Author Archives: Jen O'Sullivan

Thursday Theology ~ Dr. Mike Fabarez on Discernment

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DiscernmentWith the dumbing down of Christianity and the rise of bumper-sticker theology, perhaps now more than ever Christians need wisdom, insight, and discernment. Thankfully there is much of it to be found in Luke 5 and 6. Sandwiched between the calling of the first disciples (Luke 5:1-11) and their commissioning as apostles (Luke 6:12-16), we encounter several concise episodes in the life of Christ that clearly provide the kind of godly discernment every Christian needs. Don’t miss this important eight-part series as Pastor Mike walks us through this instructive section of the Gospel of Luke. – Compass Bible Church

Title Passage Date
Curiosity & Real Conversions (Part 1) Luke 5:1-11 June 23, 2013
Wants & Genuine Needs (Part 2) Luke 5:12-16 June 30, 2013
Urgency & True Importance (Part 3) Luke 5:17-26 July 14, 2013
Reputations & Vital Responsibilities (Part 4) Luke 5:27-32 July 21, 2013
Sorrow & Profound Celebrations (Part 5) Luke 5:33-35 July 28, 2013
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Blessing God ~ The Sad Crown

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We all would love to walk around our homes with a tiara or a crown on. Come on. Admit it. My kid always says “You’re not the boss of me!” and I have to laugh a little at the absurdity of that. I am the boss of him, but ultimately God is the Boss of him… AND the Boss of me! I have to wake up every morning to beg God to dethrone me. If left up to my own way, I would gladly have the world revolve around me. We all would. All we know is what we know, nothing more, nothing less. Imagine when Jesus comes home to take his rightful place, there will be no more democracy. No more opinion about what you think should be and not be. No more debates about what side you are going to vote for. Do you know what a true monarchy is? Realistically and honestly you have to admit that you don’t. It is totally foreign to you. Well, guess what? God is in charge even now so stop trying to pretend you have any say in it. Have you read Job lately? It will rock you to the core. What sad little crowns we think we wear. Job is my hero!

The Sad Crown“The Sad Crown”

“He has stripped from me my glory and taken the crown from my head.”

– Job 9:19

Photography by Jen O’Sullivan

Blessing God Series
Rain from the Lord
Grass in the Field
Parable of the Pearl
Rocks Cry Out
Flourish
Joy in the Thorns
Perfection
Fruit
Everything
Integrity
Hiding Place
Wonderfully Made
Busy Bee
Dread

Wednesday Worship ~ I Can Only Imagine by Mercy Me

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“I Can Only Imagine” by Mercy Me

Listen to it HERE.

I can only imagine
What it will be like
When I walk
By your side

I can only imagine
What my eyes will see
When your face
Is before me
I can only imagine

[Chorus:]
Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

I can only imagine
When that day comes
And I find myself
Standing in the Son

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever
Forever worship You
I can only imagine

[Chorus]

I can only imagine [x2]

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever, forever worship you

℗ 2001 MercyMe

Mercy Me

Quote of the Day ~ Lee Strobel on Becoming a Christian

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In short, I didn’t become a Christian because God promised I would have an even happier life than I had as an atheist. He never promised any such thing. Indeed, following him would inevitably bring divine demotions in the eyes of the world. Rather, I became a Christian because the evidence was so compelling that Jesus really is the one-and-only Son of God who proved his divinity by rising from the dead. That meant following him was the most rational and logical step I could possibly take.  -Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus

Case for Christ by Lee Strobel

Blessing God ~ Dread

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My 5 year old son is obsessed with Batman and Spider-man. For me, as I’m sure is the case for you, spiders = dread! I cannot tell you how many spiders I have capture and released. However the more menacing they are, the more a mind I have to smash them dead. How odd that they are so small yet we big, scary humans are so fearful of them. Spiders are very symbolic in the occult as are many other dreadful beings such as snakes, scorpions, wolves, bats and various other dread-inducing animals. In the movie Batman, Bruce Wayne is asked by Alfred, “Why bats, sir?” his response, “Bats frighten me. It is time my enemies share in my dread.” Fear is a source of power. I wonder why we look to other symbols for power when our one true God is all we need. What is most dreadful in reading the below verses is the very last ones. How dreadful to be given up on by God! Ouch!

Creeping Spider“Dread”

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. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.”

– Romans 1:18-25

Photography by Jen O’Sullivan

Blessing God Series
Rain from the Lord
Grass in the Field
Parable of the Pearl
Rocks Cry Out
Flourish
Joy in the Thorns
Perfection
Fruit
Everything
Integrity
Hiding Place
Wonderfully Made
Busy Bee

Tuesday Teaching & Training ~ Jon Brown on Inconvenience

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By Jon Brown

Don’t we all just hate being inconvenienced? Someone needs a ride unexpectedly and you don’t feel like taking them… A friend asks for a few bucks, but you’ve only got a few left… You get that phone call that he or she just broke down on the freeway, but you’re late for work… We’ve all had those moments where inconvenience is what we dread the most.

But what happens when we expect the unexpected… when we accept that inconvenience is not only going to happen, but we embrace it?

We grow… We grow as friends… We grow in our love for others… We show people God… And the best thing… We find that inconvenience is nothing short of an incredible blessing shrouded by our own selfishness.

Friends, be willing to be inconvenienced. You will find that God uses you far more than you ever imagined. And just think, you will be His hands and His feet in those most inconvenient yet precious moments…

Thanks Jon, for these great thoughts!

Maranatha! (Come, Lord Jesus!)

~ Jen

Blessing God ~ Busy Bee

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Sometimes I go about my day busy at all the tasks at hand, wondering how I will ever get through them all. If you take a look at the bee in the below photo he is busy at his task. It seems as though he is looking down and never gets a chance to look up from his work. Sound familiar? Martha had the same issue and Jesus was actually in her house! Wow! Talk about life perspective. I want to be Mary and choose the good portion, and look to Jesus. Pastor Todd Smith of Crossroads Community Church preached a great sermon where he asked everyone to have a garage sale on all their life’s stuff and get back to simplicity. He detailed how hard it is to make things simple and how easy it is to complicate things. I encourage you to listen to his sermon called “Follow Me: The Commission” if you get a chance.

Honeycomb Bee“The Busy Bee”

“Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” ”
– Luke 10:38-42

Photography by Jen O’Sullivan

Blessing God Series
Rain from the Lord
Grass in the Field
Parable of the Pearl
Rocks Cry Out
Flourish
Joy in the Thorns
Perfection
Fruit
Everything
Integrity
Hiding Place
Wonderfully Made

Quote of the Day ~ C.S. Lewis on Jesus

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“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Monday Modern Parable ~ Conversation Between Jesus and a Modern Day “Christian”

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Conversation Between Jesus and a Modern Day “Christian” by jwise
(Jesus’ words in blue)

Hello.

Oh.. well hello. Mike. Glad to meet you. *hand shake*

Greetings, Mike. My name is Jesus.

Jesus? Ah, Jesus! I know you! From the Bible, right?

Yes, that’s me. Would you like to follow after me for a while?

Well, I’d love to, Jesus… But, see, 24 is on tonight, and if I miss even one episode, the show just won’t make any sense! But don’t worry, I’m DEFINITELY one of your believers!

“Believers?” I’m not familiar with that phrase…

You know.. Your followers.. A Christian!

Strange.. I would have guessed that my followers were those who… follow me.

Well, yeah, if you take everything literally! But I know the Bible pretty well. You have to to be a believer, ya know? *nervous laugh* And it’s by grace through FAITH that I’m saved, not of works. And I KNOW I have faith, Jesus. I mean, you should know that too, right?

If you believe my Word, then why do you not follow me?

I told you, I’d love to.. but…

*interrupting* but your TV show is a must-see. I know.

Great. I’m glad you understand. I’ll talk to you later, ya know. When I pray for dinner!

Actually, I don’t know that I DO understand. Do you love me?

What kind of a silly question is that??! Of course I love you! All Christians love you!

Then follow me!

We’ve been through this twice now, Jesus.

You love your TV show more than me. Is that not true?

Of course it’s not true!

Actions speak louder than words, Mike.

*a bit frustrated* Jesus, of course I love you more than ANYTHING. I’d DIE for you!

You would? But you won’t follow me? I think you’re deceiving yourself. Come, follow me, and I will show you my Kingdom.

Oh, I know your Kingdom. It’s Heaven! I’m already assured a spot there myself! But that time comes later… after I die. I’ll see you there, okay?

Mike, do you not know that I am the Way? No man will enter my Kingdom unless he follows me there.

Jesus, we’ve been through this already, too! I DO believe in you. I have faith. That’s all I need to get into Heaven.

You say you’re familiar with the Bible?

Of course.

Well, remember what my brother James said? That faith without works is dead?

Yeah.. That means that because I’m a Christian, I should go to church and try to be happy about it.

Not at all. It means that if your faith doesn’t lead you to die daily, pick up your cross, and follow me, then your faith is not really faith at all.

Preposterous! I have faith, Jesus! I know I do, because I asked you into my heart years ago!

Asked me into your heart? What on earth does that mean?

It means I gave over my will and decided to do what you want me to do!

First, I never told ANYONE to “ask me into his heart”. Secondly, you demand that you won’t follow me, but now tell me that years ago decided to do whatever I want you to do? Mike, you’re not making any sense.

Okay, Jesus, so I’m not perfect.

No, you’re certainly not. But follow me, and I will make you new; I will teach you how to live unto righteousness. I will forgive your sins and make you clean.

You did that already, Jesus! *nervous laugh*

Obviously not. You say you love me, but you will not follow. You say you believe, but you will not obey. Yet you expect that your sins are forgiven.

Of course they are. John said “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I’m aware of what John said. He spoke truthfully of me. Surely I will forgive those who confess their sins. But it is in following me that you realize the latter part — Truly I will remove all sin from you, and train you in righteousness.

I dunno… It sounds like works to me! I know the Gospel — that Heaven is available to everyone who believes.

You think you believe, but you deceive yourself. If you believe, then forget about your TV show and come follow me! I will give you life everlasting.

I already HAVE eternal life!

Apart from me you are dead, Mike.

*Mike staring off into space*

Mike?

Yeah, sorry… See that guy over there?

Dave?

Yes, Dave. He is SUCH a jerk!

Mike! What did I tell you about calling your neighbor a “jerk”? Do you know I made Dave in my image? I have great plans for him!

He cut me off on my way to work.. I was SO mad, Jesus! Heh, I guess a few words slipped on that day…

I’ll say they did. But remember that out of a man’s heart come his words.

Yeah.. anyway, he’s always such a jer– I mean, so mean to me!

Mike, you’ve never even met him! Why don’t you forgive him for cutting you off? That was over three years ago.

I can’t forgive him, Jesus! I’ve tried; I just can’t…

Do you not know what I said of those who won’t forgive? Truly, I tell you, if you do not forgive Dave, and anyone else, then my Father will by no means forgive you.

Oh, come on, Lord!

Why do you call me Lord? You refuse to follow me. You refuse to do as I say. You say you believe, but your heart is far from me.

*getting angry now* Jesus, maybe those silly legalists got to you. I KNOW I have faith! I KNOW I’m going to Heaven someday. You’re way too caught up in works and proving my faith. I’ll show you someday. I’m going to go watch 24 now. I hope you get back to the Jesus I know — love and hope and GOOD NEWS. Have a good night.

As I have been, so am I now, and so I will always be. Truly I tell you, turn from your wicked ways, forgive those who sin against you, let go of this world, come follow me, and I will certainly give you eternal life. I love you, Mike.

G’night.