Have you ever tried to negotiate with God? It usually looks a little like this: “God if you will do this for me, I’ll do that for you.” The problem is we are not in a position to bargain. Do you pretend to be something you are not? These are the questions we will wrestle with as we see our lives intersect with the baddest of bad boys in this message.

This “bad boy” was extremely powerful, influential, and wealthy. He was also a very religious man. But his “private devotion” was a real problem for him. This message will take a look at this “bad boy” and we’ll discover what we have in common. What is your private devotion?

Now that we have discovered our S.H.A.P.E. we should have a much better idea of what our ministry. In Part 4 of Experiencing Community we will look at a Biblical example of how one persons ministry is reflected in their S.H.A.P.E. and then look at five Biblical principles for “Activating Your Ministry.”

What God has made you to be determines what He wants you to do. As we look at your S.H.A.P.E. we will discover what God has made you to be. There are five things we will look at in Part 2 of Your S.H.A.P.E. We explored your spiritual gifts. In this message we will look at your heart, abilities. personality, and experiences. These five things will help you learn who God mad you to be, which will point to what God wants you to do. Remember, every believer is a minister. What is your ministry?

What God has made you to be determines what He wants you to do. As we look at your S.H.A.P.E. we will discover what God has made you to be. There are five things we will look at in Parts 1 & 2 of this message. We will look at your spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences. In Part 1 we are going to focus on your spiritual gifts.

Before we can discover our ministry we must understand ministry. In this message we will look at the nature and purpose of ministry.

We are looking at the four habits we need to develop in order to be disciples of Christ. We have looked The habits of Bible study, how to pray, and giving. In this message are going to look at the habit of fellowship. God’s design for believers is that we join together for fellowship. Together we become the disciples Christ intends for us to be.

We are looking at the four habits we need to develop in order to be disciples of Christ. We have looked The habits of Bible study and how to pray. In this message are going to look at the habit of giving. What does giving have to do with discipleship? Your giving reveals your spiritual maturity.

We are looking at the four habits we need to develop in order to be disciples of Christ. Last week week we looked at how we read and study the Bible. This week we will look at the second habit which is prayer. In this message we will take a detailed look at the lesson on prayer that Jesus gave us.

Reading and studying the Bible is absolutely essential for every believer. The Bible is our source of information for everything we need to know to grow as a disciple. This practical message will offer five strategies to help you get a grasp on the Word of God.