It's been a crazy few weeks so I have not had a chance to write but am hoping to get back on track soon as ideas are piling up! Until then, I wanted to share a post I read today from the pastor of a new church in Colorado. I have shared his blog before. I love his heart. Single or married, there are take aways for all of us. Enjoy...

What do you think- should social values be treated like tired athletes or overused cliché’s or even passing fads? Does a particular value produce better results than another forever or do they just fade while waiting for something better to emerge?

Leviticus 27:14           New King James Version
‘And when a man dedicates his house to be holy to the Lord, then the priest shall set a value for it, whether it is good or bad; as the priest values it, so it shall stand.

Notice, Jesus Christ (the High Priest) establishes the value of your house, but the dedication to those values is on us. When you dedicate (or consecrate) some thing, you are saying this thing is separated from what is common for a higher purpose. It will never be used for anything less than its higher purpose. It is purified for devotion or offering to God. Trust me, you want your house devoted to God’s values!

Familialism is a social value that finds its beginning in the Genesis account. In the context of chapter two, God had already created the first male and then creates the first female. God introduces the two, Adam calls her woman and God then unites them by saying a man shall be joined to his wife and they shall become one flesh.

Unity is the first value established in our homes- for better or worse, good times or bad. We face challenges together and walk towards the mess to clean it up… together. Not blame one another or criticize one another, but rather function as “heirs together of the grace of life”.

Do you like having your prayers answered?

1 Peter 3:7 goes on to say that you are heirs together of the grace of life so your prayers won’t be hindered.

If you are angry with your partner and you don’t resolve the conflict- don’t even bother praying. God’s not listening. Any request you mail to heaven will be returned the same way, “resolve the conflict first”. Discord creates an obstruction between heaven and earth that must be dealt with here. Besides, making up can be fun!

When you are happy with your spouse- your unity invites Jesus into your family’s pursuits. Anything less allows discord and separation and failure. But when you dedicate your house to be holy and contend for unity- the value of your house is declared as good. Forever.

Now- whose responsibility is this?

The unity of your household is the responsibility of the husband…AND the wife. You work in your house, together.  You dream in your house, together. You experience the reward of a unified house, together.
What God has joined together is blessed forever.

A weekly blog by G. Shawn Scarborough, Pastor of Livingstone Church.

TGIF by Paula Roach

TGIF- Thank God it's Friday!

It's a nice concept and cliche little phrase that we all identify with but do we literally take time out to truly thank Him for the weekend? Better yet, do we stop to thank Him for His goodness, for His Glory and to simply recognize Him as God?

Did you know that when we do not stop to be thankful, we put ourselves in position to enter a downward spiral of sin? Now, I am no theologian, but God spoke this truth into my heart years ago while reading from Romans 1. In verses 22-30 I read this list of sins.

godless in their thinking
sexual impurity
dishonoring their bodies
vile affections
degrading passions
homosexuality
inventors of new forms of evil
loathsome acts

None of this is pretty! I mean MURDER, HOMOSEXUAL RELATIONS, INVENTORS OF NEW FORMS OF EVIL, this is pretty bad stuff! But, what's that have to do with us. I mean, that's pretty obvious black and white, things we would never do... but let's not leave out the other shades of gray! Let's read further.

Verses 28 -31 go on to say, "until they were filled with every kind of unrighteousness, iniquity, grasping and covetous greed, and malice. They were full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and treacher, ill willl and cruel ways, secret backbiters and gossipers. Slanderers, hateful to and hating God, full of insolence, arrogance and boasting, inventors of new forms of evil, disobedient and undutiful to parents. Without understanding, conscienceless and faithless, heartless and loveless and merciless.

So, boasting, arrogance, gossip, envy, backbiting... maybe we can identify with some of these a little more closely. These "lighter shades of gray" we tend to rationalize as "not as bad" but verse 32 says that "those who do such things (and approve and applaud others for them) deserve to die."

Thank God for Jesus and the cross, for His grace that saves us from such punishment. No, literally, STOP and thank Him Now. For sentiment alone is not enough! You see, they "knew and recognized" but did not take that next step to actually give thanks and glory. The crazy thing is, if you look back at verse 21 you see that the downward spiral of sin all started with this one simple thing. It says "because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks...and their senseless minds were darkened." (To all different Shades of gray from murder and homosexuality to deceit and gossip!)

In this passage we see that this recognition without honor lead to a downward spiral of spiritual rebellion and moral corruption. (It is as if when we neglect to give thanks we slowly forget who deserves the credit. We allow selfishness and pride to creep in to the point that it becomes "all about me", and the downward spiral begins.) Neglegence of this one simple act opened their hearts to all types of shameful, ungodly desires and sexual impurity.

You see, most of us "know and recognize Him as God" too. The scary part lies in the fact that in the busyness of our lives we neglect to stop and take time to glorify Him and thank Him for who He is and for what He has done in us, for us, and through us.

Today, as you Thank God it's Friday, take time to STOP. Take a time out and truly give Him thanks, not just for the weekend but for His goodness, glory, and provision in our lives. And, can we purpose in our hearts to do this NOT just on Fridays, but every day and all through out the day? May it be the anthem of our lives to give thanks and glory to God in action and in words!

He IS Worthy!

P.S. It is my prayer that from now on, every time we say or hear TGIF, it will be a nice little reminder to STOP and give God Glory and thanks! Happy Weekend!

Just a Little Hint by Paula Roach

Before Christmas and birthdays or before a surprise it is not uncommon for the kiddo's to want to guess what the surprise or gift is. They ask for "just a little hint". They want me to give little clues that will lead to disclosure of the present. As if just a little hint is more acceptable than a big hint. Or if it is just a little hint it won't ruin the surprise. But, if I give them a hint, big or small, it often leads to more requests for more hints and the guessing continues until they can determine what the gift is. Now in this case, no harm done except perhaps losing the element of surprise.

The word "hint" could also refer to a "perceived indication" or "slight or hardly noticeable amount".

A hint of sophistication.

A hint of flavor.

A hint of spring in the air.

Whether a small hint or a large hint, regardless of which definition you look at, a hint implies there is still evidence of that thing in it.

White, with a hint of black, is gray. Depending on how much black you put in the white, depends on the shade of gray. There may be 50 shades of grey but "all grey has a little black in it." Steve Greene. 

Or in other words, "In God's economy there is not 50 Shades of Grey. There's black and there's white, there's wrong and there's right." Craig Groeschel

^{Ephesians 5:3} But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.

Not even a HINT!

So what could a hint of sexual immorality look like?   Craig Groeschel gave a few examples:
-looking at porn
-lusting after ____ (you fill in the blank)
-dressing provocatively
-dirty dancing
-reading the likes of 50 Shades of Grey (Yes, he named it, not me:))

These are just a a few outward examples of "hints" of sexual impurity in us but the list goes on... and for many of us often in much more subtle displays. Perhaps the hint of "any kind of impurity" looks more like a questionable tv show, attitude, or conversation?

Remember, even a small hint can spoil the whole surprise. So, what do we do about it?

STAY far from it. Don't even go NEAR it. (Proverbs 5:8)
FLEE from it. (1 Corinthians 6:18)
PUT TO DEATH... ,^(A) therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:^(B) sexual immorality,^(C) impurity, lust, evil desires and greed,^(D) which is idolatry.^(E)  Collosians 3:5

Take some time this weekend to ask God to make clear to you the areas where you have allowed even "hints" of impurity to creep into your life. Spend time praying for strength, wisdom, and accountability to steer clear, flee and put to death each of these areas. Share your plan with a friend who can help you and move forward in purity, able to experience the beautiful gift of abundant living.

Purity - From this Day Forward

A friend of mine sent me this link. Whether married or single, this message is for all of us who desire to live lives of purity. So I encourage you to carve out about 45 minutes in the next few days. Grab a cup of coffee, pen and note pad. If nothing else, record the many scriptures he uses and make them a part of your purity study and prayer focus.

Follow God from Livingstone Church

I read this the other day and wanted to share it with each of you. What an honor it is to follow God. Have a great Labor Day weekend.

Following God

Posted by lcadmin - August 28, 2012 - General

Livingstonechurch.net

Hebrews 12

This is the chapter of Hebrews that gets ignored quite often by those of a more hyper-faith or hyper-grace persuasion and emphasized by those who need comfort in what has become a miserable life. I don’t know that I would invoke the word balance here but at the very least I do think this passage should be given everyone’s audience.

The abstract is this: we must be willing to receive correction to our course if we want our course to take us to our desired eternity.

Verse 2: looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

There is a comparison to be made between the life we live and the life lived by Jesus. Make no mistake, the consequences of our sin that Jesus endured (and despised) is not for us to endure, however- our association with the cross is necessary. This relationship is one in which we must receive the correction and instruction of the Father.

God is Holy, God is Good, God so loved…all true. But God is also an all-consuming fire that burns out (demands removal of) those things that so easily change our course from Him towards sin. Our acceptance of Jesus Christ does not absolve us from holiness. Our acceptance of Jesus Christ allows entrance into the throne (of grace) where we must be willing to hear and receive whatever comes from God’s throne. Jesus is at the right hand of the Father having fulfilled the necessary penalty for our sin. We don’t have to pay the penalty because Jesus already did. But our acceptance of what He did brings us to the place where we were intended to be- in a relationship with God.

In this place (relationship with God) we must endure what has sometimes been misunderstood. Jesus didn’t endure sickness (He endured stripes for our healing); Jesus didn’t endure confusion (He was chastised for peace). So, here is the deal- the chastisement of the Father toward us doesn’t involve receiving what Jesus did not but rather a conversation. This conversation may ask us to give up habits or treat others with equality or change or ignore certain ambitions. This conversation may also push us to achieve what we don’t think we can or do what seems impossible. Following God is intense.

There is a tension that exists in the Christian between associating our salvation with the sacrifice of Christ (grace) and associating ourselves with following Christ (sanctification). The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news that allows us to realize we have been restored to God. He did what we couldn’t. But the good news simply starts the story. He did what we can’t, but He also did what we absolutely can. When we understand what we don’t have to endure we will find the greater purpose in what we must endure.

This is following God.

Paradise-Killers by Carrie Johnston

Today's post is from Carrie Johnston. She is an amazing woman of God, and has been since the first day I met her about 15 years ago when she was just a young lady in highschool. So proud to know you and blessed by the woman you have become!

You can continue to glean from her wisdom and passion for the Lord at www.everydayspectacular.com

I’ve been thinking a lot lately of Eve in the garden. (Oh, Eve…the only woman I know who can claim she was ever naked and unashamed.)

Have you read this passage lately?...

Genesis 3:1-6 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.”  The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.”

My eight year son, Carter, recently lamented to me, “Mom, Eve ruined Paradise for EVERYONE.” Clearly he was feeling included in the “everyone”. He went on to imagine what would have happened if Eve had never sinned. Likely Carter’s vision of Paradise has something to do with all day video game marathons and gorging on whatever he wants to eat, but I digress.  I tried to reason with him that if not Eve, surely one of Eve’s kids or their kids would have been the Paradise-killer, but no, he was not to be dissuaded in his disgust over Eve’s poor choice.

I’ve come to realize that we can all stand in judgment over Eve or we can realize that Eve is a pretty good replica of the struggle that each of us women face.

What was Eve’s deal anyway? She had been blessed by God, filled with purpose, walked with God, was a recipient of the provision of God for her needs and, of course, she had been hand-delivered to her spouse. She had no “Jones’“ to keep up with, no one to compare herself to or compare her husbandagainst, and never once had to complain about having nothing to wear. She was innocent to sin, living in blissful paradise. She lacked absolutely nothing. Eve proves that you can have the blessing of God on your life and still struggle with temptation and sin.

So she enters into conversation with a talking snake, and perhaps even that we could chalk up to naïve curiosity. But the snake very quickly gets her to doubt some foundational aspects of God’s character. He basically tells her that God is a liar, and she starts wondering if perhaps God has been holding out on herall along. The Bible tells us that when she SAW…, she took it and ate it. She was deceived when the lies of the enemy were able to distort the truth that she knew, the very truth that God had already revealed to her. She rationalized, “What’s the big deal? It’s just fruit. It looks good. I bet it tastes good. This herechatty snake sure sounds like he knows what he’s talking about.What can it hurt?”

Oh, Eve. I feel your struggle. I live your struggle. I can be myown worse Paradise-killer.

You see, the issue for Eve wasn’t the fruit itself…And it almost never is for us either. The fruit is about “another way”, a self-way, independence, doing what feels good or feels right at the time.

The flirtations, the gossip, the back-biting, the sarcasm, the rebellion, the over-eating, the anger, the passive-aggressive behavior, the fill-in-your-sin-of-choice-here, is so often about filling our FELT NEED in OUR OWN WAY. And each time we do we are biting into the fruit of self-will all over again. Like Eve there is so much to enjoy and yet we fixate on that which is just out of reach.

Eve, if we could go for coffee I could tell you all about how I know what it’s like to get the end of the tasty fruit and be left holding nothing but a dirty core in my hand. I know what it’s like to realize I need quite a few fig leaves to cover up my shame. I understand regret. I’ve done more than my fair share of hiding, hoping God would just stop seeking me out already.

And yet, there He comes, doesn’t He?

The absolutely scandalous news of the gospel is that God still comes after sinners, while we are standing there trying to cover ourselves with foliage, thinking that perhaps it might be enough. God shows us that it is only His blood that truly covers. In the garden, God killed an animal(s) for skins to cover Adam and Eve. This event foreshadows the death and resurrection of Christ which is the only thing able to cover up our sins today.

1 Corinthians 15:21-22 “ For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”

A few brave questions to ask yourself today:

In what ways have you been “eating the forbidden fruit” and then trying to cover it up?

In what ways have you been listening to the lies of the enemy?

In what ways have you stopped listening to the truth of God for your life?

In what ways do you need to allow God to cover you again?

What's in a Name? by Paula Roach

Forgive me for being a little off subject today and for some rambling but I needed this one today and am being reminded of just how big God is and how powerful His name is...

What's in a Name

I remember a show we used to watch in my eighth grade language arts class called "What's in a Name?" Each episode featured a different name and the meanings. One day while watching the show, the featured name was none other than my own. "Paula means little." Wow! They could not have been more accurate. After all, I was small for my age. The funny thing is, though the reality of my size had never been a secret, in classic junior high fashion, the teasing began seconds after the show ended and suddenly, that is what I was known for.

Before that day, many may have known my name, but they did not know me. They may have learned the meaning of my name that day, but they did not know my personality. I may have been little, but those who knew me personally knew there was much more to Paula than that one word description.

Shy. Reliable. Silly. Compassionate... These are just a few other words to describe "Little" Paula for those who took the time to get to know me. :)

Some of those same students from my junior high Language Arts class were also in my high school classes. We knew eachother for years but the extent of our relationship was reduced to that story we heard about one another in the locker room or the Language Arts class or from some casual encounters we had throughout the years.

Sometime the same thing happens in our relationship with the Lord. We know Him for years but the depth of that relationship is often reduced to past experiences with Him. I personally go through seasons when I either pursue Him casually, or frankly not at all. Instead, I settle for what He is known for. I settle for what I have already experienced.

In Phil 3 Paul tells us that He made it his determined purpose to know Christ and become more like Him. This determination is coming from a man who had a pretty amazing and life changing encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus. Yet, he was not satisfied with that. He knew there was still so much more to know about Jesus. He did not settle for what he already had.

He wanted to know Jesus beyond just what people said about Him. He wanted to know Jesus beyond what he had already experienced. The amplified version says "to become more progressively and intimately acquainted with Him."  He wanted to find out everything about Jesus, to find out what's in His name.

The more we pursue Jesus this way we find that there is much more in His name than we could imagine.

In His name is healing.
In His name is hope.
In His name is Life.
In His name is Power... just to name a few!

I personally need all of these things in my life right now!

But there is more.

                 Do you need a friend? "He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother" Proverbs 18:24

Do you need a healer, either physically, mentally or emotionally? "He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:3 "By His wounds we are healed." Is 53:5

Do you need comfort? "I, even I, am He who comforts you. Isaiah 51:12

Do you need a father? "By which we call Him Abba, Father" Romans 8:15

Provision? "God is my helper. The Lord is the provider of my life." Psalm 54:4

Strength? "The name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous runs into it and is safe." Proverbs 18:10

Companionship? Deuteronomy 31:6 tells us to be strong and of good courage because He will never leave us or forsake us.

Jesus is all these things and more! But don't take my Word for it. Take His. Get in the Word. Seek Him on your own! You won't be disappointed. In fact, like Paul, the more you get to know Him, the more you will want to know Him! As we face our day, we do not face it alone. As we fight our personal battles, we do not fight alone. As we rejoice, we do not rejoice alone. We will never be without the perfect companion for the specific need we face. 

I am ready to move on from this season of casual pursuit to one of determined purpose!

I have provided a link to an oldy but a goody. The song, He Is by Aaron Geoffry. I encourage you to click on this link. As you listen, take a moment to imagine that battle you face and a growing army surrounding you, fighting for you. With each mention of who He Is, imagine that person of Jesus joining the army in front of you. Behind you. Each side of you.

Or perhaps there is no battle right now except the determined purpose to get to know Him more. What part of His character have you not yet discovered? Call upon His name and let Him meet you there.
http://youtu.be/Yf7X3DvjHWo

Don't let the weekend slip by without taking some time out to get to KNOW HIM better!

One more verse today, just because I love it:)

"Some trust in wagons and some in horses. But we will trust in the NAME of the Lord, our God. " Psalm 20:7