God’s purpose for marriage is for two to become ONE

Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” 4“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the BEGINNING the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ (Genesis 5:1,2) 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6Sothey are no longer two, but one. 7“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” 8Jesus replied, “Moses PERMITTED you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. Matthew 19:3-8

THE TWO BECOME ONE:

• Husband’s Responsibility = 50%
• Wife’s Responsibility = 50%

Clear Consistent Communication that honors the BIG THREE Will make both husband and wife a constant HERO in Marriage. The BIG THREE referred to here are;

1. Word of God
2. Body of Christ
3. Oneness

God’s purpose for marriage is for two to become ONE.

Every parent want their child to live a good life

What can be said about raising teenagers can to a lesser extent be said about all our other painful afflictions that result from poor decision.

Every parent want their child to live a good life. But every parent know that there is a wide range of suffering which is simply the result of human ignorance, folly, malice, ambition, and insensitivity.

Each child is born into a world that is broken and into an environment in which something has gone wrong. Teenagers have eyes to see that there is no reason why people in a modern industrialized society should be badly housed. There is no reason why hundreds of thousands of people should starve to death. There is no reason for most of the poverty, sickness, hunger and homelessness in the modern world, except for what one might loosely describe as the spiritual frailty of human beings.

Our teenagers are called to accept the call to be the change they wish to see in the world, through Christ. Our teenagers are blessed with the resources, technical knowledge, scientific understanding and skilled experts all exist in abundance. What is needed is for us to encourage our teenagers to seek to participate in the human enterprise with greater joyful responsibility and ease.

Parenting teenagers is not easy – it takes creativity, determination, and patience! It’s a tough journey, but you don’t have to take it alone.

Families are generally successful at helping their children accomplish the developmental goals of the teen years  by turning to GOD. God reveals God’s Self to us as one who is near us, faithful and concerned about us.”If you go through the fire I will be there…I have written you on the palm of my hand” (Is 3,49). I

n Deuteronomy 32:10, God is imaged as guarding us as the pupil of God’s eye. But God relates to us with much more tenderness and graciousness than even such expressions convey. As well, God relates to us as mother: “Does a woman forget her baby at the breast, even so I will not forget you” (Is 40:14). “As a mother bird collects her young I have desired you…” (Lk 14:34).

In Psalm 131 God is like a mother holding her weaned child. Then God reveals God’s Self as a father — as a father of orphans in Psalm 68:5. In Psalm 103 God has compassion on us as a father has compassion on his children.

Jesus himself teaches us to pray: “Our Father…. ” (Lk 11:1-13).

The only way we can pray and pray effective is to understand the times we live in

The Lord has blessed Joyce and I with the honor, in the last 10 years  of pastoral ministry of personally asking people to find to spent with the Lord.

As a pastor, it is such a delight that I can be involved in the real lives of everyday people. When I proclaim “Christians can have hours with God in ways that are EASY & EFFECTIVE … Everyday”, I have to account for the overwhelming circumstances of:

• The stay at home mom with three small children who never has an uninterrupted half hour;
• The two wage earner parents with children who pass each other like ships in the night;
• The corporate climber who has to put in his sixty hours a week plus one to two hours of drive time per day, plus business trips in order to survive;
• The single parent whose life is a dizzying, overwhelming, painful blur of financial pressures, loneliness, inadequacy and exhaustion.

The only way we can pray and pray effective is to understand the times we live in. If we are going to be people who “understand the times”, then we must be alert to the issues that are currently dominating our society. We can then bring the power of the gospel into these issues. This allows every person to see how the words of Jesus Christ apply to us TODAY! One of the most significant changes affecting our society in the last half-century has been the “Stress on Time and Schedules.”

TIME PRESSURE on the family today  is enormous and constant! As a pastor, this is one of the greatest issues I face in ministering to families. NOBODY has extra time. NOBODY has a restful, relaxed schedule. Sometimes, I want to weep with pain at the time pressure so many people deal with every day. I have seen people crack under this monster of stress.

In contrast to this hectic, fast-paced and rushed lifestyle, is the subject of “Prayer and Time with God.” We are confronted with the truth that the very essence of “Prayer and Time with God” is that it TAKES TIME!!!! Communing in the Lord’s presence, hearing His voice, sorting out the issues of your heart – all of these take quietness, patience, and TIME.

Prayer For Unity

Gracious and Holy God, creator of every good gift, we come to you in these moments seeking your blessing. Bless us with open eyes to see you in the face of one another. Bless us with open ears to hear your Word for us this year. Bless us with discerning hearts to perceive your truth and your path for us. Bless us with a rich dialogue that honors the opinions and respects the dignity of each of your children gathered to journey with us this year. This is our prayer, offered in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Amen.