The learning-to-thrive Podcast: Recent Episodes
David Higginbotham
Contact David for Comments and Questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
God is not who we think He is; He is who He is and not
who I imagine Him to be.
There is some objective truth about God, but it is not my imagination or my sensibilities that define or govern Him.
He exists independently of all of our beliefs about Him.
With that in mind, there are four questions that we are all wanting to find answers to:
Who is God? What is He like? What is He up to?
How can I get to know Him better?
CONTACT DAVID FOR COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS:
davidhiggtx@gmailcom
"There has never been a time when I am not completely dependent on God's grace, mercy, and love.”
I am not always aware of this need, but it always defines the broader context of my life. I ALWAYS NEED HIM!
Understanding this truth will help me to embrace the humility needed to receive grace from Abba and enable me to stand in His strength and express His life.
A growing awareness of one's need for God is not a sign of weakness or failure, it's a sign of growing maturity.
Contact David for any comments or questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
"True peace begins with the discovery that God isn't angry
with you...and never has been!"
In fact, He loves you completely and fully...and always has.
The Good News is that God has done everything necessary to enable you to have peace with Him and to enjoy a meaningful relationship with your creator.
(At the birth of Jesus, the angles proclaimed the Good News to all mankind: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace and goodwill toward mankind)
We must change our minds about who we believe He is (repent), and receive His love and the right relationship He freely offers us as a gift!
As we believe/embrace this Good News and receive this free gift, our lives are changed!
The proclamation of the arrival of Jesus started with "Peace on earth and goodwill toward men."
2 Corinthians 5:19 God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Reconciliation is about restoring peace and friendly relations between two parties.
FOR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS CONTACT DAVID:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
2 Cor 5:19 - God is no longer holding our trespasses against us
since the Cross…
Contact David For Comments or Questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
"To believe that the circumstances of my life reflect how God feels about me
is to live disconnected from the truth of the Gospel."
One of the most common mistakes we Believers make is to think
that our current circumstances accurately reflect God's feelings toward us.
We often live as if happy circumstances means a happy God,
and that un-happy circumstances means an un-happy God.
Thinking this way will guarantee your Emotional and Spiritual life
will look and feel like a roller coaster.
Do you think that when Paul the Apostle was being stoned
and left in the street for dead that God was unhappy with him?
( Hmmmm...I don't think so!)
CONTACT DAVID FOR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS:
DAVIDHIGGTX@GMAIL.COM
Jesus used the metaphor of the Vine when speaking to His disciples about this in John 15 and described himself as the Vine, and his followers as the branches. In the same way that a branch cannot bear fruit apart from the vine, we too cannot bear fruit on our own, or apart from Him.
The Vine is the source of Life and the branch is the receiver of Life since it has no Life on its own.
As long as the branch remains/abides/lives connected to the Vine it will be able to receive the Life the Vine provides. This will produce the Fruit the Vine desires through the branch.
This is the only way the branch can produce fruit. The branch cannot produce fruit apart from the Life of the Vine flowing through it, no matter how hard it tries.
It is not the branch's effort that produces the fruit, it is only the Life of the Vine that produces the fruit.
What is the fruit that the Vine produces through/in the branch? The Vine produces the Fruit of its Life or the Fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5)
CONTACT DAVID FOR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS-
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Jesus used the metaphor of the Vine when speaking to His disciples in John 15. He described himself as the Vine, and his followers as the branches. In the same way that a branch cannot bear fruit apart from the vine, we too cannot bear fruit on our own, or apart from Him.
The Vine is the source of Life and, the branch is the receiver of Life since it has no Life on its own.
As long as the branch remains/abides/lives connected to the Vine it will be in a position to receive the Life the Vine provides. This will produce the Fruit the Vine desires through the branch.
This is the only way the branch can produce fruit. The branch cannot produce fruit apart from the Life of the Vine flowing through it, no matter how hard it tries.
It's not the branch that produces the fruit, it is only the Life of the Vine.
What is the fruit that the Vine produces through/in the branch? The Vine produces the Fruit of its Life, otherwise known as the Fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5)
Contact David For comments OR Questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
"God's love for you has nothing to do with how you've acted today, yesterday...or ever. His love for you has nothing to do with you. It has everything to do with Him. He loves you because of who He is.
He IS love!"
The unsettled issue isn't on God's side—it's on ours. Will I believe/embrace this truth? Will I stop striving to earn his love and acceptance and receive it as His gift to me? Doing so makes all the difference in life.
Disappointment is an emotional response to an unexpected event or
outcome. Does God ever encounter unexpected events
or outcomes in your life?
Contact David for any questions or comments-
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Our Father invites us to join Him on an adventurous journey of learning to partner with Him as He impacts the world around us and through us through His Love!
I had been on a decades-long journey of learning how to follow a series of religious rules and trying to act like Jesus or doing the best I knew how. That eventually brought little more than frustration and burnout because there is NO LIFE in following a Religious System! Life only comes from Him and through learning to cooperate with Him!
2 Cor 5:15 He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but live to Him who died for them.
Jn 14:20 In that day [after the HS has come to you] you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
- Read the whole chapter Jn. 14. See the emphasis on obeying MY NOTE: not THE Commandments, as in the Big 10, but MY Commands…as in LOVE ONE ANOTHER!
- This is the focus of partnering with God…learning to Love others as He loves us and them!
- Paul talked about being a co-laborer with Christ
CONTACT DAVID FOR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE OR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE…
You have ALWAYS been the object of the love which flows from God’s Father Heart toward His creation. (John 3:16)
Does God still love the world today as much as when He gave
“His only begotten Son” to become the savior of the “World?”
The parable of the prodigal son is a snapshot of God’s loving heart for His creation. This POV provoked the religious people of Jesus’ day, and STILL provokes the religious crowd of our day.
All creation is held together in Christ, and if separated from Him, would cease to exist. (Col. 1:17)
Our religion has taught us that only some people are actually loved & accepted by God; those who have jumped through the right hoops. The others can become loved by God if they jump through the right hoops too. This sets up a barrier that those who are addicted to religion can hide behind. “I’ve jumped through the right hoops to gain God’s love & acceptance…they can jump through the right hoops too to gain God’s love & acceptance too.”
Becoming a child of God (through believing/trust/faith) speaks about the “Way of your being”(expression of your life) not the “Truth of your being” which is the Core Truth of your Identity.
Existential Experience (the Expression of your Life- which is how you act in the moment) compared to Ontological Reality (Your Core Identity which God establishes).
What about “you’re of your father the devil?” Was Jesus saying they were demons? Or was it similar to when He said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan?” Was he saying Peter wasn’t a child of God? Was He saying the religious leaders were NOT children of Israel and God’s people? No, I don’t think so. He was saying, “The way you are acting is more like Satan’s children than God’s. Get your stuff together!”
Contact David for Comments and Questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Some Books Related To The Early Church
Pagan Christianity- Frank Viola & George Barna
Reimagining Church- Frank Viola
Finding Organic Church- Frank Viola
Paul's Idea of Community- Robert J. Banks
Contact David for any questions or comments-
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
How often should I pray?
- What is prayer anyway? Communicating with God. Talking & listening. Dialogue with God.
- We could be praying all the time… Back Burner Prayer
- Praying at all times in the Spirit
- Praying without ceasing. How can you be always in a place of prayer?
- There is a subjective element in prayer.
- We need to be getting off the performance hamster wheel and learning to get up in the morning and just being ourselves! Go be you!
- If we’re going to successfully navigate life on this side of the cross, we need to learn to pray at all times in the Spirit.
Contact David for any comments and questions:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Let’s Talk About Sin-
- Performance-based expectations and Paradigms
- What does it mean to be Holy? It has nothing to do with not sinning.
- Ontology vs Experience
- Earning the Sin Tracker merit badge by keeping track of my sin…and others too.
- What is sin? Any Motive, Attitude, or Action that is not an expression of our Relational Trust in God is a sin. (Rom 14:23)
- Why do Christians still sin? We Christians still find ourselves sinning because we are still human. It is the activity of the Flesh in our lives.
- If we’re going to navigate life on this side of the cross successfully, we need to learn that God has completely dealt with the “sin issue” in my life and the life of every other human.
Contact David for Questions or Comments-
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
How Forgiven Am I?
- When did God forgive me?
- When Jesus completed His work through His death, burial, and resurrection.
- How thorough is it?
- You’re either completely forgiven or not at all. (1 Cor 5)
- You were forgiven once-for-all… Hebrews
- What is it that makes forgiveness possible?
- The loving father’s heart of God!
- What does forgiving others look like?
- It’s the choice of a heart that is willing to let go or the “right” to be offended and to hold something over someone else’s head.
- What about 1 John 1:9 and confessing?
- Is it possible that we might have missed confessing a sin along the way?
- Absolutely!
- It's not only possible, it's certain.
- If confession is necessary for every sin to be forgiven and we miss any…we’re in trouble.
- If we’re going to navigate life on this side of the cross successfully, we need to learn how completely and fully forgiven we are in Christ and then learn to pass that gift on to others!
Contact David for any comments or questions-
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
What role does The Law of Moses play in a
Christian’s day-to-day life?
- None!
- There is no place for a direct practical application of the Law of Moses to the daily life of a Christian. Remember, it's an all-or-nothing proposition. We don't get to pick and choose which laws we want to obey if we want to live under the Law of Moses.
- Are there things we can learn from the Law? Yes, many things. But our practical daily lives, nor our ongoing New Covenant relationship with God, are governed by the Law of Moses.
- To whom was The Law of Moses given? The Children of Israel.
- We Gentiles were never given access to nor included in the giving or receiving of the Law. It was not meant for any group other than Israel.
- (Eph. 2:11-22)
- At one time, you were:
- Called the Uncircumcision
- separated from God
- alienated from the Commonwealth of Israel
- strangers to the covenants of promise
- having no hope and without God in the world.
- But now, in Christ Jesus:
- You who were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
- He Himself is our peace,
- He has made the two of us [Jew & Gentile] both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility
- By abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances,
- So that He might create for Himself one new man in place of the two, thereby making peace.
- And might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.
- For the first several decades of the Church’s history, the majority of Christians were Jews who were raised under The Law of Moses, and it was intricately involved in their culture.
- The Hebrew Scripture was the only Bible the Primitive Church had, and they mostly used the Septuagint (Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures). Greek was the common trade language and was familiar to most people.
- The Hebrew Scriptures are a record of God calling to Himself a people (Israel) through whom He would bring the Son of redemption (Jesus) into the world for the benefit of all peoples.
- The New Covenant Scriptures were written over several decades as the Church grew. They were passed around and began developing a wide range of acceptance, but were not completely codified for several hundred years.
- The Hebrew Scriptures were embraced as authoritative by the first-century believers, most of whom for the first few decades, were Jewish, and had been raised with them as their Bible.
- It’s interesting, however, that the new Gentile Christians were never told or encouraged to adopt the detailed religious structure and practice laid out in the Old Covenant Scriptures, except by the Judaizers which Paul strongly opposed in his letter to the Galatian churches.
- If The Law of Moses is not a guide for how I should live my day-to-day life, what will be? (and let’s be clear about this question, NO ONE LIVES THEIR LIVES WITH THE LAW OF MOSES AS A DAY-TO-DAY GUIDE. Because it requires sacrifices offered in a specific way at a specific place and that can’t be accomplished.
- Jesus points us toward living a life that is fueled by Love and guided by the Spirit.
- If we’re going to successfully navigate life on this side of the cross, we need to learn to live lives fueled by Love and guided by the Spirit.
You can reach David for comments or questions here:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
What about Checklists?
(10 things I must do each day/week etc.)
- Don’t I need to keep track of how I’m doing?
- Regularly looking at your life to see how God’s Spirit is producing His fruit in you would be a better use of your time. (Galatians 5)
- Regularly engaging with some friends who are also on a Journey with Jesus and getting input from them about the “Flavor” your life is expressing is also a good place to start.
- How else do I measure my Spiritual Growth…or should I?
- Don’t worry about your Spiritual Growth…focus your heart on getting to know and love Jesus more.
- Do this with a group of friends and keep your heart focused on Jesus and His Love for you and others.
- Live from that place and Spiritual Growth will take care of itself.
- Living in a comparison driven & competitive Religious Culture
- Evaluating your Spiritual Life by comparison to others is a natural and culturally motivated activity
- The first Disciples of Jesus did the same thing…
- It will not be any more beneficial to you than it was for them.
- Comparing ourselves among ourselves is specifically discouraged in the NT (2 Cor. 10:12)
- What is Fruitfulness?
- As I grow in my understanding of what it means to live my life in Christ (Abide), and let His Life, Light, and love be my source for life, the Fruit of the Holy Spirit will be produced in me by Him.
- He produces His fruit…I cooperate with Him.
- He’s the Vine…I’m the branch!
- CHECKLISTS ARE FOR ORGANIZATION, NOT COMPARISON!
- Checklists are good for helping us get organized and get tasks accomplished
- Our walk with God is a journey…not a task.
- We need to learn how to live without the ‘threat’ of disappointing God and find freedom in being the person Christ made us to be.
- You are completely and fully loved, accepted, and forgiven by God…
- You always have been…
- You always will be…
- Nothing anyone says or does will ever change that truth
- So…focus on learning to get up every morning and just GO BE YOU!
CONTACT DAVID FOR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
- People who were “Disciples of Jesus” were first called Christians at Antioch. The term meant “Little Christs” or “Little Messiahs” (Christ means Anointed One/Messiah) Originally intended as a slur, it was eventually embraced as a badge of honor by the People of the Way.
- WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO REALLY BE A CHRISTIAN?
- It’s NOT about:
- cleaning up your act so you’ll be acceptable to God.
- “Finding Religion”
- Turning your life around or turning over a new leaf
- Joining a Church or religious group.
- Reading the Bible and praying regularly
- Embracing and/or practicing Spiritual Disciplines
- Becoming someone who prayed a prayer, jumped through some religious hoops, and checked off items on a spiritual to-do-list.
- Not doing bad stuff anymore and starting to do good stuff
- It IS about becoming a person whose life has been and is being, transformed by God’s Holy Spirit who lives within you.
- It IS about living a life that looks more and more like Jesus, as we learn to cooperate with Him living His Life through us.
- It IS about a few things that you believe AND about how you live your life toward others and in this world.
- It IS about Beliefs AND Behavior!
- HOW DOES ONE BECOME A BELIEVER IN / FOLLOWER OF JESUS? (Christian)
- Repent- Change your mind
- About God (Who is He and what is He up to?)
- About yourself
- About your need for a Savior
- About your inability to be your own Savior
- Believe (trust in) the Good News (Gospel)- The Gospel declares what God HAS done:
- God has broken down any barriers between you and Him,
- He has completely and fully forgiven you thru what Jesus accomplished on your behalf.
- Has made peace between Himself and you.
- He has made His Love, His Light, and His Life available to you.
- Will you receive this Gift?
- Receive Him as Lord (King) & Savior (Source). This means giving yourself to a journey of learning to live life every day with Jesus as your King & Source of Life…This is becoming a Disciple of Jesus.
- Living life in Christ is an Incarnational journey. It’s about learning to allow Jesus, by the presence of the Holy Spirit, to live His Life in & through you. It’s not about you, using your own abilities and trying your best to live like Him.
- HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN? Great Question! The simple answer is that we know we are Christians by Faith (Relational Trust in a person).
- His Spirit convinces our spirit that we are His children. (Romans 8:16)
- Living life in Christ is a miracle and a mystery.
- BUT I STILL MESS UP AND SIN!
- Living life in Christ always involves OJT! (on-the-job training) in much the same way that being a human involves OJT. (age appropriate)
- Living Life in Christ means learning to live in harmony with our growing understanding of who God is, what He has done for us, in us, and what He can do through us.
- LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS NOT A “THING THAT YOU DO.” IT’S A COOPERATIVE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR CREATOR. IT’S A JOURNEY IN WHICH YOU LEARN TO RECEIVE HIS LIFE, LIGHT, AND LOVE IN THE SAME WAY THAT THE BRANCH RECEIVES ITS LIFE FROM THE VINE.
CONTACT DAVID FOR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
There are no notes for this Recap. Please send me an email for the PDFs on
1 Cor 13 and The One Another Commands
Contact David For Comments or Questions
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
If you would like to have the "One Another Commands" PDF
please send me an email requesting one.
CONTACT DAVID FOR ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
I've created a PDF of the notes on this episode dealing with 1 Corinthians 13.
If you would like these notes, please send me an email requesting them.
CONTACT DAVID FOR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
What’s Love got to do with it?
- What’s Love got to do with learning to navigate life on this side of the Cross?
- I’m going to say it has EVERYTHING to do with it.
- [Vocabularies & Dictionaries Alert!] When we talk about Love what are we talking about?
- Here's a description of the Love we're talking about (Agape) = Others-Centered, Self-Giving, Radically Forgiving, Co-Suffering, All Encompassing Love.
- This kind of Love (Agape) reflects the very essence of God’s nature, not an attribute like His Omnipresence or Faithfulness.
- Agape’ is at the center of God’s involvement with His Creation and always has been (Agape changed everything)
- God is Love, Light, Life, and is the source of all three.
- This kind of Love is the central expression of what it means to live our Life in Christ. (Others will know you are my disciples...)
- God’s Love being expressed in and through us, is what it means to live the Christian life.
- HIS LOVE IS THE FUEL THAT ANIMATES OUR LIFE IN CHRIST!
- We are never in or out of Christ based on our expressions of Love, or lack of it. We will, however, find ourselves acting in harmony with His nature or not.
- Where does the love we see expressed in the world come from? Parent to child. Brother to sister. Man to woman. Friend to friend.
- If God IS Love, wouldn’t it follow that all expressions of love, imperfect and incomplete though they may be, must come from Him? If not, what is the other source of Love in the world?
- Living the Christian Life is only made possible by the presence of the HS within us. Not by our commitment, determination, activity, abilities, religious training, or our good intentions.
- We can’t live the Christian Life in our own capacity; HE must live His life in us. We cooperate with Him like the branch does with the vine. This is a mystery, but it defines what we call the Branch & Vine Paradigm.
- If I hope to navigate life on this side of the Cross successfully, I must have a growing understanding of two things: My True Identity (who I truly am in Christ) and My Source of Life (I’m the branch and He is the Vine).
- He is the Vine, and we are the branches. The Vine has Life. The branch has no life in itself and only receives life from the Vine. Fruit is produced by the Vine through the branch.
- I must connect with the reality of God’s complete and absolute love for me and its implications, or I will always be dependent on my latest performance, and the opinions of others as a source of significance or acceptance.
Contact David for Questions or Comments:
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
There are no notes for the Bonus Episodes
Contact David for Comments and Suggestions
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
There are no notes for the Bonus Episodes
David & Tom take a few minutes to wrap up the first season of the podcast and preview some things that are coming up in season 2.
Feel free to reach out to David at davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Email David at davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Encouraging Others-
Learning to Mentor/Support Others in Their Journey with Jesus-
- The things we’ve covered in the previous Bonus Episodes have been intended to help us develop a THRIVING Journey with Jesus: Living Loved, Loving Others, Abide Daily, Spirit Walk, and Soul Care.
- As we learn to share with others this Journey we’re making with Jesus, and learn to include them in that journey, we are learning to sow encouragement into their lives through our words and our interaction with them.
- Put another way…when we are maturing as “learners (disciples) of Jesus” (Mat 11:29) the overflow of the Life of Jesus in us will touch the lives of those around us. This can/will help them be drawn into or grow in their journey with Jesus too.
- Organic/Relational Discipleship is about sharing the dynamic life of Christ first, and information 2nd.
- Look for the opportunity to develop a Band of Brothers or Sisters who are learning to share life together, not just attend meetings together. (Mixed for a group or 1-on-1. Men with men women with women)
- Life in Christ is intended to be lived within the context of Community with others who are living Life in Christ too.
- I define Community as a group of individuals who are purposefully connected to support and encourage one another in life.
Contact David at davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Soul Care- Learning to nurture and care for my Heart & Soul
(The Spiritual/Emotional part of your life)
- Take care of your heart, for out of it flows the issues of life. (Prov 4:23)
- Caring for your soul begins with a growing intimacy with Father (Mk 1:35)
- Regular, Focused, meaningful engagement with the source of your life!
- All who are thirsty…Come to me and drink… (Jn 7:37-39)
- Out of your innermost being will flow rivers of Living Water...[this is the design of God for our inner being.] (Rivers of LW speaks of the Holy Spirit)
- Soul Care is NOT about enhancing your status/position before God or getting His attention!
- It’s NOT about improving your knowledge of Scripture or Theology…
- It’s not Bible Study, although it might involve the Bible…
- It’s about learning to drink from His well. (Metaphor)
- It’s about connecting with your Father and allowing that connection to nurture and refresh your Heart & Soul. It was Jesus’ habit to do this regularly.
- It’s about learning to Rest in Him. Finding your life in Him
- It’s about finding my Joy in His Presence (Ps 16:11)
- You are doing this for the sake of your life, not for ministry to others. This is not about equipping…it’s about our life!
If you have any questions or comments you can reach David at davidhiggtx@gmail.com
This is the final episode where we discuss our thinking on learning to keep in step with the Holy Spirit and what that journey has looks like for us.
If you have any questions or comments you can reach David at davidhiggtx@gmail.com
In this Bonus Episode, David & Tom share some personal experiences about their journeys of learning to keep in step with the Holy Spirit and how that journey continues today for both of them.
Spirit Walk- Learning to keep in step with the Holy Spirit-
- The tragic dichotomy of the Spirit and Truth camps- Yet Jesus referred to Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth. Worship Him in Spirit & Truth!
- If you believe you can have the Spirit without Truth, you misunderstand the nature of God and both Spirit and Truth.
- We must grow to the place where we learn to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. We must learn to embrace mystery because Holy Spirit is mysterious. The “Godhead” is mysterious!
- Everything God does in the world today is by the Holy Spirit, so if you want to be involved in what God is doing you will be involved with Holy Spirit
- Jesus grew up learning to walk in wisdom by the Holy Spirit in His life. (Lk 2:52)
- It’s important that I go away so that the Spirit of Truth can come. He told his disciples that they would know Him because He had been with them (in Jesus) but He will be in you. (Jn 14:16-17)
- Every Believer has received the earnest deposit of His Spirit who resides within us! God is within us! NOW THERE’S A MYSTERY FOR YOU!
- My Sheep hear my voice...How? (Jn 10:27)
- How do we hear His voice? By the Spirit who resides within us speaking to us. (Jn 16)
- Learning to hear His (Jesus’) voice means quieting your heart & mind and being open to hearing Him…through the Holy Spirit.
- It means learning to discern what is His voice from other voices.
- The Spirit kept Paul and his team from going several places and then Paul had a dream of a man asking for his help in a completely different place than they were thinking.
- Maturing means (among other things) learning to enjoy Him (Holy Spirit) as my constant companion…because that is who He is!
- Emmanuel: God is with us, always by the presence of His Holy Spirit.
Finding my identity and security in Christ is essential to Thriving in life!
Abide Daily- Learning to find my Life's, Identity & Security in Christ
• Abiding daily means living “in Him” every moment of every day. THIS IS THE REALITY OF OUR LIVES, EVEN IF WE ARE NOT AWARE OF IT. • In Him we live, and move, and have our being (Acts 17 Paul at Mars Hill) • Recognizing & receiving Him as your life (Col 3:4) • Recognizing and receiving Him as the source of your Identity (The phrase “in Christ” describes who we are all the time, even when we are not aware of it or don’t feel like it is true.) • Recognizing & receiving Him as your Security (Ephesians 1) • Your relationship w/God is not based on your performance, but on His. (Gal 3 Starting by the Spirit will you now be completed by the flesh?) • Living with w/an open heart toward God means embracing a conscious awareness of our need for Him at all times and embracing Him as our source. • Accepting that we are completely accepted in Him = Resting in Him.
Dixie and Andy Gazak were busy raising their family and involved in music ministry, but things were not healthy beneath the surface. Eventually, those issues grew to the point that the marriage ended. Hear the story of how God got Dixie's attention and began to turn things around.
Loving others is often a challenging venture, especially when we think they are not very loveable. However, God calls us to love others, in the same way, He loves us. How can we do that? That is the point of the conversation in this Bonus Episode. The solution is simple, but not easy.
This episode is a follow-up discussion in response to some questions from listeners about two issues: the possibility of our disappointing God and how forgiven are we, from God's point of view.
If you have any questions or comments, contact David Higginbotham at: davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Learning to live life as a person who is completely & fully loved, accepted, and forgiven by God will change your life.
Living Loved- Learning to live as a person who is Completely & Fully Loved by God-
- You are Loved Completely: there is no part of you that God does not love.
- What about my failure, my brokenness, and my sin? You are NOT any of those things! YOUR PERFORMANCE DOES NOT DEFINE YOUR IDENTITY!
- You are the object of God’s Love- Agape’ (John 3:16)
- You are Loved Fully: there is no part of God that doesn't love you.
- There is no aspect of God that is separate from another.
- His Holiness, Mercy, and Love are not in conflict, they are expressions of His Love.
- You always have been loved this way
- (Rom 8:5 “while we were sinners”… He was writing to people who were alive when this happened. Paul was also alive when Jesus was crucified.)
- You always will be loved this way-
- (Rom 5:10 IF while we were enemies, we were reconciled…how much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life?)
- What about when I sin? What happens then?
- What happens in Heaven? What happens on earth?
- God has dealt with all sin, for all humans, for all time! (2 Cor 5: 17-19)
- In Him, we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Eph 1 & Col 1)
- This was completely accomplished by the Finished Work of Christ that first Resurrection weekend. Jesus’ once-for-all sacrifice paid the penalty for all sins for all humans for all time. (Heb 10)
- You’re as forgiven now as you will ever be! Will you receive His gift of Love & Forgiveness?
- THIS IS AN ISSUE OF IDENTITY, NOT PERFORMANCE!
- I am completely & fully loved, accepted, and forgiven…RIGHT NOW!
- Embracing this truth and defining your Identity by it will change your life!
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT
davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Thriving in life is not something that happens accidentally, it's the result of having a focused engagement in one's relationship with God and learning to cooperate with Him. This series of Bonus Episodes will focus on 6 Key Elements that I believe are a part of that process. This episode gives an overview of those 6 Key Elements.
They are:
-
Living Loved- Learning to live as a person who is completely and fully loved and accepted by God.
-
Loving Others- Learning to love others in the way God is loving me.
-
Abide Daily- Learning to find my life's Identity and my security in Christ
-
Spirit Walk- Learning how to keep in step with the Holy Spirit
-
Soul Care- Learning to nurture and care for my heart and soul.
-
Encouraging Others- Learning to mentor others as they journey with God
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Tucker & Julie Wannamaker move their young family 3/4 of the way across the continent from Colorado Springs to Washington D.C. Can they learn to encounter the Grace, Mercy, Love & Peace of God along the way.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Two old friends talk about how discovering God's Grace in their lives has helped them learn to THRIVE. David's conversation with long-time friend Jay Guerra involves a lot of laughter, yet digs beneath the surface of their journeys and gets vulnerable when sharing from their hearts.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Steve Smith was at the end of his rope. Completely broken and devastated. His traditional religious background, mixed with a healthy dose of New Age philosophy, had not prepared him for the challenges he was facing. His story is compelling and life-affirming as we follow his journey from that place of emptiness to life, healing, and restoration in Jesus Christ.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Tangee Bennett's world threatens to come crashing down around her when her husband's hidden addictions explode and refuse to stay hidden any longer. How will she be able to keep it together and protect her family? Will her marriage survive this unexpected disruption? Listen to this compelling story of Tangee Bennett's journey through these incredible life-altering circumstances as she discovers God's Grace, Mercy, Love, and Peace.
Thanks for leaving a comment and a review with your podcast provider!
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Lyle and Beth Forsberg faced a heartbreaking tragedy that was compounded by the reality that the justice they looked for was not going to happen. How does one respond when it seems clear that justice will not be served? What would you have done?
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
When you've moved your wife and kids 600 miles to be closer to family and the job you were promised evaporates, due to the COVID-19 shutdown, what do you do? Then the replacement job that you were able to secure shuts down as well. Tom faced both of these challenges in the past year and talks about the journey he has been on and how God has been with him along the way.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
What will life look like for Vickie Goodman, now that she is a widow raising a teenage son. After the tragic loss of her husband she must lean into her relationships with God, her family and church community, in order to find the strength and vision for the next season of her life. This is the first of several conversations I will have with Vickie about that journey.
What do you do when the addictions you've been keeping undercover for years will no longer stay hidden? How do you keep your head above water when your life comes crashing down around you? Dan Bennett walked through this journey and encountered God in a new and deeper way than he had ever known before.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
This is a quick overview of The Learning To Thrive Podcast.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com
Ann & John Gillette welcomed home their 3rd child, Hunter, and were soon confronted with the devastating news that Hunter had congenital heart problems. Hear Ann describe the journey their family took with Hunter and how they discovered the Grace, Mercy, Love & Peace of God along the way.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, CONTACT
DAVID HIGGINBOTHAM AT davidhiggtx@gmail.com