O My Forgetful Soul,
Awake from thy wandering dream;
turn from chasing vanities,
look inward, forward, upward,
view thyself,
reflect upon thyself,
who and what thou art, why here,
what thou must soon be.
Thou art a creature of God,
formed and furnished by him,
lodged in a body like a shepherd in his tent;
Dost thou not desire to know God’s ways?
O God,
Thou injured, neglected, provoked Benefactor
when I think upon thy greatness and thy goodness
I am ashamed at my insensibility,
I blush to lift up my face,
for I have foolishly erred.
Shall I go on neglecting thee,
when every one of thy rational creatures should love thee,
and take every care to please thee?
I confess that thou hast not been in all my thoughts,
that the knowledge of thyself as the end of my being has been strangely overlooked,
that I have never seriously considered my heart-need.
But although my mind is perplexed and divided, my nature perverse,
yet my secret dispositions still desire thee.
Let me not delay to come to thee;
Break the fatal enchantments that binds my evil affections,
and bring me to a happy mind that rests in thee,
for thou has made me and canst not forget me.
Let thy Spirit teach me the vital lessons of Christ,
for I am slow to learn;
And hear thou my broken cries.
-Puritan prayer, The Valley of Vision
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Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Pain
"Pain" by Da Truth
Right now I hear
But I wanna see
I need you to show me
You bottle my tears
Pain is the key
To making me Holy
Dark clouds in the sky turn into rain
I know you wanna cry from the hurt and pain
It's hard to see God in the eye of the hurricane
And so you wanna turn away from this chapter in your life wanna turn the page
It's the hard knock life and the earth's decaying
Trying hard not to murmur and complain
It's easier said than than done with those hunger pangs
You can't even buy your son Burger King
Just got laid off so currently
Trying to make ends meet and that's a further strain
I know you're stressed out gotta learn to pray
So God can give you peace for the burdens laid
Down at his feet where the servants lay
He loves you, so don't turn away
You in the fire, but won't burn in the flame
I know it's cold in the winter months
And I know that that trial you in the middle of
Man I know it might feel like a little much
I know it might feel like a little much
And though deliverance is slow like the little bus
Don't faint stand firm no givin' up
Understand that, God won't give you more than you can bear
Your trials are just little cubs
Big Him, big plan, man little us
I know the season in your life is a little rough
I know you're drinking up strife from the bitter cup
God is painting a picture of
Himself, so it's gotta be beautiful
He's gotta use bright colors and muted tones
Gotta use life's comforts and funerals
I know it hurts, but it helps you to grow
Praise God that the Father is forming us
Shaping, making, and conforming us
So at times our pain is to grow us up
Other times my pain is for someone else
Cause death in me is life in you
That's what we see when He died for you
'Cause one man's pain is another's pleasure
Just as one man's trash is another's treasure
'Cause sometimes God will cause the pain
He'll create the fire and the rain
I hear you praying Lord take it all away
But if He won't it's because He knows what it takes
To produce fruit and make his people whole
He knows when pressure is applied to coal
A beautiful diamond is the goal
You're in the fire but you're coming out as pure gold
[See I think it's important for us to have a big picture
Perspective on pain. A lot of times, we see pain as a bad
Thing; trials, suffering, you see it as a bad thing. But when
We look in the scriptures, we see that God prescribes pain.
He doesn't just allow it he causes it sometimes; read
Deuteronomy chapter 8. But it's so necessary, because in it
He conforms us into the image and the likeness of His Son.
So I just wanna encourage the people of God, please understand
That God is using your pain for His own glory.]
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The Way You Love Me
If my heart could sing at this moment...
"It is the hurt that breaks me. It is the pain that pulls me to my knees. And the tears, they’ve changed me to what I couldn’t see, become so clear to me. This is the way, the way that you love me."
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"It is the hurt that breaks me. It is the pain that pulls me to my knees. And the tears, they’ve changed me to what I couldn’t see, become so clear to me. This is the way, the way that you love me."
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Sunday, February 20, 2011
God is Glorious in Life & Death
Food for thought.
Meal for meditation.
http://www.girltalkhome.com/
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Meal for meditation.
http://www.girltalkhome.com/
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Monday, January 31, 2011
Bite. Taste. Chew. Swallow. Digest. (Repeat.)
"There are times when solitude is better than society, and silence is wiser than speech. We should be better Christians if we were more alone, waiting upon God, and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for labour in his service. We ought to muse upon the things of God, because we thus get the real nutriment out of them. . . . Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make but slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not thoughtfully meditate on God's Word. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they would have the corn, but they will not go forth into the fields to gather it; the fruit hangs upon the tree, but they will not pluck it; the water flows at their feet, but they will not stoop to drink it. From such folly deliver us, O Lord. . . ."
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— Charles H. Spurgeon
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Most Prideful Fortune Cookie Ever...
 |
| It says: "Your talents will bring you the highest status and prestige." |
Now, what's wrong with that statement?
You said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
But you are brought down to Sheol,
to the far reaches of the pit.
‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
But you are brought down to Sheol,
to the far reaches of the pit.
(Isaiah 14:13-15)
In case you're keeping score...
In case you're keeping score...
Holy Bible: 1 vs. Fortune Cookie: 0
OUCH.
[P.S. Yo, but that fortune cookie still tasted good] :)
[P.S. Yo, but that fortune cookie still tasted good] :)
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Thursday, January 20, 2011
Is It Really That Serious?
So, I'd like to share one of the daily devotions I received from my sister in Christ, Dawn Washington. I thought it was powerful, sobering, and very true... and I pray it will cause you to examine yourselves again and again in light of a holy and perfect God (as it did for me). We all need to be reminded of what you're about to read -- and let it draw us to the cross in humility, brokenness, and genuine repentance.
Is It Really That Serious?
2 Corinthians 7:1
How often have you heard it said… “Is it that serious?” That question is typically posed when we desire to downplay something that someone has said. When it relates to the question of sin and pursuing holiness, the answer is a resounding YES! Yes, it is that serious. Leviticus 19:2 says, “Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.” I find that I spend more of my time these days lamenting over the state of the body of Christ. My heart weeps at our indifference to sin and wickedness. The pursuit of holiness has become merely an admirable pursuit of a few.
God has beckoned and is beckoning all those who are His to be like Him… holy. He has given us the power to do such an impossible feat through His son, Jesus Christ. Today, I want to begin to take a stab at the idea of the believer pursuing holiness relentlessly. Paul says to the church at Corinth in 2 Corinthians 7:1, “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” I want to walk through this passage.
We must first ask, what promises do we have? Prior to chapter 7, Paul has been reaffirming all that we have in Christ and why we must not lose heart. For the work of Calvary’s cross, the debt we owed and could not pay, the righteousness we have been given, the adoption into the family… based on these promises we should “cleanse ourselves from ALL defilement of flesh and spirit.” It should be our very good pleasure and earnest desire to please God by pursuing holiness.
All too often, we (I am myself included in times past), make light of being holy before God. Our sins do not present a very real threat to our spiritual walk. We count them as a ‘mere’ struggle that we are ‘working on.’ If this has ever been your thinking, join me a moment of repentance. Lord, forgive us for making light of the load of sins you carried to the cross for us. Forgive us for allowing the complacency of our sin to allow our voices to be heard among the scoffers at the foot of the cross who cheered for your crucifixion. Please forgive us.
God is calling us, every moment of every day, to purge ourselves from all sin and the appearance of sin. We are charged to give no place to the devil. Our continual motivation is found in 2 Corinthians 5:20-21. “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” We owe God. We are indebted to Him for His love to save us from sin. So then shall we continue in it? Romans 6:1-4 “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”
God demands it so much that in Hebrews 12:14-17 He says, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”
Please… I beg of you to hear my heart on this. God wants holiness. Pursue it with everything you got. Counsel towards holiness. Shun even the appearance of evil. Don’t compromise Christ righteousness in you for anyone or anything. Don’t play with sin. Don’t play with circumstances that lead to sin. I am a living, breathing witness that sin will make a fool of you and blaspheme the faith for which you stand!
My closing admonition comes from Hebrews 10:26-31. “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, "VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY." And again, "THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE." It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
As always, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”
(2 Peter 3:18 ESV)
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Is It Really That Serious?
2 Corinthians 7:1
How often have you heard it said… “Is it that serious?” That question is typically posed when we desire to downplay something that someone has said. When it relates to the question of sin and pursuing holiness, the answer is a resounding YES! Yes, it is that serious. Leviticus 19:2 says, “Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.” I find that I spend more of my time these days lamenting over the state of the body of Christ. My heart weeps at our indifference to sin and wickedness. The pursuit of holiness has become merely an admirable pursuit of a few.
God has beckoned and is beckoning all those who are His to be like Him… holy. He has given us the power to do such an impossible feat through His son, Jesus Christ. Today, I want to begin to take a stab at the idea of the believer pursuing holiness relentlessly. Paul says to the church at Corinth in 2 Corinthians 7:1, “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” I want to walk through this passage.
We must first ask, what promises do we have? Prior to chapter 7, Paul has been reaffirming all that we have in Christ and why we must not lose heart. For the work of Calvary’s cross, the debt we owed and could not pay, the righteousness we have been given, the adoption into the family… based on these promises we should “cleanse ourselves from ALL defilement of flesh and spirit.” It should be our very good pleasure and earnest desire to please God by pursuing holiness.
All too often, we (I am myself included in times past), make light of being holy before God. Our sins do not present a very real threat to our spiritual walk. We count them as a ‘mere’ struggle that we are ‘working on.’ If this has ever been your thinking, join me a moment of repentance. Lord, forgive us for making light of the load of sins you carried to the cross for us. Forgive us for allowing the complacency of our sin to allow our voices to be heard among the scoffers at the foot of the cross who cheered for your crucifixion. Please forgive us.
God is calling us, every moment of every day, to purge ourselves from all sin and the appearance of sin. We are charged to give no place to the devil. Our continual motivation is found in 2 Corinthians 5:20-21. “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” We owe God. We are indebted to Him for His love to save us from sin. So then shall we continue in it? Romans 6:1-4 “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”
God demands it so much that in Hebrews 12:14-17 He says, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”
Please… I beg of you to hear my heart on this. God wants holiness. Pursue it with everything you got. Counsel towards holiness. Shun even the appearance of evil. Don’t compromise Christ righteousness in you for anyone or anything. Don’t play with sin. Don’t play with circumstances that lead to sin. I am a living, breathing witness that sin will make a fool of you and blaspheme the faith for which you stand!
My closing admonition comes from Hebrews 10:26-31. “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, "VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY." And again, "THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE." It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
As always, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”
(2 Peter 3:18 ESV)
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Thursday, January 13, 2011
What is the Gospel?
If someone (right now in this moment!) were to ask you, "TELL ME... WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?" Would you know how to answer? Do you know what the true gospel is?
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How the Gospel Can Transform a Marriage
I read this on The Gospel Coalition blog and thought I'd share... isn't amazing to think that the gospel is a fully sufficient answer for all areas of life including marital matters?
Gary and Betsy Ricuchi, Love That Lasts: When Marriage Meets Grace (Crossway, 2006), pp. 22-23:
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Gary and Betsy Ricuchi, Love That Lasts: When Marriage Meets Grace (Crossway, 2006), pp. 22-23:
- Because of the gospel, Christians have become new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). Therefore, in our marriage, our past does not define us, confine us, or determine our future.
- Because of the gospel, we are forgiven (Ephesians 1:7). Therefore we can live free of all guilt and condemnation for every sin, and we can trust that God, in his mercy, will be gracious to us.
- Because of the gospel, we can forgive, just as Christ forgave us (Ephesians 4:32). Nothing done against us compares to our sin against God. Therefore all offenses, hostility, and bitterness between Christians can be completely forgiven and removed.
- Because of the gospel, we are accepted by God (Romans 15:7). Therefore we are not dependent on a spouse for who we are or what we need.
- Because of the gospel, sin’s ruling power over us is broken (Romans 6:6, 14). Therefore we can truly obey all that God calls us to do in our marriage, regardless of any circumstance or situation.
- Because of the gospel, we have access to God through Christ (Hebrews 4:14-16). Therefore we can at any time take any need in our marriage to the One who can do all things.
- Because of the gospel, we have hope (Romans 5:1-4). Therefore we can endure any marital difficulty, hardship, or suffering, with the assurance that God is working all to our greatest good (Romans 8:28).
- Because of the gospel, Christ dwells in us by his Holy Spirit (Galatians 3:13-14). Therefore we are confident that God is always with us and is always at work in our marriage, even when progress is imperceptible (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).
- Because of the gospel, we have power to fight and overcome remaining sin, which continues to dwell and war within us (Romans 7:19-21, 24-25; Galatians 5:16-17). This indwelling enemy represents the essence of what is called the doctrine of sin.
These are just a few of the ways the gospel can transform a marriage. Sometimes it’s not easy to live in the reality of these truths. But it is always possible—and not because of our strength or determination, but because of God’s empowering and enabling grace.
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Sunday, January 9, 2011
Reverend Fun - A Few Comics
Well, I woke up early this morning with a few hours before church, and stumbled upon these. So I wanted to bless you all with a few comic strips from Reverend Fun... you can find more at www.reverendfun.com
(You can click them to view in full size)
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(You can click them to view in full size)
Copyright Gospel Communications International, Inc - www.reverendfun.com
Copyright Gospel Communications International, Inc - www.reverendfun.com
In case you're wondering, my personal favorite is the last one lol
:)
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Saturday, January 8, 2011
History of Redemption
This sermon is so amazing and so is the artwork... I love the scripture illustrations. Thank God for the gospel! :o)
The text from that sermon forms the text of this book and has now been brought to life through vivid artistry illustrating that great story.
The History of Redemption was designed as a tool for you to memorize the history of redemption and be reminded of God's great grace so that you might be compelled to share it with others.
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God's Story, Illustrated
In November of 2007, Scripture from Genesis to Revelation was memorized and preached as a way of reminding God's people of the great story of their redemption.The text from that sermon forms the text of this book and has now been brought to life through vivid artistry illustrating that great story.
The History of Redemption was designed as a tool for you to memorize the history of redemption and be reminded of God's great grace so that you might be compelled to share it with others.
Watch the sermon here (or order the book too!):
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