The UChurch Men’s Retreat was held March 16-18, 2012 at Camp Tee Pee Pole, located near Sundre, AB. With over 70 men wanting to grow in their understanding of Biblical manhood, the primary text was Job 29, describing a noble man. Themes spoken about were several, including: Having a lifetime trajectory of walking in wisdom, favor, and stature; becoming men of nobility and what this looks like; aspiring to leadership roles; creating vision for our life; cultivating a culture of integrity and excellence; the process of working through one’s issues; practical leadership and mentorship applications; the integration of servanthood, honor, and faith; as well as, ten principles that set Joseph apart and found him favor.

Our speaker for this year’s retreat was Robert Owens. Having spoken to the UChurch men at previous Men’s Retreats, Robert’s life has been one of adventure: A former Navy SEAL, he brought Bibles into countries during his 20′s, was a successful church planter and pastor in Reno for over 25 years focusing on University students and athletes, and he competed in several IronMan races, to name a few. Most importantly, Robert is passionate about imparting Biblical truths and life principles to men in the various spheres of life.

The men at UChurch were deeply impacted by his no-nonsense, practical teachings. Here are the audio files from the retreat. Enjoy.

Men’s Retreat 2012 – Friday March 18 – Morning Session

Men’s Retreat 2012 – Friday March 17 – Morning Session

Men’s Retreat 2012 – Friday March 17 – Afternoon Session

Men’s Retreat 2012 – Friday March 18 – Morning Session

God’s Vision, Your Decision (PowerPoint)

Notes from Pastor Greg’s message:

Romans 8:26-27: In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

Romans 8:28-30: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

God’s Work:

1. God secures our relationship with Him by: interceding (Romans 8:26-27), intervening (Romans 8:28), insisting (Romans 8:29-30)
2. Trusting in God’s love turns: control -> security; fatalism -> involvement; free will -> now true; irresponsibility -> love

Let trust and love define your understanding of God.

Recognizing God’s Voice

Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Saviour and my God.

By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.  ~ Psalm 42: 5-6a, 8 ~

Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord.  ~ Ephesians 5:10 ~

So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life, instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you.  ~ Ephesians 5:15-19 ~

How to Recognize God’s Voice

- God’s voice always agrees with scripture – not necessarily your interpretation  (Acts 10)

- God’s voice may contradict friends’ opinions (Acts 21:10-12, 20:22-23)

- God’s voice has a consistent character – does not nag or whine or argue (Rev 12:10)

- God’s voice bears good fruit, if adhered to (Gal 5:22-23)

- God’s voice is different than our voice  (Isaiah 55:8-9)

- God’s voice is easy to reject – starts with his basic words (Luke 6)

Are you a Mary or a Martha?

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”  But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.  ~ Luke 10:38-42 ~

We Recognize the Voice of Our Friends…

…so if God is a friend, we should be able to recognize His voice too!

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you my friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.  ~ John 15:15 ~

Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.  ~ John 14:21 ~

1. “teach you all things” ~ John 14:26

2. “remind you of everything I have said to you” ~ John 14:26

3. “testify about me” ~ John 15:26

4. “tell you what is yet to come” ~ John 16:13

…and more!  Listen to the podcast to hear the message from Sunday, May 16!

Walking with God Part III – Barriers To Hearing

“The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they recognize his voice”. John 10:1-4

“For God does speak – now one way, now another – though man may not perceive it” Job 33:14

Some want to hear God so they can become prosperous, some want to hear God so they can be successful in life, and some – they want to hear so they can know the will of God and do it.

“Find out what pleases the Lord Eph 5:10

How does God communicate with us?

• Through the bible,
• Through the Holy Spirit (teach, remind, testify, guide & tell
• Impressions, audible voice, people, experiences, dreams, visions,
• Angels, (Heb 13:2) , Acts 10:3,

Basic Hindrances…

Don’t believe he can (unbelief)

Don’t think he wants too (rejection)

White noise (distractions – 3 other voices)

Immaturity

Disobedience

Self Sufficiency – (pride)

Three essential characteristics for hearing the Voice of God

1. Availability:

Mark 1:32-35

Duet 4:29 Those who find him are those who seek him with all their heart.

2. Willingness:

“My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me, IF any man is willing to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or whether I speak from myself”  John 7:16-17

“And remember, it is a message to obey, not just listen to. If you don’t obey, you are only fooling yourself.” James 1:22

“As for Phillip, an angel of the lord said to him, “Go south down the dessert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” So he did……… Acts 8:26-27,

3. Humility

“When a prophet of the Lord is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses ? Numb 12:6-8

“Now Moses was more humble than any other person on earth” Numb 12:3

“Do not be afraid Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them” Dan 10:12

Hos 10:12 “plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of my love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for NOW is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you”

Hearing God’s Voice

By Katie Reding

The “art” of hearing God’s voice is so misunderstood, so overcomplicated.

We are in a RELATIONSHIP with God, he isn’t some distant far off creature, he is my Daddy, my comforter, encourager, lover, friend, and husband, it’s a relationship of based on LOVE. Love is the core of how we relate with Jesus. If he could get you to understand one thing about him, it would be that he LOVES you.

In a marriage relationship, the key is communication! A two-way conversation, where we express our emotions, thoughts, concerns, silly ideas, desires, needs, wants, and remind the other person of things. It’s the same with Jesus, we are in a relationship with him first and foremost, and he longs to hear all these things from us, as well as speak TO US.

WHY does he want to speak?

Jesus LOVES US with a love far greater than we can even imagine, I asked God for a personal revelation of the cross- showed me that he sent his son to die on the cross because he wanted TO TALK TO ME. I am so sinful in nature, and he is so holy holy holy that we wouldn’t have been able to communicate, he had to send Jesus to bridge the gap between us.

Exodus 34:14 (NLT) “You must worship no other gods but only the Lord, for he is a God who is PASSIONATE about his relationship with you.”

Passionate is a strong word. He is madly, sold out in love with us, there is no other place he would rather be is with us, speaking to us. We have a right to be with him, he has made us worthy.

Why does God want to speak to me?

He wants to encourage me, confirm things in me, guide me, heal me, and show me things in my life that I can’t see.

He doesn’t require us to “do” anything; he just wants to BE with me.

WHO can hear God’s voice?

Anyone can hear his voice. Not reserved for pastors, leaders, super spiritual people, we are all the same. But the key is that some of us have walked with Jesus for a longer time, some of us cry out to God to hear his voice, some ask to hear God, some GIVE HIM THE TIME to speak.

John 10:27 (MSG) “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

We are his sheep once we are a follower of Jesus, we can hear his voice the bible says, and we follow him because we can hear him. How can we follow where Jesus is leading us if we can’t hear him?

The more time you spend with a person the more you will recognize their voice. The longer you know a person, the better you recognize their voice. Eg: My mom, I know her voice, I could pick it out in a crowd because I Spend time with her, I know what her voice sounds like, I am familiar with it.

It’s a growing process, a practiced thing. Hearing his voice doesn’t happen always immediately, it’s an art, that yes we can practice and need to practice on a DAILY basis.

John 10:4 (NLT) “After he gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they KNOW his voice.”

We need to KNOW God’s voice, and then we can follow him

WHEN does God want to speak to us?

On a daily basis. Not just on Sundays, when we feel extra spiritual, on good days, bad days, on missions, home group meetings. NO ALL the time. Yes he does speak special things to gatherings of people, as he promises in the bible when 2 or more are gathered there he is with them. ANY TIME WE CHOOSE TO LISTEN he will speak.

HOW does God speak to us?

Others, Bible, his creation, circumstances, our conscious (He made us- so he made our conscious- that reminder in the back of our heads is often God speaking to us), and through impressions of the Holy Spirit which I am focusing on. (This can be things like visions, emotion expressed, phrases, words etc)

Humans speak with vocal chords and it generates thoughts and images in our heads when we hear them- God works in the same way minus the vocal chords. The Holy Spirit will just drop a picture, word, phrase, emotion into your spirit.

WHAT does his voice sound like?

Sense of authority, brings peace, Never contradict the Bible, love, never cuts you down (he does correct us- but its done in his love), may not immediately understand what he saying to you- write it down he reveals things at a later time often.

It’s such a beautiful thing to sit before the Lord, your Daddy and hear what is on his heart for you. He knows exactly what you need to hear at that exact moment. So intimate- once we practice it often. The creator of the universe longs to pour out his heart to you. (Crazy love book- Francis Chan- He tells the story of his aunt Clara. She had a place where she would always go and “be with Jesus”. She simply had to walk by her room and she would start crying- because she would see the spot where she would kneel by her bed and meet Jesus. She had such intimate times with Jesus, she longed for the next morning when she could do it again. God longs to have intimate moments with us like this.

OUR RESPONSIBILITY?

We are responsible to “get with” Jesus. Spend that time with him

1) Psalm 47:10? (NLT) “Be still and know that I am God

We must quiet ourselves, quiet your spirit, it looks different for everyone, lie or site, stand whatever. Just get to a quiet place (go to your room close the door says the bible) I like to close my eyes to focus better on what he is saying.

Turn off all the distractions, cell phones, (we need to be serious about this), and give God his deserved time. Don’t put him on a time limit.

2) God desires a humble and contrite spirit the bible says. Repentance is like a sweet perfume that draws Jesus towards us. Ask Jesus is there anything in me that offends you? Any sin that is cutting me off from you? In the bible it says our sins have cut us off from God. Clear the air- get rid of anything -unforgivness whatever it is blocking you.

3) Silence other voices. As believers we have the authority to silence the voice of Satan. In the name of Jesus leave, be quiet. Do this so you don’t get his lies mixed up with God’s great truth. (James 4:7-8)

4) Ask God to silence you imagination and your thoughts. He made you, so he made EVERY part of you, he can silence your thoughts that may distract or confuse you.  (2 Cor 10:5)

He is a rewarder of those who WAIT PATIENTLY ON HIM. Often we have to sit for a while- quiet ourselves, and wait. He loves to just BE with us, don’t rush him. It breaks his heart when we sit for 5 min get up and leave too early and he says “wait wait I just wanted to spend a little time with you, I have so much to tell you, please spend a little longer with me. Everything else can wait.”

5) Its a FIGHT. PRESS IN. Isaiah 48:16 (NLT) “…. Come closer and listen…”

Psalm 125:4 (NLT) “O Lord do good to those who are good, whose hearts are in TUNE with you.” We need to get on the same channel that God is speaking on. Do this by getting rid of sin, and keeping your spirit awake.

1 Kings 19:12 God came in a “gentle whisper” wont be audible, it will be quiet we have to press in to hear.

6) If you get distracted- ask him the question again

7) Wait patiently

8) Have faith- Go with what he lays on your heart first. Often I doubt the first thing he speaks to me. If we continue to doubt we will never move to a place of believing God is speaking to us. Have boldness, often that first thought is God.  (Mark 11:24, James 1:5-7)

Don’t stifle the spirit. 1 Thes 5:19-22 This is as simple as ignoring our conscious for long enough, we drown out the voice of the Lord.

Eg. for me I had to watch what I was putting in my body, the music I was listening to, and the movies I was watching. We can DULL our spirits!!!

Keep your spirits sharp- For those of us who have the gift of Tongues, be sure to use the gift. Paul writes in 1 Cor 14:2 ; “that if you speak in tongues, you will be speaking to God.”

9) Are you filled with the Holy Spirit?? Jesus told his disciples that before they could go do anything that they were to wait for the Holy Spirit.  Why? Paul explains it best..

“No one can know a persons thoughts except that persons own spirit, and no one can know Gods thoughts except Gods own spirit. And we have received Gods spirit (not the worlds spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.” 1 Cor 2:11-12

The Promise..

“And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.” Luke 24:49

“And I (Jesus) will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17)

“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26

Bonus – Pay it forward; when you realize God not only speaks to you, he will speak through you. He will give you insights, thoughts, and inspiration for others around you. The Holy Spirit has gifts He wants to give away (that’s what you do with gifts, you get to be the conduit!). He knows what his children need – and he longs for them to know Him, know his love for them.  So, he gives gifts (words of knowledge, words of wisdom, discernment, healing, miracles, ie; whatever they most need at that moment, so they may come to experience Gods tangible love.

Why is it important to listen ? not only will you be encouraged, comforted, you can be Jesus to another person who has yet to taste his goodness. You can communicate to them what God is thinking about them ! You can be the means by which God can save, heal, speak, deliver, bring freedom, encouragement, comfort, (even loving correction if directed), to someone who was where you were not that long ago.   Bible calls it being an “ambassador” of Jesus.

Now that’s cool…

Coming soon in the site: Campus Harvest 2010 with messages by Adam Mabry, Steve Murrell, Rice Broocks, Lynette Lewis and Ferdie Cabiling.

Check it out at http://www.everynationpodcasts.com!

Walking with God – Learning H2 ‘hear’ God…  Part I

by Brant Reding

Navigating life on this planet is not easy, it requires a myriad of daily decisions, what to do, where to go, how to do it.  If your like me, you make lots of BAD decisions, I am really good at making bad decisions that I later regret.  However, for those of us that have decided God has a better way, we begin to find out he wants to help us make good decisions, all the time.  He will speak to us, guide us, help us. Why does he do this ?  Is he simply a really nice cosmic GPS system for life ?

Gods Motive..

God desires is to ‘walk’ with us (as he did with Adam & Eve), He longs that we know him as well as he knows us, intimately.  Because he cares for us, He wants to lead, guide, help, encourage and teach us. In short, he wants an authentic growing relationship with us.   And as with any relationship,  communication is the foundation. How silly to say I have a growing relationship with my friends or wife, but we never communicate!

God Communicates – he desires to ‘speak’ to us.

“the Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my fathers household and my native land and who spoke to me..” Gen 24:7

“God spoke to moses ‘as a man speaks with his friend”  Exodus 33:11

In the course of time, David inquired of the Lord. “Shall I go up to one of the towns of Judah ? He asked. The Lord said, ‘God up.’ David asked, ‘Where shall I go?’ ‘To Hebron’, the Lord answered” 2 Sam 2:1

The  Promise..

I (God) will instruct you says the lord and guide you along the best pathway for your life; I will advise you and watch your progress” Psm 32:8

When he was a young boy, the prophet Samuel heard the voice of God, but didn’t recognize it until he was instructed by Eli, the chief priest (1 Samuel 3:1-10). Gideon witnessed an appearance of God, but he still doubted what he had seen and heard, even to the extent of asking for three signs (Judges chapter 6, especially verses17-22, 36-40).

How can we know when we are hearing the voice of God?

“I assure you, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber! For a shepherd enters through the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they recognize his voice. John 10:1-4

Question : Do you want Jesus to lead ? He CAN’T lead a sheep that is not willing to follow,  !

Hearing God is a Learned skill…

Baby Lambs are different than grown sheep. Learning to hear God is like learning H2 play an instrument.. You desire to play, but you have to gain the skills over time and with continued practice. (Samuel needed instruction from Eli to discern Gods voice). God speaks in many ways. It takes patience, instruction, obedience.

What does God speak to us about ?

He communicates his love, our value to him, His identity. This starts to rebuild our true worth, gives us our true identity & security

He communicates to instruct us, train us, so we can ‘mature’

He communicates direction/guidance for ourselves and for others (remember Jonah)

Some common ways God talks to us:

His Word - 2 Tim 3:16-17

In order to actually “hear” from God, we have to know some things about God’s character. We have to develop an understanding of who God is, and the way he does things. Fortunately for us, all that information is available in the Bible. The Book teaches us what God is like, his heart towards us, his instructions/expectations he has for us, and most specifically, how he expects us to treat other people, H2 live. It’s like learning the basic music scales before playing the concert

Other People Many times God will use other people to try to get through to us. It’s possible for God to use anyone at any time, but I find more messages coming from people who are practicing Christians than non-practicing ones. (Prov is full of examples, plus Eph 4)

Our Circumstances - Acts 16:6-7, Jer 32:7-8

Sometimes the only way God can teach us something is to allow circumstances in our life to lead us to and through the very thing we need to discover. This can be providential guidance – some good, some hard, even some bad experiences, God will speak through.

The Still Small Voice – 
Most of the time God uses a tiny voice inside us to let us know when we’re not on the right path. It is the holy spirit ;

“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26).

Some people call it “the voice of peace.” Whenever we’re contemplating something and we don’t have peace about it, it’s a very good idea to stop and carefully look at the options. There’s a reason you don’t feel peace about it.

The Actual Voice Sometimes we’re able to “hear” something in our spirit that sounds to us like an actual audible voice. Or all of a sudden, you just know you heard something. Pay attention to those occasions because it is very likely God trying to tell you something.

Watch for deception: (Read Num 22).   We all have an invisible enemy, the thief Jesus warned about in John 10 – he comes to deceive, lie, rob, steal, kill and destroy. In fact Jesus warned that many will get fooled because of the subtle ways of this “angel of light”. Protection:  Whatever God says, or leads will ALWAYS be confirmed by His word. God has another safety net; God places us in his body the ‘church’ (people on journey following Jesus together).

Angels, visions, dreams, personal prophecy, signs, fleeces – These should CONFIRM your direction, not dictate it.

When God Talks, Shut Up, Listen and respond !

There are no notes for this week, but feel free to listen to the podcast!

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek
my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will
forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

The benefits of fasting are many and varied. Isaiah 58 alone, outlines at least six
benefits: victory over spiritual forces, health and healing, answered prayer, guidance,
power over sin, and anointing for ministry.

There is a difference, however, between benefits and reasons. Benefits refer to God’s
response to our fasting, but reasons refer to our initial motive. It is tempting to focus on
the benefits of fasting and miss the main reason for fasting: to draw near to God.

“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and
weeping and mourning.” Joel 2:12

Richard Foster is to the point: “If our fasting is not unto God, we have failed. Physical
benefits, success in prayer, the enduring with power, spiritual insights — these must
never replace God as the center of our fasting.”

Fasting is an act of starving our flesh, that we might hunger for God. Our motive is to
express that He is the bread that satisfies our hunger, and the water that quenches our
thirst (John 6:35).

So as you enter into this time of fasting, use this as an opportunity to receive more of
who God is.

Click here for the booklet that includes suggestions and guidelines for Every Nation’s 2010 nationwide fast.

Click on the link below for notes from this message:

Straight Up Truths about Prayer

Click on the link below for notes from this message:

The Power of Corporate Prayer

Click on the link below for notes from this message:

Sept. 13 – Friends of Discouragement

Teaching Notes – August 16, 2009

Verses used:
Brant: Jeremiah 29:13-14, Matthew 6:16-18, Psalm 51:16-17, Isaiah 58:6

Speakers: Pastor Brant Reding, Jenny Kornfeld

Verses to read:

Jenny: Psalm 84:2, 2 Corinthians 5:17-18, Luke 19:24-26
Brant: Luke 4:1,14, 2 Corinthians 5:9, Isaiah 40:27-39, 1 Tim 4:7, Psalm 1, Matthew 5:13-16, 6:16, 6:16-18, Jeremiah 29:13,14