God created us with the capacity for strong emotions and like any gift from God our emotions can be used for good or misused for bad.
When it comes to difficult relationships, God does not want or expect us to declare war. We are to control our emotions instead of allowing them to control us.
The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 12:18, "As much as is possible, live peaceably with all men." In other words, we need to set our mind on peace - not winning.
God's wants us to wage peace in every relationship - including the roughest, most abrasive people who come our way. Combat is impossible when the enemy has laid down his weapons and chosen peace.
When dealing with a sandpaper person, we must not allow ourselves to become the enemy. As you get ready for Thanksgiving Day, remember to prepare your heart as well to love the hard-to-love people that come your way.
We all have a choice where we spend the rest of our lives. Paul says to those who put their faith in Jesus Christ that in dying, we will gain eternal life (Philippians 1:21)
You have two choices in life: you can either spend it angry and bitter at God, or you can see the love that He's lavished on you and ask for His forgiveness.
When the disciples returned to Jesus, rejoicing (thankful?) after casting out demons, Jesus issued his only "cool it" instructions: Don't rejoice that the demons are subject to you but rejoice (be thankful) that your names are written in Heaven. In other words, be thankful, not for what you do, but for what God does. Plenty of room for thankfulness there!
A believer walking in the Holy Spirit rejects gluttony, preferring desires that are within God's boundaries. That's how we get His very best.
Praise transforms tragedy into triumph.
You can count on God to be in your corner—no matter what–He cares!
Balance is so important God always does his part but we must be willing to do ours as well. He never leaves us but we can leave Him.
The fundamental deception of Satan is the lie that obedience can never bring happiness.
~R. C. Sproul~
If Jesus, in His earthly life, needed prayer, how much more do we need it? Jesus always saw His need and His dependence upon the Father. How can we think of ourselves as more self-sufficient than Jesus? We need prayer! It's not "For Emergency Use Only"!
Most of us can benefit from a softer expression, smiling more often, and just plain 'lightening up.' Such simple efforts can make a big difference in creating a friendlier atmosphere in our homes.
“The primary difference between successful people and failing people is how they handle fear.”
Other books were given for our information, the BIBLE was given for our transformation. Read the Bible
"A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read." - Mark Twain
My mind is most Christ Like when I am humbled to give out of a willing heart.
Captivation makes us look in awe of our heavenly father but then we are held accountable to live it out in a Christ like way. We have an expectation to live above reproach.
God became man who became a slave and in His death on the cross gave all he had, His life so we would be set free from the bondage of sin.
Jesus relinquish His rights to God the Father to freely lay down His life for us. That God would exalt Him back to Glory.
“Before we can begin to see the cross as something done for us, we have to see it as something done by us.” ― John R.W. Stott
God does not need your help. What He wants from us is our obedience, not our help. What God wants from His people is obedience, no matter the circumstances, no matter how unknown the outcome.
~Charles Colson~
With out servants there is no ministry!
We do not worship the Bible, but we have great respect for it because it is of the Lord. All of God’s work is done by God’s Word.
~Stuart Olyott~
Giving thanks is something we are commanded to do again and again as Christians. For us, every day should be Thanksgiving (minus the turkey, etc.)! The Bible reminds us to "give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, and His mercies endure forever" (Psalm 136:1).
Inside the will of God there is no failure.
Outside the will of God there is no success.
~Bernard Edinger~
When I try to do God’s work in my own way, it turns into chaos. It is a disaster. We cannot do the things of God according to the flesh. It must be led by the Spirit.
Show me your friends and I'll show you your future.
This Thanksgiving, I want you to receive the gift of God’s grace which is His Son, Jesus Christ. Make it a day of real Thanksgiving in which we fall on our knees and give humble and sincere thanks to God for all the spiritual and material blessings that He has poured down upon us as a people.
~Billy Graham~
We must allow our actions to be controlled by Him and our lives resemble His. We must walk in the same spirit as Jesus who humbled Himself for us. –
We cannot expect the world to believe that the Father sent the Son, that Jesus’ claims are true and that Christianity is true unless the world sees some reality of the oneness of true Christians.
~Francis Schaeffer~
Commit yourself to the right course today and go back to being who God made you to be.
Worshiping God comes easily for some; their hearts are full of gratitude flowing into praise regardless of circumstances. For others, the complications of life stand stalwart against their faith, dragging them into dismay. Yet God longs for everyone to offer Him genuine reverence, awe, devotion, and worship every day. How is this possible?
God is moving today, doing something specific. Even as difficult as circumstances may appear, you can trust His good plan. Giving Him honor is the appropriate response. Pray today for those in positions of leadership in America who feel discouraged. Ask that God will lead them to hope in Christ and that they would dedicate themselves to knowing God and honoring Him daily.
The Bible is full of people, just like you, regular folks trying to piece together what God is doing in the world and in their lives. The Israelite King David wrote numerous songs and poems regarding his relationship with God in both good times and bad. If you are having trouble finding the right words today, let David speak for you, read one of his Psalms out loud! “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1).
The woods are lovely, dark, and deep
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep. Robert Frost
There is great comfort in acknowledging and embracing Scripture’s teaching that God is sovereign over human events, including the outcome of elections. Our Sovereign King Is Always on His Throne.
Randy Alcorn
Have you lost sight of the goal line? Have the problems got you down? Do you find yourself making the same mistakes over and over again, wondering if you have been disqualified for the prize? Take heart because none of us can earn the gift of eternal life. We all deserve death. But Jesus paid the price once and for all, so no matter how many times I mess up, Jesus is right there with me, standing in my place as payment for my sin when I place my faith and trust in Him. He is worthy, I am not -- I am human. Will you ask for His forgiveness and His life today? It's never too late. No sin is too big. Pray now.
Our Lord has many weak children in his family, many dull pupils in his school, many raw soldiers in his army, many lame sheep in his flock. Yet he bears with them all and casts none away. Happy is that Christian who has learned to do likewise with his brethren.
~J. C. Ryle~
We can’t always figure Jesus out. Sometimes he exercises his unique authority in ways that make sense to us and gladden our hearts. Sometimes Jesus acts – or doesn’t act – in ways that puzzle or distress us. Yet, if we are honest with Jesus, opening our hearts honestly to him, he will meet us where we are. He won’t answer all our questions but will reassure us with his love.
"We love until we are betrayed. Jesus continued to the cross despite betrayal. We love until we are forsaken. Jesus loved through forsakenness. We love up to a limit. Jesus loves to the end." -Dane Ortlund
The love of God is precious. It is a gift to be embraced, a treasure to be prized. God’s love is steadfast, unfailing, never-ending. It is as vast as the heavens, yet as tender as a mother’s embrace.
Worship in the truest sense takes place only when our full attention is on GOD –on His glory, power, majesty, love, and compassion.”
~Billy Graham~
Today, hear this encouragement from Paul: whatever you sorrow over today, know that we do not grieve as those who have no hope. Christ has defeated sin and death, and his reign of justice will ultimately cover all the world.
If you can’t pastor at home, you shouldn’t pastor at all.
The work we do, the decisions we make, the people we help, the justice we fight for, the hope we preach, the prayers we offer—all those make us more Christlike. They help us keep our lamps lit for the moment the bridegroom comes. And He is coming soon
Jesus claimed to have unique authority. When John the Baptist wondered if he was God’s chosen one or not, Jesus pointed to the amazing things he had done: healing the sick, raising the dead, preaching good news to the poor. Through these works, Jesus fulfilled the prophetic vision of what would happen when God came to redeem his people. Jesus spoke and acted with the very authority of God.
It really makes a difference when we act like Jesus and not just talk about Jesus
When we worship God as God, everything else falls into place—and hobbies can enrich our lives as intended.
God does not bestow his Spirit on his people in order to set aside the use of His Word, but rather to render it fruitful.
~John Calvin~
Sin causes destruction, devastation, and always results in death. It is not just the sinner that is hurt by sin, but everyone and everything around him or her. Take a careful inventory of your life. What carry-forward effect has sin had on those close to you? Pray and ask the Lord for guidance in this area.
Once, while at a dinner party, Jesus was served by a woman with a questionable reputation. She actually bathed his feet with her tears. When the host of the party was unsettled, Jesus explained that this woman had been forgiven much; thus she loved much. Then, Jesus had the audacity to proclaim that the woman’s sins were forgiven, speaking with the very authority of God.
Blessed are they that mourn
“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you!”
~John Bunyan~
It’s easy for those of us who follow Jesus to welcome him into our lives . . . but only so much. We acknowledge him as Lord, but hang onto the authority of certain things. We invite him to be our Savior but do not ask him to save us from sins we particularly love. Jesus has invited us to be in a
full, free relationship with him. He wants to be welcomed fully and freely into our lives.
“We owe God every honor that is in our power to give him. Our everlasting grief lies in giving Him anything less.”
~A.W. Tozer~
Leadership is hard. Always. But the real test of leadership is not the challenges that we face outside our organizations, but the resistance to the changes necessary to face that challenge inside the organization. And often, that resistance comes from the very people who invited you to lead them.
Leadership is hard. Actually, what is really hard—we are learning—is leading people in times of uncertainty. People, the very people we are called to lead and to love, can be the very ones who make the life of a leader so discouraging. Oh yes, there are beautiful, blissful, meaningful moments. But every now and then, we feel like Moses, when he said to God, “If this is the people you want me to lead, kill me now.” And learning how to face that crisis—without losing heart—is one of the most important lessons of being a leader.
“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
~Ronald Reagan~
A boat was made to be in the water but water can’t be in the boat
likewise—
A Christian is in the world but the world shouldn’t be in the Christian
I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light."
~John Keith Falconer~
“Open your Bible. It is the pilgrim’s guide, in which God describes the glory yet to be revealed.” —
Charles Spurgeon
I love that the source of peace is God: “the peace of God”. I love that God is also described as “the God of peace.” God promises God’s peace and God promises God’s presence. One perhaps is inextricable from the other. The Lord is near. The Lord comes close. God’s presence is our peace.
It's hard for God to fill you with anything else if you're already full of yourself!
Be teachable.... the moment you feel like you know it all is the moment you stop growing.
The notion that hostile persons or unfavorable circumstances can prevent the will of God from being fulfilled in human life is altogether erroneous. Nothing, no one, can hinder God or a good man.
~A.W. Tozer~
On this earth, justice may be escapable, but ultimately payment will be required. Have you ever met anyone who is guiltless, who has never done anything wrong? No matter how hard we try to live a moral and just life, we all are destined to fail. We need a savior.
"I am astonished at people who say they believe in God but live as if happiness is found by giving him 2% of their attention." - John Piper
We respond to Jesus in different ways. Some reject him outright. Others are quickly drawn to follow him. Still, others are intrigued and curious. They wonder who Jesus really is. Whether we are Christians or not, we should feel free to ask our questions about Jesus. He can handle them just fine.
Biblical scholar Alfred Edersheim said: "For, ‘looking at him’ in his sincerity and earnestness, ‘He loved him’—as He loves those that are His Own... And, although we hear no more of him, who that day went back to his rich home very poor, because 'very sorrowful,' we cannot but believe that he, whom Jesus loved, yet found in the poverty of earth the treasure of heaven."
Apart from the bright hope of the gospel, everything would be meaningless.
~Poul Madsen~
Your Christian lifestyle should speak so much louder than your Christian vocabulary.
Jason Robinson
Every father is called first to be a faithful Christian, second a faithful husband, third a faithful father. If he doesn’t love God and his wife as Scripture commands, his failure in those areas will make his success in others irrelevant.
Randy Alcorn
By His bountiful grace, Jesus Christ transformed Saul of Tarsus into the Apostle Paul. The Lord did this by enabling Paul, making him a man of faith, and putting him into ministry.
“It was strictly forbidden to preach to other prisoners. It was understood that whoever was caught doing this received a severe beating. A number of us decided to pay the price for the privilege of preaching, so we accepted their (the communists’) terms. It was a deal; we preached and they beat us. We were happy preaching. They were happy beating us. So everyone was happy.”
~Richard Wurmbrand~
Dr. Caroline Leaf cites studies that prove, “DNA actually changes shape according to our thoughts.” She explains that the harmful effects of destructive DNA codes were “reversed by feelings of love, joy, appreciation, and gratitude!”
Any version of Christianity that stops calling sin “sin” is no version of Christianity at all.
He knew what we were before conversion...wicked, guilty, and defiled; yet He loved us. He knows what we will be after conversion...weak, erring, and frail; yet He loves us. JCRyle
WE are not to expect to win victories for the Lord Jesus by a single blow. Evil principles and practices die hard. We must carry on the war with all our might, even when favoured with little manifest success. Spurgeon There is no god like our God. He is a Father to the fatherless. He is the conqueror of sin and death. He is the rock to whom we can run for shelter. He is the pardoner of all our offenses. Chuck Smith Oh, what loads are lifted, stress relieved, and hearts lightened when we learn to give our cares to the Lord. For that, we can give thanks and praise Him! Ray Bentley
How to approach the holidays with your unbelieving family and friends: 1. Pray for their openness. 2. Pray for your kindness. 3. Remember that God loves them even more than you do. 4. Don’t compromise your faith, but also don’t argue about it. 5. Point to Jesus when possible.
“I have learned now that while those who speak about one’s miseries usually hurt, those who keep silence hurt more.” - C.S. Lewis
“Brethren, look to Jesus. This sight will fill you with the greatest consolation and delight. Look to Him on the cross; so great is His love, that, if He had a 1000 lives, He would lay them all down for your redemption.” — Adoniram Judson “If we would be holy, we must get to the cross, and dwell there.” — Horatius Bonar “That Christ earned our redemption as the reward for his faithful work comforts us, for it assures us that we are saved by his merit and not our own. We are acceptable to the Father not because of our obedience, but because of his obedience.” — Brown and Keele, Sacred Bond, 40.
“The gospel comforts us in times of doubt, and it encourages us when we are weary.” — Brown and Keele, Sacred Bond, 43. “What is your chief end? You answer that question in how you view your sin, how you trust Christ, how you approach corporate worship, how you work, how you recreate how you orient you entire life.” — Glorifying and Enjoying God @RHB_Books “View him believingly, and you cannot but like and love him.” — John Flavel
“If you and I cannot be submissive then we cannot be trusted with any position of leadership.” – Costi Hinn “In Christ, the longing of men to actually see God is satisfied.” - J. Gresham Machen. Things Unseen, 69. “Let your soul be adorned with the excellencies of Christ, and beauties of holiness.” — John Flavel
"If Christ had not presented Himself to God for us, Justice would not have spared us; And if He do appear before God as our surety, it will not spare Him (Rom. 8:32)." — John Flavel, Vol. 1, Sermon 12, p. 162. “[The Covenant of Redemption] tells us, as pilgrims traveling in this present evil age, to keep our eyes fixed on the Author and Finisher of our faith, the One who obeyed the Father in all things.” — Brown and Keele, Sacred Bond, 41.
"If Christ had not presented Himself to God for us, Justice would not have spared us; And if He do appear before God as our surety, it will not spare Him (Rom. 8:32)." — John Flavel, Vol. 1, Sermon 12, p. 162. “[The Covenant of Redemption] tells us, as pilgrims traveling in this present evil age, to keep our eyes fixed on the Author and Finisher of our faith, the One who obeyed the Father in all things.” — Brown and Keele, Sacred Bond, 41.
“There is no other solution to the marvelous mysteries of His Incarnation and Sacrificial Death but this: Christ has loved us. Love originated all, explains all, illustrates all. Love is the interpreter of every Divine mystery.” — Octavius Winslow “Christ is kindest in His love when we are at our weakest.“ - Samuel Rutherford
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