Day three Rick asks us…What’s driving your life?
I’ve found the things that drive us are many and varied. Let me list a few…
The need for acceptance
The desire for money and status
Fear
Guilt
Anger and resentment
The need for approval
The desire for fame
The desire and need for peace
Not all our desires and needs are wrong but to make these desires and needs the focus of our lives is. In fact, I think to be driven in these ways to is tragic…to be driven (controlled) by anything other than God is missing out of God’s best.
What is currently driving (controlling) your life?
God says…
“I know what I am planning for you….I have good plans for you , not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future.”
Monday, October 20, 2008
Day two
Day two Rick Warren shares with us a WONDERFUL truth…
“You are not accident.”
Have you ever felt as if your life was accidental?
Well, if you’ve ever felt this way, Rick’s next words should make you want to dance in the highway!
“Your birth was not mistake or mishap, and your life is no fluke of nature. You parents may not have planned you, but God did.”
“God prescribed every single detail of your body. He deliberately chose your race, the color of your skin, your hair, and every other feature. He custom-made your body just the way he wanted it. He also determined the natural talents you would possess and the uniqueness of your personality.”
In light of these statements, what is God saying to you?
I’ll tell you what he’s saying to me…I’m not a mistake…nothing about me is a mistake. I may have surprised my parents, but I didn’t surprise him! I was made by God to be just the way I am…inside and out. I don’t have to try to be like anyone else. Just because I’m a little loud and a little over the top and on the edge doesn’t mean I’m not useful to God. I don’t have to be ashamed of who I am. AND I need to take care of the woman HE made me!
YeeHaw! I’m dancing now!
“You are not accident.”
Have you ever felt as if your life was accidental?
Well, if you’ve ever felt this way, Rick’s next words should make you want to dance in the highway!
“Your birth was not mistake or mishap, and your life is no fluke of nature. You parents may not have planned you, but God did.”
“God prescribed every single detail of your body. He deliberately chose your race, the color of your skin, your hair, and every other feature. He custom-made your body just the way he wanted it. He also determined the natural talents you would possess and the uniqueness of your personality.”
In light of these statements, what is God saying to you?
I’ll tell you what he’s saying to me…I’m not a mistake…nothing about me is a mistake. I may have surprised my parents, but I didn’t surprise him! I was made by God to be just the way I am…inside and out. I don’t have to try to be like anyone else. Just because I’m a little loud and a little over the top and on the edge doesn’t mean I’m not useful to God. I don’t have to be ashamed of who I am. AND I need to take care of the woman HE made me!
YeeHaw! I’m dancing now!
Now let's start with Day One!
Day one Rick Warren slaps us upside the head with this statement…
“It’s not about you.”
Please share how this made you feel…were you surprised to learn that the purpose of life is about more than simply your happiness?
Personally speaking, I used to think that being happy was the most important thing in the world to me. I also thought that basically, I wasn’t a selfish person…after all, my mom taught me to share my crayons and open doors for older folks (thanks, Mom!) but as I’ve come to learn and know Christ more, I realize that I’m basically a very selfish person! Basically, it’s been about Jane…what turns me on, makes me happy, fulfills me as woman! I’ve come to see that without Jesus in the very center of my life, my life is hopelessly SELF centered!
Yuk…I hate to admit this to you!
“It’s not about you.”
Please share how this made you feel…were you surprised to learn that the purpose of life is about more than simply your happiness?
Personally speaking, I used to think that being happy was the most important thing in the world to me. I also thought that basically, I wasn’t a selfish person…after all, my mom taught me to share my crayons and open doors for older folks (thanks, Mom!) but as I’ve come to learn and know Christ more, I realize that I’m basically a very selfish person! Basically, it’s been about Jane…what turns me on, makes me happy, fulfills me as woman! I’ve come to see that without Jesus in the very center of my life, my life is hopelessly SELF centered!
Yuk…I hate to admit this to you!
Online Bible Study - Women With Purpose!
Greetings and thank you for joining me for an online Bible study using Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life!
We are taking a 40 day spiritual journey! And…we’re doing it differently than we’ve ever done it before…at least I am! ONLINE! Aren’t we blessed to be able to share what God is doing in our lives from all over the United States! Through the blessing of the I-net, we can come together from wherever we live and share in God’s kingdom! Please pray for each other as we start this new adventure!!!
For the sake of giving Rick Warren the credit he deserves, I’ll “write” his words in quotes and make them bold! Bible verses will be written in italics.
Please covenant with me and with each other and more importantly, with God to commit the next 40 days to learning God’s purpose for your life! Just send me an email stating “I commit” and followed by your name and the city and state where you live.
NOW! Are you ready?! I am!!!
We are taking a 40 day spiritual journey! And…we’re doing it differently than we’ve ever done it before…at least I am! ONLINE! Aren’t we blessed to be able to share what God is doing in our lives from all over the United States! Through the blessing of the I-net, we can come together from wherever we live and share in God’s kingdom! Please pray for each other as we start this new adventure!!!
For the sake of giving Rick Warren the credit he deserves, I’ll “write” his words in quotes and make them bold! Bible verses will be written in italics.
Please covenant with me and with each other and more importantly, with God to commit the next 40 days to learning God’s purpose for your life! Just send me an email stating “I commit” and followed by your name and the city and state where you live.
NOW! Are you ready?! I am!!!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Women With A Purpose Online Bible Study
Calling women everywhere to find out who they are in Christ!
Beginning Monday, Oct. 20, at 7:00 p.m., I'll be leading a women's online bible study. I'll be using Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life. If you're interested in participating, please purchase a copy of the book and read through "Day 7". Then next Monday, I'll post my thoughts on the material we've covered along with some discussion questions for you to comment on. I'll be online until 8:00 p.m. to read and answer your questions and comments. I'll check back during the week and comment for anyone who blogs at another time.
This is a first for me and so very new. I hope to find out how to start a live chat in the near future. I'll keep you update.
Have a great week and see you next Monday!
"It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ,...he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone." Ephesians 1:11 (The Message)
Beginning Monday, Oct. 20, at 7:00 p.m., I'll be leading a women's online bible study. I'll be using Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life. If you're interested in participating, please purchase a copy of the book and read through "Day 7". Then next Monday, I'll post my thoughts on the material we've covered along with some discussion questions for you to comment on. I'll be online until 8:00 p.m. to read and answer your questions and comments. I'll check back during the week and comment for anyone who blogs at another time.
This is a first for me and so very new. I hope to find out how to start a live chat in the near future. I'll keep you update.
Have a great week and see you next Monday!
"It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ,...he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone." Ephesians 1:11 (The Message)
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
The Race!!!
Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! Hebrews 12:13-3 (The Message)
This past Saturday I went to a swim meet. It was quite exciting. There were no Michael Phelps there but it was a notable event. You see, it was my middle grandchild's very first swim meet. Yes, the notoriously astute and absolutely lovely, Anna is now a Newberry Eel. Graceful and agile, Anna swam in two events and while I was breathless with anticipation and as proud as the grandmother of an Olympian, Anna finished a decisive last in each race! But that was okay! No, it was more than okay, it was absolutely fabulous! I'm not kidding...it was fabulous. You see, Anna didn't quit. She didn't cry when she lost. She didn't have one of famous "meltdowns". She didn't even blink at being last. She simply went over to the coach, got her time, and then prissed across the concrete to greet her adoring fans... her daddy, little brother Nate, and me! I wish you could have seen her cute little self determinedly making her way to us in her Speedo swimsuit, goggles, and Newberry Eels swim cap! She had finished the race and she was coming for her hugs and her all important chili cheese fries!
As I've reflected on Saturday's triumphant first swim meet, I think I'm getting a clearer picture of how God sees us. You see, he doesn't expect us to be the best or the fastest or always the winner. I think he's most proud of us when our attitudes are in the right place and when our hearts are set on finishing the race. As Anna finished her first race, I felt as if I were in the pool with her, urging her on, telling her not to quit, watching with pride as she climbed out of the pool. Don't you think God is like that with us? He's in it with us, urging us on, telling us never give up and he watches with pride as we finish the job.
So, I don't know about you but I'm never going to quit and when I finish the race, I know God will be waiting for me with big hug and maybe, just maybe, an order of chili cheese fries!
Love, Jane
This past Saturday I went to a swim meet. It was quite exciting. There were no Michael Phelps there but it was a notable event. You see, it was my middle grandchild's very first swim meet. Yes, the notoriously astute and absolutely lovely, Anna is now a Newberry Eel. Graceful and agile, Anna swam in two events and while I was breathless with anticipation and as proud as the grandmother of an Olympian, Anna finished a decisive last in each race! But that was okay! No, it was more than okay, it was absolutely fabulous! I'm not kidding...it was fabulous. You see, Anna didn't quit. She didn't cry when she lost. She didn't have one of famous "meltdowns". She didn't even blink at being last. She simply went over to the coach, got her time, and then prissed across the concrete to greet her adoring fans... her daddy, little brother Nate, and me! I wish you could have seen her cute little self determinedly making her way to us in her Speedo swimsuit, goggles, and Newberry Eels swim cap! She had finished the race and she was coming for her hugs and her all important chili cheese fries!
As I've reflected on Saturday's triumphant first swim meet, I think I'm getting a clearer picture of how God sees us. You see, he doesn't expect us to be the best or the fastest or always the winner. I think he's most proud of us when our attitudes are in the right place and when our hearts are set on finishing the race. As Anna finished her first race, I felt as if I were in the pool with her, urging her on, telling her not to quit, watching with pride as she climbed out of the pool. Don't you think God is like that with us? He's in it with us, urging us on, telling us never give up and he watches with pride as we finish the job.
So, I don't know about you but I'm never going to quit and when I finish the race, I know God will be waiting for me with big hug and maybe, just maybe, an order of chili cheese fries!
Love, Jane
Monday, September 8, 2008
The Geese
Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Matthew 6:26 (NLT)
I work in a building made mostly of glass. Today, everyone stopped what we were doing to look at the huge (well, it was big for Sumter!) traffic jam outside. Cars had stopped both ways and they were lining up to the traffic light! We didn't hear the crash of a wreck or the siren of an ambulance. We didn't see smoke. What we did see was a gaggle of geese crossing our busy street! Those geese were waddling from one side of the road to the other just like they owned the place! It was quite a sight. I couldn't help but be reminded that God is still in control! Yes, in the middle of my daily hustle and bustle, God reminded me through those geese He is in control of everything, even the traffic on Wesmark Boulevard!
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