Restoration Church

This Is That -- 6 March 2022

Cancel Culture - It is one of the great ironies of our age that while we are living during a time when almost any behavior is celebrated no matter how sinful, we are simultaneously living in a time where any small misstep, public or private, could be the catalyst of our own social and financial ruin.
It would be nice if this cancel culture was a temporary phase we’re going through. But society is becoming more intolerant and polarized by the day. We can’t last much longer like this.What we’re seeing today is what Jesus was describing in Matthew 24:21-22.

This Is That -- 27 February 2022

Acts 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel... (KJV)Prophecy27% to 33% of the Bible is prophetic. Prophecy and the spiritual gift of prophecy is legit. Not all who prophesy are. Be careful.  As we get back to this series, I want you to stay plugged into groups that will provide pastoral care and discipleship. We must stay connected.
These are perilous times, difficult times...for those who are unaware of what the bible says.
Some are unaware of the prophecy
Some were made aware but didn’t believe it
Some were made aware, believed it but the waiting caused them to doubt
Some were made aware of the prophecy, believed it, waited for it to come to pass and they were receptive to what God was doing in that moment

Restored: made new again, only better -- 20 February 2022

2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life emerges!
 
Restore, revive, renew, rebirth, refresh, reconcile, redeem, redo, repent, remember, remind, reform, recreate, resurrect - God of the re(s).  Old things pass away because you are a new creation, a new person. All things are new, a new life emerges.
Have you ever needed a fresh start, a do over, a mulligan? Has your marriage ever needed a reboot?

Welcome Guest Carter Conlon

Standing in the Storm, part IV -- 6 February 2022

Standing in the storm.Week 1
Matthew 7:24 Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice...is like a wise man who built his house on the ROCK.
1) Life-giving power of the word and 2) Life-saving power of the word (Psalm 107:20)
Week 2
Matthew 14 The disciples in the storm doing what they were told to do. Jesus walks out on the water to them in the storm. Storms of correction and perfection, discipline and revelation.
1) He is aware of your storm and He will meet you in that storm 2) to listen to Him and 3) to keep your focus on Him
Week 3
Hebrews 12:1-3 Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us...we do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
1) Fix our eyes on Jesus 2) listen to Jesus (the Word) and 3) learn from Jesus
Week 4
Hebrews 12It’s a marathon so we must learn to endure. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, he endured the cross for the joy that was set before him.
It’s a marathon. Prepare yourself. There will be some twists and turns. Up some hills and down others. Keep your eye on Jesus (the Word). Mature believers must develop the ability to focus on Jesus. Not others. Not your people and not your pastor. You need people but they’ll let you down. You need a pastor but don’t let him/her be your Messiah.
Do the hard stuff. It’s worth it. Walk in the Spirit and not the flesh. Do that stuff that your flesh doesn’t want to do. It’s worth it. Deny yourself, take up your cross, and expect the supernatural. Go ahead and get out of the boat, do what The Word tells you to do, go ahead, trust it.

Standing in the Storm, part III -- 30 January 2022

1 out of 5 Christians deal with mental or emotional health issues yearly.  When people think about mental health, they typically picture mood disorders like schizophrenia, OCD, or a bipolar episode. What many don’t realize is that common symptoms like stress, anxiety, and depression are also tied to mental health. Among Christians, it’s easy to dismiss these emotions as personal flaws in our moral character, but nothing could be further from the truth. It’s been estimated that nearly 1 in 5 Americans experience some kind of mental health incident each year, and like any physical ailment, these shouldn’t go left untreated.
John 5:25
...a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.
Start the day with a commitment to put your relationship with God first, start with a good focus
Get rid of relationships and things that force you to focus on the wrong stuff
Embrace the idea that your ability to focus on JESUS will determine whether you survive the storm

Standing in the Storm, part II -- 23 January 2022

What is a storm? There is a metaphorical storm as well. Divorce, miscarriage, bad news on the biopsy, pink slip, the company downsizes and you’re a little old and overpaid, pandemic, another report from the school board, realizing what they’re teaching your children at school. A storm is that situation or event that makes it almost impossible for you to be at peace, almost impossible to worship. It is that situation that demands you dwell on it, make it your new reference point, and you must fix it before you do anything else...
If you are in a storm right now, you are in it for one of two reasons, and it is one of two kinds of storms:
You are somewhere you aren’t supposed to be doing something that you are not supposed to be doing, and you're in a storm, a storm of CORRECTION.
You are somewhere you were called to go doing something you are called and gifted to do, and the enemy doesn’t like it and you, my friend, are in a spiritual battle, a storm that involves spiritual warfare. This is why Ephesians 6:12-13 says we wrestle not. Wrestling is a full contact, physical sport.

Standing in the Storm -- 16 January 2022

If you are like a smart carpenter who builds his house on solid rock, when the rain pours down, the river floods, a tornado hits—but nothing moves that house. It is fixed to the rock.
“But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don’t work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards.”
Jesus said, “If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter, a wise man...” Or, if you hear these words of mine and put them into practice...obey these words...you are wise...nothing will move you.
Notice, he didn’t say, if the rain comes, if it begins to flood. Verse 27 says, when the rain comes... Stormy season - The rain of immorality, chaos, and confusion is falling and the flood of fear is rising, and the wind of compromise is blowing all around us...where have you built your life, your house?
We don’t want to hear the word only, listen to teaching from the word only, we want to do what it says. For the word says, if you do what it says, God will bless you for doing it. As the rain of deceit falls and the flood of fear rises and the winds of compromise are blowing all around us, if you have built your house on the rock, Jesus said that nothing will move that house.

Opportunistic Living --9 January 2022

First Things First -- 2 January 2022

First things FirstThe importance of starting right. 
Mark 9:29So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”
My experience with fasting. When I come to the end of my journey…what brings about effectiveness in ministry? Prayer and fasting.
He roots me in my identity as a son
He awakens longing
He settles the traffic
He awakens me to His voice at a greater level
It is a choice of me putting myself in a weak position in order that He might put Himself in a position of being strong in my life. It is a deliberate focus on emptying myself, becoming less in order that He might become more.
Fasting should be called slowing. It’s a paradox because while you’re fasting, everything slows down. God positions you in slowness and yet it is a catalyst to speed up the activity of the Kingdom in your life.
We live in such a noisy, chaotic culture. The spirit of this age screams at us and it is almost impossible to not get concerned with “things too difficult for me.”