Trail Post 7: Be a Generous Giver (from the Trailhead Series)

We are now at our last stop in our Trailhead Series.  Our pastor has led us through 7 stops along the guided journey of the Christ follower.  Trail post 1 (Baptism), trail post 2 (the Word of God), trail post 3 (Prayer), trail post 4 (Making Disciples), trail post 5 (Love Others), trail post 6 (The Lord's Supper), and now trail post 7 (Be a Generous Giver).

The following post is based on my pastor's sermon titled Trail Post 7:  Be a Generous Giver.  You are invited to watch the entire sermon here.

Trailhead - Giving Generously - April 28, 2019 (Message) from Christ Place Church on Vimeo.

 Be a Generous Giver

It is abnormal to be a Christ follower and not be a giver. 

All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. - Acts 2:44-47

The first church was making disciples.

Of all the trail post stops we've made through this series, if you are a Christ follower, you will be doing these things.

1.  You will put Jesus first.
2.  You will be banded together as Christ followers.
3.  You will want to lead others to Jesus.
4.  You will want to change the world's view to one that follows Jesus.

Image Credit:  Felix Russell Saw - Public Domain Image via Freely Photos

Let's look at number 1.  If you are a Christ follower, you will put Jesus first.  We cannot say that Christ is first in our lives unless we are completely surrendered to Him.  We cannot control our future, our health, our families, or our families.  We must give it all to the Lord.  

All we have has been given to us.  We are not self made.  Not really.  Yes, we work hard for what we have, but all we have are blessings from God; therefore we should give generously. 


I'm not saying we should be subject to a socialist environment.  I'm say we should live with the spirit of a generous giver.  The people in the book of Acts mentioned above were not forced to give of what they had.  They gave because they wanted to give.  They were filled with the Holy Spirit and they were acting on the Holy Spirit's leadership.

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.  All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. - Acts 4:31-32

 The people in Acts were unified with one heart and one soul.

Giving Principles

1.  Christ followers understand rightful ownership.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. - 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 We are not our own.  We belong to God.

2.  Christ followers are joyfully generous.

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  - 2 Corinthians 9:7

3.  Christ followers band together in their giving.  

4.  Christ's church must have proper distribution.

5.  Christ followers receive great blessings when they give.  

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase. - Acts 9:31

Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” - Luke 6:38

 You'll find all posts in the Trailhead series here.

Trail Post 6: Remember Me - The Lord's Supper (from the Trailhead Bible Study Series)

As we approach Easter, we start planning to observe the Lord's Supper.  The Lord's Supper is also known as Communion.  The day before Jesus was crucified, Jesus shared a meal with his disciples.  He told them to continue to observe that supper in remembrance of Him.  This is why we observe the Lord's Supper still today.  You can learn more about the Lord's Supper here.

Image Credit:  Jon Tyson - Public Domain Image via Freely Photos

The following are my notes based on my pastor's sermon during our Communion service.  You are invited to worship with us.  Please watch the entire sermon in the video below.

Trailhead - Remember Me - April 14, 2019 (Message) from Christ Place Church on Vimeo.

 Remember Me - The Lord's Supper

Our scripture text for today is 1 Corinthians 11:17-26.

In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good.  In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it.  No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval. So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat,  for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk. Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in?  Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing?  What shall I say to you?  Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter!
 
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.  1 Corinthians 11:17-26

The Lord's Supper is about Jesus.  If you love Jesus, you'll want to remember what He did for you.  The Lord's Supper originated in what we call the Upper Room where Jesus gathered with His disciples the day before His crucifixion.  The Lord's Supper is intended for Christ-followers to do together, not alone.

The Lord's Supper is about:

1.  the unity in Jesus' body.

We don't come to the table of the Lord's Supper with divided hearts.

2.  the sacrifice of Jesus' body.

The assurance of forgiveness of our sins is sealed by the blood of Jesus.

During the Passover, it didn't matter how many or how few sins the oldest child had committed.  It had everything to do with the blood on the doorpost.

3.  the return of Jesus' body.

He is coming back!

Don't make the Lord's Supper a ritual.

Don't come to the table resentful.

Don't come to the table deceitful.

Do come to the table worshipful.

You'll find all posts in the Trailhead series here. 

The Moxy Hotel Experience in Chattanooga, Tennessee

One of our favorite places to visit is Chattanooga, Tennessee.  We live within 2.5 hours of Chattanooga so we get to go there often.  On our most recent visit, someone else booked our room for us so we had no idea what to expect when we arrived.  The Moxy Hotel is apparently a well known attraction in Chattanooga but we had never heard of it.  When we walked in, we were surprised at how small the room was.  At first we thought this would never work for us.  One of our adult daughters decided to join us after the room was booked.  The hotel was all booked up so we couldn't switch to a larger room with two beds, but with an air mattress on the floor, we made the best of it.  This is the most unique hotel in which we have ever stayed.  Seriously, I've never seen anything like it.  My first impression was that it sported sort of a millennial hippie theme.  There are things I liked about this hotel and things I didn't like.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove) - Created in Picmonkey

 The Moxy Hotel Experience

I'll tell you the things I didn't like first.  It seemed like a party hotel.  The service desk is also a massive bar in the lobby.  If you happen to have children with you while you check in, they will be standing with you at a bar.  Some people will have a bigger problem with this than others.  We don't drink alcoholic beverages but we have friends and some family members who do.  We eat at local family restaurants where the bar is obvious but not part of the dining area.  Personally, I thought the party atmosphere was a bit too much but there were things about the Moxy Hotel that we thought were unique.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

We were booked in a room with one double bed.  Occasionally, you'll see one of our luggage bags in the pictures.  Please forgive.  The room was super small so there wasn't much space to get things out of the way.  The bed was perfectly straight and well made.  The wrinkles are due to our bags being placed there as we walked in.  Notice the floor.  I'm not sure what material the floor is made from.  It doesn't feel like real wood but it looks like it.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

There was no dresser in the room, but there were two large drawers under the bed.  In the drawer was a bag for dirty clothes.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Notice that the TV is hanging on the wall.  There was no dresser.  There was no closet either.  Notice the hangars for hanging up your clothing is hanging on a peg on the wall beside the TV.  The rug is cute though.  :)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The headboard was a giant leather cushion that hung on iron pegs.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The night stand was probably the most normal sized item in the bedroom.  LOL

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

My daughter was almost too excited about this "retro" phone.  I grew up with one like this so I didn't even notice it at first.  This one has a push button dial.  Ours was the old rotary kind.  Haha

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The decor was interesting.  I guess off-centered wall art is the thing these days. 

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Remember that I said there was no dresser or closet?  Well, there is a small table but it is also hanging on pegs on the wall.  The entire wall opposite the bed was lined with giant pegs.  You can hang your clothes up there - and the table and the chair.  :)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

There was a canvas bag hanging on one of the many wall pegs.  We were told that we were welcome to use it but there is a $75 charge if it is damaged or missing at the end of our stay.  We decided to leave the bag on the wall - untouched.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The fixtures in the bedroom were all antiqued metal or iron.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Opposite the long wall of pegs is the bathroom.  The wall between the bed and the bathroom almost made it seem like an outside room.  There was actually a window on the wall between the bedroom and the shower.  We lifted the shade to find that it is an actual shade and an actual window that reveals the area INSIDE the shower.  There is a milky film over the glass, but you can still see the person on the other side of the window INSIDE the shower.  I should mention here that this is another thing I did not like about this hotel. 

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The bathroom was adorable.  The sink was large with antiqued iron or iron-like fixtures.  It was stocked with clean towels, washcloths, tissues, and a large container of Muk liquid hand soap, not the tiny little bars.  

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The light fixture above the sink was unique.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

I've never even seen a rectangular shaped toilet.  It looked a little odd, but it was nice and clean.  The trashcan sitting there by the toilet is metal.  I discovered later that the toilet served as a flat table when the lid was down.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

There was no bath tub, but the shower was large.  I wasn't crazy about the clear glass shower doors though.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

This is the other side of that shaded window I was telling you about earlier.  I think there should be a shade that can be controlled from the inside the shower, but there wasn't.  

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The shower head was amazing.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

 Look at that huge head!  It was like standing under a waterfall.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

I was happy about the full sized Muk brand shampoo/body wash and conditioner.  They had those bottles locked in place.  Nobody would be taking those home.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

This is not your typical hotel room door.  It looked more like an outside door or an apartment door.  If you lift the shade, you'll find that milky coating which makes it harder to see through the glass.  If you look closely enough, you can still see through it.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The view from the outside our hotel room door.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

We noticed that this hotel was extremely clean, even the hallway.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Y'all, the elevators in that place lit up purple.  Not really my thing but my 21 year old daughter thought it was cool.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

There was a long row of lockers in the downstairs lobby.

The next 5 photos are of various sitting areas we found sitting around the hotel.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Just around the corner from the row of lockers was a computer table.  There were two desk top computers belonging to the hotel secured to the table.  There are several ports available for plugging in your own laptop.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The hotel had two studio rooms available.  We assumed these rooms were for business meetings.  We didn't go inside the rooms but they seemed private and spacious.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Studio 2 seemed a little larger than studio 1.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

The public bathroom in the downstairs lobby was large and super clean.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

I love the bathroom stalls.  You get your own private ROOM, not a typical stall with an open top and bottom with gaps in the door so wide that people can see inside the stall.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

This is a cool door in the lobby.  

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

 This wall was decorated with pie plates and books.

Image Credit:  Abundant-Family-Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

No one was using the gym.  Maybe it was the time of day.  I thought it was pretty cool that the stationary bike was an actual bike.

After exploring the hotel, my daughter and I decided to take a walk around the outside of the hotel.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Maybe the hotel was built beside an old railroad?  I'm not sure and I didn't see that information on their website. 

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

According to The Moxy website, some buildings were once warehouse spaces.

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

They offer valet parking at the front of the hotel.

The next several photos are of game areas set up in the hotel lobby and all around the outside patio. 

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living (Tina Truelove)

Even though we didn't see any pets during our stay, the hotel is pet friendly.  They even have a doggie snack and water bowl outside in the game area.

This is probably not a hotel I would book again because of these reasons:  

1.  The party atmosphere.

2.  The fact that the bar is also the service desk because for me personally, I wouldn't want to take young children to the bar with me to check in and I personally hate alcohol.

3.  The room was too small (and the window in the shower with the shade on the other side of the window is just wrong).

4.  There was no dresser or mini frig in the room.

5.  The table and chair hang on the wall.  If you take them down to use them, they are too small and they take up valuable space in the room (and there wasn't much of that).

However, if for some reason I have to stay at the hotel again, I won't be terrible.  I did like the fact that the hotel is located downtown so there is easy access to the downtown Chattanooga attractions.  I like the games around the hotel patio.  Oh, and I must mention that the Moxy Hotel staff was super nice and helpful.  I asked for extra towels one evening and the staffer almost beat me to the room to deliver them.  I still don't know how he did that.  If we needed something, they were on it fast.