"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
~Jeremiah 1:5
You, yes YOU friend, have been personally selected by God for a mission, one that will glorify His kingdom and bring glory to His name. Before you were born, this plan had already been set in motion. Before your parents were born, He knew you by name. There is nothing you can do to make Him leave your side. Even when you turn your back on His plan, He remains just behind you, waiting for you to turn to Him. He knows that you are flawed, but His plan is perfect, and only in you can it be completed. He has written your name on it!
God bless!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Jeremiah 20:9
But if I say, "I will not mention him
or speak any more in his name,"
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot.
~Jeremiah 20:9
"The fire of God is too big to contain
So let it burn 'til the whole world knows His name
The name above all other names,
The holy One who never changes
Consume me."
We are not meant to 'hold God in', yet we do this in two different ways: by not extending His love to others, and by not sharing the message of His Son. When we are truly in line with God's love, it fills us up to the point of overflow. We do not think of trying to hold it in, because we are so consumed by His passion for us that we can't help but spill over. Likewise, the Good News of Christ is not to be kept in secret. It is too good not to tell.
God bless!
or speak any more in his name,"
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot.
~Jeremiah 20:9
"The fire of God is too big to contain
So let it burn 'til the whole world knows His name
The name above all other names,
The holy One who never changes
Consume me."
We are not meant to 'hold God in', yet we do this in two different ways: by not extending His love to others, and by not sharing the message of His Son. When we are truly in line with God's love, it fills us up to the point of overflow. We do not think of trying to hold it in, because we are so consumed by His passion for us that we can't help but spill over. Likewise, the Good News of Christ is not to be kept in secret. It is too good not to tell.
God bless!
Friday, November 13, 2009
1 Corinthians 3:18
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
~1 Corinthians 3:18
"Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him."
~The Message
With nothing between us and God, our potential for growth is unlimited. As we grow closer to Him, we find ourselves becoming more like Him, not only in what we do, but in our thoughts and feelings as well.
"All mortals tend to turn into the thing they are pretending to be."
~CS Lewis
In changing the way we are perceived to be better accepted by the world, we are ourselves becoming a part of it. In striving to imitate Christ and creating healthy spiritual habits, we are becoming more like the God we serve and this Christ-like person is who we become.
God bless!
~1 Corinthians 3:18
"Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him."
~The Message
With nothing between us and God, our potential for growth is unlimited. As we grow closer to Him, we find ourselves becoming more like Him, not only in what we do, but in our thoughts and feelings as well.
"All mortals tend to turn into the thing they are pretending to be."
~CS Lewis
In changing the way we are perceived to be better accepted by the world, we are ourselves becoming a part of it. In striving to imitate Christ and creating healthy spiritual habits, we are becoming more like the God we serve and this Christ-like person is who we become.
God bless!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Called to Grace
As a part of Christianity, we are called to love. Those that hate us, those that disagree with us, those that persecute us: we are called to love them all. We know this, we believe this, and most of us put forth a fairly strong effort toward loving our enemies; however, there seems to be one category of people that Christians would rather overlook with their love: those who disagree with us morally. Throughout this message, I'm going to be using the highly controversial issue of homosexuality as my example. (I am not going to give my own personal views in this message, consider it my unbiased-as-possible example).
I know this does not speak for all, but MOST people would agree that homosexuality is against Christianity. But to what extent is that disapproval okay? In the book "What's So Amazing About Grace?", Phillip Yancey quotes a man that he met in his neighborhood: "As a gay man, I've found that it's easier to get sex on the streets than to get a hug in the church." Now I ask you what is wrong with this picture. We shake our heads and we know that this is not morally right, but we also know how true this statement would prove to be. Could it really be that our very sentiments are pushing people away from morality?
Ed Dobson, a strong Christian leader and preacher, felt called to befriend the gay community in his area. While he did not agree with their life style, he began to extend grace to them, volunteering his church body to reach out to the gay community. Dobson once told Philip Yancey, "If I die and someone stands up at my funeral and says nothing but, 'Ed Dobson loved homosexuals,' I would feel proud." We are called to love the unloved, whether we agree with their choices or not. Dostoevsky once said, "To love a person means to see him as God intended him to be."
All humans were created in the image of God and that is how we are to see each person. We are no better than the people we disagree with, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." How can we, as such sinners, possibly think that we deserve to receive the love of God when we cannot show His love to another? Homosexuals are people. They too were made in the image of God. The only way to get avoid believing that is by dehumanizing a person based on their choices, which is the definition of ungrace.
To quote Yancey's novel one last time, "We may be abominations but we're still God's pride and joy." This simple fact is what makes our faith so wonderfully unfair: grace. Whether you agree with someone's beliefs or not, you are called to love them just as you love your friends. God sees the best in those people, just as He sees the best in you.
God bless!
I know this does not speak for all, but MOST people would agree that homosexuality is against Christianity. But to what extent is that disapproval okay? In the book "What's So Amazing About Grace?", Phillip Yancey quotes a man that he met in his neighborhood: "As a gay man, I've found that it's easier to get sex on the streets than to get a hug in the church." Now I ask you what is wrong with this picture. We shake our heads and we know that this is not morally right, but we also know how true this statement would prove to be. Could it really be that our very sentiments are pushing people away from morality?
Ed Dobson, a strong Christian leader and preacher, felt called to befriend the gay community in his area. While he did not agree with their life style, he began to extend grace to them, volunteering his church body to reach out to the gay community. Dobson once told Philip Yancey, "If I die and someone stands up at my funeral and says nothing but, 'Ed Dobson loved homosexuals,' I would feel proud." We are called to love the unloved, whether we agree with their choices or not. Dostoevsky once said, "To love a person means to see him as God intended him to be."
All humans were created in the image of God and that is how we are to see each person. We are no better than the people we disagree with, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." How can we, as such sinners, possibly think that we deserve to receive the love of God when we cannot show His love to another? Homosexuals are people. They too were made in the image of God. The only way to get avoid believing that is by dehumanizing a person based on their choices, which is the definition of ungrace.
To quote Yancey's novel one last time, "We may be abominations but we're still God's pride and joy." This simple fact is what makes our faith so wonderfully unfair: grace. Whether you agree with someone's beliefs or not, you are called to love them just as you love your friends. God sees the best in those people, just as He sees the best in you.
God bless!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Sharing Your Faith- Roman Road
The 'Roman Road' is a huge tool to use in sharing your faith with nonbelievers. If someone is interested in what you believe, or why you believe it, this is the path to walk them down.
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
We all have sin in our hearts. We all were born with sin. We were born under the power of sin's control.
- Admit that you are a sinner.
Romans 6:23a
"...The wages of sin is death..."
Sin has an ending. It results in death. We all face physical death, which is a result of sin. But a worse death is spiritual death that alienates us from God, and will last for all eternity.
- Understand that you deserve death for your sin.
Romans 6:23b
"...But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Salvation is a free gift from God to you! You can't earn this gift, but you must reach out and receive it.
- Ask God to forgive you and save you.
Romans 5:8, "God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us!"
When Jesus died on the cross He paid sin's penalty. He paid the price for all sin, and when He took all the sins of the world on Himself on the cross, He bought us out of slavery to sin and death! The only condition is that we believe in Him and what He has done for us, understanding that we are now joined with Him, and that He is our life. He did all this because He loved us and gave Himself for us!
- Give your life to God... His love poured out in Jesus on the cross is your only hope to have forgiveness and change. His love bought you out of being a slave to sin. His love is what saves you -- not religion, or church membership. God loves you!
Romans 10:9,10 "...If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."
- This is the fundamental process of salvation
Good luck and God bless!
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
We all have sin in our hearts. We all were born with sin. We were born under the power of sin's control.
- Admit that you are a sinner.
Romans 6:23a
"...The wages of sin is death..."
Sin has an ending. It results in death. We all face physical death, which is a result of sin. But a worse death is spiritual death that alienates us from God, and will last for all eternity.
- Understand that you deserve death for your sin.
Romans 6:23b
"...But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Salvation is a free gift from God to you! You can't earn this gift, but you must reach out and receive it.
- Ask God to forgive you and save you.
Romans 5:8, "God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us!"
When Jesus died on the cross He paid sin's penalty. He paid the price for all sin, and when He took all the sins of the world on Himself on the cross, He bought us out of slavery to sin and death! The only condition is that we believe in Him and what He has done for us, understanding that we are now joined with Him, and that He is our life. He did all this because He loved us and gave Himself for us!
- Give your life to God... His love poured out in Jesus on the cross is your only hope to have forgiveness and change. His love bought you out of being a slave to sin. His love is what saves you -- not religion, or church membership. God loves you!
Romans 10:9,10 "...If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."
- This is the fundamental process of salvation
Good luck and God bless!
Monday, November 9, 2009
It’s Not Up to You
By Max Lucado
“The Spirit speaks to God for his people in the way God wants.” Romans 8:27
None of us pray as much as we should, but all of us pray more than we think, because the Holy Spirit turns our sighs into petitions and tears into entreaties. He speaks for you and protects you. He makes sure you get heard.
Now, suppose a person never…learns about the sealing and intercession of the Spirit. This individual thinks that salvation security resides in self, not God, and that prayer power depends on the person, not the Spirit. What kind of life will this person lead? A parched and prayerless one.
But what if you believe in the work of the Spirit? Will you be different as a result? You bet your sweet Sunday you will. Your shoulders will lift as you lower the buckling weight of self-salvation. Your knees will bend as you discover the buoyant power of the praying Spirit. Higher walk. Deeper prayers. And, most of all, a quiet confidence that comes from knowing it’s not up to you.
God bless!
Friday, November 6, 2009
Isaiah 46:9
Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
~Isaiah 46:9
Our God is the creator of the heavens and the earth. He intricately and intentionally designed the sun and the seas and the birds, as well as you and I, purposefully created for His plan in our lives. Nothing and no one else can create, can make something from nothing. Even Satan can only twist for his benefit what is already in existence. Our God is unique, perfect, pure, and holy, and most of all, worthy of our gratitude and praise.
God bless!
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
~Isaiah 46:9
Our God is the creator of the heavens and the earth. He intricately and intentionally designed the sun and the seas and the birds, as well as you and I, purposefully created for His plan in our lives. Nothing and no one else can create, can make something from nothing. Even Satan can only twist for his benefit what is already in existence. Our God is unique, perfect, pure, and holy, and most of all, worthy of our gratitude and praise.
God bless!
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