River Notes

Check out this video about Ian and Larrissa

GLocal is a word I will be referring to this Sunday (May 13^th). The word is a combination of Local mission and Global mission.  It is not original with me so I thought it would helpful to more information from the Person I go the word from, Bob Roberts pastor of NorthWood Church in Keller, Texas. Here is a great article that explains the idea of a GLocal mission better.

 Here is some great marriage principles I referenced on Sunday march 18^th from a Focus on the family Broadcast I heard on 660 AM Thursday. I especially found his comments on Philippians 4:8-9 (Part 1, 11:15) helpful. The audio broadcast is called: “Marital counselor and pastor George Kenworthy offers biblical advice and encouragement for marriages in crisis.” Click here to listen (Part1 of 2), (Part 2 of 2).

 Also I referenced BlueLetterBible.org a Bible study resource to help study the individual words in Philippians 4:8 better. Here is a link to this resource as well. Click on the “C” next to Phil 4:8 to do a concordance word study.

Some thought on the John Lent reading

 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29 (NIV)

 How does this help me prepare for Easter?

1. Look – Easter should be about pointing people to Jesus
2. Lamb – A perfect lamb without spot or blemish (I Peter 1:19). Imagine if we lived in a world that still required sacrificing a lamb for our sins. Imagine the corruption (Jn 2:13-22) in a modern temple if physical (Rom 12:2) sacrifices were still required. Imagine a world without Easter
3. Of God – Jesus came from God as Immanuel for us. Jesus words on the cross “my God yy God why have you forsaken me” have a rich depth in light of the trinity.
4. Who takes way the sin – So why do I treat my sins as so special and hold onto them so tight? “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, NIV)
5. The world – A biblical church is a church has a global perspective we must look for opportunities to join God in his work around the world through prayer, mission trips, and financial contribution. Easter is a global celebration.

On Sunday January 22^nd we studied Nehemiah’s prayer on Sunday morning. One key application from this prayer is praying God’s promises like Nehemiah (1:8-9). Praying God’s promises ensures our prayer are biblical, God’s get all the glory and many times are more effective. Check out this blog 365Promise.com. This gives you a promise each day. Use this promise to guide your prayer time with God.

Intellectual Courage

 Many times Christian live in intellectual fear, we are afraid the truth claims of the Bible will not stand up to the rigors of academia, and scientific research. I found this sermon by Michael Ramsden helpful in overcoming intellectual doubts about Christ and the Bible.

JasonR

Steve Jobs passed away yesterday. There is much that can be said, and is certainly being said about his passing. One thing most would say is that it is the end of an era. For me the era is that of the youthful fascination of computers. When kids like me found endless wonder in the great mysteries of what could be done, and people like Steve Jobs tinkered in their garages trying to figure what could be done next. That has given way to the business of computers, the commonness of it, the bureaucracy. From a wild frontier, to just another business tool, another story for the kids about ‘back in the day’.

As we get older, we accumulate these ‘end of eras’, the passing of people and the times of our lives. With each one, a new wisdom, a new sense of maturity. When Read the rest of this entry »

Below is a helpful list to help us understand what Pride is. The list is taken from a sermon delivered by John Piper Are You Humble Enough to Be Care-Free? (I peter 5:5-7) and is designed to support the message given at 3Rivers on Aug 28, 2011

• Pride is Self-satisfaction

Hosea 13:4-6 (NIV)
⁴ “But I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me. ⁵ I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. ⁶ When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.

Read the rest of this entry »

Marriage could be defined as an “intimate relationship with our best friend.” Creating that closeness is difficult in the best of situations, however when a couple does not share a common love for Jesus it can be even more difficult.   Here is a sermon that I have found helpful in understanding how to help women make a marriage work when their husbands don’t love Jesus. Women of Valor for Non-Promise Keepers

I trust this sermon is helpful.

Life Together is built on truth (This information was an extra handout from the Message on Sunday May 15th)

The Bible gives us a tremendous amount of guidance on how to do life together. A key factor in doing life together well is to live by the principles given us in God’s word. Our culture give us plenty of guidance some good some worthless. I would encourage you to do life together built on truth. Built on the Bible. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV) Read the rest of this entry »