Hurt But Not Hindered: How To Move Forward Part 4< Bible Study 2.24.21

Posted on March 4, 2021 by growintheword

Reconciliation

Delivered by Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III
Synopsis of February 24, 2021

Psalm 133:1-3 NKJV 1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! 2 It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. 3 It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing— Life forevermore.

I. INTRODUCTION

  1. What is reconciliation?  Allasso is a Greek word used for reconciliation and it means “to change or exchange. It can even be like the change between God and man.
  2. To say something needs to be reconciled, we assume that something must be broken or fragmented. When fragmentation comes, it can be reconciled by intentional engagement.

II. BIBLICALLY, WHAT IS RECONCILIATION?

  1. Romans 5:6-11 NKJV 6 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. – While we were sinners God saved us.
    1. We needed to be reconciled back to God. Someone had to initiate this.
  2. 2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, – God reconciles the world to himself.
  3. Romans 5:1 NKJV 5 Therefore, having been justified by faith, [a]we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, – Therefore we are no longer enemies of God. God loved us back to himself through His Spirit. God was always about reconciliation.
  4. God gives us the ministry of reconciliation.

III. THE INITIATOR VS. THE AGITATOR

  1. Initiator – The initiator wants to save the valued relationship. There is a reason reconciliation is important. God is trying to do something in the earth.
    1. We breakup and fracture relationships over the silliest things. The smallest of things cause breakdowns.
  2. Agitator – The agitator stirs up public feeling. They try to aggravate you.

IV. FOUR TYPES OF RECONCILIATION

  1. Deep Mutual Healing – This is when both parties come to an agreement that it is time to change.
  2. Shifting Your Expectations – No matter how you deny it, it goes back to our expectations. Expectations is the belief that it is going to happen one way only to find out that it happens another way.
    1. If one person decides to change their expectations of the other and it can fracture relationships.
    2. Sometimes you have to treat things like you do fish; you chew the meat up and spit out the bones.
  3. Agreeing to Disagree – This is agreeing to disagree, rather than trying to convince the other person that you are right. It’s not worth not being able to work together.
  4. Inner Resolution – Choose when the reconciling is not possible. If they slam the door on you, that’s all you can do.

V. BIBLICAL EXAMPLES

  1. Micah – Leads Reconciliation to The Will of God
    1. During the 8th century, it was a bad time full of corruption. Micah trying to get everyone back into the Will of God.
      1. Micah 7:1 NKJV  1 Woe is me! For I am like those who gather summer fruits, Like those who glean vintage grapes; There is no cluster to eat Of the first-ripe fruit which my soul desires. – There was no such harvest like this for Micah. Everyone was doing their own thing.
      1. Micah 3:8 NKJV 8 But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, And of justice and might, To declare to Jacob his transgression And to Israel his sin. – Micah initiated counsel and testimony to help people where they were. Many learned to live a new life.
    1. No matter what happens around you, be who God called you to be.
      1. Micah 7:7-9 NKJV 7 Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me. 8 Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness, The LORD will be a light to me. 9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD, Because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case And executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness. – Micah’s ability to reconcile his will to the Will of God, made him effective in carrying out God’s will.
  2. David And Saul – Resentment Leads to Death
  3. Saul didn’t realize that the seeds he sowed, caused his own destruction. Jealousy grew up in Saul against David.
  4. Saul neglected everything trying to kill David. Since Saul tried to kill David, he ran, and Saul spent all his time trying to hunt David down.
  5. David could have killed Saul on 2 different occasions.  However, David would not draw his sword against one of the Lord’s anointed. He let God live with Saul.
  6. Don’t come down to their level when you are anointed. Give it to God.
  7. If you go after revenge, you will miss what God has for your life.
  8. 1 Samuels 8:6-7 NKJV   6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. – God warned Samuel to let it go, because he did not want him to build up resentment against the people.
  9. Jacob And Esau – Reconciliation Leads to Love
  10. Esau was mad at Jacob for stealing his birth right.
    1. Genesis 33:4 NKJV 4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. – Even though his brother had stolen his birthright, Esau was willing to reconcile with Jacob.
  11. When people see us reconcile, they will see the God in us. We must be willing to say, no matter what happened, I want to make this right. Are you willing to make it right?
  12. If you don’t reconcile with each other, it can affect the way you worship God.
  13. God makes the first move by reconciling us back to himself. God gave his only begotten son that we might have everlasting life.
  14. If I am spiritual, I have to be the one that says, “I will be the one that makes this right”.
  15. Everybody might not reconcile with you, but you have to be the one that doesn’t want to live with regrets.

VI. RECONCILIATION CAUSES CLEAN HANDS

  1. Psalm 24:4-6 NKJV 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. 5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah – When the offended can reconcile to the offender, it speaks well of God.
  2. We have to declare, “Lord order my steps where I need to be, to reconcile with whom I need to reconcile. Remove the chaos from my life and let me walk in peace with you and others, in Jesus’ name, Amen”.
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Hurt But Not Hindered: How To Move Forward Part II

Posted on February 17, 2021 by growintheword

How To Move From Victim To Victor

Synopsis of Bible Study 2/10/21

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

1 Corinthians 15:57 NKJV 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I.            INTRODUCTION

  1. This world is full of people with a victim mentality. In a sense, they are enslaved.
  2. The way we look at the world is based on how the world reacts to us. What we look for in life, is what we find.
  3. When you finish moaning about life, do you feel empowered or disempowered? You can look up or you can get up!
  4. Some people complain all their lives, because they enjoy complaining.
  5. You can develop a victim mentality. A victim mentality is a mindset.
  6. To have a Victim Mentality, you are a person that views themself as a victim. This type of person accuses everyone of causing their dilemma.
  7. A Victor Mentality is one that sees him or herself coming out of their situation. They don’t make excuses or linger over things that have happened in their lives before.
  8. You’ve got to move on to a place where you become a victor. Will you put your energy into something positive, or will you linger around the victim story?

II.            THREE TYPES OF VICTIMS

  1. Martyr Victim – This is the person who solely feels sorry for themselves. They feel like they will be elevated if they victimized.
  2. Arrogant Inferior Victim – This type of victim cuts others down, so that they can feel better about themselves.
  3. Arrogant Super Victim – This type of victim is one that thinks they are more significant than the problem. They think everyone is beneath them.

III.            THE ROMANTIZITIAN OF VICTIMIZATION

  1. Why Is It Easier? The reason it is easier for some people to play a victim is because playing the victim is the path of least resistance for them. Additionally, some victims will find other victims to hang with.
  2. Once you snap out of the state of being a victim, your crowds change. Misery loves company.
  3. Many who live the victim role don’t realize how it affects others. When you play the role of a victim, your issues really effect the people that are around you.
  • Own Your Trauma, Do Not Dump Your Drama
  • When you own your drama, you won’t be likely to dump it onto others. Name the trauma, come to grips with the entire story, and find a therapist to help you work through it.
    • Find a professional to help you sort through your issues. You don’t have to expose all this stuff on your social media page. This is often how people are able to better target you.
  • Eventually, you are going to have to snap out of it! You have to snap out of this Victim Mentality.

IV.            7 SIGNS OF A VICTIM MENTALITY

  1. No Responsibility – Victims take no responsibility for the situations they find themselves in. We must be willing to find out what role we played into our problem.
  2. Living A Frozen Life – At this point, the victim is at the mercy of everyone and everything around them.
    1. Ask them why they are stagnant, and they will give you a laundry list of reasons and they will tell you that its mostly the fault of others.
    2. A large part of this is holding grudges. We’ve got to get to a place, where we realize that you can’t hold on to grudges. Grudges will make you a victim.
    3. Some people take on the role of being a victim because they like the attention.
  3. Permanent Self-Pity – This victim has a habit of pitying themselves like a defenseless child that can’t take care of itself.
  4. Constant Comparison – This type of victim compares themselves to others in a negative way. A victim will complain about everything, and never count their blessings.
  5. Critical – This type of victim is very critical. They find something negative in any and everything.
  6. Believe They Are Perfect – They all of a sudden think they are perfect. They think everyone has done them wrong.
  7. Easily Cut People Out – They are highly emotional. They cut people out of their lives at the drop of a hat.

V.            BIBLICAL EXAMPLES

  1. Lessons From The Life Of Hannah –
  2. Hannah felt like she was a victim. She had a problem and went directly to the Lord about it. Hannah was Elkanah’s first wife; after they had been married for ten years, he also took Peninnah.
  3. Peninnah was mocking Hannah, because she couldn’t have any children. This hurt Hannah tremendously. She decided to take her burden to God in faith.
  4. When we are faced with greatest trail, we need to do like Hannah and go to the Lord! She realized something. Hanna realizes that she could stay in her dilemma or go to God about it.

B.     Lessons From The Life Of Leah

  1. Leah was rejected by Jacob. She was presented to Jacob to marry, be he wanted Rachael. Jacob works 7 yrs to get Rachael’s hand in marriage and finds out that Leah had been placed in his tent instead. Jacob wanted Rachael so bad, he works an additional 7 yrs for her. This hurt Leah.
  2. Leah was unappreciated and started having babies for someone that doesn’t even want her. Each baby was named based on her emotional state.
    1. Leah’s first son was named Reuben which meant “to see”.
    1. The second son was called Simeon which meant, “God hath heard that I was hated”.
    1. The 3rd son was named Levi, which meant, “because I have given my husband a third son, he will live with me now”.
    1. Finally, she had a 4th son and called him Judah which means, “Praise”. Leah finally realized that she needed to go to God with her issues.
  3. It’s so convenient to be a victim. Being a Victor can only happen if Christ is at the center. When you decide to be a victorious Christian with God at the center, you have realized that you can only get there by Him.
  • CHARACTERISTICS OF A CHRIST-CENTERED VICTORIOUS LIFE

A.    Fear Does Not Defeat

  1. Psalm 112:6-8 NKJV 6 Surely he will never be shaken; The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance. 7 He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. 8 His heart is established; He will not be afraid, Until he sees his desire upon his enemies. – Victors lives in confidence and are secure. When the world becomes dark, he looks for the light.
  2. A Victor knows how to trust God. We must change our narrative. Trust God no matter how bad it may seem.
  • Flint-Focused
  • Isaiah 50:7 NKJV 7“For the Lord GOD will help Me; Therefore I will not be disgraced; Therefore I have set My face like a flint, And I know that I will not be ashamed. – This means we need to be laser focused between God and our goals.
  • We need to be humble, hardworking, and striving in excellence.
  • Guards Their Associations
  • Romans 8:14 NKJV 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
  • James 4:3-4 NKJV 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. 4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
  • 1 Corinthians 8:3 NKJV 3 But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.


  • Celebrates God’s Word
  • I know God’s word has value. When you celebrate God’s word, you operate in love.
  • A Victim thinks the whole world is against them. A Victor sees things as a challenge.
  • A Victor makes do with what he or she has, but a Victim looks for the handout.
  • What are you going to be? Will you be a Victim or Victor? This is a mindset. Learn who you are.
  • How long will you allow yourself to be a victim? When will you make a switch?
  • Hold your head up. Don’t walk through this life with you soul cast down.
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FIRST THINGS FIRST: Part III

Posted on January 25, 2021 by growintheword


FITNESS

Synopsis of Bible Study 01/21/21

Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III, D.Min.

Luke 10:27 NKJV 27 He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”

       I.            INTRODUCTION

  • Our body is the temple of the Lord. We have to take of our bodies, because our body belongs to God.

     II.            HEALTHY BODY, HEALTHY MIND, HEALTHY SPIRIT

  1. Psalm 139:13-14 NKJV
    13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. –  There are some people that take better care of their cars, than they do their bodies.
  2. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV
    19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. – All that God wants to do in life, he speaks it through the Holy Spirit that lives inside of us.
    1. We have to be careful what we put inside our bodies. God doesn’t want the Holy Spirit to sit in a lot of mess.
    1. Would you let you body lay in a dirty crib? You can contribute to your own demise, just by how you treat your temple.  
  3. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NKJV
    16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are. – You can’t deal with everyone else and not deal with what’s inside of you.
  4. 1 Corinthians 12:27 NKJV
    Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. – Your health is important to the whole Body of Christ. When your health knocks you out of operation, the whole body of Christ suffers.

  III.            FOUR REASONS YOU SHOULD EXERCISE

  1. Improve Your Mood – Some of you know that you are too moody. Physical activity also stimulates the release of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. These brain chemicals play an important part in regulating your mood.
    1. Serotonin is the key hormone that stabilizes our mood, feelings of well-being, and happiness. This hormone impacts your entire body. It enables brain cells and other nervous system cells to communicate with each other. Serotonin also helps with sleeping, eating, and digestion.
    1. Lots of people don’t have a outlet. Exercise gives you an outlet to release your frustrations too.
  2. Increase Energy Levels – There was a study in Georgia that found that exercise increases your energy by 20%.
  3. Create A Better Sleep Pattern – Sleep is part of taking care of yourself too. No boundaries, no schedule, and no balance causes you to have problems. Work on getting more sleep. Try to get 6 – 8 hrs sleep per night.
  4. Avoid Sickness – Exercise can help many issues. It can help your immune system which helps in avoiding sickness.

 IV.            LEARN TO SHIFT THE PHYSICAL INTO SPIRITUAL

Romans 8:5 NKJV
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. – It is essential in cultivating a mindset. When you are spiritual, you view your spiritual health in a spiritual capacity. This is warfare for us! We can’t expect God to do extraordinary things in our lives, if we don’t take care of our physical health.

  1. Physical Health Is A Result Of Emotional Health – Your physical health can directly affect your emotional health.
  2. Your Emotions Are Your Personal “Check Engine” Light – We see people emotionally eat. When they do this, this means that there is something emotional that they need to fix. You have to be your best version of yourself.
  3. Don’t Allow Your Fear Or Failure Keep You Out Of Shape – Be who God called you to be. Don’t quit, because somebody else is getting better results than you. Don’t try to replicate someone else, just be the best you that you can be.
  4. Take care of your Mental Health too. You can do this by listening to spiritual music or by sitting still and taking time to reflect on God.
    1. Jesus carried the cross after being scourged and beaten. He was nailed to the cross and then he gave up the ghost. To be clear, they didn’t kill him, He willing gave his life.
    1. Jesus died as a man, so we have to realize that He couldn’t have fulfilled his purpose as a man, if he had not been in shape. Your health and condition has a lot to do with you being able to carry out your purpose.
  5. Think about what you put into your body. Think as much about what you put into your body as you do that which you put on your body.
    1. How many people have we lost too soon, because of things like diabetes and heart disease?

    V.         MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS

(Case Study: Man In The Tombs)

Jesus meets the man in the tombs. He is placed among the tombs by other people, because he was cutting and himself and could have cause harm to come to others. When Jesus appears, the demon spirit inside him says to Jesus, “What have we to do with you” They know who Jesus is.

This man is in real pain. Some of us, like this demon possessed man, is haunted by demons. He can’t live in peace with himself. Everyone knows who he is. He is fit enough to break the bond of his chains, but not mentally sound enough to break the bond of the demons.

  1. Live Within The Parameters Of Peace – If you take care of your temple and your body, you will experience peace.
  2. There Is Hope For Your Healing – Jesus wants the man whole, not just healed. God wants you to be made whole. You’ve got to be willing to let go of anything that has you in despair.
  3. In the tomb, no one can hear the man, because he is with dead people. When you have mental issues, you have to be careful of the people you have around you. If you are around dead people, they might not hear you when you need help.
  4. What are you willing to pay for your deliverance? Matthew 8:28 – 32 – 28 And when He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men confronted Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. 29 And they cried out, saying, “[a]What business do You have with us, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before [b]the time?” 30 Now there was a herd of many pigs feeding at a distance from them. 31 And the demons begged Him, saying, “If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” 32 And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the pigs; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and [c]drowned in the waters. –  Jesus let the demons go into pigs as they requested. They went into the pigs, but then the pigs ran into the sea and drowned. There is always a price to pay for deliverance.
  5. In this season when we talk about eating right, we want your head and your body healthy. The woman with issue of blood touches the hem of Jesus’ garment and was healed. Jesus said that it was her faith that made her whole. In other words, she no longer has the issues and residue of what people did to her at throughout the years.

In a pandemic, your mind and body needs to be in optimal shape. Let’s keep our fitness up, so that we will be well enough to carry out the purpose that God has planned for us!

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First Things First: Part II , Bible Study 1.13.21

Posted on January 18, 2021 by growintheword

FAMILY/FRIENDS  

Synopsis of Bible Study 01.13.21 

Delivered by Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III 

  1. INTRODUCTION  
  1. When you think about this Family and Friends, you have to think of God as a Master Artist. When an artist does a masterpiece, it reveals a lot about who the artist is. When you look things like galaxy or humanity, it reveals a lot about God and who he is. Having said that, when you look at humanity, you can see that it reveals a lot about how God feels about family.  
  1. THE FAMILY IS A MASTERPIECE OF GOD’S CREATION  
  1. Genesis 1:27-28 NKJV  
    So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”  
  1. God takes the idea of family serious. We are products of our family unit. We are products of the homes and environment we were raised in. Out of these homes and environments comes our values and beliefs.  
  1. A THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE ON FAMILY  
  • Functionalism – The family performs functions for society. 
  1. The Primary Unit for Socializing Children – The primary unit provides social identity for your kids. How your children become has a lot to do with what the environment is like in the home. 
  1. Practical and Emotional Support – This controls how we are affirmed. It is the things that is poured in us. For example, “The thought that I can accomplish anything” or “No weapons formed against me will prosper” or “I have as much chance at this as anyone else”  
  1. Social Identity – With family, children are given their Social Class. Our family has a huge role in our development. The devil says to himself, if he attacks our family and friendships, he can affect not just us, but generations up the road. For example, if your kids grow up seeing violence and dysfunction, this is what they know and this is what they will pass down. 
  1. Families and Social Interaction – God creates us in his image. The essence of who you are is God. We were made in the image of God. 
  1. This image of God should be what people see in us. God imagined what we should become when he created us, but family can affect what we really become. 
  1. GOD’S CHARACTER IS REVEALED THROUGH FAMILY  
  1. What Is God’s Character?  
  1. Exodus 34:6-7 NKJV  
    And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” – This is the first description of God’s attributes found in the bible.  
  1. The core of God is rooted in love and generosity. What upsets God is sin, but He is angry only out of love for us. 
  1. Characteristics of God: 
  1. Compassion- God had compassion for the children of Israel. When I understand the compassion of God, it brings me to another understanding about how I should feel about family. 
  1. Grace – The grace that God bestows on me is what I don’t deserve. God blesses us even when we don’t deserve it. We must in turn give grace to our family. 
  1. Slow to anger – God doesn’t stay angry long. He doesn’t hold a grudge. You have to ask yourself, is what I’m angry about worth holding on to? 
  1. Fight for Family Not with Family – The family is under attack like never before. 
  1. Building from Brokenness – You have to know the power of building from brokenness. Remember all the times when God was protecting what the enemy was trying to attack. Remember Hannah wanted a child so bad, but she couldn’t have one. She was broken. In the end, God blessed her with a child. There is nothing so broken that God can’t fix it.  
  1. This is a season of restoration. You’ve got to be willing to fight for this thing. You have to know that the love of God will help you overcome anything.  
  1. God has great plans for your family. You can’t let the enemy have the final say.  
  1. You are a child’s first example of the love of God. If this is true, how do our kids view God. You have to be the example. Don’t drop your kids off at church and leave.  
  1. WE EXPERIENCE GOD’S LOVE THROUGH FAMILY  
  1. Proverbs 1:8 NKJV  
    My son, hear the instruction of your father, And do not forsake the law of your mother; – Pay attention! Some people’s work ethic comes from their family. The ways people interact with each other comes from what they learn from their family.  
  1. When kids always retaliate, this is behavior learned from home.  
  1. De-escalation strategies come from home. 
  1. Luke 2:51-52 NKJV  
    Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. – Families are our support emotionally too. 
  1. WE WERE CREATED FOR GODLY FRIENDSHIPS  

Genesis 2:18 NKJV  
And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” – God didn’t intend for us to be in isolation 

Proverbs 18:24 NKJV  
A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. – Real friends will be with you through all the seasons of your life. 

  1. Self-Sacrificing – Good friendships never loose consistency. They are willing to sacrifice for the friendship.  
  1. If you look at Jesus’ example of how he loved us and how he was there for us, you would treat your family differently. 
  1. Fruit Bearing – No one wants to be in a non-productive situation. Before you reproduce, make sure you are producing fruit. Otherwise you produce a generation that produces nothing.  
  1. CHARACTERISTICS OF A TRUE FRIEND  
  1. Trustworthy – A true friend can be trusted, they understand confidentiality, they build you up, they are loving, and they have your back.  
  1. Loving – You need somebody that loves you enough to tell you the truth. 
  1. Open – They love you enough to tell you the truth. 
  1. Respectful – They can listen without interrupting.  
  1. Servant – They are willing to give up themselves to serve a larger purpose. 
  1. Speaker of Truth – They are not afraid to tell you the truth.  
  1. Proverbs 9:8 NKJV  
    Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. – If they can’t tell you that you are wrong, then you weren’t friends anyway. – They ought to be able to rebuke you, because they love you.  
  1. Positive – Relationships need positive people. In Genesis 3, Adam is out of place and as a result, Eve is seduced by the Satan. This resulted in both Adam and Eve getting kicked out of the garden.  
  1. Conclusion 
  1. Cain killed Abel because of the disorder in the family unit.  
  1. The decisions you make today, impact your sons and your daughters.  
  1. You have to win the fight. Don’t go into the marriage if you not willing to fight for it. 
  1. God brings couples together for a reason. This thing is bigger than we are.  
  1. What relationships in your life, did the Devil disrupt, that was supposed to lead to something great? 
  1. Families are not perfect, because you are not, but they are worth fighting for.  
  1. In a story in the bible, a Father brings his son to Jesus that had a spirit in him that would throw him in water and in fire to try and destroy the boy. The Father bought his son to Jesus, because the disciples couldn’t help him.  
  1. Jesus asks how long he had been like this and his Father says, “Since he was a child”. The son is dealing with something that wasn’t dealt with in his early life, which means the same flaw that allowed the spirit to come into the son, may be found inside the father too. This is the reason the father asks for Jesus to help them both and not just the son.  
  1. Family effects more than just ourselves. 
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