We are only a couple of days into Lent but we feel like we’d been trying to do this for weeks, right? It is hard to realize how dependent we are on some of our habits or sugar or something else we’re trying to stay away from. It really has been only a couple of days and we already feel like we’re fast approaching our limits. What to do now? No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the…
Some people wish that God were like Santa. He’d give us what we want. But the problem is: we don’t know what is best for us. Some people do think God is like Santa. And when they don’t get what they want, they throw God over board. But God is not like Santa. Or a cosmic bellboy. With the words of Harry Emerson Fosdick “God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things”….
Here are a few encouraging words for you who are right now going through hard times. Trust God to see you through. Hard times are not fun but the blessings of tested faith are huge. Hang in there. Better things ahead! My faith was tested when my first husband left me for another woman. Everything but God was taken from me. But I found God was more than enough. My God will meet your every need out of his riches…
Do you trust God with all your heart? Or do you withdraw your trust when things start looking gloomy? That’s what we so often do. But trusting when things are going well is not really trusting, is it? Trusting starts when things get rough, don’t you think? That’s exactly when we need to decide to trust God. We are to live by faith and not by sight. This is time to put faith in action. Trust in the Lord with…
Does the call to holiness intimidate you? Do you feel it’s beyond your power? Do you know what? You’ve got that right. Holiness is something we can’t attain through effort. But it is possible to obtain holiness by God’s grace. It does not happen without the Holy Spirit’s presence is our life. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. (Romans 6:22, NKJV, emphasis…
Do you feel spiritually empty? Are you craving for God’s presence? Congratulations, the Holy Spirit in you is reminding you of the bliss of being in God’s presence. Just open up your heart to receive all that God has for you. The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in…
Today’s word prompt is ‘same’. Right away I though of God Almighty who is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. But I realize I’ve already written a thought-provoking post about that. So I had to think another way to approach the word ‘same’. What could it be? Then this Bible verse came into my mind: Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own…
Grace invites us to try on a new kind of wardrobe. One that God has chosen for us: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Did you just audibly sigh? Don’t worry, I know. The godly, spiritual wardrobe doesn’t quite fit! But I know a Master Taylor who can help us: The Holy Spirit. When we invite Jesus to live in our heart the Holy Spirit starts working on our new kind of wardrobe. Gently he keeps on working on us…
Many of us want to be guided by God alone. It’s a wonderful concept, isn’t it? But how do you put it in practice in real life? How does God guide us these days? How can we live for God alone? The best advice comes from Jehoshaphat in the Bible: “But before you do anything, ask God for guidance.” (2 Chronicles 18:4, MSG,*) Whatever you do, start with asking God for guidance. Then your project is not in your…
Do you know the secret of peace and joy? It is leaving all your anxieties and insecurities at the foot of the cross and banking your life on Almighty God. Then you can dance in the front of fear. Then you can sing in the presence of evil. Then you can be confident when you’re out of your comfort zone. Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. (Jeremiah 17:7, NLT,…
