"STOP LIVING IN REARVIEW!"

Kingdom Greetings Believers!

I am so excited about this year’s Youth Day! Through numerous discussions with some of our youth and with much prayer and guidance from the Lord, our theme this year is: “Stop Living in Rearview!”

This theme has been lifted out of the soil of the Old Testament rooted in Isaiah 43:18-19. The New American Standard Bible Version reads, “Do not call to mind the former things or ponder things of the past. Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it?” But I also like Eugene Peterson’s Message Version which says, “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?” God is telling us “Stop Living in Rearview!”

Here is a picture of the vantage point from the driver’s seat. The driver has a small rearview mirror which shows him or her things that are behind them; things related to what they have already passed. Then there is a big window that allows the driver to see what is in the road that lies before them, places they can go, people they can meet and various experiences they could have.

Our lives are something like that, individually and as a ministry. God has a window of great opportunity for us while we do have a rearview mirror a past! But the most interesting thing believers, is that the creator of this structure and our life structure is our rearview (our past) is not bigger than the window to the road of opportunity. What we allow sometimes in our own individual lives and as a ministry is we live (drive) life (the road) through the rearview instead of looking through the window of opportunity and instead of properly encountering (pulling up to) opportunity, we miss and/or crash into opportunity.

Just imagine someone driving through life through the rearview? Would you ride with someone like that? Could they even make it down the street or get out the parking lot without some type of damage to themselves or someone else?

The “rearview” concept could be understood as being stuck in the past and it could be good or bad. It is a place or state of being. It’s being psychologically, emotionally, spiritually or even physically stuck in previous relationships, past issues, past pains or hurts, past successes, past failures, and past thoughts. An individual can’t enjoy new relationships or new opportunities because they remember what happened in the past; they measure and encounter everything by the past, which limits their life experiences even in ministry.

While we can learn from our past, God has uniquely designed our lives to be motivated, led and governed by proper forward VISION! It is the “already, but not yet” of God; the promises of God! Like driving you are not motivated by things in the rearview. You are motivated to move forward by the things you see (vision) in front of you. God places opportunities, promises, dreams and a purpose in front of you to pursue.

So many youth, adults and ministries find themselves in God’s collision center because we fail to keep our eyes (hearts, minds and spirits) open to the “new thing”, the road ahead that God has for us! We can have better grades if we stop thinking about last semester or quarter grades. We can have better relationships if we stop dealing with new prospects as if they were the other guy or girl. We can have evolving, relevant, creative, spirit filled, life transforming, and unpredictable ministry if we forgive, and work together; stay open to God’s new thing, stop worrying about who is here or not or how someone did what when they were a part of the ministry.

God is calling our youth and maybe our church to “Stop Living in the Rearview!” God has wonderful opportunities for us, but we can no longer allow a small mirror limit great opportunity. Life and ministry is about living things not dead things (the past). Our challenge in June is to “Stop Living in the Rearview” and let’s move forward in our personal lives and as a ministry and be all that God has called us to be. We can no longer speak about the possibilities of our lives and ministry based upon the rearview mirror. The Bible says, there is life and death in the power of the tongue. Sometimes we experience more of the death we speak than the death that is really in something or associated with someone. Sometimes we experience more of the negative in our lives and ministry that we have spoken through the misuse of the power God placed in our tongues than the real challenges that is in our lives and associated with ministry. “Stop Living in Rearview” and start speaking, expecting and seeking what thus saith the Lord!

That is the grace in the text, “Forget” and don’t ponder “the past” but God says, “BEHOLD! I am going to do something new!” God acknowledges that there is a past, but is motivating us not to live in the past. God is showing us that there is always something greater for us beyond what we have already experienced. Don’t let success limit the possibility of greater achievement. Don’t let past hurts detour you from available healing. We can’t move forward in our personal lives living in the rearview and we can’t lead our ministries with “rearview vision.” In the words of DeWayne Woods, we have to “Let Go and Let God!”

“Stop Living in Rearview!”

Rev. Maurice Maxwell

FBCV Youth Minister

Prayer: Your 4G Network- The Power to Change Your Life Experience #1

Session#1 on Prayer

The Discipline of Prayer by Richard J. Foster Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth (Chapter 3)

1. Of all the Spiritual Disciplines prayer is the most central because it ushers us into continuous communion with the Father.

2. Real prayer is life creating and life changing.

3. To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us.

a. The closer we come to the heartbeat of God the more we see our need and the more we desire to be conformed to Christ.

4. James 4:3- “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”

a. To ask “rightly” involves transformed passions. In prayer, real prayer, we begin to think God’s thoughts after him: to desire the things he desires, to love the things he loves, to will the things he wills

5. All who have walked with God have viewed prayer as the main business of their lives.

a. Gospel of Mark has a commentary on the life-style of Jesus- “And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely, and there he prayed.”

b. Martin Luther- “I have so much business I cannot get on without spending three hours daily in prayer.”

6. Prayer must not just be a part of my day, but it must be my life.

7. Prayer requires a learning process.

a. Luke 11:1 the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.

b. They had prayed all their lives, and yet something about the quality and quantity of Jesus’ praying caused them to see how little they knew about prayer.

Being a Young Disciple: The Christian Transformer

Being a Young Disciple: The Christian-Transformer

Romans 12:2 says “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good, acceptable and perfect.”

We, as young believers, are cautioned not to be conformed to this world. We are conformed to the world by people, various types of music, television, certain conversations and more. Every encounter that we have with worldly things and people brings us a step closer to becoming more like the world. Being conformed to the world is a process, it takes time. If we are going to be Christian-Transformers, Young Disciples of Christ, we must stop this process that leads to our conforming to the world. We must be intentional about ending this process. Just as we were intentional to turn to the wrong channels, wrong websites, and answer or call the wrong person on the phone we must be intentional about ignoring and staying away from those things.

Christian transformation is an alternative, it’s a choice. You either look like the world; look forward to the consequence of looking and acting like the world or you choose to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. It’s like DVR. You have been programmed to do certain things and live a certain way, but you must now remove the old program and upload a new station and programming. Renewing the mind, getting a new way of thinking, a new way of being is a process. It was a process in the area of sin and it’s a process as well with your spiritual walk with God. You must be intentional about spending time with God so your mentality can be renewed.

You maintain your transformed state by doing what Paul said in Roman 13:14, every day “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lust.” You have to put on Christ every day. You put on Christ when you read and apply his word. You put on Christ when you pray before you go to school. You put on Christ when you take a stand for God when nobody else will. You put on Christ when you put on the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20). You put on Christ by “making no provision for the flesh in regard to its lust.” Every time you say no to temptation you are putting on Christ. Every time you tell that guy or girl he or she can’t come over when your parents aren’t home, you are putting on Christ!

My prayer for you is that you be a Christian-Transformer and maintain your transformer state. Change the way you think and act by having a different mindset than the world. Yes, you truly maybe surrounded by negative things and negative people, but the truth is God has given you an inner power to tap into so you can be different from your environment, so you can have a different outcome than those you are surrounded by. Romans 8:5-6 says “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.” So where ever you “set” your mind, flesh or spirit, negativity or positivity, you will become that place. When I was younger I made sure never to set my toys in the reach of my little sister or brother because if I set it in the wrong place my toy would be in danger. It is the same with your mind. Where ever you place your mind it will be at the mercy of where you place it. If you are constantly thinking negatively you will experience negative results. If you keep thinking lustful thoughts and occupy your eyes with lustful things you will lust. You are a product of the mental environment where you set your mind. To be a Young Disciple, a Christian-Transformer, you must set your mind on the things of God like His word, His praise, and His love. You must set your mind on ideas, thinking, and people who are of the Kingdom of God.

 

Where is your mind? Did you forget where you last placed it? Ask yourself what kind of things you have been involved in. What kind of things have you been thinking about? Then follow the path from that place and you will find where you mind is. If it’s in the wrong place choose to place it on things above;on Godly things.



Illuminating the Love of God (Sept. 14th Lesson)

How Do I Really Be a Young Disciple of Christ? Illuminating the Love of God

I John 4:7-21

4:7 Dear friends let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been fathered 3 by God and knows God. 4:8 The person who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 4:9 By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him. 4:10 In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.4:11 Dear friends, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another. 4:12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us. 4:13 By this we know that we reside in God and he in us: in that he has given us of his Spirit. 4:14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
4:15 If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God resides in him and he in God. 4:16 And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has in us. God is love, and the one who resides in love resides in God, and God resides in him. 4:17 By this love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the Day of Judgment, because just as Jesus is, so also are we in this world. 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears punishment has not been perfected in love. 4:19 We love because he loved us first.4:20 If anyone says “I love God” and yet hates his fellow Christian, he is a liar, because the one who does not love his fellow Christian whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 4:21 And the commandment we have from him is this: that the one who loves God should love his fellow Christian too.

Being a Young Disciple is not easy, but it is edifying (builds lives) to others as we strive to be more like Christ. One of the ways we become Young Disciple is by “Illuminating the Love of God”; by revealing or being a witness of the Love of God. 1 John 4 shows us that we, as Christians, should show love to others because God is love. Everything God does goes through His Love. God’s justice, mercy, grace, and even His wrath have to go through His love. Jesus did not merely come to save us but Jesus was sent through the divine motivation of Love as it is written “For God so loved… He gave”; Jesus is the written love letter to Humanity and Love is the Message!

Since God is love, and God’s Spirit, the Holy Spirit, dwells in us according to 1 Corinthians 3:16 and 6:19 we have the ability to operate in God’s love. The same message of love that God gave us through His Son Jesus, we now send out through the Spirit of Christ that lives in us. You as a Young Disciple should love, must love and can love because God is love and God is in you!

I John 4 also tells us that we should love because it reflects our relationship with God. My wife and I do almost everything together and we spend a lot of time together. When we used to go out to restaurants I would always get chicken tenders because I loved chicken tenders and I was comfortable eating it. As I continued to hang out with my wife I began to try some of the different dishes she ordered. Now, I love want my wife loves to eat. My wife and I talk and laugh, and sometimes I find myself saying her little phrases and sometimes laughing like her. You usually act like who you hang around. It is the same with God. As you hang out with God in prayer, reading your word and in worship, you should see yourself acting more like God. You should see yourself operating more in love. God so loved the world, so you should love people too. God loves sacrificially, unconditionally and consistently, so you should too. Young disciples should love because it reflects your relationship with God.

Lastly, John shows us that Christians should love others because our love for God can only be real if you love other people. You can’t love God whom you’ve never seen if you don’t love people you see every day. If you want to measure how much someone loves God, observe how they love people. As you come to know love (God) you should love like love. If you don’t love all people, even your enemies then you do not love like love (God) because you don’t know love (God) for real.

It is my prayer that you would chose to love for God is love, it is a form of your witness of God who is love, and your love of God becomes real as you love others. Love is the message!

Rev. Max

Swag Like No Other: When Dad (God) Decided to Use His Hands

Genesis 1:27- “And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”


If I bought you new Gucci shoes how would you treat them? How much value would you give to those shoes? Some would never play in them. Some would clean them every second to make sure they stay clean. You would make sure people stay hundreds of feet away so no one would step on your Gucci shoes. Why would you do that? Because you value the product because of who made them.

Then why do we treat ourselves like some thing made off the street? If you value Gucci then you should value yourself even more and have a sense of greatness when you look in the mirror because you are made in the image and likeness of Dad (God).

We wouldn’t play in our Gucci’s shoes but we allow people to play with our lives. We wouldn’t allow people to step on our Gucci shoes but we allow people to verbally step on and abuse who we truly are until we are so mentally disfigured that we live according to a false identity treating ourselves like cheap brand sneakers when we are God-made and blood bought!

You are made by the best! When you look at the creation and all its wonders, it can not compare to you! Realize that when Dad created the earth and the universe Dad created it with the “Word” and not His hands, but when Dad created YOU that is when He decided to put a personal touch on your life. Dad decided to put His branding on you when He created you in His image and His likeness.

“When Dad (God) decided to make you out of the dust of the earth, He took something that was virtually worthless and turned it into something of the highest earthly value. Then to make your creation even more extraordinary, Dad shared His every essence with you by breathing into you the sustaining force of life! With one breath, you became a vibrant spiritual being created in Dad’s image. Image signifies form. It’s not physical form that causes you to resemble Dad; it is your spiritual form. Dad made you a spiritual being with an earthly body. Likeness signifies function. You were created not just to look like Dad but also to act like Dad!” – Image to Likeness by Terry Warr

“So we are not a human being having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” – Terry Warr

So you must see the value of who you are. Soulja Boy talks about “Pretty Boy Swag”, but you have “Kingdom Swag”, “Swag from Dad!” You are greater than what you see in the mirror! You are greater than what people think! You are a product of the divine hands of God Almighty! Bill Gates couldn’t buy you! You are priceless for you have been made with eternal hands!

So do your relationships, behavior, and choices reflect your divine worth? Do your aspirations and expectations of yourself reflect the divine intention of Dad? Choose to walk in God’s likeness. Its swag like no other!

Rev. Max

Experiences That Impact Our Lives

Do you know why you do what you do and why you are the way you are?

“The greatest choice you will ever make is your identity. Here is a critical question: Who or what shapes your life? In other words, whose image are you going to embrace as your true identity? I have shared four options: pain, people, parents, and possessions. You are faced with each one of these options every day. In fact, the reason I chose these options is the powerful impact they have in the lives of most people. “– Image to Likeness by Terry Warr

This is true. Pain, people, parents, and possessions shape our lives every day. One could even add one’s past to this list. Sometimes we identify ourselves by what we’ve done, places we’ve been and things we’ve said. These things have had an impact on not only our own lives, but others as well. How you define yourself is very important. Today, we identify ourselves by a lot of things, yet they are not the things that truly empower our lives and it is not the things that truly reflect who we are and who Dad (God) has created us to be. Our choices, relationships, attitudes, lifestyles, and aspirations would dramatically change if we had Dad as the primary influence on our lives. Our identity should not be determined by what we have done, what people say about us or have done to us, or what we have or what they think we should be. Our identity rest on who Dad is, who Dad says we are, and what we know about ourselves by knowing who Dad is in our lives.

As a military child, I had a military I.D. as a dependant because my privileges on the military base were “depended” upon who my mother was in the military. With this military I.D., I had certain rights and privileges. I was able to get on and off of the military base, go to all the stores and buy anything and I was permitted to participate in all of the events. If I didn’t have my I.D. or know who I was and used my I.D. that was based upon my mother being in the military, I would lose out on various privileges and my rights could be potentially violated. What I am saying is this: knowing who you truly are as Dad’s creation, created in the image and likeness of Dad, allows you to exercise your kingdom rights and privileges here on earth. The things you allow to limit you, would not limit you, if you really knew who you are. The people you allow to take advantage of you and the negative words they say about you that you allow yourself to live by, you wouldn’t live by if you know who you truly are. Get to know Dad today! Get to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior! You are not identified by people or things, but you can be Christ-identified with kingdom privileges with Christ as KING!

Rev. Max

New C.R.E.A.M. Christ Rules Everything Around Me

Within our culture there is a stereotype against those who don’t have the “latest” clothes, sneakers and who aren’t up with the “latest” artists, songs, and dances. Our culture has made us materialistic and we have become identified by what we have and what people see on us instead what they see in us. So the culture tries to suggest, if you’re not Drake’s “Fancy” girl or if you don’t have Soulja Boy’s “pretty boy swag” then you are nobody. What one must realize is that we are not created in the image or likeness of the material, but we are in the image and likeness of the Maker. Our identity is not based upon the temporary our the cultures C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me, but we are identified by who Dad (God ) is and who He says we are! As believers, we have the New C.R.E.A.M (Christ Rules Everything Around Me)! So don’t be defined by the latest, but realize that you have be made for such a time as this, and that you are Christ-defined!! There is more to you than what they can see on the outside!! Begin to live your life from the inside out by living by the spirit and likeness of Dad! Share your thoughts…



Rev. Max
i2L Ambassador
http://www.imagetolikeness.com/