Community. One of the most over-used and least-realized words in churches today. We all want it. We all talk about it. We all think we know what it means.
SO HOW COME WE CAN'T FIND IT?
Check out Part 3 in the #reFriending series and see for yourself. Maybe the reason we can't find it is because we don't know what we're looking for.
How much is a friend worth? How might my life be lacking without the right ones? Is it really possible that just one friend could really change my life in a meaningful way?
YES! ABSOLUTELY! In fact, I believe that you might be just one friend away from a whole new life (assuming of course it's the right kind of friend). You may not realize it, but often when God wants to change our lives for the better, He does so through people...friends...real life people...not the Facebook kind.
And you might be just one friend away from a whole new life.
Don't believe me? Check out Part 2 in the series #reFriending, Real Relationships in a Virtual World.
Yesterday was our first ever Friends & Family day at The Well and it was FANTASTIC! So encouraging to see. By far the most number of people that have visited STSA in our brief two year history.
The topic? THE LOST ART OF FRIENDSHIP - the first part in a new series called #reFriending, Real Relationships in a Virtual World.
The premise of the series is exactly what I blogged about last week - that we've traded in quality for quantity when it comes to relationships and we need to change that. We need to pay less attention to our online image and get back to real, authentic face-to-face relationships - that kind that every one of us is truly yearning for.
So check out the video above and let me know what you think. The intro video alone is hysterical and well worth the time it takes to watch it. Enjoy!
There’s nothing better than a couple “in love” – especially an engaged one. Walking on air. Head in the clouds. Living in a state of bliss and happiness and certain that they will live happily ever after.
I’ll often meet an engaged couple like this and they’ll say to me “We are so blessed because we haven’t had any conflict in our relationship.” They assume that I’ll be so happy for them. But I’m not. In fact, my response usually comes as a shock to them: “You really aren’t ready to get married then. You don't need to learn how to AVOID conflict; you need to learn how to RESOLVE it.”
That isn’t what they were hoping to hear.
Read More"I cannot REALIZE my future if I'm still REACTING to my past."
Ever tried to drive a car looking exclusively in the rear view mirror? Think you'd be able to get very far that way? I'd say that your chances of crashing are significantly higher than your chances of success. Right?
Well, that's how many of us are living today - especially when it comes to relationships with friends, family and loved ones. We think we moving forward but the truth is that we're just dragging the past with us. And it is SABOTAGING THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS IN OUR LIVES!
That's why today's message at The Well is a must-listen. Listen to it prayerfully and with an open heart and God just might open your eyes to something that you've never seen before.
"He who runs alone runs fast; he who runs with others runs far."
Part 2 of the Building Community series and this week the focus was on RELATIONSHIP BUILDERS - things we need to work on if we're serious about transforming our superficial relationships into meaningful ones.
Check out the video below and as you're listening, try to discover ways to put these principles into practice today.
Community. Maybe the most overused word in churches today. It's something that we all need (see Genesis 2:18) but it's just so hard to do - especially at a non-superficial level.
Yesterday at The Well, we looked at some of the reasons why that is. We talked about 3 RELATIONSHIP BUSTERS - those things which are within us that prohibit us from attaining authentic community. If left unaddressed, these three things will eventually rear their ugly heads in every relationship you have - especially the ones closest to you.
We wrapped up the Crazymakers series yesterday and this final message might have been the most powerful. In it, we talked about 6 commitments that we need to make in order to keep the crazymakers from making us crazy. 6 commitments. That's it. If you can do your best with these 6 commitments, I promise you, you'll find a new level of peace in your life - one that you never knew was even possible.
“When a man’s ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” Proverbs 16:7
Check it out and leave a comment to let me know what you think.
Are you a people pleaser? Do you care too much about the approval of others? Is there any area of life where you are making decisions based on what other people will think about you?
“Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” John 12:42-43
Check out Part 5 in the Crazymakers series: "The Snare of Approval Addiction."
Part 4 in the Crazymakers series. This week is all about BOUNDARIES - what is my responsibility and what isn't? Should I help every person in need? Should I help no one in need? Where do I draw the line? The answer to these questions might surprise you. One of the things that I said in the message is that our goal is NOT to aim for equality - the goal isn't to treat everyone the same way. That wasn't what Jesus did surprisingly enough.
So what should we be aiming for? You'll have to listen to find out!
It's one of the most important things to learn in life - yet it's something that's very rarely ever taught. HOW TO RESOLVE CONFLICT - that was the topic of yesterday's message in the Crazymakers series. In it, we looked at both the strategy (mindset) and the steps (what to do) to resolve the inevitable conflicts of life.
Such an important message for everyone. Unresolved conflict hurts everyone and just sucks the life right out of life. As I said in this message, we need to figure out a way to walk hand in hand, even when we don't see eye to eye.
Hope you enjoy!
How do you respond to anger? Are you a Machine Gun? A Mute? A Martyr? Or a Manipulator? That was the topic of yesterday's message. It was Part 2 of the Crazymakers series, titled "Who's Pushing Your Buttons?" In it, we looked at some of the different ways that we usually respond when angry and then saw four Biblical principles of how God wants us to handle anger.
An important message for all. Why? Because whether you realize it or not, you do have a problem with anger and you might be the only one who doesn't see it. Just because you don't explode (those are the Machine Guns), doesn't mean that you don't have an anger problem. It just means that your problem is hidden and that makes it even more dangerous.
Kicked off a new series at STSA yesterday called CRAZYMAKERS!
What's a Crazymaker you ask? "My wife makes me crazy", "my boss makes me crazy", "my parents make me crazy..." Then they're your crazymakers! The goal of this series is to focus on our relationships and restoring health in this area of our lives. And this is especially important as we - Orthodox Christians - kick off Lent today and begin this 55 day journey towards the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Why is this important for us at this time? Stay tuned to tomorrow's blog post and I'll talk about it there. Or you check out the video below as well. Enjoy! And good luck with all those crazymakers!
Can two people think differently and both be right? Is that possible?
Yesterday’s post on the contention between Paul and Barnabas – or pillows and swords as I referred to them yesterday – generated a lot of good discussion. I want to expand on the idea that I started yesterday about how two people can be very different – in their thinking and their personality and their decision making process – yet neither one is necessarily wrong.
People are different. That is a fact. From our fingerprints to our personal experiences to our ways of processing information, we are each unique creations of God. We are not randomly designed, but rather “we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
We think differently. We talk differently. We react differently. We are different!
So far no one will disagree with me. But here comes the hard part: JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE IS DIFFERENT DOESN’T MAKE THEM WRONG. Different doesn’t mean wrong. It just means different.
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Few things in life are more nerve-racking and anxiety-causing than becoming a parent for the first time. All of a sudden, you are entrusted with the responsibility of raising a child and you are responsible for the development of that child – physically, intellectually, socially and spiritually.
Recently, I was conversing with someone who is about to become a parent for the first time and he was asking my advice.
“What’s the most important thing I need to know as a parent?” he asked.
How would you answer that question? What would you say? What is the most important thing that a person needs to know before entering parenthood? How to change diapers? How to drive a car and break up a sibling fight simultaneously? Where to get cheap babysitting? What?
Read MoreYesterday's message is such an important one for every single person to hear. It speaks about the plague of our era - sexual immorality - and the devastating effect it has on both single and married alike.
It's the 4th part of the series we're doing right now called FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE - 5 commitments to fail proof your marriage. Take a look at the message below and may God help you (and me) to keep this important commitment to Stay Pure.
Here's part 2 in our latest sermon series called For Better or For Worse.
In it, we're talking about 5 commitments that we need to make to fail proof our marriage. This week's topic was FIGHTING FAIR. You can check out the sermon below. Enjoy!
50/50. How do you feel about those odds? If I offered you a sandwich and said you have a 50/50 chance of contracting cancer after eating it, would you take it? How about if I offered you a business opportunity and asked you to invest all your time and money into it and then I told you that the odds of you losing everything are 50%. Would you take it?
How about if I told you that there is a man-eating bear outside your house and your chances of getting eaten by him are 50% if you go outside, would you be up for a walk tonight after dinner?
50-50 isn’t good enough for me. And it shouldn’t be good enough for you. No one should be satisfied with 50-50 when it comes to any area of significance in life.
Read MoreWe kicked off a new series yesterday called FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE. In it, we're talking about 5 commitments that we need to make to fail proof our marriage. Above is Part 1 from the new series. Hope you enjoy!
