by taking your goal and breaking it into smaller steps. Then arrange the steps in priority order and write dates next to each step indicating when it must be accomplished to meet your ultimate objective. A clear, methodical approach will help you move steadily forward, without the danger of being overwhelmed by the ultimate goal. Choose to be unstoppable!”
I find it interesting that while there are many verses about how they plotted to kill Jesus: Matthew 22:15, 26:4, 27:1; Mark 3:6, 14:1; Luke 22:1-2; 11:53; nowhere do you find them seeking the Lord, saying, “Lord, how do we take care of this blasphemous man? Lord help us to reveal this deceitful man.” They did not seek the Lord like Moses, David, and the prophets. They sought to take care of things in their own way. They sought to kill an innocent man.
We who believe in Jesus are not only "brought near by the blood of Christ" (Ephesians 2:13), we are joined to Him in a "united closeness," like a body is to its head. "He is the head of the body, the church" (Colossians 1:18). We can relate to the Lord Jesus more closely than the members of our physical body relate to our physical head.
Sandpaper people are hard to serve and hard to help because they rarely, if ever, think of themselves as someone in need. The needs of others are not high on their priority list. Control and power are at the top. To manipulate is to succeed. Sandpaper people honestly believe that the world does or should revolve around them. It doesn’t seem to matter if the audience is applauding or jeering. Either way, they win.
Making excuses is always a waste of time because God is completely aware of who we are and what we can and cannot do. When God calls us, He not only equips us but empowers us to obey that calling. The Lord told Gideon to “go in the strength you have.” God was asking Gideon to step out in faith, knowing that his meager strength would not be enough for the task ahead. The reality is that our strength is never enough for any task. That’s what faith is all about.
Faith is a willingness to step out in mid-air, no safety net in sight – trusting God to be there – at the point of our greatest need.
When we allow the Lord to work in our lives, we grow. But when we are challenged, tempted, and persecuted -- yet continue to seek the Lord is when we really experience the blessing of multiplication.
Remember Billy Sunday's words God saves to the gutter-most. Time to play in the gutter.
“Though it is only by God's permission that we are allowed to do evil, and though he has given us abilities that we often use sinfully, the choice to sin is wholly our own. However, the Lord would not permit sin if he could not bring good from it.” — Stephen Charnock
"A little faith gives a whole Christ. He that hath the least faith hath as true an interest, though not so clear an interest… Others may be more holy than he, but not one in the world is more righteous than he; for he is righteous with the righteousness of Christ." John Owen
“As we approach death, we need to see it through the spectacles of the finished work of Christ. The gospel tells us that Christ has conquered and subdued death. That is the only way that we can face death with hope or confidence.” Guy Prentiss Waters, Facing the Last Enemy, 22.
“God has established two realms on earth: the church and the state. Each one has its own sphere of authority, and neither is to infringe on the rights of the other. And as Christians, we are to show great respect and concern for them both.” — R.C. Sproul
There is no place for faith if we expect God to fulfill immediately what he promises. John Calvin Our assurance, our glory, and the sole anchor of our salvation are that Christ the Son of God is ours, and we in turn are in him sons of God and heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven, called to the hope of eternal blessedness by God’s grace, not by our worth. John Calvin
Sometimes it seems things go by too quickly. We are so busy watching out for what’s just ahead of us that we don’t take the time to enjoy where we are. John Calvin
Nothing is more dangerous than to be blinded by prosperity. John Calvin For our sakes, Jesus was made a curse and scorched in the furnace of his Father’s wrath. Stephen Charnock
No man is excluded from calling upon God, the gate of salvation is set open unto all men: neither is there any other thing which keepeth us back from entering in, save only our own unbelief. John Calvin
Chuck Smith said to me, “Never trade what you do know for what you don’t know”.
"Never trust a preacher with no new stories." - Josh White
"God has used the faithful efforts of expository preachers of His Word to bring honor to His name and to increase the faith of His saints (1 Cor 2:5) throughout history." - James Stitzinger
"Our Christ is not dead. He still holds the stars in his right hand." — Charles Spurgeon
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