Sunday, May 3rd Recap...

Hey folks, hope you all had a great Sunday and are off to a week that brings honor and glory to God as well as joy to you.

I wanted to give you a quick recap of what we covered yesterday in our time together. Our biblical text was over Colossians 1:3-8. We discussed three specific things, possessed by the Colossians, that the apostle Paul was thankful to God for:

1. FAITH IN JESUS (1:4a) Our faith is not merely a blind faith, it is a faith in a real person in Jesus Christ. Nor is it just a set of rules that we go by, our faith is based on actual events.
2. LOVE OF JESUS (1:4b) We referenced 1 John 3:14 which says “ we know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers” and discussed 4 things that can help us as we love each other through our differences:

• Avoid Gossip. (2 Cor. 12:20)
• Speak criticism directly to each other if you feel you need to speak to others about it. (Rom 12:18)
• Look for and assume the best motive in other's viewpoint, especially when we disagree. (Rom 14:6)
• Be more amazed that you are forgiven than you are that you are right. And in that way shape your relationships by the gospel. (Eph 4:32-5:2 & Luke 7:47)

3. A HEAVENLY HOPE LOOKING FORWARD TO JESUS (Col 1:5) This hope is the knowledge of the glorious reward that awaits us. We discussed just a few ways that can be heavenly minded in our time here on earth:

• Think heavenly thoughts - about how great it will be when we are with our Savior whose love is so great that he died for our sins.
• Pray heavenly prayers - address God with the knowledge and believing that will actually be in his presence one day. That we can't wait until we are in his presence but until then we'll be doing his work.
• Read heavenly words - read your Bible, not merely as self help book, but as God's revelation of himself to us. Spend time getting to know the God you will spend eternity with. (see John 17:3)

Hope to see you all this Sunday for Colossians 1:9-14, read ahead if you'd like!