Parenting At Its Best: A Panel Discussion

On Sunday, we had an excellent panel discussion to further P. Del's teaching from the week before on "Parenting At Its Best". First of all, another huge thank you to the whole panel - Julie & Brad, Lindsey, Katie & Andrew, P. Del & Arlene - we appreciate you so much.

As per usual, we ran out of time before we ran out of questions so I asked the panel members to send me a closing thought that I could blog since we don't have audio from the service. Here's what they had to say:

"Get to know who your child is - their personlaity, how they respond in different situations. If you understand them, you will communicate with them better, you will disciplene them with more meaning, and you will be able to pray for them in a more specific way. Above all, always be sure your children know you love them - love truly does cover a multitude of sins." (Arlene Wells)

"I love being a Mommy. It's rewarding and exhausting all at the same time. I feel like my purpose right now is to love on them and encourage them to be everything God created them to be. Setting an example with my life and being a role model for them to look up to is so important to me." (Katie Winger)

"With regards to discipline, consistency is so important but it also important that discipline be done in a way that keeps the dignity of both discipliner and disciplinee in tact. Name calling and degrading is not discipline. And discipline should be practiced on the positive or directive flip side of the coin just as much as it should correct negative behaviour. For example: "The way you said that really sounded rude. If that wasn't the intention, and it shouldn't be, you could have said it this way..." My 97-year-old grandma always told me when the girlies were little that her generation didn't do such a great job of positive disciplining but they really didn't have any other model to go by. Apparently we have no excuses. We have all the necessary resources at our fingertips to do the job well." (Julie Schroth)

During the service I mentioned an article that Julie had written called "Love, Sexuality and the Family". Here's a link to read it for yourself.

Also, we were barely able to scratch the surface of the available resources for parents. One of our church members emailed me a great starter list after the service to get you started. Ruth is also happy to provide a more extensive list if you exhaust this list and are looking for more.

Dr. Tim Kimmel
  • Grace Based Parenting
  • Raising Kids Who Turn Our Right
  • Extreme Grandparenting
Robert Lewis
  • Raising a Modern Day Knight
Pam Farrel and Doreen Hanna
  • Raising a Modern Day Princess
Stormie Omartian
  • Power of a Praying Parent
  • also, Power of Praying Husband, Wife, Kids, etc.
Gary Chapman
  • The Five Love Languages (meant for couple but chapters in the end about children)
http://gatewaypeople.com/taxonomy/term/286

This is a group of sermons by Robert Morris from Gateway Church in Texas.
Some deal directly with parenting/discipline/training children and discussing what is a Godly home and how to maintain it. He has years of sermons on line which also deal with many many other aspects of Christian life, all biblical and referenced.

Hope this is helpful and informative!
TD

Expressions of Worship

During my message on Sunday I spewed out a lot of scriptures very quickly and didn't leave much time for jotting notes. So, as requested, here are my notes for each of the expressions of worship that we talked about and a few that we didn't have time to get to. Feel free to email me (tracy@freedomkw.com) if you have any questions or comments! 

TD


Lifting Hands
Nehemiah 8:6 - Ezra praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
Psalm 63:4 - I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
1 Timothy 2:8 - Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.
Psalm 28:2 - Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.
·      Symbolic of where God dwells.
·      Symbolizes a desire for closeness with God.
·      Helps focus our attention on God.
·      A sign of surrender to the Lord.
·      Desire to receive from God.
·      Making an oath to God. Ezra 20:5 - ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day I chose Israel, I swore with uplifted hand to the descendants of Jacob and revealed myself to them in Egypt. With uplifted hand I said to them, “I am the Lord your God.”

Clapping Hands
Psalm 47:1 - Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.
Psalm 98:8 - Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy.
·      Not based on keeping time! Though there is an element of togetherness when we do it congregationally.
·      Our best applause is reserved for the Lord.
·      A personal instrument to express joy.
·      There are times it turns from joy to aggression and militancy (Job, Ezekiel, Nahum)  - against the enemy, spiritual warfare

Playing Instruments
Psalm 150:3-5 - Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre,praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe,praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals.
1 Chronicles 15:16 - David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their fellow Levites as musicians to make a joyful sound with musical instruments: lyres, harps and cymbals.
1 Samuel 16:23 - Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.

Standing
Nehemiah 9:5 - Stand up and praise the LORD your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.
1 Chronicles 23:30 - They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD. They were to do the same in the evening…
·      Shows respect.
·      Shows attention like a soldier on guard, ready to respond.
·      Waiting on the Lord (Isaiah 40) – being attentive and ready.

Kneeling/Bowing/Prostrate (Face Down)
Sometimes there is a presence of God that demands us to be low.
Psalm 95:6 - Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Revelation 4:9 -  Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever.
Revelation 1:17 - When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.
·      Kneeling – picture of allegiance
·      Bowing – respecting an office
·      Prostrate – as low as possible, surrender, humility, “I don’t exist”
·      But we are never under God’s feet but part of His body – He doesn’t defeat us, He embraces us.

Singing
120 references in scripture.
Judges 5:3 – [Deborah] Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers! I, even I, will sing to the Lord; I will praise the Lord, the God of Israel, in song.
1 Chronicles 16:23 - Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day.
Psalm 95:1 - Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Psalm 96:1 - Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
Ephesians 5:18-20 - Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
·      We respond to music more than any other medium.

Shouting/Audible
Psalm 66:1 – Shout with joy to God, all the earth.
Psalm 47:1 – Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.
Psalm 81:1 - Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob!
Ezra 3:11 - With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the Lord: “He is good; his love toward Israel endures forever.” And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
·      Often used in spiritual warfare.
·      Jericho, Gideon – aggression, authority, defiance of an enemy.
·      Expression of joy, an explosion of emotion.
·      “Hallelujah” – describes a loud cry, shouting praise.

Dancing
Psalm 30:11 - You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
Psalm 149:3 - Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with timbrel and harp.
Acts 3:8 - He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.
Exodus 15:20-21 -  Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing.
2 Samuel 6:14-16 - Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, 15 while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
·      The most extreme form of worship.
·      Physical expression of an inward celebration.
·      Other cultures have us beat in this aspect – we have lost the ability to express ourselves appropriately in this way.

Laughing
Psalm 126:2 - Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.

Banners
Psalm 20:5 - May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
Exodus 17:15 - Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner.
Song of Solomon 2:4 - Let him lead me to the banquet hall, and let his banner over me be love.


Life Transformation Stories LIVE

This past Sunday we did something a little different. Instead of the more usual format for the message, I did a collection of life transformation stories. Because of that, putting the "sermon" on the website seemed a bit thin. So, instead, here is the outline and highlights from Sunday, March 25, 2012.

"When I started to think about this message I couldn’t get away from a verse in 1 Corinthians 14. “When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” Personally, I am inspired and encouraged almost every day. I have a totally unfair advantage, of course, I’m in the hub – I get to hear probably 10x more stories every day than the average church attendee - and I am blessed enough to have my faith built daily.

"Obviously our whole culture, even our church culture, is based on consumerism and it is a huge battle to shake that off. We talk so much here about making Christ the centre of our lives and I’ve been realizing more and more lately that I have been more and more able to do that in my own life because of the richness of the stories I hear every day. When you are focused on what Christ is doing around you, you can’t help but let it alter your spirit.

"Everything that is done is this place must be done so that the church is built up. When I hear of someone’s miracle, life-change or victory, I identify Christ in it and in my own life. I am given hope for my own circumstances, I am given strength to face my own battles, I am given perspective on the greatness of the capital-K Kingdom, I am able to look outward.

"Without this message in mind Rob and I took an hour or so to do an interview with Andy Slough several weeks ago, just to have his story on film to use as encouragement for the church when we found a moment for it. While I was interviewing him I was overwhelmed with the thought that you all needed to hear this and also, of the 45 minutes of tape, what on earth could I ever cut out of it?

"I want to show you some of that interview today. P. Del has been talking to us about stewardship for the past three weeks, about using what we’ve been given. What did you bring to church today? Think about that as you watch this with me."



"Can you tell me – what has God changed in your life since you put your faith in Him? It might have been 50 years ago, it might have been 2 weeks ago. What has God changed in your life?

Philippians 1:3-6 (NIV)
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Or, as the Message paraphrases it…

Philippians 1:3-6 (MSG)
There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

"Are you aware that God is working? Do you know that you haven’t come here to subscribe to a religion but that the God we are worshiping is living and active in any life who is here with a heart wide open?

'He who began a good work in you'… the day you put your faith in Christ… 'will carry it on to completion'.
            He knows you and He is not finished with you…

"What is God asking us to bring to the table? What is he doing in our lives? What can we say to others about the life that we live? What answer do we give for the hope that is within us.

"I found it fascinating during Andy’s interview how he answered this question:  What has changed in your life since you made a decision for Christ?"






"This begs the question – do you have hope this morning? Do you have a story to tell? Could you report on what God is doing in your life? What is God doing in your life these days?

"Remember what Paul tells the church - 1 Corinthians 14:26
When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.

"Are you ready to bring your part to church this morning?
Would you be willing to build us all up today and tell us what God is doing so that we can all be encouraged in our faith and strengthened in every way?"

YouVersion

If you're someone who likes to find really good (and free!) apps, you probably already have YouVersion on your smart phone. But just in case you missed the memo, we want to introduce it to you and invite you to use it in our service.

Yes indeed, we are encouraging you to use your phone in church because the technology in this case is helping us to engage more of our congregation and we think that's a good thing.

We're considering this an experiment because we've never done this before and we're not sure how it's going to feel or what the participation level is going to be but it's definitely worth exploring. To start off we'll be using YouVersion to allow all of you to ask questions of our panel on Sunday, February 19th. We're talking about marriage and during the course of our discussion with the panel members we'd like to hear what you're thinking.

If you're game for something new here's all you have to do:
  1. Download the YouVersion app on your smart phone or iPod Touch. (NOTE: We will have a guest WiFi connection available by the 19th for you to use if you are not on a 3G or 4G network with your device.) You'll know you've got it when the icon looks like one at the bottom of the post.
  2. Tap the "Live" button (usually you have to scroll over one screen) and search for a live event. Use "freedomkw" as you search criteria.
  3. You will see Sunday, February 19 set up as an event and a question that you can answer. In this case, because of the format of the discussion, it's kind of like answering a Jeopardy question - your answer will actually be a question for the panel. 
We will also have a way that you can interact live if you are not hooked up to a smart phone, so never fear!

This is going to be fun - thanks for coming along for the ride and more importantly, engaging in the material that we're going to be learning together.

 TD

Philip and the question of everyday.

On Sunday we talked about Philip and how he was open to whatever the Holy Spirit asked him to do and wanted to do through him. As a result, he enjoyed the ride of his life (literally!).

P. Del posed this question: What would enjoying the ride of your life, like Philip, look like in your life? What would it take for that to happen to you?

It was a really hard question to think through in the moment. P. Del had an unfair advantage - he'd been thinking about it for weeks as he prepared! So here's another opportunity. Take a few minutes and really think it over. It's always challenging to take scripture and apply it to real life change on a Tuesday morning (or whatever day you're reading this) but it is also always worth it.

Think about it.
TD

Stephen and Psalm 139

On Sunday I talked about Stephen, the first martyr. We know from Acts 6 and 7 that he was full of the Holy Spirit, wisdom, faith, grace and power. An impressive list that can make us feel inadequate when we look in the mirror. But of course, each one of these characteristics is available to every one of us too. And that's the sermon... I won't re-write it here for you!

At the end I ask everyone to start doing a "lectio divina". That's an ancient way that Christians for centuries have been studying scriptures. For our purposes and as an introduction to this practice, it's reading through a passage very slowly and then reading it slowly again and then reading it again even more slowly. You get the idea. All the while you open your heart and mind to the words and see if anything begins to stand out at you. What phrase or verse or paragraph are you seeing in a new light? What is it making you think of in your own life as you interact with the text?

I chose Psalm 139 for our lectio divina on Sunday morning. Why? It speaks to the fact that God is so aware of who we are and how we were made. This same God who know you that well also said he would fill us with His Spirit and use us powerfully. Then, it beautifully ends with a call for God to search us and show us what we're missing. Maybe in this context, what we're overlooking in our own lives that is keeping us from living a life full of the Spirit, wisdom, grace, faith and power.

So, I did another lectio divina this morning and I used The Message paraphrase this time. It made me think that perhaps you might like to join me in making Psalm 139 a living and breathing part of your week (and life!) too.

Here are some links to some different versions of this scripture. Write down what you're hearing God speak to you though them each day. Leave a comment if you want to share your insights.

The Message
New International Version
New Living Translation
King James Version
Contemporary English Version

TD

How's Your Influence?

Do you realize that you are an influencer? You have the ability in some ways to cause others to change their thinking, decisions and actions. Of course, this can be used either for good purposes or bad ones.

The dictionary defines influence as the capacity or power to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, opinions and behavior of others. This is the nature of influence. When my children were very young, I knew that they watched me and picked up words and habits from me that were both cute and concerning. Children are easily influenced by those that they trust and spend time with. Now as adults, my kids exhibit traits that clearly point back to impressions that I have made on them over time, some that I smile about and others that show my imperfections. Such are the results of influence.

You have influenced people in your life to this point even as you have been influenced by others. What is the evidence of your influence? How have the people around you changed for the better because of your effect on them? Who are you affecting even now in ways that you probably take for granted? These are good questions to ask yourself as well as thinking about who is influencing you.

Aren’t you thankful for the people who have positively affected your life to help you to be who you are today? Realize that you are still being influenced by those that you respect and trust and maybe others who influence you in negative ways. Who has been impacting your life lately? Chances are their path is the direction you find yourself heading, consciously or not – that’s the power of influence.

Today’s world is filled with opportunities to influence others for good. The younger generations are looking for men and women with solid character to teach them how to live successfully in every facet of life. If you take the time to look at the people that you are in contact with each week, you will see some that are definitely being affected by you and others who don’t seem so obviously shaped by your example. Whether you are in a recognized position of leadership or not, be aware of the mark you can leave on your world when you treat each moment as an opportunity for positive impact on those around you.

So, how’s your influence? How are you making the world a better place to be? Why not decide to leave a good impression everywhere you go with everyone you meet? You might just be surprised at the positive difference it will make on the people you connect with and on the potential you see in every new day.

DW

An app to inform your lifestyle of devotion.

A few weeks ago I talked about living a lifestyle of devotion vs. doing devotions. We had an amazing panel discussion that helped us to "flesh out" what that really means. Walt, one of the esteemed panelists, mentioned that he has an app on his iPhone that helps to remind him to keep Christ at the centre of his day and as promised, I'm sharing it with you!

We don't necessarily endorse this particular ministry but offer this up as a starting point to find tools that help you as you pursue a lifestyle of devotion.

App: Today: A Daily Bible Devotional

Happy hunting,
TD

One Thing

Do you think that most of us have too many things on the go? Do you ever get the feeling that you’re doing lots of stuff but not doing anything really well? If that’s the case, what is that doing to you? Does it leave you lacking a sense of accomplishment at anything? How did this happen? Is there something you can do about it? I believe there is.


If you’re my age or older you can remember the days before personal computers, high speed internet, cell phones, wireless organizers, cheap long distance phone calls and answering machines. These were all supposed to save us time and make our lives easier. Well guess what? With all of these innovations we now try to do more things in the same amount of time and then wonder why we’re so busy and stressed out. At the end of each day we ask often ourselves what we accomplished of any real importance and struggle to give a satisfying answer. And as a follower of Christ you can feel even more frustrated because deep down you know that God has created you for so much more, especially for God. I believe that you actually do have the potential to make every day a good day, one that adds quality to your life and to those around you.


This whole thing boils down to focus, the discipline of looking at everything you do with the same purpose in mind. And when that focus is on something beyond self-improvement and personal fulfillment to advancing God’s kingdom, you will be amazed how energized and productive you can become.


I’m intrigued by the apostle Paul who never did anything half-hearted. He constantly got the important things done and stayed unencumbered with other things that would have impeded his progress. How did he do that? In a word, focus. Paul was determined that he would commit his life to what God wanted him to do at all times. It was that simple for him. Regardless of the daily tasks and challenging circumstances, he kept his kingdom focus.


Paul’s words in Philippians 3:13b,14 reveal his unceasing discipline in this regard. “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Why not apply these words to your life? Remember, it’s about one thing: Living out God’s call daily. Sure, there will always be lots of details to deal with but it’s the focus on the one thing that will give value and purpose to everything you do, whether large or small.


Did the demands and pressures of life every tempt Paul to get side-tracked from staying focused? I’m sure they did, but the record of his life indicates that he kept reminding himself of the one thing that defined everything else he did. In doing so he simplified his life instead of complicating it, something that all of us can benefit from by doing the same.


My hope is that you will take some time to reflect on this insight as it relates to where you are today. Why not summarize the focus for your life in a sentence, describing the one thing that you live for? Put Christ at the centre of it and let everything else be evaluated by it. It’s then that you will have something to give as an answer to your question about what you accomplished by the end of each day.


DW