GRACE UPON GRACE
"I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens." Phil. 4:11
"Test this question: What if God's only gift to you were His grace to save you. Would you be content? You beg Him to save the life of your child. You plead with Him to keep your business afloat. You implore Him to remove the cancer from your body. What if His answer is, "My grace is enough." Would you be content?
You see, from heaven's perspective, grace is enough. If God did nothing more than save us from hell, could anyone complain?....Having been given eternal life, dare we grumble at an aching body? Having been given heavenly riches, dare we bemoan earthly poverty?....
If you have eyes to read these words, hands to hold this book, the means to own this volume, He has already given you grace upon grace."
Taken from the devotional book, Grace for the Moment, by Max Lucado. This particular quote is from his book, In the Grip of His Grace.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
Sunday, July 13, 2008
"Knowing God's Will"
"We learn God's will by spending time in His presence. The key to knowing God's heart is having a relationship with Him. A personal relationship. God will speak to you differently than He will speak to others. Just because God spoke to Moses through a burning bush, that doesn't mean we should sit next to a bush waiting for God to speak. God used a fish to convict Jonah. Does that mean we should have a worship service at Sea World? No. God reveals his heart personally to each person.
For that reason, your walk with God is essential. His heart is not seen in an occasional chat or weekly visit. We learn His will as we take up residence in His house every single day....
Walk with Him long enough and you come to know His heart."
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Thursday, April 17, 2008
God is Sovereign over everything!
"In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thess. 5:18)
"The basis for a thankful heart in all circumstances is the assurance that God is in sovereign control. (Eph. 1:11; Rom. 8:28)"
Dennis Fisher in The Daily Bread
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Thursday, April 10, 2008
God loves us more than we can imagine
"It's usually through our hard times, the unexpected and not-according-to-plan times, that we experience God in more intimate ways. We discover an unquenchable longing to know Him more. It's a passion that isn't concerned that life fall within certain predictable lines, but a passion that pursues God and knows He is relentless in His pursuit of each one of us."
Taken from "365 Day Brighteners, God's Celebrating Grace"
A life lived by faith is a life that's pleasing to God.
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Tuesday, March 04, 2008
God Is Always With Us
"God walks with us...He scoops us up in His arms or simply sits with us in silent strength until we cannot avoid the awesome recognition that yes, even now (emphasis mine), He is here."
Gloria Gaither
"Yet I am with you; you hold me by my right hand."
Psalm 73:23
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Wednesday, January 16, 2008
God's Good Timing
"God will always give what is right to His people who cry to Him night and day and He will not be slow to answer them." Luke 18:7 (my note-God's timing...not ours!)
Why does God wait until the money is gone? Why does He wait until the sickness has lingered? Why does He choose to wait until the other side of the grave to answer the prayers for healing?
I don't know. I only know His timing is always right. I can only say He will do what is best...
Though you hear nothing, He is speaking. Though you see nothing, He is acting. With God there are no accidents. Every incident is intended to bring us closer to Him.
Taken from Grace for the Moment devotional
A Gentle Thunder, by Max Lucado
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Monday, November 19, 2007
TOTAL TRUST
From "The Ragamuffin Gospel", by Brennan Manning...
"Just as the sunrise of faith requires the sunset of our former unbelief, so the dawn of trust requires letting go of our craving spiritual consolations and tangible reassurances. Trust at the mercy of the response it receives is a bogus trust. All is uncertainty and anxiety. In trembling insecurity the disciple pleads for proofs from the Lord that his affection is returned. If he does not receive them, he is frustrated and starts to suspect that his relationship with Jesus is all over or that it never even existed.
If he does receive consolation, he is reassured but only for a time. He presses for further proofs--each one less convincing than the one that went before. In the end the need to trust dies of pure frustration. What the disciple has not learned is that tangible reassurances, however valuable they may be, cannot create trust, sustain it, or guarantee any certainty of its presence. Jesus calls us to hand over our autonomous self in unshaken confidence. When the craving for reassurances is stifled, trust happens."
("she" was changed to "he", but obviously this applies to both genders)
Thursday, October 25, 2007
A CRISP VIEW OF GOD
"Lord, even when I have trouble all around me, you will save me." Psalm 138:7
There is a window in your heart through which you can see God. Once upon a time that window was clear. Your view of God was crisp. You could see God as vividly as you could see a gentle valley or hillside.
Then, suddenly, the window cracked. A pebble broke the window. A pebble of pain (or other trials).
And suddenly God was not so easy to see. The view that had been so crisp had changed.
You were puzzled. God wouldn't allow something like this to happen, would He?
When you can't see Him, trust Him...Jesus is closer than you've ever dreamed."
In the Eye of the Storm, by Max Lucado
God is faithful despite what we feel. It's a matter of living by faith and not by sight or by feelings. We KNOW that, according to His Word, He will accomplish ALL that concerns us, but usually not in our timing. Remember that His timing is perfect...we need to trust Him totally & completely!
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
GOD, OUR DEFENDER
"He is my defender, I will not be defeated."
"Here is a big question. What is God doing when you are in a bind? When the lifeboat springs a leak? When the rip cord snaps? When the last penny is gone before the last bill is paid?...
I know what we are doing. Nibbling on nails like corn on the cob. Pacing floors. Taking pills...
But, what does God do?...
He fights for us. he steps into the ring and points us to our corner and takes over. "Remain calm; the Lord will fight for you" (Exodus 14:14).
His job is to fight. Our job is to trust.
Just trust. Not direct. Or question....Our job is to pray and wait."
Taken from Grace for the Moment by Max Lucado
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QUOTES
"Worry about nothing, but pray about everything."
"If we are in financial trouble, and are tithers, we are in covenant with God."
"When all hope is gone you need to keep hoping in faith!"
"God will turn our test into testimony if we remain with Him and keep our eyes on Him."
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Saturday, August 25, 2007
SOME GREAT QUOTES
Some great quotes from my Pastor during his messages on Jesus' miracles the past couple of weeks...
"The path He leads you down may be more difficult, but it'll always be better! It ultimately gets better, but not usually right away."
"The Chinese character for 'crisis' is Danger......and.....Opportunity."
"We are to be stubbornly faithful to God!"
"In a storm the wind will not die down until we invite Him into the boat with us."
"Storms give us a chance to trust."
"We are to follow Jesus because we want to be useful to Him, not because we want Him to be useful to us!"
"God is seldom early, but He is always on time." His time...not ours!
"The little boy who gave Jesus his lunch...a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish...entrusted Jesus with ALL he had. He gave all he had to Him who gives so much. Who's holding what you have? The little boy had very little to give, but it was a lot in the hands of Jesus! What we have must be placed in the hands of Jesus and watch what He will do with it!"
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Thursday, July 26, 2007
MAY WE BE FAITH-FILLED
Romans 12:1 says, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God....this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is....His good, pleasing and perfect will."
Naturally, since we live here on this earth, we are surrounded by the things of this world each & every moment of every day. To be able to think as Christ thinks, rather than to think like the world, it is SO important to fill our minds daily with the Words of God. Reading & studying His Word helps us to be
faith-filled!
How we need to fill up each day with His promises in His Word! We need to continuously be reminded of His faithfulness to the generations past and keep our eyes on Him....not on the things of the world. He will sometimes bring us to a place in our life where we are emptied of everything so that we will look to Him, the author & perfecter of our faith.
He is our Heavenly Father & loves us more than we can imagine. He is a faithful God who cares about our every need. When we can't see that or we don't feel that, we need to live by faith...and that's the thing that pleases Him.
"Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him." Hebrews 11:6
"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." Hebrews 11:1
May we be commended for doing the same.
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Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Thank you Lord
"You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." Psalm 16:11
Praise you, Lord, that you have shown me the way to eternal life through Jesus Christ! I feel SO blessed and humbled that you would, not only show me the Way, but also walk with me each day as I seek you for direction. What comfort there is in knowing, for a fact, that we are just passing through this life on our way to an eternity with you!
Thank you that you began eternity in my heart the moment I received Jesus as my Savior, and your eternal pleasures have begun in my life already! Help me to keep my eyes focused on you and the promises of your Word so that I may enjoy those eternal pleasures right now. Praise you Lord!
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Sunday, July 01, 2007
GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY
I am convinced of God's sovereignty over every aspect of our lives. How freeing it is to know, without a shadow of a doubt, that God is in control and I am not. Without realizing that, how could we ever believe His promises to us and trust Him to work all things for our good?
Acts 17:26b says (speaking of those He has created) "He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live". How much more do we need to convince us of His sovereign will over our lives? Let's place our faith & trust in Him knowing that He's in control and He will only allow those things in our lives for our good...to grow us in the areas we need growth and, most importantly...to grow us in faith in a faithful God!
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Friday, June 15, 2007
The Cure for Disappointment
"I am the Lord, the God of every person on the earth. Nothing is impossible for me." Jeremiah 32:17
We need to hear that God is still in control. We need to hear that it's not over until He says so. We need to hear that life's mishaps and tragedies are not a reason to bail out. They are simply a reason to sit tight.
Corrie ten Boom used to say, "When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out? Of course not. You sit still and trust the engineer to get you through."...
The way to deal with discouragement? The cure for disappointment? Go back and read the story of God. Read it again and again. Be reminded that you aren't the first person to weep. And you aren't the first person to be helped.
Read the story and remember...the story is yours!
Taken from Max Lucado's "He Still Moves Stones"
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Thursday, May 31, 2007
God's Comfort
"When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." NIV
"When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer." NLT
Psalm 94:19
God's comfort brings joy, hope, and cheer!
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Monday, May 21, 2007
KEEPING POSSESSIONS IN PERSPECTIVE
How important are material possessions? Not as important as we might think. In the life of committed Christians, material possessions should play a rather small role. Of course, we all need the basic necessities of life, but once we meet those needs for ourselves and for our families, the piling up of possessions creates more problems than it solves. Our real riches, of course, are not of this world. We are never really rich until we are rich in spirit.
Martin Luther observed, "Many things I have tried to grasp and have lost. That which I have placed in God's hands I still have." His words apply to all of us. Our earthly riches are transitory, our spiritual riches are not.
Do you find yourself wrapped up in the concerns of the material world? If so, it's time to reorder your priorities by turning your thoughts and your prayers to more important matters. And, it's time to begin storing up riches that will endure throughout eternity: the spiritual kind.
Remember...everything we have is on loan from God. Corrie ten Boom observed, "I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess." Our real riches are in heaven, so let's conduct ourselves accordingly...and teach our children to do likewise.
Taken from "A Mother's Guide to the Ten Commandments"
"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" Luke 12:34
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Friday, May 18, 2007
I chose to trust you, Lord!
God has a marvelous way of teaching us the things He wants us to learn. May we listen to Him and be open for all that He has for us, according to His perfect plan and will for our lives. Many times we don't understand His ways, but we need to remember that His ways are much, much higher than our ways.
He knows what's best for us and will sometimes allow those things which are very difficult for us to pass through to come into our lives to grow us spiritually and esp. to grow us in faith & trust.
When we can see His hand in our lives we don't have to live by faith, but it's when we can't see Him or answers to our prayers that we have to live by faith...either that or give in to the tools of the devil...discouragement and despair.
God is working on our behalf.....ALL the time!! We can believe that because we have the promises of His Word...."I will never leave you or forsake you", "ALL things work together for the good of those who love me and are called according to my purpose", etc.
We must be, and can be, "content in whatever circumstances He is allowing us to go through" because "we can do all things through Him who gives us strength".
Thank you, Lord, that, even though I don't always understand your ways I can totally trust you because your very nature is love and faithfulness!!
Someday I'll understand why...
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Monday, May 14, 2007
God loves you beyond measure!
"For we walk by faith, not by sight". 2 Corinthians 5:7
You are precious in the eyes of God. You are His priceless creation, made in His image, and protected by Him. God watches over every step you make and every breath you take, so you need never be afraid. But sometimes, fear has a way of slipping into the minds and hearts of even the most devout believers. You are no exception.
On occasion, you will confront circumstances that trouble you to the very core of your soul. When you are afraid, trust in God. When you are worried, turn your concerns over to Him. When you are anxious, be still and listen for the quiet assurance of God's promises. And then, place your life in His hands. He is your shepherd today and throughout eternity. Trust the Shepherd.
One of the most important lessons that you can ever learn is to trust God for everything...not some things, not most things....everything!
taken from "A Mother's Guide to the Ten Commandments"
a quote-worthy quote by Paula Rinehart..."A major turning point in my life came when I realized that being able to trust God is grounded in staking the whole of my being on the reality that He loves me."
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Sunday, May 06, 2007
God's in Charge
God's Spirit, who is in you, is greater than the devil, who is in the world. 1 John 4:4
Satan has no power except that which God gives him.
To the first-century church in Smyrna, Christ said, "Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer for ten days. But be faithful, even if you have to die, and I will give you the crown of life". Rev. 2:10
Analyze Jesus' words for a minute. Christ informs the church of the persecution, the duration of the persecution (ten days), the reason for the persecution (to test you), and the outcome of the persecution (a crown of life). In other words, Jesus uses Satan to fortify his church...
Even when Satan appears to win, he loses! (emphasis mine)
Taken from "The Great House of God" by Max Lucado
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