RISE

RISE: Coming to a coffee house near you

2011-04-12T22:00:00.000-07:00

218 E. 6th St. Beaumont, CA 92223
(951) 769-1700

RISE is on the move.

Begining Monday April 25th, we will be meeting at a
coffehouse called By The Way.
It's in Beaumont, near the freeway and easy to find.
Look for the RISE sign outside.

Doors will open at 7pm.

Worship will start every week at 7:30pm.

New RISE series starts Monday January 17th

2011-01-14T16:19:00.000-08:00

We have spent the past several weeks together looking
at stories of people who had encounters with God.

Monday night we transition to a study of the Book of John,
where we will see God uncensored.

To read and study this book is to stare into the face of God.
It's a book entirely about Jesus.

If you know nothing about Jesus, this book will open your eyes.
If you think you know Jesus -- He has much to reveal to you yet.

Join us January 17th!

Encounters With God: Mary

2010-12-12T08:50:00.000-08:00

This week at RISE we are going to take a look at the life of a teenage girl
that had the ultimate encounter with God.

Not only would her child alter the course of human history --

but she herself, would be forever changed.

Join us this week (12/20) as we take a look at this very unique encounter with God.

Encounters With God

2010-11-27T08:17:00.000-08:00

What would it be like to meet with God face to face?

What would He be like?

What kinds of things would He say?

What would He have to say about your life?
What would His attitude towards you be?

In the next four weeks, we will look at four stories
about people who met with God -- and were forever changed.

Join us this week, November 29th as we start our new series
called Encounters with God.

Giving Thanks

2010-11-22T06:04:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is an odd holiday.
Every year people gather to eat.
Watch football.
Shop Black Friday sales.

Somewhere in there is the idea of being thankful.
For some, it's thankfulness to God.
For others, it's a general thankfulness.

Sometimes -- if we are honest, we just don't feel that thankful.

Join us for RISE this week (11/22) as we seek to ignite the
flame of gratitude in our hearts.

Breaking Free

2010-11-11T20:46:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks at RISE -- we have talked alot about sin.

How God has a standard --
and time and time again we fail to meet that standard.
The effects are deadly.
The things we do -- destroy our lives, and the lives of others.

Gossip.
Lies.
Intoxication.
Anger.
Murder in our hearts.
Sex outside of marriage.
Greed.

The problem is not only do we sin -- We are slaves to it.
We CANT stop doing these things.
Even if we realize it's a problem.
We are trapped.

God wants to free us from sin -- and bring us into a good place.
Join us next week at RISE (11/15) as we find the way out.

RISE 10.18.10

2010-10-18T23:22:00.000-07:00

RISE - Beginnings

2010-10-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

This week, Monday 10/4/10, we kick off a
short series called Beginnings.

We are going to take a look at the
Beginnings of life and mankind and the
beginnings of God's relationship with
man through the ages.

It's also the first monday of the month --
which means we will be having a
meal together.

So come out at 6:30 for dinner --
stay for laughs, worship, a study of
God's Word and dessert.

Theology 101: Grace

2010-09-19T09:27:00.000-07:00

Grace:
Getting Ice cream
when you deserve a whipping.

RISE starts Monday Nights begining 9/13/10

2010-09-06T20:32:00.001-07:00

survivor

2010-07-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

Every peron and every organization has a support system. A lifeline. The things or people
that keep it going.

There are a lot of parts involved with any system.

But there are some things that are completely essential.

For example, if you have a broken arm -- you can live.
But if your heart stops, your dead.

Don't put gas in your car, you won't get very
far.

Take the cashflow from a business and it's
bankrupt.

Take the batteries out of your i-pod and
the music stops.

Separate a child from his parents. He won't
survive.

Take away all the janitors at Disneyland -
and it goes from the Happiest place on earth
to the Stinkiest place on earth.

The same goes for your spiritual health and well being.

Some of you are just figuring out the basics of faith.

What is prayer? How can I begin to know God?

Some of you are more mature, you've been on the journey for awhile now.

How can I please God more? How can I serve Him?

How can I hear His voice?

You may be growing up spiritually. Or maybe you are just starting out.
Either way -- there is only one way you will last, and survive to maturity.

A lot of people don't make it to spiritual maturity.
They quit or fade out or lose faith.

Our ability to mature spiritually and to survive the storms of life hinges
on one thing: Our ability to cling.

Without roots -- a tree will fall.
So will you.

I Timothy 1:19 says:

Cling tightly to your faith in Christ, and always keep your conscience clear.
For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result,
their faith has been shipwrecked.

Hebrews 4:14 says:

Let us cling to [Jesus] and never stop trusting him.

When you have doubts -- cling to Jesus and your faith in Him.
When you are going through hard times -- cling to Jesus!
When you are tempted -- call out to Him!
When you don't know what to do -- Ask Him!

If you let your roots grow deep into Jesus -- your faith will not fade.
Your life will be strong.
You will grow mature.
And you will not only survive, but thrive.

hurt

2010-06-09T22:49:00.000-07:00

When I was a little kid -- I was riding
my bike and fell into a cactus.
(Funny, unless it happened
to you.)

The cactus' thorns drove deep into
my knee --so much so that it prevented
me from walking.

My grandfather had to pull the thorns
out with pliers.

Puncture wounds have a tendency to
get infected. They are deep, and whatever
punctures the skin takes dirt and bacteria
and pushes it down beyond the reach of
band-aids and mother's kisses.

Some hurts can be healed fairly quickly.

But a lot of hurt runs deeper.

Some of us have been wounded -- punctured in our hearts.
There is an infection sometimes that persists for years.

Maybe it was the father (or mother) who walked out on your family.
The girlfriend (or boyfriend) that dumped you.
The loss of a friend.
A struggle with weight or an eating disorder.
Feelings of inadequacy.
A broken promise.
Rejection.

Some turn to drugs or alcohol.
Others never turn off the music or the t.v.
Still others think of ending life to avoid the hurt.
Some just try to put it out of their mind and forget.

The problem with wounds like these is this-
if you don't deal with them, they never really go away.
And like the thorn in my knee -- they can prevent us from walking.
From moving forward in life and in our relationship with God
and with other people.

In Jeremiah 8:21-22 God says:

I weep for the hurt of my people.
I am stunned and silent, mute with grief.

Is there no medicine...? Is there no physician ...?
Why is there no healing for the wounds of my people?

Later on -- God answers his own question --
by coming to earth and dealing with sin -- the root of all hurt --
once and for all.

Isaiah 53:5 says this:

By His stripes we are healed...

There is a God -- who has been wounded deeper than you.
Who weeps for your hurt.
Who cares, and wants to heal it.

Jesus is the only one who can deal with your hurt
and heal you from it, permanently.

So -- pray to Him.
Ask Him to heal you.
Come over and over again.
As many times as it takes.
By His wounds, our wounds will be healed.

one is the loneliest number

2010-05-29T22:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been in a fight before?

Not an argument - but an all out brawl.
The meet-me-at-the-flagpole
-at-3:30 kind of fight.

If you had to go it alone --
it probably didn't go that well.

But if you had your friends there --
to cheer you on
(and jump in if necessary!)
you felt invincible.

A lot of times when we are just starting out
trying to figure out God, we feel alone.

And even if we have been a Christian for awhile
we can feel all alone.

The thing is -- we were never meant to be alone.

The book of Ecclesiastes talks about this.

Two people can accomplish more than
twice as much as one;

they get a better return for their labor.

If one person falls, the other can reach
out and help. But people who are alone
when they fall are in real trouble.

And on a cold night,
two under the same blanket can gain

warmth from each other.
But how can one be warm alone?

A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated,

but two can stand back-to-back and conquer.

Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord

is not easily broken. (Ecc 4:9-12)

If you are just trying to figure God out --

He wants to put people into your life who can help you figure it out.

If you have been a Christian for awhile --
You need other Christians, to encourage you and to teach you.

And if you have been walking with God for a long time -
you need all that - plus you need to be pouring out your
knowledge and life into the lives of others.

It does take a bit of courage though -
to let people know you,
and to get to know others.
We sell ourselves short when we don't build
relationships, and we set ourselves up for
failure and discouragement.

Get connected to people who will build you up
and who you can build up, and you will be blessed!

chaotic melody

2010-05-23T09:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes life is confusing.
Sure there are lots of moments of beauty -
but sometimes,
you do everything right,
and nothing goes right.

Your dog runs away.
You fail the test.
You get dumped.
People you love die.
Bands you love break up.

Bad things happen to "good" people,

and it seems like the "bad" ones
always get ahead.

That's life -- but we don't expect life as a Christian

to be like that. We think if we give our life to God
He will keep us from everything difficult.

We thought we signed up for smooth sailing, not storms.

So what do you do?

Do you quit? Do you complain?

Do you get angry?

Does God even know or care what you are going through?

Does God even exist?

Those are some of the thoughts and emotions we go
through when life doesn't work out like we planned.

A man named David in the Bible wrote these words:

"even if I make my bed in hell -- still You are with me." (Psalm 139)

And later on, the apostle Paul wrote these words:

God is making "all things work together for good
to those who love God, and are called
according to His purpose." (Romans 8).

The point?

If my life is a mess because of my own mistakes -- God is still with me.
If God is allowing suffering or heartache -- it's for a reason (and yeah, He is still with me in that too).

God is with you -- and He loves you!

finding meaning in the meaningless

2010-05-02T08:06:00.000-07:00

Meaningless! Meaningless!
Everything is
Meaningless!

The book of Ecclesiastes repeats this line
over and over again.

Sounds like the rant of some crazy man.

Ecclesiastes is the wisdom/desperation of
King Solomon - a man who had it all.
Everything that anybody could ever want.

Money.
Fame.
Hundreds of sexual partners.
Wisdom.
Accomplishments.

But he said:

... I hate life because everything done here under the sun is so irrational.
Everything is meaningless, like chasing the wind. (Ecc 2:17)

Maybe you haven't realized it yet -
but we all are searching for Meaning in life.

Why am I here?
What am I supposed to do?
What should I major in?
How can I make a difference?
Why is my life important?

Your life has a purpose.
Some of you have some really great talent and abilities.
As you get older, you are going to find something to
do with your life.

Hopefully -- you will find a career that you enjoy doing and are gifted to do.
If all goes well -- you will probably get married and have 2.5 children.
And there are all sorts of things in life to enjoy.
Art.
Beauty.
Music.
Travel.
Friends.
Technology (yeah -- I know some of you get REAL excited about technology).

A full life -- probably includes most of those things.
And we can enjoy it and have a good time.

Solomon had it all -- but he hated life. What was his problem?

The problem wasn't necessarily WHAT Solomon was doing.
It was WHY he was doing it.

Solomon pursued all of those things.
He chased after them hoping to find meaning in those things.

He was right in the sense that all these things as an end to themselves --
are essentially meaningless.

The things that make life full and enjoyable --
as great as they are, are not supposed to give meaning.

So from where does meaning come?

It's found in a relationship with Jesus Christ (Colossians 3:3).

When you have friendship and relationship with God,
you can enjoy life -- knowing that it won't completely satisfy.
It's not intended to. And that's ok.

When we understand that --
we can find meaning and joy in this meaningless, beautiful life.

the new normal

2010-04-18T08:54:00.000-07:00

In school, we learned to figure out what was normal. We wanted to be different -- but not
too different. We wanted to be as different as
everyone else.

We wanted to be normal (but in a cool kind
of way).

Normal has alot of faces.

We judge normality (uh..is that a word?)
by what normal around us looks like.

I know I'm normal if everyone else generally looks like me.
I know I'm normal if I like the same type of things as other people.
I even judge myself by the way other people act.

For example -- if all my friends think downloading pirated movies is ok -
chances are, I will justify my own actions based on what they do.

With God -- we can't use this standard.

And for us -- we've been using it too long.

We judge our Christianity by what everyone considers normal.

It's normal to go to church,
be somewhat committed (as long as nothing better comes along)
and leave our religion at that.

It's normal not to pray.
It's normal not to experience the Lord personally.
It's normal to be called a Christian while being be full of compromise.
It's normal to have a
powerless,
flat,
untransformed faith.

But we've been using the wrong standard.

On the day of Pentecost (Acts 2)
we were told that the promise and the power of the Holy Spirit
was for "all who are a far off".
Imagine -- a faith, a boldness
that makes people cry out in the street --
"What must we do to be saved!"

That is normal.

Jesus [talking about his miracles] told his disciples
that if they believed in Him -- they would do
"greater works than these".

Imagine. You -- doing great things for God's kingdom.
His power pulsing through you.
Lives changed.
Miracles wrought.

That is normal.

Let's imagine a new normal. Let's wipe clean our idea of normal that has been taken from our observation of others.
Let's let God,
His Word,
His promises
and the example of the early church
determine what is the norm.

I guarantee, it's much more satisfying, exciting and powerful
than anything you've ever seen.

At RISE -- we will be doing this together. It's going to be exciting.
And it's going to be alot of fun.
Quite frankly -- it just might change your life.

Hope you can join us.

Welcome

2010-03-31T16:02:00.000-07:00

Welcome to RISE.
RISE is a ministry to young adults in the Inland Empire.

We will be meeting for the first time in May.
Hope you can join us!