GOING WITH GOD’S FLOW: STOP, DROP, AND ROLL

September 19, 2010

Be still (cease striving) and know (acquiesce) that I am God.
– Psalm 46:10

PART 1
Identify the Current Issue

Has there ever been a time in your life when you felt like somehow you were out of sync with what you were supposed to be doing? You weren’t in the zone? That God had a purpose for you and somehow you weren’t in the middle of it? Today’s wisdom from the Psalms is God’s answer to us when we feel this way.


PART 2
Discover the Eternal Principles

During class, we had a time of sharing that was just for the class. The points are simple and don't really need an illustration. Meditate on them, and let God speak directly to you the message in His words.

Teaching point one: Stop - swimming upstream.



Teaching point two: Drop – your agenda and experience God.




Teaching point three: Roll – with God’s direction.




PART 3
Apply Your Findings

Break up into small groups for discussion.

[Q] Describe a time when you were right in the middle of God’s work. What did it feel like? Were you striving or being carried along?

[Q] If you had a friend who was really struggling – striving with no result, what are some things you might say to her or him to get the message of this verse across?

[Q] Why do you think it is more natural to strive, even up stream, then to let go and let God?

[Q] What are some ways you have learned to be still or cease striving that you can share with the group?

HOT TEA: A CURE FOR SEPARATION ANXIETY

September 12, 2010

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
– Romans 8:38-39

PART 1
Identify the Current Issue

Group activity. Divide into four groups.

1.) Separate the M&Ms by color.
2.) Separate the banana from the peel.
3.) Separate the egg white from the yolk.
4.) Separate the tea from the water.

Group member reports from each group as to their success, how did the go about separating the things, was it easy or hard? What did you do to separate the items?

In this exercise, we looked at separation in four ways:

1) the M&Ms were easily separated because they had nothing in common;
2) the banana and peel were less easily separated because they were connected but were distinct parts;
3) the egg white and yolk were harder because there were connected and less distinct; 4) the tea and water were impossible because there was no distinction. The two had become one.

[Q] What did you learn from this exercise about the one, big thing that protects against separation?

The two had become one.

In the above exercise, we used a physical example to get a better understanding of an emotional and spiritual truth. Jesus often used agricultural parables (seeds in soil) to get His bigger point across in a clear way. Now that we've looked at physical separation and some of its properties, let's think about other forms of separation, how they happen, and their impact.

[Q] When you hear the phrase “separation anxiety”, what do you think of?
[Q] How does separation anxiety or actually being separated from something or someone important to you effect your life, your well-being, your emotions?

PART 2
Discover the Eternal Principles

Teaching point one: Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ.

Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[Q] What astounding claim does Paul make in these verses?
[Q] What kinds of struggles do you think the Romans were having they thought would separate them from God?
[Q] Are these the same things that people struggle with now or do you think Paul would write a different list to us?

No matter what life we live, where we live it, how planned and prepared we are, there will be trails and tribulations - struggles that seem like they may be able to separate us from the love of God. Paul makes an astounding claim that nothing - nothing - can separate us from the love of God. There are not degrees of things that may or may not separate us. Nothing will. Period. We can take comfort in that truth.

Teaching point two: God put everything under the authority of Christ. (God is great.)

Exercise: Go around the room. Finish this sentence. I am convinced that ________.

How did you decide how to finish that sentence? Were there conditions for certainty? My answer was "I am convinced that I am wearing a watch." My condition for certainty - for being convinced - was that I had solid evidence. I could see and feel the watch on my arm.

Paul begins these verses with "I am convinced" - not with "I think it might be that" or "Maybe" or "Perhaps" or "In an ideal world" or "If I have had to make a guess." It's great that Paul is convinced, but we may still be wondering why he's convinced of such a profound statement. Could he possibly have any evidence to prove it? Let's look at scripture.

Ephesians 1:22-23 And God placed all things under his [Jesus’] feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Hebrews 2:8-9 In putting everything under him [Jesus], God left nothing that is not subject to him.

Philippians 2:9-11 Therefore God exalted him [Jesus] to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Daniel 7:14 And to him [Messiah] was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and men of every language might serve him.

[Q] What do each one of these scriptures tell us that might serve as evidence for Paul?

These scriptures tell us that everything on earth and heaven are subject to Christ. Therefore, it is an impossibility that there is a power that can separate us from God. God wants us united with Him, and there's no adversary big enough to challenge Him. In Chuck's sermon this Sunday, he pointed out that God is great. This is another way saying what the scriptures above tell us and what Paul knew.


Teaching point three: Christ is on our (in)side. (God is good.)

Paul's certainty rests on the fact that God is great, but it also rests on the knowledge that God is good. He's on our side. You could even say He's on our inside - that the two have become one. Let's look at some scripture to back that up.

John 17:20-24 "My prayer is not for them [the disciples] alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me.

[Q] How does Jesus describe our relationship to Him?
[Q] What does He indirectly say about our relationship to God?

In the passage above, Jesus is praying to God in the Garden of Gesthemane the night before His crucifixion. This is the very last part of His prayer. The final, most important, thing Jesus prays for us is that we will be one with Him through His death. That's pretty astounding! It would be a shame for us not to recognize and live into what Jesus specifically prayed for us.

This idea of two becoming one - us with Christ - is conveyed further by Paul through the metaphor of marriage. Let's look at some more scriptures.

Mark 10:7-9 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."

Ephesians 5:29-32 After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.

[Q] What do these verses say about our relationship to Christ?

Again, we hear Paul reiterating that the miracle accomplished in Christ's death and resurrection is that we have become one with Christ. The metaphor is extended to the church, which we call the Body of Christ which is also referred to as the Bride of Christ. In the book of Revelation, one of the culminating scenes is the Lamb (Christ) being united in a wedding with His Bride (the Church). This is not some small, sideline idea in the Bible. This is THE idea, THE purpose of Christ's sacrifice - to make us one, again as it was in the beginning, with Christ.

Teaching point four: Be expectant. Be excited. Be extravagant. (Don't be like The Miserables.)

So what do with do with that? Paul has laid a pretty heavy truth on us - one that is comforting and assuring, but also challenging. So if we believe what Paul is saying, then how does that effect the way we live? Certainly, if nothing can separate us from the love of God, then our lives should reflect this. Certainly, we shouldn't be moping around, leading mediocre lives of duty and drudgery like people who have no hope and no cause for joy.

Chuck talked this Sunday about a scene in the movie Amistad. Below is the dialogue:

[a band of abolitionists approach the outer gate of the prison where the Amistad refugees are being held for trial]
Fala: [in Mende] Who are they, do you think?
[the abolitionists kneel to pray]
Joseph Cinque: [in Mende] Looks like they are going to be sick.
Abolitionists: [singing] Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound...
Fala: [in Mende] They're entertainers!
Abolitionists: [singing] ... that saved a wretch like me...
Joseph Cinque: [in Mende] But why do they look so miserable?

Why do they look so miserable? A haunting question. Sometimes I look out on Sunday mornings during worship when the congregation is singing beautiful hymns, and I wonder the same thing. If someone peeked in the Sanctuary, they would surely thing we were performing a somber ritual based on some other truth besides nothing can separate us from the love of God.

Do you ever wonder we look so miserable if we believe Romans 8:38-39? Here's a better picture of how we should look.


1.) Be expectant.

to expect: to look forward to

This is not some namby-pamby, half-hope that occasionally God may show up and something good might happen. This is the kind of expectancy that goes along with pregnancy. There is commitment and certainty involved. Something IS going to happen one way or another.

Live each day committed to the expectation of God's presence and His work in and through you.

2.) Be excited.

to excite: to stimulate to activity

This is not some flash-in-the-pan emotional upsurge. Real excitement means something has been put into motion. If you excite a guitar string, you start it vibrating and making sound. If you excite an atom, you move it to an higher energy level. The point is that excitement is not about just a feeling, it's about action.

Live each day committed to responding with action to the manifestation of God's presence.

3.) Be extravagant.

extravagant: lacking in restraint, exceeding the limits of necessity or reason

This is not some indulgence of luxury, spending too much on shoes or dinner. This is an extravagance of response to God.

Live each day lacking restraint and being unreasonable in your generosity, your kindness, your patience, your faith, your perseverance, your pursuit of Christ and the work He has laid out for you since the beginning of time. When any, and I many any, opportunity is presented for you to meet a need, do so extravagantly!

PART 3
Apply Your Findings

Break up into small groups for discussion.

[Q] Has there been a time this week when you felt the love of God?
[Q] Why do you think Paul included “life” and “angels” in his list of things that we might worry about separating us from God? How can life separate you from the love of God?
[Q] Think about the exercise we did at the beginning of class with the M&Ms, banana, egg, and tea. Which one best describes how you view your relationship with the love of God?
[Q] How will Paul’s assurance that nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ allow you to be expectant, excited, and extravagant this week?

Come back together as a big group for closing.

PRAYER: The Protection of Peace

September 5, 2010


Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
– Philippians 4:6-7


PART 1
Identify the Current Issue

We all worry. An unknown wise person once said, “For peace of mind, resign as general manager of the universe.” Easier said than done. There are things that we do feel the need, even the responsibility, to control, and those things cause us to worry.

Webster’s dictionary defines worry as “mental distress or agitation resulting from concern usually for something impending or anticipated, anxiety”.

Worry could be thought of as fear of the future, while regret could be thought of as fear of the past. Any fear in the immediate present is usually well-founded, responded to, and done with.

[Q] What do you worry about?
[Q] What’s the difference between healthy concern and worry?

Healthy concern is when you can do something about a situation. Worry is when you cannot.

Examples:
Healthy concern: Andrew running around with a stick in his hand, so I take the stick away.
Worry: Andrew might get cancer when he’s 40, so I can do nothing.

If you want to test your memory, try to recall what you were worrying about one year ago today.
~E. Joseph Cossman

What were you worried about when you were:
5? 10? 15? February of your freshman year? last year on this day? Yesterday?

How many of these questions could you answer? How many of the answers that you had turned out to be things worth worrying about? If you could go back in time, which of these things would you worry about again?

I am an old man and have known a great many troubles,
but most of them never happened. ~Mark Twain

[Q] What does worry do to us? How does it effect us?

* Worry attacks our hearts and minds.


PART 2
Discover the Eternal Principles

Teaching point one: Prayer cures worry.

Even if the above example pointed out the futility of worry, it does not completely relieve our tendency to worry. This is partly because worry is irrational. By that I mean, it is not rooted primarily in the intellect. Worry is the product of our emotions, our psyche, our hearts. To some degree, we can learn to reason, or talk, ourselves out of some worries, but there will always be worries from which we cannot think ourselves free.

Paul is addressing these kinds of worries when he writes to the church at Philippi:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition,
with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

[Q] What does Paul tell the Philippians to do with their worry?
[Q] What does he tell them it’s okay to worry about?
[Q] What restrictions does he put on their prayers?
[Q] What kind of restrictions do you put on your prayers? Why?

Teaching point two: Prayer is all-inclusive.

Although we may be used to praying about anything for other people, we sometimes have a hard time praying for ourselves. We think our worries are too small for God or inappropriate for prayer. There are things we feel guilty asking for in prayer – maybe things we think we should be able to handle ourselves. There are prayer requests we can’t imagine God wanting to hear one more time we pray them so much. As a result, we often edit our prayers to make them “acceptable” to God. In doing this, we leave our out deepest concerns.

Corrie ten Boom, a Dutch Christian Holocaust survivor who helped many Jews escape the Nazis during World War II, wrote this:

Any concern too small to be turned into a prayer is too small to be made into a burden.

If this is true, then the converse is true as well. Anything that is a burden is fit for prayer.

Jesus gives us an example of how to pray for our own needs. The night before Jesus was to be crucified, he was praying the Garden of Gethsemane. He prayer went like this:

"My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." (Matthew 26:39).

Jesus knew his purpose on this earth was to die for mankind, but he also knew just how painful of a death that would be. Even he, God’s own son, shared his fear and pain with God.

[Q] What do you learn about the boundaries of prayer from Jesus’ prayer? What does He ask for?
[Q] What do you think the most important part of this prayer is?

Teaching point three: Prayer puts our focus on God.

If you play a sport that involves a ball, one of the most common instructions is "Keep your eye on the ball!" Why in the world do we even need that instruction? What else would we be looking at?

Well, here's an example from golf. If you are trying to hit the ball over the lake, it is very, very tempting to look at the lake when you should be looking at the ball. If you look at the lake, the result is that you often miss the ball, and either hit it into the lake - the very thing you were worried about doing - or you miss the ball completely. The point is this. The lake has nothing to offer you but trouble.

Many times we look at our worries, focusing on the problem and wondering why we're not getting any answers.

Paul shows his great wisdom by telling the Philippians to add thanksgiving to their prayer. If we focus on God, who He is, the things He’s done for us, we are immediately moved from our hopeless cycle of worry into the very presence of Hope.

Our problems, the things we worry about, seldom, if ever, provide their own solutions. We can think about them night and day, but they offer us no answers, no wisdom. Still, it’s so easy to worry ourselves in circles. It’s so hard to shut our minds off. By telling the Philippians to pray with thanksgiving, Paul is reminding them to "keep their eye on the ball" or to focus on God instead of their worries.

Paul goes on to reiterate the importance of redirecting our thoughts in Philippians 4:8.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.


[Q] What are some practical ways to put your focus on God?

Here’s a helpful phrase to remember when you are caught up in worry: “Study, Sing, Seek, or Serve”

Study - the Bible, a devotional book
Sing - sings psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
Seek - worship, join a prayer group, go to a Bible study or lecture
Serve - help someone in need, volunteer

Teaching point four: Prayer promises the protection of peace, which surpasses understanding.

When we have worries and we lift them up to God, what we really want is an answer - a clear answer in English. If we're worried about our job, then we want God to tell us exactly how the situation is going to resolve. We think that if God will give us understanding that we won't worry anymore.

Paul disagrees. While acknowledging our desire for understanding, Paul tells us that God will remove our worry with His peace instead. His peace will serve as a guard for our hearts (our emotions, psyche, desires) and our minds (intellect, reason) to protect us from the paralyzing, debilitating attacks of worry. The Greek word used for guard is a military term implying a garrison put as a guard around a city with two purposes: 1) to guard the inhabitants from outside attacks, and 2) to prevent the citizens from fleeing the city into hostile territory.

God's peace guards our hearts and minds not only from outside attack but from self-sabotage, our own worry.

So, why would peace be better than understanding? Here's an example that may help.

When I was giving birth to my son, I was having contractions. There was a video monitor beside the bed graphing the contractions to measure their frequency and intensity. The graph looked like successive waves on the ocean.



When the contractions got to a certain intensity, I didn't think I could take it anymore and asked for an epidural, which would numb me from the waist down. After I got the epidural, there was peace in my body. I lay in the bed wondering when the contractions would return but thankful for the rest. I asked the nurse when to expect them to return. She looked confused at the question. "They never stopped," she told me. "Look at the monitor." I turned to see spikes on the graph twice as big as the ones I couldn't stand, but I felt nothing. I was shocked.

The point is this. The epidural didn't change my contractions or my circumstances. The epidural changed my experience of them.

I imagine it would be similar to being on the boat in the movie "The Perfect Storm."



You would look out the window and see waves higher than any high rise in New York. The extreme fear that would grip you would be unbearable. Suppose someone took you into a room, and the boat was completely still. You wouldn't know how in the world they managed to stall the storm, but you'd be grateful. Then they told you to look out the window, and you saw the storm still raging. The stillness of the room gave you peace, in the middle of the storm.

God doesn't always change our circumstances because our circumstances don't produce our joy and they are not the source of our peace. God doesn't always still the storms of this world, but He always stills the storms inside of us. He gives us a supernatural answer to our natural questions. He gives us peace when we think we want knowledge.

What good would a scientific understanding of my contractions have done me? I really wanted peace. What good would a meteorological understanding of a storm at sea do? We really want a still boat.

It is God's peace that protects us, and that's what He promises to give us when we lift up our worries in prayer.


PART 3
Apply Your Findings

Break up into small groups for discussion.

Worry attacks our hearts and minds. Prayer provides the peace that guards our hearts and minds.

[Q] Has there ever been a time in your life when worry attacked your heart and mind in a significant way? What did you do about it?
[Q] How do you focus on God? Are there any particular devotional books you like? Special prayers? Activities or acts of service? Other things?