Christmas Party

Our annual Sunday School Christmas Party is scheduled for this Friday evening, December 10, 2010, at 7:00 p.m. at Cindy and Jimmy's home at 8431 Turtle Rock Loop in College Station. We already have a good group signed up to attend. Please accept this message as a very special invitation to our members who are serving in other areas of Sunday School. We miss you guys and would love to have you join us for fellowship, fun, and food. If anyone can come and you wish to sign up to bring something, just give us a call at 979-695-1684 or you can just post a comment on this blog. Don't feel that you must be signed up to attend. Just come on over. We will have a good time together.

We will eat and visit and probably play a few games and give away a few prizes and door prizes. I hope you all will attend if you pssibly can. We look forward to seeing everyone.


Jimmy and Cindy

December 5--Muddy Water

Today's lesson was about simplicity. Andy Stanley used the analogy of a story about shark fishing to help us understand the dilemma that many people experience when they consider the Gospel Message. As Andy described, many people who say they reject Christianity are really rejecting some other aspect of religion that has nothing to do with the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ. Andy says that we (Christians) have a tendency to make the Gospel Message complicated and that the complicated issues and answers to Biblical conundrums are often the things which cause people to reject "Christianity." He makes reference to some of Paul's writings that are indeed difficult to understand or to the Old Testament laws of the book of Leviticus. Even though there are many questions and many issues described in the Bible that are difficult to understand and decipher, Andy attempts to boil down the Gospel Message to a simple formula that we can share with others in today's lesson. He bases the lesson on perhaps the best known Bible verse in the New Testament, John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."

Andy suggests that the formula can be reduced to the following:

GOD LOVED

GOD GAVE

WE BELIEVE

WE RECEIVE

It really is a pretty simple solution and an easy formula to share with others. As Steven mentioned in class today, there may be questions about the meaning of "believe" or even about "receive", and certainly we can have a discussion about these terms and the different understandings that many people embrace for these terms. Andy tried to demonstrate the meaning of believe when he talked about putting one's full weight on a stool...in other words, depending completely upon the stool to provide support and foundation for one's body. Even so, there may be many different descriptions for this term and these various descriptions certainly detract from the simplicity of this message. Yet, as Christians, we probably can all agree that God sent His son and, as a result, He offered us an opportunity to live in His presence for eternity. Yes, this offer is contingent upon our "belief" and we all must define that word for outselves. Even so, this formula can be used to help us and those around us to understand in a very basic way the amazing Gift that God gave us at Christmas. We can be thankful that He loved us enough to give and that we simply must accept His gift through faith in order to benefit from the greatest Gift ever given to man.

November 14, 2010--"Fish Guts"

We had a nice diaper shower for the Collins' and a nice breakfast this morning. Thanks to everyone who prepared dishes.

We had the pleasure of having two couples join us in Sunday School today. Welcome to Chris and Rene Lawrence and to Mark and Kelli Thornton. Mark and Kelli visited a couple of weeks ago as well. I appreciate everyone in our class making every effort to make our visitors feel comfortable and welcome.

In today's lesson, Andy Stanley continued his theme of "Fishers of Men." Today's lesson came from Acts 4:23-30. He called the lesson "Fish Guts." While the title doesn't sound good, it is designed to help us understand the basic, intimate role that God has for each of us in His plan. Acts 4:23 begins the description of a prayer voiced by Peter and John as they became aware of God's sovereign plan and as they understood the opportunities that they had missed because they did not recognize God's hand at work.

Andy said that John and Peter's prayers before this time were much like our prayers. Oh, Lord, bless me, protect me, guide me, and take care of those whom I love. Think about it. If you were listening to your prayers, would you describe them as self-centered? Would you say that you were asking God for things that you wanted to see happen?

In this prayer, John and Peter open the prayer with the salutation, "O, Sovereign Lord." Andy describes this phrase as an admission that "God is large and He is in charge." The prayer goes on to recognize all of the recent events in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus as the perfect fulfillment of the predestined Will of God. In some cases, John and Peter recognized, they had actually been praying against the will of God. For example, when the crowd confronted Jesus, they were likely praying, "God, deliver Jesus and us from this threat." Yet, now they recognized that Jesus' death and resurrection was exactly what God had preordained and had orchestrated from before the creation of the earth. They recognized that God's sovereignty was at work and that He had simply provided opportunities for them to be "players" in His grand plan.

Andy makes the point that you and I have the same opportunity today. God is still large and He is still in charge. He is still active and his preordained plan is still being implemented. You and I should be praying for God to enable us to speak boldly on His behalf. I hope you will join me this week in making this our prayer.

Thanks to Beth Miles who has agreed to facilitate the Sunday School discussion next week. If things go as planned, I will be out of town on Sunday. Also, please remember that we will not have Sunday School on the Sunday of Thanksgiving Weekend--November 28.

Finally, how about that artist in church today? He looked like he was just throwing paint up on a wall and then, it looked like Jesus. Amazing. For people like me who have not ONE artistic bone in my body, this kind of talent is just phenomenal.

Have a great week.

Jimmy

Have a great week.

November 7, 2010--WHY FISH?

Here are the announcements and prayer requests from this morning:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Please remember that we will be honoring the newest arrival in the Collins’ household next Sunday morning with a diaper shower and breakfast during Sunday School. Please bring diapers and a breakfast item.

David Phelps will be in concert here at Central Baptist for a Christmas Concert on December 5, 2010. Tickets can be acquired at www.davidphelps.com or www.itickets.com .

An N-Vision Missions Conference is scheduled for November 12-13.

An adoption/foster care informational lunch is scheduled on Sunday, November 21 right after the worship service. Please e-mail Lisa at lmcdougald@cbcbryan.org if you plan on attending this luncheon.

PRAYER REQUESTS:

PRAISE: Jessica reported that her blood clot is gone. Thank the Lord for answered prayer. Please continue to remember Jessica in your prayers this week.
Craig and Tracey’s daughter Hallie is ill. Please remember her and her parents this week in prayer.
Bo has a construction superintendent whose father-in-law has melanoma. The father-in-law’s name is Clayton Ford. Please pray for Mr. Ford and for his entire family and for those who are ministering to him as it appears that the cancer is consuming his body.
Kerri’s mom, Ginger has Multiple Sclerosis and seems to be losing ground. Please pray for her this week.
Please pray for our daughter Jennifer as she makes final preparation to take the Physician’s Assistant Board Exams on November 17. She is nervous about the test and she is making every effort to be adequately prepared to do well on the exam.
Please pray for our youngest daughter Brittany as she is dealing with housing issues in Austin, Texas for the remainder of this semester.
Please pray for our country and our leaders.

Today's lesson asked the question, "Why Fish?"
Since we began the series last week, Andy Stanley addressed the question of why Christians should be "fishers of men" this week. Andy makes the point that early Christians such as Peter and John were sharing experiences that they had seen and heard and that contemporary Christians should also be sharing experiences in the Lord that we have seen and heard and felt first hand. As such, it should be difficult for us not to talk about our experiences and the things that we have seen God do. Andy points out that our beliefs are based on a point in history, on a significant event, on the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior. Christianity did not begin as a new belief system. It began as an event in history that is well-documented and described by eye-witness, first person narrative terminology. Andy also makes the point that Christians need to talk about Jesus because the message is so counterintuitive--if nobody tells them, they won't know. Lord, please do not let us be guilty of withholding the truth about Jesus from anyone with whom we come into contact. Help us to have the courage to share our own personal experience with Jesus with those around us. Here is the directive left with us by Jesus before he returned to heaven:

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Matthew 28:19

This is what God expects us to do. Will you "fish" this week? Let's all be prepared to share our own personal experiences with Jesus Christ when the opportunity presents itself this week.

Have a great week.

Jimmy

October 17, 2010--Personal Ministry

ANNOUNCEMENT: MEN'S NIGHT OUT--THIS TUESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2010 AT THE HOME OF BO MILES. BO HAS SOME VENISON AND DEER SAUSAGE THAT HE IS DONATING TO THE CAUSE. IT WILL BE A GREAT EVENING OF FUN AND FELLOWSHIP. BO WILL BE SENDING AN E-MAIL WITH HIS ADDRESS. I HOPE ALL OF YOU GUYS WILL MAKE AN EFFORT TO JOIN US. I FEEL SURE YOU WILL FIND IT TO BE AN ENJOYABLE TIME TOGETHER.

PERSONAL MINISTRY
Andy Stanley talked about another factor that he has identified as a contributor to the growth of "Big Faith" in our lesson today. That factor was called "Personal Ministry." Andy based today's discussion on the narrative in Matthew 14: 13-22. You will recall this story as one of the times in which Jesus miraculously provided for the feeding of more than 5,000 people on a desolate hillside. As you read the scripture, you will see that the disciples asked Jesus about sending the people away so that they could go into the nearby villages to buy food. Jesus responded with a directive for the disciples to feed the people. As Andy stated, He said, "You feed'em." Reading the scripture futher, we find that the disciples responded the same way you and I often respond when God gives us a job. They started listing the reasons why they could not feed these people. They were in the middle of nowhere. They did not have the resources. They were incapable of feeding so many people. Yet, they, like us, overlooked an important component of the equation. They overlooked the supernatural power of God. Despite the limited resources, the crowd was fed and left-overs were picked up after the meal. How did this happen? The disciples did what they knew how to do--distribute the food baskets--and God multiplied the food to provide more than enough.

This is the lesson for each of us. When God asks us to do something, we should do whatever it is that we know how to do and depend on God to take care of our insecurities, lack of knowledge, and other limitations. When God is involved, our limitations will not matter. He will take care of any shortcomings on our part.

God builds our faith through challenging opportunities for personal ministry--allowing us to serve others even though we may feel unprepared and inadequate. The key in personal ministry is simply to do what we know how to do, and trust God to do what only He can do. While personal ministry may mean teaching a Sunday School Class or coaching an Upward Bound Football Team or some other church ministry, it may also refer to a one-on-one witness with a non-believer or could refer to a charitable act in a hostile environment. God can call us to action in any of these situations. Remember, personal ministry is a grower of faith.

NEXT WEEK'S LESSON: PIVOTAL CIRCUMSTANCES

October 10 Private Disciplines

In today's lesson, Andy Stanley introduced us to the concept of "private disciplines." Private disciplines include those activities that God expects us to perform in the privacy of our own home or in the confidential pages of our own bank account or in a place where our actions are not advertised for the praise of others.

Andy points out that we trust God for everything that happens from the time we take our last breath. However, such trust is not difficult since we really have no choice. Since we have no control over what happens after we take our last breath, it is relatively easy to say, " I trust you, God to take care of everything after I take my last breath." However, Andy asks who we trust from the present until we take our last breath. Do we trust God explicitly during that time? Since much of our energy during that time is directed toward making a living, earning money, and supporting a lifestyle, Andy suggests that it is not surprising that God expects us to show our trust in Him by giving generously of our physical blessings. However, as the scripture directs, our giving should be done in the privacy and confidentiality of our own home or our own bank account and should not be done in a way that brings attention or recognition to us as the giver. Since time is our most valuable resource, Andy also suggests that the allocation of a daily quiet time with God is also a private discipline for which God will reward His children. If we spend time in prayer, talking with our Heavenly Father and spend time studying His Word, Andy points our the promise of scripture in which Jesus tells us that we will be rewarded for such activity. No, we don't engage in such action to gain a reward. Just the same, Jesus promises that the Lord will reward those who do these things.

We discussed private disciplines and ways that we were or were not taught private disciplines in our own childhood. We also considered ways in which we could encourage our own children to engage in the practice of private disciplines.
Andy Stanley suggests the following things occur as a result of us practicing private disciplines:
* Growth--even if we engage in these activities with a bad activity, we will see growth
* Freedom--we can experience freedom from the debilitating debate of whether or not to give, freedom from the argument of not having enough time, and freedom from prioritization of our activities in order to spend time in the Word--these decisions are already made when we practice private disciplines. They are part of our lifestyle.
* Peace--the practice of private disciplines brings peace into our lives. The private disciplines eventually become a joy to practice rather than an unpleasant task.

Let's all consider our own practice of private disciplines this week and evaluate whether or not we can improve these practices in our own lives. Best wishes for a great week.

October 3--Providential Relationships

During today's lesson, Andy Stanley discussed the importance of providential relationships in growing one's faith. Andy argued that there are no "neutral" relationships. All relationships either enhance our spiritual walk with the Lord or they detract from it. For this reason, as parents, we often attempt to manipulate and influence the relationships that our children create and nurture. We recognize the influence of relationships and we seek those relationships for our children that we perceive to be positive in nature.

Andy Stanley also points out the importance in placing our children in environments in which they have other adults speaking wisdom and influence into their lives. As we discussed, if your children have not already concluded that your advice is not always sound, they soon will. In such cases, it is important to have other Godly adults in whom your children are comfortable and confident and in whom you are comfortable and confident. Andy pointed out that waiting until your child is in the eleventh grade to place him/her in such an environment is too late. During our class discussion, we talked about the practice of some of our class in which they have purposefully attempted to create trusting, intimate relationships with other Christian couples in order to create other adult resources for their kids in a time of need when the kids may not have confidence in his/her own parents or when the kid simply feels the need to seek counsel from someone other than his/her parent. We also talked about the accountability that can be created among parents who have developed such a relationship with other parents. The idea of picking up the phone and calling a parent of a child who is observed speeding or driving recklessly requires a relationship of complete trust and confidence.

Finally, it is important to remember those providential relationships in our own lives in which someone has helped us to grow spiritually. I remembered the men and women who served as Sunday School Teachers and Vacation Bible School Teachers when I was a young kid. I continue to remember a special pastor when I was a young deacon in another church. All of these people were providential relationships for me.

In addition, I believe that Cindy was brought into my life as a providential relationship. She has taught me much about Christian parenthood, appreciation and respect for those who may be different, ways to disagree with people and still treat them with respect and dignity, and she has been a partner in Christian growth as we have worked toward spiritual maturity together.

Who has served as a providential relationship in your life? For whom have you served as a providential relationships? Indeed, providential relationships play a critical role in growing our faith. I hope you will think about those who play such a role in your life and I hope that you will be open and willing to serve in such a role for others as the Lord uses you.

Have a great week.