PEXELS
It is Easter season for the family of God. This is the time of year that we consider to be the highlight of the Christian faith and one of the holiest and most wonderful seasons to celebrate our faith. It is indeed both painful and beautiful because it is a time that we celebrate Christ's death and His resurrection simultaneously. We call “good Friday” good, but it's when we remember that the Holy Son of God, sinless, perfectly loving, was brutally beaten and executed for my sins and your sins. But Sunday celebrates the resurrection and new life and eternal hope. With recent trends of our culture and society wanting to imply that the message of the Christian faith is antiquated at best and inappropriate at every level, we must declare the message of grace clearer than ever. Liberal and progressive thinkers shun the message of Jesus and His word like a country boy shaking fire ants from his boots. But most often I have found that the message of Jesus is not hard for them to accept. In fact, the real message of Christ is something most people are starving for if they would just search deep enough within themselves and not fear what they find.
I propose that this Easter season, and the days to follow, we who know Christ need to talk as much about Him as we possibly can. We need to look for ways to share the message of grace and the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here are four ways to talk about God in everyday conversations.
#1. God is a Comforting God.
We are in a society that is rapidly deteriorating into depression, fear, insecurity, and high anxiety. The suicide rates are climbing. February and March are months where suicides typically sore. Loneliness and emptiness are highest on the list of challenges facing many young people today. But God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 God teaches us He is the God of all comforts, who will comfort you in all your afflictions.
When I find someone lonely, empty, or afraid, it is easy for me to share with him or her that I have had such feelings. I share with them that in my personal experience when it seems like no one else can understand or even cares what is hurting my heart, God is there for me. God has been, is, and will be my comfort. I share it with great confidence. I know most of you reading this have had that same experience with God. Listen for people to express hurts or emptiness, anxiety or fears and then tell them about your experience with our comforting God. (Below this blogpost we will give you some specific ways and times God has comforted hurting people.)
#2. God is a Giving God.
God is the greatest giver of all times. I recently heard a fellow minister teach in a chapel at a rehabilitation center where I share that God made trees that produce fruit and plants that produce vegetables. You can simply pick your food from a plant or tree and eat. That is pretty cool when you think about it. He talked about how God made cows, chickens, deer and rabbits and how tasty they can be! Can I get an amen? As a deer hunter, I thought at least the cows and chickens are easy to catch! How good is God to us! James 1:17 says He is the Father of all good gifts. Every good thing you have is from God. I have a good Labrador retriever laying at my feet as I type, who was given to me by a great friend about 15 years ago. I love Dakota. She is a gift from God and my friend, Scott, to our family. God made chocolate. How good is that! I have a great Ford F-150 pick-up with 340K miles on it. I affectionately call my truck "Shadow." (It’s a country boy thing to name your truck.) Shadow is a gift from God and has served many single moms, young families, widows and my family for 12 years now. The computer I use to create my blogs is a gift. My music that is playing now as I write is a gift.
My church family is a gift from God. I am blessed with many friends. Each is a gift from God. My wife and children are gifts from God. My first grandson, born just three weeks ago, is a gift from God. I have some amazing friends, really amazing close friends who I consider all special gifts from God. Drinking water, breathable air, soft beds, guitars, chocolate, traditional recurve bows, books, movies, chocolate, napkins, photographs, toilets and accompanying paper supplies, flowers, birds, sunsets, work opportunities, and chocolate — well you get the idea — these are all gifts!
Take time to be thankful, and you will be able to share with those who may struggle in the area of thankfulness. He is a generous and loving giver. Ephesians 1:3 says that God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings. 1 Peter 1 says that He has given us all we need for life and godliness. The greatest gift ever is Jesus. We read in John 3 that God so loved us He gave us His Son Jesus to save us from our sins. In Romans 8 we read that He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Please use this time of year to remind your co-workers and friends that God is a giving God. He is the best provider you will ever know. I hope and pray you can and will say that with conviction this Easter season. Also, anytime you are called on to pray for a meal you can say, “Thank you Lord for being the best provider ever and giving us Jesus Christ and the only means of our salvation.”
#3. God is a Creative God.
Have you ever really looked at a hippopotamus or an elephant or a crocodile? How about the zebra and the giraffe? You can see this truth in almost any area. Insects, stars, clouds, sky colors, people's taste in clothing, food, hairstyles, etc. The list is endless. God created this world with millions of colors and beauty beyond words. There is creative beauty in nature, music, art, in loving behavior, in children playing carefree without schedules and time frames. Our world is filled with creativity. You can start this conversation in a Walmart line. Just a few weeks ago at a long check-out line in a local gas station several people were talking about the new M&M flavor: jalapeno. Yep, you read that right! Just in case you have not heard, that is the recent new flavor! Introvert that I am, I stood there for almost three minutes hoping the line would move. Then I remembered that years ago God whispered to me, "I put you in long, slow lines so you can talk about me!" Oh, yeah! Duh! So with a quick "Jesus help me" prayer, I blurted out, "Well as creative as M&M has become, they have long way to go to catch up on God's creativity and they are using all of God's ingredients!"
Certainly with all the "Pinterest" creativity out there, you can find a way to compliment a friend's decorum and highlight how wonderfully creative God is at the same time! God created mature wine from jugs of water in John 2. He created stars so beautiful it made angels sing we are told in Job 38. Best of all, He created a way for lost, lonely and helpless sinners to go to heaven and live with Him forever. Now that's creative!
#4. God loves the underdog.
If you know any Bible stories at all, you probably know at least one about an underdog that God blessed and helped. Young David, a shepherd boy, (“pizza delivery guy” as I like to call him; just a shout out to my camp friends) faced down a 9 foot tall, seasoned warrior with more battle scars than David had hairs on his chest, is a good underdog story. Gideon, the "fraidy cat" threshing wheat in a hole in the ground for fear of being seen by the Midianite terrorists, was an underdog. He questioned God several times, snuck around at night, and played "prove-it" games with God using a rug! God used him to become the warrior who helped defeat the Midianite army that held Israel captive for over seven years. How about Joseph, the favored son of the all-important Jacob? He was sold into slavery by his brothers, abandoned in jail, and forgotten. Later he was unjustly accused of sexual crimes against an official’s wife and put back into prison. Yet he became a great ruler who would save Egypt and Israel during a great famine. Let's not forget Rahab, the harlot of Jericho, who is listed in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Think of Joseph, the carpenter, who was privileged to care for the only, holy, begotten Son of God. Think of Zacchaeus, that tree-climbing little man, whom Jesus knew by name. Think of others such as Levi the tax-collector, Peter the fisherman with a rocky path to walk, or Paul, the violently aggressive bounty hunter turned super-missionary. God loves the underdogs. God loves redeeming and rescuing “unredeemable”.
Somehow I think you have a personal story of an underdog season of your life when God showed up and showed off His grace in your weakness. Most every Sunday that I speak somewhat coherently in our pulpit is one of those moments for me. It is when a country bumpkin, introverted, speech class dropout shares the Word of God and people are helped by the Spirit of God in that moment.
So many people today feel unloved, unimportant, insecure, ashamed and afraid. In this Easter season you can brag about how God loves the unlovable. Jesus turned a raving demon-controlled man with no identity into a missionary in Luke 8. He transformed an arrogant and bigoted Samaritan woman, with deep hollows in her heart, into a vibrant missionary in John 4. In everyday conversations you will hear people talking about underdogs. Maybe in the sports world they will mention the final four. (Auburn? Really?) Maybe in the political realm an underdog candidate will be discussed. Maybe a t-ball team or a student who graduated despite severe handicaps will be discussed, and you can inject how God loves serving the underdog. Take a shot and testify that He is a loving, gracious and caring God.
Final note to my friends who are pastors: Please, please, please, lead the way in showing your church family how to share in everyday conversations. Tell a waitress, a gas clerk, a stranger asking directions something wonderful about God and let the adventure begin. Let's not miss the opportunity during this special season to share about the greatness of our God and His Son Jesus.
If 6.14 Ministries can be of any service to you and/or your church, please feel free to email us at 614rebuild@gmail.com. We want to see your ministry thrive. You can also contact us through our website by clicking here.
Footnote: God comforts those with
I propose that this Easter season, and the days to follow, we who know Christ need to talk as much about Him as we possibly can. We need to look for ways to share the message of grace and the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here are four ways to talk about God in everyday conversations.
#1. God is a Comforting God.
We are in a society that is rapidly deteriorating into depression, fear, insecurity, and high anxiety. The suicide rates are climbing. February and March are months where suicides typically sore. Loneliness and emptiness are highest on the list of challenges facing many young people today. But God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 God teaches us He is the God of all comforts, who will comfort you in all your afflictions.
When I find someone lonely, empty, or afraid, it is easy for me to share with him or her that I have had such feelings. I share with them that in my personal experience when it seems like no one else can understand or even cares what is hurting my heart, God is there for me. God has been, is, and will be my comfort. I share it with great confidence. I know most of you reading this have had that same experience with God. Listen for people to express hurts or emptiness, anxiety or fears and then tell them about your experience with our comforting God. (Below this blogpost we will give you some specific ways and times God has comforted hurting people.)
#2. God is a Giving God.
God is the greatest giver of all times. I recently heard a fellow minister teach in a chapel at a rehabilitation center where I share that God made trees that produce fruit and plants that produce vegetables. You can simply pick your food from a plant or tree and eat. That is pretty cool when you think about it. He talked about how God made cows, chickens, deer and rabbits and how tasty they can be! Can I get an amen? As a deer hunter, I thought at least the cows and chickens are easy to catch! How good is God to us! James 1:17 says He is the Father of all good gifts. Every good thing you have is from God. I have a good Labrador retriever laying at my feet as I type, who was given to me by a great friend about 15 years ago. I love Dakota. She is a gift from God and my friend, Scott, to our family. God made chocolate. How good is that! I have a great Ford F-150 pick-up with 340K miles on it. I affectionately call my truck "Shadow." (It’s a country boy thing to name your truck.) Shadow is a gift from God and has served many single moms, young families, widows and my family for 12 years now. The computer I use to create my blogs is a gift. My music that is playing now as I write is a gift.
My church family is a gift from God. I am blessed with many friends. Each is a gift from God. My wife and children are gifts from God. My first grandson, born just three weeks ago, is a gift from God. I have some amazing friends, really amazing close friends who I consider all special gifts from God. Drinking water, breathable air, soft beds, guitars, chocolate, traditional recurve bows, books, movies, chocolate, napkins, photographs, toilets and accompanying paper supplies, flowers, birds, sunsets, work opportunities, and chocolate — well you get the idea — these are all gifts!
Take time to be thankful, and you will be able to share with those who may struggle in the area of thankfulness. He is a generous and loving giver. Ephesians 1:3 says that God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings. 1 Peter 1 says that He has given us all we need for life and godliness. The greatest gift ever is Jesus. We read in John 3 that God so loved us He gave us His Son Jesus to save us from our sins. In Romans 8 we read that He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Please use this time of year to remind your co-workers and friends that God is a giving God. He is the best provider you will ever know. I hope and pray you can and will say that with conviction this Easter season. Also, anytime you are called on to pray for a meal you can say, “Thank you Lord for being the best provider ever and giving us Jesus Christ and the only means of our salvation.”
#3. God is a Creative God.
Have you ever really looked at a hippopotamus or an elephant or a crocodile? How about the zebra and the giraffe? You can see this truth in almost any area. Insects, stars, clouds, sky colors, people's taste in clothing, food, hairstyles, etc. The list is endless. God created this world with millions of colors and beauty beyond words. There is creative beauty in nature, music, art, in loving behavior, in children playing carefree without schedules and time frames. Our world is filled with creativity. You can start this conversation in a Walmart line. Just a few weeks ago at a long check-out line in a local gas station several people were talking about the new M&M flavor: jalapeno. Yep, you read that right! Just in case you have not heard, that is the recent new flavor! Introvert that I am, I stood there for almost three minutes hoping the line would move. Then I remembered that years ago God whispered to me, "I put you in long, slow lines so you can talk about me!" Oh, yeah! Duh! So with a quick "Jesus help me" prayer, I blurted out, "Well as creative as M&M has become, they have long way to go to catch up on God's creativity and they are using all of God's ingredients!"
Certainly with all the "Pinterest" creativity out there, you can find a way to compliment a friend's decorum and highlight how wonderfully creative God is at the same time! God created mature wine from jugs of water in John 2. He created stars so beautiful it made angels sing we are told in Job 38. Best of all, He created a way for lost, lonely and helpless sinners to go to heaven and live with Him forever. Now that's creative!
#4. God loves the underdog.
If you know any Bible stories at all, you probably know at least one about an underdog that God blessed and helped. Young David, a shepherd boy, (“pizza delivery guy” as I like to call him; just a shout out to my camp friends) faced down a 9 foot tall, seasoned warrior with more battle scars than David had hairs on his chest, is a good underdog story. Gideon, the "fraidy cat" threshing wheat in a hole in the ground for fear of being seen by the Midianite terrorists, was an underdog. He questioned God several times, snuck around at night, and played "prove-it" games with God using a rug! God used him to become the warrior who helped defeat the Midianite army that held Israel captive for over seven years. How about Joseph, the favored son of the all-important Jacob? He was sold into slavery by his brothers, abandoned in jail, and forgotten. Later he was unjustly accused of sexual crimes against an official’s wife and put back into prison. Yet he became a great ruler who would save Egypt and Israel during a great famine. Let's not forget Rahab, the harlot of Jericho, who is listed in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Think of Joseph, the carpenter, who was privileged to care for the only, holy, begotten Son of God. Think of Zacchaeus, that tree-climbing little man, whom Jesus knew by name. Think of others such as Levi the tax-collector, Peter the fisherman with a rocky path to walk, or Paul, the violently aggressive bounty hunter turned super-missionary. God loves the underdogs. God loves redeeming and rescuing “unredeemable”.
Somehow I think you have a personal story of an underdog season of your life when God showed up and showed off His grace in your weakness. Most every Sunday that I speak somewhat coherently in our pulpit is one of those moments for me. It is when a country bumpkin, introverted, speech class dropout shares the Word of God and people are helped by the Spirit of God in that moment.
So many people today feel unloved, unimportant, insecure, ashamed and afraid. In this Easter season you can brag about how God loves the unlovable. Jesus turned a raving demon-controlled man with no identity into a missionary in Luke 8. He transformed an arrogant and bigoted Samaritan woman, with deep hollows in her heart, into a vibrant missionary in John 4. In everyday conversations you will hear people talking about underdogs. Maybe in the sports world they will mention the final four. (Auburn? Really?) Maybe in the political realm an underdog candidate will be discussed. Maybe a t-ball team or a student who graduated despite severe handicaps will be discussed, and you can inject how God loves serving the underdog. Take a shot and testify that He is a loving, gracious and caring God.
Final note to my friends who are pastors: Please, please, please, lead the way in showing your church family how to share in everyday conversations. Tell a waitress, a gas clerk, a stranger asking directions something wonderful about God and let the adventure begin. Let's not miss the opportunity during this special season to share about the greatness of our God and His Son Jesus.
If 6.14 Ministries can be of any service to you and/or your church, please feel free to email us at 614rebuild@gmail.com. We want to see your ministry thrive. You can also contact us through our website by clicking here.
Footnote: God comforts those with
- Heartache—Luke 7:11-17 Widow’s only son
- Insecurities—Exodus 4:1, 10 Six times Lord spoke to Moses
- Fear–Joshua 1:6-9 Great responsibility
- Depression — 2 Timothy 4:6,10-16, 17-18
- Loneliness and fear—1 King 19:9-14 Elijah comforted by God v.19– companion found
- Great defeat—Lamentations 3:19-21 Great is thy Faithfulness God is faithful, we can have hope.
RSS Feed