New Day Christian Church - Weston, WI

Psalms of Psummer: What joy

Great art is like a finely cut gem; as you look at it from different angles and in different light, the gem sparkles and shines in new and beautiful ways. The Psalms are great art. They are songs inspired by God, and they have been passed on to us to shine in our hearts and minds in new and beautiful ways. Pick them up and experience the Psalms of Psummer!

BIG IDEA:
Your response to Christ determines the ultimate punctuation of your life on earth: WHAT JOY ? or WHAT JOY ! .

 

Psalm 1

1  Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
    or stand around with sinners,
    or join in with mockers.

2  But they delight in the law of the LORD,
    meditating on it day and night.

3  They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
    bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
    and they prosper in all they do.

4  But not the wicked!
    They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind.

5  They will be condemned at the time of judgment.
    Sinners will have no place among the godly.

6  For the LORD watches over the path of the godly,
    but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.

 

Psalm 2:10-12 (NLT)

10  Now then, you kings, act wisely!
    Be warned, you rulers of the earth!

11  Serve the LORD with reverent fear,
    and rejoice with trembling.

12  Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry,
    and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities—
for his anger flares up in an instant.
    But what joy for all who take refuge in him!

Psalms of Psummer 2: Hallelujah

Hear stories of how God was at work in New Day’s key service initiative. We’ll take a closer look at Psalm 146, a great song of celebration.

Psalm 146:1-2 (NLT)

1  Praise the LORD! [or “Hallelujah!”]
     Let all that I am praise the LORD.

2  I will praise the LORD as long as I live.
            I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.

3  Don’t put your confidence in powerful people;
            there is no help for you there.

4  When they breathe their last, they return to the earth,
            and all their plans die with them.

5  But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper,
            whose hope is in the LORD their God.

6  He made heaven and earth,
            the sea, and everything in them.
                        He keeps every promise forever.

7  He gives justice to the oppressed
            and food to the hungry.
                        The LORD frees the prisoners.

8  The LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
            The LORD lifts up those who are weighed down.
                         The LORD loves the godly.

9  The LORD protects the foreigners among us.
            He cares for the orphans and widows,
                        but he frustrates the plans of the wicked.

10  The LORD will reign forever.
            He will be your God, O Jerusalem, throughout the generations.

                       Praise the LORD!

Psalms of Psummer: Live it Out (Psalm 15)

Music has power. Poetry captures and communicates heartfelt emotions. Psalms is the songbook of the Bible, and it has helped people connect with God and with each other for thousands of years. So, put a Psalm in your heart this Psummer!

Psalms of Psummer: Live It Out (Psalm 15)

 

Psalm 15:1-5 (NLT)

1 Who may worship in your sanctuary, LORD?

Who may enter your presence on your holy hill?

2  Those who lead blameless lives and do what is right,

speaking the truth from sincere hearts.

3  Those who refuse to gossip or harm their neighbors

or speak evil of their friends.

4  Those who despise flagrant sinners,

and honor the faithful followers of the LORD,

and keep their promises even when it hurts.

5  Those who lend money without charging interest,

and who cannot be bribed to lie about the innocent.

Such people will stand firm forever.

 

BIG IDEA: Jesus gets us IN; this is what it looks like to LIVE IT OUT.

Life Lessons from a Jedi Pastor

Life is full of irony. When we are young, we feel like we know everything, but really we know almost nothing. As we grow older, we learn so much more, but we realize more and more how limited we are. “If I had known then what I know now…” We are blessed to hear life lessons from an octogenarian (a fancy word for “eighty-something”) who spend nearly half his life chasing after happiness from the world, and the other half studying Scripture, following Christ, and teaching others to find fulfillment in doing the same.

Going Through the eMotions: Love

God is love (1 John 4:8,16). So love is more than just an emotion, but sometimes we make so much more of it that we lose our grip on how love feels. God gave us feelings for a reason, including love. This is the finale to our series on "Going Through the eMotions.”

Going Through the eMotions: Shame & Disgust

Shame is: “a painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behavior” (Google). While Christ’s pain on the cross relieves us of our own painful humiliation before a holy God, we will still feel ashamed at times. We will feel disgusted by our own actions. Like other emotions, God has designs for shame to actually help us.

Genesis 3:7 (NLT)  At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.

What Shame Does:

Worldly shame covers and resents.

Godly shame confesses and repents. (see 2 Corinthians 7:10-11)

Going Through the eMotions: Sadness

Going Through the eMotions - Dads, Grads, and Sads

Sadness is one of those emotions that we usually think of as negative. Is it? God has a purpose for sadness in our lives. As we look into His Word and pray for wisdom, we might even understand why some parents cry at graduation ceremonies.

Psalm 69:3 (NLT)  I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me.

Revelation 21:3-4 (NLT) 3  I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. 4  He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

Five Important Realities Learned in Rites of Initiation

1. Life is HARD.
2. You are not that IMPORTANT.
3. Your life is not about YOU.
4. You are not in CONTROL.
5. You are going to DIE.

Going Through the eMotions: Surprise

Life is full of surprises. God designed our bodies and minds to handle surprises, both good and bad. We’ll see what that looks like in Scripture and get a better idea how God uses surprise in our own lives.

Acts 2:7-8, 12-13 (NLT) 7  They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8  and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages!” 12  They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other. 13  But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!”

Going Through the eMotions - Joy

The pursuit of happiness is more than an American ideal; it is a human ideal. God has wired us all to seek out joy. Then He gave us paths to experience joy, even joy in the midst of suffering! That kind of joy is a pursuit worth living for.

Philippians 4:4 (NLT)  Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!  

Nehemiah 8:10 (NLT)  And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”

BREAKING IT DOWN:  “The joy of the LORD is your strength” = Joy with the Lord, THAT is your stronghold.

Psalm 5:11 (NLT)  But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread your protection over them, that all who love your name may be filled with joy.

Jeremiah 31:13 (NLT)  The young women will dance for joy, and the men—old and young—will join in the celebration. I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing.

Going through the eMotions: Fear

Fear is an incredibly useful feeling, designed by God to help us survive. It can also be debilitating, keeping us from taking risks and living the full life God has planned for us. A healthy, God-honoring understanding of fear will help us become people who change the world, rather than people who conform to the world.

1 John 4:18 (NLT)  Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.

Matthew 10:28 (NLT)  “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”