Friday, December 19, 2014

How To Love God by Ella Hearrean

How to Love God

By: Ella Hearrean

God asks us to love him with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. How do we do that?

Unless it’s mad, passionate, extraordinary love, it’s a waste of your time. There are too many mediocre things in life. Love shouldn’t be one of them.Dream for an Insomniac¹

Most people hope for an extraordinary love. They want a head-over-heels, once-in-a-lifetime relationship that is both passionate and enduring. Hit movies, best-selling novels, and dating websites all bank on our hope for a great romance.

However, the greatest love wasn’t born in a movie or a classic novel; it was authored by God himself when he created you in his image. His singular desire has always been a passionate, enduring relationship with you. Like us, God wants nothing less than the greatest love story.

Love with Passion and Purpose

God has a single expectation for a relationship with you. He spells out his desire in the Bible: “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”²

He makes it very clear that he wants “all” of you. He wants all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength invested in your relationship with him. More than anything, he craves a relationship in which you are “all in.”

Anyone who has been all in knows that loving passionately is about loving purposefully. The two elements feed each other: Your passion drives your purpose. Your purpose feeds your passion.

An “all in” kind of love is the sum of the little choices we make each day. Gary Chapman, author of The Five Love Languages, said, “Our most basic emotional need is not to fall in love. It’s to be genuinely loved by another, to know a love that grows out of reason and choice, not instinct. I need to be loved by someone who chooses to love me, who sees in me something worth loving.”³

What are the daily choices you can make to love God passionately? Thankfully, because you’re a reflection of him, you can begin by simply asking yourself, How do I hope to be loved? You already have what it takes to create an extraordinary relationship with God.

Let’s look at each of the ways God wants your love.

Love with All Your Heart

Loving God with all your heart means reserving the best of your affection for him. Make time each day to build an intimate relationship with him through prayer—through conversation. He wants to know you and be known by you.

Start by sharing joys with him. Run to him first with your big news at work. Sing to him at the top of your lungs on a great day. Fill him in on your private hopes. Tell him how much you appreciate him. Boost him up to others.

But also talk to him first when you’re feeling down. Cry to him when you’re overwhelmed at home. Admit when you feel jealous. Be honest when you’re disappointed or angry—even if it’s him you’re angry with. Share your secret fears. Apologize when you’ve made a mistake. Ask him for forgiveness.

Then let him talk. He has things to say, and he wants a relationship that goes both ways. Ask for his advice and seek out his answer. Listen to his stories in the Bible. Hear out people who speak his truth. Notice the gifts he has provided for you.

Each day, set aside time to get to know God.

Love with All Your Soul

Loving God with all your soul means dedicating your life to him. Begin by asking him, “How do you want me to spend my time, energy, money, and talents? What can I do with my resources to honor you?”

Find out what God values and stay true to those things. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”⁴ When you invite God into all areas of your life, he will show you how to live in a way that pleases him.

He may ask you to shift your spending habits from self-indulgence to those less fortunate. He might encourage you to change your attitude toward work. He’ll probably ask you to find friends who support your relationship with him. He’ll definitely urge you to forgive and love people the way he forgives and loves you.

In every area of your life, look for ways to show your commitment to him.

Love with All Your Mind

Loving God with all your mind means backing up your passion with knowledge. Benjamin Franklin has been credited with saying, “If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.” God understands that the mind and heart are linked. He wants you to use your reasoning to understand and love him more fully.

Begin by asking questions. Don’t be afraid to challenge him and wrestle with his commands and your beliefs. When I’ve asked tough questions, I’ve found that God welcomes genuine curiosity and dialogue. In fact, he hopes for it.

Then seek his answers. Read the Bible and find out what the words mean. Listen to the experiences of others. Take a class. Ask him for guidance. Make an effort to find out who he is. Discover what he likes and what he dislikes.

Loving God with all your mind also means directing your thoughts to valuable things. When you focus on hope and love instead of fear and hate, your heart and actions follow. Philippians 4:8 says, “Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

Each day, wonder about God.

Love with All Your Strength

Loving God with all your strength means persevering for him each day. To what lengths will you go for the one you love? Poet Bayard Taylor once said, “The loving are the daring.”⁵ Indeed, genuine love demands strength and courage like nothing else.

It means you must muster your resources to protect your relationship with God every single day. It means you’re willing to change and sacrifice things to have him. It means being honest, and sometimes it means doing the unpopular thing. It means listening to truth and holding yourself accountable.

Loving God strongly is walking away from gossip when you prefer to be part of the group. It’s admitting you’re wrong and making a change. It’s asking people to help you protect your relationship with God when you don’t feel like it. It’s avoiding the people and things that could take your attention and love away from him. It’s getting up and trying again after you’ve failed.

Each day, be willing to fight for your relationship with God.

Love in the Moments

Every day is made up of hundreds of little moments that are opportunities to love God. And every single opportunity matters.

When loving moments are strung together, they form days. When loving days are strung together, they become months. When loving months are strung together, they stretch into years. And over time, years of love for God make up one extraordinary love story.

www.exploregod.com

Monday, September 29, 2014

James 3:5

In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. (NLT) ( James 3:5 )

What a powerful tool each of us is blessed with: communication!

Depending upon its delivery and timing, something as simple as a laugh has the power to make a jovial comedian radiate or cut a person to their core. Use your tongue for God's purposes by building up loved ones, teaching others about Jesus' love, or praying in difficult situations.

Sunday, September 21, 2014

What Is Grace?

Christians love to throw around the word “grace.” What does that mean?

The film Saving Private Ryan, set during World War II, tells the story of how one soldier—Private James Ryan—is rescued from behind enemy lines in Normandy.¹

The mission is extremely perilous; immediately it begins claiming the lives of the men on the rescue team, one after another. In the final battle scene, set on a heavily-shelled bridge, the captain of the rescue team whispers his last words to a dumbstruck Private Ryan: “James . . . earn this . . . earn it.”

At the end of the movie, we see an elderly James Ryan return to Normandy with his wife, children, and grandchildren. He kneels beside the grave of the captain who rescued him and, as tears fill his eyes, he says, “My family is with me today. . . . Every day I think about what you said to me that day on the bridge. I tried to live my life the best I could. I hope that was enough. I hope that, at least in your eyes, I’ve earned what all of you have done for me.”

Then, turning to his wife, he pleads with her, “Tell me I have led a good life. . . . Tell me I’m a good man.”

Never Good Enough

James Ryan has lived his entire life with the last words of his rescuer ringing in his ears. Earn this. In a way, those words have ruined him. How could his life ever be worth the deaths of those young men? Nothing would ever be truly good enough. But he’s driven to keep trying.

Perhaps you feel something of that in your own life. Are you driven to try to earn approval from your parents, your peers, your spouse, your friends, your God? Do you try to get that sense of being “good enough” from the job you do, the relationship you have, the home you live in, the family you’re raising, the money you earn, the charity you give to, the ethical choices you make, the church you go to? Do you sometimes feel that it’s just never “enough”?

We Can’t Earn It

It’s not only religious people who are driven to try to be “good enough.” The motivation for this endeavor is rooted in something real. The Bible says each of us has a very serious problem, which separates us from our Maker.

It’s called “sin”. Sin isn’t so much the bad things we do—although those are symptoms of the deeper problem we have. Sin occurs when we exchange the real God for false gods.² Instead of living for the real God—the one who created us and gives us every good thing we enjoy—we live for ourselves, or for our career, or for our spouse, or for material things.

The result of doing this is catastrophic. The “gods” we choose to serve are merciless slave-drivers. They are gaping mouths that never seem to be satisfied—and they can never satisfy us in a lasting way. The Bible refers to them as “broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”³

When we treat the God who made us in this way, we deserve every bit of his condemnation and judgment. Jesus is uncomfortably clear that because we sin against God in this way, we deserve hell.⁴

Putting Things Right

The Christian understanding of God reveals that he takes no pleasure in our endless attempts to make ourselves acceptable to him. The book of Acts says, “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.”⁵

In other words, nothing we can do for God can make us acceptable to him, because a) he doesn’t need anything we have to offer, and b) anything we offer him is something that he made in the first place.

So . . . we deserve God’s condemnation and cannot earn God’s acceptance. What hope is there?

Grace

The Bible claims that Jesus is our only hope.

He, too, died as part of a rescue mission—God’s rescue mission for humanity. But the words Jesus cried out just before he died weren’t “Earn it.” He said plainly, “It is finished.”⁶

That simple statement is an expression of the fact that Jesus “earned” forgiveness and freedom for us. In Christian understanding, Jesus lived a uniquely sinless life in which he loved God perfectly. And then, having lived that perfect life, he died the perfect death.

On the cross, he bore the punishment that you and I deserve for our sins. He took on our sins; died in our place; and rose again, conquering death and sin and opening the way for all to have a personal relationship with God. And we—if we put our trust in him—are credited with and redeemed by his perfect obedience. This is what Christians mean when they say things like “Jesus paid it all.”

Second Corinthians 5:21 puts it like this: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

This is grace—a word you may hear a lot of Christians throw around. It is by grace that God freely, lavishly sets his love on an undeserving people. It’s all made possible because of Jesus’ life and death.

One of the clearest expressions of this stunning truth comes in the book of Ephesians. The Apostle Paul, one of the New Testament writers, says this to those who believe in Jesus: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”⁷

In other words, we can’t earn salvation by the things we do. If we could, we would be proud and arrogant. Instead, we are saved through faith and trust in what Jesus has done for us. And even that faith is a gift from God.

How Should We Respond?

When someone understands God’s grace and embraces it, it transforms them wonderfully and irrevocably.

James Ryan felt he had to “earn it,” and so his life became weighed down by joylessness and anxiety about whether or not he had done enough. But those who put their trust in Jesus know that he has already earned it for them.

As a result, they are freed from the enslavement of trying to earn it. They are freed to love and serve God—and others—as they revel in the joy of a restored relationship with him.

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Inseparable Love

I remember exactly where I was on September 11, 2001. If you were old enough to know what was going on, the same is most likely true for you as well. Each year on September 11th we reflect, remember, and remind ourselves of our mortality. The fact that our lives on earth are simply a small portion of a much bigger picture. Days like today cause us to consider God, His love for us, and His plan in a world filled with so much hurt. This short blog found on exploregod.com eloquently discusses how important hope in Jesus is in the world we live in. It is a perfect way to remind ourselves of what is truly important in such a broken world. -Pastor Kayla

Inseparable Love

By: Ben Sharp

A Christian perspective on hope in the face of terrorism.

Amputated limbs. Bodies scarred by shrapnel. Three people dead, including an eight-year-old boy who just wanted to cheer on his father.

To say it’s hard to make sense of a tragedy like the bombing at the Boston Marathon is a vast understatement. Hurting the innocent and the young defies the comprehension of most human beings, regardless of race, gender, religion, or creed. The shock value and horrifying nature of what’s been done strip us of our sense of safety, peace, and well-being.

The anger, frustration, and questioning that follow are equally unsettling. Whether a victim, a bystander, an emergency responder, or even a spectator thousands of miles away, most people are shaken by what occurred in Boston.

How could such a thing happen? Why would someone want to kill or injure innocent civilians? Our sense of order—our belief that our society is safe and invulnerable to such chaos—is disrupted and our understanding of the world is disturbed.

Our leaders do their best to restore what’s been lost—quickly. Hours after the pair of bombs tore through the Boston Marathon crowd, the White House publicly condemned the attacks and law enforcement officials vowed to do everything in their power to bring the perpetrators to justice, even planning a “worldwide investigation,” according to news sources.

Such pledges of quick and decisive action are certainly beneficial, like a soothing balm that softens—though doesn’t heal—the painful blister left behind by senseless violence. There’s comfort in the thought of dozens of agents and officers exhausting all resources on a coordinated manhunt to identify the guilty. And when those responsible are found, we all hope for severe penalties.

But an arrest and a conviction—though satisfying to a degree—seldom signify the end of the atrocity for those most damaged by it. There is still something lacking. Take the terrorist strikes on 9/11. Over a decade has passed, but the suffering has not stopped for the survivors and the victims’ families.

The general population struggles, too, recognizing that this atrocity occurred on native soil, aimed at the innocent civilians of this country. Memorials must be held. The dead must be honored. We all must continue to remember—and pledge never to forget—so that this won’t happen to us again. It’s hard to find hope in such times.

But somehow hope remains. As Christians, we are told that God cares deeply for each one of us¹ and knows even the number of hairs on our heads.² Despite the countless things that trouble our minds, despite frightening events beyond our control, we are to rest assured that God is above all. Though it can sometimes seem impossible, Christians are called to trust in God’s power and plans to create wonders beyond our comprehension.

Ironically, some of these wonders are most evident in the midst of tragedy. Just look at the selflessness of the emergency responders and the large number of Good Samaritans who rushed into danger in Boston, in New York at the World Trade Center, and aboard United Airlines Flight 93. Time and again we are shown that though evil is evident in this world, it is not all powerful. Good trumps it in the end.

More comforting still, Christians believe, is the promise God has given us through the life, death, and resurrection of his son, Jesus Christ. By taking our sins upon himself, Jesus enabled us to look beyond the torn and scarred borders of this world and rest our eyes on the promise of eternal glory that awaits on the other side of death. Nothing—neither random accidents nor chronic illness nor terrorist violence—can take that hope from us.

The world we live in is imperfect, damaged, and fallen. No one on earth can escape pain, suffering, and death. However, Christians believe that Jesus will return to earth again. At this time, he will restore and redeem our world to the way it was created to be. “‘There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things [will have] passed away.”³

As the apostle Paul wrote in the book of Romans, “I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”⁴

- See more at: http://www.exploregod.com/inseparable-love#sthash.MJNhPnAf.dpuf

Monday, August 11, 2014

The Summer Of 2014 8/11

This summer is beginning to come to a close and what an amazing summer it has been. We believe that this summer has been one of the best if not the #bestsummerever in the history of our youth ministry.

One of the reasons we believe this is because we were able to facilitate a Summer Camp for over 150 One Way Students. Around 40 were baptized in the holy spirit this summer. Dozens were saved and dozens rededicated their life to Christ.

This alone is reason enough but it doesn't stop there. We have come in contact with tons of new students, made closer relationships with students we didn't know as well as some an above all we have seen the atmosphere and worship at our youth group change.

The summer of 2014 has been an amazing one, but it's not over yet! As the school year gets closer and closer we are pressing on towards the great prize!

Wednesday, September 3rd we are hosting a Back 2 School Bash at One Way and it's going to be amazing. We will host the Jon David Finney Band, Air1 Radio from Houston, we'll have inflatables, free BBQ and a bunch of giveaways and an amazing service for all the students to enjoy!

Besides all the visuals and the obvious blessings this summer, God has really done some incredible things in our youth ministry, in us as youth pastors and in our youth staff.

So, I am pumped up about what God is going to do next and we don't want you or your students to miss it! Join us this school year as we go to the next level in all that we do!

Pastor Phil

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Do I Have to Go to Church?

By: Barry Cooper from www.exploregod.com

I have better things to do than go to church. Do I have to go to be a Christian?

Church attendance in the West, even among Christians, is falling. According to a recent study, attendance at church services in any given week has declined among Christians by 9 percent since 1991. Now only a minority of Christians (47 percent) can be found at church during a typical week.¹

In a culture that sees independence and self-reliance as hallmarks of a truly successful person, church can feel like an imposition on our time and energy. We ask if we have to go to church in the same reluctant way we might ask, “Do I have to go to the dentist?”

But what if followers of Jesus only truly flourished when in community with other like-minded believers? What if true fulfillment could only be found in serving them rather than ourselves?

Church in the Bible

The Bible certainly makes a strong case for being at church regularly. Jesus himself assumes that his followers will gather together habitually in self-governing “churches.”² The writer of the book of Hebrews is explicit: “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing.”³

According to the Bible, believers should meet together regularly so that they can

hear God’s Word taught faithfully;⁴
pray together;⁵
be accountable to one another;⁶
encourage one another;⁷
use God-given spiritual gifts for the benefit of fellow believers;⁸
exercise church discipline with the aim of restoring a person who is caught in a particular sin;⁹
support one another in suffering;¹⁰
rejoice with each other;¹¹
commemorate Jesus’ death and resurrection;¹²
serve one another;¹³
bear with one another;¹⁴
offer hospitality to one another;¹⁵
love one another;¹⁶ and
demonstrate the power and goodness of Jesus to a watching world.¹⁷

This list is far from exhaustive. As you read the New Testament, it’s hard to miss how many commands contain the phrase “one another.”

The New Testament describes each gathered group of believers as “the body of Christ.” Just as with a human body, each part of the body of Christ needs the others.¹⁸ Each believer is a “hand” or an “eye” or a “foot,” and just as it would be self-defeating for the foot to say, “I don’t like this leg; I’m leaving,” so it is when a believer stops attending church or refuses to settle in one church. The church suffers and so does the believer.

Church as God Sees It

Theologian and pastor Mark Dever tells a story that sums up why meeting regularly with the same family of believers is so vital. He and a Christian friend attended church together, but his friend came just to the morning service—and even then only halfway through service when it was time for the sermon.

Dever asked his friend if he’d thought about committing himself to the church. The friend responded, “Why would I join the church? If I join them, I think they would just slow me down spiritually.”

Dever responded with another question: “Have you ever considered that maybe God wants you to link arms with those other people, and that perhaps even though they might slow you down a little, you might help to speed them up—and that that’s part of God’s plan for how we’re supposed to live as Christians together?”¹⁹

If we really saw church as God sees it, even with all the “inconveniences” it can entail, it would be one of our deepest joys. The theologian Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, writing about the book of Acts in the Bible, makes this observation:

What an utter denial it is of the whole of the New Testament, this foolish suggestion that one service a Sunday is enough—one that takes place at nine O'clock in the morning, to get rid of it, as it were, in order that you can then really go and enjoy yourselves and have real happiness in looking at the television or in rushing to the seaside or in playing golf! But what happens when people are baptized with the Holy Spirit—as you see throughout Acts—is that they begin to want to be together, to get together as often as they can. The believers in Acts steadfastly continued talking about these things, singing together, praising God together—every day. This was first above everything else. Everything else came second; even their work was just something they had to do. It was right that they should do their work, of course, but this community of praise was the thing that meant life to them, that meant joy and salvation.²⁰

No Question

Seen in this light, the question, “Do I have to go to church?” is almost comical. We might equally ask, “Do I have to watch my favorite sports team?” “Do I have to sleep with my beautiful wife?” Or, while drowning in the Atlantic, “Do I have to get into this life raft?”

Our local churches—to the extent that they are seeking to know Christ and live out God’s Word—are unique, irreplaceable, God-given gifts to every believer. To withdraw from them is to deny others our love and rob ourselves of joy.

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Dealing with depression

"How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand?" (Psalms 13:2 NLT)

Depression can be experienced at many levels and for many different reasons. It’s rarely an easy thing to get away from.

There is a difference between being depressed and living in depression.

Something may have happened that you were not expecting, like losing a loved one or losing your job and now you feel depressed.

But when your choices and your life begin to change because of the negative feelings you have inside, then you are facing depression.

Depression is the fruit of something deeper. You shouldn't feel ashamed about your feelings, but you must know that God desires better for you.

He wants to comfort you and restore you to a life of joy. Get quiet before God and remind yourself that he is for you sand not against you.

"Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand."(Isaiah 41:10 NLT)

Monday, May 5, 2014

We All Live in Pompeii (Song & The Movie)

We All Live in Pompeii

In AD 79, two cities and some 16,000 people were obliterated by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. One of those cities was Pompeii, which makes a phrase from the popular song Pompeii even more meaningful:

And the walls kept tumbling down,

In the city that we love.

Great clouds roll over the hills,

Bringing darkness from above.

—Pompeii by Bastille

Most of us would assume that the poor souls who perished in the devastation of that famous eruption never saw it coming. To be sure, the volcano itself had not erupted in centuries, but I wonder if anyone doubted the wisdom of making Pompeii his or her home after the calamitous earthquake that obliterated much of that city just 17 years before?

I foolishly believe that the worst consequences of my sin have already occurred.

That’s right – a huge quake shredded a good portion of Pompeii in AD 62, yet the people just built on the rubble and ignored the risks. They foolishly believed that the worst was over – little did they realize that the worst was yet to come.

You know…in a way, I feel like I live in Pompeii as well. I have allowed the rubble of my sin to be the foundation of my life, and I dwell in the presence of a spiritual volcano known as my sin nature. I foolishly believe that the worst consequences of my sin have already occurred, but the Bible has a different perspective:

We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind (Isaiah 64:6)

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21).

Just like the people of Pompeii, I go about my daily life as if all is secure – but I have already experienced the eruption of my flesh that spews destruction and rains down death on my relationship with God and my loved ones. I have had numerous relational earthquakes and warning signs, and lately I’ve realized that if nothing changes, I will be buried by the sinful world I’ve created.

How am I gonna be an optimist about this?

—Pompeii by Bastille

Well, perhaps it’s about time that I move away from Pompeii? Sure, I’ve grown used to living with the same nature, attitudes and habits that have characterized me from birth, but I’m ready to find a safer place. A place where Jesus is the sole ruler of my soul, and all the volcanoes are permanently dormant.

Do you sometimes feel like the guy in Pompeiitrying to escape the darkness?

That’s why I love the promises from God’s Word that empower me to get away from my spiritual Pompeii:

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there (Galatians 5:24).

My friends, if you feel like the poor guy in the Pompeii video – trying to escape the darkness that seems to be overtaking your world, remember that Jesus Christ has made you into a new creation! All the old ways of your sinful nature were crucified with Jesus on the Cross, so you have the freedom, in the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, to walk away from the sinful passions and desires that keep erupting and destroying your world.

And remember, as well, that our planet itself is a spiritual Pompeii as each day moves us closer to the return of Jesus Christ. The earthquake that occurred during His crucifixion is a warning that our world faces a future judgment, so now is the time to prepare by sharing the gospel every chance you get for the sake of your friends and for the advancement of THE Cause of Christ.

Just like the people of Pompeii desperately needed to be warned about their city’s impending destruction, we live in a world that urgently needs to be warned. We all have an important role to play. So let’s leave our own personal spiritual Pompeii’s behind so we can be free to model and share the message of Jesus Christ with those around us who desperately need to be rescued.

Now that’s something to be optimistic about!

Flashpoint: Ignite Into Action

Until Jesus returns or we pass away, we will battle our sin nature. It is critical to realize that this part of our soul is a powerful destructive force that can bring great devastation in our lives, so we need to crucify our flesh and live in the freedom of being a new creation.

Accelerant: Fuel for THE Cause

Pray: Father, thank You for giving us freedom from our sin nature and ourselves. Jesus we crucify our sinful desires and commit ourselves to following You each day. Spirit, please empower us to share the gospel with boldness in these last days.

Read: Galatians 6:14-15. May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Twelve Characteristics Of A Good Leader

So today we'd like to share with you 12 Characteristics or Qualities of a good leader.

#1 Good leaders have Good Attitudes.
-All the time, no matter what the situation. The two biggest enemies of the church behind Satan himself is Negativity and Judgemental people. Don't be negative and don't judge others.

#2 A good leader is SOLD OUT to his leaders.
-Everyone has a leader or mentor or someone above them. Interns have staff members and youth pastors as leaders, we have our senior pastors as our leaders and our pastors have leaders above them in the PCG (our denomination).

-A good leader is sold out to his or her leaders. They are committed, RESPECTFUL, servants and helpers. Good leaders communicate with, and care about each other.

#3 A good leader is passionate about everything they do.
-Have you ever been somewhere you were paying for a service, maybe a restaurant or a coffee place and the person waiting on you just clearly didn't care? They clearly hate their job, they clearly don't care about you...
-Now take the same thought but switch it to someone who loves their job, their smiling, their happy, they talk to you.... There's a huge difference right? It's because one person is not passionate while the other person is passionate about what they do. In the same way people can tell how you feel about being a leader, intern, staff member, youth pastor and even a Christian. So be passionate about what you do and smile.

#4 A good leader learns what needs to be done and does it without having to be asked.
-Helping clean up, doing your duties assigned to you, giving people high fives, jumping up and down and getting excited about service. A good leader leads without being asked.

#5 A good leader worships and their worship is contagious!
-You should be able to tune out everyone else and go full on crazy for Jesus.
-Leaders worship if the band is good or bad, if it's too loud or too quiet, if they can sing with it or not. A good leader worships and their worship is contagious.

-Have you ever seen someone worship and your just like "I want to be like that! I want to be that on fire for God!"

I know people whose worship is contagious. That's my leaders, if my pastor starts worshipping and puts both hands in the air and starts singing and connecting with God it makes me want to worship God likes that. A good leader's worship is contagious. So therefore your worship should be contagious!

#6 A good leader takes notes.
-Pastor Kayla and myself take notes, not because we always want to but because it helps us learn and capture moments that God is speaking to us.
-Good leaders take notes and have journals, for Christmas I got 4 new journals. One of them has already been completely filled up. Take notes it's important.

#7 A good leader doesn't gossip but instead they stop gossip!
-There's way too much gossip in Christianity and even in our ministry. Gossip is one of the devils strongest tools, he knows if he can just get you to start telling some lies or making up stories or talking about others that he'll bring you down. So don't gossip, instead be the person who stops gossip.

#8 A good leader wins souls for Christ.
-The bible says that Jesus didn't offer it to us but he commissioned us, he commanded us when he told the disciples to GO into all the world, preaching and spreading the gospel to every living creature, baptizing and teaching them.
-A good leader is so on fire for God that they are looking to find the lost, they'll do anything, they'll go anywhere to tell others about God. A good leader invites all the people they care about to church.
-So, how many people have you brought or invited to OneWay this month?

#9 A good leader knows what they believe.
-A good leader knows the word, reads it daily and can quote some scripture without looking it up. A good leader knows what they believe.

#10 A good leader is humble and proud.
-A good leader is confident in what he is called to do but humble in the fact that he is a sinner and has had humble beginnings.
-A good leader is proud of what God does through them and for others but is humble enough to know its because of God not them.

#11 A good leader guards their heart, protects their testimony and is cautious about who they allow close.
-A good leader cares about where they've been and where they are now. They desire to move forward not backwards. They pick their close friends wisely.

#12 A good leader has a prayer life and shows evidence of it.
-It's not about how to look or act or be seen but a good leader knows how to connect with God one on one.

-When was the last time you prayed, why or why not? How often do you pray? Is it once a day?

-What needs are in your life that could be met if you only asked God to meet them?
Matthew 7:7

-A leader can only lead someone as far as they've been as a Christian, if you have a deep relationship with God then those who follow you can have a deep relationship with God. In the same way, if you don't know how to pray or you don't have a daily prayer life then those who follow you will most likely have a shallow prayer life if one at all.

(The above was written and taught by us and for our OneWay Interns, these basic teachings can drastically change the way you lead others if thought upon and applied)

www.onewaysm.org

Thursday, January 2, 2014

One Way and 2014

This year at OneWay we are really excited about some of the events and opportunities that are before us. We are kicking off the new year with two awesome events happening in January!

Thursday, January 9th we are heading to downtown Houston to experience "Bethel Music" Worship Nights the cost is $20 per person and we will be leaving a 5pm and getting back later that night.
If you would like to RSVP or get more info on this event please check out our Facebook event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/616593681711113/

Then Friday and Saturday January 17th & 18th we are heading back to Houston for the Acquire The Fire event hosted by Ron Luce. This will be an event that will change your life. There will be some amazing Christian bands, guest speakers, dramas, human videos and much more.
To RSVP or get more info on this event please check out our Facebook event page at
https://www.facebook.com/events/180713582137356/

So this year don't just attend Wednesday nights and sit on the bleachers, but get involved! Get plugged in! And one of the best ways you can do that is by attending OneWay Connect which is the 2nd & 4th Sunday night of every month at 6pm! We have food, music, videos, prayer and one on one time to connect with each other. So don't get "lost in the crowd" but get connected and plugged in.

We'd love to see you at any of these events.
If you have questions or would like to talk to Pastor Phil or Pastor Kayla please connect with us at
www.onewaysm.org or by email at philipjkeller@hotmail.com or kaylabk@live.com

See you next Wednesday at OneWay!