Have it to the full

Story and Quote of the day:  Have it to the full

“Don’t be satisfied with a mere feeble measure of spiritual life.  Strive to have the abundant life and to be well-rounded Christians.  Seek to have every power of your life developed to its utmost possibility and usefullness.  Find out whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, and strive to have every mark and line of beauty in your own life.  Grow toward God in all  upward heavenward reaching.  Grow toward men on earth in all unselfishness and loving service.  Grow in your own soul into the fullness of the stature of Christ.  And all of this will gain by becoming filled more and more with Christ Himself.  It was the daily prayer of one saintly Christian, “O God, make me an uncommon Christian.”  Let it be our prayer as well.                                                                                                                                                                   J. R. Miller

Bible verse of the day:  John 10:10

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You that You came, died, and rose again, that I may have life. You are the greatest example of how to love, forgive, and to follow through with what You say.  Father, if I can only become even just a little more like You daily, by loving, forgiving and following through with what I say, then I know what it means to be successful in this life.  I thank You for this day!

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen

“Dead Men Walking”

Story of the day:  “Dead Men Walking”

     I love what Dr. Tony Evans had to say in a letter that he sends out as part of a ministry outreach.  He says, “One of the most powerful stories about Jesus comes to us by way of a dead man.

     Lazarus, a close friend of Jesus, had died.  Lazaurs’ sisters were grieving not only his death, but the fact that Jesus had not showed up earlier and healed him.

     That’s the way we are sometimes.  We have God on our side and His power to change the situation, but we’re complaining about what didn’t happen!

     Thankfully, that’s not the only lesson to take away from this story, nor is it just a great story about Jesus and His power.  It’s a life lesson for every believer…and about the power of God in us!

     In John 11:43-44, Jesus spoke to Lazarus directly, whom was dead and wrapped from head to toe, with a kerchief over his face, and said, “Lazarus, come forth!” 

     What happened to Lazarus is what God is asking of us still today.  Look around you.  There’s a world filled with “dead men walking.” People are bound by sin, trapped by religion, wrapped up in their circumstances, depressed by their lives, distressed by their families; many are thinking “it’s over.”  Their lives are in a rut just “grave” with both ends kicked out.

     But God can change their entire situation as we speak the Word and help set them free!  That’s the call on this ministry and the call on my life… and yours.  He has called us to carry out Kingdom plans and purposes on earth.

     Serving God is not about keeping religious practices to carry out some set of rules.  It’s about giving and living a life of spiritual freedom that reflects God’s glory, letting your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven (Matthew 5:16)

     Who is in a “grave” situation near you?  Who can you speak a word of life to today?  Or let me put it this way…if you feel You are in a tough situation, I’m here to speak a word of life, hope, and encouragement into You.  God can turn it around for you, and when He does, give Him the thanks and praise He deserves.”

Quote of the day:  Vonette Bright

“Through our service to others, God want to influence our world for Him.”

Bible verse of the day:  John 11:40

“Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

You have called my family into ministry and as I share Your Word with others, I pray that lives may be changed, and all for Your Glory.  Father, the time that we are living in right now, is rough, there are some that can’t make ends meet, some are losing their homes, and are distressed. Father, I pray for revival to sweep our nation, that You may be glorified and lives can be transformed.  I continue to pray for those that don’t know You, that they hear Your voice when You say to them, “come forward and ask me to be a part of your life.”  I thank You for Your faithfulness in my life, for this day, and the hope for tomorrow! 

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen

Stop! Dangerous! Go no further!

Quote of the day:  Stop! Dangerous! Go no further!

     “The winter 1991 issue of the University of Pacific Review offers a chilling description of the 1986 Chernobly nuclear disaster:

     There were two electrical engineers in the control room that night, and the best thing that could be said for what they were doing is they were “playing around” with the machine.  They were performing what the Soviets later described as an unauthorized experiment.  They were trying to see how long a turbine would “freewheel” when they took the power off it.

     Now, taking the power off that kind of nuclear reactor is a difficult, dangerous thing to do, because these reactors are very unstable in their lower ranges.  In order to get the reactor down to that kind of power, where they could perform the test they were interested in performing, they had to override manually six separate computer-driven alarm systems.  One by one the computers would come up and say, “Stop! Dangerous! Go no further!”  And one by one, rather than shutting off the experiment, they shut off the alarms and kept going.  You know the results:  nuclear fallout that was recorded all around the world, from the largest industrial accident ever to occur in the world.

     The instructions and warnings in Scripture are just as clear.  We ignore them at our own peril, and tragically, at the peril of innocent others.” (Tom Tripp)

Quote of the day:  Martin Luther

“My conscience has been taken captive by the Word of god, and to go against conscience or Scripture is neither right nor safe.”

Bible verse of the day:  2 Timothy 3:16-17

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your Word.  Your Word instructs me to walk in integrity and truth.  Father, I pray for a refreshing of my soul with Your Living Water, and that my Spirit is lit by the passion of Your love.  Father, I sit at Your feet this day and every day and ask to find rest in You.  Thank You for creating me to be who I am and I pray that the gifts that You blessed me with are used wisely and for Your Will.  I thank You for this day!

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen  

An act of surrender-June 10th

Story of the day:  An act of surrender (Kim’s Collections)

   As I wrote yesterday about the continual revelation of God’s word, I believe that surrender is also a continual response. There may be a place and date that you remember when God spoke and you answered and surrendered to His voice. The place of surrender can be a reminder to us of a decision that we made, but we must continually engage our will to remain obedient in our act of surrender.

    One day as I was seeking to understand a lack of peace I was having in an area of service, I was reading through the story in Exodus of when God told Moses that he was going to be the one to lead His chosen people out of bondage. I must admit, I have more than once thought of how awesome it would be to have God speak to me through a burning bush or writing on a wall. But thankfully God still speaks and enables us to recognize His voice and receive direction from Him still today. As I read the passage where God asked Moses, “What’s that in your hand?”, God spoke to me through this passage and told me that I already have in my hand the tool and the ability to carry out the call on my life. Moses had in his hand a rod that he used in his every day job of shepherding. He was already familiar with this rod and this rod was going to be what God used to display His miracles through Moses. God showed me that I already possessed in my hand what He was going to empower and use to bring freedom to His people. I just had to pick up my “rod” and allow God to work His power through me. Now the revelation alone is not what will bring change. It is the continual surrender to the revelation, the continual taking up of the “rod” and allowing God to work His power through it, the continual, conscience decision to see the value in the familiar.

   Your “rod“ may be a talent or an ability that your have possessed for a long time and you just haven‘t seen the eternal value in it. Ask God to show you what you have in your hand that He can empower to help others walk in their freedom..

Quote of the day:  Zig Ziglar

“He climbs higest who helps another up”

Bible verse of the day:  Exodus 4:17

“And you shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do the signs.”

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

 I pray that today we will see the eternal value in the talents and abilities that we already possess. Breathe fresh life and fresh power on the familiar. Help us to see that the abilities we have are not achieved without your enabling grace. Reveal to us the “rod” and the potential we have in using this God-given “rod” to bring freedom to your chosen ones.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Power made perfect in our weaknesses

                                                                                                                                                                                                     Story of the day:  Power made perfect in our weaknesses

    Do you feel strong in your weakness?  The pain we may all experience, that can be found in our weak times, although challenging, can be rewarding when all is said and done. It may not seem like it while you are going through the pain, but power is made perfect in our weakness.  As I continued on with this thought about our pain or times of persecution that we all go through at one time or another, God shed a little more onto this by sharing this marvelous Scripture with me last night at church.  It is found in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, and He so gracefully says this “but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”  So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.  Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” 

    Well, here is a little piece of art that I found that helps to illustrate the power of God making us strong in our weaknesses or the trials and tribulations that we may experience.  “A little piece of wood once complained bitterly because its owner kept whittling away at it, cutting it, and filling it with holes, but the one who was cutting it so remorselessly paid no attention to its complaining.  He was making a flute out of that piece of ebony, and he was too wise to desist from doing so, even though the wood complained bitterly.  He seemed to say, “Little piece of wood, without these holes, and all this cutting, you would be a black stick for ever–just a useless piece of ebony.  What I am doing now may make you think that I am destroying you, but, instead, I will change you into a flute, and your sweet music will charm the souls of men and comfort many a sorrowing heart.  My cutting you is the making of you, for only thus can you be a blessing in the world.”  Thank you M.R. Dehaan for this wonderful story.

       Although we can’t always see the big picture of why we go through the things we go through, it truly is for our best interest and we will only become stronger for having gone through our weak times, if we allow God’s power to be made perfect in our weakness.   

Quote of the day:  C. S. Lewis

“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains:  it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

Bible verse of the day:  2 Samuel 22:31

“This God–His way is perfect: the promise of the Lord proves true:  He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.”

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You that in my weakness Your power shines through.  I am grateful that Your power is made perfect at the times when I am the weakest.  God, I thank You for always being there for all of the times in my life.  You are there when I am happiest, when I am saddest, and when I have overcome whatever obstacle was placed before me.  I thank You for being my Everything.  I thank You or the times in my life when I have been weak, You have made me stronger.  I love You and thank You for this day!

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen