The Refuge: Youth at Winder

Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus - Spoken Word

2012-01-13T15:24:00.001-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

2011-12-21T09:32:00.005-05:00

GLORY TO THE NEWBORN KING!!!

See you tonight at The Refuge!

Youth Christmas Party Photos

2011-12-13T13:13:00.004-05:00

Photos from this weekend's Youth Christmas Party are now online via The Refuge Facebook Page. Click HERE to view them all.

Spiritual Warfare Part 2: The Foundation & The Weaponry

2011-11-09T12:16:00.003-05:00

This week we will continue our study of Spiritual Warfare. Last week we started by taking a look at 5 basic truths of Spiritual Warfare:

There is an invisible world that is just as real as the visible world
We are involved in an invisible war, a cosmic conflict that has eternal implications
Our foe is formidable and his goal is to destroy us and discredit the cause of Christ
We must respect our foe, but not fear him - become acutely aware of his "methods," but not be preoccupied by them
We do not fight FOR victory, we fight FROM Victory. In Christ's power we are invincible!

This week we will take a look at and discuss the weapons that are available to us as Christians as we engage in this warfare.

See you at The Refuge!

Spiritual Warfare Part 1: The Foundation

2011-11-01T11:48:00.003-04:00

This week we start a brand new series on the realities of Spiritual Warfare and the need for all of us as Christians to be able to recognize our enemy and the strategies and tactics he uses to draw us into conflicts which pull our attention and focus away from the very best that God has for us.

The foundation of our ability to prepare and engage in this warfare through the power of the Holy Spirit is found in Ephesians 6:10-12:

"Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places."

So, let's break these verses down to see what exactly God is telling us here:

Verse 10: General Command – Allow yourself to be continually strengthened by the power already made available to you in your new position and relationship with Christ. It is the power that raised Christ from the dead and now dwells in you.

Verse 11: Specific Command – How? By continually and repeatedly putting on, at specific points in time, the spiritual protection God has provided for you . . . for the express purpose of holding on to your position in Christ as you are bombarded by Satanic strategies designed to destroy you and/or render you ineffective in Kingdom pursuits.

Verse 12: The Reason For Commands In Verse 10 - 11 – It’s because our real struggle is not against physical/material adversaries (people, circumstances, organizations), but against evil forces doing battle in the spiritual realm.

But remember, as believers in Christ, we do not fight FOR victory, we fight FROM victory! The war is already over and Christ has won! Through Him we are invincible!

Join us this week as we start this important new study series.

See you at The Refuge!

Can the Devil Really Make You Do It?

2011-10-25T11:20:00.001-04:00

If you had a stalker, would you want to know who it was and what he was up to? You do have a stalker, and his name is Satan. He commands an army of beings that are hot on your trail. They hate you and they have an awful plan for your life. Maybe that's why God's word gives us specific descriptions and defensive plans for dealing with them.

Would you like to know what God has said about protecting yourself against the stalkers?

First off, you need to know that Satan is a created being. He was created as the most powerful angel of all; even Michael the archangel would mess with him (Jude 1:9). He had the awesome privilege of hanging out with God and enjoying a special relationship with the King of all Kings.

But then a little thing called pride crept in, and things went bad in a hurry. When sin was found in Satan he was cast down from heaven, along with a third of the angels that had bought into his evil plans to usurp God. You can read about it in Ezekial 28. Ever since that day, Satan has been on a mission to oppose God at every turn. Since he couldn't destroy God, he has a one-track mind to destroy God's purposes, plans, and people.

What gets really scary is what happened after that. It goes something like this... God made a perfect world with perfect people. Enter the serpent in the Garden of Eden and just like that you have lying, lust, murder, and mayhem as a part of planet Earth. So God sent His one and only Son to the world, and Satan brings his best song and dance to tempt Jesus to sin. When that didn't work, he pulled off a masterful plan that ended with Christ being killed on a cross.

But God had already put into play the ultimate plan, and Satan's schemes didn't work out so well after all. When Jesus died on the cross, He opened the way to heaven for us and sealed the fate of the devil and his demons. Which brings us to today.

As Christians we are God's children and the objects of His eternal love, which means that Satan hates us with the intensity of a thousand white-hot hells, which is why he stalks us. Pure and simple, he is out to kill us.

That's what Jesus believed anyway:

"The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy." (John 10:10)

Join us this week as we take a Biblical look at who Satan is and what his plans are for this world and why as Christians we can rejoice over the fact that we have already won the war against him and his minions.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for material used in this week's lesson.

The Missing Piece in Your Life Story

2011-10-10T11:59:00.003-04:00

So what makes your story meaningful? This generation seems to be looking in some of the same places as our forefathers in the 1960's - as in 'if-we-all-just-get-along-and-don't-contribute-to-global-warming'... people will then listen to my story.

I hate to break bad news to you, but that dog won't hunt. From one perspective, you're just one of 6,602,224,175 people on this planet. In a few years you won't see 98% of the people from your school who currently make such a difference in your life. In ten years you'll be just another link in the American work force chain. In 100 years you'll be gone, and in 200 years no one will even remember your name.

How's that for happy thoughts?!?

Again, I said from one perspective...but there is another. This perspective is one that doesn't even ask if anybody is going to listen to your story, because it knows that Someone already is - and that makes all the difference in the world. That Someone is Jesus Christ, and here is the way he describes this perspective:

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10)

Jesus is pointing out two things here. The 'thief' He refers to is Satan - and his goal is to 'steal, kill, and destroy.' How? By convincing you that nobody is going to listen to your story, so it's OK to follow the world's way of filling the hours with sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll.

Or maybe these days it's more like friends with benefits and social networking. Either way, it's an express lane to a meaningless life. That's why Jesus offers a better way. He offers life - and not only in an eternal sense in heaven, but in a 'full' sense here on earth right now.

The word for 'life' here means 'real life' - as in authentic and genuine. The word for 'full' that Jesus uses means 'above and beyond' - as in beyond what you'd expect.

So in other words, Jesus is saying you have two choices with your story. One is to be fooled by Satan the thief and to listen to the world's way of doing things. Do that, and you'll end up like a lot of 60's era folks - burned out and forgotten.

The other is to realize that Jesus Christ is already listening, so you can serve Him and live life above and beyond anything you could imagine. Through a relationship with Jesus Christ, the soundtrack of your life will be a melodic collage of love, meaning, purpose, value, authenticity, contentment, and other tracks you never thought possible.

Join us this week as we discuss how we can all be sure that the story of our life isn't missing the most critical, eternal piece.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material used in this week's lesson.

Persecution and Martyrdom

2011-09-27T12:42:00.001-04:00

When was the last time you stopped and thanked God for the fact that you live in a country where you are free to publicly and passionately worship Him wherever and whenever you please? We should always remain grateful for our freedom to gather together and praise and worship out Lord. Because that's certainly not the case on other parts of our world!

For instance, believers in China are forced to meet in secret rooms and attics to worship Jesus. They know the risk, but they are willing to pay the price. They gather with the knowledge that at any time someone could bust through the doors and kill them, or capture them for torture.

Believers in the Sudan face mass genocide at the hands of militant Muslims who kill for their own religious purposes.

In Columbia, Christians are forced underground to escape the brutality against them and their families.

Whatever the situation may be, we know that God has promised He will be with us. He has given us the ability to endure it, and we will receive a far greater reward than what this earth can offer.

I will never leave you nor forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heave, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:11-12)

In the book of Acts we read about Stephen who became the first martyr for the gospel. The account reads of how when Stephen was being stoned to death he peered up in the sky and was granted the sight of Jesus standing at God's right hand (Acts 7:55). I believe this is proof that Jesus is with us, no matter what kind of persecution we face.

Whether it's the mocking and ridicule from our friends at school, or torture in a prison in India, Jesus is standing at God's right hand ready to receive our suffering. In fact, He already did. Jesus knows what it is like to endure persecution. He knows what it means to suffer, and He knows if we choose to follow Him, we too must endure persecution.

Join us this week as we take a close look at the Biblical concepts of persecution and martyrdom.

See you at The Refuge!

Who Needs Prayer?

2011-09-12T17:56:00.005-04:00

So why does it take the most desperate situations to bring out our most desperate cries to our Father? It's almost as if we delight in handling life in our own strength, until life rears its ugly head and gives us a serious beat down...only then does the idea of running to Jesus cross our minds.

I think we often have the wrong idea about what prayer is supposed to be all about. Am I saying that I know that I know everything there is to know about prayer? Absolutely not! It's probably one of the biggest mysteries in the universe. But I do know where to go to find the answers about this amazing opportunity that exists for all Christians to enter the throne room of God. More on that in a minute...

For some, prayer is like carrying around an 'emergency use' cell phone. It doesn't cost much, it's cool to have around, and if there's ever any trouble you can just dial for help. For others, prayer is like dieting/exercise. You know you need to do it, you know it's incredibly good for you - but it's just too much work. So you talk about it, read about it, hear others chatter about it, even imagine what your life would be like if you did it...but you don't.

For still others prayer is like an incredibly expensive gift. You are so honored that you received it, and you'd love to use it - but you're just not sure how.

I think that's why God went out of His way to send the instruction manual in the pages of Scripture. Because I'm not the one who has the right to tell you how to pray, what I thought might be helpful is to list some key passages that have to do with proper use and care of the amazing privilege called prayer. Please take time to slowly read and meditate over these words:

"Pray in the Spirit at all times with all kinds of prayers, asking for everything you need."(Ephesians 6:18)

"Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results. Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for the next three and a half years! Then he prayed for rain, and down it poured. The grass turned green, and the crops began to grow again." (James 5:16-17)

"Once when Jesus had been out praying, one of his disciples came to him as he finished and said, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." He said, "This is how you should pray: "Father, may your name be honored. May your Kingdom come soon. Give us our food day by day. And forgive us our sins--just as we forgive those who have sinned against us. And don't let us yield to temptation." (Luke 11:1-4)

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done." (Philippians 4:6)

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)

Join us this week as we take a closer look at what prayer is all about from a proper Biblical perspective.

See you at The Refuge!

School is Back in Session - Time to GET BUSY for Christ!

2011-08-29T12:02:00.003-04:00

Ahhh, summer break…

Cool evenings, BBQ’s, staying up late, camping and relaxing by the pool.

And remember the first smell of cut grass and the soothing sound of crickets that lent a hand in getting you to sleep?

But it’s all gone now, my friend! School is back and you’ve been served up 9 months of papers and projects and performance evaluations!

Now…don’t you feel better having this harsh reality out in the open?

While you may hate the idea of being back in school, Jesus is really happy that you're there. Why? Because that school is a mission field and He has some pretty big expectations from those teens who bear his name.

"Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields” (Matthew 9:35-38).

This is a perfect picture of what Jesus sees when He looks at all the hundreds or thousands of students going to classes, breaking for lunch and headed home each day after the last bell rings: He has “compassion” on them.

In the original language of the Bible, the word “compassion” means to literally “spill your guts.” In other words, His heart breaks and He is sick to His stomach when He sees your school campus.

Why?

Because just like the people in His day, your friends are “confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

The eyes of our Savior get past the external labels to the condition of the soul. When we come to school, we look at the clothes, the car, the group of friends, and the expressions on faces. But Christ’s gaze cuts through the facade and goes straight into the reality of how a person is feeling.

In His day, the people were confused about who God is and how they could be forgiven of their sins. They were helpless before the powerful religious leaders of that day who led them astray into thinking they had to earn God’s love.

And absolutely nothing has changed. And THAT's why the Son of God is so happy to see you back at school. Because He wants to use YOU as His instrument to represent Him on your campus.

Join us this week as we continue our series on Biblical Christianity, and how it impacts our everyday lives.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material used in this week's lesson.

What's in a Word?

2011-08-22T15:31:00.002-04:00

No doubt about it, the word "Christian" can bring up a ton of different images and stereotypes. For some it might be a slightly crazed looking street preacher not exactly winning any social points as he yells at unsuspecting pedestrians. Other people might picture a shiny faced, cheesy looking Ned Flanders from The Simpsons, who totes around a super size-me Bible everywhere he goes. Then there are others whose minds conjure up a chain-mail clad Crusader knight with a "convert or I'll chop your head off in love" sort of attitude.

As you might have noticed, the word "Christian" typically brings up negative images.

My question is, just how did it get so bad? When did a title with the name of our Savior in it become a label that ranks right up there with jerk or idiot? Well, it might come as a surprise to you that the word Christian has been a hated term for over 2000 years ago:

Read Acts 11: 26: The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch.

This is where the name first came from, and the hatred started right on the spot. It wasn't very long after the name came around that persecution did too. Keep in mind that I'm not talking about persecution as in being called a religious nut job. Christians in those days were crucified, beheaded, and thrown into stadiums full of people anxious to see them fed to wild animals or burned alive.

The really interesting thing is that no Christian should be surprised that this title draws the wrath of the world. Jesus promised us that it would happen:

John 15:18-21: When the world hates you, remember it hated me before it hated you. The world would love you if you belonged to it, but you don't. I chose you to come out of the world, and so it hates you. Do you remember what I told you? `A servant is not greater than the master.' Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you! The people of the world will hate you because you belong to me, for they don't know God who sent me.

Did you pick up the theme here? Jesus didn't say "dislike" or "be offended by"...he said hate - as in a detesting and despising. He also didn't say "if" the world hates you - he said "when."

Why? What's so offensive about the word "Christian" that it has drawn harassment and mistreatment to those who claim it for over 2000 years?

Join us this week as we start a new series examining Biblical Christianity.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material used in this week's lesson.

Somebody's Watching Me...

2011-08-15T16:47:00.002-04:00

As most of you know by now, I’m an absolute nut for almost anything having to do with espionage. I just think spies are the some coolest things around. I like spy movies, spy books, spy TV shows, spy music. Some of my favorite websites to visit are all about spies and espionage. I think I’d make a good spy, too.

But there’s the flip side to spying. What if you’re the one being spied on? Not nearly as cool, is it? In fact, that’s a good recipe for creating total and complete paranoia! Wouldn’t you agree?

But, what if we really are being watched? Not by some sinister political techno spy or creepy stalker type, actually not by anything in the physical world. The surveillance that we're under is spiritual in nature.

Yet, don't for a second believe that just because we are under a spiritual observation that it is any less real. In fact, the eyes that are on us know not only what's going on the outside, but in our hearts and minds as well.

In fact, the Bible describes no less than three categories of beings that constantly monitor our lives. When you understand how this works, it shouldn't creep you out...rather it should inspire and motivate you in ways you never realized before.

The first category is God Himself- and this is how it works:

"The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." (2 Chronicles 16:9).

What an amazing concept! Like a spotlight roving through a darkened city at night, God is seeking people who are loyal to Him so He can give you strength.

Strength for what, though you ask? Well, this brings up the second category of 'watchers':

"Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8).

Peter is stating plainly that Satan also roams the earth with his army of demons like a pride of hungry lions. The devil is watching and waiting for you to give into a moment of weakness and temptation so he can shred you to pieces and destroy your life.

The third category is your cheering section. That's right - you have the equivalent of a huge stadium full of people shouting approval for your efforts to serve Jesus Christ and resist the enemy.

Here's how the Bible describes it:

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith." (Hebrews 12:1-12).

The 'witnesses' mentioned in this verse refer to all the heroes of the faith who lived their lives committed to God. By way of example and (I believe) observation, they now watch and give our efforts to serve Christ a heavenly shout out. From Abel and Noah and Moses and David and the prophets and the Jews up through the Maccabees - multitudes of people - who by the way they lived their lives - if they were in this room today - they would tell us “Live by faith in God. Just do it!”

So if you feel as though you're being watched... well, your feelings are correct!

God wants to strengthen you.

Satan wants to destroy you.

The Saints want to encourage you and cheer you on to victory in the race of life.

Join us this week at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material used in this week's lesson.

Your Daily Survival Guide

2011-08-09T12:37:00.001-04:00

I imagine that you’re a lot like me. I have problems every day. Some days my problems are big and other days they’re small, but they’re always there. If you are a human from planet earth you probably relate to my dilemma.

So how are we supposed to survive these daily struggles? How can we wage daily war against these struggles and, not only survive, but be stronger as a result of them? And how do we make the most of each day in order to make the biggest impact possible on a lost world for the kingdom of Jesus Christ?

I have found three simple habits give me the strength I need to fight to win against the “stuff” of this life:

1. Pray

Before you say “No duh!” stop and evaluate your prayer life. Over the last few years I have taken a long, hard look at mine and had to make some serious adjustments.

Are you spending enough time in prayer asking God to give you the strength you need to make it through the day? Jesus wrestled in bloody, sweaty prayer for three hours in the Garden of Gethsemane to make it through the toughest day of his life. Are we wrestling even three minutes to make it through a typical day with typical problems?

Prayer is the portal through which the life of Christ pours through us. It is the electrical outlet in which we plug into so that we can “be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might” according to Ephesians 6:10.

Prayer is essential in the Christian's life. Without it your witness will be far less effective and you will be far more vulnerable to the enemy. When you witness, you need the blessing and support of the Lord. You need to be in fellowship with Him. Prayer makes this all possible.

2. Read God’s Word

Don’t just read Christian books; read the one written by Christ himself! I don’t care if it’s NIV, KVJ, NAS, NLT or ESV. Just make sure you READ it. When we pour over the inspired words of Scripture conviction and transformation pour over us. It is living and active (Hebrews 4:12) and helps us to be the same.

Don’t just get into God’s Word let it get into you.

3. Embrace community

The Christian life is not a solo act. We are part of an ensemble, a choir, an assembly of believers who are called to do life together.

As King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 4:9-11:

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?”

So who is there to help you when you fall? Do you have a community of believers, who encourage you, love you and rebuke you when necessary? Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto. We need others too.

Join us this week as we discuss the steps that help us deal with the problems and pressures that can cripple our ability to do our best for our King.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Greg Stier and his awesome blog site (www.gregstier.org) for material used in this week's lesson.

What is the Gospel?

2011-08-04T10:59:00.005-04:00

Give God His breath back. You OWE Him.

Therefore GO...

2011-07-25T12:38:00.003-04:00

Someone asked me not too long ago why Christians are so obsessed with proselytizing others. I think this in excellent question deserving of both consideration, and an answer.

According to the dictionary the word proselytize means, “Convert or attempt to convert (someone) from one religion, belief, or opinion to another.” And this is exactly what Christians are called to do.

Matthew 28:18-20 contains the words of Jesus giving his disciples what is referred to as The Great Commission, or to be more correct, The Great COMMANDMENT.

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

(Emphasis added by Mr. Steve).

Although we may prefer to use less inflammatory terms to describe this process like “sharing your faith”, “making disciples” or even “evangelism” the concept is still the same. Bible believers are obsessed with converting people from their belief systems to Christianity. If they’re not they should be!

Here are 3 reasons why:

1. Jesus told us to.

2. It's GOOD news!

3. It saves people from hell.

Join us this week as we seek to put the concepts of evangelism and proselytizing into proper Biblical perspective.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Greg Stier and his awesome blog site (www.gregstier.org) for material used in this week's lesson.

Is God Really Fair?

2011-07-11T14:02:00.001-04:00

According to language research, the average teenager uses the phrase "that's not fair" 8.6 times a day. I don't know if that's a fair estimate, but I imagine it's fairly close. Embedded deeply in the mind of teens (and everybody else for that matter) is a basic desire for life, the universe, and everything to have some level of justice, equality, and even-handedness.

And I agree. How can it not be, when life is so full of unfairness? Think about it...if life were fair:

Acne would be attractive
Chocolate would be a major food group.
Parents would pay their kids an hourly wage for being grounded.
Video games would make guys smarter and cuter to girls.
Sweat would smell like expensive cologne.
Total honesty would be requirement to enter politics.

Here's a saying that you can take to the bank...or even to the grave for that matter: Life is not fair, but God is.

That's right - He can be completely counted on to be impartial, judicial, and neutral. Here's what the Bible says:

Read Job 34:12 - "There is no truer statement than this: God will not do wrong. The Almighty cannot twist justice."

Read Psalm 98:9 - "The LORD is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the nations with fairness."

It's just a central part of being God for Him to be just. In fact, an unjust God is no God at all. That's why it has never been and never will be fair to call God unfair.

Yet there are those who do it anyway. Somewhere along the way they got enough misinformation and misguided opinions to convince them of the possibility that He messed up. Most of the accusations against God are just silly, but I will admit there is one nagging issue that gets thrown our way that, on the surface anyway, seems to paint God into the corner of injustice.The issue goes something like this:

Jesus claimed that He is the only way to heaven, and proved it by dying on the cross and coming back from the dead and appearing to over 500 witnesses. Thus, the only way to avoid hell is to trust Christ as your only hope of salvation.
BUT...there are billions of people who have no chance to hear the gospel.
SO...God sends people to hell who had no choice in the matter.

Wow! That would definitely be unfair. In fact, I would say a God like that would not only be unfair, but downright cruel...which puts Christians in a bit of a dilemma.

And it's more than an intellectual concern, because I've been on enough anti-Christian web sites and blogs to pick up very quickly that this is a stumbling block that has tripped up more than a few folks.

Join us this week as we address the question, Is God Fair?

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material used in this week's lesson.

Praise & Worship: What's it all about? Part 2

2011-07-05T09:33:00.002-04:00

This week we will continue our study that we started last week about the concept of Praise & Worship. What is it all about? What does Scripture say about it? How is it supposed to be done? Does it really matter?

Join us as we delve into Scripture to see what God has to say about praise and worship.

See you at The Refuge!

Praise & Worship: What's it all about?

2011-06-27T15:49:00.004-04:00

This week we are going to take a look at the concept of Praise & Worship. What is it all about? What does Scripture say about it? How is it supposed to be done? Does it really matter?

God claims worship as His exclusive right. "For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.' " (Matthew 4:10). He is the focus of our devotion in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

In Exodus 20:2-3, God says, "I am the LORD your God...You shall have no other gods before me." In Matthew 4:10, Jesus says, "Worship the Lord your God and serve him only." So, worship is not merely a natural instinct, it's a command from God.

We will study the purpose and methods of praise and worship and examine how we as believers are expected to respond to this command from God.

We studied this lesson series several years ago, but I believe it's time to review and discuss again as it is such an important issue in every Christian's life.

See you at The Refuge!

Are You an Alien?

2011-06-20T17:25:00.001-04:00

I have a confession. I, Mr. Steve, am an alien. And I'm here on earth to do my part to conquer this world for my leader and cause.

Personally, I like being an alien. Not that it’s always easy, but having a "stranger in a strange land" mentality helps me get why life on planet Earth just seems so messed up at times.

Don't worry; I haven't lost my mind - not yet anyway. I call myself an alien because that's what God calls Christians:

"Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

"Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us." (1 Peter 2:10-12)

The day that I trusted in Jesus Christ as my only hope of salvation, something incredible happened. I ceased being just a person and became a child of God. I was freed from the chains of humanity that would have me believe that joy and contentment can come from anything in this world. My true citizenship and home is in heaven, so my life is now an alien journey on planet Earth.

This gospel message is also alien, because it wasn't invented by any human mind. The gospel is from the mind of God and is the power of God. It is capable of transforming any guilt-ridden, hopeless life into unbelievable meaning, purpose, and value.

Are you feeling a bit alienated and alone at times? Unfortunately, that's a part of following Christ. To feel not at home and rejected by a culture that cares only about selfish personal happiness and limitless pleasure is natural when you dare to share a Christ-like life and the gospel message. But remember that no matter how dark and lonely the path, there is an amazing end to the journey - then they'll be won over to God's side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives.

The end for aliens like us is actually just the beginning! Jesus Christ is returning to gather all His followers, and there is going to be a homecoming party that is beyond your wildest imagination.

Join us this week as we take a look at how all believers in Christ are aliens in a foreign land, waiting for our leader to take us home.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share Ministries for resource material for this week's lesson.

Tragedy and Truth

2011-06-13T15:40:00.002-04:00

Have you ever played the “Game of Life”? Yeah, I’m talking about that board game.
Have you ever noticed how 'true to life' the “Game of Life” really is - and what elements is missing from it?

One of the key elements it is missing is the concept of tragedy. We see tragedy all the time in life, don’t we? Just a few weeks ago in Joplin, MO we had tragedy. The recent tsunami in Japan? The earthquake in Haiti? What about avoidable tragedies?

Think about Heath Ledger, Kurt Cobain, and most recently Jeff Conaway. These folks seem to have had everything that the world says is important in life: money, fame... but they all died tragic early deaths, either as a result of poor decisions, or by their own hand.

It is truly headline and blogosphere news that despite apparently having it 'all', that 'all' is really pretty much nothing? And even further, are we shocked and awed that people in pain often turn to the incredibly wrong options to temporarily soothe the seething ache and agony of this thing called life?

Well, not to me. Not because I'm some super-genius, but because I believe the Person who wrote these facts down in black and white in the world's #1 best seller of all time. These aren't theories or debatable concepts, because what you are about to read are the simple truths from the Author of truth. They are the warning lights on the dashboard of existence...they are the warning labels on the bottle of reality.

Read carefully, and you might find the real secret to a meaningful life:

"The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?" (Jeremiah 17:9)

"Beware! Don't be greedy for what you don't have. Real life is not measured by how much we own." (Luke 12:15)

"Everything is meaningless," says the Teacher, "completely meaningless! Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content." (Ecclesiastes 1:2,8)

"Don't be misled - you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. (Galatians 6:7-8)

The Bible paints a not-so-subtle picture of life in real and raw terms. The true portrait of existence reveals the wickedness of human nature, the meaninglessness and emptiness of our day-to-day struggles, and the inevitable consequences when we choose the wrong path.

But there is another way - a way that I wish the millions of people who feel trapped in a speeding train headed down a dark tunnel could find.

This way is not A way - it is the ONLY way.

God's Word tells us that the human heart is wicked and deceitful, that life is meaningless without Christ, and that we will reap the consequences of our evil actions. However, through a relationship with Jesus, we can be set free from all these conditions.

Join us this week as we examine the truth about our purpose and place in Jesus Christ.

See you at The Refuge!

24/7 Worship

2011-06-07T10:08:00.001-04:00

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." (1 Peter 2:9-10)

Peter is giving us an amazing piece of information that answers the huge question: 'What is life all about?' Notice he tells us what we are (a chosen people belonging to God etc.), which then leads to what we should do (declare God's praises).

In other words, every part of our life should be an act of worship to God. Every moment of every hour of every day is a chance to tell God and show others how amazing He is.

Every breath is breathing in the glory of God and breathing out His greatness. Every activity is actively trying to say 'thank you' to God and showing Him that it's all about Jesus and not about us.

People in school do homework and study so they can do well on the day of their test. Unfortunately, sometimes television, or video games, or friends takes control and what is truly important gets saved for the last minute with less than great results.

In the same way, Christians in the world should worship God in everything we do at all times. Unfortunately, sometimes the world takes control and what is truly eternal gets saved for the last minute with less than great results.

Join us this week as we discuss how to worship and give God what he's due at all times in our lives.

See you at The Refuge!

It's the End of the World as We Know It...

2011-05-23T12:05:00.003-04:00

Now that the fake judgment day, May 21st, has come and gone without a ripple (or a rapture for that matter) let’s talk a bit about the real Judgment Days.

That’s right, according to the Bible there are two of them. There’s a judgment day for the believers that the apostle Paul nicknamed “the judgment seat of Christ” in 2 Corinthians 5:10. And there’s a judgment day for unbelievers that Christians have nicknamed “the great white throne judgment” based on Revelation 20:11-15. Each of these judgment days is intense and awe-inspiring, but they each serve a different and dynamic purpose.

Here’s the bottom line difference: the judgment seat of Christ is a rewarding stand for the believer while the great white throne judgment is a criminal court of law where sentences of everlasting destruction are passed out.

Join us this week as we discuss what the only REAL authority on these issues, God's Holy Scripture, has to say about the rapture and judgment.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Greg Stier's awesome Blog Site for resource assistance with this week's lesson.

Special Testimony: Dany Menard

2011-05-16T15:15:00.003-04:00

Those of you who attended church this past Sunday heard first-hand about Mitch Churchill's mission trip to Haiti. I think you'd agree that it was a powerful testimony to the way that God uses everyday people to change situations and the hearts of people who are willing to selflessly give of themselves to serve others in need.

As a follow-up, this week Mitch is bringing his friend, Dany Menard, to give his testimony at The Refuge on Wednesday night. Dany was born in Haiti, but now resides in the US. He is a firefighter and a paramedic. While on the mission trip to Haiti, Dany spent his time trying to establish a relationship with the teens in the area where they were ministering. I believe that Dany's experiences upon returning to Haiti will be enlightening and inspirational to all of you.

Be there this week at The Refuge!

What's Your Price?

2011-05-09T10:46:00.008-04:00

It's the little things that mess us up in life. Wouldn't you agree?

I know we're always on the lookout to make sure that we don't commit the "big" sins- otherwise we might be a poor testimony to those outside the faith. But what about those little decisions that we think nobody notices? Can those quiet moments when we make a choice to do something that we know doesn't bring glory to God really undermine the core of who we say we are? After all, we focus on the big, obvious sins and avoid them, right?

Who really cares about something as simple as keeping the extra quarter of spare change that the cashier accidentally gave you back when ordering your last combo meal? Nobody will notice, and after all, the fast food company is a big faceless corporation and you've given them money for years, right?

The simple fact is, Christianity is quickly becoming a non-factor in its influence on modern culture. Why? Because we've sold the Son of God for a quarter - that's why!

We're so focused on the external appearance of our 'testimony' that we've forgotten the most important thing: people don't care what you know until they know that you care. In order to show people that compassion of Christ, we must first start by letting the Holy Spirit change us from the inside out.

There were people in Jesus' day who loved to show everyone what a great testimony they had. They prayed long prayers in public, never missed church, recited Scripture, wore religious symbols, and generally gave the impression that they had 'super-sized' their spirituality.

The problem is - Jesus despised them.

The strongest things Jesus ever said were never directed at the "sinful" people - but He sure opened up a can on the pretentious falsely pious people of the day.

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony. Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something. "You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You're like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it's all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh. People look at you and think you're saints, but beneath the skin you're total frauds." (Matthew 23:25-28)

Don't mince words, Jesus - tell us how you really feel!

These folks suffered from an extreme case of what I would call "outward-itis"...only what people could see mattered to them.

God has a different plan. He wants us to start by looking at what is wrong in our hearts before we start coming off 'religious' to others. The world definitely does not need more Bible thumping bobble head figures who can simultaneously say "God Bless" to a cashier while at the same time pocketing the extra change they receive. Unbelievers need to believe that we believe - which requires us to be real, admit mistakes, and take care of the little things.

Join us this week as we take a look at how they way we treat the little things can put the spotlight on the most important thing in our lives.

See you at The Refuge!

You've Been Drafted!

2011-05-03T07:06:00.003-04:00

We've seen history made this week with the killing of terrorist leader Usama bin Laden. And while that has a definite effect on the ongoing US war on terror, it certainly isn't the end of that war. Let’s take a look at some of the wars that are going on right now across the globe. Do you ever remember a time in your lifetime when there were so many wars going on in so many different places, all simultaneously?

India: The Naxalite-Maoist Insurgency: started in 1967 - still going on today.
Afghanistan: The Afghan Civil War: started in 1978 - still going on today.
Somalia: The Somali Civil War: started in 1991 - still going on today.
Iraq: Iraq/US War: started in 2003 - still going on today.
Pakistan: North-West Pakistan War: started in 2004 - still going on today.
Yemen: Shi’ite Insurgency: started in 2004 - still going on today.
Mexico: Mexican Drug War: started in 2006 - still going on today.
Sudan: Sudanese Nomadic Conflicts: started in 2009 - still going on today.
Ivory Coast: Second Ivorian War: started in 2010 – Took a major step toward conclusion on Monday of last week.
Libya: Libyan Civil War: started in 2011 - still going on today.

This week we're going to talk about a war that's going on right now that you might not even be aware of, but you definitely need to be involved in. At one time, the US had the draft, which lasted from the early 1900's through 1973. In a draft, the government would select the names of young men from a random pool and require them to serve in the military for a certain number of years.

What would you do if you received a draft notice in the mail? Tear up the letter and hide under the covers? Run and pack your bags? Scan the draft notice and post it on Facebook?

I have news for you...you HAVE been drafted!

Not by the President of the United States, but by the King of Heaven. Jesus Christ is called the "Captain of our salvation" (Hebrews 2:10), and your Captain has sent you an Order to Report for Induction:

I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. (Matthew 16:18)

If you didn't already know it, there's a war on terror going on. The ultimate terrorist is named Satan and his army of demons is singularly focused on destroying the very thing that Jesus died to make possible: The Church!

The church isn't a building, and the church isn't a picnic. The church is an army, deployed all over the planet, fighting a war on spiritual terror...and the moment you trusted Christ as your only hope of salvation, you got a draft notice to begin training and join the fight.

This "training" happens at a local "unit" (your church), and the fight happens every single moment of every single day.

So what are you going to do?

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson utilizes some resource material from Dare 2 Share Ministries.

Bold Prayer

2011-04-19T10:04:00.002-04:00

According to the Bible, the power of prayer is, quite simply, the power of God, who hears and answers prayer. The power of prayer does not flow from us; it is not special words we say or the special way we say them or even how often we say them.

The power of prayer is not based on a certain direction we face or a certain position of our bodies. The power of prayer does not come from the use of artifacts or icons or candles or beads. The power of prayer comes from the omnipotent One who hears our prayers and answers them.

Prayer places us in contact with Almighty God, and we should expect almighty results, whether or not He chooses to grant our petitions or deny our requests. Whatever the answer to our prayers, the God to whom we pray is the source of the power of prayer, and He can and will answer us, according to His perfect will and timing.

Prayer is the means by which God's infinite wisdom; infinite power and perfect purpose are brought together to accomplish His will. You can't be saved without believing, you can't be sanctified without obeying, and you can't enjoy the goodness of God in this life without participating in His unfolding purpose through your prayers and through your service to Him.

Sitting, standing, or kneeling; hands open or closed; eyes opened or closed; in a church, at home, or outside; in the morning or at night—these are all side issues, subject to personal preference, conviction, and appropriateness. God’s desire is for prayer to be a real and personal connection between Himself and us.

But, how are we supposed to pray? Even the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. And Jesus gave them an example of prayer (aka the Lord's prayer) and further answered them with a parable about how bold we should be in our prayers in Luke 11:1-13.

This week we're going to take a look at these verses and see what Jesus Himself tells us on the subject of bold prayer.

See you at The Refuge!

Don't be Caught Dead Wrong: Part 2

2011-04-04T17:28:00.001-04:00

Question: "With all of the different religions, how can I know which one is correct?"

Answer: There is no doubt that the number of different religions in the world makes it a challenge to know which one is correct. First, let’s consider some thoughts on the overall subject and then look at how one might approach the topic in a manner that can actually get to a right conclusion about God.

The challenge of different answers to a particular issue is not unique to the topic of religion. For example, you can sit 100 math students down, give them a complex problem to solve, and it is likely that many will get the answer wrong.

But does this mean that a correct answer does not exist? Not at all. Those who get the answer wrong simply need to be shown their error and know the techniques necessary to arrive at the correct answer.

How do we arrive at the truth about God?

We use a systematic method that is designed to separate truth from error by using various tests for truth, with the end result being a set of right conclusions.

Can you imagine the end results a scientist would arrive at if he went into the lab and just started mixing things together with no rhyme or reason? Or if a physician just started treating a patient with random medicines in the hope of making him well?

Neither the scientist nor the physician takes this approach; instead, they use systematic methods that are methodical, logical, evidential, and proven to yield the right end result.

This being the case, why think theology—the study of God—should be any different? Why believe it can be approached in a haphazard and undisciplined way and still yield right conclusions? Unfortunately, this is the approach many take, and this is one of the reasons why so many religions exist.

Join us this week as we continue our discussion on why Christianity is the most valid and viable faith system that has ever existed. And why your response to it is the single most important decision you will ever make.

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson was prepared using resource materials from www.gotquestions.org.

Don't be Caught Dead Wrong

2011-03-28T11:35:00.001-04:00

According to the researcher George Barna, 30% of teens believe that all religions are really praying to the same God, they are just using different names for God. This week we are going to get this issue settled, because what you decide about religion will determine how you spend your eternal destiny. Even not believing in religion is a decision as well.

To help set the stage for this discussion, let's get a clearer picture of what the world population looks like when it comes to Christianity:

There are nearly 6.5 billion people in the world, and there are 500 million folks who call themselves Christians. So basically nearly 6 billion people would say that Christianity is not the way to God. I know what some of you might be thinking:

Nearly six BILLION people can't be wrong, right?

Wrong.

Sure, sometimes the popular opinion can be correct, but other times it is completely false. Did you know that for a long time the popular opinion was that the earth was flat and the moon might be made out of cheese?

Oh yeah, and as you'll remember, it was the popular opinion that an innocent man should be crucified on a Cross because they didn't like what He was saying about their religion.

2000 years ago or today - it doesn't matter. People get rankled when their religion gets roasted and toasted by the truth.

So what it comes down to is this: either Jesus was wrong and there really are many ways to get to God, or Jesus was right and there is only one real way to God. You can't have it both ways, which puts us back to our original question: can nearly six billion people be wrong?

This week we're going to start a series on why Christianity is the most valid and viable faith system that has ever existed. And why your response to it is the single most important decision you will ever make.

See you at The Refuge!

Special Testimony: Dave Glander

2011-03-21T13:10:00.003-04:00

This week at The Refuge we will hear the testimony of our good friend, Dave Glander. Most of you know Dave and his son, Marc, who join us on Wednesday nights. You also know that Dave is a wellspring of interesting facts and details covering a wide-range of Christian topics, from ancient Biblical manuscripts to an impressive level of knowledge on dozens of apologetics-based subjects.

But what you probably don't know is the amazing journey that Dave took from hardcore atheist to believing Christian. It's a story that only he can tell and I know it will give you great insight into not only his life, but potentially parallels you'll recognize from your own. I believe that God will greatly use his testimony to speak to you about your life and the decisions you make.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Q&A

2011-03-14T11:09:00.003-04:00

Over the past several weeks we've watched the DVD series Demolishing Strongholds and studied what it means to have a Biblical worldview, and why it is important that if we are going to call ourselves Christians, then we need to align our worldview with the authority of Scripture. Each week saw lively interaction as we discussed the issues and viewpoints brought up in the series. And often, we had to call an end to the discussions prematurely because time ran out.

So, with that in mind, this week we're going to devote our entire study time to a review of the topics from each of our sessions and open the floor for any questions or comments that you feel need further exploration. It is important that we have time to address and fully understand these issues if we are going to be our most effective for God's kingdom.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: The Final Chapter

2011-03-07T10:44:00.002-05:00

The Christian life can be a real battleground! Throughout his epistles, Paul uses military terminology to emphasize the Christian's role and goes as far as to relate our spiritual "equipment" to that of earthy armor and weapons (Ephesians 6:10-18).

Paul's first letter to Timothy is filled with encouragement for a young Christian who was facing many difficult problems in his place of service for the Lord. One of the key words in 1 Timothy is "charge," sometimes translated as "commandment." This is a military terms, referring to an order to be passed down the line. God had entrusted the Gospel to Paul, who in turn, passed it along to Timothy. Timothy was "charged" to guard his treasure and pass it along to faithful people who would in turn, entrust it to others.

In 1 Timothy 4:16, we find one of those charges given to Timothy:

"Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you."

Just like you, Timothy lived in a day and age where false teaching, worldly philosophies, and heresies permeated his culture. In this verse, Paul emphasizes the necessity of first examining yourself to find out where you are spiritually and where you are going.

Next, he focuses in on examining your doctrine to make sure that they are in line with God's Word.

Finally, as we continue reading in 1 and 2 Timothy, the challenge shifts from examination to application - continue, remain faithful, persevere in your faith and the teaching of God's Word.

Why? Because it's about salvation - yours and others with whom you come in contact. In Christ alone is eternal security, love, joy, and peace!

This week we will watch our final episode of Demolishing Strongholds. In this session, Bill Jack goes on the streets to talk with college students about their beliefs and to challenge them with "The Four Questions." This session will help us all to understand more about how non-Christians think, and to be able to see Bill use good questioning techniques to reveal the inconsistencies in their worldviews.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Special Forces for the Savior - Part 2

2011-03-01T10:21:00.001-05:00

Let's take a closer look at 2 Timothy 4:8:

"There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but to all who have loved His appearing."

By itself this verse could lead one to believe that all believers might be entitled to a "crown of righteousness" when we stand before the Lord. However, within the context of the passage and the Apostle Paul's life, it is apparent that this special reward is presented to those who have remained faithful and committed to serving the Lord, and as a result, "love His appearing."

Because we as Christians believe that this life is preparation for eternity, we have a goal and a hope. Our work is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58) and it shall be rewarded (2 Chronicles 15:7; 1 Corinthians 3:10-15) by the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Even when we fall, and we will fall, we can come to God's throne of grace, confess, receive restored fellowship with our Lord (1 John 1:9) and carry on His work with renewed wisdom and experience (James 1:2-5).

Join us this week as we explore the second part of "Special Forces for the Savior." We will look at the fact that Christian people make mistakes and fail, because we live in a sinful, fallen world. But God has a long history of using imperfect people to accomplish amazing things through His power in a fallen world! So, be encouraged! God has established a plan and a purpose for those whom He has called to demolish the stronghold's of the world's belief system!

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Special Forces for the Savior - Part 1

2011-02-22T11:18:00.005-05:00

In spite of opposition, persecution, imprisonment, beatings, shipwreck, weariness, hunger, thirst, cold, and numerous other perils (2 Corinthians 11:23-27), the Apostle Paul endured as a servant and soldier of the Lord. His faith never wavered. In fact, as he neared the end of his life, he wrote:

"I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2 Timothy 4:7b)

So, the question that comes to mind is, why? Why is it that under incredible negative circumstances and situations, in the midst of physical pain and what must have seemed like crushing setbacks, Paul never wavered and always showed such amazing faith?

If you have not read all of Paul's epistles, then let this be a challenge to you to do so. Not only will you discover why he was so committed to Christ,you'll also learn foundational Christian doctrine that is vital for all believers. Paul was consistent in his witness because his starting point was always God's Word. He knew a joy and peace that only God can give because he had a heart of gratitude for what the Lord had done for him. Paul's example to us is to know the Bible and to know the God of the Bible.

This week we will continue our DVD series, Demolishing Strongholds. We will see that a Christian worldview begins with Scripture and an acknowledgment of what an awesome God we have. We have to stand firm in our faith as a minority in this fallen world. We are called to stand up for Jesus, and we are expected to be prepared for the opposition we face. We must be ready to answer their questions and accusations with the truth and love of Jesus Christ.

Sere you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Simple Tools for Brain Surgery - Part 2

2011-02-14T10:04:00.003-05:00

This week's lesson centers on the concept of sowing seeds on the hearts of those who reject a Biblical worldview. It is important to keep in mind that God has not put the responsibility on any of us to lead someone to the Lord. That's not what He has called us to do. Our job is to share our faith and His Word - He will bring the increase.

If all we are able to do is to cause those who have an anti-God worldview to begin to question their beliefs, we have accomplished much. That is "fighting the good fight."

In 2 Timothy 4:6-7, the Apostle Paul writes:

"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

What an incredible testimony! Paul knows that he is close to death, and he is ready to meet the Lord. He is truly expressing a peace that passes all understanding. Though he still refers to his Christian walk as a "fight," he is completely at peace because he is confident that he has fulfilled God's purpose for his life and is now ready to "be present with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8).

When a Christian walks according to God's will and actively lives and shares his or her faith through the truth as revealed in God's Word, it produces a confidence just like what is described in the above verse from Paul.

Remember what Isaiah 55:11 tells us:

"So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Simple Tools for Brain Surgery - Part 1

2011-02-08T13:50:00.002-05:00

In 2 Timothy 4:5c, Paul exhorts Timothy to "fulfill your ministry." The Greek word for "fulfill" means "to carry out fully; to completely assure (or convince); to entirely accomplish; to fully know (or persuade)."

Paul's charge is to fully communicate one's faith so that the lost can be reached for Christ. Remember, the defense of the faith is not about winning arguments. It's about connecting lost people to Jesus!

In 1 Peter 3:15, we're told:

"But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect"

Notice it doesn't say to always be prepared to use Scripture and the tools of apologetics to beat up on people who don't share your Christian worldview. It is critical that when we engage people who have a worldview that is opposed to Christianity that we remember the last part of the verse above: But do this with gentleness and respect.

You've been given many ideas in the previous lessons in this series about how to defend and share your faith. In this week's lesson we'll look at another platform that can be used to impact our culture for Christ. We'll also take a look at 4 questions that can be used very effectively to cause someone without a Biblical worldview to rethink their position, and possibly better understand ours.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Answers to Difficult Issues - Part 2

2011-01-31T11:47:00.001-05:00

"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:2-5)

In this bold statement, Paul tells Timothy to "do the work of an evangelist." Webster's New World Dictionary defines "evangelist" as "a bringer of good news." The word "evangelism" is described as a "zealous effort to spread the gospel."

This means that it is vital to share the saving work of Christ at a time such as this when people are not "enduring sound doctrine and are turned aside to myths." The question is, are you living your faith? Are you creating opportunities to turn everyday conversations into a pulpit for sharing the evidence for an all-knowing, merciful Creator? Now more than ever, Christians need to be pro-active in communicating the truth of God's Word.

Join us this week as we continue with our look into "answers to difficult issues." As we are discovering, sometimes the issues are not so difficult after all. Especially when our worldview is based on the truth of God's Word! That is why we must be grounded in our knowledge of Scripture and firm in our refusal to accept anything that is non-Biblical.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Answers to Difficult Issues - Part 1

2011-01-24T17:47:00.005-05:00

2 Timothy 4:5a says: "But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions."

The Greek word for "watchful" in this verse means "to be calm and collected in your spirit; to be temperate (steady, restrained), dispassionate (fair, objective), and circumspect (careful, alert)."

In other words, Paul's charge to Timothy (and in turn, God's charge to all believers) is to "keep your head" in times of hardship or trouble.

This series of lessons is designed to provide you with many tools to enable you to discern truth from myth, increasing your knowledge of the enemy's world system, and to equip you with the Word of God upon which your faith should be founded and solidified. It's overall purpose is to help you to form a true and correct Bible-based worldview.

We must guard our hearts to exhibit the self control of a Spirit-filled Christian. It is easy to sometimes be filled with a righteous indignation when confronted with some whose worldview is in opposition to our own. But, the Scriptural command "Be angry and sin not" means to be angry at the sin, not the sinner. Satan would like nothing better than to discredit our message of truth through a lack of restraint on our part when dealing with those who do not hold to our worldview.

Claim Scripture with confidence: "For God has not not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)

We must always remember our great commission to share the good news of the Gospel message. To do this effectively, we have to affirm our faith by always making the Word of God our starting point. When we do this, we have an unshakable foundation upon which to stand. Join us this week as we examine the Biblical answers to some of the difficult issues that are raised when we present Christ to a lost and fallen world.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: Counterfeit Reality Part 2

2011-01-17T07:54:00.006-05:00

Sometimes a person's worldview is based in a counterfeit reality. They have developed a way of looking at things that is based on what they have been told, or what they feel, or what everyone else around them believes, rather than on God's Truth. They have been deceived by a system of thought that denies God and minimizes His role in our lives to the point of insignificance. They have been rendered blind - spiritually blind.

This is what Romans 1:21-22 says in the Amplified Bible translation:

"Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks. But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened.

Claiming to be wise, they became fools [professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves]."

This week we will continue our Demolishing Strongholds DVD series with the second part of the series on secularism and the threat that it poses to a Bible-based Christian worldview. Remember, secularism is a belief that there may or may not be a God, but even if there is a God, He's irrelevant in history, art, science, literature, music, philosophy, etc. It is a diminishing of God into an abstract concept with no influence or bearing on anything or anyone. And secularism has Christianity in its sights.

We must be prepared to stand up against this opposing worldview and represent the name we bear with steadfast diligence and love for a lost world that is being spiritually blinded to the reality of a God who loves them more than they can possibly imagine and wants to give them eternal liberty and salvation for His name's sake!

See you at The Refuge!

Church Services Canceled for Wednesday, Jan. 12

2011-01-12T11:11:00.006-05:00

All services for Church at Winder have been canceled for tonight due to icy travel conditions. Stay home, be safe and keep warm!

Love you all!

Steve

Demolishing Strongholds: Counterfeit Reality Part 1

2011-01-03T19:39:00.004-05:00

"...and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables." (2 Timothy 4:4)

The more a person exposes him or herself to something that doesn't reflect God's truth or the light of Christ (things that are honest, pure, lovely, of good report - Philippians 4:8), the easier it is to turn away from the truth and lose interest in knowing it, and standing up for it.

This week we will take a look at this issue in the next lesson from our Demolishing Strongholds DVD series. We will examine how in today's world we are confronted constantly with an opposing worldview that is immersed in a counterfeit reality; a culture that is not only filled with misinformation, but also "myth" information. At the core of this is secularism.

Secularism is a belief that there may or may not be a God, but even if there is a God, He's irrelevant in history, art, science, literature, music, philosophy, etc. It is a diminishing of God into an abstract concept with no influence or bearing on anything or anyone. And secularism has Christianity in its sights.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: The Pop Culture War Part 1

2010-12-07T08:17:00.002-05:00

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables." (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

As the body of Christ we have to start getting excited about our faith. We need to get into the public and start impacting people for God's Kingdom. Evangelism is a conversation, not a presentation.

The question is, are you conversing? To do that we need to understand the way that the world is seeing us and we can break down those barriers that keep us from being able to have real conversations with people (see 2 Corinthians 4-5).

The very first step in being able to be real with people and to talk to them and have real conversations with them is to recognize that there's a problem going on. Without recognition there can be no resolution.

"It is time to realize that the true tutors of our children are not school teachers or university professors but film makers, advertising executives, and pop culture purveyors. Disney does more than Duke (University), Spielberg outweighs Stanford (University), MTV trumps MIT." - University of Maryland Professor

The fact is, the world's concepts and doctrines against God's Word bombard us at all times through pop culture and most of the time we aren't even aware of it. As a result, if we are not careful, we can slowly and gradually start adopting the ways of the world. We start looking like the world. We start reflecting the world's standards instead of the Word's standards.

The Bible is like a radar system and if we don't use it properly, we're not going to like the results that we get. When we open our minds to advertising, movies, music, TV shows, and websites, we open our minds to the messages inside of that media. We have to be firm in our worldview, based on an understanding of God's Word so that we can be discerning and confront these messages with the Truth!

Join us this week as we continue our DVD series, Demolishing Strongholds, with a look at the pop culture war that all Christians are engaged in, whether they realize it or not.

See you at The Refuge!

Demolishing Strongholds: War of the Worldviews Part 2

2010-11-29T08:22:00.002-05:00

Demolishing Strongholds: War of the Worldviews Part 1

2010-11-15T09:21:00.002-05:00

Forming a Proper Christian Worldview: Can we really trust the Bible?

"In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction." (2 Timothy 4:1-2)

Notice how 2 Timothy 4:2 begins by saying, "Preach the word." The WORD in this verse is the Word of God, the Scriptures, the Holy Bible, and that's what our new study series is all about - sharing the TRUTH of God's Word with a lost, deceived, disillusioned world. But how do we know if what God's Word says really is the truth?

Join us this week as we start our new study series, Demolishing Strongholds. Through this DVD-based series we will examine and discuss how to build a proper Christian worldview, starting with the foundation of God's Word, the Holy Bible. One of the first things that Satan will use to weaken God's message is an attack on the authenticity of God's Word. It is critical as Christians that we begin our proper worldview on the bedrock of God's Word. After all, if God is not true to His Word, then why should we trust Him?

In his book, "The Battle for the Truth," Dr. David Noebel says:

"Christianity explains the facts of reality better than any other worldview because it relies on divine inspiration. If the Bible is truly God's special revelation to man, as we believe it is, then the only completely accurate view of the world must be founded on Scripture."

Join us this week as we begin this exciting new study.

See you at The Refuge!

Jesus 101: The Foundation of a Christian Worldview

2010-11-08T16:52:00.002-05:00

A little over two thousand years ago a baby boy was born. His life changed the course of history forever and His death changed the course of mankind’s future and the very fabric of eternity. His presence continues to this day and contains the power to transform the lives of people everyday.

Today, over two billion people claim to follow him.

A book based on and around him was written by over 40 very different authors, in 3 vastly different languages, on 3 different continents. It took over 1,500 years to complete this book. The 40 authors who spoke different languages and lived in different times and places with different occupations all spoke about one theme with agreement; there are no contradictions. From Genesis to Revelation, there is one unfolding story contained in God’s Word, The Bible: God's redemption of mankind.

The Bible still consistently ranks as the world's number one bestseller and has many different characters, yet everything within its pages ultimately points toward the savior hero of mankind; the God-Man.

His name is Jesus. So significant was his birth, that it split time and sent a schism through reality itself that resounded from the heights of heaven to the pits of hell.

So, why did Jesus give up all his heavenly privileges and stoop to become a human being and step foot onto on this corrupt fallen world full of sin and death that we call Earth?

Join us this week as we take a close look at just who the Jesus of The Bible is.

Not what people may say He is.
Not who we may want Him to be.
Not what religion says He is.

But instead let's delve into the sole authority on the subject of who and what Jesus Christ was, is and ever will be: the irrefutable, sufficient and inerrant Word of God. And then let's take a look at how an understanding of who Jesus is serves as the foundation of our entire worldview as a Christian.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:1-5)

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

See you at The Refuge!

Turn on the Lightswitch!

2010-11-01T12:35:00.000-04:00

Can you even begin to imagine what would it be like to live in total darkness? Moping and groping your way around because there is no light to let you see where you are or where you are going. Tripping and stumbling as you reach out into the blackness for even a tiny flicker of illumination to give you an idea of your surroundings.

Everyone knows about the Chilean miners who were trapped underground for 69 days by a cave-in. They spent 17 days down there before getting the first indication that anyone even knew they were there or were attempting to rescue them; 14 of those days were spent in total darkness. Let’s talk about just one of the miners, Mario Sepulveda. Mario, or Super Mario as the press has dubbed him, is the first Chilean miner to describe first-hand what went on underground.

Mario says his first instinct when the cave-in occurred was to seek an escape route. He says he began walking around the subterranean tunnel system:

"It was pitch black except for the lamp on my helmet. I kept walking and looking for a way out. I came to the rock fall and I knew there was no way through. I walked for hours. I found a ventilation shaft. It was a shaft that should have had a ladder in it. It did have a ladder so I started climbing. The walls were soft and the rocks fell back in my face. The rocks struck me in the face and loosened my teeth. I was bleeding from my mouth but still I kept climbing. I had to get out.”

The flimsy ladder was made of leather and rope – used instead of metal because it wouldn’t rust. But Mario says, “It was in terrible condition. It had not been checked or maintained. And it ran out halfway up the shaft.” He says after an agonizing 150ft climb up the two-foot-wide shaft, the ladder ran out.

"The ladder should have gone the whole way. I tried to climb without the ladder but the walls crumbled. I could not make it. I could see two big rocks up ahead that were blocking the shaft. That was a moment of utter despair. I came back down and had to tell the other guys there was no way out."

Mario describes their conditions:

‘The air was so bad our eyes were burning the whole time. We were all coughing. It was like being in a filthy sauna where the air is full of dirt. We made beds by putting cardboard on the floor. The batteries in our helmet lights faded and then they went out completely on Day 3. For 14 days we were all in pitch darkness. There was no night and no day. We begged God to help us," he says.

“We were in total darkness. The heat was oppressive (around 92F). We all felt the Devil was down there with us. We prayed and prayed. It was a dark, black hole. We were buried alive. We were all so scared. We begged God to help us. We were worried we would starve to death or that the water would run out and we would die horribly from dehydration.”

We all know that through diligence, perseverance and a whole lot of labor above ground, the miners were eventually rescued from their prison of rock and everyone rejoiced at their triumph.

But, there’s no doubt, total darkness can be a terrifying thing for a creature created to be in the light.

Let me paint a picture for you from God's Word:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day" and the darkness "night" (Genesis 1:3-5).

The beginning of time started with God bringing light into a completely dark universe. He spoke...and light was created. But light and dark are not just properties of the physical world; they are also the nature of the spiritual world:

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it (John 1:1-5).

The "Word" that John refers to is Jesus - and he points out that Christ's life brought illumination to a dark world. That's why Jesus calls Himself the "light of the world."

In fact, every one of you hearing these words is either in a state of darkness or in a state of light. If you have trusted in Jesus, you are in the light. If you have not, you are in darkness. In fact, the Bible refers to Christians as "children of light" so we can battle the darkness in the world that keeps people trapped in sin and death.

Join us this week as we discuss the Spiritual realities of Light and Darkness, and what they mean to both the believer and the unbeliever.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Greg Stier and Dare 2 Share Ministries for resources used in the creation of this lesson.

Important Notice

2010-10-27T07:44:00.002-04:00

Wednesday night church services have been canceled for tonight. We encourage those who planned to be at church to visit with and support the Parham family in their time of loss.

Mr. Hoyt Parham (Pastor Mark's father and John-Mark's grandfather) passed away yesterday morning and visitation is tonight from 6 - 9 at Tim Stewart Funeral Home in Snellville.

Please pass this information along to all our church family. Thanks!

Are You a Successful Early Warning System?

2010-10-18T13:11:00.007-04:00

On December 26th, 2004, a 9.0 magnitude quake rocked the earth's foundation near India and launched a tsunami which collided against the shores of an Asian region most of us couldn't even locate on a map. All told, it is estimated that 230,000 people from 14 countries died in the tsunami.

What magnifies the tragedy of this deadly event even further is the fact that many lives could have been spared if that part of the world had some kind of early warning system. If only the governments of those nations would have been made aware of the enormous earthquake. If only there was mass communication available which could have broadcast an alert for people to vacate the doomed areas. But there weren't any of these things, and tens of thousands were relaxing on the beaches and carrying out daily responsibilities as if nothing could change in the blink of an eye - but in a blink of an eye they were gone.

The 2010 Haiti earthquake occurred on Tuesday, January 12, 2010. The Haitian Government reported that an estimated 250,000 people had died. Once again, just like with the tsunami, there was no way of warning anyone about this impending disaster. It caught an entire nation of innocent people unprepared and hundreds of thousands died because of it.

In both of these tragic cases, the victims were completely blind to these pending disasters. They had no prior knowledge that something devastating would occur anymore than a blind person is aware they may be walking toward a cliff.

If you knew the tsunami was coming and you had a way to let people know how to save themselves, would you? What about for the earthquake in Haiti? Would you take action to save lives?

At first thought I know you would say "ABSOLUTELY," ...but I beg to differ. Perhaps you wouldn't because you wanted to build a relationship with those people before breaking any bad news. After all, you don't even speak their language much less understand their culture. You might offend them and they might not like you anymore.

Or maybe you would hesitate because you feel you don't know enough about earthquakes, tsunamis, and tidal waves, and you certainly wouldn't want to look like an idiot. Then there are those who might not say anything about the coming catastrophe because they feel it is really the job of someone else.

By now you should be thinking, "what kind of fool would hold back warning people of an approaching catastrophe?"

Answer: the same kind of fool that you and I often play.

I don't know if you've ever thought of it this way, but people who don't know about the Gospel message are "spiritually blind". Spiritually blind people have no clue that something catastrophic could suddenly happen to them with no warning. They need to have voices calling out to them with the message of Christ.

The Bible makes it crystal clear that at any moment a spiritual tsunami could come crashing down not in one corner of the world, but on all of creation:

"The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and everything in them will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be exposed to judgment." (I Peter 3:9-10)

Join us this week as we discuss how urgent it is that we be those voices to the lost world around us before it's too late. We are the early warning system, and we are the only ones on earth who can alert everyone around us to the danger that faces us each and every moment!

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson was prepared using resources from Dare 2 Share ministries.

To Tell the Truth

2010-10-11T14:38:00.002-04:00

Why do so many of us have issues when it comes to trusting others? Sometimes we feel that we can’t completely trust our own family or friends.

Trust requires that we empower someone else.

It requires that we give something of ourselves to someone else and relinquish some of our own control.

Trust demands that we believe the other person is being truthful when they tell us we can trust them.

So really, when you boil it all down to the core, our trust issues are rooted in a truth issue. Would you agree with that? I mean, if you knew for a 100% fact that another person was always, in every way truthful and pure in their motives, wouldn’t it be easier for you to trust them?

What is truth? Can we know truth? Can we trust in truth?

See if this sounds familiar: "That may be true for you, but it's not true for me."

Sure - when we're talking about what Starbuck's drink we like the best. Or what we like on our burgers. Those are 'truths' that you can put under the category of opinion.

Here's the deal... As humans, we have limited knowledge. And with limited knowledge, you simply cannot make absolute negative statements. For example - 'there is no God'. Really? Because to absolutely affirm that, you would have to know everything - have been everywhere, etc.

So how can we believe in absolute truth? Well, I believe in absolute truth because Jesus did.

Check out these three extremely clear statements:

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32)

"Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth." (John 17:17)

First, Jesus not only claims that absolute truth exists, but also that He is the truth! He speaks the truth and acts out the truth. In fact, Jesus makes the statement 'I tell you the truth' over 70 times in the gospels. So if absolutes don't exist, then Jesus is a liar.

Join us this week as we look at what REAL truth is all about.

See you at The Refuge!

This Week: Q & A Panel - Part 2

2010-10-05T07:53:00.002-04:00

Last week we held our Question and Answer panel with the our adult leadership team. By all accounts it was a great and very interactive time, with everyone getting involved in discussing answers to some tough spiritual and Biblical questions.

We still have 5 questions left over, so we'll be continuing our Q & A session this week. You won't want to miss it.

See you at The Refuge!

This Week: Q & A Panel

2010-09-27T16:41:00.004-04:00

This week we'll be doing something a little different. In my absence (pesky day job responsibilities!), our youth leadership team (Mrs. Holli, John-Mark, Nicole, Ben, Elizabeth, Rachel, Renee, and Russell) will be following praise and worship with a "Question & Answer" session. They'll be working their way through the questions that all of you have been dropping in the question box for the past two weeks, answering each of them.

This is a unique time to get your leadership team's input on a variety of Biblical, Spiritual, and Life issues that have weighed on your minds and hearts.

See you at The Refuge!

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit: Part Four - The 9 Fruits (conclusion)

2010-09-21T20:54:00.002-04:00

This week we will conclude our study on the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22)

Here are the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit, with the emphasis placed on the source:

God's Love
God's Joy
God's Peace
God's Longsuffering (Patience)
God's Kindness
God's Goodness
God's Faithfulness
God's Gentleness
God's Self-control

Join us this week as we conclude our in-depth study of each of the 9 Fruits of the Holy Spirit and why they are so important in the life of a Christian.

See you at The Refuge!

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit: Part Three - The 9 Fruits (continued)

2010-09-08T08:11:00.002-04:00

This week we will continue our study on the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22)

When God the Father purposely isolates and spells out 9 specific qualities that will be coming direct from His Holy Spirit – then He is really letting you know the extreme importance of these 9 specific fruits. And the great thing is, these are attributes of God that He is sharing with you from Himself through the Holy Spirit. So, we need to understand that these aren't simply character traits that we alone are expected to manifest; they are from God and are infused with His power.

Here are the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit, with the emphasis placed on the source:

God's Love
God's Joy
God's Peace
God's Longsuffering (Patience)
God's Kindness
God's Goodness
God's Faithfulness
God's Gentleness
God's Self-control

Join us this week as we continue our in-depth study of each of the 9 Fruits of the Holy Spirit and why they are so important in the life of a Christian.

See you at The Refuge!

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit: Part Two - The 9 Fruits

2010-08-31T09:49:00.001-04:00

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22)

This is one incredible verse that tells us that God the Father wants to transmit and impart 9 specific fruits of the Holy Spirit into our personalities.

God wants all of us to enter into a process with Him so that He can begin the process of molding, shaping, and transforming us into the express image of His Son Jesus Christ. He wants to make us into a better and more holy people. This is what Scripture calls the process of 'sanctification.' He wants to transform us by the renewing of our minds. He wants to put right thinking into our thought process.

It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that this sanctification process is done with each of us in this life. However, we are not simply passive robots in all of this. We have to be willing to work in cooperation with the Holy Spirit once He begins to start this process within us.

Our job is to get into the Word to find out exactly what it is God is going to want to change about us. We need to find out exactly what qualities God wants us to try and “put on” into our personality and what qualities He wants us to try and “put away.”

Starting this week we will look at the appropriate Scripture verses showing us exactly which qualities and attributes God wants to get worked into your personality and which qualities He wants to pull out of you. And there is no better place to than with the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit.

If you want to start off by keying on some of the more positive, godly qualities that God would really like to get worked into your personality – really study and meditate on these specific 9 qualities.

When God the Father purposely isolates and spells out 9 specific qualities that will be coming direct from His Holy Spirit – then He is really letting you know the extreme importance of these 9 specific fruits. These are major fruits and qualities that are coming direct from God Himself – and every Christian should do the best they can to work with the Holy Spirit in getting all 9 of these fruits worked into their personality.

Here are the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit:

Love
Joy
Peace
Longsuffering
Kindness
Goodness
Faithfulness
Gentleness
Self-control

Join us this week as we begin an in-depth study of each of the 9 Fruits of the Holy Spirit and why they are so important in the life of a Christian.

See you at The Refuge!

This series uses resource material by Michael Bradley from the website www.bible-knowledge.com.

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit: Part One - Evidence of Saving Faith (Continued)

2010-08-24T12:20:00.002-04:00

Last week, as a furthering of our study of the Gifts of the Spirit, we started looking at another aspect of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives: the Fruit of the Spirit. Here's what Scripture says regarding the fruits:

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." (Galatians 5:22)

Pay close attention here, because when God purposely isolates and spells out nine specific qualities that will be coming direct from His Holy Spirit, then He is really letting us know the extreme importance of these nine specific fruits.

We began our study last week by by examining the evidences of the genuineness of saving faith. We also took a look at seven conditions that do not prove or disprove the genuineness of saving faith. This week we'll compare those seven conditions against nine evidences of genuine saving faith to see how they stack up. This will serve as the foundation for our study of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Join us this week as we continue our journey into a better understanding of God's desire for us to experience and present to a lost world His love, His joy, His peace, His long-suffering, His goodness, His faithfulness, His gentleness, and His self-control.

See you at The Refuge!

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit: Part One - Evidence of Saving Faith

2010-08-17T17:10:00.000-04:00

We've spent the last several weeks looking at the Gifts of the Spirit; what they are, and their purpose for believers. Last week we all participated in a questionnaire/test to help us better understand what our gifts may be.

Starting this week we are going to move into another aspect of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives: the Fruit of the Spirit. Here's what Scripture says regarding the fruits:

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." (Galatians5:22)

When God purposely isolates and spells out nine specific qualities that will be coming direct from His Holy Spirit, then He is really letting you know the extreme importance of these nine specific fruits. These are major fruits and qualities that are coming direct from God Himself, and every Christian should do their best to submit themselves to the power of the Holy Spirit in getting all nine of these fruits worked into their personality. They need to be attributes that a believer exhibits at all times.

We'll start our study by examining the evidences of the genuineness of saving faith. We'll also take a look at seven conditions that do not prove or disprove the genuineness of saving faith. One can be a Christian and possess these things or one may not be a Christian at all and still possess them. Then, we'll compare those against nine evidences of genuine saving faith to see how they stack up. This will serve as the foundation for our study of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Join us this week as we begin our journey into a better understanding of God's desire for us to experience and present to a lost world His love, His joy, His peace, His long-suffering, His goodness, His faithfulness, His gentleness, and His self-control.

See you at The Refuge!

Spritual Gifts: What gift(s) do you have?

2010-08-10T19:16:00.003-04:00

Over the last several weeks we've looked at the fact that Scripture clearly tells us that when we become a Christian, God deposits a spiritual power into your life. It is unique to you. Others you know may share your same gift, others may not, and you may have been gifted with more than a single gift. But the point is, God gave you this gift in order for you to discover it and use it to advance His kingdom here on earth and to to benefit and build up the body of Christ.

This week we will do a brief rundown of the gifts that we have covered in detail over the last few weeks, and then we will all participate in a written spiritual gifts questionnaire. It will take a little time to complete (20-30 minutes), but it will serve to help you better understand where your gifts lie. There are no right or wrong answers. But, once you have a better idea of what your gifts may be, you can then pray for God to help you develop your gift to best harvest the spiritual fruit that He planted in you to produce for His glory alone!

See you at The Refuge!

Spiritual Gifts: An Overview

2010-07-27T12:07:00.006-04:00

Last week we talked about that a spiritual gift is a God-given ability that you didn't have before you trusted in Jesus Christ as your only hope of salvation. According to the Bible, at the moment of salvation a spiritual 'superpower' was deposited into your life so you could help others and make a difference for eternity.

While there are different kinds of gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4), generally speaking, spiritual gifts are God-given graces (special abilities) meant for works of service, to benefit and build up the body of Christ as a whole.

Here's how the Bible describes this concept:
"Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don't want you to misunderstand this. ...There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other." (1 Corinthians 12:1; 4-7)

""It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 1to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." (Ephesians 4:11-13)

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms." (1 Peter 4:10)

"Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us." (Romans 12:4-6)

Our goal in this study is to simply look at what the Bible says about these gifts and to better understand their purpose (the primary Biblical references can be found in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4). Join us this week as we continue our series on Spiritual Gifts with a look at the three main kinds of gifts found in Scripture.

See you at The Refuge!

Be a God-Powered Superhero!

2010-07-20T08:07:00.001-04:00

Maybe you consider yourself just an ordinary person with no extraordinary abilities. But I have exciting news for you! God Himself has given you a 'superpower' called a 'spiritual gift' or 'spiritual ability.'

Here's how the Bible describes this concept:
Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don't want you to misunderstand this. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other (1 Corinthians 12:1; 7).

This spiritual gift is a God-given ability that you didn't have before you trusted in Jesus Christ as your only hope of salvation. According to the Bible, at the moment of salvation a spiritual 'superpower' was deposited into your life so you could help others and make a difference for eternity.

Not only that, but your spiritual gift is something God uses as a weapon in the fight against the forces of darkness.

Check out what Jesus Christ said:
I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it (Matthew 16:18b).

Jesus states plainly that it is His plan and purpose to mobilize an army called the church to exchange blows with the 'powers of hell.' The 'powers of hell' is the reason behind poverty, injustice, racism, prejudice, violence, and most of all the spiritual blindness that ultimately lands people in hell forever.

And that's where we come in with our supernatural ability. We use our gifts to help build up the church so that the church can go out and conquer the enemy.

Join us this week as we start a new series on Spiritual Gifts.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Dare 2 Share ministries for resources that helped to create this series.

This week...

2010-07-13T12:33:00.001-04:00

Even though about 85-90% of our youth group is at Indian Springs this week, we will be meeting this Wednesday for those who didn't go to camp. We're planning a relaxed time of praise and worship, prayer and fellowship.

See you at The Refuge!

No Church Services This Wednesday, July 7

2010-07-06T17:11:00.002-04:00

Just a quick reminder that there will be no church service for adults or youth this week.

Even though the majority of youth will be at camp the following week (July 14), there will be a Wednesday night service for those who don't go to camp.

See you at The Refuge!

12 Reasons You Might be Going Through a Trial

2010-06-29T15:15:00.004-04:00

Sometimes as Christians we may find ourselves asking why, if God is in control of everything, does He allow trials and tough times to come our way.

We see in the book of Job that Satan is allowed to do the things he does to Job by God Himself. Just like with Job, there are times in our lives when God chooses to allow adversity and trials to enter our lives.

But why?

Hebrews 12:10 tells us:
For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness.

It is right and proper for us to expect God to discipline us from time to time. While we have been washed in the blood of Jesus, we are still sinful beings living in a fallen world. God corrects and disciplines us to teach us things about ourselves and about Him and His glory. He does this out of a profound love for us.

This week we will look at 12 reasons why God uses trials and hardships in our lives to mold and shape us more into what He wants us to be so that we are then able to more fully glorify Him.

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson was inspired in part by a sermon by John MacArthur and a televised broadcast by Todd Friel on Wretched TV.

No Church Services This Wednesday, June 16

2010-06-15T06:43:00.003-04:00

There will be no adult or youth church services this Wednesday, June 16, due to Vacation Bible School.

Additionally, all youth please plan to be at the church service on Sunday morning, June 20. We will have a quick meeting with all youth going on the mission trip immediately following the morning service.

Special Testimony: Tony Churchill from Crystal River

2010-06-07T10:16:00.002-04:00

This week we are excited to have a special guest join us. Tony Churchill, lead singer for the popular gospel group Crystal River will be joining us this week to share his personal testimony. Many of you will remember Tony was formerly a member of the acapella group, Chozen, who performed a special concert for our youth group a couple of years ago.

Please be sure to join us this week as we share in Tony's testimony. I'm sure all of you will be richly blessed.

See you at The Refuge!

What's in a Name?

2010-06-01T16:36:00.002-04:00

As we continue to look at aspects of God, we've studied His attributes, the fact that He is one God revealed in there persons, and we've examined His Glory. This week we will discuss the names of God.

The Names of God used in the Bible act as a road map for learning about the character of God. Since the Bible is God's Word to us, the names He chooses in scripture are meant to reveal His true nature to us.

All people long for community and intimacy, and they have little interest in a lofty, distant God. Yet if you ask teenagers about God, most admit to thinking of God as largely unknowable, uncaring, angry or distant.

Those of us who long to bring others to faith in Christ often wonder just how we can best present God as He really is. Understanding the names of God - expressions of His nature as found in the Bible - can help.

There are many ways we could portray God in order to get people to like Him. We could portray God as a faithful companion and a true friend. We could emphasize Bible texts showing that God could be one’s Best Buddy. We could choose worship songs that make us think of God as warm and fuzzy, close and cuddly.

But we must not create a God in our own image, or in the image desired by the people around us. Instead, it is essential to present God as He revealed Himself in scripture, whether our listeners want that kind of God or not.

After all, as God told Moses, “I am who I am.”

How then should we portray God? The Bible is our authoritative source for knowing God as He is. The study of God’s revelation of himself is rich with a variety of names of God. Join us this week as we take a look at the main ones in both the Old and New Testaments.

See you at The Refuge!

The Attributes of God

2010-05-24T12:43:00.003-04:00

Over the last couple of weeks we've looked at various aspects of God. We've looked at the fact that He has revealed Himself as a single God, yet present in three persons as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (the Trinity). We've examined what is meant by "The Glory of God" and how we as individuals can bring Glory to Him.

This week we're going to take a look at the attributes of God. An attribute is defined as "an essential characteristic of a person or thing." So when we talk about understanding the attributes of God, we're essentially talking about the things that enable us to understand the character and nature of God.

So, who is God? God as a concept has been described as everything from an impersonal life-force to a benevolent, personal, almighty Creator. He has been called by many names, including: "Zeus," "Jupiter," "Brahma," "Allah," "Ra," "Odin," "Ashur," "Izanagi," "Viracocha," "Ahura Mazda," and "the Great Spirit" to name just a few. He's seen by some as "Mother Nature" and by others as "Father God."

But who is the God of the Bible really? Who does He claim to be?

The Bible, God’s Word, tells us what God is like and what He is not like. Without the authority of the Bible, any attempt to explain God’s attributes would be no better than an opinion, which by itself is often incorrect, especially in understanding God (Job 42:7). To say that it is important for us to try to understand what God is like is a huge understatement. Failure to do so can cause us to set up, chase after, and worship false gods contrary to His will (Exodus 20:3-5).

Only what God has chosen to reveal of Himself can be known. So, in order for us to have an understanding of Him and His attributes we have to turn to God's Word.

Reading through the names of God in Scripture can be helpful in our search of what God is like. Here a just a few of His names as found in His Word:

Elohim - strong One, divine (Genesis 1:1)
Adonai - Lord, indicating a Master-to-servant relationship (Exodus 4:10, 13)
El Elyon - Most High, the strongest One (Genesis 14:20)
El Roi - the strong One who sees (Genesis 16:13)
El Shaddai - Almighty God (Genesis 17:1)
El Olam - Everlasting God (Isaiah 40:28)
Yahweh - LORD “I Am,” meaning the eternal self-existent God (Exodus 3:13, 14).

Join us this week as we discuss the attributes of God.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to gotquestions.org for resources used in this week's lesson.

The Guilt Trip

2010-05-17T18:56:00.001-04:00

We all have done (or not done) a variety of different things, but there is one common experience that we all share. In fact I believe everyone on earth shares this. It's called guilt. I don't think anyone could get up and say "I have never felt guilty." This week we're going to talk about a guilt trip. And even though most people hate guilt trips, you're going to want to hear about this one.

Actually there are really two kinds of guilt trips. The first kind is when people put on the "holier than thou act" and try to make you feel guilty for whatever reason. This kind of person has always made me laugh because one of the things Jesus hated the most was self-righteousness in people.

But, there is another kind of guilt trip - and this is the good kind. This is the trip that people take from "feeling guilty" to "feeling forgiven". And that's a trip everyone needs to take!

Romans 3:23 says:
For all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard.

Not a few, not some, not even a minority or a majority... ALL have sinned - which means that all are guilty. And guilt is a really bad thing. It haunts us, cripples us, and eats away at our joy like a rapidly spreading cancer. This is the guilt trip I'm talking about. It's a journey from the maddening prison of condemnation to the joyful freedom of forgiveness. It's available to everyone, and the most amazing part is that it is 100% absolutely positively free.

Free to you and me, that is - because Someone already paid the price for our sin. It cost Jesus His very life. He spilled His blood so your sins could be washed away:

I John 2:2 says:
He is the sacrifice for our sins. He takes away not only our sins but the sins of all the world.

Make no mistake about it, God is mad about sin, which is why we feel guilty. But Jesus Christ came to earth, lived a perfect and sinless life, and became the sacrifice that HAD to be made. When He died, He made it possible for us to change our position with God from guilty to forgiven by trusting in Him alone for eternal life.

Join us this week as we discuss the reality of guilt and what our proper response should be to it.

See you at The Refuge

The Glory of God

2010-05-10T14:51:00.001-04:00

We read throughout Scripture about God's glory and that we are to glorify God in everything that we do. But what exactly does that mean?

What is the glory of God?

What does it mean to glorify God?

These are both critical questions and it is crucial that as Christians we understand the answers to them. How can we glorify God in our own lives unless we can comprehend what God's glory truly is? And if we don't understand what His glory is, then how are we supposed to be capable of bringing glory to Him?

Isaiah 43:7 says that God created us for His glory. So what Scripture is saying is that man “glorifies” God because it is through man that God’s glory can be seen in things like our love, our praise, and our worship—things belonging to God that we are carrying “in jars of clay” (2 Corinthians 4:7).

We are the vessels that “contain” His glory. All the things we are able to do and that make us what we are find their source in Him. God interacts with nature in the same way. Nature exhibits His glory. His glory is revealed to man’s mind through the material world in many ways, and often in different ways to different people.

Romans 1:20 tells us:
“For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities ‚his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”

The sight of the mountains may thrill one person, and another person may love the beauty of the sea. But the power that is behind them both (God’s glory) speaks to both people and connects them to God. In this way, God is able to reveal Himself to all men, no matter their race, heritage or location.

In the New Testament, the word “glory” is translated to mean dignity, honor, praise and worship. Putting the two together, we find that glorifying God means to acknowledge His greatness and give Him honor by praising and worshiping Him, primarily because He, and He alone, deserves to be praised, honored and worshiped.

God’s glory is the essence of His nature and we give glory to Him by recognizing that essence.

The question that comes to mind is if God has all the glory, which He does, how then do we “give Him” glory? How can we give God something that is His in the first place? We will examine all of this as we look into the issue of God's glory and our response to it this week.

See you at The Refuge!

The Trinity - Part 1: What and Who??

2010-05-04T08:24:00.002-04:00

One of the core doctrines of Christianity is the reality of the Trinity - God in three persons. I think too often people try to gloss over this sometimes difficult to grasp concept as if it doesn't really matter.

They say why bother? Why don't we all just agree to disagree? Why can't we all just get along?

Because...if we have a messed up view of the Trinity, then we have a messed up view of God. If we have a messed up view of God, we end up with a messed up view of life.

Sounds pretty messy, doesn't it?

So let me try to clear up this mess the best way I know how - by looking at what the Bible has to say about it!

First, the Bible makes it crystal clear that there is only one God. Deuteronomy 6:4 boldly proclaims that "The Lord is one." Other passages back up this fact with undisputed clarity (Isaiah 43:10, Isaiah 44:6-8, Isaiah 45:22).

So we know from Scripture that there is only one God, not many gods as other religions have mistakenly taught for thousands of years.

Secondly, the Bible teaches that there is one who is called the Father and is identified as being God (1 Peter 1:2), that there is one who is called Jesus and is identified as being God (John 1:1-3&14-18, John 20:28-29, 1 John 1:1-4&5:20, Philippians 2:5-8, Revelation 1:17-18, Revelation 22:12-20), and that there is one who is called the Holy Spirit and is identified as being God (John 14:16-17, John 15:26, John 16:7-15, Acts 5:3-4, Acts 13:2, 1 Corinthians 12:4-18, Hebrews 9:14, Hebrews 10:15-18).

Simply put, the Bible teaches there is one eternal God revealed in three persons. All the crazy verse twisting in the world cannot change this core Biblical doctrine. The Bible clearly teaches there is one eternal God revealed in three persons. The Father is God, The Son is God, and The Holy Spirit is God.

Join us this week as we start a new series on embracing the wonderful mystery of the Trinity.

See you at The Refuge!

The Battle of the Mind - Part 4: The Key to Victory is Surrender

2010-04-26T20:25:00.004-04:00

Over the last several weeks we've taken a look at the nature and reality of sin. We've examined how sin is the dumbest thing we can ever do and that God has provided a way out when we feel temptation knocking at our door. We've looked at how doubt and fear are produced when we try to handle things on our own and we've discussed how sin is a poison that slowly destroys everything we hold dear, dealing death wherever it spreads.

This week we will look at the only solution to the issue of sin while we exist on this side of heaven. If we want victory over sin, then we have to understand the key: surrender. Because the only way for us to defeat our sin nature is through submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Which is exactly why the Bible paints a clear picture of how we should handle the evil side of our human nature in black and white terms. See if these truths from God's word make sense to you:

"Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God (Romans 8: 5-14).

Did you catch the formula for defeating your sinful nature? It doesn't lie in your strength and will power. The solution is a Person - and that Person is the Holy Spirit. When you trusted in Jesus as your only hope of salvation, the Holy Spirit 'moved in' to your soul. One of His desires is that your sinful nature be dominated and destroyed on a daily basis.

Think about it - you have the very power of God living inside you! So, the next time you have a strong urge to give in and let your world be transformed into an ugly mess of damage and relational meltdowns, remember that you always have a choice. Focus on the Person and power of the Holy Spirit, and let Him defeat your sin nature and lead you into life and peace.

See you at The Refuge!

The Battle of the Mind - Part 3: The Consequences of Sin

2010-04-19T10:39:00.004-04:00

Over the last two weeks we've discussed how sin is the dumbest thing we can possibly do because it is the surest and quickest way to completely, utterly, and oftentimes permanently destroy our lives. Which is why God is so concerned about us NOT doing it! Every time we sin, we actively help Satan in his plan to steal, kill and destroy the 'more and better life' that God wanted us to have when He created us.

We are taught in Scripture that we sin when we are drawn by our own sinful desires and enticed. Did you get that? We are born into sin; separated from God, and rebellion against Him is in our hearts. It is that desire from within our own hearts that draws us into sin and our actions are conceived first in our hearts before being acted out in our lives.

What we put in our minds and entertain in our thoughts will make it into our lives.

The key is what we treasure and allow into our hearts. If we pour corruption into our minds every day through movies, books, music and other sorts of entertainment, we are welcoming these corrupt things into our hearts. What we value is what we treasure up and our values are directly influenced by what we saturate our minds with.

This week we will take a look at the ultimate consequence of those treasures that we've collected in our hearts.

Some of you may think that you can play around with sin and not get bit, but listen to what God says:

"...you can be sure that your sin will track you down" (Numbers 32:23)

If you refuse to deal with disobedience to God and His commands, you will eventually pay a price. There's no getting around it, because it is simply the way the universe is set up. You may get away with things for a while, which is exactly what Satan will use to turn off your God-given warning devices, and eventually the poison of sin will seep through the veins of your life, and it will be too late.

There is only one way to define sin, and that is by using the word death. The Bible teaches us that "the wages of sin is death..." (Romans 6:23).

In other words, when you sin, something dies.

When you lie, people's trust for you dies.
When you gossip, your good reputation dies.
When you lust, your relationship with the opposite sex dies.
When you give into anger, your peace of mind dies.
When you are selfish, your enjoyment of life dies.
When you are proud, your love for others dies.

ANYTIME you sin in thought, word, or deed, something will die. This is why God warns us over and over and over again to avoid sin like the plague - because it is!

Here's the bottom line: Sin impacts life and relationships with God and others in a completely destructive way which, if left unchecked, will ultimately destroy our lives.

See you at The Refuge!

The Battle of the Mind - Part 2: Protecting the Heart

2010-04-12T09:31:00.003-04:00

Your mind is the guard of your heart. Jesus made it clear that all sin comes from the heart and not the mind. Many of us struggle with guilt unnecessarily because we don't understand the role between our minds, our hearts and our thoughts.

You cannot control thoughts from entering your mind, but you can control whether or not you entertain thoughts and then welcome them into your heart. We don't fall under condemnation until sin is conceived and given a place to live in our hearts.

Consider these words of Jesus from Matthew 15:18-20:
"But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.'"

You are not sinful because of what goes in, but what comes out. Food, drink or anything going in cannot corrupt you spiritually. This is also true about thoughts in the mind. What thoughts arise in the mind doesn't necessarily corrupt us until we allow it a place, receive it into our hearts and allow it to become part of the corruption that comes from our heart into our lives.

We are taught in scripture that we sin when we are drawn by our own sinful desires and enticed. It is the desire from our heart that draws us into sin and our actions are conceived first in our hearts before being acted out in our lives. What we put in our minds and entertain in our thoughts will make it into our lives.

This is why the Bible warns us not to be conformed to this world, but be transformed by renewing our minds each day. The passage above explains that what comes out of the heart defiles us, but also the heart can bring forth good things.

Look at Matthew 12:35:
"The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him."

The heart can bring forth evil things that pollute us, but it can also bring forth treasures of good things. Notice that Jesus did not say that our heart produces these things, but instead brings forth the treasures we have stored there. Men who have corrupt minds will reject the faith God has given, while the minds of the pure are renewed by the word of God and the power of God’s Spirit within us.

The key is what we treasure and allow into our hearts. If you pour corruption into your mind every day through movies, books, music and other sorts of entertainment, you are welcoming these corrupt things into your heart. What you value is what you treasure up and your values are directly influenced by what you saturate your mind with.

What you set your minds on to watch, read or listen to is what you are receiving as a valued treasure and will store in your heart.

Join us this week as we discuss the "heart" of our issue with sin and temptation.

See you at The Refuge!

The Battle of the Mind - Part 1: Dumb & Dumber

2010-04-06T09:48:00.001-04:00

There are people who seem to have made it their mission in life to give the word 'dumb' a whole new meaning. We come across them everyday either at school, or at the store, or sometimes even in our own families. It seems that they go out of their way to avoid common sense and deliberately conduct themselves in a way that guarantees they look dumb in the end. They're the ones whom we look at and laugh and say to ourselves, "I'd never do something that dumb!"

But the truth is, we are often much dumber.

Dumb and dumber?

Yep. Because we are engaging in something that goes beyond dumb and dumber to the dumbest thing a human being can do.

It's called sin...as in disobeying God...as in giving in to temptation. Sin is the dumbest thing we can do because it is the surest and quickest way to completely, utterly, and oftentimes permanently destroy our lives.

Which is why God is so concerned about us NOT doing it:

If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. (Matthew 5:29-30)

There are people out there that think God is a grumpy, no fun, hyper-controlling Being with a scowl on His face just waiting for you to break His laws so He can put the smack-down on the 'sinners'. These people make me laugh, because they get God all wrong...and I can prove it in one simple verse.

Jesus promised this:

The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness. (John 10:10)

The 'thief' that Jesus is talking about here is Satan. He hates you and has a rotten plan for your life, which is why he tempts you to sin. He knows that a life of sin is the fast lane to stealing, killing, and destroying what God wants for you. What God wants for you is summed up in this verse as well:

"My purpose is to give life in all its fullness."

Another version of the Bible puts it this way:

"I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of."

We all dream of living a full and meaningful life-right? Which is why sin is the dumbest thing we can do. Every time we sin, we steal, kill and destroy the 'more and better life' that God wanted us to have.

Our lies steal away trust from the ones we love.

Our anger kills the closeness we desire to have with others.

Our lust destroys any chance of real intimacy with the opposite sex.

Like I said...the dumbest thing we can do.

This week we will start a new series about the nature of sin and temptation as we study "The Battle of the Mind."

See you at The Refuge!

The Case for Faith: Follow-Up Discussion

2010-03-30T18:37:00.001-04:00

This week we will have an open discussion of the questions that were addressed over the last two weeks while viewing the DVD, "The Case for Faith." Specifically we will look at what author and investigative journalist Lee Strobel referred to as two of the most difficult 'heart objections' that people raise when considering Christianity. They are:

"Why is Jesus the only way to God?"

"How could a loving God exist if there is so much evil and suffering in the world?"

This week I want to hear your thoughts on these issues and whether you have ever struggled with them or know of someone who has. We'll also take a look at how finding answers to these questions can forever change not only your own life, but also the lives of everyone with whom you share the Gospel with in the future!

Remember what 1 Peter 3:15 tells us:

"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."

See you at The Refuge!

The Case for Faith Part 2

2010-03-21T19:11:00.005-04:00

Last week we viewed the first half of the DVD adaptation of Lee Strobel's book "The Case for Faith" as it examined the question:

"Why is Jesus the only way to God?"

Through careful examination of history, world religions, testimonies and writings from outside of the Bible, and a study of Biblical prophecy, we watched as Lee Strobel's investigative skills led to a single inescapable conclusion: that Jesus of Nazareth is in fact unquestionably God's unique son, just as He claimed in Scripture and as evidenced in real history.

This week we will continue the DVD as it moves on to the next question:

"How could a loving God exist if there is so much evil and suffering in the world?"

This DVD will greatly complement our recent series on Defense of the Faith, helping to foster fresh confidence in discussing Christianity with our most skeptical friends.

See you at The Refuge!

The Case for Faith

2010-03-15T20:40:00.004-04:00

This week we will watch part one of the DVD The Case for Faith. Many of you may remember watching the DVD of The Case for Christ a couple of years ago. That movie was based on the #1 best-selling book, The Case for Christ, in which legally-trained investigative reporter Lee Strobel examines the claims of Christ, reaching the hard-won verdict that Jesus is in fact unquestionably God's unique son, just as He claimed in Scripture and as evidenced in real history.

However, despite the compelling historical evidence, many people still grapple with serious concerns about faith in God.

"Why is Jesus the only way to God?"

"How could a loving God exist of there is so much evil and suffering in the world?"

In the DVD adaptation of his book, The Case for Faith, Strobel turns his tenacious investigative skills to the most persistent emotional objections to belief , what he calls "heart" barriers to faith. The Case for Faith is for those who may be feeling attracted to Jesus but who are faced with intellectual barriers standing squarely in their path.

This DVD will greatly complement our recent series on Defense of the Faith, helping to foster fresh confidence in discussing Christianity with our most skeptical friends.

See you at The Refuge!

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11 Part 6: Faith in Action!

2010-03-08T19:11:00.003-05:00

Over the last several weeks we have examined many of the arguments that are leveled at Christianity and examined the real evidences that exist when looking at key questions, like:

How did the universe come into existence?
What is the origin of life on Earth?
Did mankind evolve from ape-like creatures?
Was there a global flood? What about Noah and the ark?
What about the dinosaurs? Does the Bible support their existence?

And over the course of our studies we've seen that so-called 'science' and its attempts to explain everything outside of Scripture falls woefully short of any real answers. In fact, we uncovered a deliberate action in many cases to misdirect and confuse these issues in an attempt to justify a presupposition on the part of the scientific evolutionist community. What we found is the 'science' at the core of the debate is in fact a system devoid of evidence that requires a deliberate act of faith to connect the dots.

So, now we come to the logical next step in the 'defense of our faith' and that is to to test what we have learned. This week we will drill down in small groups, testing each other in our ability to:

"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" - 1 Peter 3:15

See you at The Refuge!

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11 Part 5: Faith vs. Faith

2010-03-01T06:52:00.001-05:00

This week we will wrap up the various issues we have discussed in our study of Genesis 1-11. We will examine the fact that when we go up against atheism, Darwinism, and the so-called "proven" science that serves as a basis for much of it, we are in fact going head to head with a system of faith. While it may masquerade as objective science, it is in fact a belief system without proofs, requiring faith in order to adhere to its tenants.

This week we will take a look at specific aspects of that faith system and compare them against the Word of God and His account of Creation. We will examine:

The origin of the universe
The origin of life
The fossil record
The dinosaurs

Then we will decide together which system requires more faith to believe.

Romans 1:18-20 tells us:

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse."

See you at The Refuge!

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11 Part 4: Monkeying with God's Creation

2010-02-16T06:38:00.005-05:00

God tells us that on the same day He made all animals that walk on the earth (the sixth day), He created man separately in His own image with the intent that man would have dominion over every other living thing on Earth (Genesis 1:26-28). From this it is clear that there is no animal that is man’s equal, and certainly none his ancestor.

Thus when God paraded the animals by Adam for him to name, He observed that “for Adam there was not found an help meet for him” (Genesis 2:20). Jesus confirmed this uniqueness of men and women when He declared that marriage is to be between a man and a woman because “from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female” (Mark 10:6). This leaves no room for prehumans or for billions of years of cosmic evolution prior to man’s appearance on the earth. Adam chose the very name “Eve” for his wife because he recognized that she would be “the mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20). The Apostle Paul stated clearly that man is not an animal: “All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds” (1 Corinthians 15:39).

While Bible-believing Christians begin with the assumption that God’s Word is true and that man’s ancestry goes back only to a fully human Adam and Eve, evolutionists begin with the assumption that man has, in fact, evolved from apes.

Since evolutionists generally do not believe that man evolved from any ape that is now living, they look to fossils of humans and apes to provide them with their desired evidence. Specifically, they look for any anatomical feature that looks “intermediate” (between that of apes and man). Fossil apes having such features are declared to be ancestral to man (or at least collateral relatives) and are called hominids. Living apes, on the other hand, are not considered to be hominids, but rather are called hominoids because they are only similar to humans but did not evolve into them. Nonetheless, evolutionists are willing to accept mere similarities between the fossilized bones of extinct apes and the bones of living men as “proof” of our ape ancestry.

Knowing from Scripture that God didn’t create any apemen, there are only three ways for the evolutionist to create one.

Combine ape fossil bones with human fossilbones and declare the two to be one individual-a real “apeman.”
Emphasize certain humanlike qualities of fossilized ape bones, and with imagination upgrade apes to be more humanlike.
Emphasize certain apelike qualities of fossilized human bones, and with imagination downgrade humans to be more apelike.

These three approaches account for all of the attempts by evolutionists to fill the unbridgeable gap between apes and men with fossil apemen.

No, we are not descended from apes. Rather, God created man as the crown of His creation on Day Six. We are a special creation of God, made in His image, to bring Him glory. What a revolution this truth would make, if our evolutionized culture truly understood it!

This week we will take a look at the ape to man equation and examine just why it is that evolutionists want to make a monkey out of all of us.

See you at The Refuge!

Special thanks to Answers in Genesis for their amazing resources that went toward this week's lesson.

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11 Part 3: The Ark and the Flood of Noah

2010-02-08T14:38:00.005-05:00

The account of Noah and the Ark is one of the most widely known events in the history of mankind. Unfortunately, like other Bible accounts, it is often taken as a mere fairy tale. However, if the Bible is in fact the true history book of the universe, then the most-asked questions about the Ark and the Flood of Noah can be answered with authority and confidence within its pages.

This week we will take a look at the Biblical account of the Flood of Noah and examine it closely from a scientific perspective to determine the answers to the following questions:

How Large Was Noah’s Ark?
How Could Noah Build the Ark?
How Could Noah Round Up So Many Animals?
Were Dinosaurs on Noah’s Ark?
How Could Noah Fit All the Animals on the Ark?
How Did Noah Care for All the Animals?
How Could a Flood Destroy Every Living Thing?
How Could the Ark Survive the Flood?
Where Did All the Water Come From?
Where Did All the Water Go?
Was Noah’s Flood Global?
Where Is the Evidence in the Earth for Noah’s Flood?
Where Is Noah’s Ark Today?
Why Did God Destroy the Earth That He Had Made?
How Is Christ like the Ark?

You won't want to miss this thought-provoking discussion!

See you at The Refuge!

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11 Part 2

2010-01-31T14:26:00.001-05:00

This week we will continue our study of the first 11 chapters of Genesis. As we discussed last week, the first 11 chapters of Genesis are not only the straightforward account of how God created everything that exists, but it is the very core of our Christian belief system. These chapters explain why we are here in the first place; why the world is in the condition it is in; why there is evil and death and disease; and most importantly, these chapters explain why we are in need of a savior.

To put it very simply, unless the first 11 chapters of Genesis are authentic historical events, the rest of the Bible is incomplete and incomprehensible as to its full meaning.

This week we will break down the evidence for the Biblical account of creation as found in Genesis and compare it against the theory of evolution. We will put the evidence for both belief systems on the table and discuss where logic leads us in this examination.

This is a critical area of understanding for all Christians, because it is important that believers see that while Scripture clearly states that God requires that we have faith (Hebrews 11:6), He does NOT require BLIND faith! He expects us to intelligently apply REASONED faith.

Romans 1:20 tells us:
"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."

This Scripture makes it clear that God has carefully preserved the evidence for His creation and made it abundantly clear to all who look to see His hand and His sovereignty throughout all that He created.

See you at The Refuge!

Explaining it all: Genesis Chapters 1-11

2010-01-19T06:29:00.002-05:00

The much-debated first 11 chapters of Genesis have incurred countless criticisms from modern scholars, scientists, and skeptics. Proposals of proper interpretation have included looking at these chapters as poetry, parables, prophecy, myths, and legends. So what is the evidence to show that these first 11 chapters are actually a record of authentic historical facts?

If we look within Scripture and apply the normal principles of biblical exegesis (ignoring pressure to make the text conform to the evolutionary prejudices of our age), it is overwhelmingly obvious that the intent is for Genesis to be read in a straightforward, obvious sense as an authentic, literal, historical record of what actually happened.

The principal people mentioned in Genesis chapters 1-11 are referred to as real—historical, not mythical—people in the rest of the Bible, often many times. For example, Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel, and Noah are referred to in 15 other books of the Bible.

The Lord Jesus Christ referred to the Creation of Adam and Eve as a real historical event, by quoting Genesis 1:27 and 2:24 in His teaching about divorce (Matthew 19:3-6; Mark 10:2-9), and by referring to Noah as a real historical person and the Flood as a real historical event, in His teaching about the 'coming of the Son of man' (Matthew 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-27).

The first 11 chapters of Genesis are not only the straightforward account of how God created everything that exists, it is the very core of our Christian belief system. These chapters explain why we exist, why the world is in the condition it is in, why there is evil and death and disease, and most importantly, these chapters explain why we are in need of a savior. Unless the first 11 chapters of Genesis are authentic historical events, the rest of the Bible is incomplete and incomprehensible as to its full meaning.

This week we will begin a look at Genesis chapters 1-11, putting its claims to the test as we compare its historical account to accepted scientific theory about life's origins. You don't want to miss it.

See you at The Refuge!

The Evidence for the Case for Jesus Christ: Follow-Up Discussion

2010-01-11T18:50:00.004-05:00

Last week we took a critical look at the evidences that exist for the reality that a man named Jesus actually existed in history and that he was what he claimed to be – the Son of God. We looked at sources from outside of the Bible that unequivocally attest to his existence, and that he birthed a group of followers who took his name, calling themselves Christians. These followers believed that he was the Christ, or Messiah, as had been foretold by the Old Testament prophets, and they testified that Jesus publicly performed amazing, miraculous works and taught about love, mercy, and forgiveness.

We looked at how history proves that these followers were persecuted and died martyrs’ deaths for their beliefs and their refusal to deny the message of Jesus. We examined the evidence of martyrdom and reviewed how that while many people throughout history have died for a cause that they thought to be the truth, no one, other than an insane person, dies for something that they know without question to be a lie.

Furthermore, this argument falls apart when we realize that ten of the twelve disciples died a martyr’s death. If a hoax were perpetrated about Jesus rising from the dead, those ten men would have had to be a part of it. Yet, they endured persecution and death as a reward for their faithfulness to Christ’s teachings. Why? Because they experienced something that galvanized them into an unstoppable force of world-changing evangelism – they met the risen Lord face to face!

Finally we examined the various evidences for the reality of this resurrection, because the simple fact of the matter is this – if Christ did NOT rise from the dead, then all of Christianity is a lie.

As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:17:

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.”

The nature of last week’s lesson required that the information be presented in a lecture format. So, this week, we will take a second look at that same information and open up the floor for questions and discussion of the topics that were covered. Bring your critical thinking caps as we re-examine the evidence in a wide-open, no-holds barred forum.

Then, we’ll take a look at how all of it ties back in to an unexpected source: Genesis Chapters 1 – 11.

See you at The Refuge!

By request, notes for this lesson can be downloaded HERE.

The Case for the Past and Present Existence of Jesus Christ

2010-01-04T21:10:00.003-05:00

There are those who say that a man named Jesus, who claimed to be the son of God, never even walked the earth. There are those who say that while he may have existed, he was nothing more than a good, yet very mortal, man; a moral philosopher who was misunderstood by the ruling religious authorities in his day and was put to death, yet never rose again after three days.

This week we are going to put this case on trial. You will be the jury as we examine the evidence for the historicity of the man known as Jesus of Nazareth.

We will examine the evidence of his existence, as well as the evidence of his claims to be fully God. We will look outside of Scripture to see what historians from the same time in history had to say about him; examine prophecies pertaining to his coming; ponder the persecution and eventual martyrdom of those who followed him; listen to the eyewitness accounts of his life and death; and review the reactions of the disciples and the Roman authorities following his death.

And we will break down into detail the evidence for the single event upon which the validity of all Christianity rests: the resurrection. This is a week you do not want to miss as we put on trial the case for the past and present existence of Jesus Christ!

See you at The Refuge!

Merry CHRISTmas!

2009-12-24T11:48:00.002-05:00

Here it is Christmas Eve and I want to wish everyone in our youth group an amazing time of fellowship and love as we all take time to enjoy family and friends at this special time of the year. However, as we focus on the season, let's not forget the reason...

When we celebrate Christmas, and the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ some 2,000 years ago, we are celebrating love; a love beyond our ability to fully comprehend and understand; a love so amazing that it drove the Creator of all things to step down from the throne of heaven and allow Himself to be subjected to life in this evil and fallen world…and for what?

To die. The only way to save us from an eternity separated from God was for God Himself to pay the penalty for all of our wrongdoing. And the only way for God to die was to clothe Himself in frail humanity.

Jesus came into our world as a visitor to accomplish His salvation mission. He lived a perfect, blameless, guilt-free life and died an unimaginably horrible death so we could have hope here on Earth and a glorious eternity in heaven.

So this Christmas, remember that the scene of a baby Jesus lying in a manger has the dark shadow of the Cross in the background, but behind the Cross is the doorway to heaven, open to anyone willing to trust in Jesus alone for salvation.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

Merry Christmas everyone! I love you all!

Pastor Steve

Call of Duty: Real World Faith Defense - God's Word Part 2

2009-12-14T06:17:00.009-05:00

Last week we started our study of Defending our Faith by taking a closer look at one of the mightiest weapons we have in our defense arsenal - The Word of God. As the foundation for a proper understanding of Scripture, we first looked closely at examining what the Bible claims about itself.

In doing so we examined two words: infallible and inerrant.

The word infallible speaks to the fact that God has so inspired Scripture that it is the sure, safe, reliable, eternally true rule and guide in all matters in total. It is the whole truth when we look at Scripture from the bird’s eye view, the big picture. It is an infallible document. That is, what it says is true in full.

Psalm 19:7, “The law of the Lord is perfect.”

Psalm 18:30, “As for God, His way is perfect," or blameless. The Word of the Lord is tried, or tested, proven.

Psalm 119, “Your Word is very pure.” “Your law is truth.” “All Your commandments are truth.” “The sum of Your Word is truth.” “Every one of Your righteous ordinances endures forever for all Your commandments are righteous.”

Romans 7:12, “God’s Word is holy, righteous and good.”

And you have in Deuteronomy 4:2, “Do not add to Scripture.”

You have in Revelation 22:18 and 19, “Do not add to Scripture, do not take away from Scripture.”

It is in total complete and infallible.

The second word is inerrant, and that looks at it from the worm’s eye view - every word. Every word is true. Every word in the original autographs as inspired by God is free from error, falsehood, mistake, inaccuracy.

So the total truth of the message of the Word is safeguarded by every word being a true word from God. The Bible is entirely true because it is true in every part. It is the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Proverbs 30 verses 5 and 6, “Every word of God is pure.” ...notice it says every word!

Psalm 12:6, “The words of the Lord are pure words as silver tested in a furnace refined seven times.”

So whether you’re talking about infallibility, the big picture, or whether you’re talking about inerrancy of the small picture, the combination of the two speaks of the Bible’s truthfulness. It is true.

This week, we will take our study a step deeper as we are joined by our special guest, Dave Glander. Dave will be providing an amazing "hands-on" demonstration of the reliability of Scripture as living history.

For many years, skeptics have tried to say that the Bible is nothing more than a big game of "Telephone". You remember that game? Someone whispers something in the ear of one person in a long line and they in turn repeat it into the ear of the person next to them and by the time it reaches the end of the line the entire phrase has changed.

Well, that's what skeptics mean by this - that we cannot trust that what the original Bible might have said because through the years, people have changed what the original text said. According to these skeptics, the Bible you are reading today is nothing like what the original word said.

If you have ever wondered if that is true, I invite you to come and either be a part, or witness this hands on, interactive challenge where we will examine physical evidence of this scenario. That's right! Join us as we study "Actual" manuscripts dating over 500 years old!

We will have several versions to compare textual translations, even an original 1st year printing of the 1611 Authorized King James Version. Take a peek at one of the only original Tyndale Bible leafs in the world. There will be 2400 year old Papyrus Fragments and Cuneiform Tablets that are over 4000 years old. You will be able to actually touch and feel a 300 year old Deerskin Torah Scroll Fragment.

If you ever wanted to see first hand that the Bible IS a reliable source for knowing the will of God, don't miss it!

See you at The Refuge!

By request, here are last week's notes for download.

Youth Group Christmas Party

2009-12-12T09:36:00.002-05:00

Join us at The Refuge for our annual Youth Group Christmas Party for an evening of food, fun and fellowship in honor of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

5:00PM - 8:00PM
Dinner will be served.
Bring a white elephant gift.

See you at The Refuge!

Call of Duty: Real World Faith Defense Part 1 - God's Word

2009-12-07T07:05:00.001-05:00

In Scripture, Paul tells us that:

Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12).

But here's the thing, we have been given some amazing weapons with which to defend our faith when under persecution. This week we're going to take a look at the first of these as we take a look at God's love letter to all mankind, The Bible. When we use the Bible as defense we have to understand that often the other person doesn't believe in the Bible.

it's important to remember that believing or not believing in something doesn't make it true or false. I can stand on railroad tracks and look at an oncoming train and say, "I don't believe in that train," but that doesn't change the fact that in a few seconds I'm going to be a grease spot on the side of the tracks.

What makes something true or false is reasonable proof, and the Bible gives us far more evidence of being God's Word than any other book that makes the same claim. In fact, I believe it takes more faith to believe that the Bible isn't the word of God than to believe it is- and here's why:

The Bible claims to be the inspired word of God over and over again. The phrase "and God said" is used hundreds of times in the Old Testament, and the New Testament says that:

"All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." (II Timothy 3:16)

The Greek word translated as 'inspired' in 2 Timothy 3:16 literally means "God-breathed." It refers not to the writers, but to what is written. The words of the Bible are the "breath of God!" Therefore, the origin of Scripture is God, not man. The Bible came from God ("breathed out") through the authors who wrote it; God, who is true (John 3:33 ), breathed out truth.

This obviously applies to the entire Bible, and extends to the actual words, not just the concepts ("all Scripture"). When people tell me that only parts of the Bible are inspired and not others, I ask them where they obtained a God "breathalyzer!" In other words, how can we judge from a human perspective what God inspired and what He didn't? Then there are other folks who say that the Bible is only inspired in the original documents...but gee, don't you think that God might be powerful enough to keep an eye on the copying and translation of His own Word?

The Bible is either wholly inspired, or not at all - you can't have it both ways. Jesus affirmed this for the Old Testament (Matt. 5:18 ) and promised this for the New Testament (John 16:12 -15; 14:26 ).

Join us this week as we take a closer look at the proofs for the authenticity of The Bible as God's Holy Word, and its place as REAL HISTORY!

See you at The Refuge!

Special Testimony: Linda Pruden

2009-11-30T19:53:00.004-05:00

This week we will take a brief break from our planned series on defending our faith (a.k.a. apologetics) in order to take advantage of an opportunity to join the regular congregation in the main sanctuary for a special testimony from Linda Pruden. Linda's story is both tragic and uplifting, and one that I believe will have a great impact on each of you.

We will meet at The Refuge at our regular time for praise & worship before loading into the church van (and a few other vehicles) to go across the street to the main sanctuary. This is something that I know none of you will want to miss.

See you at The Refuge!

Them's Fightin' Words!

2009-11-09T19:52:00.006-05:00

When we make the decision to turn our lives over to Christ we're never promised that everything will be fun and happiness. In fact, while we are promised eternal love and forgiveness, Scripture makes it pretty clear that our path will be hard and that the world will be set against us and as a Christian we need to expect a fight for what we believe and why we believe it.

The bottom line of what we believe is the same as what all true Christians believe:

Jesus Christ, who is God in the flesh, lived a perfect life and died a horrible death on the cross to pay the penalty for all the sins of all humanity, then came back from the dead after three days proving His claim of being the only way to God.

Point #1: As Christians we have a fight coming

So, whether you know it or not, whether you believe it or not, you have a fight coming. It’s over the God-man named Jesus. If you've been keeping up with the world lately, you might have noticed that living out a godly lifestyle and sharing that Jesus is the only way to heaven doesn't exactly score you popularity points with popular culture. In fact, these days, Christianity is the only spiritual worldview that it’s politically acceptable to ridicule and persecute!

Point #2: Every Christian faces a fight of some sort:

When the world hates you, remember it hated me before it hated you. The world would love you if you belonged to it, but you don't. I chose you to come out of the world, and so it hates you. Do you remember what I told you? "A servant is not greater than the master." Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you! The people of the world will hate you because you belong to me, for they don't know God who sent me. (John 15:18-21)

Did you notice what Jesus is pointing out here? It's not if the world hates you...it's when the world hates you. In other words, you have a fight coming.

Check what Paul wrote:

Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12)

Again, did you pick up on those words? Not some or most, but everyone. Not might or could, but will suffer persecution. So, as you can see, Scripture makes it clear: you have a fight coming. Are you prepared for it? Are you ready to give a reason for the hope that is within you through Christ Jesus? When it comes to defending our faith, Christians have two foundational proofs: God's inspired word called the Bible, and the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave.

Over the next few weeks we'll be revisiting some of the Defending your Faith series that we did a couple of years ago. God has recently laid it on my heart to focus on the infallibility and reliability of Scripture as truth, as well as the historical evidence for the resurrection. Be here as we examine these in the coming weeks.

See you at The Refuge!

The Secret to Real Forgiveness

2009-11-01T22:12:00.002-05:00

Perhaps you carry a burden of guilt and shame over things you wish you had never said or wish you had never done, and now you wander the streets of emotional homelessness thinking that destructive behavior is the answer to the weight that burdens your soul. Drugs, alcohol, cutting, sinful sexual behavior, lying, cheating, and stealing are all killing machines that would love to impale your soul and end your life.

You may feel like your heavenly Father no longer loves and accepts you. Your guilt may have you convinced that there is no going back to your Daddy's embrace, but that is a lie. The truth is that Jesus paid for every sin you committed or ever will commit. He paid with His blood and His life, then He put a promise in the Bible:

"Come now, let's settle this," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)

How does this amazing thing happen? Do you first need to beat yourself up, or put yourself down? Or do you need to make up for all the bad things by doing all kinds of good things? Do you need to go through life wondering if you really and truly are forgiven?

Yes...that is if you are a part of any religion that tells you that you have to first earn forgiveness here on earth and a place in heaven by being good. But here's the thing: trusting in your own good works for forgiveness has deadly and eternal consequences.

The only way to forgiveness is through the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). He promised that 'if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness' (1 John 1:9)

There is no sin so dark that the Light of the world can't chase the shadows of shame away. There is no offense so huge that the God who holds the universe in the palm of His hand can't lift the burden from your soul. God freely offers forgiveness to anyone willing to ask. He can do this because Jesus Christ died on the cross as payment for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2). Guilt and shame over confessed sins from the past are not the voice of God, they are the tools of the devil.

Join us this week as we examine and discuss the secret to real forgiveness.

See you at The Refuge!

Special Guest: Karen Allen

2009-10-26T19:57:00.002-04:00

This week we are happy to welcome Karen Allen as our special guest. Karen will be leading our "Pure Freedom" event next month at the church (Friday Nov. 6 & Saturday Nov. 7), but we are really excited to have her come and speak to us this Wednesday night in a special standalone appearance. Karen is an exceptionally gifted speaker with a wonderful ability to thoughtfully engage an audience while bringing forth God's Word.

Make plans now to attend, and feel free to bring your friends along. You'll be glad you did!

See you at The Refuge!

Youth Sunday Wrap-Up & a Check-Up

2009-10-20T10:05:00.005-04:00

This week we will watch some DVD highlights from this past week's Youth Sunday. We'll also discuss our Great Commission theme and look at the role we all take on as ministers of the Gospel, whether it is in church or one on one with friends and family.

Additionally, we'll be taking a look at where we are currently stacking up in terms of accepting our role in Christ's commission. Are we witnessing lasers, always focused and prepared to share our faith with any and everyone? Or are we more sky-gazers, taking a passive wait-and-see approach, second-guessing whether or not the person in front of us is someone that we should introduce to Jesus?

Here's how Scripture describes the scene following Jesus' ascent back to Heaven, when even the disciples were guilty of being sky-gazers:

As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”"
(Acts 1:10-11 NLT)

Can you picture it? Jesus makes this fantastic and glorious exit - and the disciples are frozen in time with their heads tilted back and their mouths hanging open as they gaze up at the heavens.

The angels don't waste a second. "Hey - what's going on boys? You looking for alien encounters or what? We're pretty sure Jesus' famous last words before He left were marching orders, so we highly recommend that you get going, because He'll be back to check on your work..."

See you at The Refuge!

Understanding the Holiness of God Part 2

2009-10-12T09:04:00.003-04:00

Last week we started our study by discussing that as Christians it is critical that we have a proper and right view of God. If we want more of God in our lives, we have to begin with a "more accurate" view of Him. And the core of our understanding of God lies in understanding His innate and perfect Holiness.

As James McDonald puts it in his "Downpour" revival study:

"God is more righteous and pure, more piercing and powerful. more strong and impenetrable than anything we can imagine. He is different, separate, other... HOLY!"

This week we will look further into our proper response to the Holiness of God by continuing to examine the eyewitness throne room accounts of Isaiah and Ezekial in Scripture. We will also move into the book of Revelation to look at John's throne room visions of a reigning God on His throne.

Additionally, we will discuss how Holiness rightly observed demands caution even as it declares God's infinite Glory and His unfathomable mystery.

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson series is drawn from the book Downpour by James McDonald.

Understanding the Holiness of God Part 1

2009-10-05T10:23:00.013-04:00

As Christians it is critical that we have a proper and right view of God. If we want more of God in our lives, we have to begin with a "more accurate" view of Him. And the core of our understanding of God lies in understanding His innate and perfect Holiness.

As James McDonald puts it in his "Downpour" revival study:

"God is more righteous and pure, more piercing and powerful. more strong and impenetrable than anything we can imagine. He is different, separate, other... HOLY!"

In Isaiah 6:1-4 we are given a description of God, seated on His throne in all of His splendor and holiness. You'll remember this passage from one of our lessons a few weeks ago:

¹ It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. ² Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. ³ They were calling out to each other,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!
The whole earth is filled with his glory!”

⁴ Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.

In these verses we get a glimpse of God on His throne, in total majestic control, separated and removed even from the sinless seraphim (angels) who hide their faces from the purity of His Glory and Holiness. It is a view of God that we need to understand: the high, exalted, lofty, exclusive, unparalleled, unprecedented character of God. And, as believers, we must be very careful not to lose sight of the reality of God's transcendent holiness as depicted in Scripture.

This week we will begin a study on the Holiness of God. We will look at what Holiness really means and how we are expected to respond to it.

See you at The Refuge!

This lesson series is drawn from the book Downpour by James McDonald.

Blame it all on God?

2009-09-28T11:28:00.007-04:00

One of the toughest questions that believers and non-believers struggle with has to do with the nature of evil and the nature of God. In short, the question goes something like this:

If God is indeed all-powerful and good, then why does He allow evil and suffering to exist in the world?

There have been many people who have lost their faith over this question because they follow this line of thought to a flawed conclusion that if God allows evil and suffering to exist, then he's to blame for it in the first place. They turn the argument upside down and point the finger at a holy and blameless God!

And then, there are others who have come through to the other side of the question with more love and trust for the Lord than they ever would have thought imaginable.

There is no getting around the fact that there is evil and suffering in the world. As Christians we have a responsibility to properly represent God's character to people who come to us in real pain, questioning the nature of a God who would allow evil and suffering to exist.

Point #1- God truly is all-powerful (Job 42:2), but that doesn't mean He can do anything that goes against His holy nature.

Scripture makes it clear that there are some things God cannot do. For instance, God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). He can't be tempted to sin, nor can He tempt others to sin (James 1:13 ). In other words, He cannot do anything that is "out of character" for a holy God whose character is perfect and pure. God created all people with a free will, so to get rid of evil He would have to violate the way He created us- and that is something even an all powerful God cannot do.

Point #2- God truly is loving (I John 4:8), but His love is balanced with His justice (Isaiah 6:3).

Because He is a holy and righteous God, He can't just look the other way when people disobey Him. A great amount of evil and suffering in the world is the result of God letting the natural consequences of things take their course. God's Word teaches that "all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard." (Romans 3:23), there is no one on earth who has the right to complete freedom from God's justice.

Point #3- God truly suffers the most.

Stop and think for a moment about how much humanity suffers at the hands of evil. Yet even the worst imaginable pain doesn’t even hold a candle to what Jesus went through on earth when He was crucified and killed (Matthew 27:46) - and He is the most innocent person ever born! Remember also that He continues to go through anguish in heaven as He sees the devastating results of an evil world filled with evil people.

What is truly amazing is that God could have chosen not to do anything about the mess we made, but instead He took on human form and allowed Himself to be murdered so that we could have a way out of our hopeless and helpless condition. God gave us the ability make a choice, and that choice allowed sin and evil into the world. And in giving us that freedom of choice, He condemned Himself to more suffering than anyone in all of history.

Join us this week as we discuss the subject of evil and the nature of God. We'll address the points above and dig into Scripture to see what God has to say on the subject of this important issue.

See you at The Refuge!

Spiritual Breathing

2009-09-21T12:15:00.004-04:00

How many times in life have you felt like no matter how hard you try, you just can't make things go your way? You end up beating yourself up attempting to move some mountain in your life out of the way only to eventually become discouraged or depressed. This can eventually lead to an attitude of defeat and desperation.

But here's the thing - this is exactly what Satan wants you to feel. And even more so, he wants to make sure that you don't learn the secret to fixing things. What is this secret?

You have the power of God inside of you!

First of all, you need to know that it is impossible to live the Christian life apart from the power of the Holy Spirit. Notice I didn't say it is difficult, challenging, or tough... I used the word impossible because that's the truth! Here's what Jesus said:

"apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)

Satan loves it when we try to serve Christ in our own strength and power, because he knows we are accomplishing absolutely nothing. We may feel like we're pleasing God, but the fact is that we're just running in place like a little hamster on his wheel.

The second thing you need to know is that God's power is available to you 24/7 - but you have to ASK for it and KEEP ASKING for it. That's the other part of the secret, because at any given moment of any given day you are either living in your natural power or God's supernatural power.

When Christians get a hold of this truth, it completely changes the way they live their Christian lives. When this secret gets out, our secret Christian lives go public! All you have to do is learn how to breathe... spiritually that is.

Join us this week as we discuss how to surrender to the power of God, allowing Him to "fill" and "control" us through the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

See you at The Refuge!

What's love got to do with it?

2009-09-14T11:57:00.006-04:00

It seems like anytime you throw the word "love" into a conversation it gets pretty interesting. Some people are comfortable with it, but many aren't. The word "love" has so many different meanings and baggage behind it that it usually brings up a variety of feelings.

There is one thing, though, that we, and actually all people, have in common. In the words of D.C. Talk - we all want to be loved! It starts when we are born and really never goes away, and depending on different circumstances and relationships in our lives, sometimes we feel loved and sometimes we don't.

This week we are going to talk about a truth from the Bible that you can rely on when it comes to being loved:

The Cross of Christ is the clearest, loudest, most powerful message of love ever proclaimed.

Our evil sins against a holy God broke our relationship with Him, and no earthly plan could ever fix it. Which is why Jesus left heaven and took on flesh as a human. In order to pay the price for our sins, He had to give up His life.

Think about it - Jesus chose death over living life without you. Here's the way the Bible describes it in Romans 5:6-11:

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, no one is likely to die for a good person, though someone might be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's judgment. For since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God--all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God.

Join us this week as we examine the fact that the greatest gift of love ever given in the history of the world was paid in full for all mankind on a cross two thousand years ago.

See you at The Refuge!

The Pursuit of Happiness?...

2009-09-08T15:22:00.005-04:00

Who am I, where did I come from, and what is my purpose?

These are questions that people throughout history have asked themselves. How many of you would sum up your life as being all about the pursuit of happiness? Do you think that’s a good goal for our lives?

Here’s the thing: here is a formula to life that is true and real. It's obvious, and it's everywhere, yet people still choose to ignore it every minute of every day. The formula goes like this:

Chasing after happiness = boredom and depression.

No really - it's true. If the focus of your day-to-day goal and your life-purpose is to try to be happy, you are basically drinking seawater to quench your thirst. It may temporarily fulfill your desire, but over the long haul, it will poison your life.

Scripture puts it this way when talking about how God purposefully designed us:

He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

What this means is that at the core of our being is 'eternity' - a desire to have our lives be connected to something eternal and forever. So, when we make life into a trivial pursuit game of 'I wanna be happy', then the hole in our soul reminds us that we are made to chase after things that are bigger than us - bigger than even our own lives.

Join us this week as we examine how the only way to find purpose and happiness in our lives is through serving an eternal God!

See you at The Refuge!

The Truth About the Truth

2009-08-28T11:25:00.001-04:00

You may or may not know this, but the whole issue of truth is in question these days. Television, movies, magazines, and most of the media are constantly bombarding us with the idea that all truth is relative. These are the folks that don't believe in such a thing as absolute truth (i.e. a truth that applies to all people everywhere for all time). To them, everybody makes their own "truth," and it greatly offends them when anyone comes along and says differently.

However, the truth is that there is absolute truth that applies for all people in all places for all of time. The reason it exists is because it comes from the God who created all people and places and is outside of time. He wrote a book called the Bible, which contains the only inspired words of the Creator of the universe. The only place you will find absolute truth is in this book.

Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

Notice He didn't say, "I am a way, a truth, and a life..." Jesus made the boldest statement ever made, that there is truth and it exists in Him. That's about as absolute as you can get, wouldn't you say?

Jesus also said this: "And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32)

Obviously if there wasn't such a thing as truth, then Jesus would have been lying when He said this. But since He IS the truth, He cannot lie, which means that His statement about the existence of truth is true! Join us this week as we examine, the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth!

See you at The Refuge!

No Church Service this Week (August 26, 2009)

2009-08-25T21:40:00.003-04:00

Due to the celebration service being held this Wednesday for Cecil Hodge, there will be no church service. This applies to both the main sanctuary and the youth service at The Refuge.

See you next week at The Refuge!