It's Time to Cross Over
Here are the notes from Sunday's awesome message:
Dr. David Cooper, Mt. Paran, Dec. 28, 2009
Mark 4:35-40
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
There comes a time in our lives when it’s time for us to move from where we have been to where God wants us to be—a new place with new opportunities, new goals, etc. However, some of us are stuck where we are. Know there is something new for you.
In Genesis, God told Abraham to leave where he was and go to a new land, a land God would show him. And he obeyed and went out, not knowing where he was going.
Sometimes we must leave from where we’ve been living (like the Israelites in slavery in Egypt) to get to the Promised Land that God has for us. When things got tough, they wanted to go back into slavery instead of endure the hardships on the way to the Promised Land. But there finally was day when the Lord said, “It’s time for the people to cross the Jordan.” We’ll never embrace the future God has for us if we keep going back.
5 lessons of faith from this passage:
1) Get out of your comfort zone.
So many of us are stuck. There are so many things that hold us back, such as:
a) the fear of the unknown. Many people never get unstuck because at least they know how to operate in their condition. They don’t know how their m.o. will change in a new environment.
b) dysfunctional relational skills, such as manipulation and control.
c) habits—bad habits/addictions
d) no vision—tradition and lack of dreams keep them where they are. “We never did it that way before”.
e) low self-esteem—they feel like they don’t deserve better.
God created us to be fruitful and multiply, so we need to get past these things that are holding us back.
2) Leave the crowd behind.
We need to face this--There are some people that we just can’t take with us to this new place. (Prov. 1:10, 13:20). Some people hold us down and pull us back. Young people are especially vulnerable with their peers.
Some people we SHOULD have in our lives:
a) a Paul—a mentor—to pour God into us
b) a Barnabas—to encourage us
c) a Timothy—to train, teach
3) Take Jesus with you. (Ex. 33:14-15, 1 Pet. 3:15, Prov. 3:5)
Don’t go into any situation where you can’t take Jesus with you. Live your life in the presence of Jesus.
Then Dr. Cooper did this incredible thing with ABCs at the end of his message. I tell you, that stuff is not natural. I couldn't take notes fast enough to write all the stuff down. But if you're interested, you can go to www.mountparan.com and listen to the message. It's usually up by the Wednesday after.
Dr. David Cooper, Mt. Paran, Dec. 28, 2009
Mark 4:35-40
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
There comes a time in our lives when it’s time for us to move from where we have been to where God wants us to be—a new place with new opportunities, new goals, etc. However, some of us are stuck where we are. Know there is something new for you.
In Genesis, God told Abraham to leave where he was and go to a new land, a land God would show him. And he obeyed and went out, not knowing where he was going.
Sometimes we must leave from where we’ve been living (like the Israelites in slavery in Egypt) to get to the Promised Land that God has for us. When things got tough, they wanted to go back into slavery instead of endure the hardships on the way to the Promised Land. But there finally was day when the Lord said, “It’s time for the people to cross the Jordan.” We’ll never embrace the future God has for us if we keep going back.
5 lessons of faith from this passage:
1) Get out of your comfort zone.
So many of us are stuck. There are so many things that hold us back, such as:
a) the fear of the unknown. Many people never get unstuck because at least they know how to operate in their condition. They don’t know how their m.o. will change in a new environment.
b) dysfunctional relational skills, such as manipulation and control.
c) habits—bad habits/addictions
d) no vision—tradition and lack of dreams keep them where they are. “We never did it that way before”.
e) low self-esteem—they feel like they don’t deserve better.
God created us to be fruitful and multiply, so we need to get past these things that are holding us back.
2) Leave the crowd behind.
We need to face this--There are some people that we just can’t take with us to this new place. (Prov. 1:10, 13:20). Some people hold us down and pull us back. Young people are especially vulnerable with their peers.
Some people we SHOULD have in our lives:
a) a Paul—a mentor—to pour God into us
b) a Barnabas—to encourage us
c) a Timothy—to train, teach
3) Take Jesus with you. (Ex. 33:14-15, 1 Pet. 3:15, Prov. 3:5)
Don’t go into any situation where you can’t take Jesus with you. Live your life in the presence of Jesus.
Then Dr. Cooper did this incredible thing with ABCs at the end of his message. I tell you, that stuff is not natural. I couldn't take notes fast enough to write all the stuff down. But if you're interested, you can go to www.mountparan.com and listen to the message. It's usually up by the Wednesday after.
Comments