Word Keeper

3 SSs to be posted later tonight….

~~~~~~~~

Just 4 more days including today until Christmas!

Newsong – Christmas Shoes

It’s a sad song, and some people don’t like it, but the message is awesome. n

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video 4, Christmas, Christmas Shoes, count, Countdown, days, down, Music, Newsong, Shoes, song, Video

Just 5 more days including today until Christmas!

Third Day- O Come All Ye Faithful

They do a great job with that song.

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video 5, Christmas, count, Countdown, Day, days, down, O Come All Ye Faithful, Third, Third Day

Sermon from October 25, 2009

~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the final of three in a series called: How to Make Your Life Count.

(I couldn’t find the songs for this sermon)

~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope this Vimeo thing is working good for everyone. Here’s the audio.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark 1:21-34

Jesus’ activity described in Mark 1 is a model of how we can spend our lives to make a difference in the world:

Jesus opposed evil and did good:

Jesus cast out demons (Mark 1:21-28). … Jesus came to destroy the works of the Devil (1 John: 3:8).

Jesus Healed the sick (Mark 1:29-31).

What does this have to do with me? … Jesus called us to join Him in opposing evil and doing good:

Matthew 5:13-16

Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). … Salt is a preservative. It can keep food from going bad. We are to preserve the world and try to keep it from going bad. … Salt doesn’t do much, it sits there. We can have an impact just by being a person of character.

Jesus said, “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 54:14-16). … A little light in a dark area can make a big difference. Don’t hide the light. Be good to everyone. … Astound unexpected people by doing small things with great love.

The butterfly effect:

A small change in one place, can make a huge change in another place.

But the first thing you need to do is make sure you are going to Heaven. … Accept Jesus as your Savior and be saved by the grace of God.

Jason religion, Sunday Sermon + Add New Category

Just 6 more days including today until Christmas!

Here’s Steven Curtis Chapman singing his version of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

Wow. He’s a gifted singer. And the song is awesome.

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video Christmas, Come, count, Countdown, days, down, Emmanuel, Music, O, O Come O Come Emmanuel, song, Video

Sermon from October 18, 2009

~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the second of three in a series called: How to Make Your Life Count.

(I couldn’t find the songs for this sermon)

~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope this Vimeo thing is working good for everyone. Here’s the audio.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark 1:16-20

The second thing Jesus did was to call people to disciple.

“He’s shooting a shotgun to the crowds and a rifle to the few who would come follow Him.” The shot gun hits more people with fewer shots, but it’s not as effective as a well-placed shot from a rifle. With a rifle, the shot goes where it is aimed, unless a heavy wind comes along. (Note: this is only figurative as we discuss Jesus. He never really shot anyone.) … In other words, Jesus discipled at the same time He evangelized. He called a few people to follow Him closely so that He could teach them more deeply. (Mark 2:13-14, 3:13-14)

Jesus’ ministry is sort of like a funnel. People kept getting poured into His life on the edges. And eventually, if they didn’t spill out, they became close to Him and close to each other.

As Jesus goes on with His ministry, He spends more time with the disciples and less time with the crowds. (Mark 6-9)

Jesus’ strategy for changing the world was to create the church (Matthew 16: 18; Ephesians 3:10-11). This is why He spent so much time with this small group of followers. “The gates of Haydes will not overcome it.”

Many of us take the cafeteria approach to church. We pick and choose what we want to have, what we want to do. We often skip over “commitment” and “service” even though they are two very important ingredients in making our lives count.

If you want to make your life count, pour your life into a small group of God’s people.

Jesus’ strategy involved these eight principles:

1. Selection: He selected those willing to learn.
2. Association: He stayed with them, even when they wouldn’t listen.
3. Consecration: He required obedience.
4. Impartation: He gav Himself away.
5. Demonstration: He showed them how to live.
6. Delegation: He assigned them work.
7. Supervision: He checked on them.
8. Reproduction: He expected them to multiply … Grow the church.

“Jesus’ plan for the world is not big programs, is not big organizations.” … He preached the Gospel to crowds and poured His life into a small group. … Then He expected them to multiply. … If you want to make a difference, focus on a group, a Sunday school class, the youth group, or just a group of friends. The small things add up. … If you could take a page out of the Bible and fold it in half fifty times, it would be 17 million miles thick.

Not Everyone is a teacher

… But we can all work together with the different spiritual gifts we have. (Romans 12:5-6) … A football team has an owner, a general manager, coaches, and players. The owner oversees everything. The general manager has coaches who work under him/her. The coaches coach the players. Each position has its own coach. Some of these players get fame and glory, but they wouldn’t have any of that without the support of teammates or guidance from the coaches. Some players go on to become coaches. Some coaches become general managers. … I think the church has this same sort of rotation. God is the owner. The pastors of local churches are like general managers. The Sunday school teachers are coaches. The assistants to those teachers are position coaches. The students are  the players. Some students will go on to become teachers and some will become pastors, but most will become the people behind the scenes, the janitors, the towell boys, the water boys, the people who keep everything running smoothly.

Jason religion, Sunday Sermon

Sermon from October 11, 2009

~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the first of three in a series called: How to Make Your Life Count.

(I couldn’t find the songs for this sermon)

~~~~~~~~~~~

I’m trying something new with the audio. Instead of YouTube, I’m using Vimeo because I can get the entire sermon on there in one upload. … You might want to let it buffer though.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark 1: 14-15

Do you ever feel like you’re an a cycle?

How can you make a difference in your world?

One Solitary Life (Slightly modified)

Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty. Then for three years He was an itinerant preacher.He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put His foot inside a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place He was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself…

While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. While He was dying His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – His coat. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the center piece of the human race and leader of the column of progress.

I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built; all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life.

So, what did Jesus do on Earth to make His life count?

First, He preached the Good News of God. …

This is the main thing He did to make a difference on Earth. … “The main activity of Jesus” … God’s Kingdom is coming! And you can join His kingdom! He has sent His son to show you the way! … “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1: 14-15)

Jesus said: ” . . . to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” (Mark 1: 35-38) … He came to preach the Gospel.

So, does this mean we, normal humans, should have this as our main purpose too?

Jesus said that we are to preach the Good News! In Mark 16:15 we are told by Jesus, “Go . . . and preach the Good News . . .”

Preaching the Gospel is what will last.

Anyone can be saved. The most important decision/action anyone will ever do. … Anyone who asks Jesus for salvation will be saved … But how can someone ask for Salvation if s/he does not the person s/he needs to ask? … And how can some believe in something s/he has not heard about? … And how can someone hear about this opportunity if s/he has never preached to? (Romans 1-:13-14) … We can share this knowledge that we have with others so that may hear, believe, and then call on Jesus for Salvation.

You may say, “But I’m not a preacher.”

In Acts 8 verses 1 and 4, we see that the “ordinary” Christian preaches too. In verse 1, every Christian except the preachers scatter from Jerusalem. In verse 4, all those who scattered were preaching the Good News everywhere! This is how Christianity is spread!

Apply to the family….

Teach the kids! Stay at home moms/dads might feel insignificant because they don’t have a job. … But they have the most important job of all! They raise their children in a Christian home. (Psalm 78:3-7)

Kids, age 15 and under, you can’t drive, vote, or run for a public office, but you can tell your friends about Jesus. You could change their lives forever and ever! You can have more influence than the President of the U.S.!

Don’t leave the opportunity for anyone’s ghost to talk to you in a dream and ask, “Why didn’t you tell me about the Good News?”

If you want to have more meaning in your day-to-day life, Do what Jesus did! Preach the Good News! Get involved in a ministry if you can.

Jason religion, Sunday Sermon

Just 7 more days including today until Christmas! 1 week!

Checkout this interesting rendition of of What Child is This by The Havingas.

I like that one, but here’s a slightly more traditional version What Child is This by Third Day.

That’s an awesome song. And great videos.

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video Christmas, count, Countdown, Day, days, down, Havingas, song, The Havingas, Third, Third Day, Video, What Child is This

So this is the first in a while. This one is from October 4.

~~~~~~~~~~~

We had a concert. The Men’s Ensemble sang  for us. Here’s the audio of it. You may want to let it buffer for a while.

They really did a great job!

Jason Fun, Music, Sunday Sermon

Just 8 more days including today until Christmas!

The one and only Elvis Presley singing Silent Night

He may be the king of rock ‘n roll, but he could sing Christmas songs too!

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video 8, Christmas, count, Countdown, down, Elvis, Elvis Presley, Music, Night, Silent, Silent Night, song, Video

Just 9 more days including today until Christmas!

Here’s a nice video from a Sims2 game put to NSYNC’s version of The First Noel

That’s a nice little video. They did a good job with it I think.

Jason Fun, Holidays, Music, Video 9, Christmas, count, Countdown, Day, days, down, Noel, NSYNC, song, The First Noel, Video