Preparing for Sunday | July 16
SONGS WE’LL BE SINGING TOGETHER
Come to Me | [listen]
Elizabeth Akers, Jeff Capps, Michael Bleecker
Matthew 11:28-30
This I Believe (The Creed) | [listen | lyrics]
Ben Fielding, Matt Crocker
Romans 1:16
Good, Good Father | [listen]
Anthony Brown, Pat Barrett
Galatians 4:7
The Lion and the Lamb | [listen + lyrics]
Leeland Mooring, Benton Brown, Brian Johnson
Deuteronomy 33:26
O Praise The Name | [listen + lyrics]
by Benjamin Hastings, Dean Ussher, Marty Sampson
Romans 5:8
SERMON TEXT
Ephesians 4
Family Quest: A Heart of Wisdom, Lesson 4
LESSON 4: WHAT ARE YOU STORING UP?
Guard your heart for everything you do flows from it. A guard has two functions. The first is to keep out anyone or anything that will cause harm or does not have the owners permission to enter. The second is to allow in those persons or things that the owner has authorized. Why is a guard on the heart so critical? We’ve all used the expression, “garbage in, garbage out,” and are familiar with its implications in any type of analytical task. It can be equally applied to our heart (the biblical center of the will and emotions). How about this positive version of the expression, “Jesus in, Jesus out”? Both are biblical principles are they not? Regulating what goes in to the heart is directly connected to what will come out.
A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. (Luke 6:45)
How does a person guard or protect their heart then? One would be correct to say, “Flee the evil desires of youth!” (2 Tim 2:22) However that is only half of the truth. We are taught by God’s word that lasting heart health can only be achieved when we flee FROM those things of lesser value and TO some One of infinitely greater value. The passage cited above continues, “and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace.” Flee and pursue. How? We flee by creating distance between ourself and temptation, by turning our backs on the twisted values of the world. We pursue by “looking on” Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, by setting our hearts and minds on things above, by thinking about whatever is “true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable.” Finally, this call to flee and pursue is meant to be carried out in community. Let’s look again at our passage in full, “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” Let us encourage the children to guard their hearts with us.
BIG IDEA: Wisdom guards my heart.
MEDITATING ON THE WORD:
Proverbs 4:20-27
2 Timothy 2:22
Philippians 4:6-8
Psalm 101:3
Colossians 3:1-2
SECTION VERSE:
Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. – Proverbs 2:9-10
LESSON VERSE:
A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. – Luke 6:45
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
- Read Proverbs 4:20-27 out loud and discuss, verse by verse.
- How can we help keep our heart clean?
- Name some things that are not good to put in your heart. How about some good things?
- How can you apply what you learned in Quest this week?
– – –
ABOUT FAMILY QUEST: At Reston Bible Church, we firmly believe that parents are a child’s first and most important spiritual leader. In order to support you that mission, we have created a parent devotional and some discussion starters to go along with each lesson your grade school age children are learning at Quest on Sundays. Our hope and prayer is that this material will help you to engage with your children around the topics they are learning on Sunday mornings, answer their questions, go deeper with them, and find real, day-to-day applications. We are honored to be able to partner with you in the critical task of sharing Christ with the next generation.
Preparing for Sunday | July 9
SONGS WE’LL BE SINGING TOGETHER
Be Lifted High | [listen]
Mack Brock, Chris Brown, Jess Cates, Wade Joye, Jane Williams
John 3:30
This I Believe (The Creed) | [listen | lyrics]
Ben Fielding, Matt Crocker
Romans 1:16
What A Beautiful Name | [listen]
Ben Fielding, Brooke Ligertwood
Hebrews 1:3
Your Great Name | [listen + lyrics]
Michael Neale, Krissy Nordhoff
Philippians 2:10-11
Your Promises| [listen]
Chris Brown, Mack Brock, Steven Furtick, Wade Joye
2 Peter 1:3-4a
SERMON TEXT
James 1:2-4
Family Quest: A Heart of Wisdom, Lesson 3
LESSON 3: GOD IS A TRUSTWORTHY GUIDE
Spiritual G.P.S. The God Positioning System. Just like our geographical GPS requires three parts to function correctly, a satellite system, a receiver, and a reliable digital map, so does our spiritual GPS. It begins by having a connection to our heavenly Father through his Son, Jesus. The next piece is the indwelling Holy Spirit to quicken our conscience and open our spiritual eyes. Finally we need a reliable map; God’s living and powerful Word. With these 3 pieces our guidance system is complete.
Any GPS system is only useful if we have it turned on and actually follow the instructions given. However, while global positioning systems have gotten very sophisticated and much more reliable, they can still fail. Not so with our God guidance system. It is completely dependable and rejecting its guidance is the height of foolishness. Why you say? Let’s go back and look at its parts. The character of our heavenly Father, his all-knowing, all-powerful, all-present, and all-loving nature make Him 100% reliable over and against our “own understanding” of our circumstances and the world around us. His thoughts and ways are infinitely higher than ours. Then there is the submissive obedience of the Spirit to the Father and Son. This reassures us that He will only provide the guidance that the Father has spoken. Because they are one in three persons there is no chance of a communication breakdown. Finally, the living and active Word of God, divinely inspired, infallible, and protected through the ages, is given to us as God’s primary means of transforming our hearts and renewing our minds into the image of the Son. We have a reliable road map.
This spiritual GPS is worthy of our complete trust. Don’t second guess it with your own “understanding.” Put it to the test and you will see that it is truly wise to place our faith (confide = with faith) in the guidance of our God. Better yet, encourage the children to do the same and you will have an impact on eternity!
BIG IDEA: Trust in God’s wisdom and He will guide you.
MEDITATING ON THE WORD:
Proverbs 3:1-12
SECTION VERSE:
Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. – Proverbs 2:9-10
LESSON VERSE:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight. – Proverbs 3:5-6
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
- Read Proverbs 3:1-12 out loud and discuss, verse by verse.
- What are we told to do with God’s words?
- What does it mean to trust? Who is someone you trust? Why?
- How can you apply what you learned in Quest this week?
– – –
ABOUT FAMILY QUEST: At Reston Bible Church, we firmly believe that parents are a child’s first and most important spiritual leader. In order to support you that mission, we have created a parent devotional and some discussion starters to go along with each lesson your grade school age children are learning at Quest on Sundays. Our hope and prayer is that this material will help you to engage with your children around the topics they are learning on Sunday mornings, answer their questions, go deeper with them, and find real, day-to-day applications. We are honored to be able to partner with you in the critical task of sharing Christ with the next generation.
KIDS CAMP VIDEO: The Righteous League, Episode 5
Preparing for Sunday | July 2
SONGS WE’LL BE SINGING TOGETHER
Great And Mighty King | [listen]
Chris Brown, Zachary Kale, Brett Younker
Psalm 145:3
Christ Is Enough | [listen + lyrics]
Reuben Morgan, Jonas Myrin
2 Corinthians 12:9
How Deep The Father’s Love For Us | [listen + lyrics]
Stuart Townend
1 John 3:1
Nothing But the Blood
Robert Lowry
Hebrews 9:22
SERMON TEXT
Psalm 78
KIDS CAMP VIDEO: The Righteous League, Episode 4
KIDS CAMP VIDEO: The Righteous League, Episode 3
KIDS CAMP VIDEO: The Righteous League, Episode 2
KIDS CAMP VIDEO: The Righteous League, Episode 1