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Slow Grow

01 Wednesday Jun 2022

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Slow Grow Is Better Than No Grow

We’re in a teaching series at Skyline Church that focuses on nine characteristics that God wants to see in growing Christians. These nine characteristics in Galatians are known as the fruits of the spirit. Notice the metaphor “fruit.” The original audience of the Apostle Paul’s writing was an agricultural community. That being said, there are several analogies that are very relevant today as we’re still familiar with basic concepts of agriculture. 

Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

Backyard Avocado Tree

One key element that I want to emphasize is that like the growth of a fruit tree, fruit does not appear quickly after being planted. I planted avocado trees three years ago and I STILL do not have any avocados. Avocado experts tell me it could be 5 years before that first avocado buds. Likewise, our faith development takes time. Growing in faith is about progress, not perfection. It’s going to take time for you to see evidence of these spiritual characteristics in your life. Slow grow is better than no grow. Don’t get down on yourself when you lack love, joy, peace, or any of the fruits of the spirit.

Today, I want to focus on the first three fruits of the spirit and highlight key elements that we’ve learned in the past three weeks. I’ll link each of the sermons below so you can rewatch, catch up, or share any of the messages in this series. 

First 3 Fruits Of The Spirit

1. Love IS A Choice:

Love is NOT a feeling. It may affect your feelings, but it is not a feeling. When we’re always looking for an emotional experience, we get let down. Love is not an uncontrollable phenomenon.  So often we are looking for things in life that we can control. Who, what, and when you love is something you have control over. After years of counseling couples in their marriages, I’ve heard both husband and wife say, “I fell in love” or “I fell out of love.” There’s a Greek word that explains this perfectly. It’s, bah-lon-Eh. Bologna! You absolutely have control of whether or not you love your spouse. And, by the way, God has given you the choice of whether or not you’re going to love Him. We have control over who we love and who we don’t love. We control when we love and when we don’t love. Colossians 3:14 tells us to “put on love.” 

In the original Greek language of the New Testament (seriously this time), this phrase is defined as a willful action. This means YOU have a decision to make in who, when, and how you love! For example, this morning you willfully decided to put on clothes (We are all thankful for that). You didn’t stand in front of your closet and wait to feel the clothes attach themselves to your body.  It’s the same idea when we are cultivating the fruit of the Spirit, love, in our life. You decide to put on love. 1 John 3:18 reminds us that love is an action. It’s more than a feeling. Love is how you act. It’s absolutely a choice! If it wasn’t a choice, God would have worded Scripture differently and perhaps said something like, wait for the ocean of emotion and the quiver in your liver and then love, but He didn’t because Love is action.

2. Give Joy: 

We live in a world today that is centered on “me, me, me.” But in our message about Joy, we talked about how we can bring joy to others. We know the things that bring us joy, but when joy is truly cultivated in a Christian’s life, the fruit is shown in serving others by bringing them joy.  In Scripture, soil is often used as a metaphor for our heart, seeds are a metaphor for the Word of God, and water is a metaphor of life. All are agricultural musts. 

However, if you want great fruit, and you want it faster and better than the normal process, you need to add fertilizer. Fertilizer is the necessary nutrients that may not be found in the ground where the fruit tree is planted. What is the fertilizer of our faith growth? Serving.  Serving will help you grow faster and display more of the fruits of the Spirit faster and fuller than just coming to church week in and week out.  Although those we serve are gaining from our actions, we too are being refueled with the nutrients of fertilizer that make a church community thrive. Serving others in turn grows us in our relationship with God. God has given you gifts and talents to grow His Kingdom.  Nothing will give you greater joy than to use your gift to bless someone else. And when you’re using your gifts, it hardly feels like serving because you’re loving what you’re doing. God will absolutely grow you in joy as you bring joy to others through your God-given gifts and abilities. 

3. Make Peace:

Think of a person you need to reconcile with—let’s start there. Keep that person in mind. Let’s attack the problem, not the person! Some of you are thinking that is the problem, the person is the problem. But just for a moment, separate the two. Too often we fail to make progress in our conflicts because we are attacking the person. We use language like, “You always…” or “You are such a ….” We are attacking the person. In order to make peace we need to change the focus of the conflict from the person to the problem. Making peace means talking through the issue with the person not talking at the person. 

It’s a common misconception that keeping the peace means avoiding the problem. As Christians, we are not called to remain silent when problems surround us. Silence isn’t golden, sometimes it’s just downright yellow.  As Christians, we have to plan to make peace! This begs the question—How do we become peacemakers? 

Mathew 5:23-24 says we need to go to the person who has a problem with us. That may sound backwards. But as Jesus followers, we should not wait until a conflict comes to us.  We need to go to the issue. And, we need to make sure we don’t come in flaming hot. Let’s not forget this fruit of the Spirit already. Philippians 2:4 tells us to focus on the needs of others, not just our own needs. The Bible tells us that if we’re going to have peace, we need to focus on the needs of others. This doesn’t mean you have to be a doormat. Yet, we need to spend some time focusing on the needs of others on a deeper level. 

Progress

Not only do all of these fruits of the Spirit require God’s grace, but they take time to produce. Choose just one of these fruits to focus on this week and let me know how it goes. Like the avocado trees in my backyard, sometimes you don’t see fruit right away,  but there is activity going on under the surface. These characteristics of the Christian faith are how we display Christ to the world and witness to His work in our lives. Growing fruit is a seven day a week process. That’s why our purpose statement is helping people find and follow Jesus seven days a week.Not just on Christmas and Easter. Not just on Sundays. SEVEN days a week. Remember, it’s about progress, not perfection. Faith development takes time, and slow grow is better than no grow. 

We want to walk alongside you as you lean into the fruit of the Spirit this week. Let us know how we can be praying for you. 

10 Minute Prayer Challenge

09 Wednesday Mar 2022

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Everywhere we look, it seems the world is hurting. It’s difficult not to get emotionally exhausted when we look at everything that is going on. Our feelings can get the best of us. Our emotions can get out of control. However, when our emotions are under control, they are a powerful weapon against discouragement, depression, and the devil’s schemes. 

God has emotions too. We have emotions because we are made in God’s image. He has feelings of joy, anger, grief, sadness, and hatred toward sin, etc.. If you want to see emotion in verse after verse and chapter after chapter in the Bible, then book your ticket for a journey through the Psalms. They are filled with every emotion known to man, that is why we’re going through the Psalms in our daily devotional, Today Matters. So how do we stay rooted in our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ instead of getting caught in every wave of emotion that comes from our current situation in the world.

We pray.

Pray

This may be uncomfortable, or at least faith stretching for some of you, but I guarantee this will change your relationship with Christ. Holding our attention for 10 minutes is not easy in our  distracted world. But, here’s the reality, we cannot change how we feel by our own willpower. 

Zachariah 4:6 tells us, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord Almighty-you will succeed because of my spirit.” 

Zachariah 4:6

I’m not suggesting you are going to wake up tomorrow and suddenly love paying $6 for a gallon of gas. While we fill our tanks with that $6 gas, ask God to fill us with the Holy Spirit. And we need to ask Him daily! How do we go about that? I introduced this on Sunday…

The Challenge

This is what I want you to do … find a quiet place. Grab a pen and paper and put your phone on silent. Listen, the devil has your phone number! He’ll hit you up with that incredible offer to buy your house or get you a loan to buy a house … the devil’s other name is Spam! But, seriously, remove the distractions and start a two minute timer five different times. This will help you grasp how quickly this prayer time goes by. For some of you, this is no big deal, you pray more than this everyday … great … add 10 minutes to your current prayer time. The average Christian prays less than two-minutes a day. As you commit to this, you will consistently notice that you need more than 2 minutes per section, but start there. You may even find yourself taking on a 20 or 40-minute prayer challenge sooner than later. 

ACTS

Rooted Sermon Series

Here are the categories I mentioned on Sunday and how to get started. Remember, our goal is to be ROOTED in our faith in Jesus Christ. This is fundamental to stronger roots in the faith.  I’ve put the A.C.T.S acronym to this to help you remember the categories.

2 minutes to clear your mind. Write down anything that comes to mind so you can address it when you’ve concluded your time of prayer. 

2 minutes to Acknowledge God. Think about His presence, power, love, and purpose for you while acknowledging He is in charge and you are not. 

2 minutes to Confess where you’ve fallen short, and even sins you may be unaware of. 

2 minutes to Thank God. This is where you literally count your blessings. You may do this by categories since you’ll be doing this daily. Monday may be marriage category. Thank God for your spouse, for the time you have together, etc… Tuesday may be Taco Tuesday, thank God for Tacos!… amen?! You get the point, you can put categories to help you focus on that day. 

2 minutes for Supplication. That’s an old school word that simply means to askGod for what you and/or others need and want. This is the time to come with your requests. Don’t hold back. By this time you’ve spent some quality time with God and you are asking out of a better place in your heart. Your ask is more meaningful and likely more in line with God’s will. The more time you spend with God, the more your will aligns with His. 

Daily Routine

Make this 10 minute prayer challenge part of your daily routine and you will sense your roots growing deeper and stronger in our Lord Jesus Christ every day. There’s nothing like feeling rooted in Christ. Some of the many benefits are illustrated in Galatians 5:22-23, known as the Fruits of the Spirit. When we’re filled with the Spirit, these things come out of us; Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. When we are filled with what the world offers  … anger, envy, bitterness, guilt, shame, anxiety, doubt, and immorality come out of us. 

Let us fill ourselves with more of Him by spending more time with Him. 10 minutes is a great start. 

Mental Help

02 Wednesday Feb 2022

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Cultivating a Healthy Mind

Rooted Sermon Series

Mental health is a very important topic that must be talked about in the church. I know it’s a touchy subject but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t talk about it. If the Bible talks about it, you can bet Skyline Church is going to talk about it! Right now, we’re in a teaching series called, Rooted. I believe that God is far more concerned in changing our minds than changing our circumstances. We want God to take us out of the difficult situation or remove that “thorn in our side” but God is more interested in changing your mind about the situation than in changing the situation. 

Some of these statistics may alarm you as to why this is subject is so important right now …

Statistics: Since COVID …

  • Between the ages of 12-17, the suicide rate has gone up 51%
  • Domestic violence has increased 30%
  • Addictions and substance abuse are on the rise and overdose deaths in California far surpass Covid deaths.

AND … research anticipates 75,000 “deaths of despair” in 2022. Why? Because people are losing hope. We said it since the beginning, you’ve got to have hope to cope. 

The consequences COVID has had on our society have specifically made an impression on our mental health. What are we going to do about it? 

Cultivate Our Minds

If we’re going to have a strong-rooted faith, then we must WORK at it. It’s important that we actually cultivate a healthy mind. Look what Romans 12:2 says,

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.Romans 12:2
Notice it says, “let” God. Have you recently said the prayer, “Whatever You want God”? OR “Not my will but Yours.” God is far more interested in changing your mind than changing your circumstances. 
You may be taking a look at our country and see it getting worse and worse. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it may actually get worse folks. But I also have Good News for you. Christ has already overcome the world so that YOU can have peace! Instead of losing faith, we need to cultivate our minds to be healthier and stronger. There’s more to life than what happens TO us. God wants to do something IN us. He wants to renew your mind!

The Bark Beetles Of Life

Bark Beetle Size

Those of you in California, and some other states, know about the Bark Beetle. This tiny insect (around half a centimeter) is so small that you can’t see where it’s entered a tree. Once inside, it slowly eats its way to the core of the tree, cutting off the nutrient flow the tree needs to not only thrive but survive. It can be weeks, months, or even years before evidence of the Bark Beetle is detected. 

It’s no different when it comes to our minds. We need to be diligent in protecting our minds from the Bark Beetles of life. At first, we make little compromises and the bark beetle makes its tiny self a home inside our head. It be months or years before it’s even noticed. Then, over time, we become desensitized to how our choices are affecting us because we can’t see how the “Bark Beetles of Life” are cutting off our main nutrient source—Christ. Listen, if you don’t do the work of cultivating your mind, the devil will be glad to do it for you. It takes work to keep the beetles of lust, greed, anger, worry and other sins out. 

Take A Stand

This isn’t easy for some of you to hear because you’re going to have to change some habits. You’re going to have to stop meditating on gossip, half-truths, or even lies you’ve believed since childhood. Understand, your feelings do not shape your life, your beliefs do. So, it doesn’t even matter if it’s something true, if you believe it, you’re living that belief. If someone said something about you as a child and you believed it, whether it was good or bad, it has affected your life. Some people were told they were useless or would never amount to anything and they believed that and it has affected their life. I want to encourage you to take a stand and say no more. Do not live your life based on the lies of the past. Live your life based on what God says about you! You are loved, cherished, important, and God has a specific purpose for your life.

Paul reminds us in Philippians 1:21, “… to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Let Christ be your purpose for walking this life. Being a Christian is not always easy. If you recently dedicated your life to Christ, you may be sensing life is getting a little harder right now. That’s because the devil wants you to throw in the towel. But I’m here to tell you to take heart and have hope because Christ has overcome the world! 

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 

You’ll Never Walk Alone

One thing that’s truly great about being a part of the church family is that we can walk this life together. There are a lot of people struggling with mental health right now and we want to help you. But we need to know. Fill out a Connection Card, call us, and come meet with our counseling team.  I don’t know how long this craziness of Covid and variants and fear tactics will continue, but it doesn’t have to affect our mental health. Again, I believe that God is far more concerned with changing our minds than changing our circumstances.  We can overcome with Christ’s help.

And if you haven’t said the prayer, “Whatever You want God,” I want to challenge you to say it today. It’s time to let go of control and trust Him. Additionally, take charge of what kind of information you’re letting into your mind. Put aside the manure of life and turn to that good organic compost of the Word of God.

NEXT WEEK

For those of you who live in Southern California, I want to invite you to wear your favorite jersey to either service on Super Bowl Sunday, February 13! We’re going to have some fun with that, and I need to know who I should be praying for! Amen? 

For those of you who attended Membership Dinner, we’re excited to have you join us for Step 2! I’ve created a Game Plan for Your Growth that has 7 classes to guide you in spiritual growth. While I’d really like you to get through all seven classes, I especially hope you complete the first four Core Steps. We had hundreds of people join us for Step 1, Membership Dinner, last month and we are looking forward to hosting another dinner on March 30th. So, if you haven’t been to one yet, just click the link and make sure you sign up for that! Everyone has a next step of faith. What’s yours? Let me know in the comments. 


See you on Sunday!
Love,

Pastor Jeremy

What To Focus On This Christmas

15 Wednesday Dec 2021

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MERRY CHRISTMAS! At Skyline Church it has been such a joy to experience Christmas with you this December at our Christmas Tree Lighting events, in worship, daily devotionals, and during services on Sunday. We’ve been talking about the Christmas story and how it applies to us today. Many of you may be familiar with this story but maybe you do not know how to apply it to your life. Every year, we revisit the historical story of Jesus’ birth so that it will become so deeply rooted in us that it transforms us. Because, it’s not just a story, it’s a story with a purpose. It has a life changing message for anyone who will apply it. So, this year we have been focused on the application of the Christmas story because we truly want you to Experience Christmas.

Here are three things the angels said to the shepherds for us to focus on this Christmas season:

1. Do Not Fear:

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.”

For every day of the year, there is a verse in the Bible that addresses this idea of fear. It’s almost like God knew how easily we would be tempted to hear. We talked about this a lot in our Faith Over Fear sermon series. So let me ask you, what are you worried about this Christmas season? Are you worried about bills For every day of the year, there is a verse in the Bible that addresses this idea of fear. It’s as if  God knew how easily we would be tempted to fear, hmmmm 🙂 We talked about this a lot in our Faith Over Fear sermon series. So let me ask you, what are you worried about this Christmas season? Are you worried about bills … the kids … your health … Omicron, Dexicron, Chevron … or any other variant that comes out next? The more you believe in what God is capable of, the less fear can come in!
Do. Not. Fear. 

2. Renew my faith:

“I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”

The good news keeps getting better and better because the bad news just gets worse and worse. Just take a look at the media. There is a large contrast from what you get from the rest of the world and what you get from Skyline Church. Good news is that you matter to God. He knows the good the bad and the ugly and he still loves you! 

Where are you in your relationship to the Lord? As we approach Christmas, we should be reflecting on the year and asking ourselves if we are closer to God this year than we were last year. Does the Christmas story sound better and better each year? Or does it seem less and less significant each year? When we’re growing in our relationship with the Lord, this story should cause greater and greater joy!

3. Receive Forgiveness

“Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born for you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”

God didn’t sent us a salesman. It says He sent us a Savior. He sent us a Savior because we needed one! Why?… We need a Savior because Heaven is a perfect place where only perfect people are allowed. As you know, at Skyline Church, no perfect people are allowed here. Do you see the dilemma? Some of us are grading ourselves on a curve––thinking, I’m not as bad as that guy. But no one except Jesus has lived a perfect life. He is the only One who can get you and me into heaven (John 14:6). The angel brought great news “… for all the people.” We’re a church for imperfect people, because all people need to know about the one person who can get them into heaven. Jesus.

Maybe you’ve seen the famous John 3:16 verse on a bumper sticker or sports attire, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” But verse 17 is just as important as 16. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” God says He came to give forgiveness. This presents a huge opportunity for you and for me to restore our relationship with Him. And maybe you missed our Relationship Rehab series, and Jesus isn’t the only relationship in your life that needs reconciliation.

I gave this challenge this Sunday and I want to remind you, to give someone forgiveness this Christmas. That can be your gift to God. Because He wants the relationships in your life to be reconciled. Especially with your family.

Beat Anxiety, Depression and Omicron

02 Thursday Dec 2021

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How do you beat anxiety, depression, coronavirus variants (omicron…really? come on!) and the negative news we get every day from the lamestream media?

The attitude of gratitude is a powerful pill against viruses of all kinds.

Give Thanks

Thanksgiving is more than a one-time holiday during the year. Biblically, we’re to give thanks consistently to the Lord. One verse that I repeatedly come back to is Psalm 107:1. “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His faithful love endures forever!” You cannot go very far in Scripture without being reminded of the importance of being appreciative. Being grateful is seeing things from a heavenly perspective. And as we approach the Christmas season, I want to encourage you to keep the heart of gratitude going strong into next year no matter how many variants or negative news viruses attack us next year.

During Thanksgiving, you likely gave thanks for what you have or what God has done for you throughout 2021. But today, I want to encourage you to give thanks for what God is doing right now that you may not be aware of. The ultimate form of faith is thanking God in advance for what you’re asking Him to do in the future. If you wait until after it happens, that’s not faith––that’s gratitude. While it is necessary and appropriate to thank God for what He has done, faith is thanking God in advance, trusting that He’s working right now as you wait for the answer to your prayer.

Expect God To Move

In Romans 4:20-21 it says, “Yet Abraham did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised.” Abraham thanked God before it happened!

Let me ask you, in the situation that you are in right now, what are you expecting God to do? We’re all in a situation of some kind. Some of us aren’t expecting God to do anything. The Bible says, “According to your faith let it be done for you” (Matthew 9:29). Maybe God gave you a dream and when you went after it, you experienced delays and difficulties. That’s to be expected. But now you’re at a dead-end and you’re discouraged. 

Keep The Faith

Your next step is to keep the faith … expect God to move because being grateful displays our trust in the Lord. He may have a different answer than the one you are expecting. Hebrews 11:39-40 tells us that, “…yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us… sometimes the answer we thought we needed does not come because God has something better in mind.

Remember what God can do because He can do ANYTHING (Ephesians 3:20). Rely on Scripture. Memorize it! Here is one I’ve spent a considerable amount of time meditating on, 
“… but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

With a grateful heart, make your requests known to God and you can have a peace like no other that He WILL move. It’s a peace that cannot be explained, only experienced once you’ve stepped into that faith.

I have some God-sized dreams when I think of the future of Skyline Church. What is your God-sized dream? Dream big! And when you hit that dead-end, keep the faith and expect God to move mountains.