Life Lifters | Lakeshore Community Church

Nov 12 8:18 AM

Roller Coaster Called Life

Nov 12 8:18 AM

Friday, November 12, 2021

Roller coasters are amazing. However, the roller coaster of our lives isn't as fun as the physical roller coasters.

Friday, November 12, 2021

Philippians 4:11-113

Today, we're going to be talking about probably one of my favorite things: roller coasters. I love roller coasters so much that the first thing that I do when we go to Darien Lake or Seabreeze, is I run to the roller coaster. What I love about roller coasters is it has the ups, it has the downs, you go upsidedown, and you just exhilarating. It's exciting, it's fun, it has the loop-de-loops and everything. I mean, who doesn't love roller coasters? I know for some of you out there me just describing a roller coaster is already sending your anxiety through the roof, but trust me, roller coasters are amazing. However, the roller coaster of our lives isn't as fun as the physical roller coasters. Just like roller coasters, your life has ups, it has downs, it has loop-de-loops, and things don't always look the same way. Things aren't always good, and things aren't always bad. But it's not as fun, like I said, as a roller coaster is.

One person who knew this all too well was the Apostle Paul. Paul had a life that was filled with ups and downs, turns, loop-de-loops, and his life was like a roller coaster. One place we can see that is in Philippians 4:11-13. He tells us how we can get through this roller coaster called life. Starting in verse 11, he says, "I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." So, he's saying, "I've learned that in this roller coaster called life with its ups and with its downs, with its left turns and with its right turns, that in whatever situation, I need to be content. So in whatever he's going through, whether it's good or bad, I have learned what the secret is. The secret is, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me."

What Paul is saying here is that whatever it is that he went through, the good, the bad, the indifferent, all of it, he was able get through it because of Jesus. That's my encouragement to each and every one of you. It's the holiday season. Statistics show that the holiday season is probably the most depressing for people, because you have loss of family, friends that maybe have moved away, and family that have moved away. For a lot of people these bad memories come up around the holiday season. But it's a it's a time of joy as well. So I just encourage you, whatever you're feeling, whether it's a high or a low, whatever is going on in your life during this time, know that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. You don't do it alone. Not only does he walk with us, and he says he'll never leave us or forsake us, but he goes before us as well. So that's my encouragement to you, whatever you're going through, whatever situation you may be in today, just know that you can get through it with Jesus if you turn to Him.

By Pastor Antoine Evans

Sep 20 7:06 AM

Joy Through the Power of Jesus

Sep 20 7:06 AM

Monday, September 20, 2021

Today, I want to talk to you about the most famous verse in Philippians, the most well known verse, the most popular verse in the whole book of Philippians.

Monday, September 20, 2021

Philippians 4:13

Today, I want to talk to you about the most famous verse in Philippians, the most well known verse, the most popular verse in the whole book of Philippians. It comes from Philippians 4:13. I want to help you understand what it does and doesn't mean. Here's what it says, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Another translation says, "I can do all things through Christ, who gives me the strength." It's an amazing verse. It talks about the power of Jesus. We have joy in the power of Jesus. But it doesn't talk about the power of positive thinking. It doesn't say, I can do all things. It doesn't say, I can do all things that strengthen me. It doesn't say that at all. That's positive thinking. That's Pollyanna. That's what people who don't have Christ in them say. That's the first myth. Paul says, "I can do all things through Christ, who gives me the strength." So, you have to have Christ in your life to give you that strength.

Neither does it say I can do all things, and Jesus will help me do all things. That's another myth. It's not that YOU can do all things. Neither is it that you can do ALL things. You can't do everything. You have to do all things through Christ, which means that not everything that you want to do is something you are going to do, unless it is through Christ. So that's the balance. And here's what I want to say: I'm really joyful, that I can do all things through Christ, who gives me the strength. I'm really glad I can't do all things through myself, because then I'd work a steadfastly independent life of God. I wouldn't want that. And I'm sure glad it's not "I can do all things by using Christ to do anything I want," because some of the stuff I really want, I don't really need. The beautiful balance is this: you can do all things through Christ. This means two things. Number one, I can do all things only through Jesus Christ. Number two, since it comes through Jesus Christ, he only strengthens us for what is good for us. I find joy in that. Aren't you glad for that?

No matter what problem you're facing, Jesus Christ will give you the strength to overcome it. Maybe not overcome it the way you want, not overcome it in the time you want, but he gives you the strength to overcome it. You can do anything that God wants you to do, because he'll give you the strength. A trial, achievement, something in your family, something personal, whatever it is, Jesus Christ can give you the strength. He gives you the strength to accomplish exactly what he wants done. I like that, too. He never lets you get too far from him because it's only through Christ. Have you ever tried to do things on your own? You don't have the strength. Do you ever think something is good for you, you try to pursue it, and you try to think that it is Jesus's will, but it doesn't happen? Probably because it's not his will. The great thing is you can do all things through Christ who gives you the strength. Thank God that Jesus Christ gives us the strength to do things in life.

Life is tiring, exhausting, it saps me. Here at Lakehsore we're trying to fix a drain problem. It's nonstop. We have backed up water in our sewage pipes. We've looked at it and had different people look at it, and there are all kinds of problems. But I know that through Jesus Christ, he wants his church's parking lot not to flood. So, I'm trusting him to give me the strength, give Sal Mejia our facilities guy the strength, and to give our staff the strength to find the solution, even if it costs us some money, which it already has. Here's the thing, whatever's going on in your life, Jesus Christ will give you the strength. Isn't that a great promise? If God calls you through something, you will accomplish it through Jesus Christ, and that ought to fill you with joy. So, whatever is causing you to wonder and doubt, just give it to Jesus Christ. Say, "Jesus, take it. I can do all things through you." Then watch what he does in his perfect way, in his perfect time. Father, thank you for this great promise, this great key verse in the book of Philippians. Help us to understand it appropriately. It's not our own strength, and it's not everything we want, but it's through you. This means it's through your strength, and it's only in accordance with your will. We asked this in Jesus' name, amen.

By Pastor Vince DiPaola

Jan 07 8:33 AM

Strengths and Weaknesses | Part 4 | Strength in Weakness

Jan 07 8:33 AM

Thursday, January 7, 2021

Today, I want to talk to you about when weakness is strength. How can you be strong when you're weak? It seems like a complete oxymoron.

Thursday, January 7, 2021

2 Corinthians 12:8

Hey everybody. Thanks for joining me for part 4 of our study on Strengths and Weaknesses. This week, we have looked at how God gives you strengths to cultivate your confidence, gives you weakness to develop your dependence, and gives you limitations to fortify your faith. Today, I want to talk to you about when weakness is strength. How can you be strong when you're weak? It seems like a complete oxymoron. Well, you can be strong when you're weak when you understand what the Apostle Paul faced, as he described in 2 Corinthians 12.

2 Corinthians is probably one of the most neglected books of the New Testament. It's not really taught a lot and there are not many "good" verses in it. But it's Paul's most personal and vulnerable letter. He talks about all the different challenges he faced in dealing with the Corinthians. There were many accusations leveled against him: he wasn't an apostle, he was two- faced, etc, etc. In chapter 12, he talks about how he faced a problem in his life that made him so weak that he begged God to take it away. He called it a thorn in the flesh. We don't know what the thorn in the flesh was. It could have been a literal pain or a figurative expression. We don't know what it was, but it was so bad that Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12:8, "Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you. For my power is made perfect in weakness.'" Three times Paul pleaded with the Lord to take away the weakness, whatever this thorn in the flesh was. But sometimes God is not going to take away the thorn in the flesh. Sometimes he's going to allow it to work in your life, so that in your weakness his power might show up.

How was Paul's weakness strength? Here's a hint. Paul goes on to say, "Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." Can you imagine going to a meeting at work and bragging about your weaknesses? Well, Paul is not bragging about his particular weaknesses, he's bragging about the fact that weaknesses do certain things. He says, I will more gladly boast about my weaknesses, for when I am weak, then I am strong. What does that mean? It seems like a contradiction. Let me give you a couple of words to fill in that will add more clarity. When you study this passage, Paul is fundamentally saying, when I am weak in myself, then I am strong in the Lord.

What's he saying? Weakness can be strength when your weaknesses are brought to the strong attention of God Almighty. Paul had all of these challenges, especially the thorn in the flesh. He had hardships, insults, everything you can imagine, but he was strong, because in his weakness he turned to the strong God. If you didn't have any weaknesses, you wouldn't turn to the strong guy. You would just kind of muddled in the middle, getting by but not thriving. When you're weak, you turn to God and His strength, and he lifts you up higher than you would have ever been on your own. God doesn't want you to muddle in the middle. He wants you to be strong. So, when you're weak, acknowledge it. Be humble about it, speak to it. Be open about it. You have to tell everybody in the world about every weakness in your life. Just be a humble person, admit to God that you're weak, and then let God's strength replace your weakness. When I am weak in myself, then I am strong in him.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we all have weaknesses. Paul had them, and if he had them so do we. When we're weak in ourselves we can be strong, and you help us to turn to your strength. Help us to not dwell on our weakness, but dwell on your ability to get us through our weeknesses. Help us persevere through our weaknesses and to look to you always for your strength in them. Then when we're weak, we'll be strong in you. Thank you for this in Jesus' name, amen.

By Pastor Vince DiPaola

Jan 06 8:57 AM

Strengths and Weaknesses | Part 3 | Limitations

Jan 06 8:57 AM

Wednesday, January 6, 2021

You have to understand your limitations. Why does God give you limitations?

Wednesday, January 6, 2021

2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 11

Hi, everybody, thanks for joining me for part 3 of our study on strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. On Monday we saw that God gives you strengths to cultivate your confidence. God also gives all of us or allows all of us to have weaknesses. And he does that to develop our dependence. Today, I want to talk about a third thing God allows or gives you, and that's limitations. God gives us limitations to fortify our faith. What's the difference between a weakness and limitation? A weakness is something that comes at us, and we fall weak to. We fall prey to it. A limitation is something where we can only go so high through our own abilities. So, they're kind of directional. Weakness comes at us and we fall to them, whereas a limitation is something we're trying to do, but we we fall short of it.

So I want to talk to you about limitations. We all have limitations. Some of us have limitations in our education, or our intellect. Some of us have limitations because we've gone through bad experiences in our life, and they just limit our ability to trust or love. I don't know what your limitations are, but you have limits. Maybe you're just never going to be the visionary person, or you're never going to be the smile-all-the-time person, or you're never going to be this or that. You don't have to be any particular thing, but you have to understand your limitations. Why does God give you limitations? To fortify your faith, because faith is like a muscle. It must be strengthened and developed and fortified. Limitations will fortify your faith.

Where do I get that from? I get it from 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 11 TLB. This is what Paul says, "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but not crushed or broken. We are perplexed... but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.... Yes, we live under constant danger to our lives because we serve the Lord, but this gives us constant opportunities to show forth the power of Jesus Christ within our dying body." See that? Paul had limitations, but he wasn't broken or crushed. Limitations didn't let him give up or quit. What was Paul's limitation? People were after him because he was so on fire for Christ. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going. He said, "Our bodies are dying." You can take all the supplements in the world. You can exercise until you're blue in the face, but your body is dying. And Paul says even though we have that limitation, the power of Jesus Christ is going to show forth. What's happening in Paul's life? Despite all these limitations, Paul's faith is being fortified. Your body is decaying. I mean, when you're younger it's getting stronger and healthier, but when you get to a certain age (which we usually expect to be about two years older than what we currently are) your body becomes weaker.

God wants to give you faith in those limitations. When you say, "I can't do this," God says, "Beautiful! I can." That's what Paul was essentially saying, "I can't change all these people who are after me. I can't change all these limitations in my life. But guess what? The one thing I can change is my faith in God through them all." And God gives us limitations to fortify our faith. What limitations are you staring in the face right now, nose to nose with? Fortify your faith, trust God with them. Go to God and say, "I know this is a limitation for me. But I know you can break through the limitation." God can help you through those limitations if you put your faith in him like Paul did in 2 Corinthians 4. Are you willing to put your faith in God through those limitations?

Let's pray. Father, I don't know what is limiting those watching this Life Lifter today. Whatever is limiting them, I pray that their faith would help them break through the limitation. We will always have limitations. But I pray, God, that through every limitation we face, our faith in you will be fortified and strengthened like it was for Paul. He knew he could only do so much, but that you would do the rest. We'll put our faith in you. So, whatever people are struggling with, give them faith to trust you help see them through the other side. We ask this in Jesus' name, amen.

By Pastor Vince DiPaola

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Roller Coaster Called Life

Joy Through the Power of Jesus

Strengths and Weaknesses | Part 4 | Strength in Weakness

Strengths and Weaknesses | Part 3 | Limitations

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