For the last couple of years we have made a DVD of pictures with music in the back ground to give to family members as Christmas Gifts. This years dvd will be no different but it will include a section titled Hospital. It was pretty hard to make when I realize how many times we have been there with Jackson. I am excited about the DVD but this section was challenging!
Author: dgould77
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Acts 6
“But as the believers[a] rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food.” v. 1 (NLT)
The church is growing and God is moving but yet there are Rumblings of discontent! Sadly many churches have people who feel discontent toward their church. Why? Great question, that probably has many answers. However in this situation, the rumblings were caused by the lack of communication do to some language barriers. It was easily fixed by appointing others to take on a new task in the early church. By doing this, it allowed the Apostles to continue to teach, and gave others a chance to serve.
The question for us today is two fold. As leaders, how are we dealing with disontented people? Is there an opportunity for others to get involved to solve the problem? As believers, lets do our best to make situations better not worse. Satan wants nothing more than to divide the church and we have to work hard to protect it’s unity. If you see a situation that you don’t agree with or don’t understand, find out ways you can help by getting involved. Maybe God could use you like he did these people in this passage so the Church can continue to move forward seeing many come to know Christ.
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Weekend Review – Big Give pt 4
This week was week 4 of the Big Give!! God has really been doing some neat things in our time. Our students really engaged in worship this week. Both service were intense!! Fish Throw created a fun little crowd activity. Out of both services a girl threw the fish the furthest. (by the way, you have to dangle the fish by the tail from your mouth and swing your head to throw it.)
Here is what we challenged the students with this weekend,
THE BIG GIVE
Where to Give?
December 14th, 2008
“Some people are always greedy for more, but the godly love to give!” Proverbs 21:26 (NLT)
WHERE DO I GIVE?
1. Give where there is A NEED!
“Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be healed!’” Mark 1:41 (NLT)“Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” Mark 6:34 (NLT)
The Key: See where God is WORKING and JOIN HIM!2. Give where you are PASSIONATE!
“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 (NLT)
Spiritual Gifts
Heart
Abilities
Personality
Experiences
The Key: Know YOURSELF, and GET INVOLVED!3. Give where you can make AN IMPACT!
“He said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.’” Matthew 9:37-38 (NLT)
The Key: Just Do SOMETHING! -
Acts 5:17-42
“But Peter and the apostles replied, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority. 30 The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on a cross.[b] 31 Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as Prince and Savior. He did this so the people of Israel would repent of their sins and be forgiven. 32 We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him.’” v. 30-32 (NLT)
Faith Under Fire! The Apostles have been imprisoned because of their teachings about Christ. When questioned again, after being put in jail and released by an Angel of the Lord, Peter, without regard, tells the council that they will not be quiet and it is better for them to please the Lord and do what He says than to please the Council and stop teaching about Christ and using the power that is found in His Name.
The Apostles had a bold faith! They understood that they could be killed for what they were teaching and doing, but it didn’t stop them. They had a reckless abandonment for Jesus! Nothing else could compare to Him, or stop them from telling others about Him. They would rather please God then please man.
Sometimes you cant please both God and man! When this happens, it is better to please God and trust in His promise found in Luke 6:22
“What blessings await you when people hate you and exclude you and mock you and curse you as evil because you follow the Son of Man.” Luke 6:22 (NLT)
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Pneumonia Again and a Blast from the Past
That’s right Jackson now has pneumonia for the 3rd time this year. Luckily we caught it before it got to bad and needed to be in the hospital. He seems to be doing better already. We picked up a battery operated nose aspirator from Wal-Mart yesterday and it has been amazing so far. However, it is gross when the clear cup fills up with green snot after sucking a kids nostril.
On another note, while working on my talk for this weekend, I had a music shuffle going on through itunes and came across a song that believe it or not, played a huge role in my transformation at age 18. Music has a powerful way to influence us whether we want to admit it or not. I found a video on youtube with the song. Listen and Enjoy! (Warning, it is a rap song, so don’t hurt yourself bobbin you head or waving your arms in the air like ya just don’t care!)
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Acts 5:12-16
“But no one else dared to join them, even though all the people had high regard for them. Yet more and more people believed and were brought to the Lord – crowds of both men and women.” v 13-14
I am thinking about this verse and statement today:
What makes Christianity attractive? It is easy to be drawn to churches because of programs, good speakers, size, beautiful facilities, or fellowship. People were attracted to the early church, however, by expressions of God’s power at work; the generosity, sincerity, honesty, and unity of the members; and the character of the leaders. Have our standards slipped? God wants to add believers to his church, not newer and better programs or larger and fancier facilities. – NLT Life Application Study Notes
I would love to hear your thoughts!
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Back Again!!
Well today marked our 5th ER visit with Jackson since early September. We really thought that we were moving past this, but it just goes to show that at anytime things can change so much. Jackson was completing a follow-up sleep study from his surgery that removed his tonsils and adenoids. While there he had about a 3-5 minute seizure. He was taken to Plano Presby for follow-up evaluation. The only bad thing is he still has the electrodes on his head from the sleep study. We have tried to get them off but those things are like super glued on his head and the Baby Shampoo Presby said would take it out didn’t work, nor did peanut-butter, and Vitamin E oil hasn’t worked to well either.
Other than that Jackson is doing fine now, and the family is sleeping. All of us have been up since 1:30am this morning. The only reason I am able to stay awake right now is I had coffee this morning. Don’t ask, I am not a coffee drinker, but I saw some old guys drinking it and was inspired to have a cup. That’s all it took since I have not had caffeine since early October.
We have had the unfortunate opportunity now of seeing every Hospital in Plano, Allen, and Frisco. If I had to rate them on our experience, Stephanie and I would have to say that Children’s Medical Center in Plano has been by far the best with Centennial Medical Center in Frisco being a close second. Both of these places have provided excellent care to Jackson and given us quick info and results. Here is what our list would look like from best to worst care and experience. Please keep in mind we have never had to wait in any ER waiting room at any of these hospitals. This is based strictly on the care we felt was provided
- Children’s Medical Center Plano – great ER, great Nurses, great overnight staff, ok food (2 ER visits, 2 nights stay)
- Centennial Medical Center Frisco – great ER, great Nurses, great overnight staff, ok food (1 ER visit, 1 night stay)
- Medical Center Plano – old facility, decent care, not good food (2 days and 1 night stay)
- Plano Presby – Less than desired ER, Higher expectations than what was reality based on peoples references, Jackson became a pin cushion when getting blood-work done, took extra long to get results. (1 ER visit which was an all night deal)
- Allen Presby – Less than desired ER, Jackson became a pin cushion when getting blood, not kid friendly, great Labor and Delivery unit, awesome food. (Labor and Delivery, 10 Night stay in NICU, 3 ER visits, 2 nights stay)
If you were to look at Jackson right now, beside seeing a lubed head with electrodes stuck to it you would see a normal boy. In fact, today on the way home from the hospital he was dancing and singing to the music on the radio. I am so thankful that he is ok, and God has taught me a ton through this process, but I sure would like to not have to experience this anymore! To see Jackson in minutes go from one extreme to the other is painful, and exhausting as a Dad.
Lord Jesus, will you meet us where we are, comfort our fears, provide for our greatest needs, strengthen our family, and help us raise two boys to bring glory to your Name!
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World Tour
Senior Pastor George Feiser and Administrative Pastor Dennis Tollison are finishing the second leg of their world tour looking at where Grace might be able to impact a community for Christ using the Peace Plan. You can follow them while they are oversees on Pastor George’s Blog. Yes he is blogging again. Here is an excerpt from his latest post,
The day is not over with….we are going to 1 more church to teach. It will be a late night, but we are going for it.
It was a very emotional day because of going to the leper colony. As far as I am concerned, just going to the leper colony would have been worth this whole trip – just to see all of their face smiling after we left. Truly just our presence communicates God cares. As they took pictures I cried and felt their hurt. We gave rice, 20lb with oil and 2 other liquids. I prayed for Gods blessing on their life. I told them that God had not forgotten them – that is why he sent us to them. When we left they had big smiles on their faces and all together said thank you in English.
If you want to read more, visit his site by clicking this link, George Feiser’s Blog!
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Acts 4:32-37
“All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had.” v. 32
Unity is a powerful thing! The early church understood it’s importance and therefore made sure that everyone was taken care of. This is still the model for the church today. It’s not something that happens naturally in our culture due to the lure of materialism. But a church that stand united, focused on Christ and helping others. It is a church that will stand the test of time and see God do wonderful things in their midst (like the early church). A church that stand divided will be a church that doesn’t reach it’s full potential because people are headed in several different directions.
We can learn a lot from the early church. This was a church starting in very dangerous times, but they pulled together, stayed focused on Christ, committed to each other, made appropriate personal sacrifice, and had tremendous follow-through. The early church was blessed by God because the were a blessing to God, and all the believer played a part in making the early church what is was.
Today, think about your church! Is your church unified or divided? What role are you playing in your church? How can you make a difference? Do you protect the unity of the church you attend? It’s a powerful thing when the Church is United, and each of us has an important role!!!!
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Weekend Review – Dec. 7th
This week was week 3 of the Big Give!! God has really been doing some neat things in our time. This last week concluded our Gifts of Grace for East Plano kids, it was awesome seeing our students come into church with gifts for kids. I really look forward to worshiping with our students each week. Our student worship team does such a great job.
This week we encouraged students to get involved in a couple of mission projects. One is teaching ESL to kids at Meadows Elementary and the other is helping raise funds to build schools in Uganda, in partnership with Invisible Children (invisiblechildren.com). Note – the second opportunity in Uganda was inspired by one of our students who shared how she was getting involved in a project called schools for schools. She did a great job and her story fit so well with the talk. Here is the outline with pictures we used to drive home the point that you have to stay focused.
THE BIG GIVE
How to Give!
December 7TH, 2008“‘So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.’” John 13:34-35 (NLT)
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
1. It takes FOCUS!
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.” Hebrews 12:1-2 (NLT)
What do you see? Look at the pictures very closely!
“I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Philippians 3:14 (NLT)
2. It takes SACRIFICE!
“We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.” 1 John 3:16 (NLT)
3. It takes COMMITMENT!
“Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Matthew 5:37 (NIV)
4. It takes FOLLOW-THROUGH!
“As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. 8 And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:6-8 (NLT)
Excited to see what happens this week as we talk about Where to Give Big.
