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Seeing with His Eyes

March 7, 2013

“Because of one man’s gift of encouragement, two men who might have been left behind, Paul and John Mark, were given the gift of a second chance. We are called to do the same. To believe the best about people rather than the worst. Despite their reputations, despite their questionable past performances. To look at people through the eyes of God and see what He sees.

Assets, not liabilities.

Beloved children in need of grace.”

Excerpted from At the Feet of Jesus by Joanna Weaver

Daily Reflection: Take a moment and reevaluate some recent assumptions. How can you treat other as God would, starting today?

The Virtue of Hospitality

March 5, 2013

“… a dear friend…went home to be with the Lord recently.   

Dottie Wicker’s  “glass door welcomed any visitor with time for a chat.  Toys lined the floor for the broods that accompanied young moms willing to stop by and receive a dash of sunshine in her living room.  Dottie had a lovely set of silver containers on the front table in her modest dining room.  What would an eighty- year-old woman hide in those treasured keepsakes?  Hershey’s Kisses—a promised treat for any little visitor (and sometimes their mothers).  She expected visiting children to follow just two rules at her house:  stay out of the formal living room and collect their Kisses on the way out.  She wanted them close to her on their visits, not rummaging through the candy jar. 

I hope to grow old as gracefully as [ … ]

Setting Fire to Your Old Life

March 4, 2013

“When we consider following God in a way that would disrupt our lives, we usually try to prequalify our obedience before taking the first step.  But the thing is, whether you’ll see God do greater things in your life doesn’t depend on having the equipment you’ll need for the journey ahead.  You can’t get too worried about whether you’ve read the right books or been to the right school or have the right connections.  Right now, the only equipment you need is a flamethrower (or if that sounds too dramatic, a box of matches). 

That’s because you can’t step into your new life until you first set fire to whatever is tethering you to your old life.  Before you can go forward into the life God has for you, you have to offer Him every part of the life [ … ]

Holy Fire

March 1, 2013

In ancient cultures, the most important thing a household did was to never let the fire go cold. In rural Korean cultures the same ancestral fire burned for centuries, and when they moved they took the fire of their forefathers with them. When your fire went out, it was thought, you lost your connection with heaven. Would that Christians were as careful about tending spiritual fire as these ancients were about natural fire. We are to nourish the spiritual fire, and we do that by prayer, obedience, mission, devotion, and study.

Holy fire is warming. In the words of the nineteenth-century New England poet Lucy Larcom: “If the world seems cold to you, / Kindle fires to warm it.” How many fires will you kindle today with the flint of faith?

Excerpted from Viral by Leonard Sweet

[ … ]

As Personal as it Gets

February 28, 2013

“Why doesn’t God just show himself to people?”
The waiter had walked off with our dessert plates. I had resisted the urge to scrape mine with my fork as I usually did at home. Waiting for coffee, I decided it was now or never to get some of my remaining questions about God and life answered. This one seemed like a decent place to start.
Jesus wiped his mouth with his napkin and returned it to his lap. “What would you have me do?”
“I don’t know – appear to everyone personally.”
He chuckled, and seeing the irony in my statement, I couldn’t help but join him momentarily.
“No, seriously,” I said. “Most people don’t get a dinner invitation.”
“I did appear to humanity. I became one of you. That’s about as personal as [ … ]

Renew Where You Are

February 27, 2013

Martin Luther was once approached by a man who enthusiastically announced that he’d recently become a Christian. Wanting desperately to serve the Lord, he asked Luther, “What should I do now?” as if to say, should he become a minister or perhaps a traveling evangelist?

Luther asked him, “What is your work now?”

“I’m a shoemaker.”

Much to the cobbler’s surprise, Luther replied, “Then make a good shoe and sell it at a fair price.”

In becoming Christians we don’t need to retreat from the vocational calling we already have. Nor do we need to justify that calling, whatever it is, in terms of its spiritual value or evangelistic usefulness. We simply exercise whatever our calling is with new God-glorifying motives, goals, and standards – and with renewed commitment to performing our calling with greater excellence and higher objectives.

[ … ]

Money

February 26, 2013

Money is the currency of Christian Hedonism. What you do with it—or desire to do with it—can make or break your happiness forever. The Bible makes clear that what you feel about money can destroy you: “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction” (1 Timothy 6:9).

This passage teaches us to use our money in a way that will bring us the greatest and longest gain. That is, it advocates Christian Hedonism. It confirms that it is not only permitted but also commanded by God that we flee from destruction and pursue our full and lasting pleasure. It implies that all the evils in the world come not because our desires for happiness are too strong, but because they are so weak [ … ]

God’s Plan

February 25, 2013

God sees the beauty and value of all His children. His love is the reason we are here, and that is something you should never forget. You can escape the hurt, the loneliness, and the fear. You are loved. You were created for a purpose, and over time it will be revealed to you. Know that where you feel weak, God will give you strength. All you have to do is put faith into action by reaching out to those who love you, those who want to help you, and most of all to your Creator by asking Him to come into your life.

Reject self-destructive thoughts. Shut them off. Replace them with positive messages or prayer. Let go of the bitterness and anger and hurt, and let God’s love into your heart. The spiritual realm is very real. The [ … ]

Wherever you are, be all there.

February 22, 2013

That statement has become a code in our family to remind us to focus all our attention on the moment we’re living in. It sounds simple, but for me it’s taken lots of practice to make it a way of life. My default state of mind seems to be worrying or zoning out, so I have to constantly and consciously remind myself to fully engage in every relationship that matters to me. That means that when someone I love is talking to me, I work to block out distractions and give them my complete attention so I can really connect with them. They need me to be all there so they’ll realize I value them and believe they’re worth my full focus. When I’m distracted, at best I miss out on what I need to know or understand about what [ … ]

Memorize the Gospel

February 21, 2013

God instructs us in the Psalms to store up His Word in our hearts. I love that picture. God wants us to tuck His promises into our hearts so that, no matter where we are or what we’re doing, we can pull them out and be strengthened by their truth.

You might not think you’re good at memorizing Scripture. That’s okay. Don’t give up. Work at it. God isn’t keeping score. Even if it takes you longer than someone else, it’s worth the effort.

Excerpted from Living the Cross Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney

Daily Reflection: What holds you back from memorizing Scripture today?