Day Seven Church - Think It Through

The MERGE Is On!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:50:00 +0000

Starting this week Day Seven Church will be merging with Summitview Community Church of Loveland. Day Seven will now be meeting with Summitview on Sunday mornings at Mountain View High School (3500 Mountain Lion Drive, Loveland, CO) at 9:30am. We are looking forward to building God's kingdom together in Loveland with Summitview Community Church.

For more information on Summitview Community Church of Loveland check out www.summitviewcc.com and their "Think It Through Blog" at thinkingitthru.blogspot.com.

It has been an awesome 7.5 years of walking with God at His church called Day Seven. But as always, we need to be constantly asking, "God, what's next? What do You have for us today?" And at this time, we feel this is God's answer and His timing. Walking with God is NEVER boring and is always an adventure! We are looking forward to the adventure ahead.

Fruit Bearers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 14:07:00 +0000

John 15:1-8

God's expectation for us is that we would bear fruit, good fruit, for Him. But in order to do that we have to stay connected to the Gardner and to the Vine.

Have you connected with the Gardner and the Vine yet today?

5,943 Days

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:19:00 +0000

As I read Ephesians 5:1-21 this morning the following thoughts rattled around in my head:

I started to walk in God's light on May 13, 1993 - the day I accepted Christ and gave my life to Him. In other words that was my second birthday - the day I was reborn (see John 3:1-21). Now I must admit, that at the time, I didn't fully understand what that meant and I am still learning the depth of what it looks like day by day. In relation to Ephesians 5, what that means for me is that for the first 10,736 days of my life I lived in darkness and yet at the time I didn't even know it was darkness - it was just my normal - it was comfortable or so it seemed - it made sense to me, at least most of the time.

But when Christ came into my life then everything changed because the darkness had been exposed for what it was - darkness. It was only when the light of Christ exposed the darkness that I could understand just how dark it really was. And since that moment I have been given the gift of light, and by the gift of the Spirit, I can choose to walk in the light and to see and experience things as they really are. And yet at times, I can still choose to walk in darkness but no longer does it seem normal, no longer does it seem comfortable and no longer does it make sense. For me learning to walk in the light is a process even though I have been given everything by God to walk perfectly in the light right now. But I fall so short of perfection in a BIG way and so I thank God for His grace and His forgiveness.

I thank God for the last 5,943 days since I was "reborn." I am looking forward to Tuesday, October 4, 2022 - that is the day on which I will have lived half of my life in the darkness and half in the light. I will be 58 years, 9 months and 13 days old then. I wonder if I'll be around then? I wonder what God's plans are for my life between now and then? I guess I'll find out!

Are you walking in the light according to Ephesians 5?

(day and date calculations by http://www.timeanddate.com/date/duration.html)

Sin is Sinful

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:39:00 +0000

The phrase "sin might become utterly sinful" in Romans 7:13 caught my attention this morning. As I read that, this was my thought:

That I have to understand the devastation of sin in my life. That until I am appalled at the devastating effects of sin in my life - the utter destruction that sin brings into my own life and into the lives of those that are around me, that I will be content to have sin in my life.

That's a part of what the Law was and is all about. I come to understand that sin is wrong only by understanding what is right according to God. And ultimately it's only when I understand what effect my sin had on God and His Son, Jesus Christ - that my (and your) sin killed Christ - that I have to accept the grace and forgiveness that God gives to me because there is nothing else I can do in and of myself to be reconciled with God.

But if I think that sin, my sin, is no big deal then I do not see my desperate need for Christ - my Savior. May I never lose sight of the fact that my sin (past, present and future) is sinful.

God thank you for that reminder this morning.

Thanks!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:48:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone for coming out to the picnic last night. It was good to come together as a family and to hang out with everyone - and for all of the awesome food!

HSLT Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:32:00 +0000

Check out the following HSLT videos:

Teaser Promo

Recap #1/Dirty Jobs

HSLT Teachings Posted

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:10:00 +0000

The first three HSLT teachings have been posted at HERE
.

Service for This Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 18:11:00 +0000

Remember that the Day Seven Church service will be at Old Town Square in Fort Collins this coming Saturday (8/1) at 7:30 PM where we will get to be a part of an outreach concert.

Hope to see everyone there!

H.S.L.T.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 18:11:00 +0000

Anyone and everyone is welcome to come up and sit in on the teaching sessions at HSLT. The schedule is as follows:

Thursday (7/30) - 7:00pm
Friday (7/31) - 9:30am and 1:15pm
Sunday (8/2) - 7:30pm

All teaching sessions will be at Summitview Community Church in Fort Collins.

There is also an outreach concert on Saturday evening at 7:30pm in Old Town Square in Fort Collins.

Justified By Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:51:00 +0000

It is so refreshing to be reminded in Romans 4:1-12 (our reading for today) that we are ALL made right with God by faith and by faith alone. It was true even for Abraham, the father of the entire Jewish nation, and it is just as true for everyone today - Jew and Gentile.

Are you working feverishly to earn God's grace or are you peacefully resting in your faith - knowing that it is enough?

Just Plain Grateful

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:23:00 +0000

I cannot adequately express the gratitude for what God has done in my life. Although I am totally unworthy, He has saved me and forgiven me. In Christ I am free from the curse of sin, i.e. eternal separation from God. I am free to live my life today for Him and if it His will, I will gratefully do the same tomorrow.

If you have believed and received Christ, have you expressed your gratitude for what He has done for you? Make sure to tell Him how you feel that you are His child.

Galatians 3:29 (NIV)
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

The Law - So What?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:15:00 +0000

Does God's law have any meaning to us today? Absolutely!

God's law, especially the moral law which includes the ten commandments (Exodus 20), helps us to understand right from wrong according to God. Without the law we would have no concept of sin and ultimately we would not understand our need for salvation - to be forgiven for our sins through grace by faith. The law in effect points us toward Christ.

Romans 3:20 (NIV)
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

Thanks

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:46:00 +0000

Thanks for reaching out and helping those that are in need by collecting food for the House of Neighborly Service food drive. We collected about 50 bags of food (Summitview and Day Seven collectively).

God is looking for people who are willing to respond to Him in ways that will reflect His glory to those around us and make a difference in our world.

James 1:22-27 (NIV)
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does. If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Facets of Unity

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:04:00 +0000

I have been reflecting on last week's teaching and keep coming back to the 4 facets of unity that we learned about and so just as a reminder of the importance of complete unity and an exhortation to pursue all of themy, I thought they were worth repeating:

Theological (what we believe - don't forget to review our Statement of Faith)
Relational (how we treat one another)
Missional (what we have been called to do - Love God, love our neighbors as ourselves, love our brothers and sisters in Christ, and make disciples)
Philosophical (the methods and ways we go about fulfilling the mission)

All facets are critical.

The Big Picture

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:56:00 +0000

Acts 10 is a good reminder to me that I can get so focused on my own stuff, which may actually be great things and even the right things for me personally, but I can forget there is a bigger picture. Just like Peter got so focused on himself and what he was doing for God that he forgot that God had a bigger picture that included both Jews and Gentiles.

It's also a reminder to me that I must not get so set in my plans that I forget that there may be a better plan to fulfill the mission. I can't be deceived into thinking what worked yesterday will work today. I can forget that there is an adversary named Satan that hates God and that he doesn't want whatever I am doing in the name of Christ to succeed. And so he will work against those plans that work towards fulfilling God's mission and so we will have to be attentive and flexible so that we can make adjustments along the way. When it comes to building God's kingdom, change is a necessary component because without strategic and tactical change the enemy will guess and counter our every move.

Hum, what can I change today to further God's kingdom?

It Seemed Good...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Sheets) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 17:10:00 +0000

I love the phrase in Acts 15:28 - "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us." They were wrestling with and searching for consensus in the Spirit about the application of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They had the firm truth of Christ and they had to take that truth and apply it to their lives and to live it out in a real way.

They sought God's will through His Word and they ultimately arrived at a place of unity through the Spirit and the world has never been the same since - both Gentiles and Jews (all people) are saved by grace through faith.

Assurance of Salvation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 22:01:00 +0000

I was talking with someone today about faith in God, Jesus and salvation and I was reminded of just how important it is to be well grounded in our assurance of salvation and that once God has saved us that no one or no thing can "unsave" us.

The following is what God has to say on the topic:

John 10:28-29 (NIV)
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.

Making a Difference

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:37:00 +0000

John 15:16-25

My thought from today's reading is simply this:

God chose me. He chose me at the right time in my life to be saved - for me it wasn't until I was 29 years old. That was when it was right for me. I can second guess God all day and ask - God, why didn't you save me sooner? From my perspective, it would have saved me a lot of grief in my life if I would have gotten saved when I was 11 instead of 29. But for whatever reason, God chose to save me when He chose to save me and that's that.

And He also chose me to make a difference - He saved me for a reason. To "bear fruit."

He didn't choose me to win a popularity contest. In fact, when you claim allegiance to Jesus Christ, be prepared to face ridicule, persecution and harassment. That's just the way it works. Being "close" to Jesus has always been a dangerous place to be. Following Christ is not for the faint of heart.

By the way, have you submitted your "But When God" moment yet? See the "But When God" section in the right sidebar.

Saved To Serve

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:19:00 +0000

Isaiah 49:1-6

I am a Gentile that by God's grace and my faith in that grace, have been saved to serve the God of the universe. I don't get to choose how I serve Him - the Master gets to direct my servitude. I don't get to choose my reward - the Master rewards me however He sees fit.

Praise God today for the opportunity to serve Him. To be used by Him for His glory. Maybe, just maybe, one day I can say as Paul said:

Galatians 1:24 (NIV)
And they praised God because of me.

God saves us by grace through faith and He does it for a reason - to bring glory to Himself. We get to be a part of that process - unbelievable!

But When God...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0000

I finally got my testimony - my "But When God" moment (Galatians 1:15) - written that takes about a minute to read (actually 1 min. and 5 sec. - but if I read it really fast it's probably right at a minute!!). Anyway, I thought I would share it with you as just one example:

"I grew up not knowing much of anything about God and nothing about Jesus. When I was 13 years old my dad died in a car accident and I spent the next 16 years of my life believing that God was vengeful and I wanted nothing to do with Him. I struggled with selfishness, anger and greed and I tried to fill the void in my life with addictions and immorality but everything left me empty inside.

When my soon-to-be wife, Therese, and I moved to Colorado, a coworker of hers invited us to her church (Summitview in Ft. Collins). I reluctantly agreed, thinking that I would just have to go one time and that would be it. So we went one week and then several more and I was amazed to discover people that believed the bible was actually true and they applied its truth and principles in their lives.

It wasn’t long before someone shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with me and it made sense to me and I simply accepted His free gift of grace. Since then my life has been totally transformed - I am a different person.

It's not easy and I still have struggles and mess-up all the time but God has filled the void in my life and by His grace I have a sense of meaning that I never had before. I now know that God is not vengeful but rather He loves me and has a purpose for my life."

That's my story and I'm sticking to it :)

Share your "But When God" testimony by clicking the link in the "But When God" section in the right sidebar.

Galatians Series Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:31:00 +0000

We encourage you to take a listen to Part 2 of the Galatians series, you can download it and listen to it by clicking here.

The Think It Through can be found here.

We encourage you to listen to this message this week as we will share Part 3 this coming Saturday. Also notice the "But When God" section in the right sidebar as described towards the end of the message.

Share Your Story

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:30:00 +0000

Have you ever been in a position where you had to defend the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Take a moment to post a comment and share your story.

Defender of Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:44:00 +0000

Just a couple of follow-up notes from the teaching this past Sunday.

We kicked-off a new series on Galatians. Galatians is a powerful letter written by the Apostle Paul who detected that the Galatians were being led astray by a false gospel and God used Paul to set things straight.

Just a few points that were emphasized on Saturday:

Salvation comes by grace through faith - period.
Grace is a gift from God that is worth defending.
For those that have received God's grace (Jesus Christ), we do not have to be ashamed or embarrassed about what we have been given but rather must go on the offensive to share it with others.
We must take responsibility for our own faith in order to refute false doctrine and to resist being led astray.

Take opportunities this week to be "Defenders of the Gospel of Grace" that God has given to you - through your words and deeds.

Have a great week.

May We Never Forget

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:37:00 +0000

As I read 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 this morning, I was once again reminded who I once was without Christ. A sinner, plain and simple. But God sent Christ to set me free from my sin. Christ was crucified for me (and you and all of humanity) and in that moment we were justified. Justification is the gift of the Gospel that we receive and declares usrighteous before God. But I have to accept that gift. I am justified as righteous because Jesus paid the penalty for my sin. In the moment that I accept the gift of justification, the lifelong process of sanctification begins in my life as God provides opportunities for me to grow and become more like Christ.

What Can I Obey?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 06 May 2009 22:38:00 +0000

Quote from the book titled "Eat This Book" by Eugene Petersen:

If I'm not living in active response to the living God revealed in the Bible, reading about his creation/salvation/holiness won't interest me—at least not for long. The most important question we ask of any text isn't "What does this mean?" but "What can I obey?" Simple obedience will open up our lives to a text more than any number of Bible studies, dictionaries, and concordances.