Firm Foundation with Bryan Hudson

Living on Purpose, Intentional Living

We are living in the age of Facebook, Twitter, in what we call “virtual reality,” People create alter egos of their true selves, and build relationships based on a made-up online profile. It seems like people are living like go to the cinema to watch a 3D movie. People put on 3D glasses and experience a depiction of reality, a virtual reality, that ends when the movie ends and the glasses come off. Sometimes people have difficulty separating the virtual from the real.
I heard a report once where someone in church requested prayer for one of the characters in a television soap opera. This sounds silly, but sometimes people confuse virtual with the real.
Today, more than ever, those of us who follow Jesus have the opportunity to show our world something intentional, something authentic, something real
Those of us who follow Jesus have the opportunity to show people a lifestyle that can be lived out in the real world, and that can be lived victoriously.
In the virtual world of Facebook you have 600 friends. In the real world, you may only have 10 real friends, and you can only count on three of them!
The word intentional is defined: Calculated, intended, planned, meant, studie, willful, purposeful, premeditated, preplanned, and designed.

Living on Purpose, Wisdom for Temporary Times

PSA 90:12 So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Living on Purpose, Destined & Directed

For everything, absolutely everything... got started in him and finds its purpose in him. Colossians 1:16 (Message Bible)

Freedom God's Way

Rom. 8:1, There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

Mercy: Your Partner in Opportunity

Mercy is not only for people who make mistakes. Mercy is for people who need God help them "redeem the time" or "make the most an opportunity."
Eph 2:4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

Be Still. Stop All this Noise.

Psalms 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

2012 - A Year of Opportunity & Poured Out Blessings!

Eph. 5:15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity [redeem the time], because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

What to Do After Acting Insanely: A Lesson From David

1 Sam 21:12 Now David took these words to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 So he changed his behavior before them, pretended madness in their hands, scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard. 14 Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me? 15 Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”
Psalm 34: 8 Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! 9 Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.

I am the Body of Christ

Our identity is both individual and collective. It is never either/or but both/and. Therefore, we can say, “I Am the Body of Christ.” AND we can say “We are the Body of Christ.”
In Christ we find our purpose and unity within diversity
Matt. 16:17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed[a] in heaven.”

Navigating Your Course in Life

Good navigation requires a constant reference. It has to be a reference outside of ourselves. Ships on the sea used stars. Now we have GPS satellites, which provide have fixed coordinates. We use maps that are preprinted, which are fixed coordinates.
People escaping slavery where helped by a network of people, white and black, who charted secret passage ways, including on boats and trains, to get people safely to the North. People like William Still, Levi Coffin, and Harriet Tubman helped thousands of people to escape slavery. On a clear night, they could use the North Star as a fixed coordinate for heading north. It was also a symbol of hope.
As the earth rotates, stars appear to move across the sky, like the sun and moon during daytime Because the star that we call “North Star” is positioned above the axis of earth’s North Pole, the north star appears to not move. The technical name for this kind of star is a Polaris. All the other stars appear to rotate around it. Our North Star cannot be seen by people in the southern hemisphere. There is a Polaris for the southern hemisphere, but it’s too faith to see with the naked eye.
The word of God is our reference. God’s word is our North Star and Polaris. The Name of Jesus is our authority and reference point. Just like the North Star provided an undisputed reference to travelers, the name of Jesus is above every other name.
Trying to navigate your course in life without a fixed reference, is like setting out into woods without a compass or star map.
1 Pet. 4:7, The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.
Ancient sailors used the stars to navigate. They looked forward to the night, so that they could see the stars. Sometimes the darkest nights of your life can become the best opportunity to gain the clear direction from God.