A six-week run through James, Proverbs, and Deuteronomy — moving from planning & patience into a sustained focus on parenting, teaching our children, and training for godliness.
| Date | Text | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| May 17 | James 4:13–5:3 | Planning in Wisdom — "If the Lord wills" |
| May 24 | James 5:7–20 | Waiting in Wisdom — Patience, confession, pursuing wanderers |
| May 31 | Proverbs, 1 Samuel, Ephesians | Obedience Is Better |
| Jun 7 | Matthew 9, Joshua 1, Romans Road | Just Go — The Call to Ministry |
| Jun 14 | Deuteronomy 6, Proverbs | Teaching Your Children God's Ways |
| Jun 21 | Proverbs 22, Hebrews 12, 1 Tim 4 | Father's Day — Training & Discipline |
Big Idea: Our plans must be held loosely. God controls the timing and the outcome.
"Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." — James 4:14
- Plans need to be tentative — admitting we cannot control the circumstances.
- "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that" (4:15). Not laziness — humility.
- If our plan goes well: glory to God, not boasting in our own skill.
- Boasting is restrictive — trusting God is freeing.
- Our plans need to be about giving rather than taking (5:1–3).
- "Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it: for him it is sin" (4:17).
- Bottom line: Roll with the chaos and trust that God's got it. He's in charge of the details — and that is a good thing.
Big Idea: "Do patience." Endure. Establish your heart. Don't grumble.
"Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it…" — James 5:7
Three "when / what / why" sections:
| When | What | Why | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | During suffering | Be patient. Establish your heart. Don't grumble. Don't swear. | Remember Jesus. We are not the judge — quit dishing that out on others. |
| 2 | Suffering, sickness, sins | Pray. Pray with others (elders). Confess your sins to one another. | Jesus can lift us up from sickness — and especially from sins. |
| 3 | A friend wanders from the truth | Make an attempt to pursue them. | To save their soul. |
Greek insight: "Patient" in English is an adjective. In Greek it's an active verb — do patience. Endure. Be steadfast. As God is patient with us.
"The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." — James 5:16
Confession: "I hate it, I need it, and it's not that bad." Confess to 1–2 others. You will receive grace, because that person is a sinner too.
Big Idea: Obedience isn't just compliance — it's wisdom that leads to a better life.
"Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice." — 1 Samuel 15:22
The pastor opened: "I used to be an expert on parenting. Then I had kids." 🥁
| Obedience is better than… | Why |
|---|---|
| Your own advice | "A wise son hears his father's instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke" (Prov 13:1). Someone with more experience sees what you don't. |
| Rebellion | "Rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry" (1 Sam 15:22–23). Assuming you know better is sin. |
| Consequences | Proverbs 5 paints a vivid picture: the one who hated discipline ends up groaning "at the brink of utter ruin." Parents' rules aren't arbitrary — they're protection. |
| A godless society | Romans 1 and 2 Timothy 3 both list "disobedient to parents" alongside the ugliest sins. Obedience is a foundation stone of a healthy community. |
Hebrew insight: Shama = hear, listen, AND obey. In the biblical mind, truly hearing means you do it.
For parents: "Hold the line. It's worth it." The promise of a better life outweighs the threat of consequences. Faithful in little → faithful in much. Challenge: Read Proverbs 4 with your kids.
Big Idea: The harvest is plentiful. The laborers are few. Pray — then go.
The president of Boise Bible College spoke. The numbers: 110 churches, ~450 in training, serving ~1.1M — and fewer recruits than in a very long time. Many pastors are 60+ with no one to replace them.
"The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers." — Matthew 9:37–38
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened… for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." — Joshua 1:9
The Gospel in 4 steps:
- We've all sinned — Romans 3:23
- The gift is free — Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8–9
- Confess & believe — Romans 10:9
- Repent & be baptized — Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3–4 (walk in newness of life)
Don't go alone. Jesus sent them two by two (Mark 6:7).
"Two are better than one… woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!" — Ecclesiastes 4:9–12
Growing forward: Give your life to Jesus. Grow in God's Word (Heb 4:12 — living, active, sharper than any sword). Get in a Life Group at Canyon Springs. Be in the Word more — don't drift.
Big Idea: Teach your children diligently — God's rules, God's ways, and what it means to fear the Lord.
The pastor told a story: his driver's ed teacher once asked, "Is there a train coming?" — while the pastor was standing on the train tracks. What things were you taught? And what are you passing on?
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children…" — Deuteronomy 6:4–7
Three things to teach:
| Teach them… | What it means |
|---|---|
| God's rules (right & wrong) | "Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples" (Deut 4:5–6). God's rules set His people apart. |
| To fear the Lord | Show what it means: God does miracles, God saves, God forgives. "I do wrong but God still loves me — not that I do no wrong so God loves me." We fear God so we don't have to be afraid of anything else. |
| God's way is better | Moral instruction matters more than anything else. Talk about it. Repeat it. "Repeat what is important." |
"Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen… Make them known to your children and your children's children." — Deuteronomy 4:9
Practical wisdom:
- Kids pick up what we say the most — and what we do the most.
- If you feel overwhelmed, start with what God says.
- Teach them to love God with everything.
- "Your kids are your responsibility."
- "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it" (Prov 22:6).
Big Idea: Discipline isn't punishment — it's the hard work of training for godliness.
"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." — Proverbs 22:6
"Train" here is about dedication — consistent, deliberate effort. Our job is to set our children on the path to Jesus and train them along the way.
Discipline = the positive side of hard work.
"The Lord disciplines the one he loves… For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." — Hebrews 12:6, 11
Discipline is doing the hard work of what is right — not just punishment for doing wrong. Developing good habits, especially when it's hard. You get mature by constant practice.
"Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way." — 1 Timothy 4:7–8
We are training for an imperishable crown (1 Cor 9:25). Training to be like Jesus is more important than baseball — and everything else.
"Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." — Ephesians 6:4
"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." — 2 Timothy 3:16–17
Takeaways:
- Make church a priority over other things.
- When you're doing things the wrong way, working harder isn't the answer — changing habits is.
- Pilots need a checklist and a plan; so do parents.
- Discipline means saying yes to the little things that make us more like Christ.
- We are guides / coaches responsible for training our children.
| Sermon | Core Theme | For Our Family |
|---|---|---|
| May 17 | Planning in Wisdom | Hold plans loosely. If the Lord wills. Trust God with the details. |
| May 24 | Waiting in Wisdom | Do patience. Confess to one another. Pursue wanderers. |
| May 31 | Obedience Is Better | Kids obey parents; parents hold the line. Shama — hear and do. |
| Jun 7 | Just Go | Don't go alone. Life Group. Stay in the Word. |
| Jun 14 | Teaching Children | Teach God's rules, fear of the Lord, and that His way is better. Repeat what matters. |
| Jun 21 | Training & Discipline | Discipline = training for godliness, not punishment. Train kids on the path to Jesus. |
A prayer from these six weeks:
Lord, teach us to hold our plans loosely and trust Your timing. Help us obey without needing every reason. Send us where You want us — and don't let us go alone. Give us the strength to teach our children Your rules, Your ways, and what it means to fear You. Train us in godliness, even when it's hard, so we can train them. And above all, make us more like Jesus. Amen.
Sermon notes from Canyon Springs Church · Compiled June 22, 2026 All Scripture from ESV unless noted