Notes From Awakening, July 18, 2012

In case you were unable to attend or did not fill in your answer sheet, here are the notes from Awakening on July 18, 2012.

What Does the Bible Say about Facebook?

1. God wants us to use social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) for His glory.
1 Corinthians 10:31 - So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

2. One day, we will have to explain our actions, even what we do on Facebook.
Romans 14:12 - So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

3. We can use social media for good or we can use it for evil.
Romans 6:13 - Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

Application: How are you using Facebook and other social media? Are you using it to tear others apart or to build them up in Jesus? Are you pointing others to Jesus through your Facebook?

I would like to offer a very special thank you to my friend Austin McCann for his help with preparing this lesson. Austin is currently the student pastor at Courtney Baptist Church in Yadkinville, NC, and a really great dude. Thanks again, Austin.

Tips for Using Humor in Youth Talks

It's always a good thing to make students laugh. When you get them laughing, they are much more likely to listen to what you have to say. That's why even the most serious movies have humorous parts. What are the two memorable parts of The Avengers? Those funny scenes with the Hulk.

However, it's not easy to use humor in your talks. Some people can do it, some people need to practice. Here are a few tips to remember when you are using humor with your students.

• Make sure your humor fits the occasion. Some people try to use humor just to use humor. I once heard a sermon where the speaker spent 10 minutes telling jokes that had absolutely nothing to do with his message. I'm not sure if he was nervous or what, but he lost a good portion of his audience before he even got started. If you have a humorous story, make sure it fits the flow of your sermon and not just being used to kill time.
• Make sure that your humor is appropriate. This should be a no-brainer, but you would be surprised at how many people don't get it. Your students don't need to hear your sexual innuendos, your political jokes, or your slightly off-colored comments. Yes, most of us have middle-school (and high school boys) who love the sound of bodily functions, but they are best to be avoided. Remember, when you stand in your pulpit or platform, you are representing the Almighty to your students.
• Make sure you can pull off the humor you are attempting. You might think you are Mitch Hedberg or Jim Gaffigan, or even Dave Chappell, but you aren't. And since you aren't, it's best not to try to act like them. Just be yourself and attempt humor that fits you. If you can't do it, don't attempt it. You'll just look foolish...and not in a good way.

Hopefully you are attempting to use humor in your youth talks and sermons. There is no better way to win over a crowd. Just make sure that you are using the humor correctly and in a God-honoring manner.

CTBC Youth Bible Study - Ephesians 6:12

I had the opportunity to teach the youth group of Charles Town Baptist Church. I've been listening to Greg Stier and modified one of the lessons that he was teaching as the basis for the lesson. The text began in Ephesians 6:12 and we looked at a number of the strongholds that keep individuals from coming to church or from becoming Christians. The audio (there is no video...yet) is below.

You can also download the handout from the lesson by clicking here: "What Are We Fighting Against?" (Just click the box to open the PDF file to print.)

You can download the mp3 here.

Sermon - The Necessity of Scripture Memory (Psalm 119:9-16)

This is a sermon that I preached on January 29. 2012 at First Baptist Church Inwood. My focus was on the necessity of memorizing Scripture and the benefits that come from doing so.



As always, your comments are much appreciated.

Sermon - 1 Peter 1:3-6

Part One:



Part Two:



Part Three:

Bible Study - John 6:60-71

Bible Study - John 6:51-59

Philippians 1:27

Sermon - Colossians 4:2-4 - The Importance of Prayer

Bible Study - John 6:30-50

Bible Study - John 6:22-29 - A False Response to Jesus

Bible Study - John 6:16-21

Bible Study - John 5:17-30

Sermon - Knowing the Right Things about Jesus, Part 3

Here is the third and final part of my sermon from January 16, 2011.

Sermon - Knowing the Right Things about Jesus, Part 2

Here is the second part of my sermon from January 16, 2011.

Sermon - Knowing the Right Things about Jesus, Part 1

Here is the first part of a sermon that I preached at First Baptist Church Inwood on January 16, 2011. The text is from 1 John 1.

Bible Study Lesson on John 5:1-18

The video below is the lesson I taught at First Baptist Inwood on John 5:1-18. This is the story of Jesus healing the man at the Pool of Bethesda and the controversy that blew up as a result.

Sermon Overload

I am in the process of sending out resumes to various churches as I pursue God's calling and a position with a church. As a result, I am going to be uploading a lot of sermon videos over the next couple of days. I would like prospective churches to be able to get a good idea of whether or not I have an ability in teaching and preaching God's Word. I would love for you to watch the videos and let me know your thoughts on them.

Bible Study Lesson John 4:1-26

Here is another lesson from the study that I have been teaching from the Gospel of John. This one is the story of Jesus meeting the woman at the well. I particularly like this story because it is the first time in John that Jesus tells someone that He is the Christ.

Bible Study Video - John 3:1-10

Here is the video from a recent lesson that I taught in the series that I am doing through the Gospel of John on Wednesday evenings. I have not been going verse by verse, but I have been hitting some highlights along the way.



There were other lessons besides this one, but this is the first one I have video for.