Quick
Profile:
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Buddy Owens
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Maranatha! Music
205 Avenida Fabricante
San Clemente, CA 92672
Vice President of Book Publishing for
Maranatha! Music
Sr. Editor for the NIV Personal
Worship Bible
National seminar teacher on worship |
Producer/songwriter/vocal performer on
more than 100 projects including the
Maranatha! Praise series and all PK
releases since 1993
Songwriter of PK theme songs including
Face to Face, Reconciliation
Song, and Rise Up O Men of God.
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MESSAGE NOTES
- Want to energize your
relationship with God?
- Want to find out how to build
your faith?
- Want to learn how to resist
temptation?
- Want to change your thought life?
- Want to know that God is really
present in your life
- not just in theory - but in a LIVING, BREATHING, PRESENT CERTAINTY?
- Want to be a different person?
Have you ever said any of the
following statements:
Can I really do this?
Can I really be a man of
God's word?
Can I really be a man of
prayer?
The frustration we've had is in living
this out.
We have great intentions.
Buddy Owen's Experience:
Does any of
this sound familiar to you?
"I'd make the commitment - I'd
get up an hour before the family would get
up, before the sunrise - stub my toe on
the coffee table. I'd get on my
knees at the couch. Then I'd go
through a laundry list of prayer topics,
trying to remember how to pray for
missionaries overseas."
"I'd pray for neighbors,
missionaries, people, and I'd look at my
watch and I've only
been there for five minutes!
I've got a whole hour to go!
And I've got to pray for an hour?"
"So I'd pray with more
'fervency', and more 'wailing and gnashing
of teeth... I was struggling not to fall
asleep - then I'd try to keep my thoughts
together and keep my mind from wandering -
it was like trying to herd cats."
"And
after a few weeks of this - I began
wondering 'I don't know if I can make this
happen'. You know, you're
just EVERYWHERE! But this is what
I'm supposed to do? I realized now
that at the time I was just setting myself
up for failure. I was trying to run
a marathon without ever having been around
the block one time - it was just not going
to happen!"
"I was
trying to run a marathon without ever
having been around the block one time
- it was just not going to happen!"
"As far as my Bible
reading goes - I
remember being told
'You have to read
through the Bible in a year'
So I made a commitment to read through
the Bible in a year "Okay, I'm going to
read from Genesis to Maps".
"So I'm starting in
Genesis - and only have so much time - and
I'm skimming along, and I'm reading fast.
Then there were the 'begats'. So and so
begat so and so... So and so begat so and
so..."
"I got started late - I
fell asleep because I was trying to pray
for an hour. So - I'll make up the
time tomorrow. I put the kids to bed
and then there's a late football game on."
Now I've got double to read!"
"They say you can recognize the
Bible of a godly man because of the
tearstains on the pages - my Bible had
drool stains on the pages." (laughter at
the conference)
"After a while - this is
what happened: This book sat on my
nightstand and it scolded me for being
such a failure. It morphed from
being a source of comfort/direction into
an object of guilt."
"This
book sat on my nightstand
and it scolded me for being such a
failure.
It morphed from being a
source of comfort/direction
into an object of guilt"
(My notes here
are unclear - but Buddy Owens indicated
that he felt defeated, and was
disheartened.)
"So whose idea was it that
we have to read through the Bible through
a year? What kind of
guy can read through the Bible in a year?
Buddy now relates a story of
his father. He said his father reads
through the Bible every year.
He said his father is a
little too much on the disciplined side.
His father took a diet too seriously and
drank 8 twelve ounces of water a day.
His father got up, went to the sink and
DRANK 8 twelve ounces of water a year.
Buddy continues:
" - Now that's the kind of guy that can
read through the Bible in a year.
I'm not that kind of guy - I don't have
the plumbing for it!"
(Laughter at the conference)
"How many of you made the
commitment to pray for an hour, or to read
through the Bible in a year?" (HANDS WENT
UP ALL THROUGH THE AUDITORIUM)
How many of you
failed?"
"How many
of you have ever made the
commitment to pray through
the Bible in a year,
or to pray an hour a day?
How many of you
failed?
Stop torturing yourself!"
"Guys you are not alone -
STOP TORTURING YOURSELF!" This isn't
a secret that we have too keep buried."
"There's a better, deeper
and more personal way - A BETTER APPROACH
THAT IS RELATIONAL"
CONVERSATIONAL
PRAYER with scripture."
"It took
me years to realize that
Bible reading and prayer
were made to go hand-in-hand."
"Reading and prayer are
not two separate activities.
- It took me years to realize that
Bible reading and prayer were made to go
hand-in-hand.
- Both I and God should be on the same
subject.
- The prayer should be personal.
- Reading and Prayer - two parts of a
conversation
- Better if both people are talking
about the same subject.
- I should let God start the
conversation.
- I should see what's on God's mind
(scripture)
"How do I do this?
- Instead of praying for one hour -
start in Scripture.
- KEY CRITICAL POINT - READ FOR DEPTH,
NOT FOR DISTANCE
"You may ask 'How
do I do this?'
Read
for depth,
NOT for distance!"
"The crucial difference
between depth and difference:
- READING FOR
DISTANCE: Take a tea
bag - and dip it in the water ONCE.
What happens? NOTHING! No
change to the water!
- READING FOR
DEPTH: Take a tea bag -
and let it sit in a clear glass of water
for 1/2 an hour.
What happens? THE WATER CHANGES IT'S
IDENTITY:
- The water is no longer called
"a glass of water",
it is now called "a glass of tea"
- The tea is now integrated and
fully part of the water.
- "THIS IS
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DEPTH AND
DISTANCE - READ FOR DEPTH!!!"
"How to read for depth:
- Take a spiritual drive in the
country.
- "Fill my tank"
(This is an
analogy - not speaking of automobiles)
(No, not fill my car with gasoline, but
invite God to fill me - before coming to
God's word - invite God to fill me with
His Holy Spirit in a fresh way so I can
understand the scripture I'm about to
read.
(It is only the Holy Spirit within me
that helps me to understand God's word)
"The man
without the Spirit does not
accept the things that come from
the Spirit of God, for they are
foolishness to him, and he
cannot understand them, because
they are spiritually discerned."
1 Corinthians 2:14 |
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"Father, thank you for today, please
help me to hear you. I'm asking
you Lord, please send your Holy Spirit
to fill my heart today. Lord, I
ask that you will forgive me of all my
sins through Jesus Christ. Let me
see and understand what you would like
me to see in your word today.
I'm
asking this in Jesus' name, Amen"
God is
not really impressed
with eloquent fancy
prayers,
but he's looking for
honesty in prayer.
- "Choose the road"
(This is an
analogy - not speaking of automobiles)
▪
It may be a favorite road I've been on
before.
▪ It may be a
road I've never been on before
▪ It may be a road I was at
yesterday or the day before because
there was so much to see.
▪ The
Bible is a collection of 66 Books.
You don't
have to begin at the very beginning and go all the way to
the very
end - all in order.
▪ You might want to
begin starting with Matthew and go
through the New Testament. Perhaps
with Galatians or Ephesians
▪ Or perhaps begin where your
pastor taught last week
▪
▪ (They
chose the book of Colossians chapter 3
at the Promise Keeper's conference)
Slow
down!
Guys, this is not a race,
it is an
exploration.
Read for DEPTH, not for distance!
- "Slow down - take in
the scenery!"
Read for DEPTH, not distance!
(This is an
analogy - not speaking of automobiles)
This is not a race - take in the
scenery.
▪ You
don't have to cover a certain amount of
material in a certain amount of time.
▪ What
does the place look like?
▪ What does it sound like?
▪ Who is the audience (speaking to
a group, a person)?
▪ What is going on in the verses
before and after (the surroundings, the
scenery).
▪ Read it as a personal letter
from a person who loves you.
▪ READ
SLOWLY - explore it!
▪ BREAK
THE RULES - MOVE YOUR LIPS, you may even
want to read it out loud!
- "When you
drive - pull over for scenic viewpoints"
(This
is an analogy - not speaking of
automobiles)
▪ Take a good
long look around.
▪ Imagine yourself in the scene -
see what was so beautiful - that they
placed a sign to tell you to pull over
▪ At the Promise Keeper's
conference they looked at Colossians
3:16
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Scenic
Viewpoint
"Let the word of
Christ dwell in you richly as
you teach and admonish one
another with all wisdom, and as
you sing psalms, hymns and
spiritual songs with gratitude
in your hearts to God."
Colossians 3:16 |
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Pulling over for a scenic viewpoint
▪ "Let
the word of Christ dwell in you richly"
(I have a role to play - the word of Christ is waiting for me
to play my role - with making my time,
my mind, my heart available)
▪ "Let the
word of Christ
dwell in you richly"
(this is not a quick visit - let it move in and take
residence, print out the verse and carry
it with me through the day)
▪ "Let the
word of Christ dwell in you
richly"
(Richly, and not poorly - like the tea bag that dwells
in the water richly - it takes time
to make tea.
▪ It's
SLOWING DOWN and putting things in my
words and praying back to the Lord what
I'm seeing.
▪ Don't
speed-listen - it's like a conversation
I might have with a loved-one.
Have you ever had a conversation with
someone and you try to speed-listen?
▪ When we speed listen - someone's
going to get hurt. It's like
driving too fast.
"Don't
speed-listen with God
Say back to God what
you're seeing on the page"
▪ So from this passage - we
could pray back to the Lord
"So what I hear you saying Lord, you
want me to open my heart so that your
word can move into me in a deep and rich
way."
- "Take a
picture of myself"
(This
is an analogy - not speaking of
automobiles, or taking a journey)
▪ A reminder
of where you were.
▪ It is like standing in front of
a mirror.
▪ Does everything look all right in the mirror?
▪ How do I look in this light?
▪ Come before the text and examine myself in front of the
mirror of scripture.
▪ What things about my character have I hidden away and need
to come into the light?
| Anyone
who listens to the word but does
not do what it says is like a
man who looks at his face in a
mirror and, after looking at
himself, goes away and
immediately forgets what he
looks like.
But the man who
looks intently into the perfect
law that gives freedom, and
continues to do this, not
forgetting what he has heard,
but doing it--he will be blessed
in what he does.
James 1:23-25 |
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- "Send a
postcard home"
(This
is an analogy - not speaking of
automobiles, or taking a journey)
▪ This is
my prayer - this is where my reading
and thinking turns into real prayer.
▪ Talk with God about what he's
been saying to me as I visited that
place.
▪ Tell God what I've been
feeling.
▪ Tell God what I've been
hearing through this passage(s).
▪ Talk with God about what I've
seen.
▪ Tell God where I've been
- what scriptural scenery I've seen.
▪ Sometimes my prayer is a prayer
of gratitude.
▪ Sometimes it's a prayer of
confession.
▪ It might just be a sung prayer
of worship or praise.
- Then I drive on
to the next scenic viewpoint - it might
be the next verse, chapter,
cross-reference. (Use the above
six points)
- As I do this, I
begin to absorb the nature and character
of God's Word.
- It's like the
teabag - it steeps in water for 1/2 an
hour and the water is no longer called a
glass of water - but a glass of tea!
- Being a
Christian - is being like Christ.
Absorbing the character of Christ.
- Buddy Owens
said that his life really changed.
- He said he
struggles FAR less with temptation
(he's not over it - but it's gotten a
whole lot better)
- He's replaced
old thought patterns with new ones.
- His children
noticed that he became more patient
than he used to be.
- His passions
became godly passions.
- He began to
see circumstances through the lens of
scripture.
- His
motivations changed.
- The last thing
that changed - he noticed he began
having conversational prayer and
scripture with God - his spiritual life
changed.
- His times
with God became wonderful - everyday
memories.
- The time
alone with God became something far
more enjoyable.
- The time with
God started growing into a friendship
with God instead of a compulsion of
mere duty.
- "God wants us
to know him through faith - too many
Christians focus on doing instead of
being - we should focus on our faith -
building our faith in God instead of
mere doing our Christian. If we
focus on our faith - the doing becomes
naturally."
Suggestions:
 DOWNLOAD
THIS FREE
-
Verse Analysis Worksheet
(From "NavPress")
Requires
Adobe Acrobat Reader
Try
Psalm 1 with the above worksheet
Try
Colossians 3:1-3 with the above worksheet
Try
Colossians 3:16 with the above worksheet
Try
Romans 12:1-2 with the above worksheet
Try
Titus 2:11-12 & James 4:6-8 with the above worksheet
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