What is God's Will?

Moses said to Jethro, "...the people come to me to seek God's will."

So the logical question becomes, "What is God's will?"

Jesus said, "Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."

So the logical question again is..."What is God's will?"

Jesus also said, "If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own."

So the logical question remains: "What is God's will?"

Paul wrote the following: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."

Okay. Okay. So..."What is God's will?"

And of course, Paul also said this about God's will - "And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will."

Come on, Man! Tell me pleeeessse! "What is God's will?"

"It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality..." (1 Thess. 4:3)

"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thess. 5:18)

"For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men." (1 Pet. 2:15)

So, to sum up the answer to the question, "What is God's will?" God's Word says:

Be Holy. Be Thankful. Be Good.

Are you in the center of God's will?

Dish Out

Are you Wise?

This Sunday I am going to share an amazing story of God's grace and providence with our church. I cannot wait to share it because most people have never heard the story and most will not believe it when they do hear it, but it is all true!

As most of you know, my life verse (check out our website at www.c3charleston.com to find out) is one that deals with the subject of wisdom, and that verse will become the backbone of the message this Sunday as James teaches us how to receive wisdom and reject pride. I cannot wait!

Many of us have met people who we would consider to be wise. The definition of it is very different depending on the source from which you quote it. The Bible says that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." (Prov. 9:10; Psalm 111:10) This fear literally means having a healthy and continual reverence for the Creator of the universe, the Sustainer of the universe, the Provider of grace and the Eternal Father of the Redeemed. "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty."

Too often, we are thrust away from the throne room of heaven and into our everyday activities of temporal living. Our gaze must remain on the heavenly, the spiritual, the eternal. Once we get in the habit of maintaining that perspective, we approach closer and closer to the realm of true wisdom!

Blessings this week and I look forward to seeing you all Sunday!

Dish Out

Serving with a Purpose!

My heart was blessed the other night as I sat in my hotel room in Milwaukee, WI watching local news. A blizzard was moving through the area and a news team was dispatched to a local Milwaukee neighborhood. Three teenaged boys, home from school for the day, had decided to do something for their neighbors and not themselves.

So, they got up early that morning, donned their winter gear, grab some snow shovels and went from house to house on their block, shoveling the sidewalks and driveways for all of their neighbors. By the time the news team got to the street to see what was going on, these 3 boys had shoveled the entire block! When asked why they chose to do such a selfless act, one boy said, "It's better than sitting inside playing video games and drinking hot chocolate!"

This is a classic case of serving with a purpose. Our Lord commands us to serve others. In fact, he said that those who serve will be considered the greatest in the Kingdom of God. We can impact Charleston with the Gospel of Jesus Christ when our neighbors see us serving with a purpose.

Think to yourself today...how can I serve someone else with a purpose?

4 Him!

Randy

Keep a Tight Rein on Your Tongue!

A wise person once told me, "If someone gossips to you about someone else, chances are they are gossiping to someone else about you!"

We live in a world where everybody loves a juicy story. Why do you think People, the Enquirer and Star magazines are so popular? In fact, every neighborhood has the queen or king of gossip. Every workplace has one too. And sadly, many if not most churches have a gossip ring as well.

Are you the kind of person who leans in on gossip, or leans away? The Bible warns us against using our tongue for tearing others down. Let's face it, we have all said things we wish we could take back. Sometimes, our mouth takes over before our brain has processed the potential damage that could be done. (WWJD?)

As far as people are concerned, there are two kinds...those who fill you up, and those who drain you out. What kind of person are you? No matter the answer today, God has all the tools and resources to turn you into a "filler-upper!"

Join us this Sunday for a little talk called "Get Real" at C3. It's just what the doctor ordered!

Dish Out