The More Grateful You Are, the Happier You Are

BY RICK WARREN 

Study after study has linked gratitude to happiness. Psychologists and sociologists have proven that the more grateful you are, the happier you are.

If you want to have healthy relationships, then start with an attitude of gratitude. You will be far happier and enjoy your relationships more if you will develop the habit of being grateful for the people in your life.

Paul says in Philippians 1:3, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God” (NLT, second edition).

This simple truth is the foundation of good relationships.

When you think of the people in your life, is your first feeling gratitude? For too many of us, it can be, “What do they need to do for me? What problems have we got? What do we need to get done?” But Paul showed us a different way. His first thought for his friends was one of gratitude, and it is the model we should follow if we want relationships that last.

Here’s the challenge: The longer you know someone, the more likely you are to take that person for granted. Isn’t that true? The longer you know someone, the easier it is to focus on that person’s faults and the bad times instead of the happy times.

That’s why it takes effort on our part to choose to have an attitude of gratitude for the people in our lives. When we develop the habit of thanking God for people in our lives, it will cultivate happiness and have a lasting and eternal impact on those relationships. 

Seven Ways Church Outreach has changed in 15 years.

“So what are churches doing to reach people today, Thom?”

I hear some version of that question on a regular basis. The difficult response is that more churches are doing nothing rather than something.

But, to be fair, thousands of churches are doing some type of outreach to their communities and beyond. But the times have definitely changed. Here are seven of the most common changes in church outreach practices over the past one to two decades.

1.   From in-home visitation to lunch or coffee shop visits. Relatively few churches do in-home visits. But many are connecting with people at lunch or at a coffee shop. In fact, I believe every church should have some budget dollars allocated for this type of outreach.

2.   From newspaper ads to Facebook ads. Facebook ads are not only affordable; their algorithms allow a church to be highly focused on the target audience. Starting as low as $15 per month, almost every church can afford some level of Facebook ads.

3.   From worship services to the church website as the front door. Guests to a church in the past would check out the church first by visiting the worship services. Guests today often make their first impression decisions by checking the church website. There is no excuse for a church to have a poor and dated website today. They are affordable and user-friendly.

4.   From complex gospel presentations to simple gospel presentations. The most popular gospel presentation of the past several decades was “Evangelism Explosion.” Theologically rich and highly effective for a season, EE did, however, require a great deal of memorization and training. Today many churches look for an effective gospel presentation that requires less training.

5.   From multi-service to multi-venue and multi-site. While churches still use the multi-service approach as a strategic means to reach people, more resources are being invested in new sites and new venues. I have written on this issue extensively. I am still amazed how quickly this practice has become so widespread.

6.   From attractional to going. Many churches have invested significant resources in attracting people to their worship services or to some big event. More resources are now being expended on members going into the community. Hands-on ministry and small group connections are becoming a more normative approach to reaching people today.

7.   From national and international giving to contextual giving. Churches are now more likely to fund outreach ministries where they know the ministry or people involved in the ministry. They are becoming less likely to fund a national or denominational fund that then decides funding recipients. Of course, this issue is presenting challenges to many denominations, including my own.

These are not merely shifts; they are dramatic changes. And most of the changes took place in a relatively brief period.

What do you think of these changes?    Let me hear from you.

The post Seven Ways Church Outreach Has Changed in 15 Years appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Janet Paschal Five Greatest Hits

This is the LORD'S DAY!  We will rejoice and be glad in it!  Enjoy this post of encourage your soul.

He'll Deliver Me - Baton Rouge
Blood Bought Church - Mobile Alabama
The Mercy Throne/Bring All Your Needs To The Altar Cleveland Ohio
Though Your Sins Be As Scarlet/There Is A Fountain - KANSAS CITY MISSOURI -
Let Down Your Net - Buenos Aires Argentina

El-Shaddai

Music video by Bill & Gloria Gaither performing El Shaddai (feat. Janet Paschal) [Live]. (P) (C) 2012 Spring House Music Group. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is a violation of applicable laws. Manufactured by EMI Christian Music Group,

Friday Funny: Appearing in stores soon....

As of today, there are only 204 days until Christmas!!! 

These will be appearing in stores soon! 

:-)

Be Undeniable: A Christian Alternative to Engaging In the Culture Wars

The world isn’t looking for someone to win the latest debate in the culture war. They’re looking for an alternative to the whole mess.

by Karl Vaters    

Apparently the church is losing the culture wars.

We must be. My Facebook feed says so. And Facebook never lies, right?

Today it’s about bathrooms. Tomorrow it will be something else.

Each issue is presented as ‘The Most Important Issue of Our Time!’ Until the next time.

Many Christians – including Christian leaders – get drawn into these endless debates with two primary responses: we whine and/or we fight back.

Today I’d like to propose a third option.

Rise above it. By being undeniable.

How Jesus Responded to His Culture

Quit whining. And quit being drawn into someone else’s fight.

When we do either of those things, we’re operating in reactive mode. We’re on defense. We’re letting others set the agenda for us.

Jesus never allowed others to pull him into their debate.

Jesus never did that. Jesus never allowed others to pull him into their debate.

His enemies tried to bait him with an impossible question about taxation, but instead of descending to their level he raised the conversation to his level. (Luke 20:20-26)

Debate over.

When his disciples saw a man born blind, they wanted Jesus to pick sides in a theological debate. Instead, he healed the blind man. (John 9)

Debate over.

Jesus was undeniable.

In his actions and words.

He has called us to be undeniable as well. In our actions and words.

Stick With Jesus’ Agenda

Every minute I spend being drawn into the agenda of others is a minute I’m not spending on Christ’s agenda.

Is the culture heading in a direction you think is bad? (No doubt it is, in many ways).

Don’t become just another whining or angry voice in the mess. And don’t ignore it, either. Rise above it. Stick to the agenda Jesus gave us instead of being drawn into endless arguments, debates and unwinnable wars of words.

Be undeniable.

How?

By doing what Jesus told us to do. His instructions haven’t changed.

It’s still supposed to be about the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.

Love God, love others and make disciples.

And remember, no matter how bad things seem to get and how much you’re tempted to divert from that mandate, Jesus gave those commands to people living in the moral cesspool of Roman corruption and persecution.

If it worked then, it can work today.

The Undeniability of Following Jesus

The world isn’t looking for someone to win the latest debate in the culture war. They’re looking for an alternative to the whole mess.

They’re looking for Jesus. Even if they don’t know it yet.

Don’t follow the crowd, follow Jesus.

Don’t win the debate, change the conversation.

Be proactive.

Be Christ-like.

Be undeniable.

Copyright © 2016 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. 

Kyle's picture

Mrs. Terri asked her Sunday School class to draw pictures of their favorite Bible stories. 

She was puzzled by Kyle's picture, which showed four people on an airplane, so she asked him which story it was meant to represent.

"The flight to Egypt," said Kyle.

"I see ... And that must be Mary, Joseph, and Jesus," Mrs. Terri said.

"But who's the fourth person?"

"Oh, that's Pontius-the Pilot.