“The Power of One … In Your Home”
The Power of One series
When a child is born, we commit to the following:
1. Love ... that gives security and confidence
2. Protect ... from dangers but not reality
3. Provide … for basic needs and future opportunity
4. Portray ... the love and example of Christ
• We love by giving generously of our encouragement, time, and conversation.
“Fathers, do not exasperate your children.” -Ephesians 6:4, NIV
“Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” -Deuteronomy 6:7, NIV
• We protect by teaching discipline and boundaries.
“Discipline your children while you still have the chance; indulging them destroys them.” -Proverbs 19:18, The Message
“A refusal to correct is a refusal to love; love your children by disciplining them.” -Proverbs 13:24, The Message
• We provide by demonstrating hard work as well as equipping them for the future.
“Better to be ordinary and work for a living than act important and starve in the process.” -Proverbs 12:9, The Message
“Committed and persistent work pays off; get-rich-quick schemes are ripoffs.” -Proverbs 28:20, The Message
• We portray Christ by loving as He loved.
“This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you.” -John 15:12, The Message
“Love never fails.” -Corinthians 13:8, NIV
We have already heard what God has done this weekend in the lives of young people. And can I say to our young people…it is the beginning of the journey. And as with any road you travel, there are exits, detours, even accidents along the way. But in the midst of these, follow the road map. It will not steer you wrong. And follow these steps I leave with you today.
Purpose in your hearts to be WORLD CHANGERS!
Turn your lives over to Christ through repentance and faith Revelation 3:20
Tell of your changed life through baptism and a
public testimony.
Trust Christ to assist you in living a life pleasing to Him.
LIVE THE LIFE!
Conclusion…
Like Ben Patterson wrote in The Grand Essentials: I have a theory about old age ... I believe that when life has whittled us down, when joints have failed and skin has wrinkled and arteries have clogged and hardened, what is left of us will be what we were all along, in our essence.
Two examples: The first is a man from Luke 16 . . . All his life he did nothing but find new ways to get rich . . . He spent his fortune very comfortably, drooling and babbling constantly about the money he had made . . . When life whittled him down to his essence, all there was left was raw greed. And even in hell he wants the beggar he despised to give him something to drink. What a shame! What a waste!
Then there is my grandmother on my Dad’s side; we called her Mom. In fact, everyone did. Kids. Grandkids. Church folk. Everyone. When she died in her mid-eighties, she had been an active Sunday School teacher for 60 years, 42 of those years she had perfect attendance. What did this lady talk about? The best example I can think of was when we asked her to pray before dinner. She would reach out and hold the hands of those sitting beside her, a broad, beautiful smile would spread across her face, her dim eyes would fill with tears as she looked up to heaven, and her chin would quiver as she poured out her love to Jesus. That was Mom in a nutshell. She loved Jesus and she loved people. She couldn’t remember our names, but she couldn’t keep her hands from patting us lovingly whenever we got near her. When life whittled her down to her essence, all there was left was love: love for God and love for people.
