MAKING YOUR
LIFE
COUNT
Developing Vision and Attitude to Accomplish
All the Great Things That God Has for You to Do
Tim Thomas
April 22, 2012
A Message for Harvest Church, Hampstead, Maryland
And followers of Jesus everywhere
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Ephesians 2:10 “For we are...
God's own handiwork”
(Amplified)
His workmanship”
(ESV)
God's masterpiece”
(NLT)
Psalms 139:14 “I am fearfully and wonderfully
made. Wonderful are your works” (ESV)
If you only knew
how much you are worth...
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You need to value yourself
as highly as God does
Genesis 9:6 “God made humans in his image
reflecting God's very nature” (Message)
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Be imitators of God, therefore, as
dearly loved children and live a life of love,
just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for
us” (NIV)
Colossians 3:12 [You are] “God's chosen
people, holy and dearly loved” (NIV)
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God has
GREAT plans
for you...
Shouldn’t you
find out what
they are?
Ephesians 2:10
“For we are God's
workmanship,
created in Christ
Jesus to do good
works, which God
prepared in advance
for us to do.” (NIV)
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Seven
mountains
Religion
Family
Education
Government
Media
Arts / Sports
Business / Technology
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Ephesians 5:15-17
“Be very careful, then,
how you live -- not as
unwise but as wise,
making the most of
every opportunity,
because the days are
evil. Therefore do not
be foolish, but
understand what the
Lord's will is.” (NIV)
Be wise:
opportunities
are knocking
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What is my
mission?
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God’s ways are different
than the business world’s
John 15:4-5 (ESV)
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine,
neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the
vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me
and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for
apart from me you can do nothing.”
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“Choosing with Intention”
(Graham Cooke)
“We can choose to be a victim rather than a warrior. We
may prefer to be an employee rather than an heir (Luke
15:19). We can cut down our dreams to manageable
proportions. [But] God will have none of this. To live the life
that only he can create for us we must first, of necessity,
accept His vision for us. We must step into the place of
intention when we agree with the identity that He prefers.
When we take the road we must journey with the same
intention as the Father... [through] abiding.”
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A God-sized
vision
1 Corinthians 2:9-10 (NIV)
“‘No eye has seen, no ear
has heard, no mind has
conceived what God has
prepared for those who
love him’ -- but God has
revealed it to us by his
Spirit.”
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What do you
want to be
when you
grow up?
Dearly loved child
Heir of the Kingdom
Friend of God
Brother to Jesus
Bride of Christ
Called
Chosen
But what does God want to
do with your life?
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Secular schmecular... It’s
all God’s
Eph 4:11-12 (ESV) “He gave the apostles, the prophets,
the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the
saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of
Christ.”
Acts 17:26-27 (NIV) “[God] determined the times set for
them and the exact places where they should live. God did
this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for
him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.”
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GROW and don’t SETTLE
for the easy path
1 Corinthians 12:31 (ESV) “Earnestly desire the higher
gifts.” (apostle, prophet, teacher, worker of miracles).
1 Corinthians 14:1 (ESV) Earnestly desire the spiritual gifts,
especially that you may prophesy
John 15:7-8 (ESV) If you abide in me, and my words abide
in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for
you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much
fruit.
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More BOLDNESS, please!
Joshua 14:10-12 (NLT)
“Today I am eighty-five years old. I am as strong now
as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I
can still travel and fight as well as I could then. So I'm
asking you to give me the hill country that the LORD
promised me. You will remember that as scouts we
found the Anakites living there in great, walled cities.
But if the LORD is with me, I will drive them out of the
land, just as the LORD said.”
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God loves “bold” prayers
Acts 4:29-31 (NIV)
"Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your
servants to speak your word with great boldness.
Stretch out your hand to heal and perform
miraculous signs and wonders through the name
of your holy servant Jesus." After they prayed, the
place where they were meeting was shaken. And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke
the word of God boldly."
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The value of a team
1 Corinthians 12:14,18-19,21-23 (NIV)
"Now the body is not made up of one part but of
many... God has arranged the parts in the body,
every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If
they were all one part, where would the body be?
The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I don't need you!'
And the head cannot say to the feet, 'I don't need
you!' On the contrary, those parts of the body that
seem to be weaker are indispensable."
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Never give up!
Galatians 6:9 (NIV)
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the
proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not
give up."
Luke 8:15 (NIV)
"The seed on good soil stands for those with a
noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it,
and by persevering produce a crop."
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My vision statement
Because I have found such a priceless treasure in
my Beloved and His incredible love for me, I will
endeavor to dwell each moment in His Presence;
share with all who will listen how to find and
cultivate such a love; and respond to my Beloved's
heart by helping those whose lives are hindered by
poverty. I will especially care for and nurture the
precious wife and children God has given me.
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Action step example
Continue to develop and fine-tune how to get
people intimately connected to God. This will
include finishing writing a book on this topic,
promoting its sales and distribution, and speaking
at conferences and perhaps on radio and TV, and
seeking new ways to expand influence, perhaps
through advertising, podcasts, the Internet and
cellphones.
[I have other action steps for each part of the
vision statement]
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