BREAKING FREE Week 4

Message by:
Gail Scheffers
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Facts about Anger

Anger is mentioned 375 in the Bible.

Men usually get angry at things. Women usually get angry at people.

We all have anger. Anger is an emotion that is given by God.

Ephesians 4:26-32
in your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed until the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

How are we supposed to not sin in our anger?

1. Recognize where the anger is coming from.

a. Most anger comes from these three sources:

i. Hurt

ii. Frustration

iii. Insecurity

2. Take care of your anger as soon as possible.

3. Don’t allow Satan to get a foothold in your life over anger.

4. Use the right weapons.

2 Corinthians 10: 3-5
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

5. We have to take into captivity every angry thought. We must demolish footholds hopefully before they become strongholds.

6. Replace your anger with TRUTHS.

What are some things we can replace our anger with?

1. Put off the old self, put on your new self Ephesians 4:22


2. Made new in the attitude of your mind. Ephesians 4:23


3. Put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor. Ephesians 4:25


4. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths. Ephesians 4:29

7. Be aware of the progression of anger.

My Next Steps

1. This week I will talk to a trusted friend about my anger issues.
2. This week I will replace my anger with at least one of the things was mentioned in the message.
3. This week I will begin tearing down the strong hold of anger by memorizing and meditating Ephesians 4: 26-32 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.
4. This week I will pray for the people in my life who seem to have real issues with anger and speak with them as the Holy Spirit gives me opportunity.

BREAKING FREE Week 3

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Avoiding a Fatal Attraction

When dealing with fatal attractions or your thinking process that leads to actions there are Pre, In, and post things you can do.
The adult generation that left in the Exodus never got to see the promise land due to their sin. Only Joshua and Caleb made it in among adult men original to the Exodus.

1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

1. MAKE A COMMITMENT to keep God’s Standards.

Psalm 119:9
How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8
It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:13-20
You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”  But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.    Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

Proverbs 5:1-7
My son, pay attention to my wisdom, turn your ear to my words of insight,   that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge.   For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil;   but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword.   Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.   She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.   Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what I say.

Ephesians 5:3-5
But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

2. MAINTAIN your marriage.

Proverbs 5:18-19 (LB)
"... rejoice in your wife. Let her charms and tender embrace satisfy you. Let her love alone fill you with delight."

1 Corinthians 7:2-5
But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

3. MANAGE your mind.

James 1:13-15
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Matthew 5:28
"Anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

4. MONITOR your media intake.

Matthew 6:22-23
"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good you whole being will be full of light. But if bad ... full of darkness!"

Psalm 101:3
"I will set before my eyes no vile things."

2 Timothy 2:22 (LB)
"Run from anything that gives you evil thoughts but stay close to anything that makes you want to do right."

5. MINIMIZE the opportunities for temptation.

Matthew 26:41
“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

1 Corinthians 15:33
"Bad company corrupts good character."

6. MAGNIFY the consequences.

1 Thessalonians 4:1-5 (MSG)
One final word, friends. We ask you— urge is more like it—that you keep on doing what we told you to do to please God, not in a dogged religious plod, but in a living, spirited dance. You know the guidelines we laid out for you from the Master Jesus. God wants you to live a pure life. Keep yourselves from sexual promiscuity. Learn to appreciate and give dignity to your body, not abusing it, as is so common among those who know nothing of God.

James 1:12
"Blessed is the one who perseveres under temptation, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the victor's crown, the life God has promised to those who love Him."

BREAKING FREE Week 2

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

The Cure for your “I” Problem

James 4:6 (ESV)
"God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."

Good pride: Self-respect, dignity, satisfaction with a job well done. Joy in seeing others succeed.

Galatians 6:4
Each man should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself without comparing himself to somebody else."

2 Corinthians 7:4
I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.

Bad pride: Conceit, egotism, selfishness. Attitude of superiority.

Proverbs 16:5
The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

Proverbs 16:18
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

Proverbs 29:23
Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.

Grace is the change agent.

When you are in a situation that you cannot get out of or break through using your power, that’s when grace is needed. EX: Grace is God stepping in and giving you something you don’t deserve to take you to a place you couldn’t get to. It’s God giving a part of himself to you to change your situation. He is all about grace but opposes what works against grace-pride.

I. HOW PRIDE CAUSES PROBLEMS

1. It prevents me from growing.

Proverbs 26:12
"There is more hope for a fool than for a man who is wise in his own eyes."

Proverbs 10:17(LB)
"Anyone willing to be corrected is on the pathway to life. Anyone refusing has lost his chance."

2. It poisons relationships.

Proverbs 13:10
"Pride only breeds quarrels."

Matthew 7:5
"Take the log out of your own eye first, and then you will be able to see and take the speck out of your brother's eye."

3. It produces stress and anxiety.

Proverbs 29:25 (GN)
"It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you ..."

Matthew 5:5 (GN)
"The Lord gave us a mind and conscience. We cannot hide from ourselves."

II. HOW TO BE HUMBLE AND HAPPY

1. Admit my weaknesses honestly.

Proverbs 28:13 (LB)
"A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses and forsakes them, he gets another chance."

2. Evaluate my strengths realistically.

Romans 12:3 (CEV)
Galatians 6:4
"Each man should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself without comparing himself to somebody else."

3. Enjoy my successes gratefully.

1 Corinthians 4:7 (LB)
"What are you so puffed up about? What do you have that God hasn't given you? And if all you have is from God, why act as though you have accomplished something on your own?"

James 1:17

4. Serve others unselfishly.

Philippians 2:3-5
"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility, consider others better than yourselves... Look not only to your own interests, but also the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus Christ."

5. Humble myself voluntarily.

James 4:10
"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up."

BREAKING FREE Week 1

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

WHY DO I DO WHAT I DON'T WANT TO DO?

I. THE PROBLEM

Romans 7:15-16
For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good.

Mark 14:37
"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak."

II. GOD’S PROMISE

John 8:32
"Jesus said, `...When you know the Truth, the Truth will set you free."

Behind every self-defeating behavior is a lie that I'm believing.

Over the summer we're going to expose and uncover and challenge the untruths and faulty misconceptions and misperceptions that keep you hung up, that keep you bound, that keep you from being unloosed. I believe it's going to be a liberating series. Jesus said "When you know the Truth, the Truth will set you free."

III. THE PRESCRIPTION

a. ACKNOWLEDGE the root of my problem.

I John 1:8 (Living Bible)
"If we say we have no sin we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth."

If you'd go to Alcoholics Anonymous the very first step of AA is "Admit that I'm powerless to control my situation and my life has become unmanageable."

John 8:34
"Everyone who commits sin is its slave!"

b. BELIEVE that Christ can change me.

Romans 7:24-25
"Who can free me from this prison...? I thank God there is a way out through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Romans 8:2
"For the new spiritual principle of life in Jesus Christ lifts me out of the old vicious circle of sin..."

"The truth will set you free."

John 14:6
Jesus said "I am the Truth".

c. COMMIT all I am to Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17
"When anyone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun!"

You say, "If I become a Christian, won't God make me a fanatic?" No.

II Timothy 1:7
"The Spirit God gives us doesn't make us timid; instead his Spirit fills us with power, love, and self-control."

d. Move from Trying and Trusting.

2 Cor. 3:17
"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."

Today I commit to:

Admit the problem of sin in my life to myself and God.

Trust Christ with my life.

Encourage someone in my life about the freedom in Christ.