Success Involves Help From Others - Oct 15

To reach your goals you need to enlist a team for support. I've been to Africa many times and heard this proverb over and over: "If you want to go fast, go by yourself. If you want to go far, go with others." We think it's important to make a speedy decision, but it's more important to make the right decision.

Success is never a one-man job; it takes teamwork. God wired it this way because the most important lesson he wants you to learn here on earth is to love people. Not only that, there are some things in your life that you will never be able to change without the support, prayers, and encouragement of other people. That's why it's so important to be in a small group.

Our verse today says it all. The stronger your team is, the more you can fulfill your dream.

Sometimes we tend to think that we are capable of doing everything on our own, instead of realizing that some things can only be done if there's a collective effort made by a team. We need to realize the power of being in the right group (this context meaning the right group of people that will uplift each other in a genuinely positive manner). If we are surrounded by good people, who have legitimately good intentions, we can be uplifted by them, and we can also uplift one another. This could be done through group prayers, encouragements, support, or just showing each other love and patience. We can help each other improve upon their weaknesses to make them strengths, and to make their strengths exceptional. Everyone can bring a positive contribution to a team, through their gifts and talents, through their kindness and compassion, through their knowledge, etc. This is why an individual can benefit from being in a group, all our positive contributions can be combined and gathered to make a huge impression in whatever we intend to do. One can contribute by using their strengths in one area, to help someone who is struggling in that same area improve. We begin to take care of each other, and learn to see each other in a loving, patient manner, ultimately helping one another succeed. A group becomes one under Christ.

17 As iron sharpens iron,
   so one person sharpens another.
Proverbs 27:17

8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
1 Peter 4:8-10

I remember hearing from a pastor about how important it is to "do life together". In life there are many challenges and temptations that can be overwhelming to the individual, but as a body of Christ with fellow believers those obstacles become far easier to control and conquer. Because God gave each of us different spiritual gifts, being in a group allows each of us to help one another according to our strengths and weaknesses. Another benefit to "doing life together" is accountability, where each member of the group can strengthen and encourage the other members who may be struggling in an area in their life. I really like Michelle's verse about iron sharpening iron; we can help one another through support, prayer, and encouragement to overcome challenges in life and ultimately grow closer to God.

I guess this sort of falls in line with the whole: the kingdom should only move with its people idea.

The fundamental idea that if we want God's Kingdom to progress, we should have the Kingdom and all its entirety including us progress. It should be a team effort, and not Michael Jordan carrying 7 billion people in a basketball game against Satan. Ok, bad analogy, but the point remains valid: we shouldn't be carrying others as dead weight, and neither should we be dead weight. If we're dead weight, we should make an active effort to change ourselves, and if we're not, we should be making an active effort to encourage the people who don't feel the power to work to change perspective and motivated themselves to work.

Jake's Michael Jordan analogy >
Anyways, I feel that a lot of us can get caught up in doing things independently without anyone's help or guidance, because there are a lot of people with the I-can-do-it-myself mentality. But a lot of the time it is with the help of others whether it may be in a group or just a wise adult or elder to help you achieve your goals. Having others in your life is a very good thing in your life, because when surrounded with the right group of people, they will give you different advice and perspectives, encourage you and support you throughout your life, and ultimately make yourself feel more comfortable with yourself. And all of this in turn will connect to your spiritual life with God and help you find the answers that you may not be able to accomplish on your own. Having others will surely benefit you, because every individual has their own talents, strengths and weaknesses. The help of others will make you stronger, and even if you only have a few people in your life that you can lean on in times of trouble, to love and care for one another, it will be worth it in the long run. "If you want to go fast, go by yourself. If you want to go far, go with others."

This brings me back to New York, when we did missions. At grand central station, I met a guy named Steve who immediately started swearing when our eyes crossed. "Nah don't worry man, nobody's ____ing sitting here." He moved his sleeping bag over and started talking to me before I got a word out. He had told me he had recently gone out of jail for 17 years (I think). He told me he had grown up in the church, where everyone was supportive of him and his family, everything was perfect on how everyone depended on each other. He told me he got to where he was today because of his pride. He said to never take our loved ones for granted. Also, he said that the hardest thing for someone to do is to be by themselves and the easiest thing is to forget. He had forgotten the blessings that God had given him which ultimately left him to be by himself. At that moment, I realized how God's grace is hidden because we choose to ignore it. Johaan did always pointed out that no man is an island in our bible study classes. We have to constantly remind ourselves before we recognize it when it's gone.

Bill Nye: “Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't.”

We are given a certain length in life for a reason.
I guess for me I remember getting frustrated since I wasn't able to be at a certain level in my faith like some of my other friends.
But I think that's what this life is for. To learn and continually grow. They always say: "slow and steady wins the race."
So don't rush things because we move forward throughout time.

Also, remember that you're not the only person going through this. Not everything has to be done alone. The church is a gathering and if we were supposed to deal with our growth alone, we wouldn't have pastors, missions, or churches.
We are one family. We support, help, and guide one another.
There is really something special about a team. All the different strengths makes us as a whole stronger. We help improve eachother and lead to success.
Doing things alone will become overwhelming and maybe devestating.

God has provided this community for us. so give and recieve and we will all get far.
~Audrey~

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
Finished my 19 page story in a day... gotta pat myself on the back for this one.
Man im so happy but tired at the same time lol...
ontowards devos

What i got from this devo is that, we are a team so that means we rely on each other. When others are struglling, we are struggling. When others are happy we are happy. I feel that as praise team we have gotten closer than before. I remember some of you guys were really shy and didnt talk alot. That was me too a couple of years ago. People change when we move slowly because we are all on the same pace and no one is just ahead of all of us. If one person were to be in a rush in a team, that person will have to be carrying the weights for the people who are slowing him/her down. We don't want that. what we want is for everyone to be walking together.

I think something we lack as a team is encouragements. I know that a little "good job man" really helps. I know when Kevin used to say "good job man" it did make me feel a little good hahahaha. As a team we should encourage others not only to make other team members feel good, but also when someone is struggling, we should be encouraging them and supporting them. That is a team.
GNITE
setlist will be up later tonight or early mounring tomarrow

Teamwork is not an individual pulling on the loads of (a) fellow teammate(s)'s, but rather, it is more about sharing the load together and getting to the final goal together.
I lack in what others are strong in, and others may lack what I'm strong in. However, that makes a strong team and one in which everyone can share the load equally. We pull each other up, and slow down when it's too overwhelming. Everyone is together in this, and in our praise team, we're all together in leading worship for the congregation and for God.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.