Serving Among Midlife Singles (SAMS)

Holidays can sometimes be difficult times for single adults because of death of a loved one, divorce, illness, family trauma, job loss, moving, etc. Here are some practical suggestions by author and speaker, Laura Petherbridge.

PREPARE. The ambush of emotions can attack at any time, prepare beforehand.
ACCEPT the difficulty of this time of year and your loss. Remind yourself that it’s a season and it will pass.
SOCIALIZE. Don’t hibernate. Insecure feelings may tempt you to isolate, but force yourself to go out even if it’s only for a short time.
LOWER your expectations. Movies and songs paint a very unrealistic picture of the holidays.
DON’T ANESTHETIZE the pain with drugs or alcohol. Numbing emotional distress with chemicals creates more depression.
TRIMMING. If old ornaments or trimming cause too much pain, don’t hang them this year. Put them aside for another time.
GET UP AND MOVE. Take care of your physical well-being. Healthy foods will give you strength; fattening and sugar filled foods can worsen your depression. Exercise produces natural stress reducers.
SHOP online if going to the mall is too stressful.
COPING STRATEGY. Have the phone number of your counselor, pastor, church, close friend or hotline already taped to your phone. Make the commitment to call someone if negative thoughts get fierce.
LIGHT. Get some sunshine. Winter can take its toll on our emotions by the loss of sun we experience.
INVITE a new same sex friend to see a movie, have dinner, or help decorate the house.
SET BOUNDARIES. Precisely explain to your family and friends what you are capable of doing this year, and what you aren’t. Don’t let others guilt you into taking on more than you can handle.
REACH OTHERS by discovering people that might be alone during the holidays.
BE CREATIVE. Do something completely different this year. Visit a friend, take a cruise, go to the mountains or the beach, go skiing or hiking. The list is endless.
©2007 Cook Communications Ministries

God Energizes Your Service to Others

God empowers you to successfully do everything he asks you to do. He transforms you inwardly with a growing desire to serve others, and then he gives you abilities to use in carrying out that desire.

http://purposedriven.com/blogs/dailyhope/index.html?contentid=7733

Effective with the new times for Fellowship, SAMs Community Group is moving to 12:30 pm (The Third Service time). We look forward to seeing you there in Room 605!!!

More announcements to come.

When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long. Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what you need before you ask him. Matthew 6:5-15 (TEV)

“Jesus says don’t get caught up in ritual prayer. You can’t impress God with fancy language, and you shouldn’t be trying to impress other people either. ”

God created you and so he wants you to be the real you. By being authentic when you speak to God, you worship him as you Creator.

For years I copied the prayers of other people. I noticed they used certain words and even a special tone of voice. I imitated all the religious clichés: “Lead, guide and direct us, O Lord.” “Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies.” “Bless the gift and the giver.”

In New Testament times, prayers were wordy, meaningless rituals.  There was no spontaneity, no genuineness.  But Jesus says don’t get caught up in ritual prayer. You don’t have to use fancy language.  You can’t impress God with fancy language, and you shouldn’t be trying to impress other people either.

I love to hear new Christians pray — no pious pomposity.  They haven’t learned the clichés yet.  They just say, “Hi, God.  It’s me.” That’s how you make contact with God. You just talk with your Heavenly Father about what’s on your mind. Just pray your heart.  Reveal yourself.

Imagine I walked in the door one evening and my kids said: “O, almighty procreator of our family.  How wonderful thou art, who sovereignly deposits our allowance to us.  Oh, the majesty of thy wonderful self!  We beseech thee to come eat dinner with us.” I’d check their temperatures to see if they were sick! I don’t want to hear that. I want them to say, “Hey! Dad’s home.  Good to see you, Pop!”

I’m not saying to be flippant in prayer, but that’s how you make contact with God. You just talk with him in a genuine and heartfelt way.

Jesus gives us a model we can use as we learn to make contact with God.http://profile.purposedriven.com/dailyhope/post.html?contentid=4246

PRAISE & WORSHIP! and Prayer!!!!
What does this mean to us? To you individually? How do you do it? When do
you do it? What does it look like? What good is it? Why do we do it?

Questions, questions, questions!

Here is what Rick Warren has to say about how God feels when we praise Him!

God Smiles When We Praise
by Rick Warren

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of
praise – the fruit of lips that confess his name. Hebrews 13:15 (NIV)

Few things feel better than receiving heartfelt praise and appreciation from
someone else. God loves it too. He smiles when we express our adoration and gratitude to him.

We praise God for who he is and we thank God for what he has done (Hebrews 13:15; Psalm 116:17). David said, “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the Lord” (Psalm 69:30-31 NIV).

An amazing thing happens when we offer praise and thanksgiving to God. When we give God enjoyment, our own hearts are filled with joy!

Worship works both ways too. We enjoy what God has done for us, and when we express that enjoyment to God, it brings him joy‹but it also increases our joy. The book of Psalms says, “The righteous are glad and rejoice in his presence; they are happy and shout for joy” (Psalm 68:3 TEV).

On Sundays, November 21st & December 28th, SAMS will again still be meeting and continuing the new tradition: Praise, Worship & Prayer! First we’ll invite you to fellowship with us as we have a breakfast brunch beginning (everyone bring a dish) at 9:00 am; then we’ll have a time of worship, just singing & listening to songs of praise to our Lord.  Then we’ll have a time of sharing of praises of what the Lord has done in our lives over the past few weeks and end with prayer as we go into the week of celebrating this special time of the year. Spread the word…invite your friends…come prepared!

2009/02/10

by Rick Warren

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans … to give you a future and a hope … You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest.” Jeremiah 29:11, 13 (LB)

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No matter what the pollsters, pundits, and prognosticators claim, no one can accurately predict all that is going to happen in the next year, let alone the next few days or weeks. Our best forecasts are just educated guesses.

Change is not only increasing in speed and intensity, but also in unpredictability. How can anyone succeed when the future is so uncertain?

The Bible suggests three timeless principles for facing an uncertain future: Continue Reading »

by Jon Walker

“I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know both how to have a little, and I know how to have a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret [of being content]—whether well-fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need.” Philippians 4:11–12 (HCSB)

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The Apostle Paul, who was blessed with great privileges – but also beaten and stripped of everything he had – taught that true contentment must be learned: “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (Philippians 4:12, NIV)

He teaches that God gives us strength to be content. This is an important spiritual truth to learn because if wealth, good looks, or the seemingly perfect spouse brought lasting contentment, then Hollywood would be filled with some of the most content and happy people on earth. But it’s not.

What does this mean?

Don’t compare yourself to others – When you compare your life with someone else’s, the only place it can lead is discontent. There will always be people who appear to be better off than you, but you don’t know their real circumstances.

I recall counseling a husband many years ago, who said he wished his wife could be more like so-and-so, and he named a woman in our congregation. What he didn’t know was that the woman was an alcoholic who was causing awful heartache and stress for her family and her husband. That’s why the Bible says it is unwise to compare ourselves with others or even with ourselves! (2 Corinthians 10:12)

Continue Reading »

We know that it is the Lord’s will for people to have a mate if they desire one. In the beginning when God created Adam, God Himself made this statement:

“… It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help mate for him” (Genesis 2:18 KJV).

“Now the Lord God said, It is not good (sufficient, satisfactory) that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper meet (suitable, adapted, completing) for him” (Genesis 2:18 Amplified).

The Lord wants to bring a mate to those who will ask Him and have the patience to wait for His choice.

There are some single people who are constantly out looking for a mate, and they are miserable because God has not sent them one yet. They have prayed and prayed, yet they still have no mate. Some settle for Satan’s provision instead of asking God for the patience to wait for the one whom He would send. If they would look to Jesus and seek to please Him, rather than being concerned about a mate, soon they would find the right one crossing their path. Looking for a man or woman to just keep them from being lonely or just to fill their needs or to be a father or mother to their children should not be the only reasons for desiring a mate. They also need to be concerned about what kind of husband or wife they would be for a mate. These single people are still much in the flesh if they just want their own needs met. They should ask the Lord to fill them with His love and peace. Continue Reading »

by Jon Walker“Let us agree to use all our energy in getting along with each other.” Romans 14:19a (Msg)If you have children, you’ll know exactly what I mean: Some days you look into their faces, and you see the attitudes of angels; on other days you want to scream, “Why can’t you just get along!” as they get into a cyclical argument about who moved a toy 1/32nd of an inch.Sometimes these opposite attitudes shift back and forth six times in five minutes!But let me ask you this: Do you think God ever looks at us – we adults; believers in community together – and he sighs, saying, “Why can’t my children just get along?’” Continue Reading »