Proverbs 3 - "Leaning" - Guest Blogger Jeremiah Fife

As I was reading today in Proverbs 3, verses 5-6 seemed to jump off the page at me. They read,
'Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will make your paths straight.'

So many times we allow the weight of our situation or circumstance to cloud our focus on God, which in turn seems to push us to lean on our own understanding. Leaning has the sense of putting your whole weight on something, resting on and trusting in that person or thing, which most times ends up being ourselves! When we have an important decision to make, we sometimes feel as if we can't trust anyone - not even God. But God knows what is best for us. He is a better judge of what we want than even we are! We must trust in him completely in every choice we make. We should not omit careful thinking or put down our God-given ability to reason; but we should not trust our own ideas to the exclusion of all others. We must not be wise in our own eyes. We should seek to be wise in the eyes of God! We should always be willing to listen to and be corrected by God's Word and wise counselors.

So next time your facing an important decision, or any decision for that matter, bring your decision to God in prayer. Use the Bible as your guide, and then follow God's leading. He will make 'your paths straight' by both guiding and protecting you! Chase the Lion, face your fear by putting your complete and whole trust in the Lord! He will come through in ways you can't even imagine (Ephesians 3:20)!"

Proverbs 2 - "If"..."Then"

Proverbs 2 starts out with a few stipulations. In the first four verses Solomon says "if you" three different times. Each time he is referring to our search and hunger for wisdom and knowledge. He states if you search...if you call out...if you accept, then you will understand. So many times I think we as Christ-followers want everything to be easy. I have been guilty myself, but here we find a simple instruction on how to understand the "good path" (v.9) that God has for us. When it comes to Chasing the Lions that we are facing, whether it be a job promotion, a family circumstance, a financial situation, or a huge step of faith, it is vital that we passionately pursue the wisdom of God in all these matters. I once heard it said this way..."knowledge is looking at a fire and saying that is hot...wisdom is looking at a fire and saying that is hot, do not touch it or it will burn." As it relates to our spiritual journey I think many times we have the knowledge of the fact that God desires for us to Chase the Lions that are in front of us, but we sometimes lack the wisdom to know how to do so, or the guts to actually do it. What about you? Has there been something you know you should be doing, but not practically doing it?

Proverbs 1

I am excited about the future of GCWC. For those of you who have been following the last few months here on the blog, you understand that the church we currently serve at is in a time of transition. Our staff and board have sought the wisdom and direction of God for some time and are excited about the events of the next few weeks. Beginning today, as a church we have begun a reading of the Proverbs together. Here are a few thoughts as we begin with chapter 1 that may encourage and challenge you.

1. The sole purpose of the book is "for the attaining of wisdom and discipline; for understanding words or insight; for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair." (verses 2-3)

2. Solomon, the wisest man whoever lives gives so much insight in these "wise sayings" that guide us in this journey called life.

3. There is a common theme throughout the book as he relates specifically to 3 types of people...the wise, the fool, and the scoffer.

As we have been in our current series "Chase the Lion" we have discussed taking calculated risks and trusting God to come through when the odds are stacked against us. We talked yesterday about rewiring our hard drive (our brains) so that we may think more like him. Romans 12:1 calls it "being transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test what God's will is." That's what "Chasing the Lion" is all about...pursuing Gods dream and plan for our lives. Join us as we study this book together over the next few weeks.

Carl

Exciting News

As many of you know, we are excited that Kevin and Kristal Beachy will be with us the weekend of July 26th to interview for the Lead Pastor position at GCWC. This is an opportunity for you to get to know them and for them to get to know you. This Sunday we will be announcing a few more details as far as what the weekend will look like and how you can get to know them better. We will also have a CORE Leaders meeting this Sunday evening at 5:00 PM for all those in any area of leadership at GCWC. Please feel free to comment or ask questions here.

Join The Chase

We continue in a series entitled "Chase The Lion" at The Coast tomorrow. I am excited as we focus our attention on Defying Odds. What is it that seems too big for you to overcome? What is it that you want to do but it seems impossible? What odds, What lions are you facing? Why is it that we can't seem to set God-sized goals? Why is it so hard to pursue God-ordained passions? Why is it we seem to fear going after a dream that is destined to fail unless God intervenes? You don't want to miss the next few weeks.

Summer Break

This has been everything but a slow summer for Julie and I. So many irons in the fire and so much to do. However one thing I do miss is The Gathering, our Wednesday night student ministry. It gives me more study time for Sundays, but as I read facebook comments, its evident to me how much it means to the students as well. The Gathering will relaunch August 12 and will look and feel totally different. Until then...Join the Chase!

Chase The Lion

Have you ever looked back and asked yourself what if? I am convinced that the greatest regrets we will have near the end of this life are not the mistakes we made, but the things we never attempted out of fear or uncertainty. This Sunday kicks off a brand new series at Gulf Coast entitled "Chase The Lion". You don't want to miss it as we calculate how to step out and take risks in this journey called life. This Sunday we will focus on "Defying Odds". If we listen to the critics or our culture, we will always be pinned in a corner and scared to death to charge the largest mountains. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't. Join the Chase!