“Peace Amongst Chaos”

Peace Amongst Chaos. Okay, the real question isn’t “How do I get out of chaos?” but rather, “What can I learn because of this chaos!!” Jay and Barb Shelbrack’s lives put spiritual exclamation marks on this understanding of why God would have us refined by fire through the difficult trials that make up our lives. God wants to do miracles–He just needs to get our attention, so He can get us on board!

During the opening message, Jay preached about the kind of mental and emotional suffering that it took for he and Barb to allow God to rescue them and restore their faith in His miracles. Anyone who sets their minds on what the Spirit desires will find peace amongst; AND they will also know the battle that it took to get there and stay there in that mind-set! (Romans 8:5-8)

Download audio Lessons here:
Opening lesson.
Jay’s Message to our Married Men.
Barbara’s message to the Married Women.
Jay and Barb’s message on Parenting on Discipling.

Download the invitation here, Enrichment Invitation.

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Preached by Chris Adams, May 11, 2008

God will use families to build His Great Church!

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Although the early church was “earnestly praying” for Peter, there was no guarantee that God would spare them the sorrow of losing another dear friend, especially after the memories of seeing Stephen and James martyred had not even faded!

Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!” Acts 12:13-14

I’ve always seen Rhoda as blending into this group of earnestly-praying-but-trembling Christians. However, recently I realized that Rhoda was quite distinct from this houseful of disciples; she certainly seemed to be the FIRST if not the ONLY one among them who believed that God really had rescued Peter and delivered him safely back to his brothers and sisters!

Surely, we must have those with Rhoda’s heart of faith right here in our church—possibly even young women barely in their teens who we ourselves might not view as spiritual giants with chronicled deeds of faith, but who are just the kind of souls God has always loved to listen to and honor! As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 1:27, “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.”

What an inspiring picture of the family of God going through great trials but staying together, staying focused on God and staying on the mission to spread this message of forgiveness to the whole world!


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Lessons taught by Adams & Smellie’s
(Unfortunately, Kerri-Sue’s piece was not recorded!)

Do we have Jesus’ vision for our marriages?!

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I like to think of my wife as God’s perfectly-created-for-me PARTNER IN THE GOSPEL! As we strive to give to others what God has given to us, this pulls us together in a unity that only the Spirit of God can create AND maintain! Think of the marriage relationship when you read this Scripture:

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:1-4

Paul challenges the Philippians and us to be like-minded having the same love and same purpose, and although there are many challenges to unity whenever you bring two or more sinful human beings together–marital and familial unity shows the world the power and mystery of God in a way that few other things can rival! (Ephesians 5:21-33)

Ultimately, we need to ask ourselves, “Do I have Jesus’ Vision for My Marriage?” In Luke 9:1-6 Jesus teaches disciples how to change the world . . . one house-hold at a time. When you have a clear vision (like having an explicit purpose that everyone involved understands), it makes all your other decisions, plans and goals crystal clear.

I hope some of these thoughts will lead to us changing our minds and therefore changing many lives in our communities!

Sincerely By God’s Grace and Truth,

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