Acts 2:42 NLT They joined with the other believers and devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, sharing in the Lord's Supper and prayer.
God is excited about his wonderful plan for your life. But before you can experience that there should be a change in our priorities. In the Bible, Jesus chose ordinary men and changed them into world changers. How exciting it is to know that God’s plan is not just to change us but to change others through us - Changed to change others.
Priorities require commitment. The early believers devoted themselves to Prayer, Sharing, Fellowship, and Teaching. They made these their non-negotiable priorities, resulting in changing lives and the world.
God will use these four important meetings to strengthen us and to develop us.
DEVOTIONAL LIFE - Meeting with God.
Just as good friends talk to each other, so God your heavenly father wants you to talk to Him through prayer. And while you may not understand it right now, you’ll find that He talks to you through His Word - the bible.
You pray to God about anything and everything. He wants to hear from you. - Philippians 4:6
Pick a time of the day when you can just be with God in prayer and reading His Word. You will discover how He loves you so much and His plans and Purposes of your life.
LIFEGROUP - Meeting with your Spiritual Family.
God doesn’t want us to take this journey of life alone that is why He gives us family and friends to be there for us.
Lifegroup is your spiritual family where you can receive encouragement, acceptance, and love. Just like family, there is someone who can become your spiritual parent to give you care, and guidance, and would bring out the best in you.
CHURCH - Meeting with the Body of Christ.
Church is not a building as we think it is, but the Bible tells us that it’s a group of people that love God and a family you belong to. When you become a Christian; you have joined a “universal family” sometimes called “the body of Christ,” which means you are now related to Christians all over the world! You need to become part of a local church to help you continue to grow and for you to fulfill your purpose in life.
EQUIPPING - Meeting with your Mentors.
Finally, we need to be trained and equipped to become effective in what God wants us to do. God wants to use you to change many lives but He has to start that change in you. Because if you change everything changes. He wants to bring out the best in you by allowing you to go through the equipping process. In this process, you will experience Fire, Freedom, and Focus! you will encounter God in a way that you have never experienced before.
New Life Encounter is a 3-day retreat that will lead you to discover everything that God has for you.
There is so much in you that you need to discover, if you allow God through me to help you, it would be my greatest joy to disciple you.
WHAT IS PRAYER?Â
Prayer is simply communicating with God. That can mean thanking Him, praising Him, confessing something you’ve done wrong or expressing a need you have. It can mean talking to Him as you would to a friend.
And while there are so many ways to pray —I’ve found this prayer pattern easy and helpful to start up with. P.R.A.Y. The Bible says we are to pray to God the Father, through God the Son, by means of God the Holy Spirit.
P—Praise God for who he is and what he has done.Â
R—Repent for the hurt we’ve caused God and others.Â
A—Ask God to grant us what we need.Â
Y—Yield/Submit to His will completely knowing that His will for us is always the best.
Now that you know the basics about how to pray, all that remains is to begin. The aim is not to become an expert on prayer but simply to move deeper into a relationship with your Father in heaven.
What is the Bible?
The Bible Is the living Word of God—2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:21
The Bible contains 66 separate books compiled into one book. and each book has chapters and verses. (pls explain to them).
a)The 39 books of the Old Testament are the stories of God and his people before the coming of the Messiah—Jesus.
b)The 27 books of the New Testament pick up the story beginning with the birth of Jesus.
How to start reading the Bible?
Choose a Bible version that’s understandable and easy to read.
Here’s the flat-out truth: If we don’t understand it, we won’t read it.
Start in the Gospel of John. (the fourth book in the New Testament).
Read a little every day! 1-2 chapters a day or 5-10 minutes. Start small—is better than none. Sometimes less is more, especially when reading less means you’ll actually remember more.
Choose a time and place that’s convenient for you. (away from destruction)
Pray before you begin. — Ask God to help you understand His Word & to help you know Him and love Him.
Write it down.— As you read the Bible ask two questions:
1. What does this teach me about God?
2. What does this teach me about how I should live?
Memorize and Meditate the verse with you throughout the day and apply it. Remember that the Bible was never meant to merely inform us; the Bible was meant to transform us.