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April 15, 2024

in Discipleship, DTOTD, Jesus

by Brendon

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Press Pause –> RESET

” Jesus came and told his disciples, ” I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, GO, and make disciples of ALL the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20

Since the turn of the new year, it has seemed like someone launched a time pod into the future and instead of living life, it has felt like we are just riding this time pod to where we are today. There has been so much that happened since January and it is hard to really understand and imagine how fast the first 3 months of the year went…..

13 Sundays

4 Belong Experiences

New Space Beta Testing

Palm Sunday

Good Friday

Easter Sunday celebrations

A Guest Services and Local Outreach training

Spring Break

Baptism Sunday

The launch of a new space – Discover Harvester

But yet, as the busyness comes to a slow, I find myself yearning for the beginning. I find myself yearning to go back to where it is simple and understandable and life giving.

Not that any of the events or sundays or things that are listed above are not life giving or fun or anything along those lines. But I find myself drifting back to those things that seem simple or the things that we learned as kids. And I wonder, do we make our lives to complicated??

Life is hard. I know. I live it every day just like you do. It is a hard thing to remember every practice, find every document, be at every meeting on time, be in the office, get the to-do list done at the house, clean the carpet where the dog peed, create a healthy and balanced meal and then execute it, and don’t forget that is just for the 4 year old….

Every now and again, I think there are RESET moments in our lives that we all desperately need.

Peter experienced a reset moment in his life with Jesus when Jesus approached him in John 21. Jesus asks Peter if he loves Him and Peter shows he loves Jesus. And Jesus gives a foreshadowing to Peter’s life.

Paul was given a RESET moment on the road to Damascus when Jesus came and approached him in the light. Paul, at that moment Saul, met Jesus and spent 3 days in a house with a scale like blindness on his eyes. Once the RESET moment happened, Paul went on to be one of, if not, the most influential pastor, church planter and writer for all of the Christian faith.

The man healed of his blindness from birth in John 9. Jesus meets this man that is born blind and Jesus uses this RESET moment to show God’s power here on earth by healing this man’s blindness. The man is known and is questioned because he was the man that was blind, but because of Jesus he was not the same.

The woman caught in adultry in John 8 was given a reset moment also when Jesus stepped in front of her and got every single person to drop their stone. Jesus was the only one left when he bent down and talked to the woman and showed her compassion and mercy and love and forgiveness.

RESET’s are not just for video games when you are losing and want to start over. There is going to be a moment in time when we all need to find Jesus in a RESET moment just like the ones listed above.

Why a RESET?

Because when we begin to think and rely on ourselves more than we rely on Jesus and the Holy Spirit, thats when we fall short of everything we are asked to do.

Including, the great commission that Jesus gave us to GO into the world and make disciples of all nations.

When we get overrun with busyness and schedules and plans and all of the things that come at us in life, we begin to slip away from the foundation of our lives which should be Jesus. And as we see in the accounts above, when Jesus is the reason for the RESET,

then we can be reminded that Jesus promised he would be with us to the end of the age. ( see above )

Another one of these foundation scriptures to think about this week:

” Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” – John 14:1-3

Jesus wants to be a part of your RESET. Let him be.

February 23, 2024

in DTOTD, Jesus

by cefiggins

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Three Suggestions for when you are Stupid Tired

Imagine sitting across from someone who is just Stupid Tired. This is the kind of tiredness where the person across from you can barely make sense. Their weariness is palpable. They try to laugh off the fact that they can’t get their sentences to come out of their mouth correctly because they are just bone tired. Under their bloodshot eyes, you can see moonlight shadows of exhaustion. You can see the weight of weariness in their neck and shoulders with fatigue throbbing through every fiber of their being. The person across from you may be a friend, a family member, or a co-worker who just seems to be knocked down over and over again. They just can’t catch a break physically, spiritually professionally, or financially. Perhaps the person across from you is a reflection of yourself in a mirror.

Life seems to be overwhelming for so many of us right now. My days seem filled with just sitting with people in their pain. There is tension, sorrow, grief, disappointment, and stress at every corner. As Christians, we are not immune to weariness and feeling beaten down by the trials of life. However, during our struggles, we have a source of strength and comfort in our faith. Matthew 11:28 reminds us of the invitation extended by Jesus himself: “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest.” (Matthew 11:28, The Message).

So, what can we do as Christians when we find ourselves exhausted, weary, and beaten down? Here are three suggestions.:

1. Find Comforting Shelter in Prayer: In John 16:33, Jesus assures us, “I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.” (John 16:33, The Message).

Prayer is our direct line of communication with God, our shelter of comfort in times of trouble. When we are weary, we can turn to prayer for strength, guidance, and comfort. Pouring out our hearts to God allows us to find peace amidst the storms of life. When you are even too worn out to find words Scripture tells us that the Spirit will intercede for use when we don’t know what we should say to God (Romans 8:26-27.) We just need to keep turning to the Father and crying out His name. There is no need for eloquence.

2. Rest in God’s Word: The Bible is filled with promises of hope, strength, and encouragement. In moments of weariness, immersing ourselves in scripture can renew our spirits and remind us of God’s faithfulness. Psalm 119:105 tells us, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (Psalm 119:105, The Message). By meditating on God’s Word and allowing it to guide us, we can find direction and solace, even in the darkest of times. I want to emphasize the importance of meditation when you are exhausted. You may be so Stupid Tired that you can’t imagine even physically being able to lift a bible much less dive into an in-depth study. Meditation is often a serious reflection, thought, and rumination on scripture. You may not have the mental capacity to do any of those things right now. But meditation can also be devotion. In seasons of fatigue keep the devotion and commitment to at least listening to scripture to soothe your soul. Devote yourself to listening to the Bible as you get ready for the day, pause in a parking lot to catch your breath, or as you fall into bed at night.

3. Lean on Christian Community: Satan is the creator of Stupid Tired. He purposefully runs us down and wears us out. He convinces us that we are too tired to be with people, or we will bring people down with our weariness, or that we have no one to rely on in the first place. We were never meant to journey through life alone. God has given us the gift of Christian community to support, encourage, and uplift one another. Galatians 6:2 instructs us, “Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ’s law.” (Galatians 6:2, The Message). When we are Stupid Tired, we can lean on our brothers and sisters in Christ, allowing them to walk alongside us, lift us up, pray for us, and provide practical assistance. Email, text, call fight out of your fog to reach out to your people. Your season of weariness could be someone else’s season to be a blessing of stability and comfort. Just like when you come out of this season you will be a blessing of strength and energy to someone else.

Christians are not promised a life free from weariness or hardship. However, we have the assurance that in Christ, we can find rest, peace, and strength to endure. By seeking refuge in prayer, resting in God’s Word, and leaning on Christian community, we can navigate through life’s challenges with hope and resilience, knowing that we are never alone in our journey.

August 9, 2023

in Church, Discipleship, DTOTD, Guest Services

by Brendon

0 Comments

DTOTD – Seasons

Seasons come. Seasons go.

That is the phrase and saying that we say about life. Have you ever used that phrase in a conversation with anyone?

Sometimes, that can bring a sense of peace to those that are working through a hard time or maybe even someone who is a season of plenty.

The interesting thing about that phrase is that it also pertains to our discipleship process.

In a conversation yesterday, along with a few others from across the country, a conversation centered around serving and what it means and how it is beneficial to our becoming like Jesus.

In this conversation, I was struck by something that was said by the leader of the cohort. He said this, ” People must serve to be discipled.”

Strong statement.

However, that statement is one that I would truly stand by. But…..

That statement does not mean that if you have a season of life come about that does not allow you to serve or is not the right time, then that season is for you to step away.

Jesus came to this earth to show love and grace and truth and to serve others, ultimately to give his own life as a sacrifice for ours on the cross.

The Gospel of Mark states in chapter 10, ” The son of man came not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many.”

We continually see Jesus serving and teaching and serving and teaching.

But there is something about Jesus’ life that can sometimes get overlooked. That in reality might not be nearly as long as what we think about it, but there are times when Jesus need to have a moment of rest or retreat from the continual serving that He did.

Multiple times in the Gospel we see Jesus retreat to a quiet, desolate or place of loneliness to be alone with his heavenly father. He would go to be quiet and to pray and to reset his heart.

In our lives, we all have those seasons. Where we feel an immense pressure to serve or succeed or to do things. But in those seasons we also seem to feel the weight of serving more and more.

Jesus said this in Matthew 11: ” Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

When you find yourself in a season where you are overwhelmed and feel an immense burden of responsibility……maybe it is time to take a season of rest.

I was once asked the question, ” Brendon, are you having fun with what you are doing?” The question came at a very weird time in my life, one that I was not ready for or expecting. However that question led to one of the darkest but yet life giving seasons of my life. The follow up to my answer, ” I think I am.” was this….” That’s good. Because if you are not having fun with what you are doing, then it might be time to take a step back and find the next thing God has planned for you.”

It takes a lot of courage and patience and prayer to follow that guidance to take a step away. Especially if you are taking a step back to reconnect with God in a way that you have not had time to do so.

But if you do find yourself in a season of stepping back, do not fill the time with other things.

Fill the time that you used serving, with a chance to run to Jesus and allow him to embrace you and give you the rest you need.

Season come. Seasons go.

Jesus’ peace and rest is always available.

rest Tag

Press Pause –> RESET

Three Suggestions for when you are Stupid Tired

DTOTD – Seasons

From the HCC Outreach Team: