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Live Like You Were Dying
(Part 4: Living with a Sense of Priority)

Opening Prayer, Confession of Faith & Worship

Big Idea:
The Bible reminds us about the brevity of life, but it also teaches us about the urgency of life so that we do not squander our God-ordained opportunities. We are called to live life with a sense of kingdom priority.

Summary:
Time is one of the most precious gifts given to us by God. No matter our social or financial status, we all have the same amount of time given to us in each day – 24 hours. Using our time unwisely can have devastating effects and prevent us from fulfilling our kingdom purpose in this life. Interestingly enough, we don’t see a significant emphasis on saving time or managing time in the Bible. However, God does call us to REDEEM time.  What does it mean to redeem time? Simply put, it means that we take back our time from Satan, the world, and sin. A life spent in sin or chasing after the things of this world is a wasted life filled with missed opportunities. We know that what we do today echoes throughout eternity. Therefore, using our time wisely will not only result in satisfaction in this life, but also rewards and eternal life with God. We must make a conscious effort to use our time properly and to take advantage of our God-given opportunities.

We can redeem our time by getting our priorities right and allocating our precious time to things that matter. Jesus told us that the two things that matter most are loving God and loving others. Therefore, we should be spending our time with Christ and doing things that bring Him glory, while also showing others love. In fact, time not given to God and His purposes will often be stolen by Satan, resulting in discontent and squandered opportunities. Have you squandered God-given opportunities? Have you wasted some of the precious time given to you by God? Here’s some good news; there is still a chance for you to redeem your time – today! Christ came to redeem, and in Him, we can redeem our time. Take it back and capitalize on the plans and purposes God has laid out specifically for you. Live the rest of your life with a sense of priority.

Discussion Questions: (read the scriptures & discuss)

Ephesians 5:15-17
Contrast how the “wise” spend their time versus the “unwise”. Discuss how we can learn what the Lord wants us to do. According to the Bible, is there a place for “down-time” in our lives? What should that down-time look like? Do you have any God-given opportunities that you have been neglecting?

Colossians 4:2-6
What do our actions towards others have to do with redeeming time? What kind of opportunities should we be looking for? Discuss opportunities you have had to redeem time by ministering or helping others.

Matthew 25:14-30
How does this parable of the talents teach us to wisely use opportunities in the limited time we have been given? What is the result of continuing to disregard the gifts and opportunities God has given us? Who suffers when we don’t redeem time and invest it in the kingdom of God?

Taking Action: Spend some time this week reviewing your use of time. Write out how you are spending your time. Don’t let your time keep slipping away. Identify time that can be captured for His kingdom purposes and REDEEM it.

Ministry Time

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Live Like You Were Dying

(Part 3: living with a sense of humility)

Opening Prayer, Confession of Faith & Worship

Big Idea:

We live in a world that promotes the proud, the arrogant, and the boisterous, but God’s Word tells us that He will promote the humble.  Understanding Godly humility is therefore important, and living it out is essential.

Summary:

As followers of Christ, we are called to boast in the Lord and not in ourselves. This means that pride must be eradicated from our lives and replaced with humility. Before we continue, let’s make sure we understand that humility is not weakness. In fact, it takes strength to intentionally live humbly. Moses was “the meekest man on the face of the earth,” but he wasn’t the weakest. Humility is not self-abasement or beating oneself up. It is not thinking less of yourself. Rather, it is thinking of yourself less. Humility is also not hypocrisy. It is not acting as if you are something less than what you really are.

So, what is humility? What does it look like? Humility is surrendering to the sovereignty of God and accepting that God is God and we are not. He is the creator of the universe and He is in control. Humility is learning to rely on the Source of life. We must acknowledge that all of our talent, all of our gifts, and all of our abilities ultimately come from God. Humility means accepting God’s gift of grace. He gives His amazing grace to the humble, which saves us and empowers us to live our lives for Him. Humility is putting the needs of others first. We are called to give up our rights in order to serve others - not grudgingly, but thankfully. Finally, while we are not called to boast in ourselves; we are called to boast in God - in His glory, His marvelous works, His grace, His power, and His love. Let’s tell others of the great things He has done.

Discussion Questions: (read the scriptures & discuss)

Matthew 20:25-28 & Matthew 23:12

What does God say will happen when we promote ourselves? Why is it hard to be humble? How has pride messed things up in your life? How can we be servants to one another? Discuss examples of humble people that have been lifted up by God because of their humility (ie: Mother Theresa).

Philippians 2:3

What attributes does Paul use in this passage to contrast humility? How does esteeming others more than ourselves display humility? What can we do that shows others they are important to us? 

2 Corinthians 10:17-18 & Jeremiah 9:23-24

What happens if we take the credit that should go to God? Discuss practical ways that we can boast in the Lord. Challenge each other to implement these practices into your daily lives. 

Taking Action: Make this week a week of boasting – not in yourself, but in God. Also, intentionally think of yourself less and think of others more. Finally, make this a week where you purposefully “do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.” 

Ministry Time 

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Live Like You Were Dying
(Part 2: living with emotional stability)

Opening Prayer, Confession of Faith & Worship

Big Idea:
God has given us the ability to feel emotions. It is what makes us feel alive. However, we must not allow our emotions to control us. Rather, we must submit our emotions to the Lordship of Christ and let the truth of God’s Word be our guide.

Summary:
God created humanity with an amazing emotional capacity. The Book of Psalms records the emotional rollercoaster ride of King David. When he’s happy, he feels happiness to the core of his being. And when he is sad, he embraces his despair without reservation. He feels deeply. And at times, his feelings lead him astray. But somewhere along this journey, David seems to discover that as important as feelings are, they are only one part of his total being, and certainly not the most important part. The emotional aspect of our being coexists with our intellectual, physical and spiritual aspects. Every person will build the foundation of his or her life upon one of these four foundations: the emotional, the intellectual, the physical, or the spiritual. And among those foundations, feelings are important but they are not the most important because you are not your feelings. For that matter, you are not your body or your intellect. You are fundamentally a spiritual being.

There are three dangers when we build our lives on our feelings. First, feelings can be distorted. The enemy likes to manipulate our circumstances and our senses in an attempt to throw us off balance. Second, feelings can be imported. Sometimes we have a way of feeling what has been forced on us rather what is truly within us. And third, feelings can be aborted; they can change in a moment. The danger of building our lives on our feelings is that feelings come and feelings go. As Christians, the way we must deal with our feelings is by choosing to believe God’s Word over what we hear, feel, or even experience. Our emotions are the servants of our will. Our feelings are the fruit of what we believe. So instead of struggling to change our feelings, we must begin to work on our belief system and our feelings will follow course.

Discussion Questions: (read the scriptures & discuss)

Philippians 4:6-9
How do our thoughts affect our emotions and ultimately how we approach life? In addition to prayer, discuss other practical things that we can do to guard our hearts and our minds.

Romans 12:2
How do we renew our minds and keep our emotions from running away and conforming us to this world? Share something that you have read recently in the Bible that has transformed your mind and thus kept your emotions in check.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
How do you know if an emotion is healthy or unhealthy? How can we take our thoughts and emotions captive? How have your emotions lied to you? How does the truth of God’s Word speak to those issues and areas in your life? (Example: Your emotions might say you are worthless. But, God’s Word says you are fearfully and wonderfully made.)

Taking Action: Spend time reading God’s Word every morning this week. Meditate on what you have read, and ask the Holy Spirit how this Truth can form your thinking and direct your emotions throughout each day.

Ministry Time

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Live Like You Were Dying
(Live the dash)

Opening Prayer, Confession of Faith & Worship

Big Idea:
God’s Word tells us that this life is but a vapor – a brief dash between now and eternity. How we live the dash matters. It matters today and it matters forever.

Summary:
The Bible teaches that there is an unbreakable link between this life and eternity.  What we do in this life matters throughout eternity.  Every one of us will give an answer to God for two things when we stand before Him in judgment. First, we will answer for the way we responded to the gift of His Son. In the face of such overwhelming love did we harden our hearts and reject His grace or did we allow His love to overwhelm us and save us? The second thing we will give account for is what we did with the time, talent and treasure that He called us to steward in this life. In other words, what we did with the dash between our birth date and our death date. Did we live for ourselves or did we live for God and help build His kingdom?

What does it mean to live the dash? It means that we should live with a sense of nobility. We were created in the image and likeness of God; we were created for God’s intended purpose; we were created for greatness. It means living with a sense of priority. We must live for the things of God and the things that build the kingdom of God. It means living with a sense of urgency. While there is a time to wait upon the Lord, we are also called to be about the Lord’s business today. We must love God and people today. We must seek first His kingdom today. “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”  Finally, we must live with a sense of eternity. We must keep ourselves from chasing the temporal things of this world. Rather, we must invest our time, our resources, and our lives in things eternal. Remember, every one of us will die. When? We do not know. However, we are told that we are not promised tomorrow. With this in mind, how are we living today? What are we doing with this time between today and eternity – the dash?

Discussion Questions: (read the scriptures & discuss)

James 4:13-14
How does this truth affect the way you live your life today? Share with each other what you would do this week if it were your last week. How should this truth affect your relationships?

Matthew 22:37-38
How does this passage direct how we live life today? What does it look like to love God this way? How does this passage affect our relationships and actions today? Describe how loving this way affects today and affects eternity.

Ephesians 5:15-17
How can we know God’s will? Discuss how we as Christians can make the most of every opportunity?

Taking Action: Live the next 7 days as a “No Regret” week.  When we gather back here 7 days from now, let’s be able to say, “I didn’t live in the past; I didn’t worry about the future; I embraced each day as a gift; I didn’t take life for granted this week; I didn’t take the people in my life for granted this week; most importantly, I said ‘yes’ to God and His plans.”

Ministry Time

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Memorials Matter to God
(Anniversary weekend)

Opening Prayer and Worship

Big Idea:
People tend to have short memories. At times, we are even guilty of forgetting the goodness of God and His miracles. This is why memorials matter to God: they remind us of the past, point us toward the future, build faith in all those who are on this journey with us, and help us value the process we have been through.

Summary:
It is important to remember the great things which God has done in our lives and the lives of our forefathers. In fact, we see that God has often authorized memorials as a means of remembrance; not memorials to ourselves or what we have done, but memorials to the Lord which glorify His name and remember His mighty works. In Joshua chapter 4, we see God asking the Israelites to build a memorial with twelve stones as a means of remembering the miraculous crossing of the Jordan River on dry ground. We must not be ashamed to tell how God delivered us, helped us, and healed us. Repeating the stories of God’s compassion and care for us over and over again helps memorialize the great things God has done for all to see. As you read through these passages in Joshua chapter 4, you will realize that building memorials reminds us of the past, points us toward the future, builds faith in the lives of others, and establishes the value of God-ordained experiences.

The Apostle Peter reminds us that we are like “living stones”. Let’s remember that each year we are building a memorial. We are laying down stones of faith and commitment, stones of compassion and caring, stones of ministry and help. Our stones are not those from the Jordan River. Rather, our stones are picked up as we read through God’s word, as we spend time in prayer, as we teach people about Christ, as we minister to others and share Christ with them. Every time a person comes to new faith in Christ, every time a captive is set free from bondage, every time someone who is hurting discovers healing and comfort, and every time someone learns new things about God from our sharing, we are witnessing a miracle as great as the nation of Israel experienced as they crossed the Jordan. Let’s remember the great things God has done and let’s make sure we share those things with the generations that follow.

Discussion Questions: (read the scriptures & discuss)

Joshua 4:4-7
What are you doing to share the greatness of God and His mighty works with the next generation? Why is our testimony so important? How has your testimony been used to advance God’s kingdom and His purposes in the lives of others?

Joshua 4:8
Who picked up the stones which were used for the memorial? How does this correlate to our role in the church today? What practical “stones” can we be picking up in order to glorify God and build His kingdom?

1 Peter 2:4-5
How does God intend to use the living stones? Can this be accomplished if we try to walk out this Christian life alone? How have you experienced God bringing Christians together with their memorable experiences to further God’s purposes?

Taking Action: 1) We’re asking you to set aside the week of January 19-23 to fast and pray for City of Grace as we move into the future.  2) We want to encourage you to bring your family, friends, co-workers and neighbors to our weekend worship experiences. Let’s build the House of God together. 3) We want to challenge you to get involved in serving here at City of Grace. There are many areas of ministry that we need your gifts, talents, and abilities in. 4) We want to encourage you to continue growing by joining a Lifegroup or attend a spiritual enrichment class.

Ministry Time