Romans 12:1

"I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship."

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of..."

Inspirational illustration of Romans 12:1 -- I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is your spiritual act of worship.

"Dear Father, dweller of my temple, Please give me the mind of Christ and make my body a temple of the spirit of holiness which is his. Make me holy....."

"Dear Father, all worthy God, I present my body to you, O Lord, as a living sacrifice. May it be holy and pleasing to you. Let this be my spiritual..."

"And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy..."

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act...."

We are gathered to honor and praise God and to be reshaped by his Spirit so we can do the work of Jesus in the world. Phil Ware and Demetrius Collins invite us to worship God and celebrate the work of the Holy Spirit as we are transformed to be more like our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Who do we celebrate? Just as birthdays should be about moms, so our very lives should be about the One who gave us life

How in the world do we know what God wants? Max Lucado reminds us of the most important thing as we seek to know God's will for our lives.

How can we be thankful without doing something significant? Patrick Odum talks about gratitude and thankfulness for the grace we have received and all the blessings we have in Christ and in life.

When is worship more than just religious stuff in a box? We've got to re-think and re-do the way we worship in the church today and get back to our mission of being Jesus to the world around us.

Have you ever thought as your job as your primary place of worship? Ron Rose reminds us that work is sacred and we should not divide our lives into sacred and secular boxes.

What really is a spiritual life? All of life should be lived as spiritual.

How is the church like manure? Rubel Shelly reminds us that the church is sent, scattered, meant to infiltrate and penetrate the world and make a difference.

"Dear Disciple, While involving yourself in Christian assembly and gathering together with believers for encouragement, exhortation and worship are..."

What's the ultimate loss of control? Paul Faulkner reminds us that we have to give God control now, even though we fear it, because death comes and sooner or later we're going to have to yield control to him, now.

We can change our world for the better rather than having our values eroded by our circumstances! James Nored and Phil Ware remind us of Joseph's story and how God works in our lives to bless people if we are faithful, have character, and share compassion no matter our circumstance.

"Dear Beloved, Paul spent the first two-thirds of his letter to the Roman Christians explaining the principle of salvation by grace through faith. In...."

How are you doing in your struggle to be pure? Men have a real struggle to live pure lives, but a small group that holds us accountable and confession can help.

My response is to recognize God’s greatness and grace in using me as an instrument and with confidence move into this pure, unspotted new chapter. Jackie Halstead challenges us to take advantage of the New Year to begin writing a new chapter in our lives that brings grace to a world struggling with evil.

Here's something you don't want to forget at the table of thanks today! Rick Brown reminds us to be thankful for God's mercies.

Can we segment our lives into secular and sacred? All space must be reclaimed as sacred space.

Are you allowing life to shape you into it's mold? Rubel Shelly reminds us to not settle for cramped spaces, especially cramped spaces in our minds!

Instead of a well-manicured life, and perfectly organized and aesthetic home, my heart is yearning for more connection with love... His love... and, to be part of His loving presence. Melissa Troyer comes to us again through the ordinariness of daily life and reminds us to listen for Jesus' presence and look for ways to be conduits of God's love.

Why keep doing what you're doing? Alan Smith uses a story by Elie Wiesel to help make the point that sometimes we have to do things that seem even futile because we don't want to be changed into something we don't want to be.

Are you are spiritual person? Spirituality is about who you are on a daily basis.

Have you lost the source of absolute standards in your life? When we lose the Bible as our moral compass, then we are left without a good understanding of right and wrong and sin.

"Dear Follower, Wake up. It's nearly dawn. Put on your clothes. It's time for living in the daylight. Paul chose powerful images for today's passage...."

Why can't we just do it the way I see it? Phil Ware continues the series on values and leadership, especially conflict in the leadership because they cannot discern operational, personal, strategic, theoretical, shared, and other types of values.

Why are we so afraid to do what God makes clear is our next step? Phil Ware completes his two article series on being strong and courageous and being ready to see God do great things among us.

God is worthy of all our praise — more than our finite minds and inadequate vocabulary can muster. So, how can we praise God appropriately? Demetrius Collins and Phil Ware lead us in virtual worship through words and music using YouTube videos encouraging us to worship God with all that we are and have and say.

When I was a teenager When I was a teenager some friends and I would frequently get together on a weekend night to go camping.

Can we really take worship with us outside our religious boxes? Worship has to be part of our everyday real life world where we work, play, do sports, have recreation, and watch our kids play.

It's not a Sunday morning deal we make with God! Brian McCutchen talks about worship and how it must be a daily part of our lives or it is not real worship like the early Christians shared and lived.

God brings me to my knees, both in honesty and in choosing joy, as I pick up a careless mess made by the precious, but oblivious little stampede that lives within my walls. Melissa Troyer shares the worship in stooping to clean up the messes that are part of a mom's everyday experience with little children she is trying to mold into followers of Jesus.

Where do you worship? Worhip is more than what happens on Sunday in our holy box.

Are you dead enough to catch on fire? Mike Barres challenges us to die to self so we can catch fire with the Spirit of the Lord.

Why worry about this smaller thing? Phil Ware talks about our need to go deeper into the will of Jesus by getting with a group with whom we can grow and follow Jesus.

What value does your faith really have? All of life is our worship, our love for God expressed heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Will you live all of life as worship, or just a few hours per wek? Phil Ware asks what we should wear to worship God and challenges us to see all of life as sacred space!

Who is alive in you? Phil Ware continues his series on SpiritFire focusing on our bodies being the Temple of God in which God lives by His Holy Spirit.

Why is it so easy to draw this line? Phil Ware reminds us that there should be no line between sacred and secular for followers of Jesus.

How can we move forward and not just repeat the same old things? Jackie Halstead shares with us the process of Examen as she reviews 2013 and looks ahead to 2014 and dedicates her life to God.

You mean I am an important tool in God's ministry toolset? Phil Ware reminds us that God longs to fashion us into a vital tool in The Master's SIGnature Toolset to be used for Kingdom and church ministry.

How do we get our minds in the right place? Rubel Shelly reminds us that God's redemption isn't just about the future, but about living fully human lives now!

What is the snare we must avoid? It's living in fear of what others may think of us or do to us because we follow Jesus. Demetrius Collins and Phil Ware lead us in a virtual, DIY, worship through words and music using YouTube videos to fortify our commitment to not live in fear of what others may think of us or do to us, but to trust in God who is with us.

Why do we put so much emphasis on worship in the box and not in our everyday lives? Phil Ware finishes his series on What is Core by talking about worship and the importance of meeting together in big and small groups, but also living out the life God has called us to lead, being a reflection of the righteous character and gracious compa

Is grace a gift or does it come with conditions? Phil Ware reminds us that people make up their own definitions of what grace means all the time, but Jesus defines grace, exemplifies it, and pours it out upon us and he should be our example and definition of grace.

When you look in the mirror, what do you see? Phil Ware challenges us to look beyond the cosmetic image we see in the mirror and view ourselves as God does.

The New Year is our opportunity to seek after God's ways in our lives and find the wisdom to live for him in our challenging times. Demetrius Collins and Phil Ware lead us in a virtual, DIY, worship through words and music using YouTube videos to call us to recognize God's greatness and our need to obey him if we want to gain a heart of wisdom.