Festival of Praise Sermon Notes

Festival of Praise has finally ended last week. It was the first I listened to Parachute Band performance and they are cool! =D Next year FOP dates have already been out and certainly I WILL BE THERE! =P

Rev. Mark Connor is a powerful speaker and I certainly love his humour too. Stil remember he is the guest speaker on my very first service at CHC...the presence of God is so strongly felt that day that I just know I have to come back to Him. And I am glad I am back now...yeah...hehe...lol

Anyway, just thought of sharing with you all the sermon notes for the 3 nights...in case you miss one and want to see what Rev. Mark Connor had preached...enjoy! *wink* =)

FESTIVAL OF PRAISE – DAY 1

Ingredients of a Healthy Church (01/08/2008)
By Rev. Mark Connor

Acts 9:31

“Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.”

Luke is focused on the atmosphere of the church.

1. Peace
2. Encouragement
3. Comfort
4. Fear of the Lord

#1: Peace -- Harmony / Unity

• Define peace with God
• Philippians 4:6-7

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

• Romans 12:18

“If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”

• “Go” in Greek is just means GO!

#2: Encouragement -- Edify

• “Encouragement” in Greek means to “build up”.
• How to encourage others:

[A] Affirm what other has already accomplished.

• Look for the good in the other and speak it out!
• Eg. God was praising Jesus the day he was born, that is even BEFORE he had done anything yet!

[B] Add to what is already there

• We see one another’s potential.
• God look at us the way we are and the person we can be.
• Speak to the other person’s potential and possible future!
• In Ephesians “…speak the truth in love…”
• The sooner you find mistakes / weaknesses, the sooner you can correct it.

#3: Comfort

• God choose to bring us THROUGH the fire (not above / below).
• Holy Spirit will come only when we call.
• We can draw on God’s comfort.
• Eg. Call the plumber when you need to fix the spoilt tap in your house.
• Can we do better than Job’s friends?
• When you go through difficult times, you don’t need a theological debate.

#4: Fear of the Lord -- Reference of God / Respect to God

• When you fear God, you will be more aware that He is with us all the time.
• Proverbs 9:10

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

• Eg. Drivers will change their way of driving when they see a traffic police car nearby.
• If we live with the awareness that God is with us all the time, we will make a smarter and better choice or decision in our lives.
• Acts 10

**Obedience is the ultimate act of worship.**

**Most Christians are educated beyond the level of obedience. ~John Maxwell**

**Ultimately, your church reflects who you are!**

FESTIVAL OF PRAISE – DAY 2

Growing Old or Growing Up (02/08/2008)
By Rev. Mark Connor

1 Corinthians 13:11

“When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”

• Being child-like NOT childish!
• Keep that child-like attitude à the quality of behavior!

**Maturity doesn’t come with age, but come with the ability to take responsibilities.**

Exodus 32:21

“And Moses said to Aaron, ‘What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a sin upon them?’”

Romans 14:12

“So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.”

• “Responsible” refers to the ability to response.
• God held each one of us to be responsible for our lives.
• Think à what is inside your circle of control and what is outside?

**What you have control over, you have the responsibilities over them.**

**We are responsible to people NOT for people.**

#1: Mind

• Our lives are shaped by our thinking.
• Bring captivity to every thought.

#2: Will

• Give leadership to our wills / decisions.
• Realizing and recognizing what you need to be done.
• Exodus 8:9-10

“And Moses said to Pharaoh, “Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the river only.”

So he said, “Tomorrow.” And he said, “Let it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God.”

#3: Emotions

• Emotions are indicators that tell us what’s happening.
• Do you replay the movies that you don’t like?
• Do you replay those sad moments in your life?
• You can choose to tune into positive or negative channels in your life.
• Joy is a CHOICE!

#4: Physical Body

• 1 Corinthians 9:27

“But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”

• Growing up is to take responsibilities and leadership of our lives (body, mind etc).

**Hurt people tends to hurt people.**

**God is calling us to be the THERMOSTATS in our world and in our local church.**

• Inside the house, a thermostat is something we set that dictates the temperature in a room.
• A thermometer simply tells us what the room temperature is.
• People are either thermostats or thermometers.
• You either gauge the temperature (thermometer) and gripe about the temperature, or you do something about it (thermostat).
• Christ wants us to live in such a way that our lives would set the tone in our workplaces, in our homes, and in our neighborhoods.
• Thermostats influence others for good and positively impact the social climate in which they are placed.
• When we take responsibilities of our own circle and make it healthy, the area outside our circle of control will also be influenced to move to the healthier level!

FESTIVAL OF PRAISE – DAY 3

Living in the Light of Eternity (03/08/2008)
By Rev. Mark Connor

Psalms 39:4-5

“LORD, make me to know my end,
And what is the measure of my days,
That I may know how frail I am
Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my age is as nothing before You;
Certainly every man at his best state is but vapor. Selah”

• James 4
• No one knows how long is the length of time between your birth date and your death date.
• What is it like to live your life everyday with the aspects of your eternity?
• What we value and therefore affect how we make our decisions.
• Where do we get our values from.
• 1 John 2:15-16

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world.”

• Romans 12:2

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

Values of the World:

1. Entertainment à Pleasure to life (Hebrews 11:25)

“…choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin…”

2. Possession à Lust to buy (1 Timothy 6:7)

“For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.”

3. Prestige à Pride of Life (Mark 10:31)

“But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

1 John 2:17

“And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”

3 Things that have Eternal Values

#1: Knowing God

• Not just knowing Him but to be his friend.
• Spend quality time with God.
• 1st Commandment: Mark 12:30

“And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.

This is the first commandment.”

#2: Love People

• 2nd Commandment: Mark 12:31

“And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

There is no other commandment greater than these.”

1 Corinthians 13:12

“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.”

• The way you treat people matters eternity.
• Jesus treats everyone with a 10.
• You treat people on how much value you see in them.
• Learn to treat people the way Jesus does à Put a 10 on everyone!

#3: Invest Your Time, Talents and Resources in the Works of God.

Ephesians 2:10

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

• It is in serving that you will find life.
• Eg. The selfish exercise: Open and close your both palms as you lay them shoulder-length apart in front of you. -- Do you realize how silly you are by putting out your hands and keep asking?
• The church and God’s work is NOT a one-man show!
• Be a participator and NOT the spectator.
• Matthew 7

**2 Questions to ask yourself before you die:

1. What did you do with Jesus?
2. What did you do with your life?

Note: These are not salvation questions but questions for God’s reward.