May 25, 2014Pagsasama-sama/ FellowshipGrowth is never a matter of mere individual pursuit of God. It is always pictured as something we pursue as a community. In this church, the bond we have is strong. We have continuously been open to share Gods goodness, provide further encouragement, and correct one another in love. As we have been challenged with the series All In, God impressed to me to share how we can use our strength (fellowship) as a means of growth in His church. I Corinthians 12:21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you"; or again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." It is not just the presence of the other members that we need but also their function. Fellowship can indicate a partnership, which involves people working together. The relationship produced through fellowship leads to activities. The relationship comes first, and then the common activities follow. Fellowship also means that we have been brought into partnership with our Savior and with each other to fulfill God's will and glorify Him. Gods encouragement and challenge for us as a church is for a true fellowship.

Tithes & OfferingGiving is a matter of the heart, and its Gods way to make sure you remember He is your provision. Giving connects your heart to Gods heart in the area of money. Money can be a source of joy and a tool that helps people grow closer to God and to each other.Matt 6:21 "Wherever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be" We give to what we value most. When your heart is for God, you also value what He values- the growth of His church in fellowship and in discipleship. God is gracious to enable you to give for God's greater glory.(Being more blessed roots to knowing how loving and gracious our God is. Thus giving is for us--for our good and his glory)

June 22, 2014PrayerJames 4:8 tells us to draw near to God, and He will draw near to youGod is omnipotent. He knows everything, including the content of our prayers. Why should we pray when God already knows our needs? Because God wants to hear us personally, He wants us communicate with Him, we are important to HimThank God that we matter and that He wants us to talk to Him as well Sources: http://www.gotquestions.org/daily-prayer.html#ixzz34mnJWavNstepswithgod.com/importance-prayera-christian-believers/http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/love-worth-finding/read/articles/since-god-knows-everything-why-should-we-pray-9549.html

Grace Giving7 Principles of Grace Giving by Matthew Cherry1 Corinthians 16:1-4Now about the collection for the Lords people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. 3 Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me.Give ObedientlyGive RegularlyGive Proportionately

July 20, 2014Supporting Gods VisionLast June 21, 2014 was the E-12 discussion/ Intentional Discipleship. In the second session, the topic was about Vision. Gods vision is defined as the communication of what God wants to accomplish through us. One of the striking things the pastor in E-12 said was: We should support the vision of our pastor. God has given us a leader. He chose our leader. God has impressed or will impress His vision to our leader. By supporting Gods vision for this church, we support our pastors vision for the growth of our church.

Grace Giving7 Principles of Grace Giving by Matthew Cherry2 Corinthians 9: 6-86 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;Give GenerouslyGive PurposelyGive WillinglyGive Cheerfully

September 21, 2014Sharing God with Others out of Gratitude, Not out of Duty or Fear Isaiah 12 Version (NIV)1 In that day you will say: I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me.2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.4 In that day you will say: Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done,and proclaim that his name is exalted.5 Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.Let us continually share the Good News because we know how life-changing it can be. Let us continually share Gods love to others because we are grateful.

Grace GivingGiving is a Spiritual InvestmentMatthew 6:19-21 ~ Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."We should give because God promises to reward us for doing so. As it turns out, to give is not to throw money away, but rather to invest it for a staggering return. We relocate our possessions from our temporary earthly accounts to a permanent heavenly account. The way to invest in eternity is to give your money to God and his purposes/ ministry; this strategic giving has eternal significance, not only for those to whom we give, but also for us.

October 18, 2014Prayer Psalm 100:5 (NIV)For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.God is Good All the Time & All the Time God is Good.Did Jesus suffer? Was he sometimes lonely? Was he tempted to be discouraged? Was he misunderstood, maligned, and criticized unjustly?Of course! None of us are exempt from suffering, loneliness, discouragement, or unjust criticism, because God is developing within us the character of Christ, and, in order to do this, he must take us through all of the circumstances in life through which he took Christ.Does this mean God causes tragedies? No. God is good, and he will not cause evil or do evil. But God can use dark and stressful times for good. He'll use them to teach us to trust him, to show us how to help others, and to draw us closer to other believers.The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:8b-9, We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead (NLT).http://rickwarren.org/devotional/english/god-is-good-all-the-timeEven in times of suffering, God is good. We learn to stop relying on ourselves, and start relying on God.Grace Giving2 Corinthians 9: 7 (NIV)Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.What kind of gift would make you feel truly appreciative? No doubt most of us would be happy to receive a gift from a giver who is motivated by love rather than by a sense of duty or obligation. When it comes to giving, motive matters. It matters to us. And more important, it matters to God.http://www.jw.org/en/publications/magazines/wp20130901/god-loves-a-cheerful-giver/

November 16, 2014Pure LovePsalm 90:12 "Teach us, O Lord, to number our days so that we may gain a heart of wisdom."When a person realizes that our existence on earth is limited, we want to live each day to the fullest. In other words, seize the day. (Ex: Pure Love) When we recognize that we have only so much time on this earth, that truth will help us think rightly about how to spend our time. This, in turn, will encourage us to grow in wisdom. We will want to judge well how to use the time allotted to us, and this requires godly perspective. Its not just knowing what we can do, but also what we should do. When we number our days, we will strive to fill each one with value, living every moment for Gods purposes and glory.The only way to have insight and perspective and skill in living is to make God your primary concern--to see him and his word and his commands and his reward and his judgment as the issues of utmost importance.By showing us who God is and our relationship to him, it sharpens our vision of what is truly important in life. We can only live our days wisely when we see God clearly.http://www.thehighcalling.org/reflection/numbering-our-dayshttp://www.joshharris.com/2006/12/teach_us_to_number_our_days.phpGrace GivingGiving is an act of Worship Proverbs 3:5-10 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. Solomon: "in all your ways acknowledge him"(vs. 6) "Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops"(vs. 9) "Trust in the LORD" (vs. 5)In other words, what Solomon was teaching his son that, in his worship, his financial gifts to God were the way he:ACKNOWLEDGED GODHONORED GODTRUSTED GODhttp://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/giving-as-an-act-of-worship-jeff-strite-sermon-on-giving-general-62961.asp

March 1, 2015Go!- The Great Commission"All authority has been given to me, in heaven and on earth." (verse 18)Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV)19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.~Wherever each one may be, in line with God's will for each, the command is to make disciples~No hesitation~ Teaching to keep (that is, obey) everything that Jesus commanded. But since one doesn't obey something he doesn't know about, we must begin by teaching the commands themselves, all of them.~Training~Assurance

Grace GivingWe should give because we want to be more like Jesus.Philippians 2V6-7 Christ laid aside His privilegesThat's what it said in 2 Cor 8:9...Jesus gave up all His rightful riches that were His in Heaven.He was willing to become poor so that we could be rich.V5 We are to have the same mind and attitudeV1-4 Care more about others than you do yourself; be willing to give and attend to their needs.

References:http://www.walkinhiscommandments.com/Pickering/Miscellaneous/msc3.pdfhttp://www.biblelessons.com/giving.html

May 10, 2015One Source: The Holy SpiritRomans 8:5-6Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.My Way or Gods WayHave you ever tried going two directions at once? Its impossible. You have to make a decision which direction will you take. The same is true in being a Christian. Either we follow Jesus completely or we dont. Receiving Jesus into our lives means we dont only make Him our Savior but our Lord as well. The two markers or proof that we are living a new life in Christ is our OBEDIENCE and LOVE (obeying God and loving others). But how can we consistently follow Christ when we are so prone to failure and mistakes? The Holy Spirit gives us the supernatural ability to live the abundant life God wants us to have. The Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity. He is one of the Persons of the Godhead, coequal with the Father and the Son. Because He is God, He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and omnipresent. He helps us in our difficulties, He comforts us, He guides us to the Truth.The moment we accept Christ, the Holy Spirit automatically indwells us and gives us the power to obey Christ. We are enabled to obey Him as the Holy Spirit makes the impossible possible. But we need to choose to be controlled by Him in all situations. (Source: Won by One Campus Edition)

Grace Giving(Nearly a year ago)Giving is a matter of the heart, and its Gods way to make sure you remember He is your provision. Giving connects your heart to Gods heart in the area of money. Money can be a source of joy and a tool that helps people grow closer to God and to each other.Matt 6:21 "Wherever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be" We give to what we value most. When your heart is for God, you also value what He values- the growth of His church in fellowship and in discipleship. God is gracious to enable you to give for God's greater glory.(Being more blessed roots to knowing how loving and gracious our God is. Thus giving is for us--for our good and his glory)

The Holy Spirit