I just got done speaking in “the Big House” AKA Church for adults. Spoke twice. Personally felt like the message went smoother in the second service. Hard Talk, glad its over, but praying that God used it to draw people to Himself! Here is the main verse we focused on.
“My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous.” 1 John 2:1 (NLT)
Last Night as we celebrated the 4th of July we decided to go watch the fireworks in Frisco TX. Last year we were headed that way and Josiah decided had one of the worst cases of diarrhea to this date. By the time we got him cleaned up, we wouldn’t have made it to see the Fireworks. This year much better. We ate at Willies Burger House. Very good hamburgers, and they gave us free parking. This was nice because we didn’t have to fight or pay to find a parking spot. And the restaurant is in the Pizza Hut Park parking lot. So we just had to walk a small ways to take in all the action. The Fireworks were AWESOME. The boys started to get restless about an hour before they started . . . who am I kidding, so did I. But once the fireworks happened, we were all mesmerized. What a great fun night as a family!
I put this song on my blog about a month ago but it is starting circulate more. The words are so impactful!
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We packed a lunch and spent the later part of the morning and early part of the afternoon just hanging out at the pool. Good family time before we go see the Fireworks tonight . . . that is, if it doesn’t rain!
“If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” v. 47-48 (NLT)
There is so much stuff in these to chapters of the Bible. I could spend all year reading Matthew chapters 5-7 and learn something more everyday. Really these are, “Life Lessons with Jesus.” If I am wanting to be more like Christ, then why not look at what he says? In these verses, He teaches about divorce (something the world really needs), revenge (ouch), promises/commitments (saying yes and saying no), Loving People (even your enemies.)
This is quite the list, I find myself falling short in some of these respects do to fear, business, selfishness, and pride. To be honest, sometimes it is just much easier to avoid, than to open ourselves up for potential hurt and pain. But the good news, we become more like Christ the more we do these things. Isn’t that our gaol as Christ Followers?
Well today we went down to Dallas and saw where President Kennedy was assassinated. The boys had no idea what we were looking at but they had fun hanging out with our Friends from Warrensburg. Here is what our day consisted of:
Riding the Dart, Josiah’s favorite.
Walking
Taking family pictures
Walking
Playing in the fountain
Walking
Eating at Sonny Bryans Smokehouse BBQ
Walking
Riding the Dart home backwards
saying goodbye to friends!
Today was fun, it was good to get away from the house and to see something very different. Here are some pictures of our adventures today! So much fun!!!
Today, the church has given us the day off, very nice of them, but the weekend still happens, and, I am speaking to the church at large this weekend. I am excited to do it, but I really get PMS (pre message syndrom) when I have to speak to the whole church. I am praying that God would just take over! That my words would be His and I would step out of the way, so people could understand, and clearly know what God wants them to do. It’s a tuff topic, but has the potential to really connect! Pray for me, and us!
That being said, here are my goals for today:
“So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.” v.19
What a statement! Jesus goes on to teah about anger, and lust, probably things that none of us deal with on a daily basis. Wrong, I find it interesting that he not only addresses the actual sin but talks about the little things that gradually get bigger as we continue to sin. Jesus says we have to cut off the things that cause us to sin.
This weekend I am talking about “Secret Sin.” The past two years I have seen good even godly men fall because they let secret sin lead them to places they never thought possible and they ended up doing things they never thought they would do. That’s the power that is in secret sin, and Jesus tels us to cut it off!
What are some things that you struggle with? Today, will you begin to cut those things out, so you can experience the fullness of Christ? Today, will I be willing to cut those things out, so I can experience the fullness of Christ? Let do it together!
Dan Gould 