HillThread ~ Supporting Missions » Tees & Big Ideas

Greater Purpose

Ryan — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:50:19 +0000

It is God’s nature to bless. However, we need to understand that He has a greater purpose in mind than we may realize. His ultimate goal is far more encompassing than just to make us happy, peaceful, protected, and prosperous. In fact, it is never the Lord’s intention for His blessings to end with us. Rather, He wants them to flow out to others as part of His plan for the whole earth.

As we can see in today’s psalm, the Lord blesses us so that His salvation, His ways, and His justice may be known by every nation and every people group around the globe (vv. 3-4, 7). He is always acting with this larger picture in mind—even while working personally in our individual lives. Knowing this should fill us with an awesome yet humbling sense of significance. Every believer has a part in helping others know and understand the one true God. Each blessing He gives not only benefits us personally but is intended to help further this cause. On the other hand, we may sometimes not receive the things we want because they don’t contribute to His higher purpose. But if we are willing to fit our requests into God’s greater plans, we will position ourselves to be greatly used by Him.

When the Lord blesses you, He’s not only doing something for you; He’s also doing something in and through you to affect others’ lives. Don’t let the pleasures and comforts of His blessings blind you to their intended purpose. Ask God how to use His kindnesses as a way to point people to Him.

Psalm 67
“1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine upon us,

2 that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.

3 May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you.

4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you rule the peoples justly
and guide the nations of the earth.

5 May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you.

6 Then the land will yield its harvest,
and God, our God, will bless us.

7 God will bless us,
and all the ends of the earth will fear him.”

Saving a Life, a World Away

Ryan — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 13:36:48 +0000

Mohau, born June 12, 2009 in Lesotho, Africa

There are times in our lives when God, through the Holy Spirit, takes our hearts and our minds and points us in a direction that we did not see coming.

Such a thing happened to my wife and I this weekend, and we just can’t squash our excitement about it.

This afternoon we decided to “adopt” a child through the World Vision sponsorship program. For only $35 a month, we are able to help feed and clothe a child, as well as assist in providing for medical aid when necessary.

In a few days we will receive much more information about the child, Mohau, that we chose to sponsor. We decided to sponsor Mohau because he is nearly the same age as our 3 year old son Isaac.

We thought that sponsoring a child who is close to the same age as our own son would help us be more aware of the current developmental stages that he (Mohau) is going through. We feel like this might help us become more connected to him.

Also, we thought it would be pretty amazing to help our son connect with someone his same age and teach him about giving and serving as he grows up. And as our son grows, he will be able to grow up, in a sense, with Mohau (even though Mohau is a world away).

But this post is not meant to be an ego booster or a pat on our back. Instead, I simply wanted to share where God has taken us today. For everyone who is reading this, I have no idea what your relationship with Jesus looks like, whether it’s close or far apart, or what your views and practices of tithing are.

But as we get closer to Christmas, I wanted to encourage you to take a strong look at your obedience to God in the area of tithing, servanthood, and being a good steward of all that God has given you. Our missions pastor preached a hard truth this morning, but I agree fully with what he had to say (and I admit that I need my toes stepped on from time to time).

He addressed the common tithing excuse of “I would give an offering if I had any money to give, I just don’t have any money to give.” His response was simple, “What are you spending your money on each month that takes away an opportunity to be obedient and serve God by giving to others?”

It’s a good question. Have we become so obsessed with newer cars and bigger houses and keeping up with our friends, family, and neighbors that we spend all that we have (and even more than we have) just to keep up social appearances?

Let me encourage you to rethink where you are in your life journey. Become involved in something bigger than your house or your car or your savings account.

Matthew 18:2-5
“He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: ‘I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.’”

try this on for

Ryan — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 19:12:02 +0000

size

Someone just might try this . . .

Ryan — Sat, 28 May 2011 21:39:45 +0000

So here’s a thought . . . quit spending money. I call it the “Go One Month Without Buying Anything New” challenge. Basically, the only rule is that you don’t buy anything new for yourself for one month. I know, I know, it’s pretty self-explanatory. Don’t worry, we’ve already began searching for a “name the challenges guy”.

But in all seriousness, think about how much stuff you purchase in a given week, month, and even a whole year. Sometimes it seems like we never put our wallets down. We convince ourselves that the stuff we want to buy is a necessity when in reality it’s just stuff that will end up as clutter around the house. We want and we want and we want. We tell ourselves that we have to have the biggest and the best and the newest and the most fashionable items out there. What we need is to re-examine our priorities.

For this challenge, I’m not talking about food or anything else that might keep you alive and in good health (it’s going to be up to you to define what a necessity is). Instead, this challenge targets those material goods that advertisers have convinced us that we “deserve”.

So here it is: try living the next month as though you were on a mission trip. If you’ve never been on a mission trip, then listen up. Learn how to live with what you already have; without buying new clothes, or new shoes, or any new “stuff”. Obviously this will take some getting used to. It will also take some planning on your part. Don’t be fooled, this challenge will necessitate patience and probably cause a change in the way you think about your money and your spending habits. When you take on this challenge, don’t be surprised if you come out a different person.

Jesus spent a lot of time teaching us to love God before anything else. He taught us to be humble, to serve others in love, and to be selfless. If we aren’t careful, the opportunities around us to share God’s love may be obstructed because of our greed and our need to consume.

Don’t Be a Hater

Ryan — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 01:54:00 +0000

Devotional

Don’t Be a Hater: Matthew 5:44 – ”You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

** I encourage you to use these passages from God’s Word as a resource in your daily life. Don’t let this truth just rest on this tag or on this shirt. Use it! Let it become a part of you, let the scripture be written on your heart and move you to live your life in obedience to God out of love. Dive into God’s Word, spend time with Him in prayer, connect with other believers, live for Jesus who died for your sins and rose again! **

FYI – We have a Bible Study on Facebook.com and invite you to join. New scripture is posted daily. If you don’t have a Facebook Account, then you will need to create one to join the Bible Study. So, if you’re interested, sign into your Facebook Account and search “Facebook Bible Study – yes you can join!”

Beware of the ‘Cure’

Ryan — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 20:08:16 +0000

Devotional

Beware of the ‘Cure’: Matthew 7:15 – ”Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

Matthew 24:10-13 – “Many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

Matthew 24:24 – “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.”

2 Peter 2:1 – “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.”

1 John 4:1 – “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

Crank It Loud

Ryan — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:58:37 +0000

Devotional

Crank It Loud so the World Can Hear: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 – ”If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.”

Crank up the love, blare it out loud, make sure the world hears the love and sees the love of Jesus.

Crank It Loud

Ryan — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:43:26 +0000

Devotional

Crank up the love, blare it out loud, make sure the world hears the love and sees the love of Jesus.

Christianity is not a Default

Ryan — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 17:16:56 +0000

Devotional

Christianity is Not a Default: Luke 9:23 – ”Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.’”

The Cross

Ryan — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 01:31:06 +0000

Devotional

The Cross: 1 Corinthians 1:18 – “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”