You can teach a person knowledge and you can teach a person skills but you can’t teach natural talent.
Quote
The trouble with common sense is that it is not very common!
Stress comes from having too many gloves and only one pair of hands; too many hats and only one head!
I love this snippet found in an old copy of an American edition of Reader’s Digest. The article said: ‘While our friends from India travelled around California on business, they left their 11 year-old-daughter with us. Curious about my going to church one Sunday morning, she decided to come along. When we returned home, my husband asked her what she thought of the service. ”I don’t understand why the West Coast isn’t included in the blessing too,” she replied. When we inquired what she meant she added, “You know, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the whole East Coast!”
If Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II were to walk through the door of our church this morning, we would stand in her presence as a mark of respect and, most likely, we would recite the National Anthem. Well, let’s stand now, in the presence of the Lord of Lords and King of Kings, and let’s affirm our faith in our Triune-God, saying together the Nicene Creed, our ‘Christian Inter-National Anthem’.
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic* and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
*note: catholic (with a small ‘c’) means worldwide
Vision starts with identity and purpose
“Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.”
Vincent T. Lombardi (1913-1970), American professional football coach.
Everyone who makes it has a mentor.
Harvard Business Review
“Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.”
George Carlin (Comedian)
“Not what he wishes and prays for does a man get, but what he justly earns. His wishes and prayers are only gratified and answered when they harmonise with his thoughts and actions.”
James Allen
“The Bible plainly states many different times, “Do not worry” (Matthew 6:34). And to do what the Bible says not to do is a sin, plain and simple.”
Paul J. Meyer
Paul J. Meyer, Unlocking Your Legacy, 2002, Chicago Illinois, Moody Press, p.216
We dishonour God when we proclaim a Saviour who satisfies and then go around discontent.
J.I. Packer
One of India’s great Christian leaders, Bakht Singh, was one asked what aspect of the gospel he stressed when preaching to those of other faiths. Did he preach the love of God? ‘No. The human mind is so polluted that if you talk about love it immediately thinks of sex.’ Did he talk about the wrath of God? ‘No. Indians believe that all gods are angry. An extra one makes no difference.’ He was then asked what his main message was. ‘To preach the forgiveness of sins. That is what all of us deep down inside are longing for.’
Val Grieve, 2017, 'Your Verdict on the Empty Tomb', Welwyn Garden City, UK: Evangelical Press Books, p.63
In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl writes about his experiences in a Nazi concentration camp. Everything was taken away from the Jewish prisoners. They were stripped of their clothing, the pictures, and their personal belongings. The Nazi captors even took away their names and gave them numbers. Frankl was number 119,104. But Frankl said there was one thing the Nazis couldn’t take away: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”
“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”
Mother Teresa
The only way to the throne room is through the servant’s quarters.
Baptism does not save us… Any teaching that says the gospel of salvation is Jesus plus (you need to do something else to get right with God) is Jesus minus because it takes away from Jesus; it suggests that trusting in Jesus is not sufficient and that we need to also do something else (and the something else might even be a good thing). Jesus plus is Jesus minus. Jesus plus you need to speak in tongues is Jesus minus. Jesus plus full immersion baptism is Jesus minus. Believers should get baptised because Jesus told us to do so, but baptism doesn’t save us. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ’s righteousness alone. To get right with God it’s not Jesus plus anything, it’s just Jesus.
R. Ian Seymour
When you worry, it says you think you can solve your own problems better than God can. But you were not built to handle problems in your own strength. You were created by God to be dependent upon Him; so bring Him your challenges in life and allow Him to help you with them. Can you imagine your life without worry? Why not start today to live a worry-free life? Ask the Lord to show you every time you are taking on care instead of casting it off. When He makes you aware of it, be willing to immediately cast it on Him—you will enjoy life so much more. After a period of time, you will actually find it difficult to worry! It just won’t suit you any longer. – Joyce Meyer
Source: Joyce Meyer, Power Thoughts Devotional on YouVersion, day 1of 14
A rut is like a grave with both ends missing. You can’t get out of it by standing still or by running in either direction – forwards or backwards. The only way of escape is to climb out and get over it.
“When we seek to discover the best in others, we somehow bring out the best in ourselves.”
William Arthur Ward
Of course, there’s no guarantee that you will attain a goal, but there is a guarantee that you will never reach a goal that you don’t set or strive for.
“The best portion of a good man’s life is his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love.” – William Wordsworth (1770-1850), English poet
“High self-esteem is believing that you have a rightful place in the universe. But egotism (self-importance) is believing that you are the centre of the universe.”
Nido Qubein, writer and motivational speaker
Baptism is a sacrament instituted by Christ himself. According to the Anglican Book of Common Prayer baptism is: ‘An outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.’ In other words, baptism is a sign or symbol that represents our acceptance of God’s grace to us in Christ and God’s acceptance of us through Christ. The 16th century reformer, John Calvin, explained it like this: ‘Circumcision was for the Jews their first entry into the church, because it was a token to them by which they were assured of adoption as the people and household of God. (…) In a like manner, we also are consecrated to God through baptism, to be reckoned as his people.’
True friendship stands the test of separation. Friends, once they have become deeply involved with each other, can be apart for months or even years and then, after five minutes together, it’s as if they had never been separated at all. They’re really interested in each other as persons, not in impressing each other. So when they do get together, they spend their time catching up, not competing… It takes real friendship to be happy to see the other person do better than we have done.
Fred Smith, US businessman, speaker and author
“If I take care of my character my reputation will take care of itself.”
D. L. Moody (1837-1899), U.S. evangelist and hymnodist
With Jesus, it costs a lot to follow him, but it costs even more to reject him!
The mighty oak was once a little nut that simply stood its ground.
“Think about it! You go to a doctor whose name you can’t pronounce, receive a prescription you can’t read, take it to a pharmacist you don’t know, get medicine you don’t understand and take it with confidence! Now that’s faith!” – Bob Gass
“Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.”
Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), British mathematician, philosopher, writer
“The more you thank God for what you have, the more you will have to thank God for.”
Zig Ziglar, motivational speaker and author
“Managing only for profit is like playing tennis with your eyes on the scoreboard and not on the ball.”
Anon
Sex is like a river – it is a good and wonderful blessing when kept within its proper channel. A river that overflows its banks is a dangerous thing, and so are perverted sexual drives. What are the God-created banks for sex? One man with one woman in marriage for life.
Richard Foster
Source: Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, 1989, London: Hodder & Stoughton, p.54
The benefits of reading a motivational book or listening to a motivational speaker don’t last for very long. There again, neither does taking a shower but it’s still a good idea to do so every once in a while!
“Many people have walked right over rich pools of oil or veins of gold, not realising what lay beneath their feet. Their vision was too limited. They only saw the ground, not the treasure hidden in it.”
John Mason
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
Thomas Edison
“I thank God today for the hard, harsh, abrasive times that raked my emotions and absolutely pulled out from under me the thing I was hanging on to… so that there was nothing left but God.”
Chuck Swindoll
Cited in Unlocking Your Legacy by Paul J. Meyer, 2002, Chicago Illinois, Moody Press, p.230-231
‘When you were born, you cried and the world around you rejoiced. May you so live your life for God that when you die, the world around you will cry and you will rejoice.’
Ancient Middle Eastern blessing
Every obstacle you have ever had to overcome, every limitation you have conquered, ever fear you have dealt with, every pain and failure and rejection you have triumphed over, have all equipped you to help you live and encourage others. If not they are just pointless experiences!
We don’t worship God because He needs it, but because we need to do! Without worship our perception of Him is incomplete.
The word ‘Trinity’ doesn’t actually appear anywhere in the Bible. In fact, it was the Latin speaking theologian Tertullian (c160-220A.D.) who invented the word ‘Trinity’ (Latin: Trinitas), to explain that the three persons of the God-head are distinct yet not divided, different yet not separate or independent of each other.’ Although the word ‘Trinity’ isn’t mentioned in the Bible, the doctrine of the Trinity; of God being the Triune God – one God in three Persons, or three persons and one substance (or Being) as we say in the Nicene Creed – is a doctrine that is absolutely founded in Scripture, both in the Old Testament and especially in the New Testament. Here are some other noteworthy examples; no doubt you’ll recognise some of them:
- In fact, from the very opening verses of Genesis the Trinity is hinted at… “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters” (Genesis 1:1-2). Here we see God the Father, as creator, and God the Holy Spirit hovering over the waters.
- You recall that John (one of the twelve disciples) and the author of John’s gospel, calls Jesus the ‘Word’ to make the point that Jesus is God: ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made’ (John 1:1-3). Jesus was there in the beginning and He was involved in creation… Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
- In Genesis 1v26-27 God said: “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness… (Who is God talking to in the plural? It’s the Trinity.) So God created man in his own image… male and female he created them.”
- In the New Testament, Luke chapter 1v26-35, God the Father sends the angel Gabriel with the message that God the Holy Spirit will come upon Mary and overshadow her, and God the Son, Jesus… will be born of the virgin… in fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecy in Isaiah.
- Again in Luke 3v21-22, when Jesus came to be baptised the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove; and the Father spoke from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love: with you I am well pleased.”
- John 14v15-17 Jesus [the Son] said, ‘I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.’
- On another occasion, while Jesus was eating with his disciples, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptised with water, but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1v4-5)
- Ephesians 2v18 says: ‘For through him [Jesus] we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.’ (In other words we pray to the Father, through the Son, in the Spirit.)
- There are two distinct passages in the Bible that give a very clear and unequivocal Trinitarian interpretation. In the last sentence of his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul closes with these familiar words: “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” (2 Corinthians 13:14) And perhaps the clearest verse in all of Scripture, are the words of Jesus recorded in, what has become known as ‘The Great Commission’: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28v19) – One God three persons.
Scholars disagree as to the exact date of Christ’s birth. Nor do they know that the Church of the Nativity that is visited everyday by pilgrims in Bethlehem, is the exact location of His birth. Nor can any of us comprehend how by the Holy Spirit, a virgin could conceive a child. But here’s the good news: you don’t need to know when, where or how Jesus was born; you just need to know why.
Bob Gass
Source: The UCB Word For Today, 25/12/17
When a Sunday school teacher asked a little girl, ‘Who made you?’ she replied, ‘God made part of me.’ The teacher asked, ‘What do you mean?’ The little girl replied, ‘God made me little… and I growed the rest myself.’ Friends, God holds us responsible for our personal growth.
Bob Gass
Source: The UCB Word For Today, 10/9/2018
“It’s been said that you have to love what you do but that’s not necessarily true. What is true is that you have to love the opportunity: The opportunity to build life, future, health, success and fortune. Knocking on someone’s door may not be something you love to do, but you love the opportunity of what might be behind that door.”
Jim Rohn
God loves you as much on your bad days as He does on your good ones. How does that work? – Because His acceptance of you is based on your position (in Christ) not your condition (in the flesh). Your acceptance with God is based on performance… but not on yours, on Christ’s!
Bob Gass
Bob Gass Source: The Best of The UCB Word For Today Vol. III, 28th 29th August.
To waste your time is to waste your life, but to master your time is to master your life.
The gospel of grace announces: Forgiveness precedes repentance. The sinner is accepted before he pleads for mercy. It is already granted. He need only receive it. Total amnesty. Gratuitous pardon.
When the prodigal son limped home from his lengthy binge of waste and wandering, boozing and womanizing, his motives were mixed at best. He said to himself, “How many of my father’s hired men have all the food they want and more, and here am I dying of hunger! I will leave this place and go to my father” (Luke 15:17–18). The ragamuffin stomach was not churning with compunction because he had broken his father’s heart. Disenchanted with life, the wastrel weaved his way home, not from a burning desire to see his father, but just to stay alive.
For me, the most touching verse in the entire Bible is the father’s response: “While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with pity. He ran to the boy, clasped him in his arms and kissed him” (verse 20). I am moved that the father didn’t cross-examine the boy, bully him, lecture him on ingratitude, or insist on any high motivation. He was so overjoyed at the sight of his son that he ignored all the canons of prudence and parental discretion and simply welcomed him home. The father took him back just as he was.
What a word of encouragement, consolation, and comfort! We don’t have to sift our hearts and analyse our intentions before returning home. Abba just wants us to show up. We don’t have to tarry at the tavern until purity of heart arrives. We don’t have to be shredded with sorrow or crushed with contrition. We don’t have to be perfect or even very good before God will accept us. We don’t have to wallow in guilt, shame, remorse, and self-condemnation. Even if we still nurse a secret nostalgia for the far country, Abba falls on our neck and kisses us.
Even if we come back because we couldn’t make it on our own, God will welcome us. He will seek no explanations about our sudden appearance. He is glad we are there and wants to give us all we desire.
Brennan Manning
YouVersion reading plan: 'The Ragamuffin Gospel' by Brennan Manning, day 4 of 5
Bible commentator, Warren Wiersbe says: As we read our Bibles we discover that there are two kinds of storms: storms of correction, when God disciplines us, and storms of perfection, when God helps us to grow. – Jonah ended up in a storm because he disobeyed God and had to be corrected. The disciples in the boat were in a storm because they had obeyed Christ and had to be perfected.
Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare!
Eastern, oriental proverb.
The Bible tells us that God created mankind is his own image; male and female he created them. In all of creation, we are special because we are made in the image and likeness of God, who created mankind to have dominion and to take care of the earth, with God but under God’s direction. And because we are made in God’s image we have been endowed with a personality and character and freewill, the ability to choose for ourselves. But we chose wrong; we chose to ignore God and to do things our own way, and we messed up… that’s the problem (what the Bible calls sin) that separates us from God!
If we were simply the product of evolution, a chance coming together of raw inorganic matter, how can we ever explain our personality? Can a river run higher than its original source? No (not unless it is manipulated by human engineering). Then how do we account for human personality? It is impossible for a river to run higher than its source, and it is also impossible for inorganic matter to evolve into rational, thinking, calculating, emotional human beings with individual character and personality. The fact is our personality points to God, who made us in His image.
Why do we feel generous, and grateful, when things go well; why do we feel the need to share and thank someone? On the other hand, why, in a crisis or when things go wrong, do we feel the need to pray or cry out for help? Why do we claim ‘it’s not fair’? Where does our concept of right and wrong come from, or our concept of fairness? If we are simply a product of chance, evolution, survival of the fittest, why do we even care about fairness? Where does our sense of justice come from?
Our moral understanding, our values and sense of right and wrong all point to the existence of God, as does our conscience – which is a pointer to God if ever there was one! Our conscience acts like a code or law inside of us: instinctively it makes judgments, sometimes acquitting (we have a clear conscience) sometimes condemning (and we feel guilty). And this presence of an inner-law suggests a Lawgiver. Our conscience is a clear pointer to a God who is so concerned with right and wrong that He put a moral indicator inside each one of us.
R. Ian Seymour
R. Ian Seymour, Empowered Personal Evangelism, Weybridge: New Wine Press (2014), p.36
C. S. Lewis wrote: “My own experience is something like this. I am progressing along the path of life… when suddenly a stab of abdominal pain that threatens serious disease, or a headline in a newspaper that threatens us all with destruction, sends this whole pack of cards tumbling down. At first I am overwhelmed… then, slowly and reluctantly, bit by bit, I try to bring myself into the frame of mind that I should be in at all times… I remind myself that my true good is in another world and my only real treasure is Christ. And perhaps, by God’s grace, I succeed, and for a day or two become a creature consciously dependent on God and drawing its strength from the right sources. But the moment the threat is withdrawn my whole nature leaps back [again]… Thus the terrible necessity of [our trials and] tribulations is only too clear. God has had me for but forty-eight hours and then only by dint of taking everything else away from me.”
Source: Men’s Devotional Bible, p.183
Nothing is more difficult than praising God when nothing seems to be going right. But one of the purest forms of worship is praising God even when you don’t feel like it, because it proves that your worship isn’t circumstantial.
Mark Batterson
Mark Batterson, In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day, Colorado: Multnomah Books, p.67
A Sunday school teacher asked the children: “Why is it necessary to be quiet when you go into the church?” A little girl called replied, “Because the people are sleeping.”
It has to be said, many people think of church services as boring, sometimes dead-boring, and to be fair a lot of church services are… BUT they absolutely should not be!
“The only difference between a rut and a grave is its length, depth and how long you’re in it for!”
Art Holst (professional speaker)
“We are what we repeatedly do, excellence then is not an act, but a habit.”
Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) - ancient Greek Philosopher
“The only time God ever challenges us to test Him in the entire Bible is in the area of tithing! He said in the last half of Malachi 3:10 to “test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”
Paul J. Meyer
Paul J. Meyer, Unlocking Your Legacy, 2002, Chicago Illinois, Moody Press, p.144
Leadership tip: Unless you learn to delegate, you’ll disintegrate.
In the whole of creation mankind is the only creature that God comes face to face with and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (Genesis 2:7). It’s a picture of pure intimacy, of real love… the first ever kiss of life!
“A neglect of prayer is the beginning of all spiritual decline.”
Charles Spurgeon
“Even if you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”
Will Rogers (1879-1935), American humourist and actor
Jackie Pullinger (who worked with prostitutes, heroin addicts and gang members in Hong Kong) began a memorable talk by saying, ‘God wants us to have soft hearts and hard feet. The trouble with many of us is that we have hard hearts and soft feet.’
Quoted by Nicky Gumbel in Alpha Questions of Life, 2007 edition, Eastbourne: Kingsway Communications, p.121
You can’t correct something unless you confront it.
Did you know that most of the Bible was written by three people who had committed murder? Moses, David and Paul were all guilty of murder, but because all three of them were repentant, God forgave them and used their lives in amazing ways.
J. John
Source: J. John, Soul Purpose, p.78
“There is a growing mountain of evidence to suggest that worry is the chief contributor to depression, nervous breakdowns, high blood pressure, heart attacks, and early death. Stress kills. I have never known a man to die from hard work but I have known a lot who died from worry!”
Dr Charles Mayo, of the famous Mayo Clinic
Mark Batterson comments: God got Israel out of Egypt in one day, but it took forty years to get Egypt out of Israel. (…) Technically, the Israelites were set free at the exodus. Practically, it took forty years to fully exercise their demons. (…) If you are in Christ, you are no longer defined by what you’ve done wrong. You are defined by what Christ has done right. You are a new creation, but sometimes it takes some time for your new nature to become second nature. God can deliver you in one day, but it may take years to break old habits or build new ones. (…) Jesus came to put the past in its place – the past. We just need to leave it there. (…) Christ crucified our sin by nailing it to a cross. Don’t resurrect it!
Mark Batterson, IF, 2015, Grand Rapids: Michigan, Baker Books, p.31-32
Never doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light. Insecurity is the devil’s work.
The most famous geyser in America is Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park. It is not the biggest geyser in America, nor is it the most powerful. What makes the geyser famous is its faithfulness! It runs like clockwork. Dependable. People appreciate dependability – even in a geyser. Do you have a reputation for being reliable?
Rick Warren
Rick Warren, God’s Power To Change Your Life, 2006, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, p.159
“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
Winston Churchill
“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
John Stott reminds us, ‘many people mistakenly think the Day of Pentecost was the birthday of the church, but this is incorrect because the church, as the people of God, had already been around for at least four thousand years, going back to the time when God chose Abraham. The Day of Pentecost doesn’t describe the birth of the church but the continuation of the church after the revelation of Christ, that is, the remnant of God’s people became the Spirit-filled church or body of Christ.’
In fact, in many of our Bibles there’s one page that really shouldn’t be there, and that’s the blank page that separates the Old Testament from the New Testament. You see, there is no separation: It’s a continuation not a separation; it’s not an old religion and a new religion; it’s not an old church and a new church. The New Testament church is a continuation of the Old; it is part two, if you like. (What we call the Early Christian Church is the beginning of part two… the end of the story.)
In fact, the Bible reads a bit like a ‘who-done-it’ in two parts. The Old Testament sets the scene: The crime is committed, the evidence gathered, judgment passed and the penalty announced… but the Old Testament ends in a state of suspense, because there has been continuous talk, prophecy, of some kind of reprieve, of payment being made on behalf of the guilty; of a Messiah who would pay a ransom and rescue his people. But who… we are left in suspense! (Dun, Dun, Dun!) Cue: The New Testament, part two of the story, which tells us not only ‘who-done-it’ but who-done-it so incredibly well, all-sufficiently, that not only was the ransom paid, but also there is forgiveness, restoration, renewal and eternal life… if we accept and follow Him, Jesus, that is.
The theme of the whole Bible from Genesis 12 (with the call of Abraham) to Revelation 22 (and the renewal of all things) is ‘How lost people can be found’ and the main character in the story from beginning to end is the Lord Jesus Christ.
R. Ian Seymour
If God is in control of all things; if He is sovereign (which He is), then complaining is criticism of His control, His sovereignty and His provision. The Bible plainly tells us, “that in all things God works for the good of those who love him… conforming us to the likeness of his Son”
Romans 8:28, 29
Before you criticise someone’s efforts remember this: Amateurs built the Ark. Professionals built the Titanic.
It is only when we have tried everything in our power and all else has failed; it’s only when God is all we have left that we realise God is all we need.
Fact: You simply cannot experience true love, happiness, wealth or success until you have first experienced rejection, unhappiness, poverty and failure. Otherwise, how would you know the difference?
We have the choice to either be architects or victims of our future.
I saw one hanging on a tree in agony and blood
Who fixed His loving eyes on me as near His cross I stood
And never till my dying breath will I forget that look
It seemed to charge me with His death though not a word He spoke
My conscience felt and owned the guilt and plunged me in despair
I saw my sins His blood had spilt and helped to nail Him there
But with a second look He said “I freely all forgive
this blood is for your ransom paid; I died that you might live”
John Newton
The best kind of sermon is preached by the way you live your life, not the way you move your lips.
To catch fish you have to go where the fish are. If we spend all of our time with other Christians then we won’t be in a position to invite non-Christian people along to church events in the first place.
Treasure your yesterdays, dream your tomorrows but thrive on your today’s.
A Ladder To Becoming A Better Listener (Step by step instructions)
L: Look into the eyes of the person speaking to you.
A: Ask questions.
D: Don’t interrupt.
D: Don’t change the subject.
E: Empathise.
R: Respond verbally and non-verbally. (Anon)
God’s delays are not God’s denials.
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realise how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison (1847-1931), inventor
“More than anything else, having a sense of purpose keeps a person going in the midst of adversity. It is the fuel that powers persistence.”
John Maxwell
“Vision gives significance to the otherwise meaningless details of our lives…Too many times the routines of life begin to feel like shoveling dirt. But take those same routines, those same responsibilities, and view them through the lens of vision and everything looks different. Vision brings your world into focus. Vision brings order to chaos. A clear vision enables you to see everything differently.”
Andy Stanley
Andy Stanley, 'Visioneering: God’s Blueprint for Developing and Maintaining Vision' (Colorado Springs: Multnomah, 1999), p9.
Tim Keller writes: ‘Jesus has said to his disciples, “I will rise on the third day.” He said it in Mark 8, again in Mark 9, and yet again in Mark 10. Given that repetition, something curious is going on. On the third day after Jesus’s death, there are no male disciples around; these female disciples do appear, but they are bringing along all the expensive spices and perfumes with which a dead body was customarily anointed. Nobody is expecting a resurrection. If you were the Gospel writer Mark, trying to write a credible piece of fiction, and you have had Jesus saying repeatedly to his disciples that he would rise on the third day, wouldn’t you have at least one disciple thinking this through after Jesus’s death and saying to the others, “Hey, it’s the third day. Maybe we ought to go take a look at Jesus’s tomb. What can it hurt?” That would only be reasonable. But nobody said anything like that. In fact, they did not expect a resurrection at all. It didn’t occur to them. The angel in front of the empty tomb had to remind the women: “You will see him, just as he told you.” If Mark had made up this story, he wouldn’t have written it this way. – And here’s the point: The resurrection was as inconceivable for the first disciples, as impossible for them to believe, as it is for many of us today.’
Excerpt from JESUS THE KING by Timothy Keller, from the devotional on YouVersion, day 9 of 9
JOY – stands for putting Jesus first, Others second and Yourself third.
If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach him how to fish you feed him for a lifetime.
Ancient Chinese proverb.
We can never say I will not sin again… but, friends, we can say, I will not sin now!
We are not in a results based calling. We are in a witness programme. We are in a faithful witnessing and sharing the gospel regardless of results calling.
Jesus is the King of Kings, yet He arrived as a humble servant. Humility is not thinking you are less, it is never forgetting the fact that it is Jesus who made you more. So, how do you become like Jesus? How do you develop a spirit of humility? Humility is the by-product of being with Jesus. Anyone who walks intimately with Him will not think more highly of himself than he should. To be loved by Jesus and invited into a relationship with Him, is all we need to right-size ourselves and to assume His gentleness and grace. To be humble doesn’t mean you have to be weak. God has given you all you need to live confidently as His. The proud will never truly lift up God’s name in praise. Yet He raises the humble to new heights.
Louie Giglio
Source: from a reflection by Louie Giglio (on YouVersion Bible app)
“Our potential is God’s gift to us but what we do with our potential is our gift to God.” – Anon.
I expect to pass through life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now and not defer or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again.
William Penn (1644-1718), English Quaker and founder of Pennsylvania
‘Buddha never claimed to be God. Moses never claimed to be Jehovah. Mohammed never claimed to be Allah. Yet Jesus Christ claimed to be the true and living God. Buddha simply said, “I am a teacher in search of the truth.” Jesus said, “I am the Truth.” Confucius said, “I never claimed to be holy.” Jesus said, “Who convicts me of sin?” Mohammed said, “Unless God throws his cloak over me, I have no hope.” Jesus said, “Unless you believe in me, you will die in your sins.”
Source: Billy Graham, The Reason For My Hope, p.94
ACTION means doing. It means turning your good intentions into, ACTs in motION.
R. Ian Seymour
“What makes life worthwhile is having a big enough objective, something which catches our imagination and lays hold of our allegiance; and this the Christian has, in a way that no other person has. For what higher, more exalted, and more compelling goal can there be than to know God?”
J. I .Packer, author and theologian
“God’s sovereignty means He decides what happens and when. God doesn’t work to our timetable. We must learn to wait patiently for Him. (Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him. – Psalm 37:7) God is worth the wait because when God shows up He shakes things up. Let God do things in His timing, and His plan will unveil itself. In the meantime, rest in His presence, wait patiently and keep praying.”
Tony Evans
Tony Evans, 1995, Time To Get Serious, Illinois: Crossway Books, p.183, 185
“One man has enthusiasm for 30 minutes, another for 30 days, but it is the man who has it for 30 years who makes a success of his life.”
Edward B. Butler
Failure has been correctly identified as the path of least persistence.
“Let us never negotiate out of fear but let us never fear to negotiate.”
John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)
‘Forgiveness’ has the word ‘give’ in it. Forgiveness is not getting even. It is giving away the right to get even.
John Piper
John Piper, The Passion of Christ, p.36