Making Disciples

Dennis McCallum
2 Timothy 2:1-2

Making disciples is about making community where good relationships are formed, people know the Word and people are meeting the needs of others. It is where each person is growing in all respects into Him who is the head, that is Jesus Christ. It is sharing truth in the context of a close personal relationship where you model, help, teach and mentor a younger believer.\r\n

What If You Could Know the Future?

James Rochford
Revelation 1:1-18

Because God has blessed us with the Book of Revelation, we can know the future! Knowing the future brings us happiness because it provides true security during frightening times. It gives us a hope-filled perspective on our suffering. It fills our lives with never-ending love relationships that don't end at death. It inspires urgency because we only get one chance. Will you trust Jesus with 1, your next life and 2, with your current life?

Leadership in the Organic Model

Dennis McCallum
1 Timothy 3:1-2

In the traditional paradigm of church leadership there is linear; there is God, then the clergy and finally the laity or church members. The biblical paradigm is strikingly different. It is decentralized where Jesus is the head and the overseers/elders and servants/deacons are interconnected by various degrees of relationship. The overseers are actively serving alongside the deacons in what is called distributed ministry. A diagram of the organic model resembles a biological cell which can regularly divide just as a living cell can.

God's Ambassadors

Lee Campbell
2 Corinthians 5:17-6:10

The Bible describes Christians as being God's ambassadors, devoted to God's mission and representing Him to those who don't yet know Him. If we're in tune with the wonderful gift we possess as His children, and grateful for it, we will naturally seek to tell others about the opportunity to receive Christ. We will be most effective at sharing Christ when we cultivate sincere, caring relationships with others, when we cultivate our character, and when we focus on God's love for us, and not the other person's response to this message.

The Devotional Life

Ben Foust
Mark 1:32-39

Psalm 32 says, "You (God) are my hiding place." Every Christian needs to develop a devotional life where they retreat regularly to connect with God. The Christian life is a constant launching out in service and ministry and returning back to recharge, to retreat to safety, to be reinvigorated to launch out again. Having a 'secret life' is a game-changer for our ministry, our relationships and our spiritual vitality and longevity.

Being a Good Friend

Conrad Hilario
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Some Christians believe that they don't need community to grow with God. King Solomon refutes this unbiblical idea. How can a person alone keep warm, or defend himself when overpowered? A chord of three strands is not quickly broken. After His acts of creation, God said, "It is good." But He saw Adam was alone and said that was not good so he made Eve to be his companion. God designed us to be in relationship with Him and other believers.

Chapter Four

Chris Hearty
Ecclesiastes 4:1-12

King Solomon considered the oppression the powerful exert over the earth and saw the meaninglessness of justice apart from God. He saw people either try excessively to achieve or the alternative, just give up trying. He saw the perils of being alone in this world. Solomon warns trying to live a life apart from God leads to oppression, discontentment or loneliness.

Raising Our Kids in Community: Priorities and Fears

Liz Sweet
Ecclesiastes 4:1-12

God's highest priority is love. Secular research even agrees that friendships, forgiveness, and volunteering creates healthier and happier lives. People living in community with others have less stress. People at the end of life often regret not spending more time with loved ones. You will never regret investing in your children, nor teaching them to love. Community is a source of God's love and a provision for us and our children.

Can Our Achievements Bring Satisfaction?

Scott Risley
Ecclesiastes 4:4-12

Even though King Solomon was the most accomplished ruler of all time, in the end he found all his accomplishments to be meaningless apart from God. He found that in spite of all his extraordinary accomplishments, he was alone. He was at the top and had no one to share it with. He discovered it was better to have less and a friend to share it with because "two are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed."