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October 7, 2005
*This page is updated every Friday.
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God gives more than we ask or imagine.
Aim right. Aim high, and raise your goal. With God plan big. With God plan bold." --Fred Jarvis
He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has. --Epictetus
God can use you to your full potential.
You are a Child of God and a co-heir with His Son!
If we believe in Him, our praise comes naturally from the depths of our souls!
I have no fear. My trust is in my Lord.
The Jesus that was in my yesterday, that provided for me.....
The Jesus that is in my Today, providing for me.....
Is the same Jesus that will be in my tomorrow and will provide for me!
Thank You, Jesus
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Memorable Marital Advice
Long, long ago, when I was a young, young married man, I called a friend to get some informal marital counseling. My friend was Del Fehsenfeld, the founder of Life Actions Ministries in Buchanan, Michigan. I was on staff at a church nearby. As always he immediately made time for me. We met for breakfast.
Del was in intense man with a choleric temperament. After talking for a while he looked me directly in the eye and said, “Can I ask you a question? Do you love Lois?”
“O, Yes,” I said. “I do.”
Without breaking stride he said, “Do you tell her regularly that you love her?”
“Yes, I do,” I said, confidently. I felt a little smug because I know it is hard for some men to express their love. I have never had that problem.
“Good,” Del said and then, eyes on mine, he asked, “If I were to ask her today, “Do you feel loved right now? What would she say?”
After a while I said, “I don’t know.”
Del said, “It’s not just your job to love her or even to tell her regularly that you love her. It is your job to make her feel loved every day.
It’s been about twenty years and Del has long since gone to be with the Lord, but he took time one morning to give me advice that I have never forgotten. I am still working to make my wife feel loved every day. I make a study of each person in my family to discover their love language, the spiritual gifts, how God made them, and what makes them feel loved. One of the things that makes life interesting is to try different things all the time to help those you love feel loved.
It is tragic for people in this world to feel unloved, but millions do. I consider it my personal responsibility to see to it that none of them are in my family. --Ken Pierpont
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Slaves to Our Stuff
Jerry and I were best friends in high school, and then we didn't see each other for several years. But we were able to get together again when we found out that he and his wife had moved to an apartment in New York City. He was training to become a 747 pilot for a major airline. Karen and I went in to have dinner at their apartment, and we realized that Jerry and Gail were making the big bucks. They had an exclusive apartment, expensive furniture and a brand new Cadillac. Jerry took us down to the high-security garage to show the Caddy to us with a lot of pride. A couple months later, they drove out to our little apartment in a New Jersey suburb. We didn't live in a fancy neighborhood, but you know, it wasn't a bad neighborhood. Jerry had to park his Cadillac where we parked our un-Cadillac - on the street. We prepared a nice dinner, but Jerry couldn't enjoy it. He couldn't enjoy the conversation we tried to have after dinner. The whole time he was really nervous. Every five!
minutes or so he would leave the conversation, go over to the window, and check on his Cadillac! I assured him it would be OK, but no, no. He spent the whole night worrying about losing his expensive car. At first, I though Jerry owned a Cadillac. It turned out that a Cadillac owned Jerry!
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Timothy 6:17-18. "Command those who are rich in this present world" - which, by the standards of most of the people in the world, would include almost everyone listening right now - "tell them not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age."
God uses a revealing word here to describe all of our earth-stuff, "uncertain." Hello, Jerry. I can't help but think that Jerry's anxiety about losing his treasure that night was a glimpse of what happens to all of us as we get more earth- stuff. Once we get it, we have to put a lot of energy into not losing it, which leads to an interesting phenomenon: you being owned by your stuff instead of your stuff being owned by you. I know, for example, of a number of couples who had intended to answer the Lord's call to go into His work after they got on their feet financially. Unfortunately, in the process, they established a lifestyle and they made commitments that could not be sustained on a ministry income. They still aren't in the Lord's work today. Their stuff ended up owning them.
Could it be that you have gotten some possession or some position that now consumes the heart of your energies in order to keep it? Could it be that the business you own actually owns you? Or your money? Or your house owns you? Or your investments? Somehow, without intending it or realizing it, you have become a slave to your stuff. And you have to keep running to the window to make sure it's still there, which makes it hard to really enjoy life.
God doesn't say it's necessarily wrong to have earth stuff. It's wrong for it to have you. His prescription for freedom is first, don't trust in earth-stuff, that's what we read in 1 Timothy. Don't base your identity on it. Realize it's just a gift from God and that God has the right to give it or take it away. He'll always provide for you. And don't pursue earth-stuff. Jesus said your Father knows what you need and He'll provide for you. You pursue His Kingdom, not yours. And don't hold onto your earth-stuff. Give it away.
When you know your earth-stuff is only a gift and when you sign it all over to God and when you see it as resources God gave you to make a difference with, you can relax and stop running to the window. In God's words, you have traded "uncertain" for treasure that's "a firm foundation." Your security is Jesus, not earth-stuff! --2005, Ron Hutchcraft
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More Than We Ask
To him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! -Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)
THE long, hot days of summer and the lack of rain left the soil dry and dusty. Under the cloudless sky, the crops, stressed for lack of moisture, were wilted and limp in the fields. Prospects for a good harvest were slim.
Then it happened. A floating cloud obscured the sun, then thickened and darkened. At first, a few drops of rain brought a refreshing smell to the summer air. Then the few drops became a shower, and the shower became a steady rain that continued for hours, soaking the soil and giving life to the crops.
As we stood looking over the field, the farmer looked skyward and prayed, "Thank you, Lord. I asked for a refreshing shower, and you sent a clod-soaking rain."
In a particular situation, we may not get what we want when we pray. But when we look at our lives from a long-term perspective, we usually receive more than we ask. God, in whom we trust, "is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine." --Howard Coop
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BIBLE MEDITATION: “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:12
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: Some of the greatest spiritual defeats you will ever have will follow some of your highest spiritual victories. Jonah, Moses, and Elijah – all these men learned this. Why does this happen? Because we are tired and feel we can just coast a while. We think, Didn’t God bless and give us a great victory? But, we forget that the devil is clever. He knows just when to pull the rug out from under us. Let me give you a little advice: Although the residual effects of yesterday’s blessings will bless you, you cannot coast on yesterday’s blessings. God has made you that you cannot live by experiences; you have to live by Jesus Christ one day at a time.
ACTION POINT: Has God blessed you with an extraordinary victory? What are you doing today to live a life worthy of that blessing and in allegiance to the One who has blessed you? --Love Worth Finding's daily devotional
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BIBLE MEDITATION: “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” 2 Corinthians 4:16
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: So many people think that they cannot do much for the Lord as they enter the twilight years. God doesn’t change just because your health may take a turn, or you feel weaker. The faith that is inside of you has not weakened, unless you stop feeding it with works of faith. The things that God calls us to do in life do not hinge upon our physical stamina or financial strength. Do you know where one of the great strengths of a church lies? In its seniors who have walked with God for years. With their reservoir of wisdom and fortress of faith, they get hold of God and though their bodies are wearing a bit, they are as strong as they ever were because God is their strength. Douglas MacArthur once said, “You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubts, as young as your self with confidence, as old as your fears, as young as your hope, as old as your despair.” God gives unfading strength for His undiminishing promises.
ACTION POINT: Are you retired? How are you using all your free time for the Lord? Here are some things to ask God to help you do for His glory: volunteer at a homeless shelter, go on mission trips, sing in the choir, write letters to prisoners and orphans, teach a Bible Study, and spend time in intercessory prayer for the great needs of your community and the world!
--Love Worth Finding's daily devotional
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BIBLE MEDITATION: “It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth His beloved sleep.” Psalm 127:2
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: In the book of Jonah, we learn that Jonah reached a place of physical despondency (see Jonah 4:3 and 8). He wanted God to kill him. Have you ever reached a place of despair and thought that everything and everyone was against you and you didn’t know what to do? Maybe you just needed to lie down and get some sleep. Now, that may not sound like the most spiritual thing to do, but we cannot abuse our bodies without suffering the consequences. And being a child of God does not make you immune to physical exhaustion. Have you ever heard of burn out? Where do you think we got that phrase? There is enough time in the day to gracefully do everything God wants us to do.
ACTION POINT: Do you feel you are on the edge of burn out? Perhaps you are already there. Before you turn to toast, ask God for His wisdom to set some boundaries in your life, to learn to say no, to delegate some of your responsibilities, to ask for a day off from work, to ask for a hug, or to perhaps turn to a counselor for help --Love Worth Finding's daily devotional
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A False Assumption
If you are truly humble, you will always be ready to seek (and accept!) help from others. The present genteel, self-loving brand of piety assumes, “I don’t need anybody; I can set things right with God myself.” But as long as you quietly try to work out your own salvation, you won’t get anywhere. Only when you recognize your need for others and reach out and open up to them will things move forward. --J. C. Blumhardt
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STIRRING THE PAINT
I stood in the bare white room and sighed. Paint cans, trays, rollers and brushes were stacked in the middle of the floor. Every breath I took reminded me that I'd been here for a number of days, but there was still work to be done. These walls were still white. By the time we were finished painting the downstairs floors of two houses, I was tired, but I was getting pretty good at painting. I was even enjoying it a bit. It was satisfying, watching the paint flow onto the walls, turning them to a warm comforting color.
I grabbed a new pail, gave it a bit of a shake and opened it up. I knew as soon as I passed the roller over the wall that something was wrong. I looked at the label on the pail. It was the same color. I looked at the paint inside. It looked the same as what I'd been using earlier in the day. But I looked at the wall and frowned. I dipped a brush into the paint and immediately realized the problem. It needed to be stirred. It took quite a while, and my arm was starting to object, before the consistency was right and I could use that paint, but once it had been stirred enough, the rest of the work was almost effortless.
Like paint, our faith in God needs to be stirred. We need to see God's hand at work in our lives and the lives of others. It's the answered prayers, the obvious God incidents, and the manifestations of His glory in the world around us, which thicken our faith into something that will sustain us, something that can be used.
Some of the stirring can only be accomplished by God Himself. Faith is a gift. Only He can open our eyes to its reality. But we can put ourselves in places where we will see the hand of God at work. Go to the third world. Help in a soup kitchen. Visit the dying and those in prison. Work with those who are disabled. Witness to those around you. Go to church. Take the risks that will reveal Him. God is always at work in places where He is most needed.
When faith is thin, our spiritual life fades and God can't accomplish much through us. But when it's been stirred, life thickens with purpose and meaning. It is then that faith becomes a beautiful and useful tool in God's hands. When our faith has been stirred, the work we do for Him seems almost effortless because we recognize that it is He who works through us. We see the difference only He can make, "for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose" (Philippians 2:13). --"The Spur"
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Bible Questions & Answers
How old was Noah when the flood began? 600 Genesis 7:6
For how long did the flood waters continue to increase? 40 days Genesis 7:17
What kind of leaf was in the dove's mouth when it returned to the ark? Olive Genesis 8:11
How many times did Noah send the dove from the Ark? 3 Genesis 8:8-12
--Provided by Thomas W Henderson
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This Too Shall Pass
If I can endure for this minute
Whatever is happening to me,
No matter how heavy my heart is
Or how dark the moment may be-
If I can remain calm and quiet
With all the world crashing about me,
Secure in the knowledge God loves me
When everyone else seems to doubt me-
If I can but keep on believing
What I know in my heart to be true,
That darkness will fade with the morning
And that this will pass away, too-
Then nothing in life can defeat me
For as long as this knowledge remains
I can suffer whatever is happening
For I know God will break all of the chains
That are binding me tight in the darkness
And trying to fill me with fear-
For there is no night without dawning
And I know that my morning is near.
Helen Steiner Rice
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AT EVENING
When sunset turns the lake to gold, beneath the sky's warm blue,
My eyes can almost look on God, so near His presence steals;
I feel a sudden tender thrill - the same a dreamer feels,
Who wakes from some vague reverie to see his dream come true.
I find God's smile in every tree, I know His kind eyes shine
Where clouds are parted in the West; the misty, scented air
Is like a voice that calls to me and lifts my soul in prayer-
And-almost-as the twilight grows, I feel His hand in mine!
--Margaret E. Sangster, Jr.
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So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. Romans 7:4-6
This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. 1 John 3:1-3
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 1 John 3:16-20
I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. Psalm 130:5
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:7-10
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. Matthew 18:20
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GOD'S EMBROIDERY
When I was little, my mother used to sew a great deal. I would sit at her knee and look up from the floor and ask what she was doing. She informed me that she was embroidering. As from the underside I watched her work within the boundaries of the little hoop that she held in her hand, I complained to her that it sure looked messy from where I sat. She'd smile at me, look down and gently say, "Son, you go about your playing and when I am finished with my embroidering, I will put you on my knee and let you see it from my side." I would wonder why she was using some dark threads along with the bright ones and why they seemed so jumbled from my view.
A few minutes would pass and then I would hear Mother's voice say, "Son come sit on my knee." This I did only to be surprised and thrilled to see a beautiful flower or sunset. I could not believe it, because from underneath it looked so messy. Then mother would say to me. "My son, from underneath it did look messy and jumbled, but you did not realize that there was a plan on the top. It was a design. I was only following it. Now look at it from my side and you will see what I was doing."
Many times through the years, I have looked up to heaven and said, "Father what are You doing?" He has answered, "I am
embroidering your life." I say, "But it looks like such a mess to me. It seems so jumbled. The threads seem so dark. Why can't they
all be bright?" Then God seems to tell me, "My child, you go about your business of doing My business, and one day I will bring you to Heaven and put you on my knee and you will see the plan from My side." --Author Unknown
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A CUP OF COLD WATER IS AN ANSWER TO PRAYER
On a hot summer morning, I sat down to twist my hair. It was early morning and as I looked out of the window I noticed a school bus in the turning lane on the highway which was unusual at that intersection. Busy, several hours later I looked and the bus hadn't moved. I thought that odd but kept on twisting.
I had been training myself to hear Gods voice when I heard in my spirit, "a cold drink of water." I kept on twisting my hair. That "God prompting" began to work me on the inside. I kept on twisting my hair. Finally, I felt the prompt again only a little stronger, and this time I said "okay," 'cause it sure was hot out there and whoever was on that bus had to be thirsty. Another voice said "they probably have a cooler on board, girl."
I went into the kitchen to prepare the cold drink of water, and I was amazed at how the spirit of God told me how to prepare the water, more ice than water, cover the top of the cup with foil. I was excited, to say the least, to know that I heard and finally moved to do what he said.
As I walked across the highway, many thoughts ran through my mind, one being what will the driver think? I approached the bus carefully; after all it was in an unusual place. I called "hey driver!!" I said to the driver, "I was watching from my window and noticed you have been parked here for a long time and it is hot out here." I went on to tell her that Jesus told me to bring her a cold drink of water. The lady seemed to be so relieved, as it tuned out the bus was broken down and she had made the necessary calls for towing and repair. The driver had been informed not to leave the bus; she could lose her job if she did. The driver told me that she had been thinking about how she could get to the store two blocks up to get a soda--she said as sure as she left the bus the tow
truck would come and her bus and job would be gone, so she stayed, prayed and asked God for a cold drink of water.
At that moment I was overwhelmed with the awesomeness of God, how He loves us so and what He will do for us because of that love. My mind was just filled with the goodness of God. I wanted to cry but instead I asked the driver if she knew Jesus as Lord and savior of her life. I told her that Jesus loved her so much that He wanted her to know that He hears and answers prayer--even the
quick and desperate ones. The driver told me she knew Jesus as her personal savior--she was just trying to get her life together. I told her that my being there with that water was Jesus showing her how much He loved her just like she was, where she was, and all she had to do was trust Him. "We can't do anything without Jesus anyway," I said. "Our part is to do what He tells us to do."
As she drank her water, I gave her my name, showed her where I lived and told her if she wanted more water all she had to do was stick the cup out of the window--I would be watching and would bring her more cold water. I went home, started twisting my hair and watching for the cup to fill it with more cold water. --www.servantevangelism.com
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ALL KINDS OF GATES
"Lift up the gates so the King of glory can come in" (Psalm 24:7)
Gates. We live in a world of gates. Gates to keep people out. Gates to keep people in. Gates to enter the driveway, gates into and out of parking lots. Gates to keep animals in, gates to keep them away.
And then there are gates to our hearts. We allow people and God into some of the rooms of our heart - but not all of them. There are secrets we don't want anyone to know, there are hurts we don't expose to anyone.
There is a verse in Psalm 24 that says in essence, "Lift up the gates, so the King of Glory can come in. The Lord strong and mighty...the Lord Almighty."
When you stop and think about it, we are fools when we don't completely lift the gates of our heart to God. The Lord Almighty wants to invade our whole life so He can be our Savior, friend and protector.
Several years ago, I heard a testimony given by a middle-aged gentleman. In his life, many people would have called him a beach bum. One day while in a restaurant, he picked up a booklet and read through a gospel presentation. When he read a prayer to invite Jesus into his life, he decided he would go kneel on the beach and open the door of his heart as wide as he could. He wanted as much of the King of Glory as he could get. He was never the same again.
Have you ever opened the door of your life WIDE open to Jesus Christ? Today, right now, is the best time to open your heart's door as wide as you can and ask Him in. Allow Him to invade every room and corner of your life.
~Lord, I open wide the door of every room in my heart. Please come in and invade every space with Your glory and Your might. Please let Your glory shine though me so others will see You in me. Amen. --Katherine Kehler
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Thank you, merciful Lord, for the abundance of blessings that you give day after day. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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Further Instructions
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Colossians 4:2-6
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How to Ask Jesus into Your Life
Choosing to submit your life to God is the most significant decision you can ever make.
This choice involves more than simple intellectual agreement that Jesus is God and that He died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins.
It requires that you commit the rest of your life to God, to do what He asks of you and to live in accordance with His principles. This decision is not something to be taken lightly. It requires sacrifice and a total reorientation of your life around God rather than yourself. As Jesus said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." Luke 9:23.
If you feel you are ready to make this commitment, you can do so right now by telling God you are sorry for your past mistakes, putting your trust in Him and asking Him to make you into the person He created you to be. This step involves faith. You probably still have a number of unanswered questions at this point, but you must be willing to make the decision based on what you know right now and trust God to fill in the details later.
The precise words you use to commit yourself to God are not important. He knows the intentions of your heart. Your prayer can be as simple as "Help!" or it can focus on an issue that is specific to your situation. If you are unsure of what to pray, use the following sample prayer to get started: 'Jesus, I want to know You. I want You to come into my life. I'm sorry for the things I've done that have broken my relationship with God. Thank You for dying on the cross so that this relationship could be made right. I believe You are the only One who can do this. Only You can give me the power to change and become the person You created me to be. Thank You for forgiving my past mistakes and for giving me eternal life with God. I give my life to You. Please do with it as You wish. Amen.'
By praying the above prayer or one similar to it, you have just taken a giant step toward making God the center of your life. But these are just the words. What follows is a lifelong journey of change and growth as you get to know God better through Bible reading, prayer and interaction with others. --http://www.retirementwithapurpose.com/lawknowingjesus.html
-- May God Bless You and Keep You! Havagrt24! bluidkiti=^-^= http://www.ipass.net/a1idpirat/tAA.html http://www.cyberrecovery.net/phpBB2/index.php - Message Board http://www.ipass.net/a1idpirat/readings.html http://www.ipass.net/a1idpirat/todaysthought.html http://www.ipass.net/a1idpirat/weekly.html
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