Pastor Michael Adams continues the series "Outrageous Contageous Joy" with Part 3 in this Sunday morning celebration.Outrageous Contageous Joy PT3
Pastor Michael Adams
Sunday, August 19, 2012
www.mylifegatechurch.com
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Sermon Notes:
Outrageous, Contagious Joy - Joy at Work
Intro: Pick the one that best describes your view of work
- Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. Confucius
- If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my ax. Abraham Lincoln
- It is the working man who is the happy man. It is the idle man who is the miserable man. Benjamin Franklin
- Work is a refuge of people who have nothing better to do. Oscar Wilde
- Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. Thomas Edison
- Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don't turn up at all. Sam Ewing
Gift of Work
Genesis 2:15
The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it.
- Work was a part of God’s original plan Genesis 1-3
- We think God created us to live a life of leisure until Adams and Eve messed it up
- Work was not a result of curse. After the curse Eve experienced pain in the work of child birth and Adam would have to endure the back breaking task of growing his own food.
- God gave it to us to use our creativity and to find fulfillment
It’s an opportunity to live in His image and to have fun
Opportunity to Worship
Colossians 3:23-24
23 Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 24 Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.
Ephesians 6:7-8 SOAP VERSE
7 Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 8 Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.
- For many ones profession and spiritual condition are two separate things. Jesus tells us that they are very much intertwined
- Ultimately we are not working for a human boss we are serving the Creator that has endowed us with gifts and passions. We are working for God!
- This way of thinking will change the course of your career, change how you feel about difficult people, changes your drive and motivation
Worshipers or Workaholics?
Ex. Deep Sea fishing with the family
- When you are afraid, look at the captain. When your sea sick fix your eyes on something that doesn’t move
- Find joy in the storm
- Work and life can feel out of control, we overcommit, take on pressure, stress out and it causes us to compromise our priorities
- Spouses and children lie in the wake
Matthew 8:23-27
Jesus Calms the Storm
23 Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. 27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”
Matthew 16:26
New Living Translation (NLT)
26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?
Common Work Traps
- Work becomes only about goals and performance
- Task take priority over people
- Insecurity leads people to think they can find happiness in work because there is a momentary satisfaction and happiness in a job well done- key word is “momentary”
- Identify with a position or accomplishments- “What do you do for a living”
- Work becomes about us instead of people
- Authority issues with those God put over us
Refocusing on WRM
- Our value isn’t based on who we are, it’s based on whose we are.
- We are not loved by God because we are so valuable, we are valuable because God loves us
Psalm 1:1-3
Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.
Joy in the moment
Colossians 4:2
The Message (MSG)
2Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude.
- Choose to open your eyes to see the goodness of God today
- We put our energy into what we don’t have
- Live in the moment not for the moment
- Problem is we get greedy and want huge blocks of time where everything is perfect. That is stinking thinking and will rob your joy for the moment and life
- Ephesians 5:16 Make the most of every opportunity
- When your there, be there!
Joy is rooted in gratitude. You can’t have a joyful heart without a grateful heart and you can’t be a grateful person and not experience joy.
Joy in the meantime
Romans 8:28
New International Version (NIV)
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
- Enjoy the journey
- Celebrate God and celebrate people
Close:
Jesus- The perfect example!
- He had 36 months to get his message of love to the world and this was before Internet, iPhones and Blackberry.
- If anyone could justify overworking, it was him
- Jesus remained focused on his Father and his purpose, he had the perfect balance between work life and personal life.
Hebrews 12:1-2
And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.
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