Freedom #5

FREEDOM TO LIVE LOVED

Not knowing, at a primal level, that we are profoundly loved is possibly one of the biggest problems in society today.

Think about it...what is at the root of nearly every instance of someone acting out against others or sinning in a variety of ways? We don't really understand that we are loved, so we try to get what we want/need through other people or things.

We lash out and criticize others because we are feeling bad about ourselves. We covet what other people have because there is an empty place inside ourselves, and we think bigger and better things will fill it. We medicate the emptiness with addictions or busyness. We lie, cheat, and steal to get what we want because we don't trust that anyone cares enough to take care of us. We tell ourselves we've got to look out for number one because no one else will.

Bottom line...we aren't living loved.

Little wonder this is such a problem. We experience conditional acceptance from practically every side including our parents, spouses, bosses, teachers, friends, and the list goes on. How many times have you had someone be really nice to you, only to find out later they had an ulterior motive? Or maybe someone is loving, encouraging, and affirming...until you mess up in a big enough way or disappoint their expectations. We get the message from a very young age, however unintentional it may be, that we have to measure up to certain standards in order to be loved. The world is telling us we're not worth it, and deep down we don't think we are either.

When we don't experience unconditional acceptance and love from the tangible people around us, it makes it even harder to believe that God, whom we can't see or hear or touch, actually celebrates us just as we are. It often takes time to really truly know this on a cellular level, but once you finally realize how deeply you are loved, it will radically change your life.

* Ask God to show you how He sees you

* Accept that you are fearfully and wonderfully made

* Celebrate your uniqueness just as you are without trying to change anything about yourself

* When you know you're loved profoundly and unconditionally, it's easy to love God, yourself, and others

From the Outside Edge,
Mike & Laura Ege
Outside Edge Coaching

You Are Loved!

Worship Is....

Brian Johnson and Dan Brothers came in this weekend to lead us in finishing this sentence,

Worship Is.....Friday night we started out with some one word definitions,

extravagant, adoration, exuberant, lavish, lacking in moderation or restraint.

Practically, Worship Is....praise, relationship, connectedness, intimacy. It 's very difficult to attempt to describe something indescribable, especially in one word. We continued to pull it apart some more.

Worship Is...a way of life, an offering or response that comes out of an overflow of what God has done for us.

Worship Is....an attitude that makes room for God and all His Mighty acts, worship exuberantly delights in God.

Brian stretched us to answer "What does that look like?" Specifically, how does that play out in my everyday?

And that was just the beginning! We've been running so hard for I've lost count how many days now so I haven't had time to process it all yet. But this is the beginning and they'll be more to come. We even hope to have some of it posted on YouTube.

Freedom #4

FREEDOM TO BE

We live in a performance-driven culture. It's the American way, the Puritan work ethic. We are taught to work hard, to perform, to produce. Performance is rewarded in school, at work, and even in our home life. The voices of judgment - both from our own internal critics and those around us - are loud and clear if we should fail to perform to expectations.
Sometimes we perform so we can feel good about ourselves. It makes us feel like we are worth something in the world. Like we are important and we matter. Sometimes it is to please others or to gain approval from someone important to us. Sometimes we hide behind performing. The busyness keeps us from having to face things we may be feeling or going through that we would rather avoid.
What does this performance really get you though? Do you have anything more of genuine value to show for it at the end of the day? Who or what gets missed along the way? Does it truly make you more fulfilled? Does what you're running away from really go away? Can you even hear the voice of God through the noise of your activity? Is what you're striving for so hard really even you?
Dare to get off the speeding train that is your too-busy life! Challenge our works-driven culture. Ignore the voices of judgment and criticism. Don't respond to the demands to produce for a moment. Dare to feel and really experience whatever you're in with life right now. Take the time to let a deeper understanding of yourself and God and the world around you soak in.
Simply be...
* Be the real you no matter what others say
* Be in what you're feeling
* Be in the journey, whatever may happen or wherever it leads
* Be in the emptiness or the fullness of the moment
* Be in the silence and stillness
* Be alone with yourself and God

From the Outside Edge,
Mike & Laura EgeOutside Edge Coaching
http://www.outsideedgecoaching.com/

take a moment to simply be.

Freedom #3

What choices will you make today?

3. FREEDOM TO CHOOSE
Life rarely comes with a clear yes or no, black or white, right or wrong. Life is about choice. It's about the adventure. It's about the journey. It's been that way since the beginning when God gave Adam and Eve the freedom to choose.
While that seems like good news to some people, for many others, the freedom of choice can be downright scary. What if we make a mistake? What if we miss out on something better than the path we choose? What if it is the wrong path altogether? Surely God must be holding absolutes before us. What if we can't discern the correct absolute? Is He going to be mad at us or abandon us if we choose the wrong one?
Yet we see God giving Adam and Eve (and all humanity through them) the freedom of choice. Jesus' life gives us similar examples. He didn't stress over the limited understanding or poor choices of His disciples. He just enjoyed the journey with them right where they were spiritually. As they walked with Jesus for a while and began to understand Him more clearly, I imagine their spiritual beliefs and life choices began to shift. It appears from reading the Bible that Jesus gave room for this to happen rather than worrying about changing them overnight or making sure they always made the right choices.
Any parent understands the importance of this freedom as well. If you always make your children's choices for them, they will remain immature forever. Only by making their own choices and learning through the path those choices take them down, do they become mature adults. You love them and walk with them through life anyway, regardless of what they choose. Why would we view our spiritual journey with Christ any differently?
* It's okay to make mistakes, ask questions, and try new paths
* God is much bigger than your mistakes
* It is okay not to have it all figured out or to change your mind about what you believe as you grow spiritually
* Your faith is evolving as you become more like Christ
* A religious system of rules doesn't give you choice but instead tells you exactly what to do and think
* Choice is about grace; choose to abide in grace
* God is still with you no matter what choices you make

From the Outside Edge,
Mike & Laura EgeOutside Edge Coaching

This one has challenged me to think a lot and I'm still not done processing it all yet. Is it ok to make mistakes? What is a mistake? Tell us what you think? It's late, I don't think I can process anymore tonight! Til tomorrow....

This is too God

I'm Tired! Matt and I didn't get to bed til about midnight and then one of the kids came in around 3:30am from having a bad dream. He climbed right in and fell right back to sleep but not so for me. I didn't get back to sleep til almost 6am and then the girls were up before 7am. Blindly, I slowly and begrudgingly get out of bed to begin the day that is starting without me whether I like it or not. THANK THE LORD FOR PBS! I do the recent usual routine, change a dirty diaper or two, give the girls some cereal and milk, grab my coffee(a really BIG cup this morning) and come back to bed for my quiet time. Guess what it's on this morning???? The title is Alone With the Lord and the passage of scripture that goes along with it is Heb 4, entitled A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God. Do you think God is trying to tell me something? HA!
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Here's some of what it said:
"There are times when there is simply more to do than I can manage.....I keep trying but it isn't enough. I am physcially exhausted and mentally drained. I still keep plugging on. It doesn't help too much. Only one thing helps-opening my Bible.
The Bible is a source of strength as the Holy Spirit brings the words of scripture alive when we read them. The key is that we must read them. It is very easy to get caught up in the demands of the moment and miss God's special source of strength for us. I do this far too frequently. Even though I know that I need to have a regular quiet time every day, I still haven't made this happen. I do well for a few weeks, and then something upsets the schedule, and I get off track again.(I, myra, can so relate to this!) Failure is guaranteed as I cut off the power of the Holy Spirit to help me when I don't read my Bible daily.
The solutions to all of our problems are found in Scripture. My relationship with Jesus is built upon the Word of God. All the goodness found in the Bible is a balm for the weary soul-an oasis for the thirsty one who feels alone on the desert. Why, then, don't we make it a priority as we do our lessons or work? Why isn't our time with God more precious then anything else we do?
Satan doesn't want us to have God's power behind our days. Our devotional time, our time alone with the Lord, is the most important preparation that we have. When we faithfully read our Bible and fellowship with the Lord, it becomes more difficult for Satan to gain ground in our life."
"Father, forgive me for neglecting the most important part of my life-my devotional life. I have made excuses for not taking time each day to be alone with you. I have allowed Satan an open door inot our family. Help me to take this much more seriously and show me how best to be faithful to follow through each day. Teach me to overcome the obstacles and do it right."

Taken from a devotional book by Jackie Wellwood

CFC FamilyTime

As we studied tonight about the Sabbath and it's importance in regard to orderliness, we started with an activity of drawing the 6 days of Creation. Usually we have an active, LOUD game but that just didn't seem right tonight as we were going to be discussing REST. There were six groups and here's what they came up with......so cool!


It was also really cool to end the night with the baptism of Daulton Foster at another local church. The coming together of two bodies in celebration of Daulton's committment to Christ was really cool and one of the great things we hope to see more of, churches all coming together for the Kingdom.

Listening to the Silence

Tonight at FamilyTime we talked about the Sabbath, what it is and what it means for us today. I found this article in a blog this week. I think we were all challenged to reconsider for ourselves and our families what resting in Christ really means. I gave this article to the youth to take home. Let us know how it speaks to you to.

Solitude and Sabbath are pretty heavy words, but both are practices we should incorporate into our daily routines (ok, weekly) in order for us to grow and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Solitude and Sabbath are more similar than they are different and should actually be accomplished together. A sabbath, in its biblical context, is rest from a day’s work and is meant to be enjoyed; it is something we should look forward to. This does not mean shutting yourself up in your room and depriving yourself of interaction with others, nor does it mean vegging out in front of the TV all day watching Mythbusters, sports, soaps or Project Runway marathons. Find something or somewhere that calms you, allows you to be silent before the Lord and refills your spirit. Solitude finds its way into your Sabbath almost unknowingly and gives God a chance to catch up with you. Slowing down and making time for solitude and a real Sabbath gives your body a chance to wind down and heart to open up—. Taking a Sabbath and quieting ourselves gets to the root of our lives, and it was designed for us to take advantage of.

Ready to Go Deeper? Start with just 5 minutes each morning to read a paragraph of the bible. Read through a gospel, Acts or one of the letters in the new testament.
Ask your self—what can I learn about God from this? What Can I learn about being a Christian from this? How can I apply this to my life today?