Challenge!
Hey Journey, we will be using this page to share with each other the encouraging things God is doing in our lives and fellowship as we study the book of Nehemiah together. Please feel free to post what God is teaching you and read those encouraging things others are learning through the challenge. Thanks!
*Also, don’t worry if your post doesn’t appear on the screen right away. It will show up once the website administrator publishes it as a final post.
Hey Journeyers!
I’m excited to begin what I believe is going to be a truly life transforming journey over the next 3.5 months! I can’t wait to see what God is going to do in our lives together as we study Nehemiah and catch the vision God has for our fellowship! I’m praying for you and expecting God to show up and do great things in all of our lives! So jump in and let’s go! There’s so much He has to show us!
I can’t wait to see what God does through this challenge too! I am soooo excited for tomorrow morning and for this series to begin! Yeah!
And we are singing my favorite song tomorrow! Can’t get any better than that!
Last nights Journey Group went so well! There were great insights as people opened up and were real with their feelings and thoughts! One particular thing that was mentioned was the need for us to be constantly looking for God’s vision or we won’t ever find it. It’s so easy to go about life and be oblivious to what God’s vision is and when we can’t see it, it breaks us. But when we see it and we buy into it, it is truly the best thing possible in our lives!
As I was studying this morning in Genesis about Abram, it hit me like a ton of bricks. God tells Abram to leave his homeland, his family and everything and go to a place that He will tell about later. And Abram goes! He doesn’t even know where he’s going, but he’s obedient and it was credited to him as righteousness. What an amazing character quality to have that kind of trust in God that even though He hasn’t given you the details, you would obey without reservation or rebuttal. WOW – I want to be like that but I’m really not.
I wonder how often I respond like Moses in Exodus 3-4:17? Those times when God calls me forward and I muster up every excuse in the world and avoid doing what God asks of me. I’m sure this happens for more than I realize. I pray for strength to take God at His word, trust Him, and just do what He asks of me. How often to we take the privilege of serving Him for granted?
This message came from Kurt Brawley and I asked him if I could pass it along because I think it is very insightful………………….please read on!
Comparing christians as eagles or hogs is very interesting. Everybody knows about eagles but what about the hogs. A feral hog is a domestic hog that has gone “wild”. They tear up the ground and ruin delicate areas and plants with their rooting around. They are omnivorous so that means they eat both plant and animals, they have been seen eating deer fawns. Feral hogs are mean tempered and can and will attack humans who come across thier paths. They also spread disease. The Missouri Department of Conservation urges hunters to shoot on sight, no limit, no permit needed when they know they have feral hogs around. Now, compare that to a feral christian. Thier destructive lifestyle is similiar to feral hogs. Except that we should not shoot them on site, ASK QUESTIONS FIRST, THEN SHOOT.
Hey Journeyers! Life without internet is the pitts! But I still have God’s Word and He is still speaking to me through it! I am learning that my faith needs to grow so much. I have often found that my pride gets in the way because I think I can do it on my own. What a scary place to be! God is so gracious and loving to bring me back to my senses and allow me to see that my faith is a growing part of my life that needs to be expanding each and every day. Thank You God for prodding me onward and upward!
Journey group tonight was cool! It was great to see God start to excite me for some of the things he is doing around the Journey. Especially areas where I have been kind of apathetic recently. It was also cool just to listen to people process what God is showing them and just hear them ask questions to try to learn more. I’m encouraged!
I am learning so much and being convicted so deeply about my leadership style. I am not nearly as consistent as I’d like to be and God is challenging me in that area. I want to be more like Nehemiah!
I have been praying that God would grant to us His clear vision as a church and as individuals. I am asking everyone to pray and seek God’s face as to the vision He has for your life. It is sad to realize so many folks don’t seem to have a clue. May God help us to understand & know His vision so we might live it out.
Yesterday, it was my first day on the field with my new position. I was visiting homes with another case manager concerning cases of elder abuse. We happened to be in a neighborhood, which I pass frequently, and the realization hit me. Each day, I nonchalantly pass homes with people who are in distress.
I am a novice on the topic of elder abuse. Honestly, before this position I didn’t acknowledge its existence. Through my training this past week I learned that elder abuse is a common reality that is under reported. Family systems may have a challenge coping with the stress of caring for an incapable loved one. Or others may take advantage of a vulnerable elderly victim through financial exploitation or abuse. Sin has led to many dysfunctional families. And this dysfunction leads to emotional and spiritual pain.
The reality: many are hurting. The cure: the love of Christ. So, where are Christ’s followers?
Please understand, I am not trying to point a finger. God knows the frequency of my laziness, selfishness, and complacency, which keeps me from showing the love of Christ to those in need.
Despite me failures, I feel a strong calling to extend the love and mercy of Christ to others. But, I believe the call to mercy is one given to all believers of Christ (not just those who are given the gift of mercy). As Christians we are called to help those in pain.
Are we afraid to open our eyes to the extent of pain that is happening all around us? The communities we live in our filled with dysfunction and abuse. Many of the houses we pass on a frequent basis contain people in pain.
How will the church respond to this reality? My pessimism says the American church will continue to respond the way it generally has over the past years: As a dysfunctional body of Christ that has so many problems of its own that it can’t possibly help those outside the body experiencing dysfunction.
However, my pessimism needs to be forgotten and the hope of Christ needs to be the drive. Despite the dysfunctions in many churches, Christ is actively working in believer’s lives. He is igniting us for the work He desires us to accomplish. But, we must be open to His mission. We must be willing to let Him take control. We must leave our selfishness and complacency behind. We must be willing to let God open our eyes to the distress others experience. We must step out of our comfort zones (home, church, etc.) and absorb ourselves in the pain found in our community.
I agree! So what are you doing about it?
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I know I am soooooo excited to actually do something. I’m excited about this outreach and the ones to come. I’m soooo sick of coming to church every Sunday and then doing nothing about what I have learned the rest of the week. I soooooo want to make a difference and I don’t feel like I am doing anything right now to help anyone outside the church, so I can’t wait to meet Brandi next Sunday and see what other opportunities we find!!!!!
The Challenge is just what the church needs. I’m Excited about whats going on @ Journey.
LT went great last night! God is amazing and shows us his favor by blessing us with creative ideas and a united Leadership team.
I want a different little icon thingy mine is a weird color
Journeyers: I am being convicted more and more as we go through this series. I see just how far short I fall in comparison to those in Jerusalem. I long to be like Nehemiah and have staked my claim, my declaration, my line in the sand to step it up for God. I know I am human and will falter and fail daily, but I want to be different. I want to be more committed. I want to be transformed more and more each day. Is there anyone out there who will join me? I sure hope so!
I am so excited about what God is showing me in His Word. The declaration was so powerful and I have stepped it up in a few areas of my own spiritual walk. I am in progress and I’m eager to see what God has in store. I am also very excited to see what is going to happen at the Challenge Celebration Service! We have some “new” things planned and we’re working on some “new wrinkles” to add some creatvie spice to the closing of our series! I do believe it should be a great way to end our time in Nehemiah. So get ready and I hope EVERYONE will be able to make it on November 22nd! I’m praying for you all!
Yeah! I agree with Pastor Paul! God has been using His Word in my life as well and has been challenging me to re-think the complacency in my life recently and how I am settling for a relationship with Him that is not as good as it should be. God is also challenging me in the area of joy, and I am still in the process of trying to be joyful each and every day. Just the fact that I am a child of the King should be enough to make me joyful despite any circumstance in my life. I have definitely had a very negative perspective on life recently and that has sucked away my joy… I’m excited to hear Pastor Pauls sermon this week regarding joy as well!!!!!!
One thing that I couldn’t get out of my mind today while Pastor Paul was preaching was a friend of mine who recently has set the best example of joy that I have seen in a long time. My friend’s name is Megan and her dad was diagnosed with brain cancer not too long ago. Megan was very close to her dad, he was probably the most important person in her life. She loved him soooo much, but through this whole process she had joy. Every facebook status that she updated exuded with joy. She would say things such as “The depth of God’s love is indescribable and uncontainable” “He is the reason I sing. He is the reason I love.” “Psalm 30:1-3” and “How you see your circumstance is all about a choice.” All this while her dad was dying of brain cancer. About a week ago her dad passed away, but yet her life still overflows with joy. Sure, she is sad and admits that it hurts a lot, but since her joy is not based on circumstances and is from the Lord, it didn’t dissipate as her dad passed away. About 2 days after her dad died she posted a note on facebook titled “What You Can Do For Us,” and this is what she said:
“This is what you can do if you want to help us: wherever you are in your walk with Jesus Christ, whether its daily, occasionally, or non existent, DIVE CLOSER. Go in deeper.” Megan went on to say, “The pain isn’t going to go away for a very long time. While we are blessed by each one of you time and time again, you cannot take this away. BUT you can honor my dad’s life and make our hearts happy by embracing the One who my dad loves most.” Megan finished her note by praising Christ and reminding everyone that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever!
This is such a great example of joy to me and I only hope that I can have this kind of joy in my everyday “good” circumstances let alone in hard times.