A lie believed as truth has the power to control your life. “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” - Proverbs 23:7

Desperation is ATTRACTIVE to Jesus. Turn your desperation towards your Savior.

• What thoughts or images come to mind when you hear the word desperation?
• To you, what does it mean to be desperate?
• Why would desperation be attractive to Jesus? Share a few positive outcomes that can result from desperation.

“I needed to turn off the noise.” - Tammy Harner

• What negative “noise” is present/loudest in your life?
• How does the level of negative noise effect the relationships in your life?
• In what ways does it change the actions in your daily life?

Medicating is a natural response to the pressures and problems of life. Some people choose destructive habits and behavior patterns. However, not all methods of medication are as easy to identify. First Corinthians 10:23 says that “not everything is constructive or beneficial.”

• Are there habits and/or activities that are excessively present in your life that could be the result of self medicating? If you’re not sure, ask a close friend or family member. Give them permission to speak a brutally honest truth.
• Discuss the difference between medicating and compensating.
• What lies/hurts from your past have carried over into your present?

“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed -not only in my presence, but now much more in absence - continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, of it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” Phil. 2:12-13

• What are you doing to “work out your salvation with fear and trembling”?
• What areas of your life have you experienced victory?
• What areas of your life is God working and moving?

The answer to your problems is found in the TRUTH of who Jesus Christ becomes in your life.

What if Jesus really is WHO HE SAYS HE IS.

• How could those two truths impact how you view yourself? your family? your job?

The God of the universe is ready to meet you.

• What step do you need to take this week to change your focus from your situation to an attitude of desperation for Jesus?

Spend a few minutes praying for the individuals in your group.

A lie believed as truth has the power to control your life.

“As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” Proverbs 23:7

Lie: I’m Not Good Enough

Share a time when this lie played a role in your personal life. How did the lie effect your thoughts? At your job? With your family?

Which of these thought patterns do you most identify with?
Inferiority, Insecurity, Guilt, Worry

We have two options in our response to this lie:

1. I can Preform Better

Take a quick survey of your group; how many of us have ever tried to attain something (affection, praise, or attention) by preforming better (working harder, joining more activities, or committing time/attention/resources to tasks).

What results did you see after your effort to preform better? What was the cost of preforming better?

2. Receive - A new life that comes from a new system.

We live in a society that defines us by what we do or what we have. The type of car we drive, how far we throw a football, our kid’s GPAs, and the size of our house play factors in how society defines who we are.

As believers in Christ, what (or whom) defines our identity?

If God the Father, through his Holy Word, is the only one who defines us, what steps can we take to live in His definition of us and not the world’s? Why?

The only healthy option is to reject the system and receive Christ.
What does it look like to reject the system our society has set up to define us?

What thoughts or reactions did you have to Reemah’s story during Toby’s message? If you didn’t get a chance to see the testimony follow the link below to view the video on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVqRMxS8M4Q

The Truth that counteracts this week’s lie is a simple one: You Are Not Good Enough, None of Us Are

Nothing we can say or do will earn more love or acceptance from God. God’s love for us is extravagant in the face that we do not earn it. The amount He loves us is not based on how many times we pray or how often we mess up. His love is always available to those who seek Him. Once we begin to grasp this truth our personal lives can be radically changed.

What can you do this week to remind yourself of this truth? Is there anyone in your life that needs to hear this truth? What can you do to share this truth with others? Share a moment or season of your life when God’s love for you made an impact on you or your family?

Toby posed a question that God had asked him many years ago. God asked Toby, “Are You Done Yet?”
How does that question resonate with you?

What steps can this group do this week, to help each other live in God’s truth rather than the lies of the enemy?

Spend a few minutes praying together.

“Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:17-18

What are some of the lies that others have said about who you are that you have unintentionally lived out? 

How have your beliefs about yourself changed as you have the learned the truth about who God says you are?

The truth, “I am chosen” should impact how we see ourselves.  How does our world change when we believe this truth at our core? What images come to mind when you here the truth I Am Chosen?

Deny the lie..Matthew 16:24

After recognizing the lies that are said about us, we are able to stand firm against them.  We will need to deny them daily.  What are action steps you can take every day to deny those lies? What practices do you had in place within your daily life to hear God’s Truth?

Hear a new voice…Romans 8:16

Some of the old voices we have listened to in the past can continue to speak too loudly in our lives?  How can we proactively surround ourselves with new voices?
How are you connecting to God during the week?

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I’ll never forget how my friend described their meeting place. The small and dark detached garage looked more like a rundown shack not even big enough to hold one car inside.  As my friend stepped in, he described the lighting as a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the garage with two chairs underneath.  He mentioned the smell of grease and oil, and the dirt-covered floor that looked like a grease pit.  As they began their discussion, the single light in the garage began to feel more and more like a spot light illuminating a small dungeon with him seated just below it for interrogation. After several hours of discussion, prayer, tears, then even more discussion and tears, my friend completed the task of choosing to forgive those that had hurt him in the past. Many of those hurts had been turned into excuses for the years of drinking that he had been attempting to walk away from.  They included rejection from parents and failed relationships with wives, sister, brothers, and even a dishonorable discharge from the military.  When he was done, he and his sponsor stepped outside of the garage and burned the papers that contained all of the names and details requiring the choice to forgive.  Somehow with the help of his friend, through the process of that evening and all of the steps necessary to get there, this man truly had made the choice to forgive.

When it was time to leave, my friend made his way to his car and looked back down the driveway to see the small garage where he had just spent the evening forgiving himself and others.  It was then that he realized how the small garage had some beautiful flowers planted all the way around it with some other nice landscaping.  He also noticed that it was quaintly perched beneath a huge oak tree that swayed with the light breeze that blew across the yard.  The light inside seemed like it was not so dim after all.  In fact, my friend spoke of how inviting the garage looked now and how serene the setting looked as he prepared to drive away.
My friend left that place with a different view. The place that once appeared to be a smelly dungeon no longer appeared to be a dungeon at all.  Instead, that small room had transformed into a place that was warm, inviting and even safe.

In Romans 2:4 Paul asks…
          “…Don’t you realize that God’s kindness is supposed to lead you to change your heart and life?”
This past Sunday was a great reminder of the power in our choice to forgive.  All of us that live more than a few years here on earth will have the opportunity to forgive but not all will make that choice.  In fact, many people wrestle with problems that stem from the issues of days gone by that still haunt them in the quiet places of the night.  But Jesus offers a better way: He will not force us to forgive but he will give us the freedom to choose.
If you missed the services on January 22nd, or if you have been hesitant to act on the invitation, I want to strongly encourage you to take the time to watch the link below.

http://www.crosstimberschurch.org/online-messages/watch/breakthrough_part_3

Forgiveness is a key that unlocks the doors of freedom. The only person that suffers when forgiveness is not offered is the one holding the key to choose to forgive.
May God grant us the courage to act on His invitation, so that we can experience the freedom that only He can offer.

Many optimistic people start off every new year with the same set of resolutions that they had the year before.  A) Lose weight B) Spend more time with the kids/spouse C) Get more sleep, etc., etc., etc…

Going to the gym in January can be discouraging because it’s so hard to find a treadmill.  That frustration seems to be second only to trying to get a salad at the grocery store.  Experience says that unless you’re at the store within moments of it being stocked, you’ll find the section emptied from those trying to fulfill their resolutions.  Statistics even show that by the end of January, 40% of New Year’s resolutions are already blown and by February 15th, 75% of people have given up on their resolutions altogether.

Pastor Toby kicked off our Breakthrough series with a powerful message on January 8th by asking some questions about the New Year.  The first question is simple: What are you expecting in 2012?

I’ve been thinking about that question quite a bit this week and it reminds me that expectation is a powerful feeling.  Just think for a moment about the children you know as they go to sleep on Christmas Eve expecting to have presents under the tree when they wake up the following day.  Or consider the young groom staring at the double doors at the back of the Church on his wedding day.  Those both might even pale in comparison to when an expecting couple rushes to the hospital after the magical words “it’s time” have been spoken.

If you’ve had the privilege of experiencing some of those expectations, then you know the thrill that comes along with that moment when it finally arrives.  You may also know by experience what it is like to go into a situation with high expectations, only to walk away feeling like the rug was pulled out from under you. 

Our theme verse for the Breakthrough series is from Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV).
“20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.“

Hope is defined as – “to believe, desire, or trust”.  Jesus came to give us hope; not to a select group, but to all who will choose to trust him.  Trust Him with our lives today, not just someday, and not just in the tough times.  Hope, just like the promise of salvation, is freely given and is available to everyone.

The beautiful truth for those that follow Christ is that we aren’t putting our hope in something, rather, we’re putting our hope in someONE!  Trusting in the One that is able to do BEYOND what we can ask or imagine.  I pray that we can join together in the beginning of this New Year and new season with expectations that could only be met by God Himself for our lives, our loved ones, and the communities we’re involved in. That is what faith is all about, “…being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”