1 Timothy

Loving Money Too Much

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Money isn’t evil, but the love of it is because of all the ruin and destruction it can bring to each of our lives. We must learn to harness our desires and keep God above our love for money, or it will ruin us.

Preparing End-of-Life Plans

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As we age, we must prepare our end-of-life plans so that our loved ones are not unfairly clueless or unnecessarily burdened. God’s Word gives us great insight regarding how we should make plans now for the inevitable to come.

Don’t Belittle Teenage Disciples

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Teenagers get a bad rap in our society for being self-absorbed, technologically fixated, and unwillingly sacrificial. In our churches, we must not expect less from our students who desire to follow Jesus wholeheartedly.

Pivotal Student Ministry Values

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For a church’s student ministry to succeed, it cannot be isolated from the overall strategy of the church. Your students need certain things at this critical stage, and your ministry values can help accomplish them.

Engaging Teenagers

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People often talk about the unique challenges that teenagers bring. Whether you are a parent, mentor, or church leader trying to invest in the student generation, you must prioritize that which can inspire them to be all God has called them to be.

Growing Spiritually This Summer

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It seems like that the more free time we have, the less disciplined we can become regarding spiritual growth. Here are 5 simple steps to help you create a plan to grow spiritually this summer.

Game-Changing Group Leaders

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Your church is as healthy as the groups assembled. Your groups are as healthy as the leaders available. Like it or not, the maturity of any group of people rises and falls on the pace that the leaders set. The leadership in your church is critical. It’s time to go the second mile with game-changing group leaders.

Praying for National Leaders

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Over a week after the election for President of the United States, much of the country still feels in limbo. With one side claiming victory and the other side refusing to concede, this process may continue for quite some time. Don’t feel helpless or hopeless. It’s time to go the second mile in praying for national leaders.

Discipline: Training Your Soul’s Habits

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God has created us for and called us to unique tasks. As particularly gifted and positioned disciples, we each should pursue the needed maturity to do what God has called us to accomplish.

Discipline Yourself

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Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 Main Points The reason holiness is so elusive to us is because we judge it by the world’s standard instead of the Word’s standard. Most of our presumed holiness is based on a comparison to the world rather than an evaluation from the Word. In this life, holiness is a pursuit and not a destination. If …

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I Don’t Pray for Politicians and Persecutors (And I Need to Change That)

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The more you pray for different types of people, the more prayer becomes a habit in your life. While we all have prayed for family, friends, co-workers, and gospel workers, did you realize that we aren’t actually commanded to pray for those people?  Obviously, we should pray for anyone and everyone, but these groups are never singled out for our …

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Finding Contentment

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“Daddy, I need some sweet tea!” As Gloria began to beg for some of that Southern goodness, her older brother, Obadiah, stated, “Gloria, you want some sweet tea.  You don’t need sweet tea.” What a simple lesson that I need to learn. There is a difference between what I want and what I need. In prayer, we must constantly perform a …

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Prayer for the President

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I saw this church sign awhile back.  It made me chuckle but also cringe at the same time. I do not agree with everything that President Barack Obama does.  I am brokenhearted over some of his stances.  But he is my president. And of all the things that people will say about him or say we should do, I know …

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When a Pastor’s Church and Family Collide

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I’ve had some great followup conversations and messages from Sunday’s sermon.  One came in the form of an email regarding something I said concerning PKs (preacher’s kids). In the application section of the message, I stated: Don’t expect pastors to care for your family at such a level that they cannot care for their own family. Scripture is clear that …

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The Integrity of the Church

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“If you want to be a shepherd, you have to smell like sheep.”

That was just one of the best lines from today’s sermon.  This was our second week focusing on the biblical role of elders.  In 1 Timothy 3, Paul tells Timothy some of the characteristics and traits that an elder or a pastor is supposed to have.

A true pastor must desire the calling.  It’s a noble thing.  This was one of the best things I have ever heard on calling and the danger that many treat it with mysticism.  If you are called, you desire this work.

You must be above reproach.  There must be a good set of morals and living them out.  I never really thought about the trait of hospitality like I did today.  A true pastor is going to be around sheep.  He is going to have them in his home.  He is going be near the people in his congregation or he’s really not a good elder.

Today, we worshiped to:

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What’s “Worse” Than an Unbeliever?

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“Blessed are the breadwinners. As men, we should consider it an honor to embrace our role as the primary providers of our families. This is part of our manhood and calling as representatives of God the Father — the One who established work as part of His creation and is still ‘working‘ (John 5:17) as an example for us to follow, continually providing for our daily needs” (From The Resolution, page 157).

Whether you love your job or hate your job, God desires that you embrace the blessed opportunity to provide for your family through your vocation. Unfortunately, many men find themselves unemployed and unable to provide for their families. Many different reasons exist for unemployment. Some men are unemployed for no wrongdoing on their part, but economic times have caused their jobs to be discarded. Some men are unemployed due to their bad attitude or lazy work ethic. Other men are unemployed because they quit because they thought they deserved more than their current job.

Your reasoning for unemployment will determine your method for finding a job.

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Learning Contentment

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As a parent, you know the frustration associated with Christmas morning. Your children tear open one gift to behold something they have desperately asked for, and before the wrapping has time to fall to the floor, they are already reaching for the next shiny package.

There’s something in all of us like that. We do acknowledge the blessings we have. We might even give God thanks for them, but somewhere along the way, we become discontented. Read 1 Timothy 6:6-10 to hear Paul’s instruction to his son in the faith, Timothy.

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Make More Money

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Money is a tool. Money is not moral or immoral. It is amoral. It can be used for good or bad. Money in of itself is not evil. The love of money is the root of all types of evil (1 Timothy 6:10).

In fact, God is not against you making more money. It’s actually a good thing. Read Ephesians 4:28 and find out why:

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