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How In Tune with God Am I, Really? :: PAIN

PRESENTED FOR CURWENSVILLE ALLIANCE ON 5/3/2020 BY PASTOR STEVE SHIELDS

Most Christians want to feel like they are in tune with God. Whether or not you attend church, read your Bible, or spend much time in prayer, you probably feel like, “Meh – God and I are okay.”

Then something happens.

Pain comes along. It doesn’t have to be big.

Even the pain of an unexpected setback can alert you to the reality that you’re not as in tune with God as you thought you were.

In this podcast, Pastor Steve offers biblical counsel on how to be in tune with God.

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What Am I Made of, Really? :: PAIN

Presented for Curwensville Alliance of 4/26/20 by Pastor Steve Shields

We all face pain at some point in our lives. Facing that pain can painfully reveal to us that we are not as tough as we think.

Pain can highlight areas of weakness.

In this podcast, Pastor Steve shows us what those weakness may be as well as outline the solutions to dealing with those weaknesses.

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The Substitute Teacher :: PAIN

Presented for Curwensville Alliance on 4/19/20 by Pastor Steve Shields

When you are confronted with pain, how do you respond?

Some people get angry. Some withdraw. Some look for ways to get even.

Did you ever consider that pain may be a teacher – teaching you things that will benefit you in the long run?

In this podcast, the first in the series Pain, the Substitute Teacher, Pastor Steve lays out several questions that pain may evoke in our lives.

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Getting Rid of the Lids :: LIDS

Presented for Curwensville Alliance on 3/29/20 by Pastor Steve Shields.

We have talked about the different lids in our lives over the last few months.

These lids keep us from growing closer to God. Now what do we do?

Take them to the cross!

We all have lids in our lives that keep us from growing closer to God. To remove these lids, we need to take them to the cross.

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The Lid of Fear :: LIDS

Presented online on 3/22/2020 for Curwensville Alliance by Pastor Steve Shields

Fear…

If there is one thing that keeps you from moving forward in you life, it’s probably fear.

It acts as a lid, holding you down. Maybe as the most effective of lids.

When you look around at our world, do you ever feel afraid?

In this podcast, Pastor Steve looks at King Saul and discusses how we can deal with fear.

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The Lid of Hypocrisy :: LIDS

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 3/15/2020 by Pastor Steve Shields

Hypocrisy — it shows up in a lot of different forms.

There’s the good old double-standard:
Dad – why do YOU get seconds on ice-cream and we don’t!!!

There’s the issue of pretending, where you say,
Well – I never do that.
And then you get caught doing…that!

And then there’s the issue of moral duplicity,
where you pretend you’re doing something for one reason, but you’re really doing for another, self-serving reason.

What we may or may not realize is that hypocrisy is a lid — something that holds us down and prevents us from being who God wants us to become.

This podcast helps us identify hypocrisy in our own lives and deal with it from the counsel of Jesus in Matthew 6.

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The Lid of Complacency :: LIDS

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 3/8/2020 by Pastor Steve Shields

Stagnant water is dangerous water.

Stagnant sewer water can expose you to bacteria and parasites that have a negative impact the health of you and your family.

“Clean” stagnant water doesn’t stay clean long, attracting animals and insects that carry dangerous diseases.

Any stagnant water can produce mold and mildew within 24-48 hours

Stagnancy. It’s bad for water and it’s bad for people.

It’s especially bad in your spiritual life.

Dealing with stagnancy (complacency) may require, among other things, a reset.

This podcast addresses stagnancy — the lid of complacency — in our lives, helping us remove it.

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The Lid of Indecisiveness :: LIDS

Presented at Curwensville Alliance on 3/1/2020 by Pastor Steve Shields

When I am making a purchase, I tend to do my homework.

For examples, when I am buying tires I research them — to death. Which tire has the longest life? Which brand has the best warranty? What about traction? Will it do well in snow? What about noise? I hate unnecessary road noise. What about the cool factor? What about price? Value?

And often, I find myself plagued with indecisiveness.

When it comes to such things, indecisiveness can be an inconvenience. When it comes to life-choices — who to marry, where to go to college, employment choices, whether to follow Christ — indecisiveness in these areas can be troublesome to the point of problematic.

This podcast explains how indecisiveness can be a lid, holding us back from being who God wants us to be.

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