9:00 AM Service
11:00 AM Service
Baby Dedication
Message Summary: One truth that Josiah believes is vital for us to know is that Christ lives in us. If we teach this to our kids, they will love God and love people. Using some examples of Michelangelo’s art, Josiah showed that we might want to be like the statue of David, but we are often more like the Awakening Slave, which is a work in progress and in the process of being chiseled out of the stone to reveal beauty. The role of a parent isn’t to create, but to draw out what is already there.
So if God is chiseling away at all of us, what is our job?
Our job is to persevere. This means to stand firm under pressure; to not relent or move. Trials and challenges give us opportunities to be chiseled, to reveal Christ in us more. We can’t be indifferent or apathetic. We must have an attitude of wanting to be chiseled, even if it is difficult. The human tendency is to quit when things get hard. Josiah told the story of putting together a complicated toy kitchen. On page 99 of the instructions, he wanted to quit, as he couldn’t see anything that resembled what he was building. The kitchen was finished on page 104. “I wonder how many times I’ve stopped at page 99 when my promise was at page 104.” Finally, we must rely on wisdom, which is a heavenly perspective of a situation.
- How is God using your current trials to chisel you?
- Can you think of a time when God used a difficult situation to reveal His image in you?
- Why do we have such a hard time recognizing God’s hand in the challenges of our lives?
- What are some situations that you find yourself in now, that God may be using to chisel you?
Galatians 2:19-21 (NIV)– For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!
James 1:4 (NIV)- Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Philippians 1:6 (NIV)- Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.