I have to give a huge shout-out to our directors of Friendship Kids. Jamie Hampton and Jessica Seelye have a great passion for not just ministering to children, but to help families grow in their faith together. They work very hard to challenge and put resources in the hands of the parents at Friendship. We truly believe that your home is the place that sets the ultimate thermostat of your spiritual temperature. A dad who loves & serves his wife and kids unconditionally;  mom that cares for her husband and children; these things are the most important to the growth of a child.

Our Friendship Kids ministry has a passion to see Jesus glorified at home more than at Friendship. That is what helping families is all about.

Are you helping other families? What family can you serve and bless this week?

The biggest “push-back” I’ve really ever heard is that Jesus, not the church is the hope of the world.  Which sounds incredibly spiritual…but at best it’s Biblically inaccurate at worst it’s an intentional denial of the true nature and purpose of the church.  Let me explain:

What is the nature of the church?  

The main metaphor used to describe the church in the Bible is the Body of Christ.  We are told that Jesus Christ is the Head and the church is the body.  Taking this analogy the church is the main and only outlet for the will of Christ to be accomplished on the earth.  Now that is a powerful statement.  If you woke up tomorrow to your screeching alarm and your brain sent a message to your right hand to reach over and smack the crap out of it, but your hand didn’t move you’d be concerned.  The natural outlet of your brains or heads desires is your body.  In the same way the natural outlet of the desires and will of Christ is the Church!

What is the purpose of the church?

When Jesus Christ left this earth he gave this very specific command to the men who would launch the church,

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.” – Matthew 28:19-20.

So, the purpose of the church is to reach people for Christ and then train them to be like Christ (disciples).  But, how do we do that?  Paul answers that question,

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.  For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.  So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” – 2 Corinthians 5:18-20.

So, the purpose of the church is to reach people for Christ, train them to be like Christ, and our method of doing that is to be the ambassadors or representatives of Christ’s message to the world which is “Come back to God!”

According to the Bible the church IS the way the message of Jesus Christ is getting out.  So, the question then becomes, “Is Jesus Christ the hope of the world?”  The answer is found in the book of Matthew (other places as well, but this is really the clearest and most compelling), as he retells a prophecy given several hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ…

“Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen. He is my Beloved, who pleases me. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious. And his name will be the hope of all the world.” – Matthew 12:18-21

Since Jesus is without question THE one and only Hope of the world, and we his church are the main and only outlet for the will of Christ to be accomplished on the earth, then the church without question and without embarrassment IS THE HOPE OF THE WORLD!

Now the question is are we living up to our billing?

Here’s what we sang this morning at Friendship Church as we continued our series, “The Power of Love”:

The Glory of Our King (Matt Redman)
God Is Able (Hillsong)
The Stand (Kristian Stanfill’s version)
In Christ Alone (Matt Papa’s version)

Photo Props

Continuing through week #7 of the Values of Friendship Church, I cannot think of a more appropriate time to be talking about a Servant Mindset. Yesterday at Friendship, we heard about serving each other, this week is Valentines Day (a day to serve your significant other in love), AND we are gearing up for the biggest day on the church calendar: Easter.

“For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” – Galatians 5:13, NLT

This week, how will you serve each other in love? I challenge you to think about that this Valentines, and even more so on Easter.

Here’s what we sang this morning at Friendship Church as we continued our series, “The Power Of Love”:

Feet That Move (Northwood Worship)
At Your Name (Phil Wickham)
Here Is Love (Matt Redman)
Where Would We Be (Matt Redman)
Drifting (Plumb)

I believe that German pastor Martin Niemoeller, describes the danger best in his reflections during this time:

First they came for the Socialists, and I
did not speak out —
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists,
and I did not speak out —
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did
not speak out — Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me — and there was
no one left to speak for me.

I’m not a Catholic, nor do I believe as Catholics do that contraception is wrong, however, I see a very dangerous and destructive pattern beginning to emerge.  If you listen carefully you will hear certain groups of people within the US being marginalize, criticized, and even demonized because of their beliefs, whether they are orthodox or not.  Now, we see our own government telling us what we can or cannot believe and therefore behave like, that is not okay, that is flat out wrong!

I’m not a Catholic, but I will stand up for their right to not be forced to fund that which is against their beliefs.  Primarily because one day it may be us Evangelical Christians who are being told that we must now fund “X” which violates our core beliefs or face fines/imprisonment, and I for one would like others to be there standing with us!

I believe that German pastor Martin Niemoeller, describes the danger best in his reflections during this time:

First they came for the Socialists, and I
did not speak out —
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists,
and I did not speak out —
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did
not speak out — Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me — and there was
no one left to speak for me.

I’m not a Catholic, nor do I believe as Catholics do that contraception is wrong, however, I see a very dangerous and destructive pattern beginning to emerge.  If you listen carefully you will hear certain groups of people within the US being marginalize, criticized, and even demonized because of their beliefs, whether they are orthodox or not.  Now, we see our own government telling us what we can or cannot believe and therefore behave like, that is not okay, that is flat out wrong!

I’m not a Catholic, but I will stand up for their right to not be forced to fund that which is against their beliefs.  Primarily because one day it may be us Evangelical Christians who are being told that we must now fund “X” which violates our core beliefs or face fines/imprisonment, and I for one would like others to be there standing with us!

Geoff Surrat planted Seacoast Church and lead it as it grew to one of the most influential and effective churches in the United States.  He recently retired and has been visiting several churches anonymously, and has shared some of his insights in this article, along with some solutions.

Take 10 minutes and read through this great article and ask where you can improve!

5 Simple Ways To Make Your Church Stickier – Geoff Surrat

“Charm is deceptive…but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” – Prov 31:30

I want to start by saying I am no male chauvinist!  I have three sisters, two beautiful daughters, and an amazing wife.  I believe that women are incredible and except for the role of Senior Pastor within a local church can be used by God any way He sees fit.

However, I have noticed in almost 20 years of ministry and an equal amount of time growing up in a pastor’s home, that there is a type of woman who is incredibly destructive, the charming/deceptive Woman.

Now, she doesn’t wear a t-shirt saying she’s dangerous, but she should.  In fact, most people don’t even see her as dangerous, they see her as sweet, kind, and considerate; but nothing could be further from the truth.  This type of woman uses her charm to gain access to information and to gain favor so that she can later leverage them for information or for her benefit.

Allow me to help you uncover this dangerous woman:

• She comes off as very sweet, charming, and innocent.
• She’s NEVER offended by anything, but she ALWAYS seems to know the people who are.
• She seems to know everything that’s going on in everyone’s lives.
• She is constantly having lunches, coffee, and meetings with other ladies.
• She rarely says anything blatantly wrong, but she often makes snide comments and derogatory statements.
• She doesn’t like anyone giving her rules or guidelines (now she doesn’t buck them directly, she just complains to all of her friends about how stupid or silly they are).
• She sees herself as a “mediator”, simply another way of gaining more information.
• She sees a legitimate need, tells no-one about it, answers the need herself, then complains about how no one (except herself of course) is doing anything about it.
• She is often seen after services or during functions off to the side having a “conversation” with one or two other ladies.

I’m sure we could add more to this list but this should give you some good warning signs if you have someone like this in your life.  If you do, you must immediately cut yourself off!  Here’s why,

• A woman who will tell you about others and their problems will tell others about you and your problems.
• A woman who can’t follow leadership is only in it for herself, you’ll become collateral damage.
• A woman who puts down or is negative about the authority over her, will tear you apart if you ever try to confront her with any kind of wrong she’s doing.

Now, contrast that with the woman who “Fears” the Lord.  First, the word fear, as it is used here, means to have incredible respect, honor, and a healthy understanding of what God is capable of.  In other words, this is a lady that puts God, his agenda, and knowledge of what he can do ahead of her own desires.

• She doesn’t attempt to manipulate a situation to her advantage, she knows that God is her advantage.
• She doesn’t try to get the juicy details, she trusts that God will take care of what she doesn’t know.
• She willingly and joyfully submits to her authorities because she knows that they are there to protect her, and when she bucks them she is bucking God.
• She knows the destructive nature of the tongue and the anger that God has for those that cause division, and puts massive guardrails around her life to keep her from straying down that path.

This woman God praises, lifts up, exalts, and gives greater honor.

If I were a woman I know who I would hang around!

F – Focused on Community
R – Relationship Oriented
I – Intentional Discipleship
E – Engaged & Unified Body
N – Non-threatening & Friendly Service
D – Driven by Grace

Grace. Sounds easy, but it may be the most difficult thing to execute regularly. If you ask 5 people, 3 of them would probably say they are graceful people. The fourth person is too hard on themselves and the fifth person is the only honest one in the bunch.

Most of us never experience the full grace of God because we don’t extend grace to others. When’s the last time you extended grace? Maybe you need to today…

Everything we do at Friendship is driven by grace. We are in this because we love and care about people. We pour out grace because we have been extended grace. Again, this is not easy, we are not perfect at this either, but we are striving to be driven by grace.