deanrush.net

A new year

It’s a new year and it feels like anything is possible

There is an amazing feeling that each new year brings

In Isaiah 43:19 it says
See, I am doing a new thing
The first thing you have to do is see what God is doing
What is God trying to do in your life in 2012?
God is the God of the new thing
He wants to do a new thing in your life
Let him do it

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
He wants to bring the new thing now
Are you perceiving that
Be ready and willing in 2012 for what God is wanting to do

I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
As we are faithful to God he will cause a breakthrough to come in our lives. The things that seemed so difficult for us are going to become areas of blessing.
Be faithful to God and allow him to out work his promise

2012 could be the greatest year of your life!
Pursue God and his purpose and discover what God has in mind for you
It’s got to be good!

10 scriptures to feed your faith

1. Isaiah 40: 28 – 31 Do you not know have you not heard? The lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired and weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint

2. Isaiah 41: 10 Fear not for I am with you

3. Isaiah 54: 17 No weapon that is formed against you will prosper

4. Matthew 19:26 With God all things are possible

5. Romans 10: 17 Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God

6. 2 Corinthians 5: 7 We live by faith not by sight

7. Philippians 4:19 My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by
Christ Jesus.

8. Hebrews 11: 1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen

9. 1 John 4:4 Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world

10. 1 John 5:4 Whatever is born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that
overcomes the world, even our faith

Living in the promises of God

Hebrews 6: 12

We don’t want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who by faith and patience inherit what has been promised

We don’t want you to become lazy

Ever had someone make you a promise & fail to deliver? It can make you a bit casual about promises. It’s easy to become lazy about the promises of God. But God doesn’t want us to be casual when it comes to his promises. God has made you a promise – as a believer you have an inheritance in God. Maybe you haven’t seen the promise of God yet – but don’t become lazy – keep believing. Be diligent in your pursuit of God – and you will walk into his promises!

but to imitate

We are not always good imitators and followers. We would rather follow our own path even though it doesn’t always lead to a good outcome. But instead of doing our own thing we need to follow those who have won the breakthrough. For me it is a no brainer – I try and put myself around people who are in breakthrough. Instead of being jealous of people we should get around them and follow them.

1 Corinthians 11: 1 And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ. He says follow me because it makes people accountable to a leader.

Leaders take us to where we need to be in life. Before you listen to anyone you should look at how they’re life is working out. Some people have great theories but there is no practice – no fruit.

Those who by faith

If anyone had a reason to give up it was Abraham – 99 years old and no son – even though God had promised he would be the father of a nation.

He could have become a cynic, he could have turned his back on God – but he believed

James 2: 23 “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. Abraham believed God, kept believing God and received the promise.

We have an inheritance through Abraham and we tap into it by operating in faith. Faith is this relentless belief that God is faithful and will fulfill his promises. Do you have an expectation of the promise of God in your life? If not – it’s time to develop a fresh expectation. Believe like Abraham believed and God will credit you

and patience

Patience – is one of the fruits of the spirit – but who really values it in our world today?

Patience is one of the keys to inheriting the promises of God. Many have faith – but it is the combining of faith with patience that becomes a mighty force.

Who struggles with patience? I’m trying to learn how to be patient.

We live in an instant generation and we want it now – but we need to learn to wait.

God has made a promise and his promise will not fail – what could fail is your patience.

God’s promises are like the stars; the darker the night the brighter they shine

David Nicholas

inherit

You are the child of the king and that comes with privileges. But an inheritance is useless you are aware of it. Today become aware of what God has promised to you. It’s time to step into your inheritance. I live with a sense of promise – I would never try for such a big future if I did not believe that ultimately God is for me and he wants to bless me. I have an expectation that God will come through – I’ve seen before and I will see it again.

what has been promised

If you are walking in faith & patience – you are inheriting the promise. It is happening now – God is at work on your future – get ready. Become aware – walk in faith & patience and be expectant!

Message version: Don’t drag your feet. Be like those who stay the course with committed faith and then get everything promised to them.

Man Vs Wild

Recently I was sitting on the tube in London in June and a guy sitting across from me was reading a Wilbur smith novel. I could sense this guy was reading this adventure story but would rather have been living it. 

Men are created by God to live a life of leadership and adventure – but are so often trying to satisfy the thirst adventure via books, movies and adventure tourism.

But books, movies won’t cut it.

We are created for the greatest adventure – living for our God given purpose!

We are called to be leaders in God’s mission to save a lost world.

Throughout history great men have risen up to bring change in the world – Constantine leads the Roman empire into Christianity, William Wilberforce helps abolish slavery, Martin Luther King stands against racial injustice, Billy Graham reaches a generation with the gospel.

6 keys to being the man you were created to be

1. Be a seeker of God

The great men of history sought God and walked with God. Abraham, Jacob, David, Enoch walked with God. Many men today have lost their connection to God.

If you were to be really honest how many men have become disappointed or discouraged?

You’ve stopped walking with God. Get connected again.

2. Get planted

Psalm 92: 13 planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.

If you want to reach your full potential you have to get into the house of God regularly.

One of the keys in my life is that I have been consistently in church since I got saved in 1987. So many people just seem to come and go – it is sad – it’s lost potential.

Those who get planted will go the distance and will reach their potential.

3. Find a band of brothers

You cannot make it on your own – Christianity is a team sport – every guy needs to be part of team. The first thing Jesus did in his ministry was assemble his team. You need people around you – otherwise guys just drift. Find a group you can be part of – find your band of brothers & stick with them!

4. Be a leader

Acts 20:28
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.

Men have been given a leadership role by God. Inside of you is a leadership call – the most frustrating life is knowing you are called but not responding to the call. Every church needs great men to be leaders and builders of the church.

I believe our world can change – but it will take a few good men to rise up to their call.

5. Fight

1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith

Men are born to fight. Men have a violence problem in society because they don’t know the fight they were created for. If you don’t fight for the right things – you will fight whatever comes along.

You were born to fight for the kingdom of God, fight for your families, fight for each other!

6. Be fathers of the faith

1 Corinthians 4:15
Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers

The world is suffering from a lack of fathers and the church is the same. Men were created to be fathers – I am here to be a father! I want to raise people up in faith.

Man of God will you be a father to a new generation growing up without fathers?

The example of a real man – Jesus Christ

He had a cup that he could of laid down – it wasn’t his to have to drink. It was a cup of suffering – it was our sin and our burden.  

Mark 14:36
Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will

He laid down his life and took the cup to win our freedom. He lived the life of a real man – he came to right the wrongs, to win the lost and to bring a message of hope.  

He has called us to be real men – to life for the greater purpose!

Come on men – This world needs you to rise, this church needs you to rise, I need you rise God needs you to rise!

Taking our message to the world

2 Corinthians 5:17-20

Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. The old has gone the new has come.

Before we found Christ we lived differently, we lived for ourselves, we lived to the pattern of this world

Now we are in Christ a change has taken place

Our perspective has changed, we see the world differently, our priorities have changed

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

He has given us a great message – and the message needs to get out

Reconciliation: re-establishing normal relations between belligerents

The world is separated from God by sin and it is our job to bring them back together

It’s a message of hope – a message of transformation

It is a message with legs on it – It is a message with actions following

Lets get the old connotation of missions out of our head

Oh he’s a missions guy, that place is a missions church, oh I’m not a missions person

Missions is about the great commission that Jesus gave to us when he left the earth

Mark 16 Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation

If your not a missions person your not a Jesus person

The message is a demonstration of our faith

James 2: 14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?

I’m a preacher – but the world doesn’t need to hear another sermon – it needs a demonstration of the message – a message with actions

It’s needs to see a church that takes the message out to neighborhoods’, cities and nations

I am excited that we are a church that is willing to step out and demonstrate our faith with actions

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors

We need to understand that we represent Christ in this world – His appeal comes through us

If we don’t get out and do it – the message will not get out

Lets make a great appeal

Many Christians today have lost their mission

They don’t know where they fit and what they can do

But we are all called by Christ to bring this message of hope to a lost world

The scripture says – we are Christ’s ambassadors – what an amazing calling

The church has lost it’s mission – without our calling we are just a social club

And that is what many churches are satisfied in doing

But as we are baptized into Christ – we are baptized into a calling to change the world

I am so blessed to be leading a church that takes it’s calling seriously

Bono from the band U2 said this you can’t fix all the problems – but the ones you can you must

And we can fix some problems

Lets take our message to the world

One act of faith

One act of faith

How do you step into your God given purpose?

How do you see the promises of God fulfilled in your life?

It only takes one act of faith – to activate your future

Matthew 14: 22 – 28 Peter steps out of the boat and walks on water

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.

Jesus made the disciples go to the other side – even though they were heading right into the storm – storms are part of the ingredients for a great act of faith

If you feel like you are in a storm – maybe God is leading you to toward a fresh step of faith

It’s only faith when the conditions are contrary – don’t wait for the conditions to be right

Peter was in the middle of a storm – and yet he takes this great step of faith

After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

Jesus leaves them in the storm – Jesus is not going to turn up every 5 minutes to save the day – He wants his disciples to grow in faith –he wanted them to overcome the storm –Peter did

Don’t be discouraged in your situation – maybe you feel that the wind is against you

You could be just about to walk on water if you would be prepared to step out in faith

Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.

He left them out all night – he is trying to expand their faith – maybe God is wanting to bring growth in your situation

Peter did what no one else would do – he got out of the boat – he activated his faith – he walked on water

That act of faith – getting out of the boat changed his life forever

What has happened to us as Christians – we have become boat dwellers

Christians have become a bunch of critics sitting comfortably in the boat – telling all those who are trying to walk on water how they should do it

We are called to the water –yet we settle for the boat – & that settling kills the Christian spirit

We started with such a radical tradition of men & women giving their lives for the cause

We need to take that step out of the comfort of the boat and onto the water

For each of us there is a step of faith that God needs from us to activate our future

Great steps of faith

Abraham leaves his home to follow God and becomes a father of nations

Peter and Andrew leave their nets and become apostles for Christ

Yongghi Cho bought a tent in faith and becomes the pastor of the world’s largest church

Phil Pringle moves to Sydney with a dream and becomes the apostle of a movement of 250 churches

What is your act of faith?

A new level of faith

I just got back from Korea where I was attending Ps Yonggi Cho’s Church Growth Conference. It was unreal. I was hanging out with Ps Phil Pringle and Ps Kong Hee and listening to Ps Cho. That’s about as good a week as you can have!

This guy has built the largest church in the history of Christianity by prayer, faith and the Holy Spirit.

He preached a message on faith that took me to another level.

Here are 3 keys of faith from Ps Cho

1. Faith swells in an environment of faith.
It is so important for us to live in the faith zone, to operate in faith and to remain firmly in faith.
I think in the world today – we can have the intention of living by faith but are tempted by and often give in to the doubts, fears and realities that surround us every day.
Our faith gives way to fear.
We need to constantly be putting ourselves in an environment of faith – being in church, getting around great leaders and inspiring people, reading the word of God, spending time in prayer and seeing visions.

2. Faith wants to have a clear goal.
We need to know what we are applying our faith to. Define your goal and bring it before God in persistent prayer.
Keep your goal in mind and see it coming to pass. Pray for it, aim towards it and never let it out of your sight.

3. Language is the clothing for faith.
How cool is that thought!
Faith needs an expression and this happens through your words.
What you speak is what is inside you. So faith expresses itself in your life by your words. So speak words of faith and life and keep speaking them.

Lets be people that build the future by faith!

Eternity

Eternity

Ecclesiastes 3: 11 says
Everything is beautiful in it’s time
Your time is coming – a time for your gift – a time when our life is needed for an eternal purpose
Most of us are living before our time
We are in preparation for our moment of great impact
Many people miss their time – People give up before their time
I want to encourage you – don’t miss your time
Don’t miss the beauty of your life
Offload discouragement and regret – If your in God your best days are ahead
Your time will be beautiful
Don’t sell out for second best

He has also set eternity in the hearts of men
We are created for Eternity – so why do we spend so much time focused on this world?
If you listen to your head – you will live for the here and now
If you listen to your heart you will hear the sound of eternity
Eternity is set in our hearts – it is inside of you
There is a sound of heaven in you
In your heart is an eternal purpose

If you could really see your life with the backdrop of eternity – you would live differently

Don’t be a success in this life and a failure in eternity!

1 Timothy 6:12
says Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Lets live our lives in the context of eternity