Download Meeting: 3201 Sylvan Ave, Modesto, CA 95355 Mailing: 913 Floyd

Meeting: 3201 Sylvan Ave, Modesto, CA 95355
Mailing: 913 Floyd Ave, Modesto, CA 95350
May 20, 2012
Give God Your Best
God is our Savior and King. Give Him your best in every area of life.
Open in Prayer
Hook – Stories that Shape You (3min)
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Book or Movie or Song that impacted you – share with person next to you
For me – Lord of the Rings books – courage in the face of doom
Stories in the Bible can (and should) hugely shape us…reflect on the ones you
love most, let them shape you and change you.
For me – Pharisee and Tax Collector (humble, though talented), Poor Widow
(Two Penny story), Cain and Abel
The First Two Brothers (10min)
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Genesis 4:1-16 (p.5)
*Why did God not accept the gift?
o We aren’t positive, but we do know a few things…
o *Not about the type of gift (meat vs crops) – but something internal.
o *God not against the gift, but something was wrong with Cain’s attitude.
o *Abel gave his BEST (and Cain did not).
*Cain made 3 mistakes –
o *Gave less than his best
o *Rejected God – deserves and demands his best, gave a second chance
o *Murdered his brother – remove competition, rejection of God
Our Best for The Best (8-12min)
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*God deserves our best – nothing less.
o God will sometimes only accept our best.
*How we give shows what we think of God. (theology)
o How important is He? What does He deserve? Is He God – King, Savior?
o Cain viewed God only through punishment and protection – not
gratitude. Still many/most people today.)
*God wants our best, not perfection.
o The child’s coloring page – messy, but loved. YES, that is it! That is their
best.
o “At least I am at church.” “I don’t have time for devotions, but I at least I
thought about God today.” “I care about Jesus, but it is too hard to share
Him with others.” “I didn’t prepare for ministry, but at least I am here.”
 If that is truly your best – then YES!
 But for most – it is not your best. And when people are called out
on these things – they get mad! (at leaders, God)
o Sixpence None the Richer story.
“To transform religious and irreligious people into Fully Devoted Followers of Christ.”
Meeting: 3201 Sylvan Ave, Modesto, CA 95355
Mailing: 913 Floyd Ave, Modesto, CA 95350
o Sixpence None the Richer story.
 Everything we give Him – it is just giving BACK.
 It is like being given a million dollars and tossing pennies at the foot
of your Giver.
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 God wants our best, not perfection – God wants our love.
*God gave His best to us.
o Jesus – His Son, Himself – we do not deserve this love.
o Change the relationship from “Deserved” to “Desired”
 God WANTS to give His best to us.
 We WANT to give God our best. (not take His best and use it for
ourselves)
 = Salvation (from selfishness)
The Best Life (8min)
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*Discipleship – loving Jesus
o *Give God your best time – prayer, devos (all time from Him)
o Church commitments – yes, miss things for church on Sundays.
o (Chariots of Fire, Eric Liddell, if time) – soccer with Ben, football in HS
*Fellowship – loving His Family
o *Live a life of love. Serve others, helping out, listening – God has done all
of this for us.
o Good Sam story – it is ok to be late if you are helping others. 
o God’s love flowing through us.
*Mission – loving the lost and hurting
o *Give 100% back to God. (portions to church, all to God)
o Jesus 24/7 – work, words, no dividing
o Was Paul a tentmaker? Yes…and no. Same for you. “My job is to help
people know Jesus….I get paid to do some accounting work, too.”
Punch – “Never thought I could” (2min)
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Frank Riley – challenged me to give my best. Miss yg, b/c of practice. Frank – no,
tell coach you can’t make it. God first. Me – Never thought I could. I did, and
had to work harder to keep my starting spot – but I did. Changed the way I
thought about God, and life, and then work.
Frank challenged me in this thinking over and over – we give God our best,
nothing less.
And don't just do the minimum that will get you by. Do your best. Work from the
heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you'll get paid in full when you
come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you're
serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held
responsible. Being a follower of Jesus doesn't cover up bad work. Colossians
3:22b-25, The Message
We serve Jesus. From a heart of love, give God your BEST!
Close in Prayer
“To transform religious and irreligious people into Fully Devoted Followers of Christ.”
Meeting: 3201 Sylvan Ave, Modesto, CA 95355
Mailing: 913 Floyd Ave, Modesto, CA 95350
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“To transform religious and irreligious people into Fully Devoted Followers of Christ.”