Today the Devotional will start a 5 day series for your growth in the Kingdom of God. Through this week we will talk about our purpose in Life and the importance of that purpose.
Day 1:
Who are we????
Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, ” Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;let them have Dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God Blessed them, and God said to them, ” Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” NKJV
These scriptures answer who we are, we are children of God that has every ability to be like God because He made us that way. God wants us to be like Him, not to be equal to Him or believe we can ever be. Satan made that mistake and is paying for it today, no God wants us to be a reflection of Him in this world just like we are reflections of our moms and dads. God’s desire is that you will have all of the tools you need to become successful and to show His love to the rest of His children who do not believe there is a God or know there is a God. God is Love and that is what He wants us to show the World. He gave us Dominion (authority)over the earth so we can be like God and show His love, we have Dominion because God is Dominion and if we are created in His image Dominion is part of that image. You are God’s children created to reflect and resemble God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Just like in Who We Are???? What We Are is a reflection of God into this World. But what we are goes deeper than a reflection God.
John 1:12; But as many has received Him (Jesus), to them He gave the right to become CHILDREN of God, to those who believe His name.
Wow that is pretty powerful, What We Are is Children of The Almighty Ever Present God. We may in life wish we had different parents or maybe were the parents of famous rich people. Our lives would be easier if we were born into money right??? Who knows, you were’nt. However, the scripture says to those who believe in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Redeemer of sin, God gave us the RIGHT (every legal accessibility to all of Gods promises in the Bible) to become His adopted children. Isn’t that cool you are Gods children, God is your Father.
Romans 8:17; and if children, then heirs (living relative legally allowed to take their relatives inheritance), heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
Now we know we are children of God, He is our Daddy becuase of our Faith in His Son Jesus Christ, this makes us Heirs to the Kingdom of God. This means we inherit God’s promises onto ourselves. Not only His promises but we inherit Eternal Life ( live forever) through Jesus Christ. We will live forever with our Father God. So we are eternal souls through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9; But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the Praises of Him who called you out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light.
Wow so it gets even better not only when we make Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, do we become children and heirs of God, but we also become Royalty.
Why is Royalty important? Royalty means authority, it commands respect, it implies power, it operates with Favor, it makes people listen and revere. These are important qualities of Royalty because they will help us to answer Where, When and Why We Are???
Isn’t that cool to Know that God loves you enough to call you His son or daughter, to make you one of His heirs, and to call you Royalty. We are Royalty because if our God is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords (Revelations 19:16) and we are his children than that makes us Princes and Princesses.
God Blessed and be encouraged to know you are loved!!!!
Acts 1:4-5; And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which”, He said, ” you have heard from me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
Jesus was telling His disciples (students/confidants) not to leave. He appointed them to a time and a place for their well being and benefit. God wants us to be in tune with Him just like the disciples were so we can be taught and equipped to carry out Gods work. There is a time and a season for everything with God. As for me my time and place, Where I am is right here teaching you guys, so you can grow and be equipped to be able to carry out Gods work. At times we may get confused because we do not know all of Gods will, but we can rest on Gods promise that He will take care of us because we are His children. He is a loving God who desires His children to be like Him and tell others about Him. God is drawing us unto Himself because He loves us. God tells us in Deuteronomy 31:8 that He will never leave you nor forsake you, His promise is to always be there for us.
So your place is right where you are, every week you become obedient to the drawing of God unto Himself by coming faithfully to the Zone. The Zone is your Jerusalem, it is the place where Jesus wants you to wait until the Promise of the Father comes to you. What is that Promise? The Promise already came 2,000 years ago and now it is waiting on you. To receive that Promise is to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior. How do I do that? That is easy, Jesus the Son of God came from Heaven down to earth to die for You. He gave up all the riches and Glory of Heaven so His Father could draw you unto Himself. Our sin seperates us from God and the only we can reunite with God was for somebody with out sin to die in our place, to pay our ransom. That is what Jesus did for you He paid the price of Your disobedience, your lying, your stealing, your murdering (hopefully none of you did this), your jealousy etc… with His clean blood. Sinless blood was the only thing that could clean your sin. If you put your Faith in Jesus Christ that He has cleansed your your sin with His blood and believe He is the Son of God and ask Him through prayer to forgive you of those sins You, noone else, You have committed God said He will forgive you and make You His child , because of the love His Son Jesus Christ showed on the cross. Than only than can you receive the Promise of God.
That is where you are today make the decision to follow Jesus Christ so God can take You to higher places, God has placed you here at this time, at the Zone, for Your Salvation
Ephesians 2:10; For we are Gods workmanship created in Christ Jesus for Good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
God has a chosen time for each one of us. So chosen and planned we are that His plans depend on when we are born, who we are born too (our parents), where we are born and how we are born.
Why does God put so much thought into these things??? God puts so much thought into it because we all have a destiny a Good Work that God designed for you and only You can fulfill it. This plan for You is dynamic and demands thought and order, God worked all these out, all you have to do is be obedien t and seek Him to find out what it is He would have you to do. Maybe your plan is to be a scientist and find a cure for cancer, or a doctor who is going to save the Presidents life, or the teacher who is able to connect to the student who plans to blow up the school and you prevent it. So Your birth , place in History and obedience to the Father through Jesus Christ are all part of Gods plan. Get tapped into Gods plan and fulfill that Good Work.
” Go and make disciples of all the nations and give the baptism in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. 20 Teaching them all the rules which I have given you, and see I am ever with you, even unto the end of the earth.”
God is telling us here to take everything we have learned about Him and share it with everybody. We know He created me, gave me a purpose, saved me from my sin through Jesus, restored my soul, gave me power, and can do the same for everyone. So therefore i must tell everybody what happened to me. God did all of these things for uss because He loves us, but He does not want us to keep it inside. Tell somebody about Jesus, it will your Father God happy.
* I am sorry it took 2 days between posts but work was very busy the past 2 days and I am sorry God Bless You.
No not at all. God loves us more than we could ever love Him. We are distracted by many things video games, music, money, friends, clothes, gossip you name it and we have an affection towards it. I have an interest and it is football, I love football and I need to be careful that keeping up with the news and watching the games and setting my fantasy roster does not consume my time away from God.
What do you have in your life that takes your time away from God? Be careful that thing does not become your down fall. Think of this you can include God in your activities, invite Him along. I bet you whatever you do as long as it is Holy God will enjoy it with you. Take for instance hunting. When I go I bring my Bible with me and when I am sitting in my stand or my blind I will read the Bible and wait for the game instead of staring at leaves the whole time.
Check out this link and read Creative prayer 01: express it and you will see every aspect about you gets God excited about you spending time with Him. Keep in mind there are many ways to do the same thing.
You may ask what is humble? Humble is the idea and attitude we carry that the world does not revolve around us. We are not entitled to anything and we do not fear the idea of asking for help, or allowing somebody to help us.
James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
What does this mean? To humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord is to live a life of dependence on God. Remember what I said on Wednesday night at the Zone. To come to the place where you are ready to receive Christ as your Savior you have to be ok with admitting that you messed your life up and your sin is your fault and you need help, that is humbling yourself admitting guilt and allowing Jesus to save you.
Now that we know what humble is, we need to look at the reward of being humble, or the promise of being humble. If we are HUMBLE, the Lord will lift you up. What does lift you up mean. When God lifts you up, He carries you He keeps you safe, He hears your prayers, He Blesses you, He desires you, He longs for your well being.
If you want these promises of God than you know what you need to do? Humble yourself and let God help you and Jesus to comfort you.
I am changing the way I am dong the devotions on this website. Instead of doing daily devotionals on this site I am going to post a weekly devotional. Ths way you can take the whole week to read, study and practice this devotional.
This weeks devotional comes from Oswald Chambers author of My Utmost for His Highest.
The battle is lost or won in the secret places of the will before God, never first in the external world. The Spirit of God apprehends me and I am obliged to get alone with God and fight the battle out before Him. Until this is done, I lose every time. The battle may take one minute or a year, that will depend on me, not on God; but it must be wrestled out alone before God, and I must resolutely go through the hell of a renunciation before God. Nothing has any power over the man who has fought out the battle before God and won there.
If I say, “I will wait till I get into the circumstances and then put God to the test,” I shall find I cannot. I must get the thing settled between my self and God in the secret places of my soul where no stranger intermeddles, and then I can go forth with the certainty that the battle is won. Lose it there, and calamity and disaster and upset are as sure as God’s decree. The reason the battle is not won is because I try to win it in the external world first. Get alone with God, fight it out before Him, settle the matter there once and for all.
In dealing with other people, the line to take is to push them to an issue of will. That is the way abandonment begins. Every now and again, not often, but sometimes, God brings us to a point of climax. That is the Great Divide in the life; from that point we either go towards a more and more dilatory and useless type of Christian life, or we become more and more ablaze for the glory of God - My Utmost for His Highest.
This kind of goes along with the battle of sexual activity in the world which week spoke about this week. We cannot wait until the sexual encounter arises before we decide how to handle it. We need to get alone with God and His Word and work how we will handle the situation with God before hand.
This goes with any sin, how we handle ourselves, self contol, these are all things we meet with God about daily. We cannot do it alone we need God.
Ponder these ideas this week. Spend time with God, Read the Bible, Pray and ask God for advice on anything you are not sure about and be obedient to Him. God Bless Happy New Year!!!!!!
This weeks Devotional I am going to start another series from Romans 12.
This is a good chapter that highlights what a TRUE CHRISTIAN is, looks like and acts. So I know its cold outside, so heres what you do when your homework is done and you do not want to go outside. Put on a nice comfortable pair of sweats, pick up your Bible a cup of hot chocolate and study this devotion. See you next week.
Romans 12: 1-2 I beseech (urge, challenge, beg) you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect Will of God.
Wow what does all of this mean. Paul who wrote this verse was instructing the early believers of Jesus Christ on how they should behave as Christians in this chapter. However, in these 2 verses he lays the ground what we need to do to pursue the way we should walk as Christians.
Paul says in verse 1 I beseech you, Paul was saying listen I am telling you in a way that I want you to hear, that through the power of God, which comes from God’s love and mercies, that you live as a living scrifice to Him. In other words Gods love is so strong that He allowed His Son to die for your mistakes and Jesus paid for your sins with His Blood so you would not have to. Because of this love and Mercy you should devote or sacrifice your life and plans and live for His purposes which is explained in the Bible. With Gods love and mercy you will have the power to devote yourself, not your strength His strength. When you do this your Holy decisions and actions will be acceptable to God, He will be proud of you.
In Verse 2 Paul tells us now that we are living this way we have to be careful not to fall back into the ways of the world, because those ways are not God’s ways. The ways of the world produce sin and God will not operate in sin. Examples of the ways of the world are sexual immorality, drugs, drunkeness, stealing, lying etc… the things that feel wrong or that are usually popular are wrong. However if you devote yourself to God He will transform your mind to think on new things and therefore operate in His will. When you start to operate in His will He will prove to you He is the Good and Perfect will or plan for your LIFE!!!! God Bless You.
Hey guys, I would like to focus on Deuteronomy 6-8 this week (as a prelude to a lesson I’d like to teach in the future) and especially the 10 commandments but the key memory verse is verse 5: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
I would like you to think about what that scripture means to you and answer the following questions during this week:
Friday
Why did God give us these commandments?
Verse 1 & 2 clearly states that we were given these commandments so that we would fear the Lord and have a long life. The word fear may make you think of a something scary but the verse is actually related to the term “reverential fear”. When you revere something or someone you are showing respect. We should fear God enough to want to respect Him and keep his commandments (all 10 of them).
Saturday
Who is to follow these commandments?
Verse 2 says “you, your children, and their children after them”. So basically, everybody needs to keep God’s commandments.
Sunday
What happens when we follow these commandments?
Verse 3 says we will “increase greatly”. Chapter 7 verse 13 says ” He will love you and bless you”.
Monday
Where should we practice these commandments?
Verse 7 says we should “talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up”. So basically, all the time and not just at church or in front of other believers.
Tuesday
What happens when we do not follow these commandments?
We will miss out on God’s blessings. The children of Israel were days away from the promised land after God delivered them from Egypt but God caused them to wander for forty years because of how stubborn they were.
Wednesday
Why does God punish us when we disobey?
Chapter 8 verse 2 says he led them in the desert for forty years to humble them, to test them, to find out what was in their hearts and to see if they would keep his commands.
Thursday
Read as much of Deut. 6-8 as you can and think about the future. Do you want the best for your life right now or would you rather wander in the desert for forty years until you are ready for it?
I want to get back to Romans 12, after learning from Pastor Jeff on Wednesday night I feel this devotional is helpful because it deals on how Christians are supposed to act. Read these scriptures for each day and pray on what they mean and how God wants to work them in our lives.
Friday: Romans 12 :3 For I say, through the Grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly as God has dealt to each one a measure of Faith.
God shows us here that do not think of yourself better than anybody because you are better in one area than somebody else. God has equipped each of us in different areas, to fulfill His plan. So as you are better than somebody in one area, they are better in another area than you.
Saturday/ Sunday. Romans 12: 4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. 5. so we being, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
This verse shows us that in our church or in this place the Zone, like our bodies we have different parts. You might be an arm, I might be the leg, Pastor Jeff my be the stomach and Ben the foot and so on and so on. Just like our body we need all of our parts to work, function and grow in order for us live a life of fulfillment. So we need to take care of eachother and treat with respect like our own bodies depend on it. This is what Jesus wants us to do as an act of obedience so we can see Him work miracles
Monday Romans 12:6 Having then gifts differing according to the Grace that is given to us, let us use them: if Prophecy than let us prophecy in proportion to our faith.
When we give our lives to Jesus Christ He gives us that measure of Faith He also graces us with a gifts. These gifts are abilities of doing things, such as talent in areas that God wants us to work in. He will give us the power to operate these talents or gifts so we can be used to tell other sabout Jesus. To prophecy means to proclaim or give notice or to speak on Gods behalf about things God wants to do on the earth and though His people according to your Faith. God will speak for you and the more He speaks depends on you and how well you get to know Him and spend time with Him. That is God trusts you that you will be obedient to what He wants to Prophecy through you, so if prophecy is you than be obedient to say what God is saying and operate your member.
Tuesday/ Wednesday Romans12:7-8 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation, he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Again in these other areas if this is our talent than let us use the Faith that God has given us through Jesus Christ to operate in our area so we can tll people about Jesus and meet their need. If you do not know what area is yours ask God He will tell you, come speak to me or Pastor Jeff we will go to God with you and find out. Whatever you do find out and do it the reward is great and you will be fulfilled. God Bless you this week and I will see you on Wednesday.
In a society where truth is relative (how it relates to you i.e. It is only wrong if it feels wrong.), we need to remember that truth is actually more than that. There are many people that are challenged by truth everyday. Presidential candidates attack each other with lies and slander. You might even wonder how they would run our country if they were elected. There are few Hollywood actors and actresses who would even recognize truth if they read it in a script. Furthermore, there are religious leaders and other important Christian figures that stumble from time to time in the public eye. Unfortunately, no one knows truth like Jesus. But fortunately, we can strive to be like Jesus and live our lives to reflect his character. In John 14:6 Jesus describes himself as “the way, the truth, and the life”. Not only did Jesus practice truth, he said he was truth! The Bible is also referred to as truth. If you have a question about a life issue, consult the Word of God, the Bible. Let’s take this next week to get to know Jesus and the truth.
Friday
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.“ John 14:6
Saturday
But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth.
John 4:23
Sunday
The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
Psalm 119:160
Monday
For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
John 1:17
Tuesday
Love…does not rejoice in iniquity (sin), but rejoices in the truth.
I Corinthians 13:6
Wednesday
For the word of the Lord is right and all His work is done in truth.
Psalm 33:5
Thursday
Speaking the truth in love we will in all things grow up into Him who is the head, that is, Christ.
Ephesians 4:15
These next verses in Romans 12 are pretty awesome, they go over how a Christian should treat other people and how we should handle adversity. I think this goes in line with numbing out, because it shows you what to set your mind on and how to handle the pressure. It also shows how we should not view ourselves better than anyone else. Everybody has trouble, however how you deal with it is different. How do you handle it/ Read these verses and pray on them, study them.
Today: 2/1/08 Romans 12:9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor(hate) what is evil. Cling to what is good.
Saturday 2/2/08 Romans 12:10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;
Sunday 2/3/08 Romans 12:11 not lagging in diligence( do not be lazy), fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;
Monday 2/4/08 Romans 12:12rejoicing in hopeexcited about your Faith), patient in tribulation(trouble), continuing staedfastly in prayer;
Tuesday 2/5/08 Romans 12:13 distributing to the needs of the saints( taking care of missionaries, pastors, churches through support of time, money etc…), given to hospitality( greeting visitors at Church being kind, this verse applies to the church which shows why you need to be plugged into a church).
Wednesday 2/6/08 Romans 12:14-15 Bless those who persecute(treat you wrongly, imprison you, beat you) you; bless them and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.
Thursady 2/7/08 Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind toward one another(be fair to one another, share ideas). Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble(do not be proud instaed be humble). Do not be wise in your own opinion(do not be stubborn, or unteachable).
April 1, 2008 at 7:44 am
Sorry it has been so long, but lets get back to business.
4/1/08- 4/8/08
The New Jerusalem Marathon
Your Christian Walk is equivalent to running a Marathon over and over again. The life of a Christian is filled with determination, excitement, exhaustion, perspiration, agony, adrenaline and fulfillment. These are all dynamics of an athlete’s life and preparations for their race.
Why do we run a race?
To inspire
To be a role model
To fulfill a goal
To build confidence
To compete
To better ourselves
To win a prize
Preparations:
1 Cor. 9: 22-27
Commitment:
1Cor. 9: 22-23
We must never forget that people are looking up to athletes, especially younger athletes. Pro athletes today, not all of them seem to forget this. Their actions on the field are played out in front of us on television.
Examples:
Michael Vick giving the middle finger to the fans on television, Dog fighting.
Pacman Jones and his suspension
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and countless other Baseball Players and Steroid abuse claims.
Floyd Landis was stripped of the Tour De France title because of a failed drug test.
Kobe Bryant was accused of rape, because his affairs on his wife.
Pete Rose has been banned from Baseball because of his gambling practices.
Shawn Merriman of the San Diego Chargers missed out on the Defensive player of the year award to Jason Taylor of the Miami Dolphins for failing drug test for steroids.
These are all pros, even college athletes and high school athletes are watched and their actions can have lasting impacts on the people who watch them. As athletes in the FCA we must always remember that not only do we represent our selves but we represent Jesus Christ, and we need to guard our Testimony of Him. Make a Commitment that your life as an athlete will be one of Integrity.
I want to get back to Romans 12, after learning from Pastor Jeff on Wednesday night I feel this devotional is helpful because it deals on how Christians are supposed to act. Read these scriptures for each day and pray on what they mean and how God wants to work them in our lives.
Friday: Romans 12 :3 For I say, through the Grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly as God has dealt to each one a measure of Faith.
God shows us here that do not think of yourself better than anybody because you are better in one area than somebody else. God has equipped each of us in different areas, to fulfill His plan. So as you are better than somebody in one area, they are better in another area than you.
Saturday/ Sunday. Romans 12: 4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. 5. so we being, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
This verse shows us that in our church or in this place the Zone, like our bodies we have different parts. You might be an arm, I might be the leg, Pastor Jeff my be the stomach and Ben the foot and so on and so on. Just like our body we need all of our parts to work, function and grow in order for us live a life of fulfillment. So we need to take care of eachother and treat with respect like our own bodies depend on it. This is what Jesus wants us to do as an act of obedience so we can see Him work miracles
Monday Romans 12:6 Having then gifts differing according to the Grace that is given to us, let us use them: if Prophecy than let us prophecy in proportion to our faith.
When we give our lives to Jesus Christ He gives us that measure of Faith He also graces us with a gifts. These gifts are abilities of doing things, such as talent in areas that God wants us to work in. He will give us the power to operate these talents or gifts so we can be used to tell other sabout Jesus. To prophecy means to proclaim or give notice or to speak on Gods behalf about things God wants to do on the earth and though His people according to your Faith. God will speak for you and the more He speaks depends on you and how well you get to know Him and spend time with Him. That is God trusts you that you will be obedient to what He wants to Prophecy through you, so if prophecy is you than be obedient to say what God is saying and operate your member.
Tuesday/ Wednesday Romans12:7-8 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation, he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Again in these other areas if this is our talent than let us use the Faith that God has given us through Jesus Christ to operate in our area so we can tll people about Jesus and meet their need. If you do not know what area is yours ask God He will tell you, come speak to me or Pastor Jeff we will go to God with you and find out. Whatever you do find out and do it the reward is great and you will be fulfilled. God Bless you this week and I will see you on Wednesday.
bedfordzone Says:
April 9, 2008 at 7:58 am e
This weeks Devotional is going to be a continuation from last weeks devotional and also what I shared with the FCA at Liberty High School last week.
4/9/08- 4/15/08
Practice:
1 Cor. 9:27
Discipline your Body, just like you watch the food you eat in order to stay in shape. You also exercise in order to keep you muscle tone and your stamina up in order to compete. As Christian athletes lets also keep our soul and life clean from sin. Be careful what you get into at after game parties, be careful of the temptations that come with being an athlete, a lot of temptations can overwhelm you, like drugs, alcohol, relationships with girls and guys outside of marriage, Therefore Submit to God and Resist the Devil and he will flee from you. James 4:7.
Preparation:
Read your Bible in order to learn the scriptures and Promises that God has preserved for you in order to share with others.
Develop your Prayer life in order to hear from God. Just like you develop a relationship with your coach in order to learn to better your game, God wants to better you through relationship and prayer.
Race Day:
Now that you have practiced and prepared your life and body for the Race, it is now time to run it.
Your friends, family, teammates and spectators need you to share your Faith with them. This is what all of the Commitment, Practice and Preparation has equipped you to do to win the Prize.
What is the Prize, the prize is for those people to win what you have Jesus Christ, what better prize is it than to see your parents, brother or sister, classmates, teammates, teachers, bus driver, opposing players, coaches whomever comes in contact with your life and sees Jesus in you is a prize because all of your hardwork paid off.
The Finish Line:
The finish line, the net, the end zone, home plate, the basket, the other end of the pool, the hole, all ten pins or pinning your opponent is what you strive for as an FCA representative as a follower of Jesus Christ. The end of the race, it is prize time.
2 timothy 4:7-8
bedfordzone Says:
April 16, 2008 at 1:13 pm e
April 16th- April 23rd
This will finish up the FCA Message at Liberty High School
Keep Running the Race and God Bless You.
Your Athletic Example:
Hebrews 12: 1-4
Basketball had Michael Jordan none greater in his game.
Football had greats like Jim Brown, Brett Favre, Emmit Smith, Jerry Rice, Dan Marino and on and on.
Baseball had Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, Willie Stargell, Tony Gwynn.
Hockey had Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Clarke.
Soccer had Mia Hamm, Pele, David Beckham.
Track and Field had Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson, Florence Griffith Joyner, Jackie Joyner Kersee.
Gymnastics had Nadia Comenici, Mary Lou Retton.
Wrestling had Rulon Gardner.
Volley Ball has had great mens and womens teams.
And on and on there have been stars that have graced
every sport known to man. But in our Sport, our game, the race in which we are called, the one that encompasses all of these and more, has had a great and will always be the greatest. One day the names and record holders previously mentioned will fall will be eclipsed by someone else. In 10, 20, 30, 40 years from the star athletes in your life will be unheard of by people your age and they will who? But Jesus Christ will never be undone, His record will stand forevermore as the Greatest athlete, who endured the greatest, pain, who ran the hardest race, who suffered the most injuries, set the greatest example, the greatest role model, the greatest prize and the most loyal following ever.
If you are in the FCA than you must have made a commitment to Jesus Christ, if you did not this is the best day to enter the Greatest Race of your life. If you like challenges, exercise, motivation, excitement, competition this is the life for you. Get on Jesus’ team God’s Team, join today.
bedfordzone Says:
May 9, 2008 at 8:31 am e
This weeks devotion is from My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers.
GRASP WITHOUT REACH
“Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.” Proverbs 29:18 (R.V.)
There is a difference between an ideal and a vision. An ideal has no moral inspiration; a vision has. The people who give themselves over to ideals rarely do anything. A man’s conception of Deity may be used to justify his deliberate neglect of his duty. Jonah argued that because God was a God of justice and of mercy, therefore everything would be all right. I may have a right conception of God, and that may be the very reason why I do not do my duty. But wherever there is vision, there is also a life of rectitude because the vision imparts moral incentive.
Ideals may lull to ruin. Take stock of yourself spiritually and see whether you have ideals only or if you have vision.
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what’s a heaven for?”
“Where there is no vision. . . .” When once we lose sight of God, we begin to be reckless, we cast off certain restraints, we cast off praying, we cast off the vision of God in little things, and begin to act on our own initiative. If we are eating what we have out of our own hand, doing things on our own initiative without expecting God to come in, we are on the downward path, we have lost the vision. Is our attitude to-day an attitude that springs from our vision of God? Are we expecting God to do greater things than He has ever done? Is there a freshness and vigour in our spiritual out look?
We need vision in our lives to keep us fresh and renewed, not ideas. Ideas are conceived by what we are thinkning on and dwelling on. If we are not dwelling on or thinking on God than the ideas we think of are not from God. However, vision from God is not something we think up or conceive it is given by God.
We put ourselves into the position to receive a vision by being in God’s constant presence through the Bible, prayer and the decisions we make like not giving into temptation and sin and you can only avoid this by doing the first 2 prayer and reading your Bible. God Bless You.
January 25, 2008 at 9:13 pm
12/8/07
Who, What, Where, When, Why?????
Today the Devotional will start a 5 day series for your growth in the Kingdom of God. Through this week we will talk about our purpose in Life and the importance of that purpose.
Day 1:
Who are we????
Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, ” Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;let them have Dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God Blessed them, and God said to them, ” Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” NKJV
These scriptures answer who we are, we are children of God that has every ability to be like God because He made us that way. God wants us to be like Him, not to be equal to Him or believe we can ever be. Satan made that mistake and is paying for it today, no God wants us to be a reflection of Him in this world just like we are reflections of our moms and dads. God’s desire is that you will have all of the tools you need to become successful and to show His love to the rest of His children who do not believe there is a God or know there is a God. God is Love and that is what He wants us to show the World. He gave us Dominion (authority)over the earth so we can be like God and show His love, we have Dominion because God is Dominion and if we are created in His image Dominion is part of that image. You are God’s children created to reflect and resemble God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Tomorrow we will address what we are?????
January 25, 2008 at 9:19 pm
12/10/07
Today we will address What are We????
Just like in Who We Are???? What We Are is a reflection of God into this World. But what we are goes deeper than a reflection God.
John 1:12; But as many has received Him (Jesus), to them He gave the right to become CHILDREN of God, to those who believe His name.
Wow that is pretty powerful, What We Are is Children of The Almighty Ever Present God. We may in life wish we had different parents or maybe were the parents of famous rich people. Our lives would be easier if we were born into money right??? Who knows, you were’nt. However, the scripture says to those who believe in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Redeemer of sin, God gave us the RIGHT (every legal accessibility to all of Gods promises in the Bible) to become His adopted children. Isn’t that cool you are Gods children, God is your Father.
Romans 8:17; and if children, then heirs (living relative legally allowed to take their relatives inheritance), heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
Now we know we are children of God, He is our Daddy becuase of our Faith in His Son Jesus Christ, this makes us Heirs to the Kingdom of God. This means we inherit God’s promises onto ourselves. Not only His promises but we inherit Eternal Life ( live forever) through Jesus Christ. We will live forever with our Father God. So we are eternal souls through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9; But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the Praises of Him who called you out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light.
Wow so it gets even better not only when we make Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, do we become children and heirs of God, but we also become Royalty.
Why is Royalty important? Royalty means authority, it commands respect, it implies power, it operates with Favor, it makes people listen and revere. These are important qualities of Royalty because they will help us to answer Where, When and Why We Are???
Isn’t that cool to Know that God loves you enough to call you His son or daughter, to make you one of His heirs, and to call you Royalty. We are Royalty because if our God is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords (Revelations 19:16) and we are his children than that makes us Princes and Princesses.
God Blessed and be encouraged to know you are loved!!!!
January 25, 2008 at 9:21 pm
12/11/07
Where Are We????
Acts 1:4-5; And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which”, He said, ” you have heard from me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
Jesus was telling His disciples (students/confidants) not to leave. He appointed them to a time and a place for their well being and benefit. God wants us to be in tune with Him just like the disciples were so we can be taught and equipped to carry out Gods work. There is a time and a season for everything with God. As for me my time and place, Where I am is right here teaching you guys, so you can grow and be equipped to be able to carry out Gods work. At times we may get confused because we do not know all of Gods will, but we can rest on Gods promise that He will take care of us because we are His children. He is a loving God who desires His children to be like Him and tell others about Him. God is drawing us unto Himself because He loves us. God tells us in Deuteronomy 31:8 that He will never leave you nor forsake you, His promise is to always be there for us.
So your place is right where you are, every week you become obedient to the drawing of God unto Himself by coming faithfully to the Zone. The Zone is your Jerusalem, it is the place where Jesus wants you to wait until the Promise of the Father comes to you. What is that Promise? The Promise already came 2,000 years ago and now it is waiting on you. To receive that Promise is to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior. How do I do that? That is easy, Jesus the Son of God came from Heaven down to earth to die for You. He gave up all the riches and Glory of Heaven so His Father could draw you unto Himself. Our sin seperates us from God and the only we can reunite with God was for somebody with out sin to die in our place, to pay our ransom. That is what Jesus did for you He paid the price of Your disobedience, your lying, your stealing, your murdering (hopefully none of you did this), your jealousy etc… with His clean blood. Sinless blood was the only thing that could clean your sin. If you put your Faith in Jesus Christ that He has cleansed your your sin with His blood and believe He is the Son of God and ask Him through prayer to forgive you of those sins You, noone else, You have committed God said He will forgive you and make You His child , because of the love His Son Jesus Christ showed on the cross. Than only than can you receive the Promise of God.
That is where you are today make the decision to follow Jesus Christ so God can take You to higher places, God has placed you here at this time, at the Zone, for Your Salvation
January 25, 2008 at 9:24 pm
12/12/07
When Are We???
Ephesians 2:10; For we are Gods workmanship created in Christ Jesus for Good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
God has a chosen time for each one of us. So chosen and planned we are that His plans depend on when we are born, who we are born too (our parents), where we are born and how we are born.
Why does God put so much thought into these things??? God puts so much thought into it because we all have a destiny a Good Work that God designed for you and only You can fulfill it. This plan for You is dynamic and demands thought and order, God worked all these out, all you have to do is be obedien t and seek Him to find out what it is He would have you to do. Maybe your plan is to be a scientist and find a cure for cancer, or a doctor who is going to save the Presidents life, or the teacher who is able to connect to the student who plans to blow up the school and you prevent it. So Your birth , place in History and obedience to the Father through Jesus Christ are all part of Gods plan. Get tapped into Gods plan and fulfill that Good Work.
January 25, 2008 at 9:26 pm
12 15 07
WHy Are We????
Matthew 28:19-20
” Go and make disciples of all the nations and give the baptism in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. 20 Teaching them all the rules which I have given you, and see I am ever with you, even unto the end of the earth.”
God is telling us here to take everything we have learned about Him and share it with everybody. We know He created me, gave me a purpose, saved me from my sin through Jesus, restored my soul, gave me power, and can do the same for everyone. So therefore i must tell everybody what happened to me. God did all of these things for uss because He loves us, but He does not want us to keep it inside. Tell somebody about Jesus, it will your Father God happy.
* I am sorry it took 2 days between posts but work was very busy the past 2 days and I am sorry God Bless You.
January 25, 2008 at 9:29 pm
12/19/07
Do we love God more than He loves us??
No not at all. God loves us more than we could ever love Him. We are distracted by many things video games, music, money, friends, clothes, gossip you name it and we have an affection towards it. I have an interest and it is football, I love football and I need to be careful that keeping up with the news and watching the games and setting my fantasy roster does not consume my time away from God.
What do you have in your life that takes your time away from God? Be careful that thing does not become your down fall. Think of this you can include God in your activities, invite Him along. I bet you whatever you do as long as it is Holy God will enjoy it with you. Take for instance hunting. When I go I bring my Bible with me and when I am sitting in my stand or my blind I will read the Bible and wait for the game instead of staring at leaves the whole time.
Check out this link and read Creative prayer 01: express it and you will see every aspect about you gets God excited about you spending time with Him. Keep in mind there are many ways to do the same thing.
http://www.walkthru.org/pdf/YWarticle.pdf
February 1, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Chris Ashman Says:
December 21, 2007 at 1:41 pm e
How important to God is it for us to be humble?
You may ask what is humble? Humble is the idea and attitude we carry that the world does not revolve around us. We are not entitled to anything and we do not fear the idea of asking for help, or allowing somebody to help us.
James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
What does this mean? To humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord is to live a life of dependence on God. Remember what I said on Wednesday night at the Zone. To come to the place where you are ready to receive Christ as your Savior you have to be ok with admitting that you messed your life up and your sin is your fault and you need help, that is humbling yourself admitting guilt and allowing Jesus to save you.
Now that we know what humble is, we need to look at the reward of being humble, or the promise of being humble. If we are HUMBLE, the Lord will lift you up. What does lift you up mean. When God lifts you up, He carries you He keeps you safe, He hears your prayers, He Blesses you, He desires you, He longs for your well being.
If you want these promises of God than you know what you need to do? Humble yourself and let God help you and Jesus to comfort you.
God Bless <
February 1, 2008 at 2:17 pm
12/27/07 - 1/2/08
I am changing the way I am dong the devotions on this website. Instead of doing daily devotionals on this site I am going to post a weekly devotional. Ths way you can take the whole week to read, study and practice this devotional.
This weeks devotional comes from Oswald Chambers author of My Utmost for His Highest.
WHERE THE BATTLE’S LOST AND WON
“If thou wilt return, 0 Israel, saith the Lord. . . .” Jeremiah 4:1
The battle is lost or won in the secret places of the will before God, never first in the external world. The Spirit of God apprehends me and I am obliged to get alone with God and fight the battle out before Him. Until this is done, I lose every time. The battle may take one minute or a year, that will depend on me, not on God; but it must be wrestled out alone before God, and I must resolutely go through the hell of a renunciation before God. Nothing has any power over the man who has fought out the battle before God and won there.
If I say, “I will wait till I get into the circumstances and then put God to the test,” I shall find I cannot. I must get the thing settled between my self and God in the secret places of my soul where no stranger intermeddles, and then I can go forth with the certainty that the battle is won. Lose it there, and calamity and disaster and upset are as sure as God’s decree. The reason the battle is not won is because I try to win it in the external world first. Get alone with God, fight it out before Him, settle the matter there once and for all.
In dealing with other people, the line to take is to push them to an issue of will. That is the way abandonment begins. Every now and again, not often, but sometimes, God brings us to a point of climax. That is the Great Divide in the life; from that point we either go towards a more and more dilatory and useless type of Christian life, or we become more and more ablaze for the glory of God - My Utmost for His Highest.
This kind of goes along with the battle of sexual activity in the world which week spoke about this week. We cannot wait until the sexual encounter arises before we decide how to handle it. We need to get alone with God and His Word and work how we will handle the situation with God before hand.
This goes with any sin, how we handle ourselves, self contol, these are all things we meet with God about daily. We cannot do it alone we need God.
Ponder these ideas this week. Spend time with God, Read the Bible, Pray and ask God for advice on anything you are not sure about and be obedient to Him. God Bless Happy New Year!!!!!!
February 1, 2008 at 2:18 pm
1/3/08 - 1/9/08
This weeks Devotional I am going to start another series from Romans 12.
This is a good chapter that highlights what a TRUE CHRISTIAN is, looks like and acts. So I know its cold outside, so heres what you do when your homework is done and you do not want to go outside. Put on a nice comfortable pair of sweats, pick up your Bible a cup of hot chocolate and study this devotion. See you next week.
Romans 12: 1-2 I beseech (urge, challenge, beg) you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect Will of God.
Wow what does all of this mean. Paul who wrote this verse was instructing the early believers of Jesus Christ on how they should behave as Christians in this chapter. However, in these 2 verses he lays the ground what we need to do to pursue the way we should walk as Christians.
Paul says in verse 1 I beseech you, Paul was saying listen I am telling you in a way that I want you to hear, that through the power of God, which comes from God’s love and mercies, that you live as a living scrifice to Him. In other words Gods love is so strong that He allowed His Son to die for your mistakes and Jesus paid for your sins with His Blood so you would not have to. Because of this love and Mercy you should devote or sacrifice your life and plans and live for His purposes which is explained in the Bible. With Gods love and mercy you will have the power to devote yourself, not your strength His strength. When you do this your Holy decisions and actions will be acceptable to God, He will be proud of you.
In Verse 2 Paul tells us now that we are living this way we have to be careful not to fall back into the ways of the world, because those ways are not God’s ways. The ways of the world produce sin and God will not operate in sin. Examples of the ways of the world are sexual immorality, drugs, drunkeness, stealing, lying etc… the things that feel wrong or that are usually popular are wrong. However if you devote yourself to God He will transform your mind to think on new things and therefore operate in His will. When you start to operate in His will He will prove to you He is the Good and Perfect will or plan for your LIFE!!!! God Bless You.
February 1, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Nicole Ashman Says:
January 10, 2008 at 11:07 pm e
Hey guys, I would like to focus on Deuteronomy 6-8 this week (as a prelude to a lesson I’d like to teach in the future) and especially the 10 commandments but the key memory verse is verse 5: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
I would like you to think about what that scripture means to you and answer the following questions during this week:
Friday
Why did God give us these commandments?
Verse 1 & 2 clearly states that we were given these commandments so that we would fear the Lord and have a long life. The word fear may make you think of a something scary but the verse is actually related to the term “reverential fear”. When you revere something or someone you are showing respect. We should fear God enough to want to respect Him and keep his commandments (all 10 of them).
Saturday
Who is to follow these commandments?
Verse 2 says “you, your children, and their children after them”. So basically, everybody needs to keep God’s commandments.
Sunday
What happens when we follow these commandments?
Verse 3 says we will “increase greatly”. Chapter 7 verse 13 says ” He will love you and bless you”.
Monday
Where should we practice these commandments?
Verse 7 says we should “talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up”. So basically, all the time and not just at church or in front of other believers.
Tuesday
What happens when we do not follow these commandments?
We will miss out on God’s blessings. The children of Israel were days away from the promised land after God delivered them from Egypt but God caused them to wander for forty years because of how stubborn they were.
Wednesday
Why does God punish us when we disobey?
Chapter 8 verse 2 says he led them in the desert for forty years to humble them, to test them, to find out what was in their hearts and to see if they would keep his commands.
Thursday
Read as much of Deut. 6-8 as you can and think about the future. Do you want the best for your life right now or would you rather wander in the desert for forty years until you are ready for it?
February 1, 2008 at 2:27 pm
1/18/08-1/24/08
I want to get back to Romans 12, after learning from Pastor Jeff on Wednesday night I feel this devotional is helpful because it deals on how Christians are supposed to act. Read these scriptures for each day and pray on what they mean and how God wants to work them in our lives.
Friday: Romans 12 :3 For I say, through the Grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly as God has dealt to each one a measure of Faith.
God shows us here that do not think of yourself better than anybody because you are better in one area than somebody else. God has equipped each of us in different areas, to fulfill His plan. So as you are better than somebody in one area, they are better in another area than you.
Saturday/ Sunday. Romans 12: 4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. 5. so we being, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
This verse shows us that in our church or in this place the Zone, like our bodies we have different parts. You might be an arm, I might be the leg, Pastor Jeff my be the stomach and Ben the foot and so on and so on. Just like our body we need all of our parts to work, function and grow in order for us live a life of fulfillment. So we need to take care of eachother and treat with respect like our own bodies depend on it. This is what Jesus wants us to do as an act of obedience so we can see Him work miracles
Monday Romans 12:6 Having then gifts differing according to the Grace that is given to us, let us use them: if Prophecy than let us prophecy in proportion to our faith.
When we give our lives to Jesus Christ He gives us that measure of Faith He also graces us with a gifts. These gifts are abilities of doing things, such as talent in areas that God wants us to work in. He will give us the power to operate these talents or gifts so we can be used to tell other sabout Jesus. To prophecy means to proclaim or give notice or to speak on Gods behalf about things God wants to do on the earth and though His people according to your Faith. God will speak for you and the more He speaks depends on you and how well you get to know Him and spend time with Him. That is God trusts you that you will be obedient to what He wants to Prophecy through you, so if prophecy is you than be obedient to say what God is saying and operate your member.
Tuesday/ Wednesday Romans12:7-8 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation, he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Again in these other areas if this is our talent than let us use the Faith that God has given us through Jesus Christ to operate in our area so we can tll people about Jesus and meet their need. If you do not know what area is yours ask God He will tell you, come speak to me or Pastor Jeff we will go to God with you and find out. Whatever you do find out and do it the reward is great and you will be fulfilled. God Bless you this week and I will see you on Wednesday.
February 1, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Nicole Ashman Says:
January 25, 2008 at 8:54 pm e
In a society where truth is relative (how it relates to you i.e. It is only wrong if it feels wrong.), we need to remember that truth is actually more than that. There are many people that are challenged by truth everyday. Presidential candidates attack each other with lies and slander. You might even wonder how they would run our country if they were elected. There are few Hollywood actors and actresses who would even recognize truth if they read it in a script. Furthermore, there are religious leaders and other important Christian figures that stumble from time to time in the public eye. Unfortunately, no one knows truth like Jesus. But fortunately, we can strive to be like Jesus and live our lives to reflect his character. In John 14:6 Jesus describes himself as “the way, the truth, and the life”. Not only did Jesus practice truth, he said he was truth! The Bible is also referred to as truth. If you have a question about a life issue, consult the Word of God, the Bible. Let’s take this next week to get to know Jesus and the truth.
Friday
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.“ John 14:6
Saturday
But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth.
John 4:23
Sunday
The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
Psalm 119:160
Monday
For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
John 1:17
Tuesday
Love…does not rejoice in iniquity (sin), but rejoices in the truth.
I Corinthians 13:6
Wednesday
For the word of the Lord is right and all His work is done in truth.
Psalm 33:5
Thursday
Speaking the truth in love we will in all things grow up into Him who is the head, that is, Christ.
Ephesians 4:15
April 1, 2008 at 7:37 am
February 1, 2008 at 2:13 pm e
2/1/08- 2/7/08
Getting back to Romans 12
These next verses in Romans 12 are pretty awesome, they go over how a Christian should treat other people and how we should handle adversity. I think this goes in line with numbing out, because it shows you what to set your mind on and how to handle the pressure. It also shows how we should not view ourselves better than anyone else. Everybody has trouble, however how you deal with it is different. How do you handle it/ Read these verses and pray on them, study them.
Today: 2/1/08 Romans 12:9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor(hate) what is evil. Cling to what is good.
Saturday 2/2/08 Romans 12:10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;
Sunday 2/3/08 Romans 12:11 not lagging in diligence( do not be lazy), fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;
Monday 2/4/08 Romans 12:12rejoicing in hopeexcited about your Faith), patient in tribulation(trouble), continuing staedfastly in prayer;
Tuesday 2/5/08 Romans 12:13 distributing to the needs of the saints( taking care of missionaries, pastors, churches through support of time, money etc…), given to hospitality( greeting visitors at Church being kind, this verse applies to the church which shows why you need to be plugged into a church).
Wednesday 2/6/08 Romans 12:14-15 Bless those who persecute(treat you wrongly, imprison you, beat you) you; bless them and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.
Thursady 2/7/08 Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind toward one another(be fair to one another, share ideas). Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble(do not be proud instaed be humble). Do not be wise in your own opinion(do not be stubborn, or unteachable).
God Bless You All.
April 9, 2008 at 7:52 am
bedfordzone Says:
April 1, 2008 at 7:44 am
Sorry it has been so long, but lets get back to business.
4/1/08- 4/8/08
The New Jerusalem Marathon
Your Christian Walk is equivalent to running a Marathon over and over again. The life of a Christian is filled with determination, excitement, exhaustion, perspiration, agony, adrenaline and fulfillment. These are all dynamics of an athlete’s life and preparations for their race.
Why do we run a race?
To inspire
To be a role model
To fulfill a goal
To build confidence
To compete
To better ourselves
To win a prize
Preparations:
1 Cor. 9: 22-27
Commitment:
1Cor. 9: 22-23
We must never forget that people are looking up to athletes, especially younger athletes. Pro athletes today, not all of them seem to forget this. Their actions on the field are played out in front of us on television.
Examples:
Michael Vick giving the middle finger to the fans on television, Dog fighting.
Pacman Jones and his suspension
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and countless other Baseball Players and Steroid abuse claims.
Floyd Landis was stripped of the Tour De France title because of a failed drug test.
Kobe Bryant was accused of rape, because his affairs on his wife.
Pete Rose has been banned from Baseball because of his gambling practices.
Shawn Merriman of the San Diego Chargers missed out on the Defensive player of the year award to Jason Taylor of the Miami Dolphins for failing drug test for steroids.
These are all pros, even college athletes and high school athletes are watched and their actions can have lasting impacts on the people who watch them. As athletes in the FCA we must always remember that not only do we represent our selves but we represent Jesus Christ, and we need to guard our Testimony of Him. Make a Commitment that your life as an athlete will be one of Integrity.
June 17, 2008 at 11:02 am
Chris Ashman Says:
January 18, 2008 at 12:29 pm e
1/18/08-1/24/08
I want to get back to Romans 12, after learning from Pastor Jeff on Wednesday night I feel this devotional is helpful because it deals on how Christians are supposed to act. Read these scriptures for each day and pray on what they mean and how God wants to work them in our lives.
Friday: Romans 12 :3 For I say, through the Grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly as God has dealt to each one a measure of Faith.
God shows us here that do not think of yourself better than anybody because you are better in one area than somebody else. God has equipped each of us in different areas, to fulfill His plan. So as you are better than somebody in one area, they are better in another area than you.
Saturday/ Sunday. Romans 12: 4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. 5. so we being, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
This verse shows us that in our church or in this place the Zone, like our bodies we have different parts. You might be an arm, I might be the leg, Pastor Jeff my be the stomach and Ben the foot and so on and so on. Just like our body we need all of our parts to work, function and grow in order for us live a life of fulfillment. So we need to take care of eachother and treat with respect like our own bodies depend on it. This is what Jesus wants us to do as an act of obedience so we can see Him work miracles
Monday Romans 12:6 Having then gifts differing according to the Grace that is given to us, let us use them: if Prophecy than let us prophecy in proportion to our faith.
When we give our lives to Jesus Christ He gives us that measure of Faith He also graces us with a gifts. These gifts are abilities of doing things, such as talent in areas that God wants us to work in. He will give us the power to operate these talents or gifts so we can be used to tell other sabout Jesus. To prophecy means to proclaim or give notice or to speak on Gods behalf about things God wants to do on the earth and though His people according to your Faith. God will speak for you and the more He speaks depends on you and how well you get to know Him and spend time with Him. That is God trusts you that you will be obedient to what He wants to Prophecy through you, so if prophecy is you than be obedient to say what God is saying and operate your member.
Tuesday/ Wednesday Romans12:7-8 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation, he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Again in these other areas if this is our talent than let us use the Faith that God has given us through Jesus Christ to operate in our area so we can tll people about Jesus and meet their need. If you do not know what area is yours ask God He will tell you, come speak to me or Pastor Jeff we will go to God with you and find out. Whatever you do find out and do it the reward is great and you will be fulfilled. God Bless you this week and I will see you on Wednesday.
bedfordzone Says:
April 9, 2008 at 7:58 am e
This weeks Devotional is going to be a continuation from last weeks devotional and also what I shared with the FCA at Liberty High School last week.
4/9/08- 4/15/08
Practice:
1 Cor. 9:27
Discipline your Body, just like you watch the food you eat in order to stay in shape. You also exercise in order to keep you muscle tone and your stamina up in order to compete. As Christian athletes lets also keep our soul and life clean from sin. Be careful what you get into at after game parties, be careful of the temptations that come with being an athlete, a lot of temptations can overwhelm you, like drugs, alcohol, relationships with girls and guys outside of marriage, Therefore Submit to God and Resist the Devil and he will flee from you. James 4:7.
Preparation:
Read your Bible in order to learn the scriptures and Promises that God has preserved for you in order to share with others.
Develop your Prayer life in order to hear from God. Just like you develop a relationship with your coach in order to learn to better your game, God wants to better you through relationship and prayer.
Race Day:
Now that you have practiced and prepared your life and body for the Race, it is now time to run it.
Your friends, family, teammates and spectators need you to share your Faith with them. This is what all of the Commitment, Practice and Preparation has equipped you to do to win the Prize.
What is the Prize, the prize is for those people to win what you have Jesus Christ, what better prize is it than to see your parents, brother or sister, classmates, teammates, teachers, bus driver, opposing players, coaches whomever comes in contact with your life and sees Jesus in you is a prize because all of your hardwork paid off.
The Finish Line:
The finish line, the net, the end zone, home plate, the basket, the other end of the pool, the hole, all ten pins or pinning your opponent is what you strive for as an FCA representative as a follower of Jesus Christ. The end of the race, it is prize time.
2 timothy 4:7-8
bedfordzone Says:
April 16, 2008 at 1:13 pm e
April 16th- April 23rd
This will finish up the FCA Message at Liberty High School
Keep Running the Race and God Bless You.
Your Athletic Example:
Hebrews 12: 1-4
Basketball had Michael Jordan none greater in his game.
Football had greats like Jim Brown, Brett Favre, Emmit Smith, Jerry Rice, Dan Marino and on and on.
Baseball had Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, Willie Stargell, Tony Gwynn.
Hockey had Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Clarke.
Soccer had Mia Hamm, Pele, David Beckham.
Track and Field had Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson, Florence Griffith Joyner, Jackie Joyner Kersee.
Gymnastics had Nadia Comenici, Mary Lou Retton.
Wrestling had Rulon Gardner.
Volley Ball has had great mens and womens teams.
And on and on there have been stars that have graced
every sport known to man. But in our Sport, our game, the race in which we are called, the one that encompasses all of these and more, has had a great and will always be the greatest. One day the names and record holders previously mentioned will fall will be eclipsed by someone else. In 10, 20, 30, 40 years from the star athletes in your life will be unheard of by people your age and they will who? But Jesus Christ will never be undone, His record will stand forevermore as the Greatest athlete, who endured the greatest, pain, who ran the hardest race, who suffered the most injuries, set the greatest example, the greatest role model, the greatest prize and the most loyal following ever.
If you are in the FCA than you must have made a commitment to Jesus Christ, if you did not this is the best day to enter the Greatest Race of your life. If you like challenges, exercise, motivation, excitement, competition this is the life for you. Get on Jesus’ team God’s Team, join today.
bedfordzone Says:
May 9, 2008 at 8:31 am e
This weeks devotion is from My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers.
GRASP WITHOUT REACH
“Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.” Proverbs 29:18 (R.V.)
There is a difference between an ideal and a vision. An ideal has no moral inspiration; a vision has. The people who give themselves over to ideals rarely do anything. A man’s conception of Deity may be used to justify his deliberate neglect of his duty. Jonah argued that because God was a God of justice and of mercy, therefore everything would be all right. I may have a right conception of God, and that may be the very reason why I do not do my duty. But wherever there is vision, there is also a life of rectitude because the vision imparts moral incentive.
Ideals may lull to ruin. Take stock of yourself spiritually and see whether you have ideals only or if you have vision.
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what’s a heaven for?”
“Where there is no vision. . . .” When once we lose sight of God, we begin to be reckless, we cast off certain restraints, we cast off praying, we cast off the vision of God in little things, and begin to act on our own initiative. If we are eating what we have out of our own hand, doing things on our own initiative without expecting God to come in, we are on the downward path, we have lost the vision. Is our attitude to-day an attitude that springs from our vision of God? Are we expecting God to do greater things than He has ever done? Is there a freshness and vigour in our spiritual out look?
We need vision in our lives to keep us fresh and renewed, not ideas. Ideas are conceived by what we are thinkning on and dwelling on. If we are not dwelling on or thinking on God than the ideas we think of are not from God. However, vision from God is not something we think up or conceive it is given by God.
We put ourselves into the position to receive a vision by being in God’s constant presence through the Bible, prayer and the decisions we make like not giving into temptation and sin and you can only avoid this by doing the first 2 prayer and reading your Bible. God Bless You.