Sexual Purity

Sexual Purity

Dear Champions,

The short excerpt is by Andy Stanley, and the scripture is Romans 13:8-10 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.  . . . "Love your neighbor as yourself."   Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.   

Being sexual pure has nothing to do with trying to get God to love you or to keep Him from punishing you.  It has everything to do with honoring other people.  When you exercise sexual self-control, you are honoring someone else.  Not only are you honoring them, you are also honoring every single one of their future relationships.  By not becoming a regret you are honoring their next relationship, and you are honoring them.  That's what Jesus wants you to do.  He says, "I want you to do for others what I have done for you.  Love the way that I have loved." 

At the end of the day you discover that sexual purity actually paves the way to intimacy.  There is a payoff, and there is freedom.  Eventually everybody understands whether they admit it or not that exclusivity is what leads to romance and not experience.  Where there is exclusivity and romance in a relationship, there is liberty.

Philippians 2:4 says, Look not only to your own interest but also the interest of others.

Champions, have a great week!-David Vining

If I Live Right!

If I Live Right

 
Dear Champions,
 
The short excerpt is by Tim Keller, and the Scripture is Matthew 5:45   God causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
 
Over the years I have seen people getting completely destroyed by the troubles in their lives, and here is why.  There is a premise underneath our lives that is so deep that we do not even realize it is there.  The premise is this:  If I live right, my life should go right.   So if your life goes wrong, you either say something is wrong with me, or something is wrong with God for not keeping up with His part of the deal. You either hate yourself because you must be a failure, or you hate God because He is not treating you as you deserve.  This premise that if I live right that my life should go right is going to lead you into self-hatred or God-hatred, and your life will be poisoned.  Something has to destroy the premise.

Jesus lived the live we should have lived.  He lived a perfect life, yet His life on Earth did not end right.  He says, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?"  That is the only time in His entire life when He does not call God, "Father."  On the cross, He was losing His Sonship and relationship with His Father because He was getting the punishment that we deserved.  Jesus loses the Sonship so that we can have it and so that we can become sons and daughters of God.
 
Champions, have a great week!-David Vining

Grumbling

Grumbling

Dear Champions,
 
The short excerpt is by Max Lucado, and the Scripture is Philippians 2:14-15  Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe.
 
The president of the organization called Women of Faith told me about one particular weekend conference in which a shortage of space tested everyone's patience.  The floor had 150 fewer seats than needed, and the arena staff tried to solve the problem by using narrow chairs. As a result, every woman had a place to sit, but everyone was crowded. Complaints contaminated like feedlot fragrance. They asked Joni Eareckson Tada, a speaker for the evening, if she could calm the crowd. Joni was perfectly qualified to do so. A childhood diving accident has left her wheelchair-bound. The attendants rolled her onto the platform, and Joni addressed the unhappy crowd. I understand some of you don't like the chair in which you are sitting. Neither do I. But I have about a thousand handicapped friends who would gladly trade places with you in an instant.

The grumbling ceased.

Yours can too.
 

Champions, have a great week!-David Vining

hi Scripture https://goo.gl/8gLs58 viningjb

Substitutionary Sacrifice

Substitutionary Sacrifice

 

The short excerpt is by Tim Keller of New York City, and the Scripture is 1 John 4:10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 
 
All real life changing love is substitutionary sacrifice.  If you ever try to love somebody that is emotionally wounded, it is going to cost you.  You can't love them and bring them up without you going down.  You can't do it without somehow their troubles and problems transfering to you.  
 

When an emotionally wounded person comes at you, you want to go the other way.  You know that you are going to have to listen to him or her, and it is just so draining to be their friend.  The only way that emotionally wounded people are going to fill up emotionally is if somebody loves them, and the only way to love them is to be emotionally drained.  They aren't going to fill up unless you empty out.  If you hold onto to your emotional comfort and just stay away from those people, then they will just sink.  It is them or you, and the only way to love them is through substitutionary sacrifice.  Some of their wounded-ness and drain is going to have to hit you, so that some of your fullness can go to them.  
 
In John 10 Jesus says, I am the good shepherd.  The hired hand when he sees the wolf coming; he abandons the sheep and runs away, but I lay down my life for the sheep.  Jesus emptied Himself out for us and became a sacrificial lamb.  Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.  Jesus lost everything so that He would not lose you. 

Champions, have a great week!-David Vining