Category Archives: Need

Get in the Chase!

23 Friday Sep 2016

Posted by in Faith, Love, Need, Opportunity

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There’s nothing like a good chase.  Your senses spring into action! You feel alive!

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Brynlee and Ellasyn came over for a visit. They love to play chase and our living room is ideal because there are several circular options when determining the route of escape. As I chased them, they giggled and squealed with excitement. And I found myself laughing out loud with them.

What are you chasing? You are chasing something. Maybe it is money, pleasure, love, acceptance, fun, security, health, a dream, recognition, or applause.

Do you want an exciting fulfilling chase?  Chase love!  I Corinthians 14:1

Quit trying to figure out what you should be doing and start loving the ones you’re with!

Love meets the need of another. Do you see a need? Chase it!

7 Excuses to Stay Seated

  1. I’m too tired.
  2. I’m too busy.
  3. I’m just one person.
  4. I don’t have adequate resources.
  5. I need some down time.
  6. I don’t know which need to chase.
  7. I don’t really care about this.

3 Steps to Enter the Chase

  1. Commit to the chase.
  2. Stand up and take the first step.
  3. Chase whole-heartedly.

4 Truths About the Chase

  1. You will not be able to meet every need you see.
  2. You will not be able to meet the entire need.
  3. You will have to set priorities.
  4. You will have to set boundaries.

3 Results of the Chase

  1.  The chase will exhilarate you.
  2.  The chase will exhaust you.
  3. The chase will enrich you.

Experience the thrill of a full-out chase!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Needless Death

03 Wednesday Aug 2016

Posted by in Faith, Meaning of Life, Need

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Needless_Alley_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1282956August already!  How is your summer going?  Have you been doing life with Jesus?

When you hear that question, what do you think about?

When you hear that question, how do you feel about yourself?

Do you understand what it means to do life with Jesus?  Perhaps it is a new thought for you.  Perhaps you have questions about it.  Perhaps you carry a lot of baggage about it.

One of the very first things we need to realize about doing life with Jesus, is that it is about believing.  It is about faith.  If we get faith right, we get life right.

The Christian life is lived the very way it begins.  It starts with faith and it is lived by faith.

We begin the Christian life when we hear the gospel truth about Christ and believe it.  The moment we believe, we receive the Spirit of Christ.  We have new life by faith.

We live the Christian life the very same way.  We hear God’s truth about some area of our life and we believe it.  The moment we believe the truth, we receive the enabling work of His Spirit.  We are able to live in a new way by faith.

Just as we cannot earn our own way to heaven, neither can we live the Christian life on our own. To think we can is pure arrogance.  It suggests that Christ died needlessly. Galatians 2:21

When we live as though it all depends on us, we are declaring that Christ died needlessly.

We begin the Christian life when we rely on the work of Christ to save us.

We continue the Christian life when we rely on the working of Christ and His Spirit within us to transform us.

Declare your need of Christ – not just for salvation but for all of life.  Depend on Him. Do life with Him.

 

Hearts Before Hands

24 Thursday Mar 2016

Posted by in Compassion, Help, Need

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Photo taken by my son, Matthew Rockwell, after the Nepal earthquake.  His compassion has moved him to form Nepal Grassroots Recovery.  Check it out on Facebook.

You have a tender heart. You see a need and take action.  You have compassion.

You have a closed heart. You see a need BUT take no action.  You lack compassion.

Why do you lack compassion?

  1. You don’t have enough time.
  2. You don’t have enough resources.
  3. You don’t know where or how to begin.
  4. You don’t want someone to take advantage of you.
  5. You don’t want to enable bad choices.

Are these valid reasons or mere excuses?

  1. The Good Samaritan stopped what he was doing and made time to help.
  2. The Good Samaritan used the resources he had available at the time.
  3. The Good Samaritan took the first step, and then another and then another.
  4. The Good Samaritan gave without thought of repayment.
  5. The Good Samaritan gave without thought of worthiness.

Compassion is first a matter of the heart.  Is your heart tender or hard?  When you see a need, do you desire to help?

You cannot meet every need you see.  If you think you can, you are not really seeing the people around you.  You have limited amounts of time, energy and resources at your disposal.  But that is not an excuse to do nothing.

Instead of thinking about what you don’t have, think about what you do have.  Are you generous with your time?  Are you generous with your resources?  or do you spend all your time and resources on yourself and your family?  If you’re not generous with what you do have, you’ll never be generous with what you hope to have.

An open heart leads to open hands.

It is never convenient to serve others.  It always takes time and resources.

So as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Colossians 3:12

Screaming Hunger!

04 Thursday Feb 2016

Posted by in God's Word; Bible, Hunger, Need

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A newborn baby knows when she is hungry! She knows what she needs and nothing will stop her screaming until she gets her milk!

We have much to learn from babies.

Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to your salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.  I Peter 2:2-3

Like babies, we, too, are hungry. But sadly, we don’t recognize our hunger for what it really is. We reach for things that fail to satisfy.

Only God Himself can satisfy our deepest hunger.  People will disappoint.  Things will disappoint.  But God will never disappoint! I Peter 2:6

Let me ask you a couple of questions:

  1. Do you know you are hungry?  What void are you trying to fill?  What emptiness are you feeling?
  2. What are you doing to satisfy your hunger?  Are you filling it with activity? food? drugs? alcohol? work? things? kids? spouse? friends? fun? busyness?

Let me encourage you to start satisfying your heart hunger in a real way.

  1. Tell God you are hungry.  Tell him what you lack.  What do you need?
  2. Taste the kindness of the Lord.  Spend time reading His Word.  Don’t read for the sake or reading, but as you read ask God to show you truths that will satisfy your innermost needs.

I guarantee you that once you taste God’s kindness, you will keep going back to Him for more!

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Matthew 5:6

 

Needs and Deeds!

23 Friday Jan 2015

Posted by in Compassion, Need

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I want to be fruitful today.

It’s easy to over complicate things.  Over complicating things makes us less likely to do them. Much has been taught in the Christian arena about bearing fruit.  But it’s really quite simple. If you want to be fruitful today, keep your eyes and ears open for a pressing need. And then do something to meet that need. Engage in a good deed.

The need may be big.  The need may be small.  The need may be that of a co-worker, a family member, a child, a neighbor, or even a stranger.

The deed may be big.  The deed may be small.  The deed may be for a co-worker, a family member, a child, a neighbor, or even a stranger.

Needs are everywhere.  If we simply take our eyes off ourselves and look at the faces around us, we will see a need.  And therein lies our opportunity! It may be as simple as speaking a good word to an anxious heart.  It may be as messy as stepping into a crisis.  The more pressing the need, the greater the opportunity!

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When you see the opportunity, ENGAGE!

Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful. Titus 3:14