Welcome to our visitors this morning--Billy and Kelley Gable. The Gables have recently moved from Giddings, Texas and have two children, Tyler(7) and Amanda(5).
Today's lesson with Bill and Anabel Gillham changes the focus somewhat from our previous lessons. The focus changes somewhat from our relationship with God to our relationship with others as directed by God. As Bill asks a rhetorical question about how we are to build and maintain our relationship with our spouse, he says, "Let's turn to the manufacturer's owner's manual," as he holds up the Bible. Indeed, the Bible is the manufacturer's owner's manual for all issues and concerns. If our marriages are to be all that God intended them to be, then they must operate according to God's plan. As Bill said earlier in this series, "God's job description is that He runs things." He is the supreme authority figure and, as such, has established His plan for marriage.
Bill points out that the Bible establishes that men and women are equal with different roles assigned by God (Genesis 5:2). God made the woman and thus completed the whole man (Genesis 2:18 and Genesis 2:23).
Bill made reference in today's lesson to the world's view of marriage. He described four different world views--all of which are lacking. The world often views marriage in one of the following ways:
Casual view--no lasting commitment
Feelings view--based on current passion
Separate lives view--living like roommates
Dictatorial view--male is dominant and superior.
None of these views represent the Godly expectations for marriage.
Most of the remainder of today's lesson deals with the needs of the female and male. Spiritually, both the male and female need to know Jesus Christ. Emotionally, the husband needs praise from his wife. The wife needs tender loving care. Perceptually, the husband needs to believe that he is the head of the relatiohship. The wife needs the husband to listen to her. Physically, the husband and wife need a sexual relationship, but not surprisingly, they most often view the sexual relationship differently.
What a great lesson! I hope you will take a look at the book's parallel comments regarding this topic. Bill and Anabel suggest the following action before the next session: In the quietness of prayer, ask the Holy Spirit to help you focus on those areas where YOU can improve in your marriage. May the Lord bless your marriage and your family this week.
If you would like to study Biblical references to Bill and Anabel's teaching this week and for the next three weeks, take a look at the following scriptural references:
John 13:34
1 Cor. 7:1-6
Eph. 5: 21-33
Phil. 3: 8-10
Col. 3:18-19
1 Peter 3: 1-7
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
August 15 Overcoming Temptation & Giving Burdens to God
Our lesson today was made up of two parts. The first part dealt with overcoming temptations and focused on I Corinthians 10:13. The second part of the lesson dealt with a visual and emotional tool that Anabel discovered to help Christians learn how to cast their burdens upon God.
Part I: I Corinthians 10:13
"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure."
With every temptation, God provides doors of escape so we can say "No" to the enemy and thus endure his attack. However, if the initial door of escape is ignored, not only do subsequent escape routes become narrower, they also become more difficult to access. Failing to take the way of escape provided does not mean the temptation was too strong and that I Cor. 10:13 does not work. It simply means that we ignored our opportunity to escape.
Just as the Bible says, God is faithful and He won't allow us to be tempted beyond our ability to resist. However, we must use the escape plan that He intends for us to use. Calling out to the Lord at the edge of sin and asking Him to deliver us is a dangerous and costly habit. In so doing, we load ourselves with a heavier burden of temptation. Spiritual battles are won at the threshold of the mind, not in the mind.
Anabel shared the story of a high school girl on a date in order to illustrate the dynamics of temptation. Within every temptation, there are doors of escape. Thoughts come from the Holy Spirit, your sound mind, and the power of sin. All these thoughts are manifested in first-person pronouns. Subsequent doors of escape are narrower than the first door was. Anabel shared a story of a vacuum cleaner salesman who gained access to her home and how much more difficult it was to get rid of the salesman than it would have been if she had met him at the door of her house. The strongest defense against temptation is at the first way of escape, the threshold. Say "No" to the devil's temptation--and mean it. Prepare for Satan at the threshold of your mind, remembering that in Christ, victory is already yours.
PART II--How to Give a Burden to the Lord
Psalms 68:19 says, "Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden..."I Peter 5: 7 says, "Cast all your anxiety upon Him." Psalm 55:22 says, "Get rid of the burden. Throw it onto the Lord." God commands us to give our burdens to Him. It is not a suggestion. There is no need to package them nicely; just give them to Him.
Anabel suggests the following: Get a piece of paper, an envelope, a pen, a marker, a watch, a brick, and a helium balloon with string on it. Go somewhere where you can be by yourself. With your marker, write your burden on the balloon. Hold the brick and the string to the balloon in your hand--with your arm outstretched. Tell the Lord everything about your burden while holding the string and the brick in your outstretched hand. Hold this "burden" until you can't stand it any longer, then simultaneously drop the brick and let go of the balloon. Immediately, write on the paper the time and date that you gave God your burden, and write at the bottom of the page, "And He took it." Put the paper in the envelope and seal it. Put a few notes around the house, with the date and time on them, to remind yourself that you gave your burden to the Lord--and He took it. Continually thank God for taking your burden. This practical exercise will give you a solid reminder that you really did give your burden to the Lord. But, you must let go. Here is a poem Anabel shared to end the lesson today:
Just as my child brings his broken toys with tears for me to mend
I took my broken dreams to God because He was my friend.
But then, instead of leaving Him in peace to work alone,
I hung around and tried to help with ways that were my own.
At last I snatched them back and cried,
"How could you be so slow?"
"What could I do my child?" He said,
"You never did let go."
The enemy will ferociously tempt you to take your burden back. But it is no longer yours; you gave it to the Lord.
Cindy and I will be vacationing with our girls in the Seattle area next week. We hope to attend church next Sunday at Mars Hill Church in Seattle. Thanks to Beth Miles for agreeing to bring the lesson next week. We shall look forward to seeing you again on August 29.
Part I: I Corinthians 10:13
"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure."
With every temptation, God provides doors of escape so we can say "No" to the enemy and thus endure his attack. However, if the initial door of escape is ignored, not only do subsequent escape routes become narrower, they also become more difficult to access. Failing to take the way of escape provided does not mean the temptation was too strong and that I Cor. 10:13 does not work. It simply means that we ignored our opportunity to escape.
Just as the Bible says, God is faithful and He won't allow us to be tempted beyond our ability to resist. However, we must use the escape plan that He intends for us to use. Calling out to the Lord at the edge of sin and asking Him to deliver us is a dangerous and costly habit. In so doing, we load ourselves with a heavier burden of temptation. Spiritual battles are won at the threshold of the mind, not in the mind.
Anabel shared the story of a high school girl on a date in order to illustrate the dynamics of temptation. Within every temptation, there are doors of escape. Thoughts come from the Holy Spirit, your sound mind, and the power of sin. All these thoughts are manifested in first-person pronouns. Subsequent doors of escape are narrower than the first door was. Anabel shared a story of a vacuum cleaner salesman who gained access to her home and how much more difficult it was to get rid of the salesman than it would have been if she had met him at the door of her house. The strongest defense against temptation is at the first way of escape, the threshold. Say "No" to the devil's temptation--and mean it. Prepare for Satan at the threshold of your mind, remembering that in Christ, victory is already yours.
PART II--How to Give a Burden to the Lord
Psalms 68:19 says, "Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden..."I Peter 5: 7 says, "Cast all your anxiety upon Him." Psalm 55:22 says, "Get rid of the burden. Throw it onto the Lord." God commands us to give our burdens to Him. It is not a suggestion. There is no need to package them nicely; just give them to Him.
Anabel suggests the following: Get a piece of paper, an envelope, a pen, a marker, a watch, a brick, and a helium balloon with string on it. Go somewhere where you can be by yourself. With your marker, write your burden on the balloon. Hold the brick and the string to the balloon in your hand--with your arm outstretched. Tell the Lord everything about your burden while holding the string and the brick in your outstretched hand. Hold this "burden" until you can't stand it any longer, then simultaneously drop the brick and let go of the balloon. Immediately, write on the paper the time and date that you gave God your burden, and write at the bottom of the page, "And He took it." Put the paper in the envelope and seal it. Put a few notes around the house, with the date and time on them, to remind yourself that you gave your burden to the Lord--and He took it. Continually thank God for taking your burden. This practical exercise will give you a solid reminder that you really did give your burden to the Lord. But, you must let go. Here is a poem Anabel shared to end the lesson today:
Just as my child brings his broken toys with tears for me to mend
I took my broken dreams to God because He was my friend.
But then, instead of leaving Him in peace to work alone,
I hung around and tried to help with ways that were my own.
At last I snatched them back and cried,
"How could you be so slow?"
"What could I do my child?" He said,
"You never did let go."
The enemy will ferociously tempt you to take your burden back. But it is no longer yours; you gave it to the Lord.
Cindy and I will be vacationing with our girls in the Seattle area next week. We hope to attend church next Sunday at Mars Hill Church in Seattle. Thanks to Beth Miles for agreeing to bring the lesson next week. We shall look forward to seeing you again on August 29.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
"Dealing With Your Emotions"--The Life by Bill Gillham
VISITORS TODAY
We were pleased to welcome Tim and Jessica Pierce to class this morning. The Pierces have three children: Mikagle McDaniel(2/7/2002), Sean McDaniel (9/19/2003), and Hailey McDaniel (7/21/2005).
We have been blessed all summer with a steady stream of visitors. Let's continue to welcome our visitors and make them feel at home. I always follow-up with a letter or e-mail to our visitors inviting them to join our class. If any of you would like to make contact also, just let me know and I will provide contact information.
In today's lesson, Dr. Gillham began with a story about a bear--a mean, man-eating bear in Alaska. He asked us to imagine that we were walking along the Alaskan prairie when we saw the bear galloping toward us at break-neck speed, intent on having us for lunch. As we consider our options, we run into a cabin made of railroad ties...in other words, it is sturdy and stable. We lock the door behind us and we notice a small window in the front of the cabin. The window is large enough for the bear to look through and to stick his front paw through. However, we are safe. The bear is unsuccessful in every effort to invade the cabin. The diagram above comes from the leader's guide to today's lesson and is the diagram that was shown during the lesson. It illustrates how our mind and our emotions influence our will and our actions.
Dr. Gillham states, "Emotions are a powerful force in our lives. We dare not ignore them, but neither should we be ruled by them. God intends that we 'walk by faith,'and faith is anchored in the mind, not the emotions." In this lesson, Dr. Gillham shares four steps to help us understand how not to be dominated by our emotions, but rather to walk by faith in consistent victory.
STEP 1--TRUTH
In the case of the bear story, you are safe in the cabin. But, unless you know that you are safe from the bear, you can still die from heart failure. All of our lives, we have heard the saying, "What you don't know won't hurt you." However, Bill helps us to understand that in the case of your spiritual walk, what you don't know can and will destroy you. "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." (Hosea 4:6)
STEP 2--FAITH
As the bear story progresses and as time passes, you eventually begin to realize that you are safe inside the cabin. Bill calls this "cabin faith." Whether you are talking about "cabin faith" or Christian faith, the issue is not the amount of faith. The main issue is the object of your faith. You can believe you are safe inside the cabin and not act on your faith and still die from heart failure.
STEP 3--WORKS (behavior, performance): Act like you are safe.
If you were in the cabin and the bear continued to ram his head against the door, shaking every timber in the building and he continued to growl and swat his paw through the window seeking to reach your body and you continued to see his bared teeth as he growls, your emotions would still have great difficulty buying the fact that you were safe. As I mentioned in class, I would still be looking for more protection, more insurance....such as a high caliber weapon or a long, sharp spear...anything that I might use to fend off the assault. However, Bill points out that regardless of what your emotions are feeling, you can choose to act like you are safe, lining your behavior up with reality. As Bill mentioned, you could even choose to lie down on the floor and catch up on your Bible reading. Remember from last week the definition of a hypocrite. If you begin to act like who you are, "feeler" will not like it and sin will accuse you of being a hypocrite; but you will be walking by faith, believing the truth, living in reality.
STEP 4--FEELINGS--You finally begin to feel safer, sort of.
You will never gain total control over your emotions. Even Jesus dealt with emotions at Gethsemane, but He still had peace. Some people say that they have lost their peace of mind when things go wrong, but they never really had peace of mind in the first place; they had peace of feel. True peace, the "peace that passes understanding," is knowing that the Father has everything under control and that He is conforming you to the image of Christ.
Here is a challenge from this lesson:
Pray, "Lord, begin a new work in me. I'm going to feel weird when I act differently than I feel. I am trusting You to make my identity in Christ a reality in my life. You, not my emotions, are the essence of my identity. I do not want the truths I am learning to be just information. Right now, as best as I understand it, I offer myself as a living sacrifice to You to do Your will in me."
Have a great week. Don't hesitate to contact me personally if I can help you in any way.
Jimmy
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