Tough times

"The dark moments of our lives will last only so long as is necessary for God to accomplish His purpose in us." Life Principle #7 by Charles Stanley

Stoke up the fire

"The truth is that love, by it's very nature, desires an appropriate response. Love can be spurned. Love can grow cold. Love can be lost." V.R.

Don't take for granted that person or Person who has demonstrated love toward you. Give him or her or Him the appropriate response.

It's a slippery slope - downhill.

Concerning the departure from sound doctrine in the English churches in the 17th century, Robert Schindler likened this to a downhill slope, and titled his paper, "The Down Grade". Here is the final paragraph of his first paper on the subject.

"These facts furnish a lesson for the present times, when, as in some cases, it is all too plainly apparent men are willing to forego the old for the sake of the new. But commonly it is found in theology that that which is true is not new, and that which is new is not true."

How many have just now for the first time read of the "Down Grade Controversy". I believe it was George Santayana who coined the phrase, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

This is where we are today in the church in America.

Delete carousing history

It's amazing what that little microchip can do. One day, they say, it will be able to do what the human brain does, and even more. Just push a "button" and history is deleted. I've been told that you really can't delete your history, something remains and someone with the right skills can bring it all up again. Sometimes we think that we can delete portions of our personal history or maybe rewrite it to get rid of something we don't want others to know. But our tracks remain. We've been there and done that and Someone can bring it all up again. He is the revealer of secrets. He has a hard copy of it all.

Payday someday

"You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow." Life Principle #6 by Charles Stanley

God's Will

"God does not require us to understand His will, just obey it, even if it seems unreasonable." Life Principle #5 by Charles Stanley

The Presence of God

"The awareness of God's presence energizes us for our work." Life Principle #4 by Charles Stanley

The Bible

"God's word is an immovable anchor in times of storm." Life Principle #3 by Charles Stanley

Obedience

"Obey God and leave all the consequences to Him." Life Principle #2 by Charles Stanley

Intimacy

"Our intimacy with God - His highest priority for our lives - determines the impact of our lives." Life principle #1 by Charles Stanley

The Favor of God

It was said of the apostolic church, "The favor or great blessing of God was upon them ..." Acts 4:33

I want the "great blessing - the favor of God" to be on my life and I want this for you as well. His blessing and favor can open doors of opportunity far greater than we would dare to imagine. Likewise, His favor withheld would quickly send our life into a downward spiral with no end in sight.

Attitude by Charles Swindall

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company...church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is attitude...I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it, and so it is with you...WE ARE IN CHARGE OF OUR ATTITUDES."

Off to work - with a prayer and a song.

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer." Psalm 19:4

True Wealth

A poor man who loves Jesus, has great wealth and will one day walk the streets of gold.
A rich man without Christ, is a spiritual pauper, to be greatly pitied, for he possesses nothing of eternal value and his future is unimaginably horrible.

After all, "It's not how much we have that really matters. It's how much of us HE has."

Luke 12:15 & 21

How good it is!

"But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Soverign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do." Psalm 73:28

My Life Was Changed Forever, I'll Never Be the Same

I met Jesus and my life was changed completely. It happened over 40 years ago. I can tell you the place, the date and the hour. It's hard to understand just what led up to that transformational encounter but I think it might have begun months earlier when I heard a man quote this invitation, "Come now, let us argue this out," says the LORD. "No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson, I can make you as white as snow." Isaiah 1 verse 18

Eloquence in the Pulpit

"Our need is not for eloquent preachers but for preachers who live their sermons eloquently. Ibrahim Levonian

"You can" by John Wesley

"Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can."

If you don't have it you don't have It.

A Holy Spirit controlled life will be evidenced by: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." If you ain't got it just face up to it - you ain't got it, then hurry up and go get it.

Ain't a gonna happen ta me!

Don't kid yourself that it can never happen to you -- it can. And if you don't think it can, it almost certainly will. If you think you don't need to take precautions ... you can spell your name S-T-U-P-I-D,

Hagee on God-like-ness

"We are most like God when we give." John Hagee

Misquided Faith

I bought it, for the most part, because I really believed the salesman. He was a nice looking guy, seemed to know what he was talking about, and used "Honest Joe" on his business card. But, it was a lemon. Life's Lesson - "It's not the degree of one's faith that saves -- it's the object of one's faith."

Spurgeon on the Holy Spirit

"Those who yield to His influences become good. They who obey His impulses do good. They who live under His power receive good."

A song by Keith Green

"My eyes are dry, my prayers are cold; My heart is hard, my faith is old. But I know how I ought to be, Alive to You and dead to me."

Some One is watching you!

"There's no such thing as a private moment." Allan Meyer

Charles Spurgeon on "Fear"

"Fear to fear. Be afraid to be afraid."

C.S.Lewis on Chastity

'Chastity is the most unpopular of the Christian virtues."

Just doin' what comes naturally!

Ringo Starr sang: "All I gotta do is act naturally." The truth is: if you act naturally you're toast.

Ouch! My anger hurts me.

"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else: you are the one who gets hurt." G. Siddharta

The intoxication of anger, like that of the grape, shows us to others, but hides us from ourselves." J. Dryden

The best is yet to come.

"It's not what you're going through - it's what you're going to that matters." J. Hagee

Nulla fides fronti

I first heard this little couplet as a child from a rodeo clown goofing off before the next bull rider exploded out of the gate.

"Not all that tempts your wandering eyes and heedless hearts is lawful prize: Nor all that glisters gold." Thomas Gray