Coaching Points
Wednesday, November 8th
I pray you continue to enjoy and find it profitable to be in to the Word and journaling.
This week I want to share some things that were impressed upon me this past weekend. As many of you know, Pastor Mujahid El-Masih from the Voice of the Martyrs was our quest speaker for the weekend. This man knows Scripture! He gets up regularly early in the morning to read the Word of God and pray. I am not talking about 10 or 15 minutes. I’m talking about hours. This man prays with power! Here is a quote from him: “When you come to know God better through His Word and prayer, you will live differently.”
I was humbled and convicted about my time spent with the Lord. But more importantly, I was spurred on. I want, and must spend more time in His Word. I must spend more time in prayer. There is no other way to truly live differently in this world. I think each one of us must ask ourselves, “How much time do I waste by watching TV rather then spending time in His Word and prayer? How much time do I waste on busyness rather than spending time in His Word and prayer?” Being convicted is not enough. Talking about getting around to it will not do either. We must discipline ourselves to spend more time in His Word and prayer. That is how we get to know God better, which in turn will cause us to live differently. That is exactly what we have been trying to impress upon each of you by being “In the Word” and journaling. Today I’m encouraging you to take it to another level. I challenge you to spend more time in the Word and in prayer. Watch to see the dividends it will pay in your life.
I know many of you would like an easy way to learn how to live life, an easy way to build your faith, an easy way to know and quote Scripture, an easy way to find time to pray. But there is no easy way. Spending time with God is hard work because we must make the time. But if we do, it will bring blessing and peace now and in the life to come.
“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” (1 Tim. 4:8)
Another tip I got from Pastor Masih is to learn and to pray the names of God. Calling on His name is a reminder of who He is. Ex: “We call on you Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider / Jehovah-Shalom – The Lord our Peace/ Jesus the bread of life/ Holy Spirit our Counselor.” I found a great link which lists the names of God. It is www.smilegodlovesyou.org/names.html.
Read with a friend. You don’t need to actually read with them being present, but it is good to open ourselves up to others. Consider approaching a friend for the purpose of sharing what God has been showing you in His Word. Not only will you be keeping each other accountable, but you will both be encouraged to God working in each others’ lives.
Also, be wary of reading plans that have no flexibility in them. The problem that happens is called life. Life happens, and you miss a day of your reading plan. Then you have two days’ worth to make up. Pretty soon the amount of reading is too great to make up, and you quit. God gives you grace, and you should give it to yourself as well. This is no excuse to miss your daily time with God, but it also does little good to wallow in failure. A good reading plan will grant you grace for second chances.
Wednesday, October 22nd
Hopefully you have enjoyed and found it profitable to be in to the Word and journaling.
This week I would like to talk to you about “Bible Reading Plans.”
-How many of you have attempted to read the Bible through in a year? Though this is great for the sake of saying you did and for the sake of giving you a great overview, I do not strongly encourage this type of reading.
-Do you have a plan or system you like to use in reading the Bible? Plans can certainly be varied. There is not a right or wrong way. The most important thing is that you are in the Word.
The assignment for this week is to pick a book of the Bible and to continue reading and journaling. When you come back next week and get into your groups, each of you will very likely be sharing something from a different book of the bible.
Further tips:
-We have bible reading plans at the church. They are located on the window next to the church mailboxes. You can use these plans even if you do not use it to read the Bible through in a year.
-The Old Testament: Some books of the OT can be very long. You might want to intersperse a NT reading with your OT reading. Or you can intersperse a Psalm or a Proverb while reading an OT book. When you are reading the Prophets, it is important to read the introduction and understand the time period and which king was in power.
-The New Testament: I encourage you to intersperse the gospels with the epistles.
For example: You may read the book of Romans. Then read one of the gospels.
You may read two shorter epistles – 1 & 2 Timothy and 1 & 2
Peter and then a gospel.
This is a great way to compare what Jesus said in the gospels and how His teaching fits with what the writers of the epistles are teaching.
Assignment for this week: Pick a book of the bible and continue to journal. Be ready to share with your group next week. When you share next week, you should be able to say, “I have been reading in the book of ?? and this is what God has shown me.”
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Praying Scripturally
Scripture to pray before you begin reading the Word each day has been pasted in the front cover of your notebook. These scriptures are prayers asking God to speak to us. We have also encouraged you to respond back to God in prayer from your daily reading.
Another point I would like to encourage you in today is to specifically pray Scripture for yourself. Let me share a couple of examples. You can read the Scripture passages I am referring to on your own. I will give you examples of praying Scripturally.
Ephesians 1:17-19
“I pray Lord that you may give me a Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that I may know you better. I pray that the eyes of my heart may be enlightened in order that I may know the hope to which you have called me, the riches of your glorious inheritance of the saints, and your incomparably great power that is at work within me. I know that power is like the power you used to raise Jesus from the dead. O, Lord give me that power to do your work.”
Colossians 1:9-14
“I ask you God to fill me with the knowledge of your will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. I pray this in order that I may please You in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of You, being strengthened with all power according to your glorious might so that I may have great endurance and patience and to be able to joyfully give thanks to You Lord who has qualified me to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. Thank you for rescuing me from the dominion of darkness and bringing me into the kingdom of Your Son, in whom I have forgiveness of sins.”
1 Thessalonians 2:13
“Lord, may the people of EBC receive the Word of God they hear from me. May they accept it not as the word of men, but as it actually is the Word of God, which will be at work in those who believe.”
Psalm 5:3
“Lord, I have laid my requests before you this morning, now I wait in expectation. May you answer in your most perfect timing and according to your most perfect will. Help me Lord to rest in you while I wait.”
I can guarantee you that God would love to answer prayers of this kind.
Wednesday, October 1
Make the most of the resources in your Bible.
Whenever I want to know more about a particular Bible verse, the first place that I go is back into the Bible. Most Bibles have cross-references that will guide you to other places in Scripture for more insight. These cross-references are usually listed in a column on the page.
Thompson Chain Bibles have a place in the back of the Bible where all of these cross-references are written out. This speeds up the process quite a bit.
Many Bibles also have other resources like outlines, maps, concordances, and commentaries. So spend a little time discovering what is in your particular Bible and make the most of it.
Always remember that those are just tools developed by man to study the Bible. They are not comprehensive. Only God’s Word is complete. There is no shortcut to Godliness. Develop the habit of searching the Scriptures every day that you might grow closer in your relationship with God.
Wednesday, September 24
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)
1. God can use many ways to speak to you. I believe the Holy Spirit will meet you where you are at when you seek Him. It may be through a devotional. I currently use two devotionals (Turning Point / Men of Integrity) in addition to my regular time in the Word. I caution you to not depend only on devotionals and spontaneous thoughts to build your faith. THE PRIMARY WAY GOD SPEAKS TO US IS THROUGH READING HIS WORD. It may be through a teaching on the radio such as 88.1, a Calvary Chapel station. It may be through a single verse that encourages you. Some days will be better than other days. Some days the Scripture will jump off the page; some days it won’t.
2. Before beginning to delve into a book of the Bible, take time to read the introduction. A study bible will have an introduction. I believe you will find an introduction very helpful. It will give you the setting and context for the book.
3. You must make time each day to have your time with God. This time is going to have to come from somewhere else. This somewhere else may be very important, but not as important as spending time with God.
· Morning – Best because your mind is fresh.
-first thing before you shower / after showering / as you eat breakfast
· Mid-day – Before you eat lunch / as you eat lunch / carve out a time after lunch
· Evening – Before you eat supper / before you do anything else for the evening
· Night – Just before bed. A more difficult for most because you may be tired and might fall asleep.
Don’t turn on the television before spending time with God.
4. Keep in mind finding time will be a battle. Satan doesn’t want you in God’s Word. He will try to distract you, discourage you, and defeat you. He is going to try all he can to get you to quit. You must persevere! Don’t quit! Remember, we are trying to build a habit.
5. Yes, this is hard work. It takes commitment. You will be stretched. That is why Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 4:7 that you must “train yourself to be godly.”
Wednesday, September 17
Make (and keep) an appointment with God each day
Time is precious. And it seems that we are never able to get everything done in the day. That is why it is vitally important that we schedule a daily appointment with God. God is always available, but we all too often neglect our opportunity to meet with the King of kings. So set a time aside for meeting with God each day, and protect that time at all costs. Write it in your planner if you have to.