Archive for June, 2011


Living in God’s Presence

Pray in the Spirit at all times with all kinds of prayers, asking for everything you need. —Eph_6:18

How do I live in God’s presence? How do I detect his unseen hand on my shoulder and his inaudible voice in my ear? … How can you and I grow familiar with the voice of God? Here are a few ideas:

Give God your waking thoughts. Before you face the day, face the Father. Before you step out of bed, step into his presence.

Give God your waiting thoughts. Spend time with him in silence.

Give God your whispering thoughts… Imagine considering every moment as a potential time of communion with God.

Give God your waning thoughts. At the end of the day, let your mind settle on him. Conclude the day as you began it: talking to God.

Just Like Jesus

Grace For The Moment

Short Cuts

They continue saying things that mean nothing, thinking that God will hear them because of their many words. —Mat_6:7

I love the short sentence… What follows are cuts from some of my books and a couple of others. Keep the ones you like. Forgive the ones you don’t. Share them when you can.

Pray all the time. If necessary, use words.

God forgets the past. Imitate him.

Greed I’ve often regretted. Generosity—never.

Don’t ask God to do what you want. Ask God to do what is right.

No one is useless to God. No one.

Nails didn’t hold God to a cross. Love did.

You will never forgive anyone more than God has already forgiven you.

When God Whispers Your Name

Grace For The Moment

A Promise Delivered

I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It was prepared like a bride dressed for her husband. —Rev_21:2

The Holy City, John says, is like "a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."

What is more beautiful than a bride? …

Maybe it is the aura of whiteness that clings to her as dew clings to a rose. Or perhaps it is the diamonds that glisten in her eyes. Or maybe it’s the blush of love that pinks her cheeks or the bouquet of promises she carries.

A bride. A commitment robed in elegance. "I’ll be with you forever." Tomorrow bringing hope today. Promised purity faithfully delivered.

When you read that our heavenly home is similar to a bride, tell me, doesn’t it make you want to go home?

The Applause of Heaven

My Manna

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28.

A speaker was talking about managing difficult situations.

He raised a glass of water and asked the audience about the weight of the contents in the glass.

The answers varied from 20 to 500 grams.

The presenter told them that the absolute weight did not matter too much.

The important thing was the length of time he could hold the glass.

If he held it for a minute, said the speaker, nothing happens.

If he held it for an entire day, he would have to call an ambulance because it would cause him a serious problem.

The glass was the same weight.

But the longer he held it the heavier it became.

Many people, with their different experiences of bitter conflicts in their lives-

- start to load themselves with grief, grudges, and hate.

As time goes by, they become unable to bear any of it.

The burden is so heavy that despair and bitterness take over their lives.

For people with this negative attitude, conflicts become huge.

In their despair, they seek a solution but suffer great anguish in the process.

They do not want to forgive and do not even want to receive the forgiveness of those they have offended.

Their negative attitude is harmful to them and affects their personal lives.

When in the course of your life you face conflicts-

- always remember to look to our God, the Creator of life and love.

It is through faith in His Son, Jesus, that all burdens are removed.

It is through Christ that forgiveness is both received and given.

Rest in Him-

- so you may be able to enjoy His peace and protection.

Our dear Lord gives us the necessary strength in the midst of our struggles!

His presence leads us on paths that make us stronger by taking away our weaknesses and grief.

In order to get out of difficulties,

- and not surrender to them-

- come to Christ.

God’s Favorite Word

Jesus said, "Come follow me." —Mat_4:19

God is an inviting God. He invited Mary to birth his Son, the disciples to fish for men, the adulteress woman to start over, and Thomas to touch his wounds. God is the King who prepares the palace, sets the table, and invites his subjects to come in.

In fact, it seems his favorite word is come.

"Come, let us talk about these things. Though your sins are like scarlet, they can be as white as snow."

"All you who are thirsty, come and drink."

"Come to me all, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest." …

God is a God who invites. God is a God who calls.

And the Angels Were Silent

My Manna

"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit…He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." John 14:26.


We may not even realize it.

But the Spirit of God teaches us all the time.

The Holy Spirit can unfold passages from the Bible in an incredible way through our reading and study of Scripture.

Needless to say-

- that is why we should spend regular time in Bible study and memorization.

In doing so-

- we are opening the door for the Spirit to illuminate God’s Word for us.

When I read the Bible-

I don’t have an incredible experience each time.

But I read it because I know I need to, in obedience to God.

It might be that very day or the next day when a situation will arise, and suddenly the passage I committed to memory is activated by the Holy Spirit.

All of a sudden, the Holy Spirit takes that Scripture and uses it to minister to someone.

It’s the Holy Spirit speaking through me, and that’s a wonderful experience.

When I step up to the pulpit-

I depend on the Holy Spirit to speak through me.

Yes, I have prepared.

I have done my homework.

But at the same time-

I want God to speak to the people who are listening.

Sometimes, we will hear speakers and think they are the greatest preachers who have ever lived.

But in reality-

- it is the Holy Spirit speaking through those people to us.

So let’s give glory to God and not to them.

The Holy Spirit will give us the power to live the way God wants us to live.

And He will continue to teach us

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