Third Leadership Training: Discernment Team Workshop on July 19, 2014, 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm in Elk Grove, CA
Task Two: Discerning the vision
Scriptures: Luke 15:11-32 / Eph. 3:14-19
We gathered around 7:30 pm at our backyard in Elk Grove to start with BBQ birthday party for Sacha (one of our young leaders). After the dinner, we gathered inside again to blow Sacha’s 21st birthday cake and to be ready for the leadership workshop.
Step One: Developing A Heart For Those God Loves
The questions are:
– What does it mean to you to “love as God loves”?
– How can you increase your capacity to love as God does?
One of us said that putting others first before us is to love as God loves. Like Jesus who crucified for our sins, we have to follow His footstep to sacrifice for others. It will take a long journey and lots of practices for us to naturally sacrifice or do unconditional love for others. As we start sharing our love that we received from God for others unconditionally, not only people will start realizing God through our words and actions, but also we will increase our capacity to love as God does. It takes one step at a time to increase His love in our hearts.
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30, ESV)
We must decrease ourselves while increasing Christ in our daily life to be able to win those who are hard to reach out.
Many times, we are acting like the older brother although we were called to be His children as we wandered around like younger brother. We need to embrace those who are not believing yet with unconditional love to win their souls because God loved us first (1 John 4:19).
God wants all of people in the world to be saved through our acts of love because all of them are created in His image and prodigal sons and daughters of His kingdom. Let us continue praying for those who around us who are not-yet-Christians. Let us also pray for those who are suffering with persecution and famine all over the world. Let God’s love cover all of men in the world so that there will be peace and love abundantly flourishing before the Coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
How can we demonstrate love of Jesus to others? How can we increase our capacity to love as God does?
1. Do good to others.
2. Bless others.
3. Pray for others.
4. Turn the other cheek.
5. Give without expecting anything in return.
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. – Eph. 3:14-19, ESV
