Have you experienced some good things in your life?

What about challenges? Have you faced any challenges or difficulties that you can remember?

Today, we are going to look at what the Bible says about how good things and challenging things actually relate and work together for God’s purpose in our lives.
Romans 8:28
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.”

Let’s look at this verse for a few minutes and really get the context of what Paul was saying here. He wanted the Romans to know that God, who didn’t cause their suffering, would cause all their circumstances to cooperate with His divine plan—for their ultimate good. Paul is not saying that all things are good. He is saying that all things are turned by God and used for good. This is really important to understand because it gives us a different perspective on the difficult situations that we face in this life here on earth.

The good to which Paul referred was not the temporary blessings of good health, wealth, or even success, but being “conformed to the image of God’s Son.” (v. 29)
Romans 8:29
“For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

​God is most concerned about where we will spend eternity. He is so concerned that He sent His Son Jesus to die for us so that we could spend eternity in Heaven.

Yes, we all go through different things and sometimes very challenging things but the promise that God causes everything to work for our good is for us. It’s a promise for every child of God who has given their life to Christ.
Today, I would like to look at 3 things for us remember when we face challenging situations in life:
 

1. God is good all the time

 
1 Chronicles 16:34
“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.”
 
I remember when I was first saved. There was a peace and a joy that I had never experience before, and it was amazing. God radically transformed my life, I was serving in various areas, I got my first car, I graduated college, and I met my future husband. Life was pretty good and sweet!
 
Fast forward a couple of years, on my most favourite day of the year, my father passed away at the young age of 48 unexpectedly. It was a heart attack and he was instantly gone, just like that.
 
My life that was going pretty good had all of sudden been shaken, especially since I was still growing in my faith. It was a difficult thing to go through. I questioned God, I grieved, but I also answered this question by His strength:
 
Was God still good? Yes. He absolutely was!
 
But the thing that I was going through definitely did not feel good. But God was still good. He is good all the time. Even as Christians, our lives are not perfect but we have a God who gives us perfect peace in the midst of very difficult situations.
 
God was working on my character. God was teaching me to trust in Him no matter what. God was drawing me closer to Him and to depend on Him for all things.  

       2.  God is always faithful
What does it mean to be faithful?
True to one’s word, promises, vows, reliable, and trusted.
 
Deuteronomy 7:9
“Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.”
 
If we were to all share of how God has been faithful to us time after time, we would need quite a bit of time to do that. It is important to reflect on God’s faithfulness in our lives.
 
Remember what Joseph went through when he was sold into slavery by his brothers. Joseph’s brothers made a bad choice by selling their brother into slavery, but Joseph chose to believe God was with him. God took the awful thing his brothers did and not only saved the nation of Israel but also many other nations as well. God had a good plan for Joseph, and He was faithful in making it come to pass.
 
Joseph spoke about how God used the bad for good in this verse:
 
Genesis 50:20
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
 
 
        3.   God works out all things for our good 
Have you ever had brisket?
 
If you haven’t, I encourage you to try it. It’s one of my favourite meals and if seasoned and cooked properly, it is delicious and so tender.
 
Brisket is one of my family traditions and as delicious as it is, there is a process for it to taste the way it does.  It needs to be marinated for a few days with a few special ingredients, turned around, cooked, put in the fridge, sliced, and then cooked again. Doesn’t that sound delicious?
 
See, before the brisket is marinated and cooked, it actually doesn’t look appetizing at all. It is simply a bit piece of raw meat. All the ingredients WORK TOGETHER to get that beautiful cooked brisket. We need to wait until the ingredients work together to achieve something they could not achieve individually.
 
Ok, now let’s talk dessert since we just talked dinner.
 
Dessert has always been a part of my family’s meals and that couldn’t be more true today. We love our dessert.
 
Take a strawberry shortcake for instance. It has fresh cream, strawberries, custard, whipped cream…I could go for some right now!
 
You see, eating the ingredients on their own would not taste good. Raw eggs, baking powder, flour, etc. Doesn’t sound very tasty, but when the ingredients WORK TOGETHER, something beautiful happens.
 
Let’s look at this verse again:
 
Romans 8:28
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.”
 
Just like the brisket and baking ingredients aren’t very tasty on their own, when the ingredients work together the finished product is very delicious.
 
It is the same in our lives with everything that we go through. Some things are good and some are challenging. But God says that He causes everything to work for good for us.
 
In closing, let’s look at what our Lord and Saviour did for the whole world.
 
For someone who doesn’t know Christ and has not accepted Him, this is where it all begins. The Bible says that God so loved the world that He gave His Only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
 
It all starts at the cross.
 
The cross was a terrible way to die. It was painful and even Jesus Himself said these words to God the Father:
 
Luke 22:42
“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.”
 
The Bible then goes on to say that an angel appeared to Jesus and He was strengthened. Jesus than in agony prayed more earnestly and His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
 
As difficult as it was to go through what Jesus went through, God reminds us that He can take the worst situation (dying on a cross) and turn it into the best (the redemption of God’s people).
 
All things have a purpose in our lives because they all help us be transformed into Christlikeness.
This is how Paul ends in Romans chapter 8:

​Romans 8:38-39
“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

God works all things for our good and nothing can separate us from God’s Love which is in Jesus Christ.
In whatever situation we face, let us remember that God works out everything for our good and nothing can separate us from His Love.
 
 
 

Welcome back to the Discipleship blog series. If you haven’t read the previous posts, you can find them here.

Last time we discovered some significant truths about God’s kingdom economy, that God rewards us based on what we give away.

In today’s post, we will learn about the impact of changing the focus of activity from teaching to training.
At every missions conference we talk about the Great Commission. It is found in several places in the gospels, but is most often referenced from Matthew 28.
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”– Matt. 28:18-20 NIV

This verse speaks of actions we all can be involved in. It tells us to;
1) Go
2) make disciples of all nations
3) baptize them and
4) teach them to obey.

Ying Kai and Steve Smith, authors of the book, T4T A Discipleship Re-Revolution, speak of how we are Trainers of Trainers. Ying uses the word trainer for a disciple maker.
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Do you see yourself as a Trainer of Trainers? For many years I saw myself as a teacher. What I didn’t see was that I was to train the people I taught until they could train others! Instead of seeing myself as a teacher, passing on knowledge and information, I began to see myself as a trainer and those who were learning from me as those who in turn would immediately train others. I am a Trainer of Trainers- A Disciple Maker.
​I train one person to follow Jesus and obey His commands, they go and train another, who trains another. In this way the Kingdom multiplies and grows. We call this engaging the one to reach the many.

Making disciples of Jesus (trainers of trainers) is a crucial task not only for pastors, spiritual leaders and missionaries. This is the task of every believer. This is the task of everyone who is a disciple of Christ. As basic as it seems, why do so few get involved directly in disciple making? Why don’t we see ourselves as trainers of others?

We have settled for a model far short of what Jesus taught. Why? There are numerous answers to this question. We could blame anyone from Constantine to today’s clergy for not placing more emphasis on empowering local believers to do the work of the ministry. Blaming them would serve no real purpose, though sometimes it can be helpful to understanding the process that led us to the situation the church is in today.

You see, if you are focusing only on teaching and not training, you are not creating the kind of wise people Jesus talks about in Matthew 7:24-27. The wise man or woman is the one who hears the word and does what it says (is trained). The foolish man or woman is the one who hears the word but does not do what it says (is not trained).

And Paul tells us in Ephesians 4 that the reason that Jesus gives some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers is to prepare (train) God’s people to do the work of ministry.
Instead of analyzing the history or blaming various people, it is time for all who follow Christ to wake up to their identity and to their task. We are disciples. Disciples train other disciples. It’s natural. It’s normal. It requires no special skills or special qualifications. We just need to obey Jesus’ command, and begin to do it.
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Who are you training to obey Christ? Who are they training? Are you a trainer of trainers? A disciple who makes disciples? If not, you can be! Embrace that identity today.

Welcome back to the Discipleship blog series. If you haven’t read the previous posts, you can find them here.

Last time we learned how God has already given us the relationships necessary to make disciples. We made or began making a list of 100 people we knew.

In today’s post, we will discover some significant truths about God’s kingdom economy that might make you go "hmmmm".

So let’s talk about God’s KINGDOM ECONOMY.

In this broken world, people feel rewarded when they take, when they receive and when they gain more than those around them.
In His Scriptures, God tells His people - My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways. God shows us in His Kingdom economy we’re rewarded not by what we get - but by what we give away.

God says - I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Jesus said - It is better to give than to receive. Giving away what God gives us and blessing others when God blesses us is the foundation for the SPIRITUAL BREATHING we learned about before.

We breathe IN when we HEAR from God. We breathe OUT when we OBEY what we hear and SHARE with others. When we are faithful to OBEY and SHARE what the Lord has shared with us, then He promises to share even more.
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Jesus said - Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much. This is the path to deeper insights, greater intimacy and living the abundant life God created us to live. This is the way we can walk in the good works God has already planned for us to do.

If we want to be rewarded with God’s greatest reward, then we have to practice the two things that He promises to bless.
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We must --
• OBEY and SHARE
• DO and TEACH
• PRACTICE and PASS ON - everything that God tells us to do.

​If we want others to receive God’s greatest reward, then we have to show them how to do the same  thing, too. This is a major part of being a disciple and a major part of making disciples.
We are FOLLOWERS and LEADERS
We are LEARNERS and TEACHERS
We are BLESSED and we are a BLESSING

God doesn’t want us to wait until we know everything before we start obeying and sharing. That day will never come.
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God doesn’t expect us to be fully mature before we start multiplying. He wants us to multiply right away.
God wants us to obey what we already know and to share what we’ve already heard.
And then He wants us to teach others to do the same. After all - that’s obeying and sharing what He’s already told us to do. This is the path to maturity and growth.
 
What are some differences you see between God’s kingdom economy and our earthly way of doing things?

Welcome back to the Discipleship blog series. If you haven’t read the previous posts, you can find them here.

Last time we considered how we can use a structure to help spend more time in prayer, The Prayer Cycle.
In today’s post, we will discover a tool for finding people with whom to share the good news of Jesus and what we are learning from the Word, the breathing out part of Spiritual Breathing.
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Jesus said - “Go and make disciples…” And His followers did just that. They went to their family. They went to their friends. They went to people they knew in town. They went to people they worked with. They went.

Jesus said “Go” and they obeyed. And God’s family grew.

God has already given us the relationships we need to “Go and make disciples.”

​These are our family, friends, neighbours, co-workers and classmates - people we’ve known all our lives, people we’ve just met. Being faithful with the people God has already put in our lives is a great first step in multiplying disciples.
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And it can start with the simple step of making a list.

You can download a form on which to record your list of 100 from here.
Make a list of 100 people you’re in contact with. Next to their name, write down if they’re already a believer, if they’re a non-believer or if you don’t know.

Your List of 100 can include family members, friends or co-workers that you can share your testimony or God’s story with in the next 24 hours. Being faithful with the people God has already put in our lives is a great first step in multiplying disciples.

Ying Kai says there are three truths that exemplify the Father’s heart. God loves you. God has saved you. God wants, through you, to save everyone related to you. This is your list of 100.
Your List of 100 . . . a simple tool in your toolbox that multiplies disciples.
 
●     What names on this list could you share either your testimony or God's Story with in the next 24 hours?

●     When is a regular time in the week you can review this list and take steps to spiritually engage your personal network?

Welcome back to the Discipleship blog series. If you haven’t read the previous posts, you can find them here.
Last time we considered how we can help a follower of Jesus become a PRODUCER in God’s kingdom instead of simply a CONSUMER.

In today’s post, we will talk about the importance of prayer and how we can become better pray-ers.

Wesley L Duewel, former missionary to India and former president of OMS International, was also founder of the Evangelical Foreign Missions Association’s Fellowship of Prayer. He said, “Many Christians are so spiritually frail, sickly, and lacking in spiritual vitality that they cannot stick to prayer for more than a few minutes at a time.”

Jesus often taught His followers about the purpose, the practice and the promises of prayer. Jesus said - “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Jesus taught His followers that prayer isn’t for public praise, a selfish wish list or a rambling speech we repeat over and over again. Jesus showed us prayer has power because it’s a direct and ongoing conversation with our Father in heaven who loves us.

Like any good conversation, a good prayer means both sides get to listen -- and speak. But speaking to the God who created the universe can seem intimidating. And actually hearing something back - well for most people that can be downright scary.
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The good news is that getting better at prayer - having better and deeper conversations with a God who loves us - is not only possible - it’s exactly what God wants. But when prayer feels like learning a new language - how do you get better?

The answer is simple - you practice.

The Prayer Cycle is a simple tool for practicing prayer that you can use by yourself and share with any follower. In just 12 simple steps - 5 minutes each - the Prayer Cycle guides you through twelve ways the Bible teaches us to pray. At the end, you’ll have prayed for an hour.
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Begin at #1-Praise and Adoration and work your way around the circle.

The Bible tells us -- “Pray without ceasing.” Not many of us can say we do that. But after this hour of prayer - you’ll be a step closer.

The Prayer Cycle - One more simple tool to help you make disciples.

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• What is your reaction to the thought of spending an hour in prayer?
• How does it make you feel?
• What might life be like if you made this kind of prayer a regular habit?