Decision making 101

Below are 6 brief points with scripture references that I have found to be an extremely helpful lens that I put most of my decision making under. Give it a try.

1. Will your decision bring glory to God?
(1. Cor.10:31)

2. Is it beneficial?
(1.Cor.10:23-24)

3. Might it have the tendency to enslave you?
(1.Cor.6:12)

4. Will it strengthen you against temptation?
5. Is it a characteristic of the world or the Father?
(1.John.2:15-17)

6. What effect will this decision have on those around me?
(1.Cor.8:13)

"Decisions become easier when your will to please God outweighs your will to please the world." ~Anso Coetzer

Top 5 COGS Youth inventions

5. A whole new language -words and phrases such as "Big Jols", "Fireday", "Lactrons", "Shonky" and "witk" have become become a part of our everyday vocabulary.

4. Lieutenant Vinyl-other bands fighting it out for this spot were Coals of Juniper, The Evie Edy Band and Smash and Grab...they were disqualified either because they had a lack of COGS people in their band, or because they never really existed, or because in the case of Smash and Grab, they were just not that good.
Lieutenant Vinyl has become the soundtrack to our teenage years.

3. Wii-ing on the tramp-at first we were told we were rude and offensive because of this, but very quickly it became a worldwide phenomenom!

2. Killball-whether it's the girls cheering as the boys take their shirts off or just the sound of a deflated plastic spar ball hitting raw flesh, Killball has made a loud noise in and around Durban and South Africa.

1. Jason Burger-Born and christened as Jasco Vadasco, this young russian imigrant with his permanent moustache moved to Durban at age 12 and began learning the language. 5 short years later, with the help of COGS Youth, he's lost the accent, kept the moustache and become the smooth, bass playing invention that we know today as Jason Burger.

Vote for your Top 5 COGS Youth inventions on our facebook group.

Being a comrade

Hey guys, this blog has become a bit chilled so we are going to try spicing it up with a few guest posts. If you think you have what it takes let us know, but otherwise suggest who you think would make a good guest blogger.

Up first though, after an excellent preach two weeks ago, is a man of many talents. Some might know him as the administrator, but others as tbone, booster, or the infamour Tyron Altern. This is a summary of his preach, enjoy.

BEING A COMRADE

1. It’s not about us, but it does start with us (Matt 22: 38 - 39)

· Need to have a personal revelation of who Jesus is

· How can you love what you don’t know?

· Don’t try earn God’s love, live in His love -share the gospel out of revelation not reaction

· Need to spend time with Jesus (Acts 4:13 - P&J)

· Need to live what we preach (walk the walk)

2. Look at people through the eyes of Jesus

· Don’t look for people like us, look for a soul that needs salvation

· Don’t let fear or inconvenience get in the way

· The gospel is for everyone - who are we to decide who it is for?

· We are called to spend time with those who we wouldn’t normally spend time with (JESUS)

· Let’s look for opportunities to be friends and not to make friends (what we can give not what we can get)

· Try see the potential in others when others or even themselves can’t

· We need to be sign posts pointing people to Jesus

· Don’t highlight what they are doing wrong and what they need to change. Show them what their lives and future can look like with Jesus. Give them Hope!

· The gospel shouldn’t restrict people it should free them!

3. Don’t make church the main Focus (Acts 2:47) - ALPHA

· What is you reason for coming to church? (friends, family, worship?) - should be to equip you to perform better

· Do you love Jesus more than you love Church?

· Jesus needs to be the reason why we do what we do

· Help people fall in love with Jesus not the church - The church will let us down, Jesus won’t

· Need to be outward focused not inward focused

· God didn’t tell people to go the church, he told the church to go the people (the lost)

· We see each other so often (Sun, Tues, Thurs) and will have eternity to spend with each other so let’s be more careful with who we spend our free time with.

4. God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies those he calls

· We aren’t all called to be evangelists, but we are all called to witness (great commission)

· People hear our hearts more than the words we say

· We all have a testimony so share it. No one’s testimony is more important or better than anyone else’s

· It should be current and focused more on Jesus than our past.

5. The Holy Spirit draws people to Jesus not us

· The Holy Spirit’s role is to bring glory to Jesus and He will often work through us to do this

· Fruits of the Spirit - Galatians 5:22

· Acts 1:8 - The Holy Spirit gives us power to be witnesses (our lives should prove that Jesus is alive)

· Best advertisement for Christianity is our transformed lives. Start with those people that know us (friends and family)

· The Gospel doesn’t just save lives, it renews and transforms lives - most rewarding thing to see