New Day Community Church
July 5
  • peace in christ
  • Come Now Is The Time To Worship
  • Blessed Be Your Name

  • Happy Father’s Day

    A great thank you to all of the Father’s out there. I have a wonderful father who has blessed me beyond measure. I could spend an entire Sunday thanking God and thanking him. It would be well worth it.
    But as a father of four myself though, well I often think of myself as a father more in terms of Cat and the Cradle Song by Harry Chapin which came out the year I was born
    and spoke of a father who was too busy for his child until the child came of age and then the child was too busy for his father.
    My fathering also reminds me of a real life thing, from way back at the start of EBay. It was my very first purchase on that crazy new site. Charlotte, my oldest daughter, only child at the time, was playing out in the backyard more and i wanted to get her a Fisher-Price Table and a Fisher-Price Slide. The kind you have in preschools, not too big but fun enough when a person is 2. But man are they expensive especially for Lori and I at that time. So I went on that new website Ebay because I heard I could get them for way cheaper than Toys R Us. After a little bit of searching I found it. Perfect condition! And they were so much cheaper, I could get both for about 20 bucks. IN the store it would have cost me more than a 100 I think at the time. So i bid a few dollars more than anyone else and easily won! I had to wait, I think a week or two for the items to arrive.
    Finally the day came and I was so excited to give them to Charlotte. When the package arrived I knew immediately there was a problem. It was only one package and it easily fit between my elbow and wrist. The box had to have been no more than 2 pounds. I opened it up to find a slide and table that could easily fit in the palm of both of my hands. Perfect for any doll house or fisher-price little people playset. My best efforts just weren’t good enough.
    As father, as a man, as a person during all that is happening in our world, even though I might be trying, I am very aware

    I am not good enough.

    When I say that I realize that many may have a desire to tell me something positive right now. oh no, you’re good, don’t be so hard on yourself.
    But I think about a German friend I had at seminary, the place where I studied to be a pastor. I mention he was German because he was very much a man of his culture. He was a wonderful Christian follower but he was also brutally honest. Once I messed up on my final in preaching class, I went to many of my friends and said, I really messed up. I could have done better. And they were like oh it was good and no, no you did well. and I went up to him after and said “I really messed up. I could have done better.” He answered, “I know. Your right.”
    I miss him often, especially what he would say about my driving.
    I hope your able to see when you fail, and I hope that your life is not surrounded only by people who try to tell you to deny it by saying you are good, because the truth is, I’m not good enough.
    And when people tell me I am good, and I know I am not, I tend to believe what I know and while I appreciate people saying nice things

    I can’t move myself to think I am good when I know it isn’t true.

    Do you have these feelings too? If you do, you aren’t alone. Perhaps you’re a dad today realizing that you are not the kind of father you desire to be.
    Maybe your a child who is so aware of how much you screw up.
    Maybe your the person trying to cheer others up so you don’t have to deal with how much you are hurting and have no answer.
    Perhaps you are the person with a history that comes up any time you start to do something good: ways you’ve failed others, failed yourself, failed the government, failed friends.
    What happens when people tell you that those things aren’t true?
    it only helps for a second, and then reality. And now you know your freinds will lie to you.
    Jesus is not the kind of guy to lie to you, flatter you or tell you just to change your perspective.
    When Jesus met women caught in adultery, he didn’t hide it but brought it up. When Jesus met religious teachers trying to use flattery and their education Jesus brought to the light the failures of their love. When Jesus dealt with traitors like Zaccheus, a tax collector he allowed Zaccheaus to admit in front of everyone that he was wrong in how He lived.
    When Isaiah saw God,
    He was compelled to admit the truth, He isn’t good enough.
    Isaiah 6:5 CSB
    5 Then I said: Woe is me for I am ruined because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Armies.
    To admit what is really happening is a mindset of repentance.
    A mindset that I don’t measure up and something needs to change, needs to be totally different. This is a mindset of repentance. Those in recovery call it, the lowest point.
    It is at the point that walking with God becomes possible.
    Jesus said that the kingdom of God was like a treasure of pearls found in a field.
    Matthew 13:44–45 CSB
    44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls.
    You might here some really admit, I have nothing left to lose, I’ve lost. I am willing to do this.
    To be successful in recovery you have to be willing to give everything up for sobriety. This is not just a drug/drink/habit concept but a place of repentance. To enter the Kingdom of God is to realize your not enough and wiling to get rid of everything else for the sake of the Kingdom of God.
    It is in this place that everything can change.
    No potions, no specific way you have to address God, no tricks. Just the willingness to know all needs to change. All of what we live for, All of our definition of success, all of what is God, all of whom we will listen to, Understand the metaphor Jesus tells., understand repentance is selling it all to buy the field, own nothing, nothing left, get rid of it all for the sake of the kingdom of God.
    Anytime I meet someone in recovery who tells me what they are not willing to do to grow in sobriety I know that there sobriety will often fail.
    Once I stop doing this, I’ll come to Christ. Once I have a loving spouse, I will be able to be right with God.
    Anytime I see someone hedging when it comes to following Christ - work, lifestyle, romance, whatever that comes before Christ there is no repentance.
    Because we can’t become good. We aren’t good enough.
    We can become followers of the one who is Good.
    And He desires for you to follow Him. Jesus says,
    Revelation 3:20 CSB
    20 See! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
    Will you open the door.
    He will make us new. We are becoming new.
    Jesus came as the Messiah, the one who was good enough. Because Jesus, our Messiah, lived perfectly, he could be the sacrifice that took away the sin we have done. Jesus is the Messiah for you and for me, not because we are good enough, But because He is good.
    2 Corinthians 5:16–17 The Message
    16 Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. 17 Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!
    2 Corinthians 5:19 The Message
    19 God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing.
    I tell you the Messiah stands at the door and knocks. Are you in a place where you will give it all up to follow Him. Are you in a state of repentance. Will you welcome in, the one who is not only good enough, But Great. Who loves you, created you, Fathers you?
    PRAYER
    If you prayed that prayer and you meant it, for the first time you meant it, than you have repented and asked Jesus into your life. The Holy Spirit comes into you know, and dwells with in you.
    The first people who did this after Jesus returned to the father asked what the next step should be
    Acts 2:38 CSB
    38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
    You received the forgiveness of Christ, now make the outward sign to all that you made the commitment. If you prayed that prayer today I encourage now to ask for baptism.

    Ask for baptism - text “Baptism” to 209-470-2463

    some of us may have forgotten what it is like to be in a place of repentance. We follow Jesus but we have forgotten to actually follow Jesus. We have let the cares of this world become our cares. We have let our efforts, our pride, our selfishness, take our eyes of Jesus.
    We can return and know God never left us. He has always called us back to himself.
    1 John 2:1–2 CSB
    1 My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the righteous one. 2 He himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world.
    If you are in this place of needing to be reminded of repentance, than we call it re-dedication. To once again follow as Jesus being the most important thing in you life.
    One of the earliest Christian leaders said it this way.
    Philippians 3:7–10 CSB
    7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death,
    If you are willing to do that with me today, pray with me
    Let someone know.

    Text “rededication” to 209-470-2463

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      • 1 Samuel 15:29GNB

      • Psalm 147:4GNB

      • Titus 1:2GNB

      • 1 Peter 1:16GNB

      • Exodus 20:1–3GNB

      • Mark 12:28GNB

      • John 3:16–18GNB

      • 1 Thessalonians 5:17GNB

      • 2 Timothy 3:16–17GNB

      • 1 John 3:16GNB

      • 1 Thessalonians 5:22GNB

      • 1 Timothy 6:18–19GNB

      • Matthew 5:16GNB

  • 10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord)

      • 1 John 3.16NRSV

New Day Community Church
newday@newdaystockton.com
2097306322
http://www.newdaystockton.com
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