Nothing Can Hold You Back

Nothing Can Hold You Back

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree…

Psalm 92:12, NKJ.

TODAY’S WORD

Have you ever seen a palm tree in the midst of a great storm? That tree may be bent so far over that it’s almost touching the ground, but when the wind finally stops, that palm tree bounces right back up. What’s interesting is that while that palm tree is hunched over under the pressure of the storm, it is actually growing stronger?

The reason God said we’d flourish like a palm tree is because He knew there would be difficult times. He knew things would come against us to try to steal our joy and victory. God said, “You’re going to be like a palm tree because when the storms of life blow, you are going to come right back up stronger than before.” Nothing can hold you back! No weapon formed against you will prosper.

As you reflect on the events over the last year, remember, the storms you have encountered have only made you stronger. You are wiser, you are more alive, and you are headed for victory. You’re brightest days are right out in front of you! Always remember that with God on your side, nothing can hold you back!

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father in heaven, thank You for making me strong in You. I trust that You are working in my life, even in the midst of the storms. I know You will bring me out stronger, wiser and better off than ever before in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

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Assess the Level of Bible Knowledge 6 hours ago  Rick Warren “So we continue to preach Christ to each person, using all wisdom to warn and to teach everyone, in order to bring each one into God's presence as a mature person in Christ.” (Colossians 1:28 NCV) I believe there are five measurements of spiritual growth: knowledge, perspective, conviction, skills, and character. The first measurement is knowledge of God's Word. To begin building a spiritual growth curriculum, you need to ask two questions: What do people already know? And, what do they need to know? A church that has grown primarily by biological growth (conversion of members’ children) or transfer growth may have many members that already have a working knowledge of the Bible. But in a church designed to reach the unchurched, it’s a different ballgame. You cannot assume your new members know anything about the Bible. You must start from ground zero. We recently baptized 63 new believers, including a former Buddhist, a former Mormon, a man with a Jewish background, and a former Catholic nun! When you add in ex-New Agers and plain old pagans, you have quite a mixture to deal with. Biblical illiteracy is almost universal among unbelievers. They do not even recognize the most well-known stories or personalities of the Bible. Tom Holladay, who for years led our Maturity team, told me of his conversation with a brand-new believer who was struggling with trials in his life. Tom took him to James 1 and explained the purpose of trials. The man seemed satisfied. But as he started to leave Tom’s office, he said "I thought maybe my trials were a result of some sins from a previous life." Tom realized the man needed more than an explanation of trials! He needed to understand the biblical view of life. At the knowledge level, your church needs to regularly offer continuous new believer Bible studies and surveys of the Old Testament and New Testament. While every Bible book is important, at Saddleback we want our members to study five "core” books before they branch out into other studies. These books are Genesis, John, Romans, Ephesians, and James. Talk About It How does the development of Bible knowledge in your church compare to the practices of learning a language or studying a college course? How can you help new members and new believers in your church grow their biblical knowledge?