5 New Year's Resolutions - Yeah, Right

8/8/2019 5 New Year's Resolutions - Yeah, Right

1/11Coffee, Conversation & Christ The Neighborhood Caf 2010 Amy Lively

The Rosewood Caf :: January 9, 2009

New Years Resolutions Yeah, Right!

Introductions, share any resolutions

Top 10 New Years Resolutions:

1. Lose weight or get in better physical shape2. Stick to a budget3. Debt reduction4. Enjoy more quality time with family and friends5. Find a soul mate6. Quit smoking/drinking7. Find a better job8. Learn something new, go somewhere new9. Volunteer and help others10.Get organized

We can find Scriptures that affirm the Top 10 New Years Resolutions

y Fitness, habits: Your body is a templey Debt Free: Dont borrow (Prov. 22:7)y Budgeting: Haste leads to poverty (Prov. 21:5)y Quality time: Dont give up meeting together (Hebrews 10:25)y Soul mate: Do not be yoked with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14)y Theres even a verse about working out in 1 Timothy 4:8: Bodily exercise profits a little


2/11

Coffee, Conversation & Christ The Neighborhood Caf 2010 Amy Lively

Many of these are on my personal list

y New Year is a good time to reevaluate your priorities and reaffirm your commitmentsy So I could be effective this year, I looked up some tips for keeping my resolutions

EXPERT Advice for KEEPING your New Years Resolutions:

1. Give yourself a prize or a gift whenever you complete a New Year Resolution so that you areencouraged to fulfill others too. NOT CHOCOLATE!MAYBE A DELUXE BRAND OF TOILET PAPER

IF YOU'RE STICKING TO A BUDGET, OR A NICE NEW PAIR OF SOCKS IF YOU'RE DIETING

2. If you have not completed your last year's resolution, include it again in your list for 2009 andmake sure that you keep it this time.

3. Keep only one or few resolutions that you can actually follow. Too many resolutions willdiscourage you from approaching the list. So choose whether you want to learn dancing this

year or learn paragliding. DONT PUSH YOURSELF TOO HARD, KEEP YOUR EXPECTATIONS LOW

4. Place reminders that keep popping up weekly or every third day throughout the year so that youdo not chuck out your New year Resolution list once the euphoria celebration wears off. These

reminders can be kept in your daily diary, set online or be from your close friends. You can also

keep resolution journals for the purpose that you go through regularly.MY FAVORITE IS A FAT

PICTURE IN THE REFRIGERATOR

5. Set only realistic goals. Some things may actually seem stylish and trendy but may not be yourcup of tea. Opt them out already. While you want to go for rock climbing like all your friends,

you may not feel like it actually. Thus, cross out such resolutions beforehand. I LIKE SETTING

LOTS OF UNREALISTIC GOALS THENMARKING THEM DONEWHEN I DECIDE I JUST CAN'T DO

THEM. This gives me a feeling of accomplishment.

6. Tell someone close about your resolutions so he or she can shake you up a little whenever youare losing your track. NOW THIS ONE I AGREE WITH!

7. Evaluate the price in terms of sacrifice, risk, time, efforts, money, perseverance and willpowerthat you will need to fulfill your New Year resolution and be ready to pay it. MAKES SENSE.

EVEN JESUS SAID, COUNT THE COST


3/11


Worldly advice will often unintentionally align itself with godly principles

y Some of these seem sil ly, but sometimes theres just enough Truth (with a capital T) in them tobe effective

y Some of Gods laws are effective even if you dont believe, because of His gracey For example, there are plenty of unsaved people who tithe religiously because theyve seen the

blessings it brings: they just call it philanthropy

y But as well read soon, if you cheat you will be disqualified from eternal life

We are made in Gods image and that part of us will always seek Him

y We are distracted and deceived so we grab on to any counterfeity Satan tries very hard to twist and warp Gods perfect plany Pascal, 1600s (a French mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher. He was a child

prodigy) - There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every person, and it can never be fi lled

by any created thing. It can only be filled by God, made known through Jesus Christ.

The world doesnt even understand the God-shaped hole: listen to this sad quote

y What can be put in to fill the God-shaped hole? Stop beating yourself up. The hole is normal.Life is not meant to be satisfying in the long term. Your brain has been carefully calibrated by

evolution to never be happy. To spread your genes and maximize their chances in the future you

need to have a brain which gives you a whole series of hungers and things to be unsatisfied

about. Happy people stop making efforts. If you were supremely happy you would sit under the

nearest tree with a smile on your face and waste away. A fat lot of good that would do your

genes therefore it is highly unlikely that they would ever have built you, their robot, with a view

to seeking andfinding perfect happiness. Martin Willet

The Bible talks about this in 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ill paraphrase for our womens Bible study:

y But the natural woman does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishnessto her; nor can she know them, because they are spiritually discerned. I Cor. 2:14

y The NATURAL woman is sensual, living in the domain of the five senses, concerned with this lifeonly. She is physical and unspiritual, materialistic and quite like ME!

y The SPIRITUAL woman receives, discerns and knows the things of the Spirit of God with the aidof the Holy Spirit. I can alternate my NATURAL and SPIRITUAL woman with unnerving frequency!


4/11


Listen to the lyrics of this beautiful song and notice how the NATURALWOMAN distorts Gods

intentions:

NaturalWoman by Carole King

Looking out on the morning rain I used to feel uninspired

And when I knew I had to face another day, Lord, it made me feel so tired

Before the day I met you, life was so unkind - But your love was the key to my peace of mind

Cause you make me feel, you make me feel, You make me feel like a natural woman

When my soul was in the lost-and-found You came along to claim it

I didn't know just what was wrong with me Till your kiss helped me name it

Now I'm no longer doubtful of what I'm living for Cause if I make you happy I don't need to do more

You make me feel, you make me feel, You make me feel like a natural woman

Oh, baby, what you've done to me - You make me feel so good inside

And I just want to be close to you - You make me feel so alive

You make me feel, you make me feel, You make me feel like a natural woman.

My NATURAL woman usually makes my New Years Resolutions.Were going to talk today about the

resolutions my SPIRITUAL woman would make.

Were going to be in Colossians for the next three Cafs

y Paul wrote this letter around 60 ADy Paul had never been to Colossae but he knew they were struggling - like me - to turn my

NATURAL self into my SPIRITUAL self.

y They were confronted with false teachings, legalism, self-help theories and deception just likewe are today.

y Colossians has a lot in common with Ephesianso 70 of the 155 verses in Ephesians contain expressions echoed in Colossianso 28 words found nowhere else in Pauls writingso 34 words found nowhere else in the New Testament


5/11


Read COLOSSIANS 2:8,16-23

y Verse 8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to thetraditions ofmen, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ

y SHARE READING OF 16-23 do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or withregard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of

the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. Do not let anyone who

delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person

goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle

notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held

together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow. Since you died with Christ

to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its

rules: "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? These are all destined to perish with use,because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an

appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh

treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Colossians

2:16-23

WHAT is the philosophy and empty deceit?

y idle notionsy lost connectiony rules & regulations - Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!y based on human commands and teachings

HOW does it work?

y worship of angelsy great detaily appearance of wisdomy self-imposed worshipy false humilityy harsh treatment of the body


6/11


These traditions of man have an appearance of wisdom with self-imposed worship and false humility.

The basic principles of the world say:

y Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!y This is easy to see in pagan worship or even Jewish law

o Were over kosher foods, worship on Saturday, circumcision as law, and funny beardsy But the modern Christian church does this, too

o What about communion weekly vs. monthly, singing hymns or contemporary songs,stained glass windows vs. warehouses, wearing jeans to church, kids running in the

sacred sanctuary, baptism do you dunk or sprinkle? Can you have a beer with your

pizza?

o What about inviting homeless to church? What about prostitutes?o

We have to be very careful when we sanctimoniously sanctify that which God has notsanctified

Dr.WayneW Dyer author of one of the best-selling books of all time, Your Erroneous Zones. Dyer

teaches self actualization, calling reliance on the self as a guide a "religious" experience, and

suggested that readers emulate Jesus Christ, whom he termed both an example of a self-actualized

person, and a "preacher of self-reliance

y Look for a new, joyous feeling within you. Withdraw yourself and allow others. Realize howmuch your life matters. Practice trusting your own inner nature. Accomplish much by trying

less.

y A ring of truthiness that denies our Jesus Christ as our Savior the litmus test of any teaching (IJohn 4)

Asceticism Harsh treatment of the body

y Jainism is one of the oldest religions that originated in India. Jains believe that every soul isdivine and has the potential to achieve God-consciousness. They do this through non-violence,meditation, yoga and abandonment of all relations and possessions.

y They do not hurt any living being, be it an insect or a human. They carry a special broom tosweep any insects that may cross their path. Some Jains wear a cloth over the mouth to prevent

accidental harm to airborne germs and insects.

y Jain ascetics do not use electricity. They do not use any devices or machines.


7/11


y They travel from city to city, often crossing forests and deserts, and always barefoot.y They sleep on the floor without blankets and sit on special wooden platforms.y Jain ascetics follow a strict vegetarian diet without root vegetables.y Jain ascetics are (almost) completely without possessions. Some own a broom made of shed

peacock feathers and eat from their hands.

y Jain monks and nuns practice complete celibacy.y Jains own only unstitched white robes and a bowl used for eating and collecting alms. Some

monks do not wear any clothes sky-clad"

y Jain ascetics do not stay in a single place for more than two months to prevent attachment toany place. However during four months of monsoon they continue to stay at a single place to

avoid killing of life forms that thrives during the rains.

y Every day is spent either in study of scriptures or meditation or teaching to lay people. Theystand aloof from worldly matters.

y Many Jain ascetics take a final vow to abandon food, water and medicine when death isimminent or when a monk feels that he is unable to adhere to his vows on account of advanced

age or terminal disease.

The good news here is that THE GRAPEFRUIT DIETWILL NOTWORK!

y Human commands and teaching are all destined to perish with usey they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence

Whats the craziest diet, exercise routine or vow youve ever tried?

o Cabbage soup diet (my favorite was the bananas and milk day), Akdins, blood type diet

The worlds standards are destined to perish

You will gain the weight back, blow your budget on a great bargain, miss spending time with your family,

have one more cigarette, watch Oprah instead of volunteering and the closet will get messy again!

y Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing ofyour mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will ishis good, pleasing and

perfect will. Romans 12:2


8/11


So, what is Gods good, pleasing and perfect will for us?

WWJD if He could pick your New Years Resolutions?

Read Colossians 3:1-2

Read Ephesians 4:22-24

Colossians 3 Not Carnality but Christ

1: if then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above where Christ is, sitting at the

right hand of God.

2: Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Ephesians 4:22-24:You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self,which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to

put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.


9/11


What are things on the earth? The OLDWOMAN

READ Colossians 3: 5-9 then break it down

1. Fornication:porneia - illicit sexual intercourse (premarital, extramarital, same sex or heterosexual)2. Uncleanness: impure or unclean physical and moral living (lustful, luxurious, wasteful, extravagant)3. Passion:pathos inordinate affection, a feeling which the mind suffers, an affliction of the mind or

emotions

4. Evil desire: wrong or wicked thinking, feeling, acting5. Covetousness (idolatry): greedy desire to have more6. Anger: temper, movement or agitation of the soul, violent emotions (especially anger), indignation7. Wrath: anger that boils up and soon subsides; inflaming wine which either drives the drinker mad or

kills him with its strength

8. Malice: ill-will, desire to injure (coming up with a great comeback after the fact I SHOULD HAVEsaid)

9. Blasphemy: speech injurious to anothers good name -GOSSIP10.Filthy language: low and obscene speech, every license of the ungoverned tongue11.Lying: deliberate falsehoods and deceptions


10/11


What are the things above? The NEWWOMAN

Read Colossians 3:12-4:6 then break it down

1. Tender mercies: a heart of compassion2. Kindness: moral goodness3. Humility: deep sense of ones moral littleness4. Meekness: gentleness5. Longsuffering: patience, endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance, slowness in avenging wron6. Bearing one another: holding one another up7. Forgiveness: to do a pleasant favor for someone, to graciously and freely pardon, forgive, restore, prese8. Love: agape - affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love9. Peace ruling your heart: Gods peace is your umpire, it decides, determines, directs and controls

and rules your mind, will and emotions

10.Thankful: mindful of favors, grateful11.Word of Christ dwelling in you: influenced by Scripture12.Wise: knowing and doing the right thing, skill in the management of affairs13.Teaching: to impart instruction, explaining14.Admonishing: warning, mild but earnest rebuke15.Singing: praising God and others16.Wives submitting: adapt yourself your husband OUT OF OBEDIENCE TO CHRIST (Eph 5:22)17.Employees obedient: listen, one who on the knock at the door comes to listen who it is they

call, you come. not with eyeservice as manpleasers but as the servants of Christ doing the will

of God from the heart Eph 6.6

18.Employers just and fair: fair dealing, equality19.Devoted in prayer: constant, steadfast, unremitting, continuous, constant readiness20.Walking in wisdom, redeeming the time: to make wise and sacred use of every opportunity for

doing good

21.Gracious, salted speech: delightful, sweet, charming and lovely speech that is prepared toprotect and preserve

22.Knowing how to answer: to perceive, discern, discover the response to a question, alwayswhere something has preceded (either said or done) to which the remarks refer

o Your NEW WOMAN precedes with 1-23 and then you ANSWER how Christ has changedyou


11/11

Coffee Conversation & Christ The Neighborhood Caf 2010 Amy Lively

If thats not enough for you, there are other lists of OLD and NEW WOMAN behaviors in:

y Ephesians 4:17-5:9y Romans 12-15y 1 Thessalonians 4-5

Pass out blank cards

y Homework: pray about what God would have you TAKE OFF and what He would have you PUTON in 2009

y Write verses or definitions on the front of these cardsy You will come back in 2 weeks humbled and needy, frustrated and mad!y Then well talk about HOW to do it!

Close with 1 Tim 4:7-8 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself

to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise

for both the present life and the life to come.

Prayer and prayer requests

Documents

5 New Year's Resolutions - Yeah, Right