The Journey ... Exceeding the Limits

(Written by Sharron Montgomery)

For most of us, though we would not care to admit it, excess is a way of life. Take speed limits. We know they are in place for a good reason, but, time and circumstance often dictate the need to speed.

Time and circumstance are perhaps the two most powerful factors in our lives. Time is the great equalizer. Its demands are incessant and it seems to be the one quantity that we never have enough of. Circumstance, on the other hand, is something we do have control over. Spelled another way, circumstance becomes choice. Where we go, what we do when we get there, and how we handle what happens along the way is nothing more, nothing less, than choice.

Move those thoughts into the spiritual realm. It is time to exceed the limits we have placed on God. It is time to Cross Over. If we are to do that, we will have to make our decision a personal, individual choice. Jeremiah said ... you call, God answers.
 

Out of the Ordinary

April 2, 2008 - Pastor Irvin Clark
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Grab a piece of paper and a pen. Take a personal inventory of the ways you have been prone to limit God. Maybe you asked for a promotion at work when God wanted you to open your own Kingdom business. Maybe you asked God to save your son when He wanted to save the entire football team. Limiting God is so easy. But, can you imagine what would happen if you refused to limit His provision, refused to limit His blessings?

You see, we live in the world of the "ordinary." The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Every time we look in the mirror we see an older person looking back at us. Our Savior has a different perspective. His is eternal.

Glean a bountiful harvest during this lesson as Pastor Clark challenges you to stop for a moment - pause - take time - make the choice - to move out of the ordinary realm into the extraordinary realm.

Unlimiting God's Provision

April 9, 2008 - Pastor Anthony Burgs
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This sounds like an assignment to me. It also sounds like a command. You know, one of those "thou shalt" moments when God forcefully reminds us just who it is that is in control of everything.

What we must do is define that one word - everything. What does it mean to you?

Does it mean that when you are in the midst of a storm you can expect Him to arise and quiet the raging seas? Does it mean when you have been unjustly accused of a crime that the Judge himself will arise in your defense? Does it mean that even when you have sinned Mercy comes running?

When we choose to exceed the limits imposed on our faith by what we see, hear, and feel, we are unlimiting the providence of God. Liken this concept to the idea of unlocking the door to your home. When you get home tonight, if you want to get inside, you must take the time, make the choice, to put the right key in the cylinder, turn it in the right direction, and open the door. Determine to do exactly the same thing with God. Tonight!

Unlimiting God's Work Through Us

April 16, 2008 - Dr. Robert Pace
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Time out. I thought we were talking about the power of God. He is Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Ropheka, Jehovah Shalom. He is Adonai - the Sovereign Lord. Sounds like He is all-sufficient.

Where do I fit into that equation? Why would God need me for anything?

Go back to the beginning. Go back to Eden. You were created in His image. The praise you offer Him means more than the sounds of all the birds that ever sang or all the seas that ever roared. He has numbered the hairs of your head and He knows your name.

He needs you.

And He needs you to accomplish His will on this earth.

When the Creator left the portals of heaven to walk among men, His primary mission was to prepare a small band of believers to take the message of the Gospel to a lost and dying world. And that Gospel includes the promise of redemption, healing, comfort, peace, love, mercy, joy.

Think of the friends, coworkers, family members, strangers, enemies, who need to embrace those promises. Some of them have never read a Bible. Some of them have read their Bibles, gone to church, only to turn and walk away. Some are simply faint of heart. They need to hear His voice. Unlimit God today and allow that Voice to speak through you.

Recognizing God's Activity

April 23, 2008 - Pastor Joe Briseno
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Armchair quarterbacks know how to win every game. Of course their opinions are formed primarily on the basis of observations made from a distant place where the distractions of the physical encounters are minimized. From the comfort of their easy chairs they bemoan the fact that no one listens to them!

Wonder if God ever feels the same way. He knows everything there is to know about life. He knows when he has, in effect, given us the ball with marching orders to proceed to the goal line. He understands our abilities to run, stop, turn on a dime, and outsmart the opponent. You see, on His field, defeat is not an option.

When was the last time you heard God speak to you? When was the last time you had to stop, go back and apologize to someone for an ungodly comment you made? Or, has the roar of the crowd kept you from doing what you know God is asking you to do?

Oftentimes the ability to follow the will of God for our lives depends solely upon our decision to stop and listen. Not stop at the red light. Not stop at the grocery store. Just stop. Move into that special place - your closet of prayer - and sit quietly. Listen. It may take a moment before the roar of the crowd dies down, but wait. Then rejoice because the last chapter of our playbook, the Word of God, notes that we win in the end.

Just remember, however, - to win, you have to be %u201Cin" the game.

Unlimiting God's Power Through Prayer

April 30 - Jill Mitchell
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Remember the story of the mountain climber who fell off the side of a cliff? He was struggling to hold on to a tree branch lest he fall to his death on the floor of the valley below. His prayer was immediate and focused. "Lord, save me." Sounds reasonable to me.

The helicopter came, the rescue personnel came, the rope was thrown. But our hapless prayer warrior decided God himself would come down and lift him up.

To say that we must unlimit God's power says a great deal more about our position in the kingdom than it does about His. It sounds like we are the ones with the problem, not God. We are the ones hanging on by a thread. We are the ones who refuse to let go and let God.

Imagine with me for a moment what might truly happen in our lives if we chose to unlimit Him. Jot down a list of the things you are praying about. Stop for just a minute. I said "praying about," not thinking about. There is a world of difference.

Praying means we step away from the demands of this life and focus our attention wholly on Him. No important corporate appointments, no soccer schedules, no dance lessons, no deadlines. Just you and Him. Oh, and you might be able to accomplish a whole lot more if He is the one who does the majority of the talking!

I challenge you - unlimit God through prayer - and get read to share your testimony about His bountiful goodness with the rest of His body!