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The Naked Truth about Hot Sex

We had a little tech difficulties but those have been cleared up!

Our series on Love and Marriage continues at Oasis Church. Here is the mp3 of the message from Valentines Day... 

Download The Naked Truth about Hot Sex

Great blog post about marriage from Perry Noble of Newspring Church

We are in the middle of our Naked Truth series... and we are re-discovering the realities of Love and Marriage...

I remembered I had read some great posts on Perry Noble's blog a few months back about marriage... and I finally was able to track them down.. here is the first blog post and I included links to the other posts in the series....

"So yesterday I told you this series of posts was on the way…here we go…HOW do we build a marriage that will last?

#1 – We’ve Got To Have A Solid Foundation

The first thing they did when they began constructing the house next door is make sure the foundation was solid.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:24-27 that we should take the time to make sure the foundation is ROCK SOLID…because WHEN (not if) the rains come and we aren’t solid…the crash is going to be intense.

So…church leader, here’s the question for us today…how much time and effort are we putting into making sure than the foundation of our marriage is solid?  It’s really sad when a church leader spends hours and hours developing a plan for a successful ministry…but won’t put a fraction of that time into developing a plan for a successful marriage.  What is your plan for success in your marriage?

(BTW…if you marriage falls apart, your ministry will too…so it’s worth the effort!)

We’ve GOT to take the marriage covenant seriously!

One more thing…if you are single and in ministry the BEST WAY to prepare yourself for marriage is fall in love with Jesus and do EVERYTHING it takes to stay connected to Him.  AND then don’t settle for ANYTHING less than someone else who does the same thing.

It is WAY better to remain single than to be with the wrong person!

#2 – Follow The Plan

I’ve driven by the house next door several times and have seen the guys actually stop building and gather around the plans to make sure they are getting things done right…that’s not a bad plan for our marriages either…are we building according to God’s plan…such as…

• Guys…are you being harsh with her when you speak?  She’s your wife…NOT your staff member.  (I Peter 3:7)  AND…btw…you should not be harsh with your staff either!
• Ladies…is he feeling respected and admired by you?  (Ephesians 5:33)
• Guys…are you serving her like Jesus served…or is your focus on being served?  (Matthew 20:28)
• Ladies…are you reminding him of a torture device that won’t shut up? (Proverbs 27:15)
• Guys…are you making sure she is completely taken care of, OR are you neglecting her in order to make yourself look good?  (Ephesians 5:25-27)
• Ladies…are you a crown or cancer?  (Proverbs 12:4)
• Guys…are you aware of what a blessing she is?  (Proverbs 31:10)
• Ladies…are you careful or careless in how you speak and how you spend?  (Proverbs 19:14)
• BOTH OF YOU…are you taking care of one another sexually?  (I Corinthians 7:3-5)
• Single dude…are you LOOKING for a wife or expecting to be found?  (Proverbs 18:22)

I could go on and on…but the problem is so clear…to many church leaders are trying to teach God’s Word and not LIVE God’s Word.  And…if this falls apart in our house then it is only a matter of time before it falls apart in God’s house!"

Great insight! Here are the links to part 2 and part 3 and part 4 on Perry's blog posts on love and marriage... it's the Naked Truth that we need to hear!

Say what you want about Tim Tebow...

But the more you hear and read about him, you gotta agree he is a good sport!

Now, I am on record, that I could not stand him as Florida Gator...sorry, I am a Canes fan and it's simply not allowed to EVER cheer for someone from that school...just sayin!

But now that he's moving on, I can now better appreciate more of what I hear and read about Tim Tebow... things like his strong faith in God, his appearance in the (un)controversial Super Bowl commerical, and using his platform to witness and share Jesus with others. 

In fact, to show he's a really good sport, here is a great pic he took with a UM alum (I found this story on www.sun-sentinel.com)

 

Now, if only Tim had flashed "The U" with her... now, that will probably never happen!

Should I laugh when an Olympic ice skater falls?

Because, I do...

I'm sorry, but I confess... I find the falls of ice skating kind of funny! It reminds me of this SNL skit from 1992 (yes, I am old!) with Jason Priestly who falls all over the ice... very funny and yet, I can't find it here on the net... so I found another SNL video about ice skating... this is Chris Farley and Nancy Kerrigan... not as funny but still very good...

So, do you laugh (or maybe at least chuckle) when an ice skater falls?

Snow close... and yet, so far

Looks like Jacksonville will not be getting any snow from this storm... so, should I drive a little north to see the white stuff? My kids would love it!

Think of the children...

The boys before bedtime... or silliness in sleepers

 

No doubt about it... Jeanine and I are blessed...

What are you thankful to God for today?

The Foundation of Marriage... the Vows

 

As we kicked off our Naked Truth Series, we talked the importance of the vows, the promise, the commitment covenant made at the wedding...the cake, the dancing, the drama of weddings are fun, but the most important element (starting from day one) in a marriage is the vows!

Here are some thoughts from this past week's message...

• many of us don't want to see what God says about marriage... 
• Marriage = one man, one woman together forever...
• Instead, we want to take our thoughts on marriage and ask God to approve them... doesn't work that way!

The Naked Truth – Vows... more then words..

• better for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer... 
• promise to spouse and God is our witness!
• people who are seeking to follow Jesus realize we need to keep our word
• yes means yes... and I do means I do! (Matthew 5: 31 - 37)
• Covenants made with God are very serious... and He takes them seriously!

The good news is, God partners with us to keep this covenant... He knows our struggles, our issues, and His strength can heal and bring a new start and hope to every marriage...

If you have broken the vows and ended a marriage, here is what you need to hear...

• How we treat the vows we made affects our worship and following Jesus (Malachi 2:13-16)
• God hates divorce (broken vows and being unfaithful to a covenant)
• God does not hate people who get divorced...forgives, still loves, and can use you as we turn to Him!
• Divorce is not unpardonable sin... the marriage you are in right now, is God's plan for now... 

Our job in marriage...work and defend that covenant...

• Husbands, wives... defend the covenant and covenant partner... 
• make sure all actions (public and private) will not embarrass spouse 
• protect, honor,
• guard affections and appearances

Covenant marriage... no room for rekindling relationships on FB, flirting at work, fantasizing, lusting, adultery

This is our role as defenders... fight for homes, fight for marriage, don't let enemy take you out!

Our First Birthday...Oasis Turns 1!

This past weekend, we celebrated our first year of being and becoming Oasis Church... Hard to believe it's been a year already (although, on the other hand, it seems like a lot longer!).

So amazed at what God is doing in North Florida and that we get to play a part in it... I am looking forward to continued life-change and growth in year 2 as we continue to follow, and help others follow, Jesus!

 

The Naked Truth about Marriage...

Our new teaching series kicked off this week... The Naked Truth of Love and Marriage!

We started with the truth that marriage is God's idea and therefore...we need to go to Him and His Word to determine what marriage is. Too often, people think marriage is a human idea and we bring our thoughts about it to God and ask Him to ok them... we have it backwards!

God's view of marriage... one man, one woman, together forever. Period.

The foundation for this kind of marriage, according to God's plan, is the commitment, the covenant, the promise vows spoken to each other at the wedding... everything in marriage goes back to the vows...

So often, the majority of the time, we have issues in our marriages (and even go to divorce) because we (either one or both spouses) do not or are not willing keep our word and honor the vows made before God... and that's the Naked Truth!

But, there is hope... God gives us the strength, when we turn to Him for help, to keep our marriage promise... He is that good!

Download The Naked Truth - Marriage

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire

Nope, this is not a post about a politician. And this has nothing to do with the song "Pants on the Ground"!

Instead, this is about the last week of our "Break Free" series that we finished this past Sunday. We concluded with the topic of lies... and how often, we believe lies and live, think, and act as if they are true...and these lies, told to us and authored by Satan, hold us captive. But, freedom is found in the Truth, which has always come from God, our Father!

Here is the mp3 from yesterday... Download Break Free from Lies

You can access all the teachings from this series here on the blog or by going to the audio page on our website...