A wise person can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at them.
Tag Archives: Christianity
The Lives We Touch
September 30, 2013 
3 Comments
If Christ lives in us, controlling our personalities, we will leave glorious marks on the lives we touch. Not because of our lovely characters, but because of his.
Eugenia Price
The Special Ox
September 27, 2013 3 Comments
There was a man who heard about a very special ox and determined to have it for his own. He traveled all over the world. He spent his entire fortune. He gave his whole life to the search for this ox. At last, just moments before he died, he realized he had been riding it all the time.
Thomas Aquinas
Don’t You Know, Havn’t You Heard?
September 26, 2013 8 Comments
Isaiah 40:21-31 (VOICE)
Don’t you know, haven’t you heard or even been told from your earliest memories how the earth came to be? Who else could have done it except God, enthroned high above the earth? From such a vantage people seem like grasshoppers to Him. Who else but God could stretch out the skies as if they were a curtain, draw them tight, suspend them over our heads like the roof of a tent?
God reduces the rulers and judges, the rich and powerful of the earth, to nothing; They scarcely are planted, take root and start growing, before God blows a withering breath, And storm winds carry them away like chaff. The Holy One asks, “Do you really think you can find someone or something to compare to Me? My equal?” Look at the myriad of stars and constellations above you. Who set them to burning, each in its place? Who knows those countless lights each by name? They obediently shine, each in its place, because God has the great strength and strong power to make it so.
Why, then, do you, Jacob, inheritors of God’s promise, you, Israel, chosen of God—Why do you say, “My troubled path is hidden from the Eternal; God has lost all interest in My cause”? Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard? The Eternal, the Everlasting God, The Creator of the whole world, never gets tired or weary. His wisdom is beyond understanding. God strengthens the weary and gives vitality to those worn down by age and care. Young people will get tired; strapping young men will stumble and fall.
But those who trust in the Eternal One will regain their strength. They will soar on wings as eagles. They will run—never winded, never weary.
They will walk—never tired, never faint.
Smile From The Heart Out
September 25, 2013 5 Comments
A smile creates happiness in the home, fosters good will in business and is the countersign of friends. It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and nature’s best antidote for trouble. Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is no earthly good to anybody until it is given away. Keep smiling- and let your smile be one of sincerity. Don’t just force it out to make a sale, to keep out of a fight, or for similar reasons. But smile from the heart out, making those who see you smile do likewise in a feeling of good fellowship.
James M. Tulloch
Loving Perfectly
September 17, 2013 5 Comments
Every single person in our lives will disappoint us at some level. Some days they’ll be busy when we need them to be still; other days they’ll be self-centered when we need them to concentrate on us. Sometimes they’ll bruise us with hard words aimed right for the soft places in our soul. They won’t meet all our emotional needs. They can’t; they have too many needs of their own. They’re sinners just like us. Only our Creator can love us perfectly, the way He created us to be loved. His love is the only thing that can define us without destroying us.
Lisa Harper
The Sermon Of Your Life
September 16, 2013 7 Comments
The sermon of your life in tough times ministers to people more powerfully than the most eloquent speaker.
Bill Bright
God Is With Me
September 14, 2013 6 Comments
One of the most powerful concepts, one which is a sure cure for lack of confidence, is the thought that God is with you and helping you. This is one of the simplest teachings in religion, namely, that Almighty God will be your companion, will stand by you, help you, and see you through. No other idea is so powerful in developing self-confidence as this simple belief when practiced. To practice it simply affirm “God is with me; God is helping me; God is guiding me.” Spend several minutes each day visualizing his presence. Then practice believing that affirmation.
Norman Vincent Peale
What Other People Think
September 13, 2013 4 Comments
What other people think of me is becoming less and less important; what they think of Jesus because of me is critical.
Cliff Richard
Praise The One Who Gives Us Life
September 12, 2013 1 Comment
Psalm 66:9 (VOICE)
Praise the One who gives us life and keeps us safe, who does not allow us to stumble in the darkness.
Be Swift To Love
September 11, 2013 0 Comments
Life’s short and we never have enough time for the hearts of those who travel the way with us. O, be swift to love! Make haste to be kind.
Henri-Frederic Amiel
Alpha & Omega
September 10, 2013 4 Comments
Revelation 21:5-9 (VOICE)
And the One who sat on the throne announced to His creation,
The One: See, I am making all things new. (turning to me) Write what you hear and see, for these words are faithful and true. It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will see to it that the thirsty drink freely from the fountain of the water of life. To the victors will go this inheritance: I will be their God, and they will be My children. It will not be so for the cowards, the faithless, the sacrilegious, the murderers, the sexually immoral, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all those who deal in deception. They will inherit an eternity in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.
John sees an amazing sight. It is something no one had ever seen nor will ever see until that day arrives. Scene by blessed scene passes before the prophet. Finally he is transported to the end of history only to discover it is no end at all; it is a new beginning. The prophecies—every last one of them—are coming true. God’s plan will be accomplished on earth as it is in heaven when the new Jerusalem comes down and He lives among His people. All things will become new.
Incredible Beauty
September 9, 2013 5 Comments
We give thanks this morning for the incredible beauty of this day, for the magnificence of life, and for our own individual potential still untapped. As we reflect on these blessings, we praise God for the good signs in our own lives- good signs of the past and good signs ahead.
Richard G. Capen, Jr.
The Right Route
September 7, 2013 6 Comments
Take those road hazards- the potholes, ruts, detours, and all the rest- as evidence that you were on the right route. It’s when you find yourself on that big, broad, easy road that you ought to worry.
Joni Eareckson Tada
Anger
September 3, 2013 4 Comments
There is nothing that can be done with anger that cannot be done better without it.
Dallas Willard
When Temptation Comes
September 1, 2013 2 Comments
Loving Father, please help me to say the right words of love and affection to those whom I love so that when temptation comes, or when others try to draw them away from me, they will not doubt my love for them. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Great Tranquility Of Heart
September 1, 2013 10 Comments
He has great tranquility of heart who cares neither for the praises nor the fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more worthless if you are found fault with.
Thomas Kempis
Make The Many Righteous
August 31, 2013 4 Comments
Daniel 12:3 (VOICE)
Those who are wise will shine as bright as the sky at midday, and those who make the many righteous will shine as the stars forever and ever.
A Mass Of Dancing Dirt
August 31, 2013 2 Comments
Only as man brings his life into harmony with God does that life have balance and meaning. Then man finds that he is not simply a mass of dancing dirt, coming from nowhere and going nowhere.
Henry Schmidt
Stumble Over The Truth
August 24, 2013 7 Comments
Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry on as if nothing happened.
Winston Churchill
Instilling A Foundation Of Values
August 23, 2013 8 Comments
Children are not casual guests in our home. They have been loaned to us temporarily for the purpose of loving them and instilling a foundation of values on which their future lives will be built.
James Dobson
Childlike Faith
August 22, 2013 11 Comments
The more we know of God the more unreservedly we will trust him; the greater our progress in theology, the simpler and more childlike will be our faith.
John Gresham Machen
Do Not Trust Every Spirit
August 22, 2013 9 Comments
1 John 4:1-6 (VOICE)
My loved ones, I warn you: do not trust every spirit. Instead, examine them carefully to determine if they come from God, because the corrupt world is filled with the voices of many false prophets. Here is how you know God’s Spirit: if a spirit affirms the truth that Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King, has come in human flesh, then that spirit is from God. If a spirit does not affirm the true nature of Jesus the Anointed, then that spirit does not come from God and is, in fact, the spirit of the antiChrist.[a] You have heard about its coming; in fact it is already active in the world. My children, you have come from God and have conquered these spirits because the One who lives within you is greater than the one in this world. But they are of this world, and they articulate the views of the corrupt world, which the world understands. We come from God, and those who know God hear us. Whoever is not from God will not listen to us. This is the way we discern the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deception.
How can the words of prophets be tested to discover the truth? The most important question is whether they acknowledge that Jesus is fully God and fully human. In the first century, many people were so convinced that this material world was corrupt and evil that they couldn’t imagine how a perfect God could wrap Himself in imperfect skin. Many today still function as if the physical world is a bad thing; this understanding is demonstrated when they downplay the hope of bodily resurrection and emphasize the heavenly destination of souls. Implicitly, this belittles Jesus’ own incarnation and resurrection.
On the other hand, many people accept Jesus’ humanity but deny His divinity. He may have been a great teacher, they say, but certainly not the incarnation of God. However, Jesus made bold claims about who He was and what He came to do. These are not the things a great teacher would have said or done if they had not been true. It is fair to say that no other life has drawn so much scrutiny, and no other life has ever elicited such praise.
God Bursts Through
August 21, 2013 9 Comments
Nature is too thin a screen; the glory of the omnipresent God bursts through everywhere.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Be Prepared To Do It
August 19, 2013 8 Comments
I can say from experience that 95% of knowing the will of God consists in being prepared to do it before you know what it is.
Donald Grey Barnhouse
The Devil’s Dance
August 17, 2013 14 Comments
When a Christian shuns fellowship with other Christians, the devil smiles. When he stops studying the Bible, the devil laughs. When he stops praying, the devil shouts for joy.
Corrie Ten Boom
Walk Wisely
August 16, 2013 8 Comments
Ephesians 5:15-20 (VOICE)
So be careful how you live; be mindful of your steps. Don’t run around like idiots as the rest of the world does. Instead, walk as the wise! Make the most of every living and breathing moment because these are evil times. So understand and be confident in God’s will, and don’t live thoughtlessly. Don’t drink wine excessively. The drunken path is a reckless path. It leads nowhere. Instead, let God fill you with the Holy Spirit. When you are filled with the Spirit, you are empowered to speak to each other in the soulful words of pious songs, hymns, and spiritual songs; to sing and make music with your hearts attuned to God; and to give thanks to God the Father every day through the name of our Lord Jesus the Anointed for all He has done.
Wisdom is a rare commodity. Paul urges believers, then and now, to walk wisely. It involves living well every day. Time itself seems to be co-opted by dark forces. But when believers understand God’s will, avoid drunkenness, and allow God to fill them with His Spirit, they are able to walk wisely and live well. The Spirit-filled life is not just for a special few; it is the normal Christian life, and it affects everything, including how we live in community and how we treat others at home.
Are You Thanks-Living?
August 14, 2013 3 Comments
Thanksgiving is good, but thanks-living is better!
Matthew Henry
Awaken A Slumbering Conscience
August 14, 2013 5 Comments
Proverbs 25:21-22 (VOICE)
If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink, For your kind treatment will be like heaping hot coals on his head, it may cause a change in heart, and the Eternal will repay you.
Acts of kindness, especially when we know they are undeserved, awaken a slumbering conscience, stimulate sorrow, and perhaps even effect a change. They are the best ways to turn an enemy into a friend.
Trust>Fear
August 13, 2013 3 Comments
Psalm 56:11-13 (VOICE)
In God I have placed my trust. I shall not let fear come in, for what can measly men do to me? I am bound by Your promise, O God. My life is my offering of thanksgiving to You, For You have saved my soul from the darkness of death, steadied my feet from stumbling so I might continue to walk before God, embraced in the light of the living.
Are You Leaving Room For Faith?
August 13, 2013 0 Comments
There is no place for faith if we expect God to fulfill immediately what he promises.
John Calvin
Inherit A Blessing Today
August 12, 2013 9 Comments
1 Peter 3:8-9 (VOICE)
Finally, all of you, be like-minded and show sympathy, love, compassion, and humility to and for each other, not paying back evil with evil or insult with insult, but repaying the bad with a blessing. It was this you were called to do, so that you might inherit a blessing.
Love People!
August 12, 2013 9 Comments
Love people and use things. Don’t love things and use people.
For Those Who Love Him
August 11, 2013 6 Comments
Romans 8:28 (NIVUK)
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
A Tried Christian
August 10, 2013 4 Comments
A tried Christian grows rich by his losses, he rises by his falls, he lives by dying, and he becomes full by being emptied.
C. H. Spurgeon
Little Things
August 9, 2013 4 Comments
Sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences come from little things- I am tempted to think- there are no little things.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
You Were Deliberately Planned
August 8, 2013 6 Comments
You aren’t an accident. You weren’t mass-produced. You aren’t an assembly-line product. You were deliberately planned, specifically gifted, and lovingly positioned on this earth by the Master Craftsman.
Max Lucado
Praise His Holy Name
August 7, 2013 6 Comments
Psalm 103:1-5 (VOICE)
O my soul, come, praise the Eternal with all that is in me—body, emotions, mind, and will—every part of who I am praise His holy name.
O my soul, come, praise the Eternal; sing a song from a grateful heart; sing and never forget all the good He has done.
Despite all your many offenses, He forgives and releases you. More than any doctor, He heals your diseases. He reaches deep into the pit to deliver you from death. He crowns you with unfailing love and compassion like a king.
When your soul is famished and withering, He fills you with good and beautiful things, satisfying you as long as you live. He makes you strong like an eagle, restoring your youth.
Don’t Forget God!
August 7, 2013 0 Comments
We can stand affliction better than we can prosperity, for in prosperity we forget God.
D. L. Moody
Step By Step
August 6, 2013 10 Comments
“He [Satan] will take away your prayer life little by little, and cause you to trust God less and less and yourself more and more, a little at a time. He will make you feel somewhat cleverer than before. Step by step, you are misled to rely more on your own gift, and step by step your heart is enticed away from the Lord.”
Stay Connected
August 6, 2013 9 Comments
John 15:1-9 (VOICE)
Jesus: I am the true vine, and My Father is the keeper of the vineyard. My Father examines every branch in Me and cuts away those who do not bear fruit. He leaves those bearing fruit and carefully prunes them so that they will bear more fruit; already you are clean because you have heard My voice. Abide in Me, and I will abide in you. A branch cannot bear fruit if it is disconnected from the vine, and neither will you if you are not connected to Me.
I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit. Without Me, you will accomplish nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is like a branch that is tossed out and shrivels up and is later gathered to be tossed into the fire to burn. If you abide in Me and My voice abides in you, anything you ask will come to pass for you. Your abundant growth and your faithfulness as My followers will bring glory to the Father.
At a time when all of His disciples are feeling as if they are about to be uprooted, Jesus sketches a picture of this new life as a flourishing vineyard—a labyrinth of vines and strong branches steeped in rich soil, abundant grapes hanging from their vines ripening in the sun. Jesus sculpts a new garden of Eden in their imaginations—one that is bustling with fruit, sustenance, and satisfying aromas. This is the Kingdom life. It is all about connection, sustenance, and beauty. But within this promise of life is the warning that people must be in Christ or they will not experience these blessings.
Show Me…
August 5, 2013 6 Comments
Lord, I want to show the kindness of Your heart today. Please show me who I can help and in what way. I want my words and deeds to convey Your love. Amen.
The First Job Each Morning
August 4, 2013 15 Comments
The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life coming flowing in.
C. S. Lewis
Unfailing love
August 2, 2013 5 Comments
Psalm 89:1-2 (VOICE)
I will sing of Your unfailing love, Eternal One, forever.
I will speak of Your faithfulness to all generations.
I will tell how Your unfailing love will always stand strong;
and how Your faithfulness is established in the heavens above.
iChristian 
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