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GROW: 

The Grow Page exists to help the student grow deeper in their faith; and it also serves as a way to share with parents what we are teaching and how they can be encouraging their students in their faith journey.

Sunday: 11/20/11

Thank You For This Meal:  Reflections on Food and Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite Holidays because of what it represnts and how much God has provided for me and my family.  But the other thing I like about it is the food!  And this got me to thinking.  Food is talked about a lot in the Bible and almost always the food represents a truth about God or His people.  So here is a Biblical meal and what it represents in God's Word.

Bread:  (Exodus 16:1-5, John 6:28-40, Matthew 26:26)

Bread in the Bible often represents how God provides for the needs of his people.  When the Israelites had finally escaped slavery in Egypt, they spent 40 years wandering in the desert and during this time they grumbled and complained because they didn't have anything to eat.  So God provided manna, bread from heaven for them to gather and eat every morning.  But in order for them to enjoy the manna they had to obey God; they were only allowed to gather enough for one day (and on the day before the sabbath, two days) otherwise the manna would spoil and become rotten.

Jesus, too dealt a lot with bread.  He fed 5,000 people (plus women and children) with two fish and five loaves, and this elevated Him to rock star status.  At that time all the people wanted to do was see a miracle, but Jesus countered by saying that He was the bread of life, the sustinance and basic need of all who live.  Through Him, God provided Salvation, and forgiveness of sins.  When Jesus was sharing His last meal with His disciples He broke it and told them to eat the bread in memory of His body broken for us as His followers.

Vegetables:  (Daniel 1:8-16)

The vegetables represent loyalty and purity.  Daniel and his three friends who were slaves under Babylon, stuck to their convictions and only ate vegetables when the king wanted them to eat unclean meat that was offered to false gods.  Often we face peer pressure and temptations to do what we know is wrong, but God wants us to be loyal to Him and stick up for what we know is right.

Meat: (Exodus 12:1-6, Exodus 16:8)

To protect the people of Israel from the plague of the death of the firstborn, God commanded the people to take the best of the best of their flock; a pure spotless lamb, kill it, eat it and put its blood on their doorposts.  Those who did it were saved.  Also God provided meat for them in the desert when the manna wasn't enough.  Ultimately Jesus acted as the ultimate Passover lamb, when he came and lived a pure and spotless life and sacrificed himself for us so that we could be with God for eternity.  God provides Himself for us.

Fruit: (Galatians 5:22-24)

Our lives should reflect the God that we love and serve.  And like any good tree, we must produce good fruit: the fruit of the Spirit.  Love because God is love.  Joy, which is deeper than just the emotion of happiness, a peace that passes understanding and that guards our hearts and minds, patience- because we all need it, kindness which is more than just being nice, goodness, which reflects that God is good, faithfulness and loyalty to the God that first loved us, gentleness which turns away wrath, and self-control! (which is hard to do now isn't it)

Beverage: (John 4:10, 13-14, Matthew 26:27-28)

Water and blood both represent the washing away and cleansing of our sins.  We use water in the sacrament of baptism, and wine representing the blood in communion.  Jesus told the Samaritan woman that He had living water that would quinch her spiritual thirst for good.  And with his disciples he told them that the cup represented the blood of the covenant, his blood poured out for forgiveness of sins.

Dessert!: (Exodus 3:8, Psalm 119:103-105, Psalm 19:9-10)

The Israelites had one goal in mind after they left Egypt:  the Promised Land!  The land flowing iwth milk and honey that represented the fulfillment of God's promises.  Heaven is the promised land that we look forward to, but life lived for God on earth, too is sweet like honey.  Obedience and a desire to know God deeply, is like a churro covered in honey: sweet and fulfilling.

GROW

Read Luke 22:14-20…TO WIN THE PRIZE

Answer the following question about the “Going Deeper” passage and win the prize of the week. Bring your answer to Matt on Wednesday or Sunday.

-Jesus used the bread and the wine to represent his most precious gift to mankind.

Sunday: 11/13/11

Joshua 14:6-15, 24:14-27: BIG:  Kept Promises and Renewed Covenants

We have finally come to the end of our series on Joshua.  Joshua and the Israelites conquered much of the promised land and finally settled down to live in it.  Joshua divided the kingdom among the 12 tribes, giving certain land to the priests, and setting up cities of refuge for people who needed to escape for various reasons.  Not all the promised land was conquered, however: this was partly because of disobedience and partly because they became distracted with life.  But the remaining people in the land would war with the people of israel for years because they didn't finish the job.

Caleb, who along with Joshua were the only ones to report back after scouting the land that the land could be taken and that God would give them victory.  He finally came to Joshua and asked for his inheritance.  Caleb was bold and obedient to God.  The Bible says he followed God wholeheartedly!  Wow, I want that to be said of my life!  His obedience and loyal life was rewarded with his pick of the hill country of Hebron.

Joshua was getting old and was about to die, so he gathered the people and reminded them of why they had been so successful.  God had guided them, so Joshua encouraged them the way God had encouraged Him at the beginning of his time in leadership:  be strong and courageous!  Be bold and follow God with everything in you.  Don't worship other gods, don't turn away from Him no matter what you do!  He renewed the covenant that God had established with the people.  This is a good lesson for us to know that God rewards and blesses those who obey and live for Him.  It's a reminder I need every day.

GROW

Read Joshua 14:6-15…TO WIN THE PRIZE

Answer the following question about the “Going Deeper” passage and win the prize of the week. Bring your answer to Matt on Wednesday or Sunday.

-Caleb was faithful and was bold and he got his reward.

Sunday: 11/6/11

Joshua 10:1-15:  BIG: The DAY the Sun Didn't Set

If there is one thing that is certain today is that the sun will rise and set.  You can bank on this everyday, you can even set your watch to it!  We even have this thing called daylight savings time, where we attempt to conserve sunlight for half the year (except not here in Arizona).  The sun rising and the sun setting is a sure thing....except for the day the sun didn't set and stayed in the sky for an extra day.

It started with Joshua and company making an ill-advised pact with Gibeon.  The Gibeonites knew that if Israel knew they were their neighbors that they would attack and conquer them, so they instead decided to pose as travelers from far away.  Because they looked like nomads, the Israelites agreed to the pact/alliance!  Joshua didn't consult with God about this and before he knew it, he was bound to his word and had to protect Gibeon.  But Joshua kept his pact, so God didn't see it as a sin; just probably not the best decision he could have made.

The five kings of the Amorites decided to attack and wipe out Gibeon for being traitors.  Meanwhile Gibeon sent word to Gilgal to retreive Joshua and company to come help them in battle.   The Israelites marched all night long to get to Gibeon.  And that's when God decided to take over.  First he sent the enemy into confusion, then he rained down hail on them, killing more soldiers with hail then the Israelites did with the sword!  Finally Joshua prayed a prayer I prayed many times in college when I was behind on an assignment, "God let the sun stay in the sky...we need more time!"  But this time God heard and answered the prayer the way Joshua wanted.  The sun stayed in the sky for another full day, enough time for Joshua and Israel to route the 5 nations of the Amorites; including hunting down all five kings and finishing them off.

God desires for us to be obedient, and if we are, He causes big things to happen.  When our faith is in action, God is in motion.  And God commands our loyalty and our hearts.  Joshua saw amazing results because of his obedience.

GROW

Read Joshua 9:1-27…TO WIN THE PRIZE

Answer the following question about the “Going Deeper” passage and win the prize of the week. Bring your answer to Matt on Wednesday or Sunday.

-Joshua was tricked into making a pact with a nation that should have been Israel's enemy.

Q: Why do you think God allowed Joshua to make a pact with the people of Gibeon?  What was the lesson God wanted to teach Joshua through this?

Sunday: 10/9/11

Joshua 1:1-11:  BIG: The Apprentice Becomes the Master

We started a new series on the book of Joshua.  Joshua was Moses’ right hand man: his apprentice.  He was loyal to him and gleaned knowledge from him.   Because of his courage and willingness to take the promised land, though there are risks, Joshua eventually became the guy.  He was loyal to Moses but ultimately loyal to the Lord.  He was strong and courageous, and became a legend.

Have you ever been reminded to do something by your mom and dad?  Like: "take out the trash," "clean your room," "walk the cat."  Sometimes those reminders are helpful; exactly what we need to do what we need to do.  Other times its annoying, we feel like a failure that we simply have to be reminded to do the right thing.  Joshua was reminded three times in this passage to be strong and courageous.  I don't think Joshua was offended by these reminders, I think he needed them.  He had big shoes to fill, and He would only be able to fill them if He was strong, courageous, and relied on the Lord with all His heart.  Do you depend on the Lord or your own strength to get you by?

GROW

Read Numbers 14:1-9…TO WIN THE PRIZE

Answer the following question about the “Going Deeper” passage and win the prize of the week. Bring your answer to Matt on Wednesday or Sunday.

-10 of the 12 scouts said that the land couldn't be taken because of giants and fortified cities.

Wednesday: 9/28/11

Romans 3:19-26:  God Sets Things Right

We all have sinned:  every single one of us.  We are stained; we are fallen; we are broken.  Sin is the biggest problem historically in all of humanity and every generation struggles with it without exception.  Its important to realized how sinful we are, but the good news is that we aren't left without hope.  God realized that this was a problem, that we have fallen short of God's glory; His righteousness.  And there is nothing we can do to save ourselves or earn a way to be in God's presence.  The fact stands that God detests sin, its agains His nature; He can't be around it.  But God knew that He could set things Right.

Out of pure geneosity, He gave His Son to die on the cross and become an attoning sacrifice for all who believe.  His blood washes away the stain of our sin and makes us new.  God is in the restoration business and He loves making something new out of something broken:  look at the life of Job, for example. 

Trust in the One who died for you, who set things Right.  Depend on Him and not your own understanding and power to overcome this problem of sin.

GROW

Read Job 1:6-2:10; 42:1-17…TO WIN THE PRIZE

Answer the following question about the “Going Deeper” passage and win the prize of the week. Bring your answer to Matt on Wednesday or Sunday.

-Bad things happen in life and we often question why God would let them happen