A Proverb that blew me away and I hope that it does the same for you....
"Now therefore, listen to me, my children,
For blessed are those who keep my ways.
Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not disdain it.
Blessed is the man who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at the posts of my doors.
For whoever finds me finds life,
and obtains favor from the Lord;
But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul;
All those who hate me love death"
Proverbs 8:32-36
In his word, God desires for us to listen to him, not the other way around. He will not force us to listen, it is a decision that we must make on our own. For when we listen to him, we are blessed. It may not be a physical blessing, but a spiritual blessing. May we always be listening to our heavenly father, and apply his word to not only our lives, but also in our hearts.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Cut it off and cast it away!
Jesus said In Mathew 18:8,9 "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be cast into the fiery hell."
Why would Jesus illustrate such a horror? Pluck out my eye? What?! Do we want to be lame? Do I want to walk around with one eye and look like a monster from a Harry Potter flick? What Jesus is talking about is sin. Thats how extreme we should view it. If we don't see sin as it truly is, then we will sugar coat it and continue in it. Jesus expresses his love by giving us an example, by letting go the things that will indeed infect the heart and contaminate the rest. Since we have a relationship with Jesus, who is loving, graceful, forgiving, Holy and righteous, then we must have a new relationship with sin. Which is to not engage in it, have no desire, do not practice it with others and most importantly, do not justify it. If it causes you to sin, they chop it off. Let go! Stop turning to sin and turn to Christ. Repent.
His love for you is so great that body parts do not matter. But that you have given your life to serve him and live for him. You do that and he will restore what was lost.
Why would Jesus illustrate such a horror? Pluck out my eye? What?! Do we want to be lame? Do I want to walk around with one eye and look like a monster from a Harry Potter flick? What Jesus is talking about is sin. Thats how extreme we should view it. If we don't see sin as it truly is, then we will sugar coat it and continue in it. Jesus expresses his love by giving us an example, by letting go the things that will indeed infect the heart and contaminate the rest. Since we have a relationship with Jesus, who is loving, graceful, forgiving, Holy and righteous, then we must have a new relationship with sin. Which is to not engage in it, have no desire, do not practice it with others and most importantly, do not justify it. If it causes you to sin, they chop it off. Let go! Stop turning to sin and turn to Christ. Repent.
His love for you is so great that body parts do not matter. But that you have given your life to serve him and live for him. You do that and he will restore what was lost.
Lock Down!
Friday May 21 at 7pm, it is on. Fusion, Stronghold and Focused Youth are once again getting together for a Lock-In! The Lakeshore worship team along with Corona International Christian Fellowship will provide worship that will glorify our king. There will be a Nerf war, circle pong tournaments, bean bag toss tournaments, movies throughout the night, and team building activities. It will be $5 for food and drinks. Also, you will need a permission slip and a medical release form in order to join the event. If you have any questions, contact Josh or Mario. See you there!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Values that have (eternal) rewards
"The core values of an organization are those values we hold which form the foundation on which we perform work and conduct ourselves." -author unknown
The purpose of core values is shape the foundation on which you are building, they are guidelines to help you steer your ministry,or company into the right direction. When it comes to a ministry, they must have strong core values to stay on track and be reminded of what thier doing just in case the focus is lost. At Fusion, Ashley and myself have prayed about the core values of this ministry. Whats our purpose? Why do we do what we do? What matters to us? It questions like that, we ask and when we take a look at the scriptures and how Jesus reached others, then we've found the answers to what we have been looking for.
Fusion's core values:
1) Save the lost
Why does this ministry exist? To save the lost. Luke 19:10 Jesus said "for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost". His purpose of his coming was to preach the kingdom of heaven, glorify his father, and save sinners from eternal seperation.
2)Preach the Gospel
What are you going to talk about? We will be as Christ and speak life. The Gospel brings life to those who are dead spiritually. In Acts chapter 2, you see the apostle Peter preach the gospel to many and the scriptures say that they were "cut to the heart". The people were convicted, the blinders have been removed, and they said "men and brethren, what shall we do?". Peter then replies with repentance and then baptism. And because of Peter's obedience to the Holy Spirit and scriptures, about 3,000 were saved that day. WHY? Because he preached the gospel.
3)Make Disciples
What is the purpose? To make disciples. Before he ascended into heaven, in Matthew 28:19 Jesus said "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit". It was a clear commandment. From there, the disciples made disciples.
4)Bear Fruit
What do we do? We go and bear fruit. Jesus said in John 15:16 " You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, and whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you". When we encounter Christ, his presence transforms us, we are no longer the same. We didn't choose him, but he first chose us, and since he chose us and saved us from hell, a place of torment and eternal seperation, we must bear fruit that reflects his heart and character. And in that, our Heavenly Father will be glorified.
5)Repeat
Now What? We repeat the process. We save the lost, preach the gospel, make disciples, bear fruit that lasts and start the process all over again. Why? Because the Harvest is plenty and the laborers are few.
These values have eternal rewards
The purpose of core values is shape the foundation on which you are building, they are guidelines to help you steer your ministry,or company into the right direction. When it comes to a ministry, they must have strong core values to stay on track and be reminded of what thier doing just in case the focus is lost. At Fusion, Ashley and myself have prayed about the core values of this ministry. Whats our purpose? Why do we do what we do? What matters to us? It questions like that, we ask and when we take a look at the scriptures and how Jesus reached others, then we've found the answers to what we have been looking for.
Fusion's core values:
1) Save the lost
Why does this ministry exist? To save the lost. Luke 19:10 Jesus said "for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost". His purpose of his coming was to preach the kingdom of heaven, glorify his father, and save sinners from eternal seperation.
2)Preach the Gospel
What are you going to talk about? We will be as Christ and speak life. The Gospel brings life to those who are dead spiritually. In Acts chapter 2, you see the apostle Peter preach the gospel to many and the scriptures say that they were "cut to the heart". The people were convicted, the blinders have been removed, and they said "men and brethren, what shall we do?". Peter then replies with repentance and then baptism. And because of Peter's obedience to the Holy Spirit and scriptures, about 3,000 were saved that day. WHY? Because he preached the gospel.
3)Make Disciples
What is the purpose? To make disciples. Before he ascended into heaven, in Matthew 28:19 Jesus said "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit". It was a clear commandment. From there, the disciples made disciples.
4)Bear Fruit
What do we do? We go and bear fruit. Jesus said in John 15:16 " You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, and whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you". When we encounter Christ, his presence transforms us, we are no longer the same. We didn't choose him, but he first chose us, and since he chose us and saved us from hell, a place of torment and eternal seperation, we must bear fruit that reflects his heart and character. And in that, our Heavenly Father will be glorified.
5)Repeat
Now What? We repeat the process. We save the lost, preach the gospel, make disciples, bear fruit that lasts and start the process all over again. Why? Because the Harvest is plenty and the laborers are few.
These values have eternal rewards
Monday, April 19, 2010
A night that glorified our maker
Friday, April 16, 2010 will go down as a memorable night for 50 teenagers. 4 different youth ministries gathered together for a night of worship and fellowship, at a local backyard where Jesus was lifted high and many hearts were touched by it, even the leaders were inspired and impacted.
It was a night were they all came together as one body and worshipped one king. It didnt matter what school they went to, what church they attended or if their youth leaders spoke better than the other. All that was tossed to side, matter a fact, none of those factors even matter. What did matter is that the person sitting next to them, in front of them and behind him would have thier back in a moment. These teenagers battle the world everyday and this night helped them realize that when the world is crashing down on them, the person standing next to them, would protect them with prayer and words of encouragement. I gave them the illustration, of being in the battlefield, instense moments like the movie "saving private ryan" or "Black Hawk down", no matter what the soldiers would do, whatever it took to survive. But they took it a step further, they also made an oath to protect their fellow soldier. When the bullets fly, your friend will protect you, when your out of ammo, your friend will gladly give you thiers, and when you need words and encouragement and prayer, your brother or sister in Christ will be there. But no need to fear, because Jesus has already defeated the enemy!
It was a night were they all came together as one body and worshipped one king. It didnt matter what school they went to, what church they attended or if their youth leaders spoke better than the other. All that was tossed to side, matter a fact, none of those factors even matter. What did matter is that the person sitting next to them, in front of them and behind him would have thier back in a moment. These teenagers battle the world everyday and this night helped them realize that when the world is crashing down on them, the person standing next to them, would protect them with prayer and words of encouragement. I gave them the illustration, of being in the battlefield, instense moments like the movie "saving private ryan" or "Black Hawk down", no matter what the soldiers would do, whatever it took to survive. But they took it a step further, they also made an oath to protect their fellow soldier. When the bullets fly, your friend will protect you, when your out of ammo, your friend will gladly give you thiers, and when you need words and encouragement and prayer, your brother or sister in Christ will be there. But no need to fear, because Jesus has already defeated the enemy!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Next stop.... Gods Will
Q-tips?..check. travel shampoo?..check (hey, bald people need to clean thier scalp too). Bible?..check...ipod?..check.
When you go on a road trip, you make sure you have everything. You check, double-check, and triple-check for the most important things. But before you get your personal belongings together,you decide what route your going to take. And Your choice of route can be just as important as your destination. So what am I talking about? I'm talking about The Roadmap.
The Roadmap shows you how to get to where your going. It acts as a guideline. For example, it lets you know when your off track and how to get back on track. If there are side streets or to remain on the original path. Whatever the case may be, it is there to help you. Though some tend to ignore the map or even the detour signs. And when that happens, trouble will appear and difficulties will often occur. Ignoring the tools that tend to help you out, will do a few things that will hinder the journey. Like, delaying the normal time to get there,slow you down,take you into the wrong direction or even prevent you from moving forward.
In the next few days, we will be letting you in on our "Roadmap". Why we do what we do, what is our purpose, and our core values. Without the map, we lay idle in the driveway. All packed up with no place to go, all excited, but lack the destination,gas in the tank,but have no clue how to get there. Stay tuned to find out what were all about. Next stop...... Gods Will
This is God
One of the favorite quotes from Rev. Billy Graham:
"When a man comes in contact with God, He can never be the same again. God takes the weak and makes them strong, the vile and makes them clean, the worthless and makes them worthwhile, the sinful and makes them sinless"
"I will give you one heart and a new spirit; I will take from you your hearts of stone and give you tender hearts of love for God." Ezekiel 11:19
Don't ever think that someone is too far from God. Don't stop praying for thier salvation. It may take days, weeks or even years for a friend or loved one to come to Christ. Jesus specializes in restoration and he is a master of forgiveness.
Phillipians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
"When a man comes in contact with God, He can never be the same again. God takes the weak and makes them strong, the vile and makes them clean, the worthless and makes them worthwhile, the sinful and makes them sinless"
"I will give you one heart and a new spirit; I will take from you your hearts of stone and give you tender hearts of love for God." Ezekiel 11:19
Don't ever think that someone is too far from God. Don't stop praying for thier salvation. It may take days, weeks or even years for a friend or loved one to come to Christ. Jesus specializes in restoration and he is a master of forgiveness.
Phillipians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
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