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This morning in my time alone with God I was contemplating how fragile life is. None of us have a guarantee of tomorrow or even of the next minute. The sobering truth is that we live in a world of hatred, envy, jealousy and all kinds of evil. In the midst of it all, however, God is still right ...
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For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
-Ephesians 210 (New International Version)
The first part of Ephesians 2 has always puzzled me until I read it again this morning. Somehow a light went off in my head, an...
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And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
-Romans 828 (New Living Translation).
The book of Daniel in the Bible tells two stories of how God uses injustice and unfairness experienced by four...
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"He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood."
Luke 2244 (New Living Translation)
It seems like every day life becomes more and more demanding. If it isn't the down economy or gas prices it's health concerns, th...
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So Jesus called them together and said, "You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people beneath them. But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,...
-Mark 10 42 and 43 (New Living Translation)...
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Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the desert, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life, for...
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Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
-Isaiah 118 (King James Version)
Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near Let th...
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But Jesus called them , and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.
-Luke 1816 amp 17 (King James Version)...
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This is how we know what love is Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
-I John 316 (New International Version)
I am sure that most everyone reading this blog would agree that we live in a dog-eat-dog culture in America. It seems as...
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Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.
-Proverbs 271 (New International Version)
Human life is highly fragile. We never know what a moment of time may bring.
I was recently talking to a new friend who was grieving. One of his closest friends h...
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Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me....
Psalm 234a (New International Version)
I remember as clearly as if it were yesterday. September 11, 2001 changed my life forever. No, I didn't know any of the people in the bui...
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For you created my inmost being you knit me together in my mother's womb . I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of...
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Tomorrow, September 22, 2010, marks the historic twentieth anniversary of the annual prayer rally known as See You At The Pole. Although initially designed for students, this year's event will take place at churches and other locations across the nation in addition to numerous school campuses. ...
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Through him all things were made without him nothing was made that has been made.
-John 13 (New International Version)
This morning as I prepared to spend some one on one time with God I began to hear the sound of crickets chirping outside my window. Most days I just ignore them or don'...
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Shattered dreams are never random. They are always a piece in a larger puzzle, a chapter in a larger story. The Holy Spirit uses the pain of shattered dreams to help us discover our desire for God, to help us begin dreaming the highest dream.
-Larry Crabb
Sometimes I find myself wonderin...
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This morning in my time alone with God I was contemplating how fragile life is. None of us have a guarantee of tomorrow or even of the next minute. The sobering truth is that we live in a world of hatred, envy, jealousy and all kinds of evil. In the midst of it all, however, God is still right here with us, helping us to shine as lights in the darkness.
None of us should take even a moment for granted. We should let our lights shine for Jesus, as the old saying goes, remembering that God is with us in every moment.
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus [emphasis mine] to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
-Ephesians 2:10 (New International Version)
The first part of Ephesians 2 has always puzzled me until I read it again this morning. Somehow a light went off in my head, and I was like "Oh, I get it, I can't believe I didn't see that before." It's not just salvation that comes by the grace of God through faith. The grace of God and faith also empower us to do things for God once we have received his gracious gift of salvation (see Matthew 11:28-30).
You see, many Christians are so busy "doing things for God" that we forget that God is the one who gives us the power to do everything we do. If we are trying to struggle and strain under our own power, might and abilities to do things for God, it's no wonder that we have burnout in the people of the church.
If you are finding yourself becoming "weary in well doing" (see Galatians 6:8&9), take a minute, step back and re-evaluate. Are you doing things simply because they need to be done or because God has truly called and empowered you to do them?
It might be time to do some soul searching and see if God has called you to do something different or if he just wants to step back or cut back and spend some time with him to re-charge your spiritual batteries so you can come back even stronger.
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
-Romans 8:28 (New Living Translation).
The book of Daniel in the Bible tells two stories of how God uses injustice and unfairness experienced by four friends to show people just how powerful he is. The four friends were Daniel himself, Hananiah (also known as Shadrach); Mishael (also known as Meshach) and Azariah (also known as Abednego). The two stories start together in a common tragedy. The homeland of the four friends, Israel, is attacked and taken over by a military superpower of their day, Babylon. The four friends are uprooted from the land of their birth and taken captive to a strange place.
As if being uprooted from his home wasn't enough, Daniel experiences political unfairness when he raises to political power in spite of his captivity and his colleaugues become jealous of his wisdom and favor with the king. They entrap him in a law that requires that he be put into a den of hungry lions if he is caught praying to God. Daniel prays anyway and is thrown to the lions. A funny thing happens in the lion's den, however. God steps in even in the midst of an unfair and unjust situation, shuts the mouths of the lions and ultimately shows everyone that God is more powerful than any injustice.
Daniel's three friends experience a similar situation. They are thrown into a fiery furnace that is so hot that the men who threw them in were instantly incinerated. They came out of the unjust situation not even smelling like smoke. People could not believe their eyes.
The moral of these stories is that unfair things can and do happen. Ultimately, however, God turns it all around.
"He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood
[ Click here to read more ]
So Jesus called them together and said, "You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people beneath them. But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant
[ Click here to read more ]
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
[ Click here to read more ]
But Jesus called them [unto him], and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein
[ Click here to read more ]
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers
[ Click here to read more ]
September 25th 2010 01:28
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