The Power of Ephesians 4:29

 

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29, NIV

 

 

A very powerful verse.  One that I personally go back to again and again.  Recently I started thinking about this verse in two specific areas of life and wondering how it would play out.  Meaning, what would really take place if we actually tried to live "Ephesians 4:29".

Those areas...

1)  What we say to our spouses

and

2)  What we say to ourselves.    

Could you imagine if you did not allow anything to go out of your mouth that was not:

*helpful

*building someone up

*Shows grace and benefits others

 

What would your relationships look like?

 

Now imagine if you spoke that same way to yourself.

 

How would your life be different? 

The key to life is found in God's word.  The key to our relationships, self-esteem, past, present and future is all found in this book.  In Hosea 4:6 we are told that we are destroyed by our lack of knowledge of God's word.  God's word is not scary or something to stay away from (that is what the enemy wants you to think).  God's word is not too hard to understand (there are people and resources to help and God's Spirit will also help). 

The truth is, God's word is so powerful, so liberating, so filled with joy, peace and wisdom that there is no wonder the enemy fights us so much to learn more and more about God's word.  

The word of God is meant to be lived out and by doing so have our life shaped in an amazing way.

So start this week.  Start living the word out.  Give Ephesians 4:29 a try and see how your life is change.

Editor's Note:  The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today.  If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121.  You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Spring Community Care Groups Starting!

Spring Community Care Groups

Starting!

We are so excited that our Community Care groups are starting the end of this month! 
See below for the upcoming schedule:

Celebrate Recovery 

(every Wednesday night!)

Compassionate Ministries Meeting 

(February 19th)

Life's Healing Choices 

 (February 20th)

Sacred Marriage 

(February 20th)

DivorceCare 

(February 21st)

DivorceCare for Kids  

(February 21st)

Marriage Prep Class   

(February 21st)

Surrendering the Secret   

(February 21st)

One Thousand Gifts

(February 27th)

Prayer Team

(every Saturday!)

Editor's Note:  The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today.  If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121.  You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Top 10 Most Receptive People

Some of you may be familiar with the book Purpose Driven Church - Growth without compromising your message and mission by Rick Warren.  Within this book Warren states the following:

Ten most receptive groups of people that we've reached out to at Saddleback:

1.  Second-time visitors to the church

2.  Close friends and relative of new converts

3.  People going through a divorce

4.  Those who feel their need for a recovery program (alcohol, drugs, sexual, and so forth)

5.  First-time parents

6.  The terminally ill and their families

7.  Couples with major marriage problems

8.  Parents with problem children

9.  Recently unemployed or those with major financial problems

10.  New residents in the community

As you may have guessed many of these groups are Community Care groups.  In fact 5 of the 10 are areas in which Community Care leaders and members focus their time and effort in sharing about Christ!  If you would like to learn about ways you can volunteer with Community Care let us know today!  

Also, to see the spring offering of Community Groups look here! 

Resource:

Purpose Driven Church - Growth without compromising your message and mission - Rick Warren

Editor's Note:  The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today.  If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121.  You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Community Care Video!

Check out this great video going over many of the offerings in Community Care!

Editor's Note:  The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today.  If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121.  You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Fall 2012 Community Care Resources

We are all so excited about this fall season and the wonderful groups being offered through Community Care!  

Look at all the great offerings and register today!

For dates and times look here!

Family Resources

DivorceCare

Single & Parenting

 

Marriage Resources

Marriage Prep

Marriage Mentor Training

 

Spiritual Resources

Prayer Team

Spiritual Mentoring Program

 

Healing Resources

GriefShare

Surrendering the Secret

Life's Healing Choices

Celebrate Recovery  

Editor's Note: The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today. If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121. You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Twitter Rewind

Time for Twitter Rewind!

A chance for you to get a taste of the tweets that are sent out daily!  A chance to see some of the best information sent out daily from Community Care!  To learn more about this follow us @kelly_saylor

Follow the links to find out more:

• Great Quick Stress Relief tips: http://bit.ly/MTROcr

• Some Good tips for Divorced Parents: http://bit.ly/dltUJ7 

• Pray with eyes on Christ and not on the crisis. - Voskamp 

• Job interview tips for those currently looking for employment http://bit.ly/NuNiVh

• Compassion to Cope with Anxiety http://bit.ly/MAkSUT

• Has God ever spoken to you this clearly: http://youtu.be/Xtk5WgzZcYA 

View video Hide video

Editor's Note: The Community Care ministry provides emotional and spiritual support. There is a pastor or community care leader available to speak with you today. If you have questions regarding the Community Care ministries please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org or 704.598.9800 x 121. You may also learn more at the Community Care website and our upcoming events page.

Feb. 7 - 14th National Marriage Week

February 7 - 14th is considered the National Marriage Week. With keeping this in mind I thought it may be wise to consult the wisest words ever wrote about marriage. Actually, these would be the wisest words ever written about LOVE. These words are found in 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 (NIV):

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 
It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

When working with couples there is something I love to give them. I do not know who wrote this to give appropriate credit but this is a very helpful resource (the key is to read it only with yourself in mind, do not read it thinking about what your spouse does for you):

I Corinthians 13: 4-8 Assessment

Am I patient with my spouse? (I am flexible and understanding) Ephesians 4:2-3

Am I kind to my spouse? (I am kind in thought, words, and actions toward him/her) Ephesians 4: 31-32

Am I supportive (not envious) with my spouse? (I do not keep score when I feel I do more) James 3:16 – 18

Am I encouraging (not boastful) to my spouse? (I do not brag about my accomplishments while downplaying theirs) Hebrews 3:13 

Am I humble (not proud) with my spouse? (I do not think my agenda is more important than my spouse’s agenda) I Peter 5:6

Am I gracious (not rude) to my spouse? (I build up my spouse with my words spoken in private and public) Ephesians 4:29

Am I selfless (not self-seeking) with my spouse? (I focus on my spouse’s needs and wants and balance them with my own) Philippians 2:3-4

Am I self-controlled (Not easily angered) with my spouse? (I do not have a short fuse or quick temper) Proverbs 15:1

Am I able to forgive and let go (keeping no records or wrongs) with my spouse’s shortcomings? (I do not use my spouse’s past shortcoming as ammunition in today’s disagreements or allow these things to taint our communication today) Colossians 3: 12-14

Do I delight in being faithful to God (not delighting in Evil)? (I see to live a pure life and choose not to flirt with sin) Ephesians 4:1

Do I rejoice with truth? (I actively pursue God’s truth over Satan’s lies) John 8: 31-32

Do I seek to protect my spouse (I fill in the gaps where they feel weak and vulnerable) I Thessalonians 5:11

Do I trust my spouse? (I give my spouse the benefits of the doubt) I Peter 3:8

Do I keep hope alive in my marriage? (I trust God with OUR future, not “my” future) Jeremiah 29:11

Do I persevere in my marriage? (I look for solutions to problems rather than look for a way out) Matthew 5:33

Am I committed to the permanence of our marriage? (I believe divorce is not an option for us) Malachi 2:16

We hope and pray that this week is one that reminds you of the greatest gift God gave, Love.

Why is this the greatest? The answer is found in 1 John 4:8 (NIV):

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Resources

Community Care offers resources such as Marriage Prep Classes, Marriage Mentoring and Marriage Enrichment courses. For more information contact us today!

Community Care site: http://www.mecklenburg.org/community-care

Thanksgiving Woes?

The basic principle of Thanksgiving is to have quality time with family and friends while taking time to give thanks for all of your many blessings. This is the basic principle of this holiday IDEALLY.

In REALITY it can be a time where we are confronted with family and friends from the past and old wounds, hurts, or grudges may come more to the surface. If this describes your Thanksgiving holiday closer consider the following:

How to act and feel:

• Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

                                                           Ephesians 4:31-32 (NIV)  
 
What responding in love looks like:

• It (*love) does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

                                                          1 Corinthians 13:5 (NIV)

Who to give the Hurt to:

• He (*God) heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

                                                          Psalm 147:3 (NIV)

When you forgive, you OUTWIT our Enemy:

• Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

                                                          2 Corinthians 2:10 - 11 (NIV)

 Forgiveness has a direct impact with your relationship with God:

• For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.  

                                                         Matthew 6:14-15 (NIV)

 

We have a WONDERFUL example of Reconciliation to help us:

• 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 people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

                                                         2 Corinthians 5: 18 - 19 (NIV) 

Go ahead and trust God with this hurt!  

Make this Thanksgiving one that pleases God!

Note

Items with * is where a word was added for clarification and is not in the original text

Resources

Having issues with forgiveness?  We would love to talk to you today!  Contact us at 704.598.980 x 121 or at communitycare@mecklenburg.org

Mentors: Marriage (Part 2 of 4)

Last week we explored what Spiritual Mentors were and how to be involved within being a mentor or mentee.  This week the focus is on Marriage Mentors! 

Within Community Care at Mecklenburg Community Church, trained marriage mentors are available to help you at every stage of your relationship.  This includes three major areas:


1)  Preparing:  Mentoring Engaged and Newlywed Couples
2)  Maximizing:  Mentoring Couples from Good to Great
3)  Repairing:  Mentoring Couples in Distress

The training that our marriage mentor's go through includes topics such as:

*Building Rapport
*Working as a team
*Asking Meaningful Questions
*Telling Your Stories
*Praying Together
*Common Subjects to Explore with Your Marriage Mentorees
*And much more!..

If you are interested in receiving information on how to obtain a marriage mentor, how to become a marriage mentor or simply want additional information about the program please contact communitycare@mecklenburg.org today!

Resources

The Complete Guide to Marriage Mentoring - Drs. Les & Leslie Parrot

Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts - Drs. Les & Leslie Parrot

Fall Lineup!

With the last vacation days quickly passing and the start of a new school year, the fall Community Care lineup also starts!  This fall we are offering wonderful groups to help in various areas of life.    The goal of Community Care is to help you with spiritual and emotional guidance.  All of these courses are open to everyone in the community.  We hope to see you there!


These courses and groups include:

*Celebrate Recovery  (Every Thursday Night)
*GriefShare (Starts August 25th)
*GriefShare for the Holidays (November 9th and December 5th)
*Sacred Marriage (Starts August 23rd)
*Prayer Team (regular meetings to pray and learn about prayer meets every Saturday)
*Life's Healing Choices (Starts August 23rd)
*DivorceCare (Starts August 25th)
*DivorceCare for Kids (Starts August 25th)
*Marriage Prep (Starts September 13th)

Community Care will be doing much more this fall so let us know if you have any questions! Email us here or find out about the times and locations of the Community Care events here!

We firmly believe healing and guidance is available to all that seek for this!

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7 (NIV)

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.  Psalm 147:3 (NIV)

Divorce and Separation!

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2 (NIV)

Fixing our eyes on Jesus...no matter the situation, the circumstance, what was done right or wrong, we are to fix our eyes on Jesus.  What for?  For healing, forgiveness, and guidance.  Whatever we fix our eyes on we WILL be guided by this.

What about with situations of divorce or separation?  Does fixing our eyes on Jesus apply to this?  YES.
Watch this video where this man speaks about how DivorceCare (a group that is offered at Mecklenburg Community Church and many other churches nationwide) helped him fix his eyes on the one that heals:

DivorceCare is a group that covers a variety of topics pertaining to the process of separation and divorce (i.e. facing anger, loneliness, new relationships, forgiveness, depression, etc.).  We know each participant's experience may not end such as this man's did.  We also know for each participant that goes through this course and fixes their eyes on Jesus healing, forgiveness, and guidance will be experienced!

If you are interested in learning more about this group contact community care today!

Resources

Community Care's Website:  To read more about DivorceCare and to speak to someone that has received healing while going through this program.  DivorceCare for kids is also available (ages 5 - 12). 

DivorceCare's Website:  To learn more about the program, receive resources (including free daily emails of encouragement pertaining to divorce and separation), and to find a group near you.