Summary of December 9 Care Group

Thanks to Kristi for the warm brownies and caramel swirl ice cream!
We began with ITim 1:15-17 "The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." We discussed how there is a balance between seeing our standing as "the worst of sinners" and "treasured children" of God. This requires that we ponder His holiness in light of our sin and then His mercy toward us.

Then we went to Gal 1 and discussed how God set Paul (and us) apart. None of us can know exactly how He treasures us, nor all the plans that He has for us. We are by nature pre-occupied with ourselves, so the challenge is for us to saturate our minds with thoughts of God. God's affections and reactions toward us are measured by the gospel. Amazing!! The Old Testament imagery is beautiful where God describes how He has "engraved us on the palms of His hands" and how He wanted to "gather His children like a mother hen gathers her chicks."

We must remember to emphasize God and His work in our lives and not over-emphasize our sin, as if it's the most important thing. The whole purpose of our lives and marriages is God's glory. When we understand that our sin is first against God, not any human being, then we can truly come to Him for help and repentance. The "hidden gift" we receive as we come to understand this is HUMILITY. Paul was a student of his own heart. We would do well to pay attention to our hearts and track the cravings and desires so that we can come more effectively under God's control.

Summary of November 11 Care Group

We shared a wonderful meal together at the Versaces' home. All 14 of us fit around the new table! What a great way to break it in. You guys are great friends!! During dessert we actually discussed Chapter 1 of our book which is called "What Really Matters in Marriage." We talked about "street theology" which is how we work out what we believe as we live every moment with our spouses. Some of us admitted that we were shocked to find out that the main point of our marriages is the glory of God and not our own personal satisfaction. God is indeed the center of our marriages, our lives, our every action. What we believe about God determines the quality of our marriage. We discussed how helpful is it to have a working knowledge of the doctrine of sin. The 2 questions we want to ask ourselves in a times of relational conflict are: 1) What is it that I'm desiring right now and not getting? 2) How can God be most glorified right now in my responses? We are so thankful for the grace of God and His amazing ability to keep our marriages thriving and growing despite our weaknesses and failures to obey Him repeatedly. "Till sin be bitter, marriage will not be sweet."

Summary of October 21 Care Group

We enjoyed a smorgasbord of desserts to start off the evening! Then Tony read to us from Psalm 9:1-2 "I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High." We finished sharing our personal testimonies to events or seasons in our lives where we knew God cared for us and showed his lovingkindness. Here are some comments:
-All our sharing of these stories are like sermons that keep repeating in my soul and I benefit from them through the week.
-God has used His church as an amazing, constant source of provision, encouragement and comfort through all the "stuff" of life.
-He is an ever-present help in trouble - much bigger than we ever imagined.
-We sometimes have scars after a trial as a memorial of His goodness and faithfulness to us.
-It's OK to have a scar, Jesus has them.
-We can profoundly affect younger believers by our testimonies of trusting God's sovereignty.
-What we believe about God is the most important thing, being able to trust that He is still faithful no matter the situation.

Summary of October 7 Care Group

Thanks to Sue for the pumpkin squares! We sang "How can I thank you, oh Lord, for taking my place on the cross? As long as I have breath I will praise you..." Then we began by relating how our children are doing. We realized that our well-being is integrally connected to what our children are going through. It is good for us as a group to be aware of how we can support each other an pray for all our children.

We continued to discuss events in our lives when we knew that God's hand was sustaining us and leading us, even if it was a long, difficult trial. These are the ideas that were presented:

-God is so kind, so wise and ready to help when we cry out for Him. He uses our friends to help us and encourage us.
-If we have God, nothing else matters. Like Spurgeon, we can say "I've given God everything else, He can have my reputation as well."
-Just how do we thank Him for His incredible love and mercy toward us??
-It's wonderful to lose our inflated sense of self-esteem and gain Christ!