“Give yourselves completely to God—every part of you—for you have been brought back to life, and you want to be tools in the hands of God, used for his good purposes.” - Romans 6:13 (LB)
“Since God has shown us great mercy, offer your lives as a living sacrifice to him.  Your offering must be only for God and pleasing to him, which is the spiritual way for you to worship.” - Romans 12:1 (NCV)

FIVE COMMITMENTS

1. TO STRENGTHEN MY FAITH… I MUST UNITE WITH OTHERS IN WORSHIP

“Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.” - Isaiah 40:31
“Worship the Lord with gladness!  Come before him, singing with joy!” - Psalm 100:2 (NLT)

2. TO DISCOVER MY IDENTITY & PURPOSE… I MUST CONNECT WITH OTHERS IN FELLOWSHIP

“We are like the various parts of a human body.  Each part gets its meaning from Christ’s Body as a whole, not the other way around.  Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body.  But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn’t amount to much, would we?” - Romans 12:4-5 (Mes)
“Christ brought us together through his death on the Cross.  The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility.” Ephesians 2:16 (Mes)
“Now God had reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation…and the message of reconciliation.”  2 Corinthians 5:18-19 (NIV)

3. TO DEVELOP MY POTENTIAL… I MUST LEARN FROM OTHERS TO GROW

“Christ’s Body is fitted together perfectly.  As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow . . .” - Ephesians 4:16 (NLT)
“God’s kingdom isn’t about eating and drinking.  It’s about pleasing God, living in peace, and experiencing true happiness.  All this comes from the Holy Spirit.” - Romans 14:17 (CEV)

4. TO EXPERIENCE SIGNIFICANCE… I MUST SERVE WITH OTHERS IN MINISTRY

“Each of you has received a gift to use to serve others.  Be good servants of God’s various gifts of grace.” - 1 Peter 4:10 (NCV)
 “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it.  But if you give your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life.” - Mark 8:35 (NLT)
“Two people are always better than one, because they get more done by working TOGETHER.  If one falls down, the other can help him up.  But it is bad for the person who is alone and falls, because no one is there to help.  If two lie down together, they can share the same blanket and stay warm, but a person alone will not be warm.  An enemy might defeat one person, but two people together can defend themselves.  And a rope that is woven of three braids is hard to break.”  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NCV & LB)
WHEN WE WORK TOGETHER…
a)  WE __________________________________ (vs 9)
b)  WE __________________________________ (vs 10)
c)  WE __________________________________ (vs 11)

5. TO MAKE AN ETERNAL DIFFERENCE… I MUST JOIN WITH OTHERS ON MISSION

“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and  the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to do everything I have commanded you.  And surely I will be with you…” - Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV)
“They gave beyond their ability . . . far more than they could afford.  What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God.  The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives.” - 2 Corinthians 8:3, 5 (Mes)