To share your thoughts and read others, click on the comments link following the Reflection that you would like to respond to.
June 28-29, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Youth
Being a true reflection of the image of God can seem like an impossible task, but one of the things that continues to be on my mind is the promise of Jesus in Matthew 6 that He will be with us always!! With that being true there is hope for us to be able to live an HD life. One of the most important responsibilities that we have as we live our lives in HD is to help people make the connection between who God is and what they see in us. This can come through actions or a conversation or an attitude. What are some ways that you hope to help people make the connection in their understanding of who God truly is? What are some ideas that you have to reach out to people in a practical way that will help them discover the truths of a personal relationship with their Heavenly Father? What does it mean to you when you read the words of Jesus who tells us to love one another? What will that look like in your life?
June 21-22, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Matt Sasso, Pastor of Jr. High Ministries
This weekend we began the series "Life In HD: It¹s In The Mirrors." We
looked at how scripture helps us to see that there is a life to which
God gives us, and a life to which he calls us to live. As we looked at
the question of why buy in to HD life, we hopefully understood a few
important reasons of why we should buy in. The first is that God
created us to be in His image and buying into this HD life is about
reflecting it to others. The second reason to buying in is because we
are His reflection. Thirdly, we get to play a part in God¹s will being
on earth as it is in heaven.
Living life in HD, is simply being restored daily into the image that your Heavenly Father created you to be, and reflecting it to others around you. Hopefully this message is reminder for each of us that it is time to do some soul searching as we individually ask God to reveal the areas in our own lives and that we reflect His image to others around us. This week I would love to read your posts about how you are reflecting Christ to those around you as we are used in establishing God¹s will in our communities.
Living life in HD, is simply being restored daily into the image that your Heavenly Father created you to be, and reflecting it to others around you. Hopefully this message is reminder for each of us that it is time to do some soul searching as we individually ask God to reveal the areas in our own lives and that we reflect His image to others around us. This week I would love to read your posts about how you are reflecting Christ to those around you as we are used in establishing God¹s will in our communities.
June 14-15, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching & Worship
This weekend we
looked at one verse, John 3:16. In this verse we found four ways our heavenly
Father relates to us. Then we took those four things and applied them to us as
earthly fathers on this Father's Day weekend. The four ways God relates to
us is that he loves us, he gives to us, he requires from us, and he has prepared
a future for us.
This message was a
good reminder for me that whatever the age of my children and now grandchildren,
I can still learn and I can still grow in these four ways. I know that this can
also be a time that is hard for many people due to the type of relationship they
had or have with their father. If you were there, you may remember the quote from
Bill Hybels that I shared. He said, "The healing power of our heavenly Father is
greater than the wounding power of our earthly father." What a great
thought. Whatever your relationship with your father, my prayer is that
the healing power of our heavenly Father is at work in our
life.
I'd love to hear
how this message touched your heart. God Bless.
June 7-8, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Youth
What has been your concept of worship in the past? This weekend we talked about the possibility for worship all around us in any situation as we seek to bring glory and honor to God, and that worship is more than an event but a lifestyle, as we were made to worship.
What have been some of your most worshipful moments? Were they in a time and place where you expected it, or in a spontaneous moment of awareness of the presence of God all around you? I have to say that some of my deepest moments of worship have been when each of my children were born. I have also had many intimate times before the Lord worshipping in song, both by myself and in a large congregational setting. How about you? We would love to hear your stories of worship.
What has been your concept of worship in the past? This weekend we talked about the possibility for worship all around us in any situation as we seek to bring glory and honor to God, and that worship is more than an event but a lifestyle, as we were made to worship.
What have been some of your most worshipful moments? Were they in a time and place where you expected it, or in a spontaneous moment of awareness of the presence of God all around you? I have to say that some of my deepest moments of worship have been when each of my children were born. I have also had many intimate times before the Lord worshipping in song, both by myself and in a large congregational setting. How about you? We would love to hear your stories of worship.
May 31-June 1, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching & Worship
I know the subject
of weight can be a sensitive issue. This weekend I didn't want to talk about
our physical weight, but the weight of things and the weight of worry as we talked
about the exercise of simplicity. As I prepared for this message I
couldn't help but remember my own struggles with the topic of simplicity and
really appreciated the perspective from Richard Foster.
I was captivated
by his concept of the inner reality and the outward lifestyle. It made sense to
me and I know I'll be working on living the words of Jesus this week on this
subject. Be sure to take some time to read the first eighteen verses of
Matthew 6. Join the blog below and let me know how the message touched
your heart, created questions, or confirmed what is unfolding in your life
right now.
May 24-25, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching & Worship
This week in our
series, 24 Hour Fitness, we talked about the subject of confession. As I reflect
on the message, my focus turns to having a trusted friend to confess our sins to.
James 5:16 instructs us to confess our sins to one another. I had several
people come up after the messages and ask about that part of confession. It
seems we all can agree that confessing to God is a good thing, but confessing to
a friend is something that requires a little more thought.
During the message I
shared about my trusted friend and the difference he has made in my life when it
comes to confessing. So here is what I want to ask: Do you have a trusted
friend that you confess your sins to? If so, how did that come about? What
has been the positive connection to building spiritual muscle in your life? If
you don't have a trusted friend, what are your thoughts about this part of our
spiritual life?
You can reply by
using the blog feature below. Let's dialogue on this important way to build
spiritual muscle in our life.
May 17-18, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Youth
Ok, here is a great opportunity for you to really help others out in their walk with God! As we talked about this weekend, for some, silence and solitude is extremely difficult, if not seemingly impossible to do in this day and age. But some of you have found some ways to get silent before the Lord, and we want to know how you do it. What are some ways that you allow silence and solitude to penetrate your heart even in the midst of a hectic schedule or crowded space? What opportunities have you taken advantage of to have some quiet and alone time with God?
For some, this idea of silence and solitude may sound like a good thing, but is something they have all but given up on. This is your chance to help others in their journey towards God by sharing some practical ways that you make silence and solitude happen in your life.
If you are one who really struggles in this area please feel free to express what holds you back and maybe someone will have an idea for you to try! This is an opportunity for us to get involved in people's lives. Let's do it!
Ok, here is a great opportunity for you to really help others out in their walk with God! As we talked about this weekend, for some, silence and solitude is extremely difficult, if not seemingly impossible to do in this day and age. But some of you have found some ways to get silent before the Lord, and we want to know how you do it. What are some ways that you allow silence and solitude to penetrate your heart even in the midst of a hectic schedule or crowded space? What opportunities have you taken advantage of to have some quiet and alone time with God?
For some, this idea of silence and solitude may sound like a good thing, but is something they have all but given up on. This is your chance to help others in their journey towards God by sharing some practical ways that you make silence and solitude happen in your life.
If you are one who really struggles in this area please feel free to express what holds you back and maybe someone will have an idea for you to try! This is an opportunity for us to get involved in people's lives. Let's do it!
May 10-11, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Jeff Taylor, Pastor of Teaching & Youth
I hope you all had a nice Mother's day. This past weekend we talked about the idea of surrendering the children in our lives to God. This could mean with your biological children, adopted children, foster children, nephews, nieces, kids on a team that you coach or a class that you teach.
Surrendering can look so many different ways. What has it looked like in your life? What are some ways you have learned to surrender your kids that may be an encouragement to the rest of us who will need to do it some day? Click on the link below and tell us your story. Have a great week!!
I hope you all had a nice Mother's day. This past weekend we talked about the idea of surrendering the children in our lives to God. This could mean with your biological children, adopted children, foster children, nephews, nieces, kids on a team that you coach or a class that you teach.
Surrendering can look so many different ways. What has it looked like in your life? What are some ways you have learned to surrender your kids that may be an encouragement to the rest of us who will need to do it some day? Click on the link below and tell us your story. Have a great week!!
May 3-4, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching/Worship
As I was reflecting on the message this week, I was reminded once again of the value and importance of prayer. I think it would be true to say I have learned much about prayer by praying. My goal this week was to get us praying. I hope that you will take the three points of this weekend's message and work them into your life this week.
Remember to begin where you are, be absolutely honest with God, and keep the conversation going all the time. By the way, when praying while driving, be sure to keep your eyes open. God still hears those prayer just fine.
Shoot me a BLOG below of how it’s going this week as you become spiritually fit through prayer.
As I was reflecting on the message this week, I was reminded once again of the value and importance of prayer. I think it would be true to say I have learned much about prayer by praying. My goal this week was to get us praying. I hope that you will take the three points of this weekend's message and work them into your life this week.
Remember to begin where you are, be absolutely honest with God, and keep the conversation going all the time. By the way, when praying while driving, be sure to keep your eyes open. God still hears those prayer just fine.
Shoot me a BLOG below of how it’s going this week as you become spiritually fit through prayer.
April 26-27, 2008
This week's "Reflection" by Gary Keith, Pastor of Teaching/Worship
This week we took
some time to explain both baptism and the Lord's Supper. It was noted that
the early church took seriously these two practices and so should the church of
the 21st century. Both were modeled by Jesus, both were established by
Jesus, and both are to be embraced by followers of Jesus. As I reflect on today's
message I come away with a renewed sense of the value and importance of these
two unique practices. May each of us at LBF take seriously both something
to do and something to remember.
If you were in one
of our services this weekend, join our blog below with your thoughts and
reflections on the message of this weekend. What was one thing that you
heard that was new? What was one thing that you knew already but appreciated
being reminded about? What is one thing you will do differently
now?
Thanks for taking
the time to blog with us. God bless!
