7:13:37 PM: Who is your favorite hero?

7:14:22 PM: Group: Batman, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Yoda, Mother Theresa…

7:17:19 PM: Looking in Hebrews 11:29-12:2
7:24:36 PM: Group: Sticking it out until the end, staying focused on the goal, after doing all you know to do, standing…

7:26:04 PM: Group: All the people mentioned in this passage were fixed on a particular goal

7:26:41 PM: Group: What really is the goal we are persevering for?

7:27:41 PM: Group: The things of God can become the goal instead of God Himself

7:31:23 PM: Group: Perhaps we get too tied up in the work of the Kingdom and lose sight of the goal of seeking after Jesus…

7:34:44 PM: Group: When the Holy Spirit has all of us, a new reality is opened to us…

7:36:42 PM: Why do we gravitate towards a works-driven, works-based religion?

7:37:28 PM: Group: It’s more comforting to serve an A+B=C type of God. Relationship is hard…

7:44:06 PM: Group: There is a certain danger in allowing God to have all of you. What might He ask? What might He change?

7:45:09 PM: There needs to be willingness and openness on our behalf to follow exactly what God says…

7:45:57 PM: The people in this passage had such faithfulness that their eyes were fixed on God and His mission…

7:46:37 PM: You cannot persevere without relationship…without faithfulness…

7:48:00 PM: This story becomes something of a relay race…a vast contrast to the idea that it’s an individualized race.

7:48:49 PM: Therefor, since we have such a history of faithful followers throughout history, we have a responsibility to continue the race

7:52:28 PM: We are responsible to share and show Jesus, faithfully, to the community around us. These people, heroes, were ordinary people; like us.

7:53:07 PM: But most important, we must look to Jesus, the initiator and finisher of our faith.

7:53:55 PM: May we walk in that responsibility this week…may we run the race in such a way that we move others forward in the faith!

7:54:03 PM: See you here next week!

7:03:52 PM: Hey folks, welcome if you are following along tonight (or if you are reading this a bit later)!
7:07:18 PM: The text for this evening is coming from Luke 12:22-34

7:09:54 PM: Jesus tells us, basically, not to be anxious about our life.

7:10:28 PM: Easy to say…hard to take when it’s us in the predicament.

7:14:28 PM: Do we genuinely trust that it pleases God to provide for us?

7:14:54 PM: In this passage, God is revealed as generous; pleased to give us the kingdom…

7:19:33 PM: Yet we all admit that we struggle believing that God wants to or will take care of our issues…

7:21:25 PM: Its all a matter of trust…we are looking for security

7:21:49 PM: Security, in things that cannot provide it…

7:24:00 PM: Check out this cartoon by Donald Miller… http://www.ubersite.com/m/112356

7:38:00 PM: Does generosity mean everyone should sell everything? Or does it mean something deeper?

7:46:41 PM: Perhaps, its the call to ask if you were willing to…

7:47:40 PM: What sacrifices are we willing to endure to be generous? Are we willing to faithfully seek Jesus and unlock our dependence on possessions?

7:51:56 PM: Do we even consider ourselves taken with our possessions? Do we ever consider what God may ask us to give?

7:52:09 PM: Generosity and sacrifice go hand in hand…

7:54:31 PM: May this be our weekly prayer: God, help me loosen my grip on the things that I hold onto too much…

7:54:49 PM: Join us next week!

6:55:30 PM: Great to be back live! Reading from Colossians 3:1-11
6:56:17 PM: Paul is speaking about new life in Jesus

6:56:37 PM: What does it mean to have “new life” in Christ?
7:00:07 PM: Group: New life means second chances, a new relationship with Jesus, eternal life, rescue, salvaged from our old self…

7:01:56 PM: How do we communicate salvation with people?

7:02:41 PM: Group: By example. But there must be more…

7:03:37 PM: Group: We don’t know all the answers, but we can know what happened to us. What we know. How God has changed us.

7:05:19 PM: Group: Our stories are all different. How we met Jesus and how He affected us are all unique.

7:05:59 PM: Yet, there are some similarities of what new life means for each person, regardless of history, regardless of experience.

7:07:27 PM: We were in sin,

7:07:53 PM: We are forgiven…we respond.

7:11:59 PM: How do we convey the Good News that we have received, though?

7:14:40 PM: What are the common parts of the Gospel that we should be proclaiming?

7:20:20 PM: First, the issue is not that you are sinning, but that you are in sin. You must acknowledge that you can’t get away from it.

7:21:09 PM: We cannot respond without that humility, recognizing that we need Jesus.

7:23:31 PM: Once we have been humbled and responded, we now begin a new process of sanctification…Jesus in us, producing life through us…

7:24:03 PM: Jesus is going to begin putting certain things to death in us

7:25:14 PM: How do we see these changes happen, realistically?

7:25:49 PM: Group: Prayer. We get closer to God and understand more of His character that begins to produce in us.

7:26:23 PM: Group: Ingesting God’s Word on a daily basis.

7:32:22 PM: Paul says for us to set our minds and hearts on things above…we need to have a fixation or obsession on things above…

7:38:07 PM: If we are obsessed with Jesus, it affects us in every part of our life. Its about being fixed on Jesus.

7:40:08 PM: Focus on Jesus does not mean pulling away from the world, but instead engaging it in the way He would.

7:08:09 PM: We’re off and running…welcome!

7:17:48 PM: Discussing the ideas of accountability in community…

7:18:50 PM: Reading from Galatians 6:1-16

7:23:18 PM: Group: Accountability = responsibility, commitment, judgement, standards…

7:23:56 PM: Accountability is there to help us flourish…but can it be a negative?

7:25:12 PM: Group: If the accountability does not line up with what we see as valuable or what we see as right, we are only people-pleasing

7:26:41 PM: Accountability should be an internal standard, one that resonates inside us

7:29:23 PM: What is the best way for us to grow in the faith? How do we do this in the most effective way possible?

7:30:44 PM: Most of us, following after Jesus, must admit that we desire to grow and follow closer, not remain stagnant

7:33:27 PM: What Paul says in this text is, in order to follow after Jesus, to continue growing, we must be in accountable relationships with each other

7:34:13 PM: What are the challenges associated with being real with each other in community?

7:34:44 PM: Group: Judgement…being judged

7:36:33 PM: Group: It feels like if we open up to each other, we’ll be judged for our failures

7:39:01 PM: What is the difficulty we have as people to trust others not to judge us?

7:39:46 PM: Group: We are broken and struggle with sin

7:40:40 PM: Group: Hurt people hurt people…

7:45:04 PM: If these problems are valid and the help is community, what do we do about it?

7:46:00 PM: Our struggles are not obstacles to community, they are reasons for it..

7:47:32 PM: In community we find ways, together, to overcome each others obstacles

8:00:03 PM: Disclosure without accountability doesn’t lead us to growth

8:00:41 PM: Is there a difference in being judgmental and making a judgement?

8:03:51 PM: We’ll continue this discussion next week…come join us!

6:57:56 PM: What does it mean to be a community who extends grace?

6:58:22 PM: It means we must first understand what it means to receive grace.

6:59:25 PM: What does it feel like being people who understand that, no matter our status, we are all “needy” to God.

7:00:05 PM: We like to draw lines…between “good” and “evil”

7:00:49 PM: The truth: the line of “good” and “evil” doesn’t divide “us” and “them,” it runs right down the center of us all.

7:01:28 PM: Luke 7:36-50 and Luke 8:1-3 is the text for this evening

7:02:37 PM: Check out the Open House Blog to get in on the Saturday Night LiveBlog!!! Happening now! http://bit.ly/9uKXna
7:04:48 PM: Interesting. Jesus teaches the Pharisee by using the “unclean” woman

7:10:07 PM: The woman comes in, sobbing uncontrollably, lets her hair down and begins to kiss Jesus’ feet. Simon, the Pharisee, is appalled..

7:10:45 PM: In that culture, this display would be considered out of line and completely improper.

7:12:05 PM: Simon assumes that the woman does not belong. But Jesus flips Simon’s presumptions on their head. He sees people so differently that we do

7:14:20 PM: Through His parable, Jesus showed not only that those who are forgiven much, love much…He showed that we all necessitate forgiveness.

8:10:27 PM: Great discussion tonight!!! Thanks everyone!

7:03:38 PM: Discussion will be coming from Acts 1:1-11

7:04:44 PM: The early church hinged on this one point: Jesus did indeed rise from the grave. The resurrection in true and real…

7:09:20 PM: We cannot do the work of Christ without the power that comes from His Holy Spirit.

7:11:33 PM: We are the continuation of Jesus work here on earth.

7:12:18 PM: Jesus calls us all to be witnesses to Him…but what exactly is a witness?

7:18:04 PM: Group: Someone who sees something happening. Evidence personified.

7:19:02 PM: If witnessing is just seeing and recalling, why did Jesus say to wait for power from the Holy Spirit?

7:20:25 PM: Group: Without power or authority, without the actions behind the words, the witness is weakened.

7:21:15 PM: Group: In our brokenness, others can see God’s power in our lives, working despite our flaws.

7:26:13 PM: Group: We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be humble and full of love for the glory of God. With that love comes a witness of power.

7:28:12 PM: It’s not about what we can do to earn favor with God…it is wrapped up in God’s unlimited grace…

7:38:47 PM: We don’t serve God to get grace…we serve Him because of it.

7:39:53 PM: With this empowerment of the Holy Spirit comes zero bragging rights…we can’t boast about anything. It’s all about God!

7:40:28 PM: The heart that has fully embraced and tasted grace is transformed!

7:43:39 PM: So much discussed, so much going on here. Hope you can join us sometime soon! Good night…

5:55:18 PM: 35 minutes to getting started with worship tonight…check back in an hour and we’ll be Saturday Night LiveBlogging!!!

7:12:59 PM: …and we’re live! If you are following on the website, make sure to refresh every 2-3 minutes! =)

7:26:35 PM: Discussion and reading of John 14:23-29

7:28:26 PM: How do people see or perceive God? How can we see God at work?

7:29:17 PM: From the group: We can see Him at work through people’s generosity, giving, and unconditional love.

7:30:20 PM: Group: As a comforter in heartache and tragedy.

7:30:52 PM: How does a person who is disconnected from God see Him?

7:31:46 PM: Group: Through creation. Even with no religious belief, creation makes God evident.

7:32:40 PM: Group: People can see God in others’ actions.

7:34:23 PM: What about those who don’t care at all about God and who He is? How can they see Him? How can they see the God is real?

7:35:24 PM: Group: Love. Unconditional, radical love and forgiveness. Love that breaks boundaries of normalcy.

7:36:38 PM: Group: The love must be genuine and no-strings-attached.

7:40:20 PM: Group: It doesn’t take a lot of logic to see God at work in someone’s life. It is evident. The convincing is in the actions.

7:42:55 PM: The primary way God’s love is shown to the world is through relationships: a community that is actively loving people…

7:44:09 PM: What ways does this happen…in realistic terms?

7:44:47 PM: Group: Treat all those you encounter as people…rich or poor, everyone should be treated with respect as a person.

7:46:56 PM: Group: When a community puts regular activities on hold to do what is most necessary, to help others who are hurting.

7:48:15 PM: Group: a mature response to this calling is a group of people who extend this sort of love in the day-to-day parts of life.

7:49:18 PM: Do we “get more of God” because we follow the rules of what it means to love others? No…we love because He first loved us.

7:50:49 PM: “We love God as much as the person we love the least…” Tough words…

7:51:23 PM: How much we love God is clearly exemplified by how we love our neighbor…who is our neighbor? Everyone!

7:52:48 PM: Does God put more on us than we can handle? Perhaps more than we can handle alone, yes. Thus, the absolute need for community.

7:55:24 PM: You can’t find community one hour per week at a gathering…community extends far beyond a single meeting during a week.

7:59:12 PM: When we allow ourselves to be inconvenienced, we tend to be a part of the most important workings of God.

8:01:18 PM: 1 John 4 – The root of our love is found in the understanding of God’s love for us, fleshed out in the person of Jesus.

8:02:02 PM: We cannot love God and hate our neighbor…period.

8:04:57 PM: How does the knowledge of this idea of community change our fundamental way of sharing the Gospel?

8:06:44 PM: If the primary way of showing Jesus is love, that changes the way we relate to people.

8:07:11 PM: Are we willing to be a community of people who are willing to risk loving others with no want for reward.

8:10:25 PM: Love risks full disclosure and pain…but it is vital to true community. We have to share our hurts, failures, and losses.

8:15:08 PM: How powerful the truth is that we, none of us, have it all worked out. Open community has such power in that regard.

8:17:56 PM: Open House…open, indeed…hope you can join us in person sometime! Good night…