November 24, 2024

Crazy Love: Chapter 8 – “Profile of the Obsessed” (Reading Assignment)

February 24, 2013 by

Well, my dear sisters, we are nearing the end of this Crazy Love journey and what a ride it has been! I’m looking forward to Chapter 8 and reading about what it means to be obsessed with Jesus Christ. Are you ready? Let’s go!

Monday
Chapter 8 “Profile of the Obsessed” pgs. 129-133/ Kindle LOC 1673-1724
(Lovers/Risk Takers)
(Megan)

Tuesday
Chapter 8 “Profile of the Obsessed” pgs. 134-138/ Kindle LOC 1724-1793
(Friends of All/Crazy Ones/The Humble)
(Martha)

Wednesday
Chapter 8 “Profile of the Obsessed” pgs. 139-143/ Kindle LOC 1793-1858
(Servers/Givers/Sojourners/The Engrossed)
(Jennifer)

Thursday
Chapter 8 “Profile of the Obsessed” pgs.  144-148/ Kindle LOC 1858-1910
(Unguarded Ones/The Rooted/The Dedicated/Sacrificers)
(Donna)

Friday
Chapter 8 “Profile of the Obsessed” Weekly Review and Chapter 8 Study Video from YouTube
(Megan)

Here is our chapter overview video from the author…

Let’s Pray:

Heavenly Father, help us to live every moment for you and fall crazy in love with You more and more each day. We do not want this lukewarm Christian life. We want to be ON FIRE for You, following whatever path You have set before us, even if it is scary or difficult. You WILL equip us for the journey ahead. Breathe new life into us this week as we read profiles of the obsessed. Show us what You want us to do in our own lives to take our walk with You up a notch. It’s in your Son’s matchless Name that we pray, AMEN!

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Seeking Him – Prayer

February 23, 2013 by

Each Saturday in our current series, Seeking Him, we have spent time looking at various aspects of having a dedicated, purposeful, intentional, devoted quiet time. This week we continue to appreciate the joy and privilege of being with our heavenly Father—our quiet time alone with Him.

The aspect that we are talking about is prayers and petitions. (For those of you who have been following along with us each week and perhaps asking yourself, “WHEN is she going to talk about praying?  Isn’t it foundational?” …this is it! <3)

David wrote about his ‘quiet time’ in the following verse.  Does your Lord hear you expressing your heart to Him in the same way?  I believe that as we are intentional and seek Him that, yes, this is how God sees us.

In the morning You hear my voice, O Lord;
In the morning I prepare [a prayer, a sacrifice] for You
And watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].
Psalms 5:3

Here  is a great example of God’s design for our prayer life:

Be earnest and unwearied and steadfast in your prayer [life],
Being [both] alert and intent in [your praying] with thanksgiving.
Colossians 4:2

Those are some very intentional words used at the beginning of that verse, yes?  Other versions use similar words: devote, persevere, continue….

Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything,
but in every circumstance and in everything,
by prayer and petition (definite requests),
with thanksgiving,
continue to make your wants known to God.
And God’s peace [shall be yours, that peace]
which transcends all understanding
shall garrison and mount guard
over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6 and 7

Now, of course, that time you spend alone with Your Lord—your quiet, devotional time—is certainly not the only time to pray!  Actually, I think, being intentional…seeking Him first and foremost…prepares our hearts for the rest of our day to be filled with continual little prayers and petitions directed to our God.

How often do we go along through our day accomplishing the normal even mundane tasks talking with our Father?  Or driving (yet again) to school to pickup your children; isn’t that a great time to pray?  Or waiting for them at dance/soccer/baseball practice or music lessons/cub scout meeting/awana time/_______ (you fill in the blank); yet another small amount of time that can be eked out of our day to pray and seek Him.  Paul wrote a number of times in his letters to the Christian believers about the importance of praying.  He used terms such as, “pray at all times,” “keep alert and watch,” “pray with ceasing.”

Listen to this encouragement:

Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit,
with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty.
To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance,
interceding in behalf of all the saints (God’s consecrated people).
Ephesians 6:18

Pray without ceasing;  in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 and 18

So I think that we see by seeking God first and foremost, by being intentional in our quiet time in our  prayers and petitions, we will be better prepared to “pray at all times, and, keep alert and watch, and, pray without ceasing.”  We will be continually seeking Him throughout each day thus carrying out His will (1 Thessalonians 5:18)!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EDGmeP1aA4

Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord!  As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!

Jeremiah 29:12,13
Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

Praying for each of you!  I know that the Lord will answer your heart’s cry as you are seeking Him with all your heart!

♥  coleen

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 Weekly Review – “You’re Best Life… Later”

February 22, 2013 by

Week 7 was probably not as in-your-face or convicting as the other past few weeks have been, but I do hope that you have finished the chapter feeling challenged to be more open to the fullness of what God promises to you in the Word as well as be more willing to submit all you have and all you are to Him.

On Monday, you and I talked about how we tend to “play it safe” with the situations and circumstances we are in. We were nudged to boldly get out of our comfort zones to live more passionately to please God in all we are and do. Martha asked us to explore with her on Tuesday about how our lives might change if we actually thought of each person we came into contact with as Christ. OUCH…. that slap was certainly needed. Then, on Wednesday Jennifer shared with us about trusting God to give faithfully. On Thursday, Donna explored with us about having the kind of faith in God that completely stretches us into situations that are totally uncomfortable if God does not come through.

At this point, I would love for you to watch this video of Chan with me…

http://youtu.be/dsTnQv-qexE

Chan challenges us to think about riches in a new light.  If we really believe in eternity and we really believe that there are eternal rewards that we can gain, then it’s not so much that it is sinful for us to buy these things but it would be silly because we are talking about eternal rewards. We are not here to judge or feel condemned for what we have…but I do think it is worth our time to devote ourselves to some thought and prayer here about our life on earth versus what the richness of our eternal life will be!

Blessings,

Megan 🙂

_________________

Let’s Pray:

God, I ask that You help us search our hearts when it comes to things of this world and convict us of any ways that we might be storing up our riches on earth and not giving enough to our brothers and sisters. Show us the kind of stewards YOU need us to be to further Your Kingdom and help us to not be of this world, but be focused on our eternal life with You! Amen! <3

Your Assignment:

Rather than talking about the sinfulness of owning and buying things, let’s talk about the silliness of the things that we own in light of our eternal rewards. Please leave me a comment about this below….

_________________

If you would like to email a private message to Megan in regards to this blog, please email her at: megan@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 – “Your Best Life…Later” (pp124-127)

February 21, 2013 by

Chap7_CL

“What are you doing right now that requires faith?”  That is a profound question posed to Mr. Chan in this part of our chapter today. For some of us, we are holding onto faith for our next breath. For some of us, faith is getting through another day. And yet for some of us, it’s doing what God has asked us to do, though it might not be something we’re comfortable with.  Whatever it is, I think it’s worth looking at and pondering.

I read chapter 58 of Isaiah and here are some things I am pondering:

The Israelites cried out to God and acted like they were a nation that was right with God and had not forsaken God’s commands when in reality they were just going through the motions of fasting because it was required of them at that time.

There was a whole host of things that God wanted for them listed in the chapter, for instance:

  • He wanted them to break the yoke of all that entangled them in the day and set the oppressed free!
  • God wanted them to share their food with the hungry.
  • He wanted healing for them.
  • He wanted them to not turn away from their own flesh and blood.
  • He wanted them to stop pointing fingers at each other.
  • And most of all He wanted them to honor the Sabbath.

He told them when they did these things they would take delight in the Lord.

And isn’t that still true today of us when we fast? We immerse ourselves in God, putting away all the things in our world that hinder us from meeting with God for a time. Isn’t our faith bigger when we’re done because we have dwelt in the presence of the Lord? We feel like we’ve heard from God and He has increased our faith, so we can step out and do more. God wants this for us! He wants us to shout His name from the rooftops unashamed! Living freely and able to share our faith whenever called upon is what God wants for us too!! We just need to grab hold of His hand and step out.

Are you ready………?

****************

Let’s Pray:

Father, I pray we can holdour hands out to You and take that step that leads us into bigger faith for You. Increase our faith as we are obedient to Your call so that we can do even more. Let us live freely as You want us to and serve others more. Thank You for Your faithfulness to us, Lord. In Jesus’ name, we pray.  Amen.

Your Assignment:

What steps can you take even today that God has been calling you to do that will grow your faith? Let us know so we can all pray for you as you step out in faith for God.

****************

If you would like to email a private message to Donna in regards to this blog, please email her at: Donna@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 – “Your Best Life…Later” (pp 119-124/Kindle LOC 1537-1606)

February 20, 2013 by

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up His life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion – how can God’s love be in that person?

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings and he knows everything.

1 John 3:16-20 (emphasis mine)

There is one major theme that I pulled from this passage of Scripture.

Real love is an action, not a feeling.

Jesus gave up His life for us, SO we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters (1 John 3:16, emphasis mine).

The principles Jesus taught are contrary to the way our world works.

  • The world says we should look out for #1—ourselves. 
  • Jesus says that “there is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13)

Often when we are called upon to help someone in need, we are looking at how it will help us—maybe we will get paid, or receive accolades/glory, or it will give us something to boast about to our family or friends. In other words, we are motivated by selfish desires rather than by love. But Jesus’ way says that serving others should come from a selfless, sacrificial heart. The closer we can align our heart with His by reading His Word and letting Him change us, the easier it will become to love others the way He loves us.

It is worth repeating that we absolutely cannot do this on our own. We need God to help us love others like He loves. We must ask Him to help us.

As Christians, we carry a huge responsibility—to show and to share the truth of God’s love to the rest of the world (Matthew 28:19-20). This is an incredibly difficult task when the world wants us to be like them—talk like them, act like them, and just “fit in” with them. But Jesus calls us to be different. His ways do not make sense to the rest of the world.  Followers of Christ should be known for the way they love—without judgment, criticism, or selfishness, but with compassion, selflessness, and sacrificial giving.

Let’s act on this selfless love that was so graciously poured out on us.

 

reallove

 

Let’s Pray:
Heavenly Father, thank You for showing us what REAL LOVE truly is. Thank YOU for sending Your Son. Lord, we want our actions to show that we truly love others. Provide us with opportunities to pour love onto others this coming week. If we are struggling with this concept, Father, we ask that You help us see where we are having trouble and to help us work through it. Lord, we know that Love comes from You and we love because You first loved us. Thank You for that, Father. It’s in Jesus’ name that we pray, Amen.

Your Assignment:
Do you struggle with the idea of “giving up your life for your brothers and sisters” or “laying down your life for your friends?” What do these passages mean to you? I encourage you to read them for yourself and see what the Lord reveals to you as you work through this concept.

If you would like to send a private message to Jennifer in regards to this blog post, you may send it to: Jennifer@GirlfriendsCoffeeHour.com

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 – “Your Best Life … Later” (pp 117-119)

February 19, 2013 by

As I read the two pages that I was assigned to blog on in this chapter, I counted six Scripture references that Chan had used.  My first thought was, “How in the world am I going to write a summary on these Scriptures, and keep it to a minimum of words?”  

  1. Philippians 2:6-11
  2. 1 John 2:6
  3. Matthew 25:42-45
  4. Matthew 22:37
  5. Matthew 22:39
  6. Matthew 25:37-40

Yes, Chan uses all of these Scriptures on these two short pages, and they cover our current life all the way up to the coming Judgment.  Whew!!  Tons could be written on each one of these, so “Which one am I going to expand on?” was my thought.

But, I began to see that what Chan was doing in these Scriptures was bringing us to the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:45:  “I tell you the truth, whatever, you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”  Jesus is referring to “these” as those who are hungry, thirsty, in need of shelter and clothing, those who are sick, or in prison and need someone to visit them.

It was a sentence Chan wrote on page 119 that caught my eye.  Ask yourself this:  “If you actually saw Jesus starving, what would you do for Him?”

Truthfully, when I read that sentence, I didn’t literally think of food when I saw the word starve.  Why?  Because in America, chances are we might not encounter starving hungry people on a day-to-day basis, as we would in other countries. 

However, after looking up the definition of the word “starve” in Webster’s Dictionary, I believe we do encounter a type of “these” that Jesus IS referring to in our everyday life.

 Starve:  to hunger; to suffer great need

To suffer great need is the one I want to emphasize.  Take a look at this chart that I began to picture in my mind concerning that word starve as it pertained to suffering great need.

Mankind’s Basic Outward  Needs   Mankind’s Basic Inward Needs

Food                                                     Companionship
Water                                                    Love and Affection
Shelter                                                  A Sense of Belonging
Clothing                                               Esteem, Respect of Others                                                              A Listening Ear
                                                                                                                                                              

Back to Chan’s question:  WhatWouldYouDo

 

Personally, I pray I have enough plain old moral values in me to give a starving person his four Basic Outward Needs of food, water, shelter, and clothing. 

But, do I have enough love for Jesus in me that would propel me to give a starving person his Basic Inward Needs?  Or would that take up too much of my time and effort?

It’s food for thought.

**********

Let’s Pray: 

Father God, first of all, we open our hearts to the convicting power of the Holy Spirit to show us where we are not being Your servant to those in need.  Help us to make changes in our lives as You would have us to. In Jesus’ name, I pray.  Amen.

Your Assignment: 

Where do you feel you need to make changes in your life in accordance with feeding those who are hungry, thirsty, in need of shelter and clothing, those who are sick, or in prison and need someone to visit them.

Be blessed,

Martha

If you would like to send Martha a personal message in regards to this blog, you may email her at: Martha@GirlfriendsCoffeeHour.com 

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 – Your Best Life…Later (pp 113-116)

February 18, 2013 by

World-doesnt-Need-crazy-love-francis-chan-T

 

“Christians today like to play it safe. We want to put ourselves in situations where we are safe ‘even if there is no God.’ But if we truly desire to please God, we cannot live that way. We have to do things that cost us during our life on earth but will be more than worth it in eternity.” ~page 116

There are countless examples throughout Scripture of people just like you and me who followed God with their whole hearts…faults and all. When we read about people in the Bible such as Abraham, Paul, Daniel, and Elijah it’s so easy to lose sight of the fact that their God THEN is the exact same as our merciful God NOW!

God answered BIG prayers back then and He is the same God that answers BIG prayers from us NOW…we only need to trust Him with our prayers and with our very best life. Have you ever thought about this before? We limit ourselves and God when we do not dare to give up our life to Him and BOLDLY live our life by faith in what He will do with it!

Blessings,

Megan 🙂

_________________________

Let’s Pray:

God, we come to You humbled and with repentant hearts if there has been any way that we have been steering clear of situations or circumstances that might make us uncomfortable for Your glory. Please forgive us, Father, and show us today how to make it right and to be bold enough to live in such a way where we are not afraid to do things that cost us in this world. Thank You, Lord, for showing us grace and for guiding us closer to You through this. In Your Son’s matchless name we pray, Amen. <3

Your Assignment:

How are you “playing it safe” in your life right now? Pray for God to show you where and how He needs you to kick your life up a notch and not be complacent to “play it safe” for Him any longer. Leave me a comment about this below.

 

______________________________

If you would like to email a private message to Megan in regards to this blog, please email her at: megan@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

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Crazy Love: Chapter 7 – “Your Best Life…Later” (Reading Assignment)

February 17, 2013 by

What are you doing RIGHT NOW that requires faith?

This chapter might be a little scary, but I hope it challenges you to get outside of your comfort zone and do something that you might not normally do…and see God show up in an amazing way.

Are you ready? Let’s do it!

Chapter 7 Reading Assignment

Monday: Chapter 7 “Your Best Life…Later” pp 113-116/ Kindle LOC 1457-1505 (Megan)

Tuesday: Chapter 7 “Your Best Life…Later” pp 117-119/ Kindle LOC 1505-1537 (Martha)

Wednesday: Chapter 7 “Your Best Life…Later” pp 119-124/ Kindle LOC 1537-1606 (1 John 3:16-20) (Jennifer)

Thursday: Chapter 7 “Your Best Life…Later” pp 124-127/ Kindle LOC 1606-1659 (Donna)

Friday: Chapter 7 “Your Best Life…Later” Weekly Review and Chapter 7 Study Video from YouTube (Megan)

Here is a video from our author introducing the chapter for this week. Enjoy and be challenged!

Blessings,

Jennifer

Let’s Pray:

Father, help us to be BOLD this week and step out in FAITH for You. Reveal something that we can do that requires standing on our faith and trust in YOU. Give us courage and strength to follow through with whatever You lay on each of our hearts. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

 

If you would like to email a private message to Jennifer in regards to this blog, please email her at Jennifer@GirlfriendsCoffeeHour.com

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Seeking Him – Love with All my Heart, Soul, Strength and Mind

February 16, 2013 by

Each Saturday in our current series, Seeking Him, we have been looking in-depth at some important aspects of having a dedicated, purposeful, intentional, devoted quiet time. This week we are continuing to look at the joy and privilege of our relationship with our heavenly Father—our quiet time alone with Him. And talking about love.

Perhaps I am thinking about the love part ‘cause we have just celebrated the love holiday—Valentine’s Day.  Or perhaps I am thinking about the love part due to currently reading Crazy Love by Pastor Francis Chan.  (Have you read it?  I do know a few of you who are studying/discussing this incredibly convicting book.)  I am sure that both of those have greatly influenced my thinking.  But perhaps the most compelling motivation has been my consideration and meditation of something that Jesus said:

LOVE  the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind
Luke 10:27

I have been thinking about this for a couple of weeks now.  “Love the Lord your God with ALL….”  That is what Jesus said, right?  “…ALL?”  All means entirely, completely, wholly, vital, foundational, necessary, everything.

My friend, I could not even begin to tell you what loving God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind looks like in your quiet time.  Really, how could I?  But I do know Who can!  May I strongly suggest that you express your desire to your Lord to do just that—love. with. all. heart. soul. strength. mind. And just watch and see where the holy spirit leads you.  Praying for you that your heart will be thrilled and joyful as you love Him with your all!

With All My Heart sung by Babbie Mason

link to lyrics:

——————————————————————–

Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord!  As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!

Jeremiah 29:12,13
Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

Praying for each of you!  I know that the Lord will answer your heart’s cry as you are seeking Him with all your heart!

♥  coleen

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Crazy Love: Chapter 6 – When You’re in Love Weekly Review

February 15, 2013 by

It is so hard to believe that we only have 4 more weeks left of this study! Oh, what a journey it has been and this week really forced us to take a deep look at our relationship with Our Lord and Savior.

On Monday, we discussed two different types of love…reverence and intimate love. We asked ourselves a pretty tough question about our relationship with God and moved on to Tuesday where Martha urged us not to try to hard! On Wednesday, Jennifer boldly claimed with us that there is nothing better than giving up everything and stepping into a passionate love relationship with God. On Thursday, Donna pleaded with us to let go and show God the real YOU! That kind of complete disclosure will help break that barrier and give us the intimacy with the Lord we so desperately crave!

Please watch this video from Francis Chan with me now:

Chan tells us that our relationship with God is not like any other relationship in the world, but we spend our whole lives trying to figure it out. We don’t need to figure it out, we need to surrender and trust God with all of who we are!  THIS is the most fascinating relationship in your life….  I hope you believe that and crave it now more than ever!

Blessings,

Megan 🙂

________________________

Let’s Pray:

God, we love You! We want to know You more intimately than we can even dream of! Help us to surrender everything today that might be hindering us to have this passionate closeness with You. We pray we are forever changed in how we have a relationship with You, Lord! Thank You for this provision! In Jesus’ name we pray, amen!

Your Assignment:

Does your relationship with God resemble an “in-love” relationship?  Please comment below <3

________________________

If you would like to email a private message to Megan in regards to this blog, please email her at: megan@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

 

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