Rooted in Christ: Living a Blessed Life

1) "I would probably have to say it's the incredibly positive life change that I get to be a part of and get to see on a weekly basis here at this church. Whether it's one of our students in our school accepting Christ or someone in our church who's recommitting their lives to Christ and praying with our Hope Team here on Sunday morning, or maybe a marriage that has been restored through counseling and coaching from one of our pastors, a kid in Africa who is encouraged to dream big dreams because we serve a big God, or maybe it's someone experiencing miraculous healing." [27:22] (45 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


2) "You know, Jesus said all you have to do to be great is to serve people and to actually bless others. And I got to meet a great person yesterday. I met a mother named Jackie who has nine foster children. Come on. And she said to me, Pastor Mike, I'm going to come to church tomorrow. And in my head I thought, okay, I get told that a lot. I do. And I don't hold it against people, but I just know. The devil fights us when we get up in the morning, try to keep us out of church. But she is here today at the 930 service." [30:12] (34 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


3) "Psalm 1 highlights the attributes of a person who is truly blessed. Somebody say blessed. Blessed. The blessed one. One who is happy, fulfilled, filled with joy. Verse 3 is the power verse here and the one that my mind came to. Let's read that one again. It says, That person. Everybody say that person. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever they do prospers." [33:06] (38 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


4) "That person whose soul is so well nourished, come on, planted by a stream of water, has a great water source, that he or she is fruitful, a producer of goodness for others. Have you ever been around somebody and caught some of their overflow? You know, they just are so filled up and completely nourished themselves by the Spirit of God that they have an overflow that flows out and blesses other people. That's what God, the type of person God wants us to be, that person." [36:02] (33 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


5) "I'm here to tell you this morning that sometimes as believers, we go through hard times. We go through trials. Jesus didn't promise us a walk in the park through this life. He actually told us that we would experience difficult times, but that person who is like this tree that is planted by the rivers of water, they're able to go through any season and still prosper. You look at them and you're like, I don't understand it. I don't see, I don't understand how they're going through this. And they still have a smile on their face. They're still serving and helping other people." [37:05] (37 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


6) "Facts. If we want to be our most fruitful, we must value and fill our minds and hearts with God's word. You know, I'm glad we're here this morning, on Sunday morning. You can give yourselves a star, right? If you were in my kindergarten class years ago, I would give you a star on the board. But once a week makes one week. That's a play on words, right? We don't need God's word just on Sunday. We need God's word more than that. Some need it more than others. We need God's word daily." [45:04] (39 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


7) "God's Word is like a mirror. It's a mirror that allows us the opportunity for change. James 1, 22 through 24, let's read it. It says, Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and after looking at himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks at. Come on, so it's not just hearing God's Word. Hearing God's Word is great because it builds faith. But when we actually begin to apply God's Word, that's when we're really to experience the change that we need to experience." [48:22] (42 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


8) "God's Word is like soap. Come on. God's Word, did anybody not put this on? Come on, don't raise your hand this morning. God's Word is like soap that keeps our soul clean. How's that for soul care? Come on. Like the application of soap cleanses our body, so does the Word cleanse our soul. If we take soap away from us, look, we can put the best clothes on, we can have the best intellect, but if you take soap away from us, every one of us is going to start to stink. God's Word is the same way." [49:03] (42 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


9) "God's Word is like a light. Have you ever walked to the bathroom at night and tried not to turn the light on and stub your toe? Oh, thank you, Jesus. I must have needed that. You're so sovereign, God. God's Word tells us it's like a lamp to our feet, a light to our path. God's Word gives us direction in life. Listen, here's the application. You don't get anything else. You don't have to walk through life stubbing your toe. Somebody say amen. How many times you gonna stub your toe? God's Word is like a light." [52:34] (48 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


10) "We need to be planted in Christ, right? We need to be planted in Christ first and foremost. Colossians 2, six through seven says, so then just as you received Christ, hopefully you have received Christ. But even after it received Christ, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught and overflowing with thankfulness. You know, that scripture is one of the hallmark scriptures of our foundation scores. We have just under a hundred people who are doing just that. They're rooting themselves in Christ, aligning their lives with God's word." [58:43] (45 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)