A New Creature, A New Person Abloom

When Christ comes into my life, somehow the desert of my heart begins to blossom. The man who has been paralyzed by sin, helpless and down in the
dust, is taken hold of by the Spirit of God, and is made anew. That is the wisdom of God and the power of God.

Alan Redpath

Relying on God’s Power, Not Our Own

Relying on God’s Power, Not Our Own

Philippians 4:10-13

Humanly speaking, the apostle Paul had much to boast about—his qualifications are found in Philippians 3:4-6. However, he understood that impressive “credentials” are not what really matter. Paul rightly saw that knowing Christ and relying on Him are the source of genuine value in life.

Writing from places that were lowly in both a physical and emotional sense, the apostle is a triumphant example of how believers should view themselves—namely, as the Father does. The best way to do that is to recognize God as the source of our power: “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (4:13).

Many of us know this verse by heart, but have we accepted its truth? To say “all things” may seem like a bold statement, but it is balanced. The emphasis is not on “I can,” but rather on the fact that I can through Christ—He supplies everything we need to carry out His plan for our life.

This verse is an important confession that we cannot do God’s will in our own power. But that does not mean we should simply sit back and become spectators. As Christians, we have a responsibility to obey the Lord’s leading in small matters as well as in “big” circumstances. What’s more, it is our hands, feet, body, voice, compassion, and desires that the Father will use to accomplish His ultimate goals for our lives.

Obeying by faith can seem frightening, but the comfort zone isn’t where godly people choose to spend their time. To do all things through Christ involves some risks, but you’ll discover that the rewards for obedience are deeply satisfying.

We Are Not Giving To Him, We Are Just Returning What Was His...

Not how much of my money will I give to God, but how much of His money will I keep for myself.

Anonymous

Whatever You Do...

Colossians 3:17

Verse Concepts

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Fathe
- See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Work,-As-Ordained-By-God#sthash.5knIHxY8.dpuf

Colossians 3:17

Verse Concepts

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Fathe
- See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Work,-As-Ordained-By-God#sthash.5knIHxY8.dpuf

Ordinary work, which is what most of us do most of the time, is ordained
by God every bit as much as is the extraordinary.

Elisabeth Elliot

He Will Carry You

I dreamed last night, and now I understand. I dreamed I had fallen into a deep pit where I lay helpless and despairing. Confucius came and said, 

"Let me give you advice, my friend; if you get out of your trouble, never get in again." Buddha came and said, "If you can climb up to where I can reach you, I will help you." 

Then Christ came. He climbed down into the pit and carried me out.

Anonymous

His Work, His Timing- Greg Laurie Daily Devotions

Greg Laurie Daily Devotions


Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. - (Philippians 1:6)

I am an “artist”—kind of. Actually, I am an artist with very limited skills. But sometimes when I’m spending time with friends, they will ask me to draw something. So I’ll pull out a felt-tip pen and draw little cartoons.

Then someone inevitably says, “Draw me! Draw me!” They like me to do caricatures of them, but the thing about caricatures is they are never flattering. If you ever look at political cartoons, they always exaggerate a person’s features. If someone has a nose that is slightly long or ears that are somewhat big, the cartoonist exaggerates everything. That is the whole idea. But people don’t like that.

I’ve also noticed that when I’m drawing, people don’t see what I see. As they are looking over my shoulder, almost breathing down my neck, they want to know what I’m doing. They may see only a circle, but in my mind’s eye, I already see the finished work.

Sometimes when we look at the blank canvas of our lives, we ask, “What is going on? What is God doing? Where is this going? This doesn’t make sense. I don’t even know whether I agree with that.” But God, as an artist, is at work. And as Ecclesiastes 7:8 says, “The end of a thing is better than its beginning; the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”

God’s work will be done in His time. He sees the expected end. He knows what it will look like before He has finished because He is God. He knows how your life is going to turn out.

So don’t put a period where God has put a comma. He is not done with you. No matter your age, you are a work in progress—and He is still working.

We Hold On To You, LORD

We, Filipinos are grateful to all COUNTRIES who made themselves available to extend help for our countrymen who were devastated by super typhoon Yolanda. God bless you all in Jesus' name, for He blesses those who bless.


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"The trial of your faith."

"The trial of your faith."
1 Peter 1:7

Faith untried may be true faith, but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain dwarfish so long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when all things are against her: tempests are her trainers, and lightnings are her illuminators. When a calm reigns on the sea, spread the sails as you will, the ship moves not to its harbour; for on a slumbering ocean the keel sleeps too. Let the winds rush howling forth, and let the waters lift up themselves, then, though the vessel may rock, and her deck may be washed with waves, and her mast may creak under the pressure of the full and swelling sail, it is then that she makes headway towards her desired haven. No flowers wear so lovely a blue as those which grow at the foot of the frozen glacier; no stars gleam so brightly as those which glisten in the polar sky; no water tastes so sweet as that which springs amid the desert sand; and no faith is so precious as that which lives and triumphs in adversity. Tried faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness had you not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you would never have known God's strength had you not been supported amid the water-floods. Faith increases in solidity, assurance, and intensity, the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious too.

Let not this, however, discourage those who are young in faith. You will have trials enough without seeking them: the full portion will be measured out to you in due season. Meanwhile, if you cannot yet claim the result of long experience, thank God for what grace you have; praise him for that degree of holy confidence whereunto you have attained: walk according to that rule, and you shall yet have more and more of the blessing of God, till your faith shall remove mountains and conquer impossibilities.

-Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening 

http://links.biblegateway.mkt4731.com/ctt?kn=4&ms=NDQzMzU5MzIS1&r=MzQwNzIwMjA4MDMS1&b=0&j=MjEyNzA5MzE4S0&mt=1&rt=0

The LORD's Free Men - Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon

Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon



"For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace"   (Romans 6:14).

Sin will reign if it can: it cannot be satisfied with any place below the throne of the heart. We sometimes fear that it will conquer us, and then we cry unto the LORD, "Let not any iniquity have dominion over me. This is His comforting answer: "Sin shall not have dominion over you. " It may assail you and even wound you, but it shall never establish sovereignty over you. If we were under the law, our sin would gather strength and hold us under its power; for it is the punishment of sin that a man comes under the power of sin. As we are under the covenant of grace, we are secured against departing from the living God by the sure declaration of the covenant. Grace is promised to us by which we are restored from our wanderings, cleansed from our impurities, and set free from the chains of habit. We must lie down in despair and be "content to serve the Egyptians" if we were still as slaves working for eternal life; but since we are the LORD's free men, we take courage to fight with our corruptions and temptations, being assured that sin shall never bring us under its sway again. God Himself giveth us the victory through our LORD Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Don't Be Dismayed, Fix Your Eyes On Jesus

Keep your eye steadily fixed on the infinite grandeur of Christ's
finished work and righteousness. Look to Jesus and believe, look to  Jesus and live! Nay, more; as you look to him, hoist your sails and
buffet manfully the sea of life. Do not remain in the haven of distrust, or sleeping on your shadows in inactive repose, or suffering your frames and feelings to pitch and toss on one another like vessels idly moored in a harbor. The religious life is not a brooding over emotions, grazing the keel of faith in the shallows, or dragging the anchor of hope through the oozy tide mud as if afraid of encountering the healthy breeze. Away! With your canvas spread to the gale, trusting in Him, who rules the raging of the waters. The safety of the tinted bird is to be on the wing. If its haunt be near the ground--if it fly low--it exposes itself to the fowler's net or snare. If we remain grovelling on the low ground of feeling and emotion, we shall find ourselves entangled in a thousand meshes of doubt and despondency, temptation and unbelief.

J. R. Macduff

The Magnitude of Grace -Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon

Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon

Our weakness should be prized as making room for divine strength. We might never have known the power of grace if we had not felt the weakness of nature. Blessed be the LORD for the thorn in the flesh, and the messenger of Satan, when they drive us to the strength of God. This is a precious word from our LORD's own lip. It has made the writer laugh for joy. God's grace enough for me! I should think it is. Is not the sky enough for the bird and the ocean enough for the fish? The All-Sufficient is sufficient for my largest want. He who is sufficient for earth and heaven is certainly able to meet the case of one poor worm like me. Let us, then, fall back upon our God and His grace. If He does not remove our grief, He will enable us to bear it. His strength shall be poured into us till the worm shall thresh the mountains, and a nothing shall be victor over all the high and mighty ones. It is better for us to have God's strength than our own; for if we were a thousand times as strong as we are, it would amount to nothing in the face of the enemy; and if we could be weaker than we are, which is scarcely possible, yet we could do all things through Christ.

What Keeps Grace from Flowing?

What Keeps Grace from Flowing?

James 4:1-6

We know from the Bible that God continually showers His children with blessings. However, most believers don’t always feel as though He’s pouring His favor upon them. What could be blocking the free flow of divine grace?

Proverbs 6:16-19 provides a list of seven things that God hates. Certain attitudes and behaviors are categorized as detestable to Him, and the first thing mentioned is pride.

Nothing will interfere with spiritual growth as much as a proud spirit. That is why God considers it an abomination. Pride misaligns priorities in such a way that we—and not the Lord—become our own priority.

We can find many examples of pride throughout Scripture. For instance, the serpent convinced the first woman that if she ate of the forbidden fruit, she would “be like God” (Gen. 3:5). That sounded good to Eve, who apparently thought she deserved this high honor. So she and Adam ate the fruit, thereby bringing all manner of destruction and pain into the world.

If you have been struggling to feel God’s hand of blessing in your life, a wise first step is to humbly pray and ask the Lord to reveal any hidden areas of pride in your life. His arms are full of blessings that He desires to give you. As the preacher D. L. Moody once observed, “God sends no one away empty except those who are full of themselves.” Will you choose instead to be full of God? You can start by laying your pride at the foot of the cross. Then your life can overflow with blessings.

See God in Everything

 

When you have no helpers, see all your helpers in God. When you have many helpers, see God in all your helpers. When you have nothing but God, see all in God; when you have everything, see God in everything.
Under all conditions, stay thy heart only on the Lord.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Standing on God’s Word

Standing on God’s Word

Ezekiel 13:1-6

The United States Marine Corps is always on the lookout for what they call “a few good men.” The eyes of the Lord are likewise scanning the earth in order to find godly men and women who will step forward and use their influence to exalt righteousness in the land. That is what we see in Ezekiel 22. God says, “I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it” (v. 30).

 A “gap” in this sense is some place where error or falsehood has crept in, allowing Satanic confusion and inviting the judgment of God. Sometimes these gaps are so serious that they imperil entire nations and carry them to the brink of destruction.Israel was facing such a time following the Exodus, but the Word of God records this remarkable statement: “Therefore He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses His chosen one stood in the breach before Him, to turn away His wrath from destroying them” (Ps. 106:23).

In all likelihood, not too many of us will ever be called upon to save a nation. But we can nonetheless build up the walls of protection around our families and churches by drawing wisdom from the whole counsel of God. We can resist the Devil daily and refuse the sensuality and perversions of this present age. God has called His children into His service and will equip them in righteousness. In Moses’ day, one man made all the difference. Why not be the one who makes a difference today?

Heavenly Wealth -Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon

Faiths Checkbook by C.H. Spurgeon



Many pleasing things the LORD may withhold but "no good thing." He is the best judge of what is good for us. Some things are assuredly good, and these we may have for the asking through Jesus Christ our LORD.

Holiness is a good thing, and this He will work in us freely. Victory over evil tendencies, strong tempers, and evil habits He will gladly grant, and we ought not to remain without it.

Full assurance He will bestow, and near communion with Himself, and access into all truth, and boldness with prevalence at the mercy seat. If we have not these, it is from want of faith to receive and not from any unwillingness of God to give. A calm, a heavenly frame, great patience, and fervent love--all these will He give to holy diligence.

But note well that we must "walk uprightly." There must be no cross purposes and crooked dealings; no hypocrisy nor deceit. If we walk foully God cannot give us favors, for that would be a premium upon sin. The way of uprightness is the way of heavenly wealth-wealth so large as to include every good thing.

What a promise to plead in prayer! Let us get to our knees.

Double Minded Man

When you believe, you are in one mind and accept something as true.
Unbelief is to be of one mind and reject that something is true.
 To doubt is to waver between the two, to believe and disbelieve at the same time, and so to be in "two minds." That is what James calls, in Chapter
1, a '"double minded man," or as the Chinese say, "Doubt is standing in two boats, with one foot in each."

Os Guiness

Spend more time with Him...-Time with God

Time with God

2 Peter 3:14-15

Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you...

Since you know for sure that Jesus is returning, live in a way that will bring Him great joy when He returns!

“Since you look for these things” — Peter expects that we keep Jesus’ return in our minds all the time that we are expecting it and anticipating it eagerly. What a difference that expectation would make in our daily lives.

If we truly believed that Jesus was returning soon, wouldn’t we be much more aware of the things in our lives that need to be cleaned out and thrown away? Wouldn’t we be much more careful to do those things that we knew He loved? Wouldn’t we spend more time with Him and obey His leading in our lives?

Well, guess what? He IS returning at any time. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe before tomorrow. Maybe next month.

Make sure that when He arrives, your relationship with Him is right and good, strong and responsive. “Be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless.”

If He came right now, how would you feel? What do you need to get right with God about today?

 John North