It's Your Serve!

I've been studying and thinking a lot about serving in preparation for Campaign OUTFLOW, which we will delve into every Sunday in our Contemporary Service (8:30am) in July. And as I did my typical google image search to come up with a picture, I realize that there are many different ways of "serving". As you can see, when it comes to tennis, well, it doesn't get much better than this guy. (I keep wondering what kind of killer-tennis players that he and Stefi are going to turn out)...Anyway...I digress...

I'm drawn to a scripture in Acts 13:36 that talks about David and how he "...served God's purpose in his own generation..." WOW! What an awesome thing to be said about you. I pray that God feels this way about me, that I am serving His purpose in my own generation. But this is where it often gets tricky...Serving isn't about being a cool, good-looking, rich tennis player...Serving God can sometimes look like this...

Or like this....

All I know is, there is only One who knows in what capacity each of us should serve, and He is the same One who helps us want to serve.

Philippians 2:13 (NLT) "For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey Him and the power to do what pleases Him."

A New Command

In preparation for this Sunday's (Contemporary - 8:30am/Traditional - 10:30am) message, I've been studying a lot about that new commandment Jesus gave to His disciples...you remember...the one that said that they should love one another. In Leviticus 19:18 - Mosaic Law commanded that one should, "Love thy neighbor as thyself" but Jesus brought something new in John 13:34, "A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." This was a "deeper, perfect, lay down your life" kind of love that Jesus was referring to. YOWZA!

It occurred to me that we can't hear this message enough. Because just when I think I may have learned how to love others...
...someone cuts me off on the freeway
...someone brings me the wrong food
...someone doesn't seem thankful enough for the things I do for them
...someone reveals their humanity...As I daily...every moment...reveal my own!

But the task is huge to love one another as He loved us. In fact, we just cannot do it...unless we are abiding in Him. And that's vital because there are so many who need to know that we are His disciples by our love for one another.

Miss Lauren

You'll have to pardon me, but as a mom, my buttons...well...they are a-poppin'! Lauren graduated from CSULong Beach this month. It seems like yesterday when I tearfully (my tears, not hers) dropped her off at kindergarten! Lauren still has a few classes to go, and officially graduates in December, but they don't have a ceremony in December, so her parents "made" her walk in this one. She's so humble, she didn't really see the need, but I think she's glad she did it. It was such a great day! Soon, she'll be a teacher. I'm so happy for any child who will have her to guide them, not just in class, but in life.

3 John 1:4, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth."

Just Walk Across the Room

I've been reading a great book. It was written by Bill Hybels, and it's titled, "Just Walk Across the Room". It's about evangelism, and how it can be as simple as taking a walk across a room and talking to that one person who is standing alone...maybe they're in the lunchroom at work, at a party, in your neighborhood, or at school. If we can step out of our "circle of conversational comfort", you know, those groups of people we often find ourselves clinging to, where it's easy and effortless for us to engage? Just Walk Across the Room. And it isn't about telling someone that they're going to hell. It's about being friendly, and engaging them in a conversation about their life. Just basically, being a friend. I highly recommend this book, it's been very inspiring to me, especially during our, "Adopt a Friend" campaign in June here at Faith Christian Assembly.

Can it really be that simple? I believe it can. After all, we're not really the ones doing the "work" anyway...it's the Holy Spirit that compels people. To quote from the book, "The key is this: my objective is not to contrive ways to 'get someone saved'; rather, my objective is to walk when He prompts me to walk, talk when He says to talk, fall silent when I'm at risk of saying too much, and stay put when He leads me to stay put."

So our challenge this week, is for each one of us to prayerfully take one of our You're Invited to my Church cards, and give it to one person...just one. God only knows what can happen. What if redirecting a person's forever really is as simple as walking across a room?

June: "Adopt a Friend" Month

Pastor Vaughn spoke last week, a very powerful message about friendship. June is, "Adopt a Friend" month here at Faith Christian Assembly. What does that mean? Thank you for asking...it means that we follow the model of Jesus and take part in the ministry of friendship.

Jesus started his ministry by finding 2 friends, Simon and Andrew, then he found 2 more, James and John, and then...Matthew (the tax collector).

Allow God to bring people into your life that you can nurture and protect. Maybe even people who may have been rejected, people you can help heal and renew.

We must pray that God opens our eyes to see these people. Ask God to adjust your focus so you will be able to see them, and see the Kingdom work that can be done in their lives. It can start with you.

When we do this:
1. We enlarge our world.
2. We rid our soul of selfishness.
3. It justifies the reason for our existence.
4. It brightens our outlook on life.

Proverbs 17:17, "A friend loves at all times..."