Vetrean Pastor, Life time Learner, Problem Solver, Servant-Leader and Motivational Speaker.

Love: 1 Corinthians 13: 6 - Text Sermon by Pastor James Owolabi...Journey Community Church In Tacoma Ocotober 23rd 2011

    Love Is A Verb

Sermon by Pastor James Owolabi Preached at Journey Community Church October 23rd 2011 am Service

1 Corinthians 13:6 by James Owolabi

Series:Love

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Christians who have the Love of God in their hearts do not delight in evil. They rejoice with the truth because they understand that:

• God does not rejoice in the destruction of the wicked.

• God’s grace is greater than any sin. 

Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace. – Jerry Bridges

• God values a heart of repentance over a head full of religion. 

Our first problem is that our attitude towards sin is more self-centered than God-centered.

• We are more concerned about our own "Victory" over sin than we are about the fact that our sin grieves the heart of God.We cannot tolerate failure in our struggle with sin chiefly because we are success oriented, not because we know it is offensive to God" - "Pursuit of Holiness" Jerry Bridges

 Tips for the Journey

1. Seek to love without expectation.

2. Learn to ask forgiveness when you hurt those you love.

3. Seek to give grace to those across “the hallway”.

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Wedding thoughts!!!!!30 Reflections from this past weekend and Getting ready for a second trip to Alaska this year.

1. I had a great time this past week performing a wedding for Alexis Chosvig "Joseph" and Micheal Joseph.
2. God was the master of the ceremony and the gospel was preached. Christ was lifted up. It was a 30 minute wedding.
3. I love it when I can talk about the love of Christ in a wedding.
4. I love it when the bride and groom are in love with Jesus Christ. LOVE IT~~:::: Love it when both parents are believers in Jesus Christ!!!!!!
5. I love it when I can say to them; " Love is a verb". Marriage is a covenant between God, a man and a woman".
6. I think I am a spoiled by God that He allows me as a single unmarried Pastor to perform weddings.
7. I got one of the best compliments after the wedding about the sermon.
8. "Pastor James  that was one HELL of a sermon opps....revenrend sorry for my language. .....but i loved your sermon it made me cry". WOw that was so cool!!!!!I love real compliments.
9. Yes I did
   cry ( just a little bit, i have known her since she was 11 give me a break) while I was performing the wedding.
10. The bride and her family are deep and close friends who live in portland. Love the Erick and Lauri Chosvig their family..like a runner loves a morning run. 
11. Yes my heart danced for joy like an African mama seeing her son released from prison.
12. I pray that their marriage will last for 40-60years.
13. I pray that God is the center of their home. 
14. I pray that God gives the bride amazing grace and wisdom as a miltary (Airforce) wife.
15. Yes I made a mistake during the pronouncement and called the bride the wrong name  (Erica.....her sisters name......). They forgave me. Love that family.
16. Then I lost it because I was overwhelmed with joy and peace.
17. Yes the reception hall was classy, trendy and wow it took my breath away.
18. Yes Sunday School at North Mason Bible Church was awesome.
19. Yes I am getting ready for my trip to Alaska to serve missionaries and Pastors families by ministering to their teenagers.
20. Yes we will be hiking and I think am in better shape to do that this time.
21. I will miss my 6;30 am gym check in while am in Alaska. I met a couple at my gym this morning. Wife is 73 and husband is 82. Wow that is amazing!!!!!! He looked in better shape than I did. I will be working out till am 82.....Help me Jesus!!!!
22. Yes!!! I am dreading the small plane rides. They are  very scary. 
23. I love missionary kids and third culture people.
24. Yes I love cross culture ministry even though Cross culture marriages scare me.
25. I love Jesus and that is why I go to Alaska every year. Even twice this year
26. Yes they are paying for my traveling expenes to come there and I glad they are being generous to me. 
27. Thank God for Jesus Christ.
28. Met a Pastor from Anchorage at our church yesterday. He has been a pastor for 16 years.
29. He knows one of the camp counselor from the camp who is picking me up at the airport.
30. Pray that I dont miss my 6;00 am flight tomorrow from Seattle to Anchorage.

Grace and Peace

Pastor James Owolabi

Prayers needed for the next three months:Traveling & Speaking Engagements outside of North Mason Bible Church for 2011 for Pastor James Owolabi

Fall 2011 is starting to get busy around my church and I am excited that we are launching three bible studies this week.
 In additon to these bible studies i have been invited to serve the following Churches and Christian schools:

• September 27^th 2011 –October 1^st 2011: Speaking at Port Oldsworth Alaska at Arctic Barnabas Pastor and Missionary retreat 2011.
• October 7^th 2011: Damascus Christian School. Damascus Oregon.

• October 23^rd 2011: Speaking at Journey Church in Tacoma, Washington.
• October 28^th 2011: Speaking at Middle School Chapel at Life Christian Academy Tacoma, WA.
  
• November 13th 2011. Grace Community Church Grapeview, WA.
• November 16th and 17th Catalyst Conference in Chicago.
• November 18^th –November 24th 2011: I will be serving and visiting my family.
• November 20th 2011: Speaking at the Church at Avon in Avon Indiana.
• November 27th 2011: Speaking at  Endeavor Church Portland.
• December 4th 2011: Speaking at Independent Baptist Church of Ellensburg. WA.
  
• December 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th 2011: I will be preaching at FBC ELMA.
• Grace and Peace

Pastor James Owolabi

 

Updated Speaking Schedule for James Owolabi

• August 2-7-Speaking to middle school students all week at Camp Tadmore, WA.
• August 9th 2009–Speaking at Belfair Community Baptist. Belfair, WA.
• August 16th 20009. Allyn Baptist Church: speaking at both services.
• August 20-23: Well Spring Bible Fellowship: speaking at middle school retreat. Medford, Oregon.
• August 30th North Mason Bible Church: speaking at both services.
• September 6th 2009: North Mason Bible Church: Speaking at both services.
• September 13th 2009: North Mason Bible Church: Speaking at Both services.
• September 27 thru October 3rd: Alaska Pastor Conference speaking to Pastor’s kids during the conference. Alaska
• October 8th 2009: Speaking at Tacoma Baptist School.
• February 10th 2010: Speaking at Tacoma Baptist Schools.

Winter Camp

I flew into Seattle this afternoon after a long ….. weekend of speaking at a snow camp with middle school students from the following churches: Sutherlin Family Church, Redeemer Christian fellowship, Wellspring Bible Fellowship, and First Baptist Church of Ashland. My long weekend began with a 5am drive to the airport on Friday to catch a plane from Seattle to Eugene (The trip from Belfair to SeaTac airport was longer than the flight to Eugene). Then I was picked up (thank you Bret) and taken to Roseburg, Oregon, where I joined Wellspring Bible fellowship for a nice van ride with their well behaved middle school boys to Mountain Lakes Bible Camp (which in located about 45 minutes west of Klamath Falls on Route 140). God was gracious and used me to speak with simplicity, depth, intensity, creativity and passion. During the third session (Saturday Night) our good God was very gracious to bestow the gift of faith to about seven middle school students who made a decision to follow Jesus Christ for the first time in their Lives. Wow!!! I was excited and pumped! It was awesome to see four different churches work together so well, I was very amazed by the humility and servant spirit I sensed among these people. On our way back from the camp, all was well. I was catching up on sleep and woke up to find everything had become white. I mean everything was white: the bus, the people, and the land. I got stuck in a snow storm in Medford, Oregon. I called all my friends in Belfair and nobody was available to assist with emergency phone numbers. Finally my family in Indy came through with amazing hotel deals and emergency phone numbers. Alaska Airlines penalized me $35 to fly out of Medford, Oregon rather than Eugene, because I could not control the weather. It is 11:30 pm, and I am still awake, restless, and wired from my long weekend. Different decisions were made for Christ this weekend by some awesome middle school students. I am tired but I bet God is glorified and God is dancing in heaven. Thank you lord and it is so……… good to serve you and it is really good to be back home in Belfair. I think I really love Belfair……..

Christmas in the Midwest

  Unlike my last plane trip to Africa,my trip to Indianapolis, Indiana was long but fun.Southwest airlines is "cheap" all they offered me on the plane was this sorry pathetic can of water. Which airline is so cheap to offer their clients a "can"of water and only peanuts during an 8 hour flight? Southwest!!  Upon my safe arrival  to Indy this morning at 1:30 am, i joined my brother Ezra at his bed side at St Vincent Hospital. He was admitted early Monday afternoon due to some health difficulties and pain in his body, He was looking at surgery on Tuesday afternoon, but thanks be to God, Ezra was discharged tuesday the next day without sugery.

Just in case you feel your life sucks and nothing is going right, just stop at the emergency room of your local hospital and you will count your many blessings and see what the Lord has done for you. Tomorrow will be another exciting day. I will be driving down to Paducah, Kentucky with Rhoda and Jude. Topper Council a dear friend of the family invited me to preach at his church. This is a very fun Christmas break.

Truth for Today: What you don't know will kill you, because the hardest decisions to manage are the decisions you make subconsciously. Make a decision to constantly thank God for Jesus Christ this Christmas season.