Friday, May 29, 2009

Words


"But I say to you that for
every idle word men may
speak, they will give
account of it in the day
of judgement."
Matthew 12:36




Jesus spoke plainly about our idle words, yet
His warning often goes unheeded. Idle words
are things we say carelessly, without concern
for their impact on others. We too quickly
assume that the sins of our tongue are minor
sins, sins that God will overlook. Yet, Jesus
was fully aware of the devastating nature of
our words, for the idle words that come from
our mouths give a lucid picture of the condition
of our heart (Matt. 15:17-20).

The more time we spend in idle chatter, the greater
the likelihood that we will say things that are
harmful. We are in much less danger of saying
something offensive when we are listening than
when we are speaking! Christians should speak
only words that uplift and bring grace to others.

~Henry T. Blackaby & Richard Blackaby~
From: Experiencing God Day by Day

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,
but only what is helpful for building others up according
to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Ephesians 4:29


God has given us two ears, but one tongue, to show that we
should be swift to hear, but slow to speak. God has set a double
fence before the tongue, the teeth and the lips, to teach us to
be wary that we offend not with our tongue.

-- Thomas Watson

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Obedience


And this is love:
that we walk in
obedience to His
commands.
II John 1:6




Perfect obedience would bring perfect happiness,
if only we had perfect confidence in the Power
we were obeying.

~unknown~

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Praise


Praise be to
His glorious
name forever;
may the whole
earth be filled
with His glory.
Amen and Amen.

Psalm 72:19





Through praise you give God something no one else in
heaven or earth can give: the love and adoration of
your heart. He chose you before He created the earth;
He designed you as a unique individual, so that you
would be a special person unlike any other; He made
you for Himself. And He has made plans for an inti-
mate relationship with you throughout all eternity.
Such a God is not indifferent to your response to
Him. Your praise makes Him glad. Your neglect
grieves Him. As you fill your life with praise,
God will reveal Himself to you in new ways--and not
only to you but also through you to other people.
To glorify God and to enjoy Him forever is our high
calling, our destiny.

~Ruth Myers~
from: 31 Days of Praise

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

His Joy Refreshes


Do not sorrow,
for the joy of
the LORD is
your strength.

Nehemiah 8:10




Happiness is usually caused by circumstances.
Supernatural joy, however, enables us to
experience a deeper joy that is not so
dependent on our circumstances. As we live
by correct priorities, cultivating our
relationship with Christ on a daily basis,
we will begin to experience a quiet joy
resulting from a sense of security that we
belong to God, and He is indeed in control
of our lives. When we focus on this security,
we will be free to relax and trust Him in
whatever situation we find ourselves. We will
not always feel happy, but we will have a
deeper sense of joy that we belong to Christ
and that His plans for us are good.

~Susan Alexander Yates~
from: A Gentle Spirit

Friday, May 22, 2009

Gifts


Every good
and perfect
gift is
from above.
James 1:17





God's most beautiful gifts are often delivered
in rough packages by very difficult people.

~A. B. Simpson~

Thursday, May 21, 2009

D's


Be self-controlled
and alert. Your enemy
the devil prowls around
like a roaring lion
looking for someone
to devour.
I Peter 5:8



Satan uses these:

Doubt - to make us question God's word
and His goodness.
Discouragement - to make us look at our
problems rather than at God.
Diversion - to make the wrong things
attractive to us so that we will
want them more than eternal things.
Defeat - to make us feel like a failure so
that we don't even try and give up.
Delay - to make us put off doing something
so that it never gets done.

For every child of God defeats this evil
world by trusting Christ to give the victory.
1 John 5:4

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Crisis


Turn us again
to Yourself,
O Lord God
Almighty.

Psalm 80:19






Our culture's anxiety level has reached such
a height that people shoot and kill others
and never give it a thought. We're so full
of anxiety and fear that we can hardly live
with each other. How did our national feeling
of peace and safety go away?

The reason is clear. Somehow we have decided
we are so smart that we don't need God. We have
taken Him out of the school, out of the home,
out of our government--what do we have left?
The result is a society minus the benefits of
God's provision.

~Charles Stanley~
from: God is in Control

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Worship


They remembered
that God was
their Rock,
and the Most
High God their
Redeemer.

Psalm 78:35



(Photo by Donna Downey)

Worship is...drawing close to God, your Redeemer,
knowing that even as you do, He is redeeming your
life in ways you can't even imagine.

~Stormie Omartian~
from: The Prayer That Changes Everything

Monday, May 18, 2009

Thank You, Lord












(Photo by Donna Downey)

Thank You, Lord, for the people who are a blessing
to me...for family and friends and neighbors, for
little children, for brothers and sisters in Christ,
for colleagues and leaders, for pastors and teachers,
and for others: our doctor, the postman, the plumber.
Thank You for the many ways You use these people to meet
my needs, brighten my path, and lighten my load...to
enrich my knowledge of You, and to counsel or correct or
nourish me, building me up in the faith. How good and
pleasant it is to enjoy rich fellowship with those who
love You. Thank You for bringing people into my life!

Yet, Lord, I also thank You that even the people I most
admire have flaws--that only You are wonderful through
and through, with no ugly edges, and that people, even at
their best, cannot meet my deepest needs...that at times
they misunderstand, they disapppoint, they expect too much,
or they can't be available when I need them. This makes me
even more glad to have You as my best Friend, my wonderful
Counselor, my ever-present help in trouble, immediately available
around the clock, seven days a week. How wonderful that I belong
to You, the pure, unpolluted Source from which all love flows.

~Ruth Myers~
31 Days of Praise

Thursday, May 7, 2009

The Way


Jesus said to him, "I am
the Way, the Truth, and
the Life. No one comes to
the Father except through Me."

John 14:6




Too often, we would prefer a road map of our future rather
than a relationship with the Way. It oftens seems easier
to follow a plan than to cultivate a relationship. We can
become more concerned with our future than we are with
walking intimately with God today. Jesus will never give
you a substitute for Himself. If you want to know God's
will, take time to cultivate your relationship with Jesus
and learn to identify His voice. He is more than willing
to show you the way.

~Henry T. Blackaby & Richard Blackaby
from Experiencing God Day by Day

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

The Vine


I am the vine,
you are the branches.
He who abides in
Me bears much
fruit; for apart
from Me you can
do nothing.

John 15:5


Photo from Foodmag.com

He is the vine, the source of our life. We are the
branches, the place where fruit is produced. Jesus
said that it is not our activity that produces fruit,
it is our relationship with Him. If you will remain
steadfastly in fellowship with Jesus, a great harvest
will be the natural by-product.

~Henry T. and Richard Blackaby~
from Experiencing God Day by Day

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Whatever You Do



And whatever you do,
do it heartily, as to
the Lord, and not to
men. Colossians 3:23








We are to love our spouses, not as they deserve, but
as God commands. (Ephesians 5:22-23)

We are to treat our friends, not as they treat us,
but as Christ loves us. (John 13:14)

We are to labor at our jobs, not in proportion to
the way our employer treats us, but according to the
way God treats us. God is the One we serve. (Ephesians 6:5)

Our toil becomes an offering to God. We not only worship God
at church on Sunday, but our labor throughout the week is an
offering of worship and thanksgiving to the One who has given
us everything we have.

He is worthy of our best efforts.

~Henry T. Blackaby & Richard Blackaby~
from Experiencing God Day by Day

Monday, May 4, 2009

Action


Dear children, let us
stop just saying we love
each other; let us really
show it by our actions.
1 John 3:18








Love is something you do. Do you really love someone?
Let's see how you act toward that person. You show love
by what you do, not just by what you feel. Over and over
again in the Bible, God commands us to love each other.
And you can't command an emotion. If love were just an
emotion, then God couldn't command it. But love is something
you do; it can produce emotion, but love is an action.
We can talk a good act: "I love people." But do we really love
them? Our love is revealed in how we act toward them.

~Rick Warren~

Friday, May 1, 2009

Promises


God, who does
not lie,
promised.
Titus 1:2






Yellow Bird of Paradise
Photo by Donna Downey

Faith is not conjuring up, through an act of
your will, a sense of certainty that something
is going to happen. No, it is recognizing God's
promise as an actual fact, believing it is true,
rejoicing in the knowledge of that truth, and then
simply resting because God said it.

from Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman
May 1st