies what we value then we may not probe any further into who they really are.  People may be impressive on the outside, but what about the inside.  Many times we won't respond to the call of God because others "look" more able, talented, or fit the image we think we lack on the outside.  We have to move past appearances and even begin to see ourselves as God does.  Sometimes there's a void God wants to fill, and it isn't with someone else, it's YOU!

Life is a journey and during that journey you're going have to times where you feel refreshed and other times you'll be drained.  Let's be honest, life is hard.  If you're a parent, student, working full-time, or a loved one has passed away, it seems as if the challenges in life never end and one follows the other.  If you feel like the life is being drawn out of you, then you need to look somewhere else for life!  Not sure what that means?  Then, you need to find out!

Storms are menacing, threatening, and get our attention.  The flashing of lighting, loud booms of thunder and pouring rains cause us to stare at the sky as the storm rolls in.  Most problems in our lives are viewed with that same type of attention we give to the storm. In our lives, the problem is just a display of limited power.  We often don't see it this way; we think it is in control, dominating our future and even our responses.  It doesn't have to be this way, and it shouldn't. With so much going on in your life, you need to be able to hear the Word of God in the storm. Once you do, you'll know who to listen to!

God is sovereign in all things and over all of your life.  His hand is on your life more than you realize and are aware of but in time, His care becomes evident. Yet, there are times where it seems God is not moving in our life the way He does with someone else.  We may wonder why it is so easy for them and difficult for us, but we are caught up with the appearance of His move in them, and we don't see their struggle and faith before His blessing.  We may be overly concerned if there is something in our lives, or something we've done to cause God to be absent from our situations, but we are caught up with the wrong issue.  He is with us, continually and faithfully, and as we continue to love and obey Him, all things will be made clear that He has had a plan even when we thought our life had deviated from it.

Everyone has an enemy and the believer has a formidable one.  He is subtle, cunning, and even disguises himself as an angel of light. His ways and thinking are encountered in every area of life through the world's system.  If you don't know the truth, you will easily fall for a lie and in every lie, there is a bit of truth.  It is this truth we must be able to recognize and continue to live according to.

What do you hope in?  When you were young, you were told could do anything you put your mind to; "Dream big!" they said, and you began to develop hopes for a happily every after marriage, a successful career, and the good life.  If you were of the world, then those hopes would make sense.  It would make sense to aim so low, but you are a Believer who is saved and bought by the blood of the Son of God.  In this message, Peter tells us what our hope should be and even better, how to attain it.

Some things are unbelievable unless you see it for yourself.  You may search for the highlights of an incredible catch, or find a video to hear if someone actually said something you heard.  We run into a believability issues when there are situations which cannot be replayed.  What do you do now?  How do you know what to believe?  What is the truth?  When Jesus finally catches up with Thomas after the resurrection, He has the opportunity to help Thomas believe.  There are times we won't believe in Him because we don't see what we think is necessary.  It's time to move past that......

Ever feel like your life is stuck in a vice, being pressed to the point of cracking or worse?  Pressure is a fact of life, and for the most part, we realize this even if we don't like it.  What we forget is the Will of God brings pressure, and we may struggle with why.  Maybe we think God's Will should be easy since we're giving our lives for Him.  Afterall, where His children, and He has the ability to smooth out the rough areas in life.  Jesus followed God's Will and that Will took Him to the cross.  We seem to be okay with the suffering of Jesus because we know it was necessary, but we forget the suffering we have for obeying God's Will is also necessary.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus shows us how to bear up under the pressure which may come because of our obedience to God's Will.