"If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." But this He spoke concerning the Spirit. (John 7:37-39)
Jesus tells us exactly how to remedy such thirst. "Come to Me and drink."
God is constantly at work in and around us, monitoring every circumstance. Paul writes in Philippians 4:10, “I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it.” There is a truth in this verse that is easy to miss - the truth that God is always at work around us. Paul’s circumstances did not show that God was working, but Paul knew He was.
The Spirit of God lives within every Christian. He equips us for each task as we yield to His leading. When God prompts us to do something on His behalf, He is faithful to lead the way and to bless our obedience – for His own glory. It's all about His glory. He simply wants our willingness and our obedience.
As long as we walk in pride, we can't walk with God. We are never commanded to be humble. We're commanded to humble ourselves---the lesson all of us, even a king, need to learn. And we will; one way or another...
The antidote for fear is the promise of God's presence. I cling to the resolution that I will not fear because God is with me always.
"Do not quench the Spirit." Just as a fire can be quenched, the promptings of the Holy Spirit can be stifled. As we read the word of God, the Spirit can be stirring a spiritual fire of conviction within us. Will we respond to that heavenly influence, or will we suppress it? When the Lord is igniting a vision of service unto Him, will we yield or will we extinguish it? When the Lord is calling us to intercessory prayer, will we cry out to Him or will we suppress that desire He is kindling? Will we allow the Spirit to blaze within our hearts, or will we "quench the Spirit?"
when Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness for forty days? Satan kept trying to get Jesus to serve Himself and to serve the devil. And Jesus responded with:
"Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"
And may this be your prayer and your heart's cry today.
The will of God will not take you where the grace of God will not protect you.~
Are you F.A.T.
Feeling Like
Acting Like
Thinking if only?
Change you thought with
Praise to the Lord
Prayer to the Father
Ponder = Meditating on the word
Practice = Do the word
If you know these things happy are you who do them....!
"When you shine, some people will be offended by your Light. Shine on anyways."
"A loving person lives in a loving world. A hostile person lives in a hostile world; everyone you meet is your mirror." K Keyes, Jr.
"When a man becomes a Christian, he becomes industrious, trustworthy and prosperous,” John Wesley
Look upon all sin as that which crucified the Saviour, and you will see it to be "exceeding sinful." Charles Spurgen
Are the people you hang around with causing you to grow.
Priority is not the need, priority is what takes the president over another. You can't serve two masters.
I herd someone say they wanted to move and start over, somewhere no body knew them and I said you can't move away from your self.
Leaders take responsibility and losers blame others. Leaders protect and serve and losers want to tell you how. Leaders do and losers watch.
All play a part in the success of one.
The humiliation of sin last much longer than the restoration process.
People always praise the Lord for prosperity in there life as if Satan will not blind you with things, possessions, and money. There is nothing wrong with having these things but keep God first in all you do.
Do you want God to speak to you? Give Him your full
attention by turning yourself toward His Word.
The most significant gifts in the church’s life in every era are
ordinarily natural abilities sanctified.
~J. I. Packer~
Seek what gifts God has for you to build up and edify the body of Christ.
If you are never without prayer, you are never without hope.
Engaging in genuine discipline requires that you develop the ability to take action. You don't need to be hasty if it isn't required, but you don't want to lose much time either.
Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you.
Lifestyle is the art of discovering ways to live uniquely.
“There are two parts to influence: First, influence is powerful; and second, influence is subtle. You wouldn’t let someone push you off course, but you might let someone nudge you off course and not even realize it.” – Jim Rohn
Character protects your talent – and allows you to build upon what you already have. In order to protect our talent, we must invest in that which is hidden below the surface. Similar to an iceberg, there is more than meets the eye. Strong character allows talent to hold up when storms come.
It is truly a busy time of the year. I love Easter, is a few weeks away. But the message from me to you is why wait? WHY WAIT TILL IT GETS HERE, WHY WAIT TILL THINGS CHANGE, WHY WAIT TILL YOUR SPOUSE MAKES THE FIRST MOVE. WE LIVE IN A SOCIETY WHERE PEOPLE DON'T KEEP THERE WORD, DON'T DIE TO SELF, AND WON'T MAKE THE FIRST MOVE. IF YOU ARE WAITING ON AN ANSWER FROM GOD THEN WAIT BUT ONCE YOU GET THAT ANSWER, GOD EX SPECS US TO GET OFF OUR KNEES AND FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT.
"When we relinquish an offence, you need to send that offense somewhere. So follow Jesus' example and release it to your heavenly Father. Like Jesus, you must talk to your Father. You must pray, 'Not my will be done.' When you do so, you relinquish your will to resent and your will to be unforgiving.
True faith commits us to obedience.
~A. W. Tozer~
The Greek word for compassion is very strong. It has to do with the emotion you feel way down deep in your gut. This is how much Jesus loves you. He has so much compassion for you.
It is the will of God that we walk in daily dependence upon the Holy Spirit. It is God's desire that we seek Him for the fullness of the Spirit's work in and through our lives. Three wrong responses that undermine the will of God in our lives are resisting, grieving, and quenching the Spirit of the Lord.
The role of the teaching ministry is critical to the church. Its purpose: To bring spiritual growth and maturity. Many people make the mistake of thinking they can grow spiritually with experience alone (years of being a Christian). It is only instruction from the Word of God that feeds the spirit of man and brings real spiritual growth.
If you cannot be great, be willing to serve God in that which is small.
~S. F. Smith~
God not only wants the mistakes we have made—He wants the ones we are making.
Beware of thinking lightly of sin. At the time of conversion, the conscience is so tender that we are afraid of the slightest sin. Young converts have a holy timidity, a godly fear of offending God. But sadly very soon the fine bloom upon these first ripe fruits is removed by the rough handling of the surrounding world: The sensitive plant of young piety turns into a willow in later life, too pliable, too easily yielding.
The enemy wants nothing more than to destroy our reputation, our character, and our hope. The world attempted to do that to Jesus over 2,000 years ago, and the world is still trying to do this to Christians today.
Our influence on other people's lives is either positive or negative, for the good or the worse. Maybe you can think of the people who have had a good impact on you—perhaps a teacher or a grandparent, a parent or a good friend. But think about it in terms of your life: What kind of footprints or impressions are you leaving in your family, church, and community?
I pray that we would become people of influence—movers and shakers in our churches, our communities, and our nation.
In His strong love,
Skip Heitzig
"We are not called to be perfectly awesome. We are called to be imperfectly faithful, because we have been perfectly loved, liberated, and highly esteemed by the Most High."-
only in Jesus are we fully known and always loved, thoroughly exposed yet never rejected." Scott Sauls
If we do not apply our beliefs about God to the issues of everyday life, the vision God has given us will never be fulfilled. The only way to be obedient to 'the heavenly vision' is to give our utmost for His highest--our best for His glory.
When the Holy Spirit is in full control of our lives, He will expect our obedience to the written Word of God. ~A. W. Tozer~
“ I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Making the most of obedience means not only will we listen well, but we will live well.
Obedience is not a memory problem it is a priority problem.
We have been given the power and the promises to overcome in each situation we face.
Caseyism~
Ken Blanchard, the author of The One Minute Manager, said, “None of us is as smart as all of us.” There is great value in a team.
you aren’t meant to head out on this life journey alone. God wants you to experience it in unity with others.
Great leaders need to understand that as they surround themselves with others, their thinking and decision-making does not need to occur in a vacuum.
“Wisdom rises upon the ruins of folly.” —Thomas Fuller
It was a sin that made our bodies mortal ... therefore do not yield obedience to such an enemy.
~Matthew Henry~
There are a time and place for followers of Jesus to be clear about the "don’ts," about beliefs and behaviors that are part of the old self and deserve to be taken off. Yet if we put most of our energy into opposing what’s wrong, we’ll have little left for doing and teaching what is right.
There are many followers who have likewise never stopped to consider who God is, what He has done, and what He demands of us.
~A. W. Tozer~
Temptation is sparked when our own evil desires lure us away from God’s righteous path and guidance for us. The more that we draw away to nurture those evil desires, the more it leads to sinful action. Furthermore, the more we continue to habitually live out these evil actions it results in death.
As believers, we bear the name of Christ––Christians. So we need to follow in His footsteps. We need to be men and women of prayer. Pray without ceasing; speak with God constantly.
Not to pray is to live in sin.
It is a great paradox that within our greatest failures and sin lies the possibility of us becoming who we were meant to be. There is a word in Hebrew related to “hesed”which is transliterated “hasid.” Old Testament scholar John Goldingay describes a “hasid” as “someone who keeps commitment and lives faithfully, against the odds, if necessary.” God’s “hesed” shapes us into becoming a “hasid.” God’s abundance of love and faithfulness transforms us in and through our darkest seasons of life and leadership, turning us into what we could never have been otherwise. Changed into the LORD’s likeness and image, we begin to become by grace what God is by nature – gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
Many principles are difficult for non-believers to get past on the way to becoming Christians. For example -- the authenticity and authority of the Bible; the God-head (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit); God becoming a man in the person of Jesus Christ; etc. But the biggest of all is the resurrection of the dead. It, more than any other concept, causes people to sneer. I have often wondered why the resurrection of Jesus or just mentioning "resurrection of the dead" in general would cause that kind of reaction.
It’s important to remember who the triune God is: the Creator and loving Heavenly Father, the Son who died for all and the Holy Spirit who enters, guides and comforts those who believe. Christians have good reasons to rejoice with the excitement the early Jews expressed with the return of the Ark of the Covenant. The covenant in Christ is greater (Hebrews 8:6). Because of Jesus, you can go boldly to the throne room to find help for your family, your community and the nation. (Hebrews 4:16). Praise Him with rejoicing as you enter His courts boldly today.
Bible Christianity is what I love …a Christianity practical and pure, which teaches holiness, humility, repentance, and faith in Christ and which after summing up all evangelical grace declares that the greatest of these is charity.
~Hannah More~
The 66 books in the standard Protestant Bible can be broken down and categorized by themes. The Old vs New Testaments are segmentations commonly referenced by pastors, teachers, and clergymen. Not so commonly known are the other nine categories: Law, History, Wisdom, Major Prophets, Minor Prophets, the Gospels, Paul’s Letters, and the General Letters.
The Book of Proverbs mostly accredited to be the writings of King Solomon, son of King David, is one of my favorite books in the Bible. It is 31 chapters of timeless philosophical teachings ordered as one-liners as if the greatest rapper or poet of all time dropped them line by line, bar by bar. I have learned that coming to the end of our own knowingness is how we make room for providence and the power of God to leap us forward. The mountains needing to be moved beyond our capacity, knowingness, and control are God’s molehills. King Solomon offers some of the best advice when we find ourselves, beyond our own capacity to interpret and shape our own realities. Proverbs 3: 5 – 6, tells us to acknowledge him.
…the Christian, too, belongs not in the seclusion of a cloistered life but in the thick of foes. There is his commission, his work. 'The kingdom is to be in the midst of your enemies. And he who will not suffer this does not want to be of the Kingdom of Christ; he wants to be among friends, to sit among roses and lilies, not with the bad people but the devout people. O you blasphemers and betrayers of Christ! If Christ had done what you are doing who would ever have been spared' (Luther).
Earnest intercession will be sure to bring love with it. I do not believe you can hate a man for whom you habitually pray….
~C.H. Spurgeon~
We have to be really careful about how we serve when we attempt to serve the Lord. The question we need to be truthful about is -- Are we serving ourselves or Him? Now that might seem to be a rather easy answer for some of you, "Of course I'm serving the Lord, look how hard I'm working and how much I've sacrificed for Him." But is that really true? Jesus warns us in Luke 20:46-47, "Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely."
We please Him most, not by frantically trying to make ourselves good, but by throwing ourselves into His arms with all our imperfections and believing that He understands everything and still loves us.
~A.W. Tozer~
It is easy yo look at one scripture or part of something and make a doctrine out of it. But when we look at the full counsel of God then you can't neglect obedience to the Lord.
God rarely gives us a mission to do solely on our own. So while there are always pieces and parts we need to do by ourselves, for the most part, God will place us in a relationship with others to help us accomplish His purpose.
"Do not be satisfied with loving people in your own mind. Love them until they feel your love."—
Mike Mason
There is a tendency to seek the spotlight when helping others so that recognition and commendation are ours. But blessed is the helper who helps the one in need secretly or unobtrusively. Such help is easier to accept and of it, God is fully aware.
~A.W.Tozer~
God wants us all in various places, and the secret of accomplishing the most for Him is to recognize our places from Him and our service in it as pleasing Him. AB Simpson
Man has a desire to preach new doctrine, to set up a new Church, to be an original thinker, to judge, to consider—to do anything but obey. Spurgeon
At last, when we are able to cease from our own work, God comes in with His blessed rest, and works His own Divine works in us. AB Simpson
Pray till the Lord of the harvest shall thrust forth laborers into His harvest. AB Simpson
Usually cheerful as we may be, we must at intervals be cast down. The strong are not always vigorous, the wise not always ready, the brave not always courageous, and the joyous not always happy. Spurgeon
When we get to heaven we are going to praise God perfectly. All of heaven will be filled with music. Throughout eternity worship will be our privileged occupation. David Jeremiah
We live in a day when charm is supposed to cover almost the entire multitude of sins. Charm has taken a great place in religious expression. Tozer
There is hardly any position more utterly beautiful, strong, or safe, than to put the finger upon some promise of the Divine word, and claim it. There need be no anguish, or struggle, or wrestling. FB Meyer
Whether it is the moment of conversion or something significant God wants to do in your life, He wants us to fall into His grace and blessings, and trust in His love for us. Ray Bentley
In Student & Collegiate Ministry... don't dumb it down, disciple them up. They. can. handle. it!
Me-Centered view: -Jesus exists for me -Jesus needs me -Hero of Scripture is me -Focus of heaven is me Jesus-Centered view: -I exists for Jesus -I need Jesus -Hero of Scripture is Jesus -Focus of Heaven is Jesus Our feelings may want the former, but our soul needs the latter.
"If you want to complain, you will soon have something to complain of." — Charles Spurgeon
"I should never say a word in my own praise. Every syllable should be for Jesus." — Charles Spurgeon
"Assurance of God's love will make us very courageous." — Charles Spurgeon
"If you are not God's servant, you are his foe." — Charles Spurgeon
"I find in God all that I want; but I find in myself nothing but sin and misery." — Charles Spurgeon
"Does God care for children? Yes, he does. And so should we." — Charles Spurgeon
"There cannot be heaven without Christ. He is the sum total of bliss; the fountain from which heaven flows." — Charles Spurgeon
"The religion of Jesus Christ is not a religion of performances." — Charles Spurgeon
"Even the blood of Jesus Christ does not save any except those who believe in it." — Charles Spurgeon
"Prayer is a mockery if it is not the prayer of faith." — Charles Spurgeon
"Christ is always with us. We never lose his company." — Charles Spurgeon
"Our Lord knows all his redeemed by name. There is no failure of memory with him." — Charles Spurgeon
"We shall grow in grace, but we shall never be more completely pardoned than when we first believed." — Charles Spurgeon
"Be sure, whatever you leave out, that you teach your children the three R's: Ruin Redemption Regeneration." — Charles Spurgeon
"You should serve the Lord with intense delight, because of what he has done for you." — Charles Spurgeon
"You may think that because you sin in secret, you shall escape punishment; but it shall not be so." — Charles Spurgeon
"The Provider in heaven is better than any provider on earth." — Charles Spurgeon
"My voice has no power to save unless Christ shall use my voice and make it the echo of his own." — Charles Spurgeon
"You can never pay back a millionth of what you owe to God." — Charles Spurgeon
"He who thinks it easy to bring up a family has never had one of his own." – Charles Spurgeon
"The gospel is all about Christ from beginning to end." – Charles Spurgeon
"Understanding the love of Jesus lifts the mind above all fear." — Charles Spurgeon
"By his death, Jesus has destroyed death. By his resurrection he has torn away the gates of the grave." — Charles Spurgeon
"The Holy Spirit can cast out the spirit of fear. He can make the coward brave." – Charles Spurgeon
“To walk out of his will is to walk into nowhere.” - C.S. Lewis
“The door on which we have been knocking all our lives will open at last.” - C.S. Lewis
“You must ask for God’s help. ... After each failure, ask forgiveness, pick yourself up, and try again.” - C.S. Lewis
"The gospel is all about Christ from beginning to end." – Charles Spurgeon
"Get this deep into your soul, 'Christ died for me,' and you will soon be ready to die for him." — Charles Spurgeon
"The truth and reality of our sinful depravity is overcome by the truth and reality of divine grace—the truth and reality of the gospel." – Nathan Busenitz
“The Holy Scriptures are our letters from home.” — Augustine
"The greater significance of the expression ‘psalms, hymns and spiritual songs’ seems to be this: Paul was calling for a variety of musical forms and a breadth of spiritual expression that cannot be embodied in any one musical form." — John MacArthur
“They (Rome) are enemies to free grace and all gospel preaching.” —John Flavel, Works 4:580
"The triumph of Jesus Christ, the new heavens and the new earth, the wiping away of all tears—the Bible ends with such amazing promises of eternal blessing for the people of God who are saved through faith in Jesus Christ." — Philip Ryken
“Since divinity is not limited and is present everywhere, it is evident that Christ’s divinity is surely beyond the bounds of the humanity he has taken on, but at the same time his divinity is in and remains personally united to his humanity” — Heidelberg Catechism, 48.
“Christ can’t condemn us. He was condemned for us.” — John MacArthur
The best of men are men at best. J.C. Ryle
What a mercy it is that, it is not your hold of Christ that saves you, but His hold of you. Charles Spurgeon
God often takes a course for accomplishing His purposes directly contrary to what our narrow views would prescribe. He brings a death upon our feelings, wishes, and prospects when He is about to give us the desire of our hearts. John Newton
He has been pleased in loving kindness to draw us to Himself, and to be found by us when we sought Him not. John Newton
We must not be satisfied to present Christianity as the most reliable position to hold among the competing options available. Rather, the Christian faith is the only reasonable outlook available to men. Greg L. Bahnsen
A sermon without Christ, it is an awful, a horrible thing. It is an empty well; it is a cloud without rain; it is a tree twice dead, plucked up by the roots. It is an abominable thing to give men stones for bread and scorpions for eggs, yet they do so who preach not Jesus. CHS
I know one who said I was always on the old string, and he would come and hear me no more. But if I preached a sermon without Christ in it, he would come. Ah, he will never come while this tongue moves. Charles Spurgeon
I sometimes wonder that you do not get tired of my preaching, because I do nothing but hammer away on this one nail. With me it is, year after year, ‘None but Jesus! None but Jesus! Charles Spurgeon
Christ is the Alpha, the first, the chief, the foremost, the first-born of every creature, the eternal God. CHS
"He suffered not as God, but He suffered who was God." -John Owen.
"He who bestows his goods upon the poor shall have as much again and ten times more." -John Bunyan.
"No soldiers of Christ are ever lost, missing or left dead on the battlefield!" -J.C.Ryle.
"The desire for fame tempts even noble minds." -Augustine.
"We must not conceive of prayer as overcoming God's reluctance, but as laying hold of His highest willingness." -Richard Trench.
"A friend cannot be known in prosperity: and an enemy cannot be hidden in adversity." -Apocrypha.
"All the perfection we can arrive at in this life is sincerity." -Thomas Watson.
"The gospel is all about Christ from beginning to end." – Charles Spurgeon
"There is no fact which has been more fully demonstrated than this: God hears prayer." — Charles Spurgeon
Lord, undertake for me; let me not bring discredit on your holy faith. - William Wilberforce
'Lord have mercy upon us!’ ‘Mercy!’ he said to himself in astonishment, ‘Mercy! mercy! What mercy can there be for me? This was the first desire I had breathed for mercy for many years!’ - John Newton, in a storm at sea, called out to God for mercy, and was saved. 10 March 1748
Unity which is obtained by the sacrifice of truth is worth nothing. -J.C. Ryle
If you will not worship God seven days a week, you do not worship Him one day a week. -A.W. Tozer -
Since we depend wholly upon the Spirit, we must be most anxious to use the Word, and to keep close to the truth, in all our work for Christ among men. - Charles Spurgeon
Many times we seem to be dead to all spiritual operations, our affections are damped and discouraged; but the word of God puts life into the dead, and relieveth us in our greatest distresses. —Thomas Manton, Works 7:31
—William Gurnall (1616-1679), The Christian in Complete Armour, 3:65
‘Remember now thy Creator.’ Remember to know him, remember to love him, remember to desire him, remember to delight in him, remember to depend upon him, remember to get an interest in him…’ Thomas Brooks Works Vol 1:178
"The aim of the preacher is to capture the particular view of Christ and His work that the verse provides, and to impress it upon his hearers." - Douglas Somerset
The God whom we worship is not a weak and incompetent God. He is able to beat back gigantic waves of opposition and to bring low prodigious mountains of evil. The ringing testimony of the Christian faith is that God is able. Martin Luther
What lust is so valuable that it is worth burning in hell for? —William Gurnall, The Christian in Complete Armour, 2:294
The two Testaments are the two lips by which God hath spoken to us. -Thomas Watson -
The secret of praying is praying in secret. -Leonard Ravenhill -
Lord, undertake for me; let me not bring discredit on your holy faith. William Wilberforce
Counselors must not focus so much on suffering that they do not confront sin. They must also not focus so much on sin that they neglect to comfort a counselee that is suffering.
Depression is one of Satan’s most dynamic weapons to divert you from God’s purpose for your life. —William Gurnall, The Christian in Complete Armour, 2:213
“The assurance given us by divine promises is sufficient to encourage us unto the most difficult course of obedience.” John Owen, 23:63
The more bitterness we taste in sin, the more sweetness we shall taste in Christ. ― Puritan Thomas Watson
The gospel! Oh! how easily we use this term! How glibly we repeat it! I am as guilty as anybody else. It ought to be impossible for us to use the word 'gospel' without bursting forth, as it were, into a hymn of praise and thanksgiving. - Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Jesus Christ never died for our good works. They were not worth dying for. But he gave himself for our sins, according to the Scriptures. Martin Luther
Our profession of faith in the gospel requires obedience and worship. -C.H. Spurgeon -
At our Lord's return we shall be completely emancipated from the dominion and pollution of sin. -A.W. Pink -
Steven Lawson
At His first coming, Jesus before Pilate. But on the last day, Pilate will stand before Him.
“It is good and appropriate to occasionally preach topical or theological sermons, even if one’s church is dedicated to biblical exposition as the primary homiletical mode” -Jonathan Pennington
Satan gives Adam an apple, and takes away paradise. Therefore in all temptations let us consider not what he offers, but what we shall lose. —Richard Sibbes, A Puritan Golden Treasury, Pg. 293
“Preachers, be yourself but don’t preach yourself. Be like John The Baptist: prepare the way, declare the way and then get out the way” -Alistair Begg
He that would not be exempted from the hopes of Christians, he must not look to be exempted from the troubles of Christians. —Thomas Manton, Works 7:36
Here is comfort in the ignorance of the time of the new birth: [The Bible says]‘Except a man be born again,’ 𝙣𝙤𝙩 ‘except he know the time of his being born again’; the want of the knowledge of the time hath troubled some… —Puritan Stephen Charnock, Works 3:66
We are but the instruments or assistants, by whom God works. Martin Luther
Gracious souls will bless God as much for sanctification as for justification. —Stephen Charnock, Works 2:401
"Holiness is nothing but the implanting, writing, and realizing of the gospel in our souls.” - John Owen
If we are prayerless we are Christless -George Whitefield -
If the cross of Christ is merely an example of self-sacrifice or patient meekness, then the hope of the world is gone. -Horatius Bonar -
Against hope, may you believe in hope. - George Whitefield
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