In Focus Church Blog
Battlefield Trailer
Battlefield begins this Sunday, February 7 at 10am. Invite a friend!
Haiti Relief
We want to thank all of you who gave extra this past Sunday so that we could help out with the relief efforts going on in the nation of Haiti. The devastation is mind-boggling but the response from the church at large has been phenomenal.
In Focus was able to send a check to the Haiti relief fund that is set up through our Every Nation Church in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina, King’s Park International. You can follow the link at the end of this blog to read more about what we are supporting and how this church is helping in the relief effort.
This is also a stark reminder of the urgency before us to reach people with the love of Christ in our own community, and wherever God gives us influence, every single day. Tomorrow is not promised and our future is only secure when it is in the hands of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Thank you Lord for your mercy and love.
Fast Day 4
It has been so encouraging to hear from different people during the week who are fasting at different times, and in different ways. Throughout this seven day period we are sure we have covered and will cover each day with some fasting and prayer from you, the people of In Focus.
Stay strong, and continue to seek God for In Focus and your own life in 2010. You will be amazed at all that God will show you when you just take the time to focus, delight, seek, and spend time with Him.
Scripture: Romans 1:17
Prayer Point: We would be people who walk in righteousness and attract others to Christ.
Fast Day 3
Feeling a bit lethargic? Cranky? It can happen when we are not eating and yet we must prepare ourselves for those physical realities and allow them to lead us to God. We all say that we desperately need God, but it is the times where our need is “before us” that we pursue Him the most.
We are now in Day 3 of our corporate fasting and prayer. Some of you may be 48 hours into no food. Others of you may be removing specific distractions from your daily routines in order to focus on God more clearly. No matter what, we hope you are all praying for In Focus as well as seeking God for your own life in relation to the Body of Christ.
We want a breakthrough as a church in 2010, and fasting brings a breakthrough many times. What do we want a breakthrough for? We want more people to be saved, we want more people to be baptized, we want more people to be added to the church, we want more people to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to live righteously and we want more disciples who are walking in obedience to God’s Word.
A quote from Joey Bonifacio’s book “The Mystery of the Empty Stomach: ” We fast not to twist God’s arm so He will pay attention to us. We already have His undivided attention. We don’t fast in order to make ourselves more worthy of His acceptance. We already have His unconditional love. We fast not so He will hear us, but for us to hear Him. Not for Him to focus on us, but for us to focus on Him. To train our soul and flesh to be still and know that above all, He is God and the Lover of our souls.”
We hope that encourages you today.
Scripture: Psalm 86:11
Prayer Point: Numerical and Spiritual growth for In Focus in 2010.
Fast Day 2
How is it going for you? Have you been fasting and praying? Are there things other than food that you fee like God is telling you to give up for a day or two, or a week, or even forever? We hope that you are experiencing the grace and presence of God during this special time of concentrated prayer and fasting.
As stated in yesterday’s blog, fasting is not so much about deprivation as it is about delight. It is about delighting in God. Think about what it means to delight in something. In Joey Bonifacios’ book, “The Mystery of the Empty Stomach” he expounds on what delighting in the Lord looks like and how it relates to fasting.
When we delight in something we are excited. So excited that we forget about everything else. It is like a child getting a new present and being so excited about it that the thought of doing anything else is gone, even eating. It is also about fascination. When we are fascinated with something (or God in this case) we are captivated and enthralled so much so that you can’t eat, sleep, or even think straight, all you want to do is be with God.
Finally delighting in God is likened to a love-sick craving. We crave God so much that we are willing to miss a meal. We crave God so much that we can’t eat or sleep, because we are in love and we want to be with Him.
We want you all to delight in God this way. Fasting is about delight in God, not deprivation of food. Keep it up and keep seeking Him this week.
Scripture: Psalm 37:4
Prayer Point: That the people of In Focus Church would delight in God more than ever before.
Day One
Yesterday was a great morning at In Focus Church. There was a real buzz after the service as so many people sought out a small group to participate in this semester. It was great to see everyone responding to the message on “connecting with God and people correctly,” in a very tangible and practical manner. Even if you were not here you can still get in a small group this semester and connect with others in a very authentic and natural way.
We also started our corporate fast today and we want to encourage all of you to find a day or two or more to fast and seek God for your life and In Focus Church in 2010. Fasting is not about what we can get out of it, but is more about desiring God more than anything else, including food. As you seek God in prayer, and as you find time to fast we are asking you to pray for your church. Yes we can pray for the entire body of Christ, but specifically we are seeking God’s mind concerning In Focus, asking for His help in accomplishing our mission and values as individuals and as a corporate body.
Follow this blog all week as we post encouraging words, scriptures and even prayer points the entire week to help you in your time of focused prayer and fasting. If you do fast food, then do so wisely and if need be with a Doctor’s approval. You can fast other things that vie for your attention from God as well, like media, leisure activities, books, etc… but food is the main area of fasting depicted in the Bible. However, with God’s help we know you will know what to do. Bottom line is we will be doing it together!
We want fasting to go from something that is a duty to delight. from deprivation to desire, from desperation to devotion, and to enjoy God’s presence in your life during that time.
Scripture: Psalm 63:1-5
Prayer Point: Pray for the upcoming “Purity Weekend” for our High School Students.
YouVersion
I want to thank everyone for such an incredible response to YouVersion and YouVersion Live. Our group is growing and I am enjoying reading your posts, tags and contributions as we read through the Bible together in 2010.
However, you may have noticed some problems last week and yesterday with YouVersion and YouVersion Live. This is due to the massive growth they are experiencing as they have added over 1/2 million new mobile users in the past 30 days. You can read the full article here.
These issues should be resolved soon and we will keep you updated. Once again, thank you for committing to read through the Bible in 2010. Let’s continue to grow our online group and share with each other!
God Bless,
Stephen Lechner
Creative Arts Director