"God never sleeps nor slumbers; He is always awake and attentive to the voice of His children."— Charles Spurgeon
We all started out in life at war with God. Although we may not have been aware of this fact, we were enemies of God: "You …were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works" (Colossians 1:21). We were disobedient by our very nature: "the sons of disobedience …by nature children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:2-3). Yet, through His Son, God reached out to offer us peace. "For He Himself is our peace, who… abolished in His flesh the enmity…making peace…through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity" (Ephesians 2:14-16).
In his book Jesus Man of Joy, Sherwood Wirt celebrated joy this way: “Joy is more than…earthly pleasure, more than what we call happiness. Joy is the enjoyment of God and the good things that come from the hand of God… For many, pleasure and happiness are fleeting experiences. But joy! Now we move into a different dimension…Joy is not happiness, it is the joy of salvation, the exultation of God’s Spirit in men and women, ‘good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.’ Joy becomes the ecstasy of eternity in a soul that has made peace with God.”
Joy is not mere happiness. Joy is often accompanied by a recognition of the lack of joy in the world and the haunting notion that we are but passing through, pressing toward something greater than ourselves. Joy gives us the ability to delight in life and the strength to carry on, even during hardship.
I feel it is far better, to begin with God, to see His face first, to get my soul near Him before it is near another. ~ E. M. Bounds
Nothing sets the day like matching our best hour to our deepest and dearest Resource. The Bible.
Let’s take God at His Word and honor Him with our time, and our money… two things we hold dearly.
This world offers you cheap thrills that never will meet your deepest needs. In the Book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon arrived at the same conclusion: life is empty without God.
J. B. Phillips New Testament puts it: “The present time is of the highest importance—it is time to wake up to reality. Every day brings God’s salvation nearer. The night is nearly over, the day has almost dawned. Let us, therefore, fling away the things that men do in the dark, let us arm ourselves for the fight of the day!” Romans 13:11-12
A man is not saved against his own will, but he is made willing by the operation of the Holy Ghost. A mighty grace that he does not wish to resist enters into man disarms him, makes a new creature of him, and he is saved. ~C.H. Spurgeon~
When you are in the world (at work, on the basketball court, on the golf course, etc) -- whose "colors" are you wearing? Would people be surprised to find out that you are a Christian? What's the saying if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck, it's a duck..
The more we reflect on God, on his great works and his unparalleled greatness, the more we will be inspired to praise him, and the more our praise will be glorifying to God because it will be filled with the truth of what he has done and who he is.
Anything God has ever done, He can do now. Anything God has ever done anywhere, He can do here. Anything that God has ever done for anyone, He can do for you. ~ A.W. Tozer~
“Grace is getting another chance even though you haven’t earned it or deserve it. (You may not even want it!)” —Fritz Ridenour
Some people love to talk about the past or look back on a daily bases. They wish they could live as if time has not changed. The Bible tells us not to look back but rather to move forward in Phil.313
We are on a journey where our understanding increases and our eyes are opened. Sometimes the process is slow; sometimes it happens suddenly. Often it’s painful because the pain gets our attention. Eventually, we realize it is the goodness and kindness of God that leads us to Him.
Ray Bently
When you favor another person, you are positioning them for success. You are saying, "I believe in you!"
The job of a coach is to force you to do things you couldn’t (or wouldn't) do yourself. I did not train my coaches to be gentle; I trained them to make you winners.
"We can too easily judge our spouse's weaknesses because where they are vulnerable, God gave us natural strengths." ~Dr. Emerson Eggerichs
The first duty of love is to listen.~ Paul Tillich
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