Walking in Faith

Elisabeth Worthen — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:26:36 +0000

The Escape to Egypt.
When I started reading I thought “Wow this is really cool how an angle of the Lord said to Joseph in a dream get up and take your wife and child and escape to Egypt for Herod himself is going to search for the child to kill him.” When I got to the next chapter it was saying how he took his wife and his child and left for Egypt. I was just amazed how Joseph trusted the Lord to keep them safe on there way to Egypt. That is just so cool. When I was done with that chapter I read how they stayed at Egypt until the death of Herod. When I was reading how when Herod figured out that he had been out witted by the Magi he was furious and then gave orders to go an kill every baby boy in Bethlehem and it’s vicinity who where two years old an under, in accordance with the time he had learn from the Magi.

Matthew 2:1-12

Elisabeth Worthen — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 16:34:42 +0000

Last night we (me and my mom) read Matthew 2:1-12. I think it was very cool how the three Magi in a dream were told not to go back to Herod but to go a different route. What I thought that God was doing there was not telling them why to go a different route than the way they came but trusting them to do as he commanded them. I think they could have not listened to what the dream said it could have been easy to go the same way they came. But I think God was testing them to see what they would do. Would they do as they were told, or do what was easy?

Stewardship – Time

Jason Worthen — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 06:47:16 +0000

I am working through a book by Kenneth Boa called “Handbook to Prayer – Praying Back Scripture to God” (Logos link) or also called “Face to Face: Praying the Scriptures for Intimate Worship” (Amazon link). [NOTE: I have no clue why the title change... I should probably look into that at some point, but that's for another day.]

I came across a prayer today that has really got me thinking. It’s nothing new, it’s nothing revolutionary, but it is really challenging me in my walk.

Faithfulness as a Steward…

Of time
Of talents
Of treasure
Of truth
Of relationships

This got me thinking about myself as a steward of God’s things. I started thinking about what I did today/tonight. There were certainly some rewarding times and conversation.. but could I have done more? It was also interesting to me that I read a blog on ChurchCrunch entitled “The End is Part of the Plan” where John talks about the most valuable thing he has, quantitatively, is time.

I waste so much time on unimportant things that add no value to God, to my family or to those around me — things that are ultimately a “time suck”. I need to get more organized and intentional around my time committments, especially on days/nights where I don’t have a planned schedule/agenda (such as work days). I need to get more intentional about who I am spending time with, how much time I am spending with them and what we are talking about.

From an encouragement perspective, today, I have several very good conversations.

I met with Johnathan Dodson from Austin City Life and discussed Fight Clubs. Amazing guy with a vision for reaching people in the Austin central area. I am definitely better off today having spent time interacting with him.
I spent time interacting with a Catholic at work about faith by works versus salvation through Christ alone. It wasn’t a confrontational discussion, it was just some sharing. It challenged me to be able to share the gospel in a way that didn’t respect his beliefs, but also demonstrated what I believe and why I believe it. The Bible is a powerful thing and we can’t take it’s truths for granted.
I hung out with my oldest daughter for a few minutes as she laid down for bed and we talked about her day. She had a tough day but didn’t want to orginally talk about it. It was very cool that I was able to tell her that she can always tell me anything and I will just listen — not try to fix it. I gave her a big hug and let it go. She decided to share with me after a minute or two how her day didn’t go so well at school for a couple of various reasons. By the time we ended the conversation, she was laughing and smiling as big as she could. We even talked about how she is always “watching me” to see what I do in every situation. She told me “you are cool and I want to be just like you.” There are probably never going to be words coming out of her mouth that are that powerful and impactful to me. That is what it is all about with children.

I am incredibly blessed. Now, what I need to do is use the talents and giftings God has given me to have a greater impact. Not an impact on myself but on my family, on my church, on my community, on my co-workers. All of these people are gifts to me from God. To view any one of them as something other than that just lessens the real value of the possibilities God has laid before me to have a greater impact for His kingdom.

Brandon Heath – What If We

Jason Worthen — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 07:02:16 +0000

I wasn’t sure if I was a huge Brandon Heath (Twitter) fan or not but I got his album (“What If We“) for Christmas and I am really enjoying the music. The style is really pleasing and the lyrics have meaning. I appreciate the fact that every lyric isn’t the same line over and over. It seems in Christian music, this has become more of a trend in Praise/Worship music. The top hit “Give Me Your Eyes” definitely makes me consider how I see people around me. I need to listen to the music a bit more to really pick my favorites — there are lots of good songs on this album!

I appreciated the music so much I just went and bought his other album “Don’t Get Comfortable“.

Isaiah 53

Jason Worthen — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 04:23:42 +0000

God is good. It is beyond my understanding how He gave us Isaiah 53 somewhere around 500 years before Christ was ever born. The text that continues to jump out at me is the one that conveys a message of Jesus carrying my transgressions. It is personal.

⁴ Surely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

⁵ But he was wounded for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his stripes we are healed.

⁶ All we like sheep have gone astray;

we have turned—every one—to his own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

When I read this Scripture, it convicts me of my sins even more. It makes me think more about the work of Jesus Christ and how in my every day life, it is absolutely critical that I never take this for granted. People in this world will spit on Jesus because they do not believe what He did for them. “So then [God] has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.” (Romans 9:18) That doesn’t excuse me from being a light every single day. My typical week will consist of 40-50 hours of work, 5-10 hours of elder stuff, a busy Sunday in corporate worship and the rest either with my family or personal time. When are the right people seeing Jesus in my life? Is it during the 40-50 hours at work? Is it during corporate worship? There are lost people in this world who need to know what Jesus Christ did for them. This text makes it abundantly clear to me that God crushed Jesus Christ for His children. He crushed Jesus Christ on the cross so that man’s sins will be washed away and accounted righteous.

What am I willing to do tomorrow in order to make sure that others know this truth? Will I close in prayer and then forget this text until I talk to my other Christian friends or will I get in front of others who need to hear this truth and share with them the good news? That is really the challenge to me from God today. I wonder if He is saying the same to you…

Obama appoints Pastor

Jason Worthen — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:56:40 +0000

I know that I live under a political rock but this is interesting to me. A 26-year old Penecostal pastor has been appointed to the head the Faith Office. While the choice is not necessarily surprising, I am interested in the response from the evangelical church and other non-Penecostal denominations. This is a person we should all be praying for every day!

HT: Christian Post

Priorities

Jason Worthen — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 07:10:46 +0000

There is way too much going on in my life for my to stop capturing my thoughts, my questions, my challenges. God is doing some amazing things around me and I feel led to talk to my friends about that some more. Hopefully, some of you will find this informative.

Global Missions

Jason Worthen — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:43:07 +0000

Matthew 28:18-20

¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

My goal isn’t to do an exegetical analysis of the “great commission” but to challenge people to pray about global missions. How often do I sit in the comfort of my home and not consider the persecution and turmoil other people are experiencing around the global for the cause of Christ. God’s Word tells us that we should expect to meet persecution. In fact, we should even rejoice in it!

I have heard some (including John Piper) say that there are “go’ers” and “send’ers” — not everyone is called to be a missionary. However, we are all called to obedience to God’s Word and His word says that we are to make disciples of all nations. I would encourage and challenge anyone who reads this to prayerfully consider what impact you personally are being called by God to have with respect to global missions.

In the interest of spurring on your research, I offer a couple of links (this is not even close to an exhaustive list) that might help you get plugged into reliable and Christ-center organizations focused on reaching the nations with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

East West Ministries

Samaritan’s Purse

Lecrae – Rebel

Jason Worthen — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 04:07:30 +0000

I bought Lecrae’s latest CD, “Rebel” last night. Excellent tracks! I really enjoy the mix between solid theology and the beats being laid down. I thought it was well worth the spend and certainly worth the listen! A couple of people in the office are interested in hearing the songs so I hope to share with them from the iPhone tomorrow. My desire is that people would overhear me playing the music and it would strike an interest with them. From there, the Spirit can lead the conversation!

I also watched an interview with Lacrae and Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church. The interview covered Lecrae’s background and testimony as well as the reason he and 116 Clique are doing what they are doing. It is an amazing ministry and great to see them accomplishing the work of God… check it out!

Psalm 94

Jason Worthen — Wed, 23 May 2007 04:04:05 +0000

The LORD disciplines those whom are in His family. He disciplines like a father to his son. God disciplines us because He loves us. His discipline is a blessing to us and teaches us, moreover reinforces with us, His law. He has done this since the beginning of time and He continues to do this today. He is the God of yesterday, today and tomorrow.

God will not forsake His people. He has made a covenant with them and He will honor that covenant. Our God keeps His promises. He does not say one thing and then do another (like man). He will not leave His chosen family — the believers and saved souls. God provides blessings for those whom He disciplines.