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God uses ordinary people to change the world. He uses ordinary people to demonstrate his love and grace.
God designed and wired you a certain way. Designed for good works (Ephesians 2:10).
Callings do not need to be spiro things – you can be called to be a teacher, plumber, mother, banker, travel agent, builder, politician, engineer, journalist, artist, nurse….
God calls you to use the gifts you have that are part of you to demonstrate who he is, as well as to “do stuff”.
Callings can also include how to use the WHO you are in non vocational ways (aka – it isn’t your job, but is your passion and service) such as on the worship team, house leadership, pastoring, evangelism etc…
Joel 3:10
10 Beat your plowshares into swords
and your pruning hooks into spears.
Let the weakling say,
“I am strong!”
Matthew 14:17
13When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17″We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18″Bring them here to me,” he said. 19And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Exodus 4:2
Then the LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied.
What resonates with the beat of your heart? What is the thing you dream about? What is the thing you MUST do and will strive to do at every godly cost? What is the gift God has placed in your life? Pursue it. Pray and talk to God about it. Prepare. Don’t wait however to step out into a glorious future of fulfillment and doing. Do it now. Demonstrate God now to those around you. It doesn’t take a job description or a position on church staff to be like Jesus. Don’t let feelings of inadequacy or unpreparedness rule you out. Jeremiah was young man whom God used to speak to a nation. Timothy likewise, yet God called him to lead a church. Amos was a common shepherd with no family history of spiritual leadership. Nehemiah was a cupbearer in the kings court in exile. David was a shepherd. Lydia, in retail. Matthew was a despised tax collector. What are you doing today? What mark are you making today? How is God using you – today???
Sooo….. am I called???
How do I find out what I am called to do???
1. Talk to God. Pray.
2. Look at your life. What do you like to do? What are you good? What ticks your heart? How are you wired?
3. Talk to God.
4. Just do it. seriously. Get in there. Do it. it doesn’t have to be a “formal” position – if you join a group then do so, but don’t just be limited by what openings there are. If you feel called to teach people, then be part of a housegroup and into the conversation. If you feel called to worship then worship God! If you feel called to help people then look around you for the opportunities to help people. Callings can be expressed and outlived in day to day lives with our frienships and work mates and in our church community.
5. Prepare. Read. Learn. Study. Pray. Don’t just let your life breeze by but be active in living your life!
Corinthians 4:7
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
Your calling and your livng the call is your response and expression of relationship with God. The context of your call is in relationship with God.
‘Not called!’ did you say? ‘Not heard the call,E’ I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father’s house and bid their brothers and sisters, and servants and masters not to come there. And then look Christ in the face, whose mercy you have professed to obey, and tell him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish his mercy to the world. William Booth, founder of Salvation Army.
God might want you to extend his love by offering to baby-sit for the single parent down the street. He might want you to prepare a hearty meal for that lonely old man who lost his wife — and to sit and visit with him while he eats. Who knows, he might even want you to reach out and touch the life of a total stranger in some way you can’t imagine right now. Are you willing to set aside your own comfort to touch someone else with God’s love? — Amy Nappa
in your presence God, we find hope
in your presence we find life and love
all we need is found with you.
when i am with you i know you are with me
and i never walk alone
so i turn my eyes
towards you
gazing with trust and surrender
knowing you are with me and i am never alone
i walk not by sight but with faith in you
your presence gives me hope
your presence gives me peace
with you i am found and am complete and whole
in your presence God, i find all the answers
in your presence its okay not to know
i will trust you all my days
i will walk and obey
your presence gives me life and hope
it is where i know i belong
our church sung this song today for the first time. wow.
it got all the way in and into my heart.
I am after God.
i want to know him and his ways.
the good news is WE CAN know God and he reveals himself to us (1 Corinthians 2:9-10) and we can boldly enter the throne of God with confidence because of what Jesus has done – he tore the veil and made a new and living way to God!
Matthew 9:9 As Jesus was leaving he saw a tax collector called Matthew sitting at a place for paying taxes. Jesus said to him, “come with me” and matthew got up and went with Him.
I read this and began to think (always a good thing when reading the bible!) Perhaps Matthew, sitting in his tax collector booth witnessed the whole miracle and forgiving sins of the cripple man. perhaps he heard Jesus teaching. perhaps he wished that he could be new and clean and have his sins forgiven too. perhaps he was wondering who this man was that forgave sins and made crippled men walk.
Jesus saw matthew and called him to follow Him. a tax collector! the scurge of society in israel! dispised and outcast!
matthew didnt appear to be a candadiate for discipleship. he wasnt holy or respected or wanted.
but jesus called him and matthew left his lucrative tax collecting business and lifestyle to follow Jesus.
jesus was matthews saviour and healer too.
it gives me hope, because Jesus calls me too.
The faithfulness of God amazes me, takes my breath away. even when we deny him in our heart and actions he accepts and loves us and draws us with kindness to repentance and renewal again. his love is faithful and everlasting. even when we fall he is there to heal and pick us up. he calls us to greater glory and works in our lives to complete his good work. he is faithful always. we can be sure and confident that he will be always with us and forever loving us.
Revival is a passion and longing of mine.
I am passionate to read and learn about past revivials, the testimony of what God did, and how He reached the lost and poured himself out on a community and group of people.
I am passionately interested in what worked and waht didnt, not for form sake or for just knowlege sake but for application and wisdoms sake.
I am longing to see God pour himself out on my own nation and community….
I love listening to preaching about revival.
I love songs that stir our hearts towards revival.
Now its not just about butts on seats. Or special salvation prayers been recited. Or response cards been filled out.
It is about encounters with God. By the lost and the saved alike.
People becoming awake to the presence and power of God.
It is about the soverign pouring out of God on a community and peoples hearts been turned by the Holy Spirit towards God. It is about the blind eyes open towards teh truth of the Gospel. and about real blind eyes been opened and healed. Miracles. Demonstration.
Come Jesus. Come Holy Spirit. Come Mighty God. Come. Come. We need you.
Without faith it is impossible to please God. We must believe that God is real and that He rewards everyone who searches for Him…. Hebrews 11:6
We know faith is important right.
Jesus told people that it was their faith that healed them.
We are saved by faith, not by our own works.
Faith is mentioned heaps in the bible – 402 times!
Faith begins with God.
It begins with us believing in who God is.
God is all powerful, all seeing, all knowing, all loving, compassionate, strong, just, kind, great, good, glorious.
In hebrews 11 we see many examples of those who demonstrated and lived by faith – those who had faith in God and followed Him….
remember: faith is based and on and in and to God. faith really begins in God.
God is:
All powerful
All knowing
All seeing
Everywhere
Loving
Compassionate
Just
Glorious
Holy
Great
….. Amazing!
Faith says
I believe God has the answers
God is almighty and all powerful
Nothing is impossible for God
God is the same yesterday, today, tomorrow
Jesus is Lord of Lords, King of Kings – His name is above all other names and He is victorious
The Word of God is truth and right
I trust God
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; it was he to whom it was said, “IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED.” He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead. Hebrews 11:17-19
Faith is a verb – Faith is doing
Faith is an ACTION
“faith without works is dead” James 2:26
Takes action – prays, speaks, shares, does
Steps out
Demonstrates
Trusts God
Is determined and perseveres
Obeys
Teaches us (to have faith)
Faith believes what God says is true – and runs after that
This is what the essence of faith is if we break it down.
Faith is believing in God. Believing in what he says. Believing in who he says he is. Believing and trusting in him and living like that.
Faith says yes to God. It says yes i believe you are the almighty God and all powerful and all knowing and all loving and able to work in our own lives.
Faith stretches out towards the truth and reality of God
Faith in God vs circumstances
This is the challenge of faith. Often the circumstance says one thing – but God’s word says another. It is the challenge of believing in what God says
Faith comes
by hearing the
Word Of God
Romans 10:17
How does our faith grow?
How do we get more?
The bible gives one very clear way of how we grow our faith…. That is to read the bible. To believe the bible.
You cant know the bible unless you read the bible.
You cant know the promises of God, or who he is – without reading the bible. The Bible is God’s revelation of Himself and His Ways and His promises to us.
There are times when you “really get it” – where God illuminates his word and that causes faith to grow.
The simple revelation of who God is through his word – how almighty and able and powerful and creative and holy – causes our faith to grow.
Faith is a choice – it may fight against what our mind and soul think and see…
“For the weapons of our warfare are not natural but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that sets itself against God, bringing every thought into captivity and obedience to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
TRAIN your mind to have faith
Feed your faith
Church
Music
Worship
Prayer
Conversation/Friendships
The books you read
What you watch
What you do
It all can influence your faith for good or bad
Remember – God’s Word is TRUTH… He is greater than you and I. He sees all. He knows all. He is God Almighty. The Creator of the Universe.
Remember – our faith is in Almighty God.
Remember – our minds and souls will sometimes clash with the truth of God’s Word. Our mind and soul must bend to the truth of God!
Faith grows when we feed it with the Word of God and we CHOOSE to believe it and live it.
note: the centred bolded text were my powerpoint slides in my preach on faith last night at church
this is one of my favourite passages in the bible. i love the trust and faith of abraham – to trust God to rise isaac from death if need be to fulfill His promises. no matter the circumstance abraham trusted that God was bigger and more able and more creative and more powerful to deal with it.
romans 4:17-20 (as it has been written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) –before God, whom he believed, who makes the dead live, and calls the things which do not exist as though they do exist. For he who beyond hope believed on hope for him to become the father of many nations (according to that which was spoken, “So your seed shall be”). And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body already dead (being about a hundred years old) or the deadening of Sarah’s womb. He did not stagger at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded that what God had promised, He was also able to perform.
abraham was fully persuaded.
have we let God fully pursuade us of the reality of who he is?
are we convinced of his power, authority, his ableness and love?
abraham trusted that what God said God could do.
he didnt let the physical circumstances dictate his faith or response to God, he did not stagger in believing God despite the circumstances.
he believed that though 1+1=2 that with God 1+1=what God declared. God is ABLE to do what he says. he can do all things ro make his will reality.
be fully pusuaded by the presence and ableness of our Almighty God.
God is able to make the dead live, and calls the things which do not exist as though they do exist. he is creator and creative. have faith not in the evidence for WHAT you are believing for (job, marrige, kids, house, ministry etc) but have faith in the WHO you are believing!
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