tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64375107864897472502024-03-16T23:51:58.918-07:00CALLED TO STAND OUTWhile others are doubting … Believe.
While others are playing … Plan.
While others are sleeping … Study.
While others are delaying … Decide.
While others are daydreaming … Prepare.
While others are procrastinating … Begin.
While others are wishing … Work.
While others are talking … Listen.
While others are pouting … Smile.
While are others are criticizing … Commend.
While others are quitting … Persist.
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.comBlogger270125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-28085672839024860822015-08-10T04:03:00.001-07:002015-08-10T04:03:12.515-07:00Waiting on God and His Light in the Heart <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By: <span> </span>A. Murray</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in His word do I hope. My
soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: more than
they that watch for the morning.” Ps. 130:5-6.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">With what intense longing the morning light is often waited for. By the
mariners in a shipwrecked vessel; by a benighted traveller in a dangerous
country; by an army that finds itself surrounded by an enemy. The morning light
will show what hope of escape there may be. The morning may bring life and
liberty. And so the saints of God in darkness have longed for the light of His
countenance, more than watchmen for the morning. They have said, “More than
watchmen for the morning, my soul waiteth for the Lord.” Can we say that too?
Our waiting on God can have no higher object than simply having His light shine
on us, and in us, and through us, all the day. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">God is Light. God is a Sun. Paul says: “God hath shined in our hearts
to give the light,” What light? “The light of the glory of God, in the face of
Jesus Christ.” Just as the sun shines its beautiful, life-giving light on and
into our earth, so God shines into our hearts the light of His glory, of His
love, in Christ His Son. Our heart is meant to have that light filling and
gladdening it all the day. It can have it, because God is our sun, an it is
written, “Thy sun shall no more go down for ever.” God’s love shines on us
without ceasing. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But can we indeed enjoy it all the day? We can. And how can we? Let nature
give us the answer. Those beautiful trees and flowers, with all this green
grass, what do they do to keep the sun shining on them? They do nothing; they
simply bask in the sunshine, when it comes. The sun is millions of miles away,
but over all that distance it comes, its own light and joy; and the tiniest
flower that lifts its little head up-wards is met by the same exuberance of
light and blessing as flood the widest landscape. We have not to care for the
light we need for our day’s work; the sun cares, and provides and shines the
light around us all the day. We simply count upon it, and receive it, and enjoy
it. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The only difference between nature and grace is this, that what the
trees and the flowers do unconsciously, as they drink in the blessing of the
light, is to be with us a voluntary and a loving acceptance. Faith, simple
faith in God’s word and love, is to be the opening of the eyes, the opening of
the heart, to receive and enjoy the unspeakable glory of His grace. And just as
the trees, day by day, and month by month, stand and grow into beauty and
fruitfulness, just welcoming whatever sunshine the sun may give, so it is the
very highest exercise of our Christian life just to abide in the light of God,
and let it, and let Him, fill us with the life and the brightness it brings. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And if you ask, But can it really be, that just as naturally and
heartily as I recognise and rejoice in the beauty of a bright sunny morning, I
can rejoice in God’s light all the day? It can, indeed. From my breakfast-table
I look out on a beautiful valley, with trees and vineyards and mountains. In
our spring and autumn months the light in the morning is exquisite, and almost
involuntarily we say, How beautiful! And the question comes, Is it only the
light of the sun that is to bring such continual beauty and joy? And is there
no provision for the light of God being just as much an unceasing source of joy
and gladness? There is, indeed, if the soul will but be still and wait on Him,
ONLY LET GOD SHINE. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Dear soul! learn to wait on the Lord, more than watchers for the
morning. All within you may be very dark; is that not the very best reason for
waiting for the light of God? The first beginnings of light may be just enough
to discover the darkness, and painfully to humble you on account of sin. Can
you not trust the light to expel the darkness? Do believe it will. Just bow,
even now, in stillness before God, and wait on Him to shine into you. Say, in
humble faith, God is light, infinitely brighter and more beautiful than that of
the sun. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">God is light: the Father. The eternal, inaccessible, and
incomprehensible light: the Son. The light concentrated, and embodied, and
manifested: the Spirit, the light entering and dwelling and shining in our
hearts. God is light, and is here shining on my heart. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I have been so occupied with the rushlights of my thoughts and efforts.
I have never opened the shutters to let His light in. Unbelief has kept it out.
I bow in faith: God, light, is shining into my heart; the God of whom Paul
wrote, ”God hath shined into our heart”, is my God. What would I think of a sun
that could not shine? what shall I think of a God that does not shine? No, God
shines! God is light! I will take time, and just be still, and rest in the
light of God. My eyes are feeble, and the windows are not clean, but I will
wait on the Lord. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The light does shine, the light will shine in me, and make me full of
light. And I shall learn to walk all the day in the light and joy of God. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">My soul waiteth on the Lord, more than watcher for the morning. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“My soul, wait thou only upon God”</span></span></span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-54068482005329526262015-07-12T06:20:00.001-07:002015-07-12T06:20:55.459-07:00Are You Stumbling Toward an Uncertain Future?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>By:<span>
</span>John L. M.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>My friend, the late Myles Munroe said,
“There is something for you to start that is ordained for you to finish.” God
made you special for a purpose. He has an assignment for you to do no one else
can do as well as you can. Out of billions of applicants, you’re the most
qualified. You have right combination of what it takes. God has given each
person the measure of faith to do what He’s called him or her to do. Every
person is gifted.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>A person is never what he ought to be
until he is doing what he ought to be doing.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>God holds us not only responsible for
what we have, but for what we could have; not only for what we are, but for
what we might be.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>Don’t just pray that God will do this or
that, rather pray that God will make His purpose known to you. William Cowper
said, “The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose.”
Note Proverbs 19:21: ”Whatever your plan is just know that nothing else will
satisfy you.” Know that God is with you and will provide what you need to
accomplish your purpose. The God who made the mouth will also provide the food.
</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>Don’t part company with your purpose. It
is an anchor in the storm. A purposeless life is an early death. Psalms 138:8
reads, “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; thy steadfast love, O Lord
endures forever.”</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>Rick Renner commented, “The only thing
that will keep you from the will of God is if you look at yourself and say,
‘I’m not so much among so many.’” You can’t do anything about the length of
your life, but you can do something about its width and depth. What you believe
is the force that determines what you accomplish or fail to accomplish in life.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>Too many people know what they are
running from, but not what they’re running to. Having a powerful why will
provide you with the necessary how. Purpose, not money, is your real asset.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>No wind blows in favor of a ship without
a destination. A person without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder. What
you set your heart on will determine how you’ll spend your life. A person going
nowhere can be sure of reaching his destination.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span>Abandon yourself to destiny.</span></span></span></span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-29200269309472814502015-05-30T01:10:00.003-07:002015-05-30T01:13:38.856-07:00Blind Faith<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEpeChejRBawhSKhOdgbJBf2df3KYU7-iErFGPdofHP_yG0LnAFQgPijubTbilJVM1u6xQApG-zM2_WnnK25JRWa0wtTcCMmEnSQo1jOc5rqB25aQKy-62GTWTx18myqvRklTr9kTvH06x/s1600/BLIND.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEpeChejRBawhSKhOdgbJBf2df3KYU7-iErFGPdofHP_yG0LnAFQgPijubTbilJVM1u6xQApG-zM2_WnnK25JRWa0wtTcCMmEnSQo1jOc5rqB25aQKy-62GTWTx18myqvRklTr9kTvH06x/s320/BLIND.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By: G. Markland</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Dolores Rivera had a dream, one that contained a message from God. She
dreamed of a pillowcase slowly falling, and its four corners grabbed her
attention. Some weeks later she heard of a town called Dolores Colorado, a few
miles away from a place called the Four Corners. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The Four Corners is a unique location where Colorado, Arizona, New
Mexico, and Utah meet geographically. God called her to go to the Four Corners
and pray. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">After months of prayer, Dolores saved enough money for an airline
ticket to Colorado, but was short the funds for a hotel and food for a week.
Knowing that God would provide, Dolores exercised blind faith and obeyed.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Upon arrival she found that the airlines had lost her luggage, so what
little money she had was spent on necessities. Undaunted, she pressed on. Upon
entering the tiny town, she was amazed to see her name on everything. There was
the Dolores Post Office, the Dolores Bed and Breakfast, the Dolores Gas Station
and so forth.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">After speaking with a nice man at the Dolores Hotel, she became aware
of spiritual depression in the area fostered by Native American spiritism and
witchcraft. God spoke to Dolores again and led her through town to the Dolores
Restaurant. The owners inside were Hispanic and because of Dolores’ Hispanic
background they had instant rapport. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The nice lady asked Dolores why she was there, and as she shared her
story of God’s mission, the lady began to cry. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She said, “We have been praying for revival and asking God to send
someone to help us.” </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Later she introduced Dolores to a Pastor and some friends, then
provided free room and board for her stay. Next, to the Four Corners they went.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Finally, reaching the very spot where the four states converge, they
began to pray. She asked for God’s hand upon the land, beginning with the
little nearby town of Dolores. Suddenly the sky opened up and a strong wind
blew. She knew that her prayer had been heard. She was glad that she had
obeyed.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Afterward, the very atmosphere in the town seemed to change. God
blessed Dolores Colorado. The local church experienced revival and growth,
particularly with the youth. And the restaurant owners, they were blessed and
their business grew. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">On her return flight, Dolores experienced a flight delay in Washington
D.C. and was given free food and lodging in a first class hotel with a free
ticket to anywhere! She used that day in Washington to pray for the Nation. She
can testify to the scripture that says,</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“For we walk by faith and not by sight” (II Corinthians 5:7 KJV).</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The Bible tells us,</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home
and go to another land that God would give him as an inheritance. He went
without knowing where he was going” (Hebrews 11:18 NLT). </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Abraham obeyed with blind faith, and generations were blessed.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Another young man followed God’s call with blind faith. He packed up
his family and traveled to an obscure neighborhood in a small town in Virginia.
Having only seventy dollars in his pocket, he arranged to buy a run down
television station in a dilapidated building.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To the casual observer, this TV station with its weak signal promised
little more than a hobby. Yet like Dolores, Pat Robertson followed with blind
faith in an adventure, which became the Christian Broadcasting Network,
reaching the world for Christ!</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If God is calling you to step out in blind faith, then obey Him and do
it! Don’t wait for that perfect time. You might be unsure about some of the
details, but don’t worry. When we show confidence in God’s call and obey Him,
He honors our obedience and will enable us to succeed. He will not let you
down. Blind faith is great faith, which leads to a wonderful life of adventures
with God. Only He knows who will be blessed by your obedience.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Stepping out in blind faith is a delight to the Lord. </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Remember, </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your
heart” (Psalm 37:4 NLT).</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Can God change your life? </span></span></span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-60313320310712068892015-04-29T18:24:00.001-07:002015-04-29T18:24:14.588-07:00Finding God's Timing <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCPI1mvuN7YBAbSmAwyw8NPpqLiwEro9i-KLLlHAW18RNdq1El4XxWPQfQNxeuMvRr7eFVR5FtG7fujYgOVY7H5uI_6B_G6MiT-W5NiKQN7sP06Ed9SBi4OW94MSko0Ttv2PlfqNItm5L/s1600/TIMING.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCPI1mvuN7YBAbSmAwyw8NPpqLiwEro9i-KLLlHAW18RNdq1El4XxWPQfQNxeuMvRr7eFVR5FtG7fujYgOVY7H5uI_6B_G6MiT-W5NiKQN7sP06Ed9SBi4OW94MSko0Ttv2PlfqNItm5L/s1600/TIMING.jpeg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By: <span> </span>D. Markins</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Have you taken a moment lately to look at life as it is and consider
some possibilities of how it could be. It’s easy to put this off and wait until
later…but sometimes it seems that much of our life is spent waiting. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In a small sense we wait in line for a vanilla latte, we wait for our
car to fill up with gas, we wait for the cable guy to show up (between 8 and
12…ha! usually it’s 2:10). In a bigger sense we wait to meet the man of our
dreams, we wait nine months for our baby to be born, we wait for a job
promotion or a pay increase. Waiting is a fact of life on earth. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But are you looking at your own life and evaluating how much time
you’ve spent waiting? Have you waited (maybe too long?) to make a change, chart
a new course or accept an unchangeable situation. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I waited a long time to make a serious commitment to writing and
speaking. What held me back? As with each of us, my answers aren’t simple. I
was raising children, working at having a good marriage and helping our
business grow. Those are valid reasons; but in complete honesty I held back
because of fear and lack of mentorship. When I finally broke through the fear
and dove in, God was there to meet me and encourage my progress. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they
shall mount up with wings as eagles,” says Isaiah 40:31</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The opposite is true as well. Sometimes we jump in and take action
without spending much time or thought on the process or likely results. Have
you ever tried to “fix” a situation instead of allowing God or others to take
care of it? Acting too quickly can lead to comedic and sometimes tragic
results. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Too many times to mention I’ve confronted people about things I
believed were unfair or done poorly, just to find that they had good reasons
for their actions or had already remedied the situation. Boy do I hate to go
after someone with a full head of steam only to learn that my issue is obsolete
or invalid. Alexander Pope said, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.”
I’m guessing he knew that angels are much wiser than we humans can be. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In either case there is an antidote and a way to prevent a repeat.
Check in with the Lord. A LOT! Talk to Him, read His word and get confirming
wisdom from a spiritually mature friend. It would look something like this:</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">“Father, I really hate my job but am grateful to have it. Thank you for
provision. Please bring me clarity about when/if I should take any action to
change my circumstance.”</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Then consider why God may have you there and the possibilities of
making a change. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Find a Believing buddy and ask for his/her prayers, insight and
encouragement.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Read in your Bible about people who’ve waited on the Lord and others
who’ve taken obedient action. (Jesus has done both.)</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Psalms 138:8 says, “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love
O Lord, endures forever.” </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">His timeline is frequently much different than ours. When we wait on
God’s timing, then take deliberate action, the outcome is likely to be
refreshment and contentment. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I hope your life is filled with intentional waiting while God
strengthens you, then fruit-bearing action when the time is right for you to
soar like an eagle.</span></span></span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-64117041572869572892015-03-05T15:10:00.002-08:002015-03-05T15:14:56.231-08:00<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. - Yeshua</span><br />
<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-38739146860476894112015-02-26T22:05:00.000-08:002015-02-26T22:05:07.075-08:00Your Association Matters<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpGEe_Vr20Zn0cnbXyWb91K6ZDqyCKnE4yNGz5Hc3RjZ3TDjhCr2vzO_M25xKb5FQncyMmNgD16jYzpj5Yq30XqD03tsw3YY_-0Ds7d87tPMavkuZVYUzedWRlvTOzFBSUi1H9yshrZDx/s1600/WRONG+COY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpGEe_Vr20Zn0cnbXyWb91K6ZDqyCKnE4yNGz5Hc3RjZ3TDjhCr2vzO_M25xKb5FQncyMmNgD16jYzpj5Yq30XqD03tsw3YY_-0Ds7d87tPMavkuZVYUzedWRlvTOzFBSUi1H9yshrZDx/s1600/WRONG+COY.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: John L.M.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have found that it is better to be alone than in the wrong company. A
single conversation with the right person can be more valuable than many years
of study.<br />
<br />
We become like those with whom we associate. You need to steer clear of
negative-thinking "experts." Remember: in the eyes of average people
average is always considered outstanding. Look carefully at the closest
associations in your life, for that is the direction you are heading.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Some years ago I found myself at a stagnation point in my life. I was
unproductive and unable to see clearly God's direction. One day I noticed that
almost all of my friends were in the same situation. When we got together, all
we talked about was our problems.<br />
<br />
The Lord showed me I needed to change my closest associations; that there were
some other people I needed to have contact with on a regular basis. These were
men and women of great faith, those who made me a better person just by being
around them. They were the ones who saw the gifts in me and could correct me in
a constructive, loving way. My choice to change my closest associations was a
turning point in my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When you surround yourself and affiliate with the right kind of people,
you enter into the God-ordained power of agreement. Ecclesiastes 4:9,10,12
(TLB) states: "Two can accomplish more than twice as much as one, for the
results can be much better. If one falls, the other pulls him up; but if a man
falls when he is alone, he's in trouble. And one standing alone can be attacked
and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer; three is even better,
for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken."</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-19550945126428470202015-01-27T17:44:00.003-08:002015-01-27T17:44:46.211-08:00Hold Life Loosely<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKperno9QBZGMW7SUfvf8GoWDu__2lLfApT7lpyxMENpmoM8M1WE73S0sUmliZF_PUS00D65MQMDaAumBMtwFswrjZiDYn25QC5eIiJh91MDRcBvcgJlXnxEjMgCjyD4Dp6ZfrBCqn1vSp/s1600/HOLD+LIFE+LOOSELY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKperno9QBZGMW7SUfvf8GoWDu__2lLfApT7lpyxMENpmoM8M1WE73S0sUmliZF_PUS00D65MQMDaAumBMtwFswrjZiDYn25QC5eIiJh91MDRcBvcgJlXnxEjMgCjyD4Dp6ZfrBCqn1vSp/s1600/HOLD+LIFE+LOOSELY.jpg" height="241" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: P. Lundell<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Twice in four days an LA County Sheriff's helicopter evacuated people
from ambulances right by my house, once in the street and once in the park.
Traffic stopped. People stared. The sky thudded with the beat of the helicopter
rotors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Then these people who had gotten up in the morning just as I did, eaten
their breakfast, and gone off to do what they normally do, got hit. One by a
car, the other by a heart attack.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I live in a suburb that's so peaceful, I sometimes think I'll go
comatose. People move here and pay too much for their houses in order to avoid
street drama and send their kids to good schools. And they typically prohibit
anything they don't like—or they wish they could. Don't we all?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But drama ignores boundaries. Every one of us lives moment-by-moment,
never able to say with certainty that we'll be free from affliction or even
live another day. We all know people, young and old, who have died
unexpectedly. Many of us have lived through hardships and even tragedies. And
we all have bad days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">No amount of health insurance, life insurance, or stock portfolios can
protect us from a serious illness, car accident, or act of violence. Nothing
can ensure we won't be hauled off in a helicopter—followed by the sting of a
hefty bill. Or a body bag followed by a hefty casket.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Seems the only smart thing to do is to stop clinging to what we
ultimately can't hold anyway. Hold life loosely. And when we do, it sets well
in God's hands. Easy to say. Doing it demands humility and faith—hard
ingredients if we like having our own way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">All that "die to yourself" and "take up your cross"
talk in the New Testament fits in about here. Jesus said it succinctly in Luke
9:23, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his
cross daily and follow me." A cross is not a burden; it's an instrument of
death. Later he slaps us with, "What is highly valued among men is
detestable in God's sight" (16:15). God doesn't care about our trophies
anyway.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It's no wonder God lets us be miserable at times, or for some of us
it's much of the time. Seems that God wants our attention.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I find the more attention we give God, the less concern we have about
what we have, what we accomplish, or how we try to protect ourselves. The only
thing left of great value is eternal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Maybe that's God's general idea. And it will forever fly in the face of
conventional wisdom. The materialistic world we live in has little place for
the eternal. But the eternal has little place for the materialistic world. One
of them is temporary; the other will last forever.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Will you hold one loosely and reach for the other?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this or
that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.' Why, you do
not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that
appears for a little while and then vanishes" (James 4:13-14, NIV).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Lord, the world deceives with false promises of security and
significance. Show me how fragile my life is, how things can be taken from me,
and how the best thing I can do with myself and what I have is to put it all in
your hands…."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-76098297021885368992014-12-01T17:52:00.000-08:002014-12-01T17:52:02.973-08:00God's Protection<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6AFlJTJ0iOMc-c9x62mTFCIbycedOMDmFcHSpR7OllTXclb3A0izcj5lJK16poQy0nMVBacFtz-ptQgSF7YNPT9Rilq57BeS7zg0Yf-QM_gL35QyMn4-K_Dnnkx-ketfkletsBfJ2s3G1/s1600/PROTECTION.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6AFlJTJ0iOMc-c9x62mTFCIbycedOMDmFcHSpR7OllTXclb3A0izcj5lJK16poQy0nMVBacFtz-ptQgSF7YNPT9Rilq57BeS7zg0Yf-QM_gL35QyMn4-K_Dnnkx-ketfkletsBfJ2s3G1/s1600/PROTECTION.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: S. Jadlow </span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A friend shared her story with me:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mom married Dad and soon found herself in a horribly abusive
union. His abuse didn't stop with her. We children suffered under
his tirades also. Many years later before she died, she
shared a couple of incidents with me, her daughter.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At any minute Dad would fly into a rage with no real provocation. It
could be caused by a slight misstep. A burned potato. Or a word said with a
wrong inflection. All our lives were a constant tight-rope walk. His evil
nature ever simmered below the surface like an agitated volcano, ready to erupt
at any minute.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mother learned early in life to rely on Jesus. Life married to
Dad drove Mother more solidly into Jesus' arms. I truly believe she would have
died at Dad's hand, had it not been for Jesus' protection.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">She told me about a time she stood in her bedroom and heard him
snarl from the kitchen, "I'm going to kill you."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By this time she was so worn from his explosions she prayed,
"Lord, either save me or take me. I'm so weary."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">His stocky footsteps thundered down the hall toward the
bedroom. She braced for what was coming.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When he reached the open doorway he bounced back as if he had
hit an invisible plate glass door. The impact threw him to the ground.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mom turned to see him on all fours shaking his full head of
dark brown hair, stunned.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"I'll get you for this," he said as he rose to charge a
second time. He hit the invisible shield again and bounced back. He turned,
rubbed his head, and staggered to his easy chair in the living room.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"He never spoke of it again," Mom said.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I asked her why she didn't leave him.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Our pastor told me it was immoral to divorce or leave him. He
said I should not provoke him. I tried. It didn't work."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On another occasion, after the children were grown and
married, they moved to an acreage with a pond on the outskirts of the
city. Mom wasn't a very proficient swimmer, but did enjoy an occasional dip in
cool water on a hot summer day. One day she floated in the pond. She
saw Dad stomping toward her, fists clenched, spewing curses.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"You b-----! I'm going to drown you here and now."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He waded into the water and reached for her arm with his huge
hand. His grip failed. Each time he grabbed her he couldn't hold on.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"It was like I was all greased up," she said.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Finally, in frustration, he left, cursing as he went.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Shortly after, the Lord spoke to her heart. "I've saved you
these many times from his murderous hand. You must not keep assuming I will
rescue you. You must take responsibility. It's time for you to get away from
him. Leave him and don't come back."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mom finally did leave him. It took all the children to help
her escape. Finally, in her late 50s, she was free of his daily abuse.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God is merciful. He desires all to come to Him rather than spend an
eternity in hell. He will go to any length to bring a wayward sheep home.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Dad found the Lord in his later years, but was tormented by the
memory of the hurt he had inflicted on others. He did not believe his sins
would be completely covered by Jesus' blood. He lived in daily fear of hell.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When Dad was in his 80s and still lucid, alone in a nursing home,
his niece came to see him.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He greeted her with excitement and said, "I'm not going to hell.
They called me on the phone and told me. They said when I die it will just
be a transition; a change into another type of life."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He was finally at peace. He died unexpectedly a month later.
Oh, and Dad's room didn't have a phone.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Psalm 91:11 "He will give His angels charge concerning you,
to guard you in all your ways (NASB)."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">II Peter 3:9b "…not wishing for any to perish but for
all to come to repentance" (NASB)."</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-10457507786975777122014-11-25T03:16:00.001-08:002014-11-25T03:16:06.589-08:00The Gift of a Second Chance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimn6Cf7xaYHLa7TqJFAniQhIuXNhlSpb2kcv981lKv_EiUIDJkAIms5bW3W2cfIU12MebYnA1K6oWKhTaeiUDba9_nrk0tCkWYhIBawIuYTGIgpNCqGCWKS4NnrAE7DG8nRPNdgb0W2oZD/s1600/2nd+CHANCE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimn6Cf7xaYHLa7TqJFAniQhIuXNhlSpb2kcv981lKv_EiUIDJkAIms5bW3W2cfIU12MebYnA1K6oWKhTaeiUDba9_nrk0tCkWYhIBawIuYTGIgpNCqGCWKS4NnrAE7DG8nRPNdgb0W2oZD/s1600/2nd+CHANCE.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: K. O'Connor<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"><br />
</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Every day I walked along the concrete walkway that
led from our condominium unit to the stairway. And each day I was annoyed by
the sight of a dedraggled, overgrown plant hanging over the edge of the
walkway above, down to the second floor where I lived at the time.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Why doesn't Lois do something about that thing?" I
asked half aloud. "It's an awful sight and it's practically dead
anyway."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I complained to my husband about it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Don’t look at it," he said. "It's hers. Leave it
be."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I should have listened, but I didn’t.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Later that week, I could no longer resist the urge to clip, clip! So I
did. I reached over the railing with my pruning shears and snapped them shut
around the ailing limb. It dropped into my free hand and from there I sent it
down the trash chute! I felt better–almost heroic. I had put this poor thing
out of its misery.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I went on with my day. About 11:00 I returned home from some
errands, picked up our mail, and ran up the stairs, suddenly stopped by the
sound overhead of a woman crying. Then I heard the soothing words of another
woman. I looked up and there stood Lois, my neighbor on the third floor.
Her neighbor Nancy stood with her, as the two commiserated about the plant
that had been pruned.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I felt like a criminal. My heart pounded so fast, I could
hardly talk. But I knew what I had to do. I had to confess or someone else in
the building, and I knew who it might be, would receive the blame for something
I had done.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I ran up to the third floor, breathless. "Lois," I said,
"I'm the culprit. I'm the one who cut your plant. I’m so sorry. I should
have asked first. But I thought it would be okay to prune it a little since it
was hanging over the railing all the way down to the second floor...and...."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I couldn't stop. I was mortified, embarrassed, apologetic, and
defensive all at the same time! How right the Bible was in reminding me that
"God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Prov.
3:34 (NIV).</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Lois stood listening with eyes wide in disbelief. And Nancy didn't know
what to say. I stopped. Lois spoke. She told me how she had worked so hard to
get that little plant going. She couldn't imagine why anyone would be so cruel.
Of course she was right. It was a cruel thing to do–even though I didn't see it
that way at the time. I was so caught up in my opinion of what looks good that
I took action regardless of how it might affect another person. I certainly did
not consult with the Lord about what to do. I simply had done what I wanted to
do.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I apologized profusely, hoping Lois would understand that I wasn't
motivated by spite (though I wasn’t sure at that point). I was only tidying
things up a bit!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">She thanked me for being honest, dried her eyes, and we parted.
The rest of the day was pure misery for me–not so much because of the plant. I
knew it would keep growing. I hadn't destroyed it. But I had hurt a
neighbor. Someone I like. A person who lives close by.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I couldn't let it rest. I prayed about what to do. And the Lord spoke
clearly. I needed to make amends. There was no second guessing his guidance. I
ran downstairs, jumped in the car, and drove directly to the local nursery. I
spent some time selecting a beautiful, thriving, flowering plant that looked
similar to the one I had cut. I bought it, wrote a note on a card,
acknowledging my fault once again, and asking for Lois' forgiveness.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Within moments of leaving the gift at her doorstep, I received a phone
call. Lois accepted my apology and thanked me for such a thoughtful gesture. I
was stunned at how easy–and how difficult–that experience had been.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">That day had turned out differently than I expected, but still, it had
turned out. I had made things right when I had been wrong—by asking for and
receiving forgiveness–and in turn, my neighbor did something for me. She, like
the Lord, gave me the gift of a second chance.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Do not judge and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you
will not be condemned" Luke 6:37 (NIV).</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-52164602765336445272014-11-15T17:57:00.002-08:002014-11-15T17:57:17.440-08:00Fear of the New Thing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPIR7njzCM_z8mr95ADGfpGn1OVhZs9-xiV5lSPfYqBFW52W-ucFJytoOjs01QEUGLDb5YEPdriWXoilbkTt-v-pkSceiZUVjlF4MPprDtAa3EHDMiPG8vtP88fKADHPxEY4NlY6s4SVYJ/s1600/NEW+THINGS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPIR7njzCM_z8mr95ADGfpGn1OVhZs9-xiV5lSPfYqBFW52W-ucFJytoOjs01QEUGLDb5YEPdriWXoilbkTt-v-pkSceiZUVjlF4MPprDtAa3EHDMiPG8vtP88fKADHPxEY4NlY6s4SVYJ/s1600/NEW+THINGS.jpg" height="244" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: B. Keith</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Benji used to have this fuzzy blue puppy blanket that instantly got
him to sleep. It was a miracle worker, Mommy's helper, the only thing that
got me a break.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Well that was until I misplaced it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We spent weeks looking beneath sofas and even inside vent
ducts. Then we started trying to find substitutes but none ever quite
"fit". This also meant weeks of bouncing, endless nights of playing
lullabies on a loop and trying desperately to find anything to get
normal back.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I'd all but forgotten about the blue blanket months later – that was
until Ben discovered this big floppy eared bunny that he now likes to have laid
across his tummy when he gets sleepy. The bunny is at least ten years old. It
is dingy and green. (Sounds a little gross right?) Frankly, it smells a little
weird. He found it when he learned to scoot right next to the closet I was
cleaning out. Long story short - he loved it and took it for his own.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It's old. But to him it's a new thing. Now it's become his comfort. It
has replaced the little lost blanket and even though we have since found it,
the bunny still WINS when it comes to nap time.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But I remember when he first saw that green bunny a few months ago.
When all he could do was sit in the hall stationary, he didn't care a
thing about it; but that was before he could grasp it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I think we adults are a lot like our children. We
would like to think that we outgrow our blue blankets, but we never really do.
They just change shape, take on new forms. The things that comfort me are my
old red sweater, my hippo pillow pet (like a million years old) and life that
doesn't change! But like you, I have discovered that the last thing I mentioned
is something that comforts us all – and something we all eventually learn is
quite impractical!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Life is always changing. It is never stagnant. Even when we think it is.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Behold I will do a new thing." (Isaiah 43:19)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It's the verse I have turned to so many times when the
"comfortable" was ripped from my hands.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We all long for the new thing. But when the new thing comes, God has
to pry the old thing from our hands. At first it's uncomfortable. At first,
let's face it ... it stinks. But soon, like my Ben, we find that God
hasn't taken away our blue blanket, whatever that means for us, away forever.
He's just holding it a while. He wants us to find our comfort in Him, not in
it; and when we can grasp the comfort of the new thing - we learn it's better.
It's just as safe. It's just as miraculous and praise worthy.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The new thing can take on many forms. It can be incredibly exciting or
completely the opposite –</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Absolutely. Terrifying.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Maybe you have recently discovered a new season in your life that is
uncomfortable. Maybe you are battling an illness, starting over,
praying for a miracle or walking into the pathways of the unknown.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Whatever your new thing is – I want to assure you this much – God is a
God of new things. Like the Israelites, God is always moving us forward.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But forward doesn't have to be scary. His track record is
incredible. He never starts something He can't finish. He never moves without
purpose. He never fails. He is faithful and He can be faithfully trusted with
the new thing.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until you find your Promised Land, or in this case your green bunny,
may God be your comfort. May He fill you to overflowing as He whispers to you
"Everything's going to be ok, My child." And most of all, may you
discover that all changes are changes you can find rest in; especially when
they are faced with the God of never-changing-grace. (Romans 8:18-19)</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-5634718169966121872014-11-02T16:21:00.002-08:002014-11-02T16:21:20.969-08:00This Halloween, Give Grace a Chance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsolueWCxJwBU6hiWbxhvevKwsDx0BFsXN_Sq6eU7ookpFG8DzsKiiznKhL8HTcKakg5bHegK0xF2Bgxc3ZMpdSkTFTx3GYl6WEJoUv7RW2l_TVMnM39uX5h2Zj5DEv2Oie0YH1Ff4k3O/s1600/HALLOWEEN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsolueWCxJwBU6hiWbxhvevKwsDx0BFsXN_Sq6eU7ookpFG8DzsKiiznKhL8HTcKakg5bHegK0xF2Bgxc3ZMpdSkTFTx3GYl6WEJoUv7RW2l_TVMnM39uX5h2Zj5DEv2Oie0YH1Ff4k3O/s1600/HALLOWEEN.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: N. Jeter</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">With a hammer in one hand and a large scroll under his arm, Martin
Luther approached the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. He paused to
take a couple of nails from a pouch hidden in the folds of his dark
woolen habit then began pounding his 95 theses to the church’s heavy wooden doors.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The date was October 31, 1517 and the event changed
the course of human history.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Luther’s protest was not against ghosts and goblins or children dressing up
to trick-or-treat. He chose All Hallow’s Eve because it was the night before
All Saints’ Day, a day when most of Wittenberg’s inhabitants would be in church.
It was good advertising.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This was not the United States of America where freedom of speech is protected as
a Constitutional right. The Catholic Church was the supreme authority in the
land: those who went against the Church did so at the peril of their lives.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">What prompted this act of courage and defiance on Luther’s part?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As Luther studied Scripture, his eyes were opened to a new concept: the
concept of God’s grace. Passion burned inside him as he read verses like Ephesians
2:8-9:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not
from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can
boast.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The established Church in Luther’s day misled people into thinking they
could be saved by their own works through pilgrimages, confessions and by
purchasing indulgences, which were basically “get out of hell free” cards.
It became clear to Luther that men could not purchase God’s grace: it was
freely given. This conviction led him to write out 95 main points of contention
with the Catholic Church, his “thesis,” which he ended up nailing to the door
of the church in Wittenberg.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Today many Christians debate the proper stance to take toward Halloween.
Some believe that the holiday glorifies witchcraft and evil, while others see
it simply as innocent fun. One of Satan’s most successful tactics is to incite
Christians to fight each other on matters of doctrine. Perhaps we would do
better this October 31 to focus on what is most important to God, just like Martin Luther
did on that fateful day in history.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Luther was determined. He was passionate. He was willing to sacrifice
his credentials, social status, even his life for the sake of sharing the news
about God’s saving grace. The words of Romans 10:14 struck him
at the core:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Are you willing to make similar sacrifices to bring people from
darkness to light?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Taking It to the Streets</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Here are some ideas for taking God’s grace to the streets this
Halloween.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Organize a prayerwalk around your neighborhood. Before the night
falls and costumed children begin their quest for candy and fun, walk around
your neighborhood alone or with friends, praying that the children will be
protected from physical and emotional harm inside and outside their homes.
Pray that the people in your neighborhood might be brought from darkness to
light.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Be a Witness. How will they hear unless they are told?
Halloween provides a great chance to plant seeds for the Gospel. It’s like
door-to-door witnessing in reverse: the lost come to you! Try slipping in a
kid-friendly tract along with any candy you distribute. And be friendly: these
are likely to be kids from your neighborhood. You may not recognize them out of
costume tomorrow but they’ll sure recognize you!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Organize a Neighborhood Party. Provide a “holy” alternative
celebration for children and adults in your neighborhood. Consider hosting a
“Reformation Day Celebration” in commemoration of Martin Luther’s brave act or
a “Harvest Party” that celebrates the things we love most about fall.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Lend a Hand. Many churches organize Halloween alternatives but
need help from volunteers to decorate, bring candy, or to help out at the event.
Join in their efforts to provide good, clean fun.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Luther’s brave act was like a bolt of lightning rending the midnight
sky. Now it’s your turn to do something revolutionary: give someone the gift of
God’s grace this Halloween.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-41537322899629498312014-10-18T22:12:00.004-07:002014-10-18T22:12:56.958-07:00When It Seems Like God Is Sleeping<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSR4ngqdTUYppzVtD0AXSRFwG1a5zGcM3AJ1NmKTMiNbXSJ34Uyo6NPRaHfVIIfxjSdfugD8d1V0QsR4YUytsw3AWMYrECO1w6drlWOcuzbIr4Z621aDpob8XAqDy2yNo7ZJVeLxNdxRWi/s1600/GOD+SLEEPS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSR4ngqdTUYppzVtD0AXSRFwG1a5zGcM3AJ1NmKTMiNbXSJ34Uyo6NPRaHfVIIfxjSdfugD8d1V0QsR4YUytsw3AWMYrECO1w6drlWOcuzbIr4Z621aDpob8XAqDy2yNo7ZJVeLxNdxRWi/s1600/GOD+SLEEPS.jpg" height="222" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: L. Holth</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Emotionally exhausted, I crawled into my car and pulled onto
the road. Instead of being happy for the newly engaged couple in my Bible
study, I was jealous. I wanted a partner, too, someone to walk through life
with and tell me I was worth fighting for.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">After seven years of singleness, someone like that didn't seem to
exist. I felt like I was in the disciples' boat when the storm came up all of a
sudden, pouring water into the boat, and threatening to capsize it, and Jesus
was asleep, blissfully unaware of the problem (Luke 8:22-25).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I was so tossed around and pummeled emotionally, I didn't know how I
was going to make it through another day, month, year, or however long it took
for Mr. Right to materialize.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I knew God could fix everything. He's God! But, He seemed to be asleep
at the wheel ... again. Mysteriously, conspicuously absent. Why wasn't He DOING
something?!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I finally decided God was big enough to take whatever I threw at Him,
so I vented every ounce of my anger and frustration: Don't you even care?!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In that moment of absolute honesty, I heard for the first time in my
life a nearly audible voice. "Do you believe I know what's best for
you?"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Well, ... of course You do!"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Then why don't you trust Me?"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Because You're not doing what I want you to do!"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Do you believe I know what's best for you?"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We went round and round with these two questions the rest of the drive
home. If I believed He knew what was best, why wasn't I trusting Him to take
care of it?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I remember that conversation with God so vividly, and periodically
those questions haunt me when God isn't doing things my way. As I read the
story of Jesus calming the storm in Luke 8, I'm reminded of those questions yet
again.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I can just imagine the disciples' thoughts when Jesus accused them of
not trusting Him. "Are you KIDDING me?? We're about to get KILLED in this
storm, and You're ASLEEP!!"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">How were they supposed to know He had everything under control? He
didn't even appear to know what was happening! If He wasn't acting, how would
they know to trust Him?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The same questions continue to plague believers today. How can we have
faith when it doesn't seem like God even knows we're hurting? Or worse, what if
He does know and chooses to do nothing?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Two years after that over-the-mountain argument with God, I was again
lamenting to a co-worker the fact that no Mr. Right – or any man for that
matter – had shown up in my life and that God didn't seem to care. She stopped
me and lovingly, but firmly said, "Laura, I really feel like God wants me
to tell you this: He has a husband for you. But, he's not ready for you
yet."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Little did I realize, God was preparing my now husband during both of
those rock-bottom moments. During that late-night drive, Erik was a junior in
college, just becoming comfortable in his own skin and learning to be a godly
man. When I was crying in my co-worker's office, Erik was fresh out of college,
struggling to find God's call on his life. God knew I needed this particular
man, but he wasn't ready to be married yet; so He kept working on Erik behind
the scenes – and putting up with my tantrums when I didn't understand the
incessant delays – until he was exactly the man I needed. How thankful I am God
waited to bring my husband until he was mature and perfectly ready for me!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Hindsight is always 20/20, and with this new perspective, I'm learning
to trust that God does know what's best for me and is always working behind the
scenes, even when I don't see His movements.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If you feel like God's asleep below deck and unconcerned about the
frustrating events in your life, take heart. Maybe He's just dreaming up
something better than you ever could have imagined for yourself.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-9559242034990457832014-10-06T19:33:00.002-07:002014-10-06T19:33:17.408-07:00Passion is Powerful<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZOKjNyfjgPp06uQ2OavPX532BKjdpqNj6nb_XvZ_FSDyBKzM9GbuODjqn58fp6LA1EzhvCCYAXczZYegpTJiSJP6-rl0aY7j8-7-WeU3rdLpcXa9yot8UoyCu7eB-eWga7pFBLhg67TB/s1600/PASSION.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZOKjNyfjgPp06uQ2OavPX532BKjdpqNj6nb_XvZ_FSDyBKzM9GbuODjqn58fp6LA1EzhvCCYAXczZYegpTJiSJP6-rl0aY7j8-7-WeU3rdLpcXa9yot8UoyCu7eB-eWga7pFBLhg67TB/s1600/PASSION.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: John L. M.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The starting point of all accomplishment is desire. Keep this in
mind: feeble desires bring feeble results just as a small amount of fire makes
a small amount of heat. Be passionate about your life.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Deep desire creates not only its own opportunities, but its own
talents. Attitudes alter abilities. It's passion that persuades. Does
the path you're traveling capture your heart? Learn to be comfortable with
being enthusiastic.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Every time zeal and passion are discussed someone brings up balance.
Balance is a tremendous virtue, but the immediate neighbors of balance are
apathy and weakness. Being balanced is usually an excuse for being lukewarm.
Indifference, lukewarmness, and neutrality are always attached to failure.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Enthusiasm can achieve in one day what it takes centuries to achieve by
reason. Put a smile on what you do. When your enthusiasm increases, stress and
fear in your life diminish.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Passion is powerful.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-23389740412270930122014-09-28T00:57:00.002-07:002014-09-28T00:57:22.899-07:00God's Masterpiece<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGkSzWr75aWqzsm2xt4_m6S8jIGNVU9t4jmLWM1ypo73fRUKSEuumB7Ag2tRoc9nM1SDH3md4RnChxWtxOFyPMnYE69CHBI-H-iNtOM4bH0bq3moy3zyd1NDM3TZKl2YuEmI5raEkavKO/s1600/GOD'S%2BMASTERPIECE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGkSzWr75aWqzsm2xt4_m6S8jIGNVU9t4jmLWM1ypo73fRUKSEuumB7Ag2tRoc9nM1SDH3md4RnChxWtxOFyPMnYE69CHBI-H-iNtOM4bH0bq3moy3zyd1NDM3TZKl2YuEmI5raEkavKO/s1600/GOD'S%2BMASTERPIECE.jpg" height="238" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: C. Irvin</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Have you ever sat and really looked at God's handiwork? Isn't it
amazing? You can see the starlit sky at night. The stars seem to shine like
diamonds. Or have you ever watched the heavens at dawn when it looks like a
blazing orange canvas? Even when stormy days come, filled with gray skies and
torrents of rainfall, and winds sway the trees like they are dancing, it is a
sight to see the wonders of God's artistic hand.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I couldn't help from daydreaming the other day as I gazed out my
window. I watched the lightening and heard the thunder. The rain was so heavy
you could hardly see the shapes of the trees. The Creator of the universe
created all that artwork. Our minds are captivated at the wonders of God's
creation. Flowers bounce back after torrents of rain. Birds and squirrels even
sit in the trees as if to watch what is happening around them. Yet in all this
beautiful scenery there is something greater.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">His greatest masterpiece is you and me. Wow! When the Lord created
the heavens and the earth, He rested and said all that He made was good. Yet,
something was missing… us. So He made man in the image and likeness of Himself.
Man and woman were created to have fellowship with God. We weren't the
afterthought in creation. We were the special finishing touches. He longs for
the day when he shall gather His children and we shall be with Him for all
eternity.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Lord dropped a thought in my heart. He loves us so much he chose not
to live without us at the beginning of creation nor when He went to the cross!
We are His greatest work of art, so valuable that He says we are the apples of
His eye.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto
the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of
his eye. He says we are His workmanship (Zechariah 2:8).</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works,
which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Next time you look in the mirror, see what God sees and cherish your
time on this earth. Take time to tell Him how much you love Him and all He has
done for you. Try not to take life for granted, but rather value it. I see the
tiny newborn baby who looks for someone to hold it and take care of
it. I am glad that their mother chose not to abort them. Then I think of the
sick and elderly people, and how they look to the Lord to help them.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The point I am trying to make is that you are the most prized
possession God has. You are His masterpiece. What matters most to Him is you.
He loves you.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-18026076136969706322014-09-12T00:20:00.000-07:002014-09-12T00:20:01.018-07:00Giants in the Land<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UZspzMR_OhKErh1WhhUi02PXo-9uFkvKDRtDdDcNl3FD5892HngNHbp-wt7YgGXm7E6ZfGvnEWroQvuV_kKwH3Wt2DXR1biq0cufhqgROU-X2aAoESvj1NDi8FyiCfe98SKaOBWlZJYZ/s1600/GIANTS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UZspzMR_OhKErh1WhhUi02PXo-9uFkvKDRtDdDcNl3FD5892HngNHbp-wt7YgGXm7E6ZfGvnEWroQvuV_kKwH3Wt2DXR1biq0cufhqgROU-X2aAoESvj1NDi8FyiCfe98SKaOBWlZJYZ/s1600/GIANTS.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: M. McCrary<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"><br />
</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The land through which we have gone, in spying it out, is a land that
devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great
size (Numbers 13:32).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Perhaps you’ve wondered, as I have, why God required the Israelites to work so
hard to inherit a land He had already promised to give them. When someone
offers to do us a favor, we normally expect no strings to be
attached.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God has a long and storied history of requiring human activity to carry
out His will – not because He needs our help, but because He wants our hearts.
I’m not so sure we would relinquish this most vital of organs any other way.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If God did everything, He’d become a genie. If God did nothing, He’d
become an afterthought. If either was the case, the best you could say of us is
that we acknowledged God’s existence. But that’s not the same as knowing or
loving Him.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The only way for God to have a relationship with us is for God to have
a partnership with us. That’s His desire, and that’s one reason why He won’t
always give us the easy way out.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As you look out over the landscape of your own life, you may see some
very real problems. There are giants in the land. They aren’t living, breathing
Canaanites, but they’re a big deal to you – fear and guilt and worry – not to
mention the really big sources of pain like losing a child or watching a parent
grow old.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If He wanted to, God could remove these giants in His sleep. And we
sometimes slide into bed at night hoping He’ll do it in ours. He rarely does,
and for this, we should be thankful. Because if He magically removed all the
problems in our lives without asking us to do anything hard, anything
“impossible,” we would never be able to demonstrate faith. That means we would
live our entire lives without ever pleasing God. We would gain the Promised
Land in such a way that it would cost us the very thing we need most: a
relationship with our Creator.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We serve a God who has the ability to do anything, but chooses not to.
He doesn’t let us off so easily. But the real beauty of it all is
that, even when He requires us to do the seemingly impossible, it’s never as
difficult as it appears. And sometimes, it’s almost easy – at least after that
first difficult step.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In the end, all we need is faith . . . midget-sized faith. That’s all
it takes to embolden us to walk into the land of giants, trusting God to either
make them smaller, or to make us bigger.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-72845021032118011682014-09-07T19:31:00.004-07:002014-09-07T19:31:51.824-07:00Choices<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2jT3hM8WMcZNK1OciweADcjiVqmZBjIxsBoPXvlVjxr5THp3kKr5ejbTVGUjrYMhyphenhyphenNNz3oxM4re5uB-ykQs5IRVpUzl0C7rvQ2KCjMQi4u6mOBaQEg_pUHSQQ39P0I0MVyomQeZ2Sa-4V/s1600/CHOICES.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2jT3hM8WMcZNK1OciweADcjiVqmZBjIxsBoPXvlVjxr5THp3kKr5ejbTVGUjrYMhyphenhyphenNNz3oxM4re5uB-ykQs5IRVpUzl0C7rvQ2KCjMQi4u6mOBaQEg_pUHSQQ39P0I0MVyomQeZ2Sa-4V/s1600/CHOICES.jpg" height="246" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: C. Davis</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> “To obey is better than sacrifice …”1 Samuel 15:22 (NIV)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Life is full of meaningful moments, days and events. Often, when
thinking of anniversary moments, we think of weddings, birthdays, deaths, and
other special events which impact our lives.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A while back, an interesting discussion took place at church regarding
the high price of gasoline ($4.19/gallon at the time) and how it would affect
travel to out-of-town weddings and graduation parties. The majority felt it
would be less expensive to not travel, and add extra to a money gift.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Suddenly, my husband Wade, popped up from his seat and said, “I have a
story to share!” He told of a man who had faithfully attended an out of town
archery shoot for ten years. It was one of the biggest in the Midwest and he
looked forward to it every year.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">One day he opened his mail and found an invitation to a graduation
party for the same weekend. This man was immediately filled with conflict over
which event to attend. The graduate was the daughter of a close friend he had
known since he was 3-years-old. On the other hand, the archery shoot had been a
top priority in his life for many years; one he anticipated with great
excitement as it involved an extended weekend of camping, shooting and renewing
friendships. What a dilemma!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When he sought advice from his friends at work, they suggested sending
a card and some money. “After all, they only want the money,” was the
consensus. The man agreed, and yet he couldn’t get rid of the nagging feeling
he should go to the party.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A few seconds passed; then Wade quietly shared . . . “That man was me.
Had I just sent the check, I would have missed out on a big blessing!” he
reflected, as he pointed toward me. Yes, we met at that graduation party,
married two years later, and recently celebrated our ten year anniversary.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As he ended, the story brought to mind a favorite scripture, “… choose
for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . But as for me and my
household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Wade made a choice that year to be obedient to the prodding of the Holy
Spirit. Even though he was a new Christian, he knew in his heart an important
choice must be made. He chose to sacrifice an exciting weekend and the desires
of his own heart to make a decision that would have positive, lasting
consequences far beyond both of our imaginations.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Choices made correctly result in blessings, both seen and unseen.
However, incorrect choices can be, and most likely will be,
“blessing-blockers”. What choices are before you today? What blessings could
you missing?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Father God, so many choices come our way daily, even hourly. We pray
for your heavenly guidance and wisdom in making these decisions. Holy Spirit,
we thank you for your counsel and direction. And Lord Jesus, most of all, we
give thanks for your sacrifice for us; so undeserving are we of your love,
mercy and grace. Amen.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-36971874793648799592014-08-29T02:38:00.002-07:002014-08-29T02:38:29.374-07:00Betrayed By a Friend<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2G1SE6GJ0HyLOzsDIA0hjoKujo08O7H-hL2krREmsZeFAe2RyBkU-O9KkybVvBcWXe9g6SI3_qWUdRXxzgMrUN9lG2LqgH6vOiJr9s6B4teneIm5fdiOv7M22KOnSgGt3Fg7nUPIXpDO/s1600/BETRAYED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2G1SE6GJ0HyLOzsDIA0hjoKujo08O7H-hL2krREmsZeFAe2RyBkU-O9KkybVvBcWXe9g6SI3_qWUdRXxzgMrUN9lG2LqgH6vOiJr9s6B4teneIm5fdiOv7M22KOnSgGt3Fg7nUPIXpDO/s1600/BETRAYED.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: M. Johnson</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"It is not an enemy who taunts me—I could bear that. It is not my
foes who so arrogantly insult me—I could have hidden from them. Instead, it is
you—my equal, my companion and close friend. What good fellowship we once
enjoyed as we walked together to the house of God. Let death stalk my
enemies; let the grave swallow them alive, for evil makes its home
within them."Psalm 55:12-15 (NLT)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Of all experiences in life, betrayal by a trusted friend is one of the
most difficult to bear.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Because of his preaching of judgment, Jeremiah found himself
increasingly isolated until finally his close friends turned against him,
seeking his downfall (Jeremiah 20:10).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Similarly, our lamenting psalmist describes an intimate friendship:
"my equal, my companion, my familiar friend, with whom I kept pleasant
company" (<a href="http://bible.cbn.com/ContentView.aspx?book=19&sc=55&sv=13&ev=14&phrase=Psalm%2055:13-14">verses
13-14</a>).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">They had worshiped together in the house of God, but now the friend has
joined the enemies. From his enemies he could hide (<a href="http://bible.cbn.com/ContentView.aspx?book=19&sc=55&sv=12&ev=12&phrase=Psalm%2055:12">verse
12</a>), but how can he deal with treachery?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Betrayal by a close friend is devastating. It produces a feeling of
worthlessness for having trusted an untrustworthy person. If foments anger and
depression. It raises questions about our judgment. Because of the intimate
friend's knowledge of our situation, such betrayal has great potential for
further damage.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The betrayed psalmist turns to God, but with what language! He curses
them to "go down alive to Sheol" (<a href="http://bible.cbn.com/ContentView.aspx?book=19&sc=55&sv=15&ev=15&phrase=Psalm%2055:15">verse
15</a>). In ancient Israelite thought, Sheol was the grave, around which might
hover the specters or shadows of the dead.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But here the thought perhaps includes also the idea of punishment for
the "evil [that] is in their homes and in their hearts" (<a href="http://bible.cbn.com/ContentView.aspx?book=19&sc=55&sv=15&ev=15&phrase=Psalm%2055:15">verse
15</a>). So also, Jeremiah prayed that his enemies "will not succeed"
and that "their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten" (Jeremiah
20:11).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Can we do better, even in the extremity of betrayal by a friend? We can
perhaps not rid ourselves of our negative emotions, but we can keep in mind
that revenge is counterproductive. The word "forgiveness" in New
Testament Greek means to "let go" -- not necessarily to have a change
of emotion. If we can let go of such experiences we can move beyond our
betrayal.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Help me, Lord God, to let go of the hurts that have come my way. Amen.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-36874037215950006222014-08-24T07:51:00.002-07:002014-08-24T07:51:36.522-07:00Enjoy All Our Years<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0aw0dR_VLJH2Kxwl3di2Dbu02gqR50IMnRwUtB1xB90z7hhhyphenhyphenRH6mdWmc2w4JR7lhTFG7JPndSEDDgUaZ3kZZ5QJIqTT2tCwn-DSKfngooqo8E5O8BY5Rth3gLMNHeGwykLRP2rE3_JQ/s1600/ENJOY+OUR+YEARS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0aw0dR_VLJH2Kxwl3di2Dbu02gqR50IMnRwUtB1xB90z7hhhyphenhyphenRH6mdWmc2w4JR7lhTFG7JPndSEDDgUaZ3kZZ5QJIqTT2tCwn-DSKfngooqo8E5O8BY5Rth3gLMNHeGwykLRP2rE3_JQ/s1600/ENJOY+OUR+YEARS.jpg" height="224" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: E. Jones</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">However many years a man may live, let him enjoy them all. - Ecclesiastes
11:8</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Twenty-six years ago I drove my wife to the emergency room. For the
next eight hours we played backgammon while waiting for her condition to
improve. It didn't. The pain became unbearable; they gave her drugs. This
helped, but not enough. My parents were in Atlantic City, gambling. Hers in
Charlotte. So there we were, a young couple facing our first life or death
moment without friends or family nearby.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I forget what I wore that day. A surf shirt, probably. I do recall
wearing a white headband with the word "Coach" printed in blue
marker. I guess I was a good coach because later that evening she delivered a
baby boy, our first.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Birthdays are a big deal in our family. Not as big as Christmas, but
close. Birthdays mark our beginnings and suggest we might leave a lasting
impression on others. In our family, when it comes to birthdays, nobody does a
better job of celebrating our legacy of life than my cousin Ricky.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A typical "Cousin Ricky" birthday box includes a specially
mixed CD with songs from the year you were born, DVD movies tailored to your
tastes, toys from the Dollar store and candy. Lots and lots of candy. Sometimes
the candy has melted by the time the box arrives, but that's okay. Chocolate in
any condition and shape is good.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In the past I've received a plastic whistle (with compass) to help ward
of bears and keep me from getting lost on the trails above Black Mountain, old
Westerns DVDs, several copies of the movie Jaws (in case the player eats one),
CDs with music from Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Beach Boys, Beatles, etc…
and candy. Lots and lots of candy.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The writer of Ecclesiastes advises us to enjoy all our years – not just
those early ones when people were making a fuss over us. Too often we adults
discount birthdays and other days and pretend they're not a big deal. But they
are. Every day is huge. If you don't think so, try living without one.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I wish every family had a Cousin Ricky. I wish I cared about people as
much as Ricky. None of us knows how many years we'll have together; but it seems
to me, setting aside one day out of 365 to acknowledge the life of someone we
love is a small testimony to their worth.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Psalmist writes: All the days ordained for me were written in your
book before one of them came to be. - Psalm 139:16. When it comes to
birthdays, "B" in the moment. Inhale the sweet smell of fresh cut
grass on a ball field and hear the sequels of laughter on a playground. Taste
and see that God is good today and everyday.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The next time a friend or family member has a birthday, give candy and
a song from their good old days. The shipping will probably cost more than the
gift but that's okay. It's the thought that counts.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And thoughts of love and life are priceless.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-43176502660648524592014-08-15T22:29:00.004-07:002014-08-15T22:29:35.188-07:00A Child's Faith<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUoNpCSLTl4FWbpVNcRSGE2o12nlM6B63RgS8MQV_oASgsEr5CB-f_bzMipdFUj6UfK1X_pEuxufOFJHjPKI7IBxhNRZWw1MfgVCw0_VpBtIgVOdwj4K-FSRkvNiVAe2MYCVgX6vI27KJ0/s1600/BOY+PRAYING.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUoNpCSLTl4FWbpVNcRSGE2o12nlM6B63RgS8MQV_oASgsEr5CB-f_bzMipdFUj6UfK1X_pEuxufOFJHjPKI7IBxhNRZWw1MfgVCw0_VpBtIgVOdwj4K-FSRkvNiVAe2MYCVgX6vI27KJ0/s1600/BOY+PRAYING.jpg" height="195" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: S. Jaynes</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A little child will lead them. Isaiah 11:6</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“And dear God,” my little boy whispered, “I pray that you give Mommy
and Daddy another Jaynes baby.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">After four years of praying for God to bless us with a second child, we
realized that might not be His plan for our family. However, every night my
little boy, Steven, prayed for another “Jaynes baby.” But how do you tell
someone to stop praying a prayer?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As I pondered this dilemma, God took care of it for me. Just before his
fifth birthday Steven and I were sitting at his child-sized table eating peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches. He looked up at me, and with all the wisdom of the
prophets asked, “Mommy, have you ever thought that God might want you to have
only one Jaynes baby?”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“Yes, son, I have,” I said. “And if that’s the case, I’m glad He gave
me everything I ever wanted in one package when He gave me you.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“Well, what I think we ought to do is pray until you’re too old to have
one. Then we’ll know that was His answer.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Steven had no idea how old “too old” was. He knew Sarah in the Bible
was 90 when she delivered Isaac. But whatever the outcome, Steven wasn’t having
a problem with God saying no. My son knew I said no to him many times, and no
didn’t mean “I don’t love you.” Rather it meant “I’m your parent, and I know
what’s best for you.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God taught me a great lesson that day. Through Steven’s childlike
faith, God gave me an example of the attitude of trust I should have toward my
heavenly Father who loves me and knows what’s best for me . . . and sometimes
that means accepting when His answer is no.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-47928616946730344112014-08-08T18:06:00.003-07:002014-08-08T18:06:56.614-07:00Sweeping the Places No One Sees<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitsdkJk8iU1MAo17_DVk-YzbuR-lgHENeMwduLqlmi39dWDdzgwPvyfRL7HQgVJrwSombcZwNqTXEE3KVs8vylgmhy1m9eVzf2gekYIlUAcKZog3hKaGJaelRygrM9FUDC2vdESybbj0Zp/s1600/SWEEPING.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitsdkJk8iU1MAo17_DVk-YzbuR-lgHENeMwduLqlmi39dWDdzgwPvyfRL7HQgVJrwSombcZwNqTXEE3KVs8vylgmhy1m9eVzf2gekYIlUAcKZog3hKaGJaelRygrM9FUDC2vdESybbj0Zp/s1600/SWEEPING.jpg" height="320" width="267" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: N. Jeter</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I must admit I’m not a very thorough housekeeper. As long as things are
reasonably organized and superficially clean, I’m satisfied. Though I have a
horror of clutter, I tend to neglect ceiling fans and baseboards and the rather
out-of-the-way areas that a more conscientious cleaner might maintain
well-dusted and well-scrubbed.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But I’m indebted to an elderly woman in England for reminding me of the
importance of sweeping the places no one sees.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Early in the morning on a recent trip to England, I looked down from my
bedroom window and spotted a small gray-haired woman slowly and meticulously
sweeping the concrete slab in front of her home. The street was lined with row
houses and this particular woman had basement rooms, just below street level,
so that you would actually have to lean over the railing to see her front
porch.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Why, I wondered, would anyone wake up so early in the morning to sweep
a place so inconspicuous, so out of the way … a place that no one ever really
sees?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Perhaps she was expecting a special guest. Perhaps she was
obsessive-compulsive and couldn’t rest knowing that the porch remained unswept.
Whatever her reasons, it struck me as I watched her that I, too, have unswept
places that no one sees. Often I’m so busy fixing and cleaning the more obvious
places that I don’t take time for the places that only God and I can see. I
know deep inside that it should be the other way around: if I start by allowing
God to sweep out the secret places of my heart, then some of the more visible
places will take care of themselves.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">King David understood and demonstrated the importance of coming clean
before God when he prayed such transparent prayers as, “Create in me a pure
heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10, NIV) and
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See
if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm
139:23-24, NIV)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Do you desire to keep your heart continually cleansed before God?
Praying without ceasing, as Paul commanded in I Thessalonians 5:17, is a
good place to start. Here are ten easy ways to incorporate prayer into your
day:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">1. Pray in the morning when you first open your eyes. Thank
God for making it through the night and for the day ahead.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">2. Pray in the shower. Thank God for his many attributes,
like his goodness, faithfulness and grace.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">3. Pray over breakfast. Thank God for the food he has blessed
you with and that you don’t have to go to school or to work hungry.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">4. Pray during your daily quiet time. Pray for your family,
your friends, your neighbors.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">5. Pray during your morning commute. Pray for the people on
either side of you. Pray over the work day and ask the Lord for wisdom, guidance
and divine appointments.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">6. Pray over lunch. Thank God for food to nourish your body
and give you strength for the day.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">7. Pray during the mid-afternoon slump. Pray that the Lord
will help you finish the day strong. Pray for your colleagues and bosses.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">8. Pray during your commute home. Pray for the people on
either side of you in traffic, that God will reveal himself to them in a
special way. Pray over their homes and their lives.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">9. Pray over dinner. Thank the Lord for a productive day and
a chance to unwind.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">10. Pray before going to sleep. Pray that God will give you
and yours the peaceful rest that you need. Thank him for the day and for his
many blessings.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Remember the elderly lady in England to whom I’m much indebted? There’s
a little more to her story. Later that day, I glanced out of my window and saw
an elderly gentleman arrive at the woman’s doorstep, flowers in hand. Mystery
solved! Love is a powerful motivator. And love, too, should motivate us to rise
early in the morning, to sweep out the inmost places through communion with
God, getting everything straightened out before the “day-to-day” has a chance
to introduce its dust and grime into our lives.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This spiritual housekeeping is our most important task of the day.</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-5859835855753645542014-08-02T02:45:00.002-07:002014-08-02T02:45:37.750-07:00Worst Case Scenarios<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21MhH2cgZXE8TeIPtJpWKzo8sqOg_52t3z2DO23F1YVkMRbkNOsrT-AvRnw1Lgjg0tPl-hhB84X1pdD3KuAQ7S9pYuN-33d7w_4x1oYJ2L_Dt6pqZIISJLbq9xPfdlREHbXUZI15POoTJ/s1600/WORST+CASE+SCENARIO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21MhH2cgZXE8TeIPtJpWKzo8sqOg_52t3z2DO23F1YVkMRbkNOsrT-AvRnw1Lgjg0tPl-hhB84X1pdD3KuAQ7S9pYuN-33d7w_4x1oYJ2L_Dt6pqZIISJLbq9xPfdlREHbXUZI15POoTJ/s1600/WORST+CASE+SCENARIO.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: E. Jones</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself, enter the
silence. Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Don't run
from trouble. Take it full-face. The "worst" is never the worst. Lamentations
3:29 (The Message)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"What's the worst that could happen?" I asked the college
admissions officer.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"You could flunk out."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Not if you won't let me in, I can't. Please, sir, isn't there
some place you can put me?"</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I sat in the admissions office at NC State hoping they'd give me a
chance. That's all I needed, just a shot. But a look of disgust spread across
the face of the clerk reviewing my transcripts. Months earlier, with SAT scores
in the lower latitudes and grades barely above average, my college application
had been swiftly dismissed.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Son, I'd like to help, but honestly; you have no business at this
university. Worse, you have no hope of graduating."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I persisted. (Tenacity was all I had left after he'd insulted my
intelligence.) He finally relented, admitting they had a few unfilled slots in
the Industrial Arts Program. Art, I thought. I hate art. And painting boring
buildings at that.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Okay," I said. "Industrial Arts it is."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Four years later I graduated with a degree in English.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">My life remains a series of "worst case scenarios" that never
happened. As a professional writer, I'm assured of only one thing: rejection.
Each month my wife asks me; "Where's the work gonna come from?" I
never know. But it always does.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And always has.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Despite my caustic personality I spent eighteen years as a paper
salesman, three times making the President's Council. After a career in sales
(and even though I could barely spell HTML), IBM hired me to code web pages.
When I left Big Blue, I launched my own web design firm even though I knew
nothing about running a business. Despite suffering through one of the worst
economic periods in the past 50 years, I prospered and eventually sold the
business. Each time it looked as if I'd reached a dead-end. I hadn't.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Old Testament writer laments: Life is hard. Amen to that! But the
writer also coaches us on how to deal with life's adversities. Seek solitude,
pray, don't doubt God's goodness, and stop asking "why me, what's next,
and how, when and where, Lord?" We're to face our difficulties with a
full-on, in-your-face tenacity.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mark Twain once quipped; "I am an old man and have known a great
many troubles, but most of them never happened."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have, too. And the thing I've found after each "dead-end"
was the next thing was better than the one before. Each lost job led to better
work. Not necessarily better pay (as my wife is quick to remind me), but more
fulfilling. I still dream about my prior jobs but when I wake up, I call them
what they are: nightmares. I don't want to "go back" because God is
calling me to "come on."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">What "worst-case scenario" looms before you? Don't run from
it. Seek God in silence, voice your concerns, and wait for His strength.
Chances are, your "worst case scenario" won't happen, but if it does,
at least you'll face it with God by your side.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out
weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves
with them. Psalms 126:5-6 (Today's New International Version)</span></div>
Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-15577441330329613572014-05-06T22:09:00.002-07:002014-05-06T22:11:38.722-07:00Cricket Mentalities<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64iLOE-T9NCZn_r9H3YwJyi8rqv60fRj54ZPzJ3Q9PIzTc1SX9OM9DxXF0Opz7gFy6-k82iBX-zAYyoE2xVXn7t0GgvGYVQVSDcXshNMfxVSA8aB_U0Dg80ArKZ0APfnjhpb7ZZdp7b1f/s1600/CRICKET.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64iLOE-T9NCZn_r9H3YwJyi8rqv60fRj54ZPzJ3Q9PIzTc1SX9OM9DxXF0Opz7gFy6-k82iBX-zAYyoE2xVXn7t0GgvGYVQVSDcXshNMfxVSA8aB_U0Dg80ArKZ0APfnjhpb7ZZdp7b1f/s1600/CRICKET.jpg" height="248" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: D. Delay<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I recently heard a story that may help
us. A young boy had caught a handful of crickets and put them in a wide-mouth
jar. He placed inside the jar your typical supplies: grass, flies, berries,
etc. Then he put the lid on the jar with several holes punched in it so the
crickets could breathe. Immediately, they began jumping hysterically trying to
get out of the jar only to hit the lid and bounce back down. This behavior went
on for a couple of days and then suddenly stopped. The crickets became content
with their jar, moving about inside it, eating and adapting to their new
surroundings. But when the boy decided to take the lid off, the crickets didn't
notice. Wanting to see what would happen, he left the lid off the jar – but the
crickets never tried to escape. Before, they had tried to get out only to be
beaten down. Now that they could leave, they contently stayed. Why? Because in
the process of time, they had programmed themselves to believe their fate was
sealed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Unfortunately, many Christian are like
these crickets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Proverbs 4:23 says, "Keep your
heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life." In
other words, be careful what you believe. If you believe you are a failure, an
outcast, or unworthy, you will believe your “jar" is your fate, when in reality
it is nothing but a barrier to the truth. "Keep (or guard) your heart with
all diligence, for OUT OF IT spring the issues of life." Whatever belief
system you put in your heart is what will come out. And whatever comes out of
your heart is the picture you believe. This can be a very unhealthy cycle.
Others can tell you the truth and even point to the exit, but if you don't
believe it, you will never attempt it – no matter how good it sounds. "For
as a man thinks in his heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). When the crickets
no longer believed there was an escape, they stopped trying to find one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Hebrew word for issues in Proverbs
4:23 is literally translated as boundaries or controlling factors. So the
Psalmist is saying: "Keep (or guard) your heart with all diligence, for
out it spring the (boundaries or controlling factors) of life." Maybe
someone beat us down with their words or treated us with contempt or prejudice.
We may have fought back at first, but over time, the fight got tiresome and
little by little we adjusted our whole life to fit within the lie. Therefore,
(often unknowingly) the words and actions of others, and then our own words and
actions built an invisible prison.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Thankfully, there are two sides to every
coin. When we learn the truth of who we are in Christ Jesus and the
righteousness we have received through faith in Him, the lid is removed. Then
as we guard our heart, allowing only the truth of God’s Word to reside there,
out of the self-same heart good boundaries and controlling factors will spring
up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Apostle Paul said, “Having been set
free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:18). Sin caged us
in. But righteousness, and our understanding of it, set us free. So guard your
heart!</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">ADs: </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-82210944872138583752014-04-29T00:55:00.002-07:002014-04-29T03:30:43.649-07:00Keeping Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAr2nSG3rSKftx6xJ-ZJeHfYHTTQf7GFbKQ8GridPzh2g21-6HPZpUGfIoag7cbmPCGkD_K3pImHvUWI-SL9U8AHc11R3IDDwyVCYDyjRPl2pcs7OPSsone7zHrKUyAs2u6DUmZtXnFDLh/s1600/PACING.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAr2nSG3rSKftx6xJ-ZJeHfYHTTQf7GFbKQ8GridPzh2g21-6HPZpUGfIoag7cbmPCGkD_K3pImHvUWI-SL9U8AHc11R3IDDwyVCYDyjRPl2pcs7OPSsone7zHrKUyAs2u6DUmZtXnFDLh/s1600/PACING.jpg" height="218" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: K. Anderson<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The music twirled and lifted under the
spotlighted gaze of the audience in the twilight hall. Beside me, little Anne
resonated, feet swinging gently, fingers twiddling tiny conductor’s patterns.
Baby Winston bounced in time on my knee. Three rows down, a child who was big
enough to know better set up a fuss, “It’s mine!” she whined.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God conducts the music of unfolding
history every day for us. Will we pay attention? Will we resonate, keeping time
to His patterns? Or will we with our own agendas and our beeper watches set up
some other measure?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God’s Creation is set up especially to
speak of Him, and the rhythms of time are no exception. The week is explicitly
established as a pattern of seven with the cadences of work danced in
demonstration by God Himself. Ever wonder who came up with a seven-day week?
Why not a neat ten? Genesis 1 and 2. The first work week in history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When God established a Sabbath day one
day out of seven, He explained that this was intended to be the pattern for our
imitation of Him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“Six days shalt thou labor and do all
thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD thy God; in it thou
shalt not do any work,…For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the LORD blessed
the sabbath day, and hollowed it.” (Ex 20:9-11)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And in so doing, He invites us to look
carefully at the rest of His work week to discern other patterns of work that
we should imitate in order to be effective.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Can we arrange our time so that our
schedules reverberate with God’s messages to us? So that our work patterns
remind us that there is a greater Work that we imitate? So that even washing
dishes takes on a beautiful dignity? Oh yes!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">James B. Jordan, in his book, Primeval
Saints, has a wonderful study of the manner in which worship transforms
our work and enables us in turn to transform the broken, ugly and unformed into
something more and more glorious.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Jordan points out that God models for us
again and again the six-fold pattern for our work.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We lay hold on the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We give thanks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We break it up and restructure it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We distribute it to others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We evaluate it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We enjoy it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Does this look familiar? When Jesus was
demonstrating how we are to remember His work,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke
it, and gave it to his disciples saying, ‘Take and eat. This is my body.’
Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them saying, ‘Drink from it
all of you. This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many
for the forgiveness of sins…’ When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the
Mt of Olives.” (Matt 26:26)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It is the pattern of the Creation Week,
of the Old Testament sacrificial system, of the Communion service, and (except
for the thanksgiving part) it is a pattern that we cannot help but follow.
Jordan maintains that if we, as believers, discipline ourselves to give thanks,
it is the pattern for dominion and for cultural revitalization. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
This can be the pattern for daily life. As you sit down on a Sunday to imitate
God in the arranging of your coming week,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Lay hold of your
lists and calendars.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Give thanks for
the time you have been given and for the help you have in your children (or
co-workers)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Divide your work
into manageable tasks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Distribute them
to the days and hours at your disposal, and, if you have children, to those
small helpers at your knee.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Consider whether
you can really do all that. Does something need to move or be re-assigned to
another worker? Or maybe it just needs to be ditched. Leave room to be
interrupted. Leave room for God to re-assign His work to you in the measure of
the dance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">-
<!--[endif]-->Enjoy the rest
brought by knowing your work will be done decently and in order.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Your life will never be the same. This
week, I hope you dance!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">ADs: </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive" style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-27294892266103071452014-04-21T04:18:00.004-07:002014-04-29T03:34:48.968-07:00Got Time for Patience?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkhXj1uNH1vyS_VygPyuhmq3xQZWqzgiANH-Tq4xH9EM1l-JORNUiHPb5O1QP45MG1EGxfrKGBDZ8GuSOf9xpOxAn1QeOKvb3F25DAhfAtH9V8AqFsEAr1XUSzLAgBU_dsbdhSagNLRde/s1600/PATIENCE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkhXj1uNH1vyS_VygPyuhmq3xQZWqzgiANH-Tq4xH9EM1l-JORNUiHPb5O1QP45MG1EGxfrKGBDZ8GuSOf9xpOxAn1QeOKvb3F25DAhfAtH9V8AqFsEAr1XUSzLAgBU_dsbdhSagNLRde/s1600/PATIENCE.jpg" height="238" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By. L. Kibler<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I sat there, reading my Bible, and tried
to still my jumpy legs. The day ahead filled my thoughts and I hurriedly read.
I peeked forward to see how long the chapter was. I have 35 more verses? Ugh. I
have so much to do, and I have to read another chapter after this. My morning
devotions come first thing (after I have made a cup of tea and peeled a
banana). I read through the Bible each year and on the morning I read Exodus
31-33, I rushed to finish. I had to hit the treadmill, do laundry, run to the
store, meet my accountability partner for lunch, figure out what to have for
dinner and get all the ingredients and then cook it. On and on my plans went.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In the chapters I read, the account of
the grumbling Israelites at Mt. Sinai convicted me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"When the people saw that Moses
delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together
to Aaron and said to him, '"Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As
for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not
know what has become of him."' (Exodus 32:1 ESV)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Then it hit me, the impatience of the
people at Mt. Sinai was mine. I too sat before the Lord grumbling and
stiff-necked. My daily idol of checking things off my list spoiled my precious
time with Him. At that realization, I paused to confess my sin and ask the
Lord's forgiveness for my hurried attitude. And I asked Him to open my eyes to
all that He wanted to tell me and teach me through His Word.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It does no good to be impatient with
God. Every time we try to hurry His actions or our reactions, we chase after
other gods, other idols to make ourselves feel better about who we are. So,
even knowing what we know about God, sometimes we remain stiff-necked, just as
the Israelites were during their days in the wilderness. Yet the Lord answered
the entreaties of their intercessor, Moses, and did not blot all of them out.
He preserved some. His glory and promises shown, even through their sin of
unfaithfulness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">That morning, I made myself slow down
and look carefully at how the Lord exposed the great sin of the Israelites. The
people supposed that Moses had forgotten them, and that his delay was cause for
them to create their own idols to worship. They knew he was with the Lord on
the mountain, but they wanted Moses, their visible leader, and they wanted him
immediately. Did they so soon forget what God had done? Had they made Moses
their idol?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">God rescued them from their Egyptian
yoke of slavery, and after only three months in the wilderness (safe from their
oppressors), they had already groused to Moses about leaving Egypt and its
resources ("We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the
cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic." Numbers
11:5 ESV). God had just given them His commandments in precise detail and
promised them their future conquest over Canaan, the Promised Land. They did
not know or come to understand their test of faithfulness. They did not know
that their time of wandering would be 40 years—40 years of impatient grumbling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Thank God Moses interceded for them,
although not all of them were saved. Actually, all who left Egypt 20-years-old
and upward, except Joshua and Caleb, perished before reaching the Promised
Land. Joshua and Caleb showed faith in the Lord and trusted His promises to
lead them in overtaking the inhabitants of the land they were to inhabit. God
rewarded Joshua and Caleb's patient faithfulness, but as for the faithless
remainder, He "let their carcasses fall in the wilderness" (Numbers
14:32).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As I reread those passages, I thanked
God for slowing my pace. He gave me the opportunity to reflect and learn. If
Joshua and Caleb gained such a reward for their patience during the time of
Israel's 40-year test in the wilderness, how could 40 minutes of reading not
benefit me? </span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">ADs: </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive" style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6437510786489747250.post-33237453283199168622014-04-18T02:31:00.001-07:002014-04-29T03:36:27.423-07:00Why Do Christians Suffer?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYx4tq3Q4DZKpBG5c2NQekT4ThyPOrgBqSfX29AVWM5tOSthuAaCvxQaYl645yDk3EjPiqwjphnBJ6vVgRDY_QRW8pQJ-FDgE2Gxq_4QCLSjq1A1QSbQwqQT1aVUz_5TNrLxsTncX4hnuD/s1600/SUFFERING.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYx4tq3Q4DZKpBG5c2NQekT4ThyPOrgBqSfX29AVWM5tOSthuAaCvxQaYl645yDk3EjPiqwjphnBJ6vVgRDY_QRW8pQJ-FDgE2Gxq_4QCLSjq1A1QSbQwqQT1aVUz_5TNrLxsTncX4hnuD/s1600/SUFFERING.jpg" height="182" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">By: J. Meyer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As Christians, we like the thought of
sharing in Christ's glory, but what about sharing in His suffering? Jesus took
care of the death penalty once and for all so we don't ever have to worry about
that again. But the Bible teaches that we must suffer times of trial if we are
to share in the glory. Is it worth it? Read what Paul says in <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:18&version=AMP" target="_blank">Romans 8:18</a>: ...For I consider that the sufferings of this
present time (this present life) are not worth being compared with the glory
that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us and conferred on us!<br />
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<b>Acting Right When Things Are Wrong<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Many of us think we suffer because of
our circumstances. We believe that if our circumstances would change, we'd be
able to act right. But God wants us to become so mature and stable that we act
right even when none of our circumstances are good. There are different levels
of faith, and most of the time we want to use our faith to get rid of a
problem. But sometimes God's plan is for us to exercise a higher level of faith
that will carry us through life's challenges. This requires even greater faith
than being delivered from a situation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Too often we marvel at the delivering
power of God and overlook His keeping, strengthening and enabling power.
Although there are many reasons why Christians suffer, I would like to address
what I believe are eight of the most common reasons why there is suffering in
our lives.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#1:
A Lack of Word Knowledge<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Many Christians suffer because they're
too busy seeking <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/carnal" target="_blank">carnal</a> knowledge
instead of the Word of God. The Lord Himself said, My people are destroyed
for lack of knowledge... (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hosea%204:6&version=AMP" target="_blank">Hosea 4:6</a>). Paul was an educated man, with a wealth of carnal
knowledge. When he realized the importance of spiritual knowledge, he said,
...I resolved to know nothing (to be acquainted with nothing, to make a display
of the knowledge of nothing, and to be conscious of nothing) among you except
Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and Him crucified (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%202:2&version=AMP" target="_blank">1 Corinthians 2:2</a>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Like Paul, we need to realize the
importance of learning spiritual things, for <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%206:8&version=AMP" target="_blank">Galatians 6:8</a> says, ...he who sows to his own flesh (lower
nature, sensuality) will from the flesh reap decay and ruin and destruction,
but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#2:
Disobedience<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Once we know the Word of God, we have a
responsibility to be obedient to it. Too many of us intend to be obedient, but
put it off. Even procrastination is disobedience, and it can cause us to
suffer. <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%204:7&version=KJV" target="_blank">James 4:7</a> gives us good advice: Submit yourselves
therefore to God... . When God tells me to do something, I find it helpful
to write it down. This serves as a reminder that I must be obedient if I want
God's blessings. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good
of the land (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%201:19&version=AMP" target="_blank">Isaiah 1:19</a>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#3:
To Purify and Test Your Faith<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Sometimes people seem surprised that
they must go through a time of trial or suffering. Perhaps they’ve been
faithful to learn and obey the Word, and the trials still come. Sometimes
trials come simply to test and purify our faith. [You should] be
exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be
distressed by trials and suffer temptations, so that [the genuineness] of your
faith may be tested, [your faith] which is infinitely more precious than the
perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire. [This proving of your
faith is intended] to redound to [your] praise and glory and honor when Jesus
Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) is revealed(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1Peter%201:6-7&version=AMP" target="_blank">1 Peter 1:6-7</a>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#4:
A Need for Brokenness<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The word brokenness may strike
fear in some people, but it's really not a bad word. God doesn’t desire to
break our spirits, but He wants to break that outer shell, the flesh that
prevents Him from being all He wants to be in and through us. He wants to break
off things like pride, rebellion, selfishness and independence. God wants us to
be totally dependent on Him, and suffering seems to bring us to that point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">However, having to depend on God
shouldn't cause us to feel sorry for ourselves. I once said, “Oh, God, I'm so
lonely, and I don't have anybody but You.” And the Holy Spirit said, "Poor
Joyce, you're just stuck with God." I've discovered that having only God
is a good position to be in.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#5:
To Build Compassion<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Compassion is born out of experiencing
similar problems. The Bible says, ...we do not have a High Priest Who is unable
to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our weaknesses and
infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation, but One Who has been
tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sinning (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%204:15&version=AMP" target="_blank">Hebrews 4:15</a>). It comforts me to know that Jesus understands me
and has compassion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Going through trials and experiencing
God's deliverance better equips us to minister to others. Our pain is never
wasted; it brings about compassion that reaches out to other hurting people by
saying, "I've been there, and God brought me through it, and He'll do the
same for you."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#6:
To Encourage Others<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The apostle Paul said there were many
things that God allowed him to go through simply as object lessons for other
people. ...I want you to know and continue to rest assured, brethren, that what
[has happened] to me [this imprisonment] has actually only served to advance
and give a renewed impetus to the [spreading of the] good news (the Gospel)....
most of the brethren have derived fresh confidence in the Lord because of my
chains and are much more bold to speak and publish fearlessly the Word of
God... (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%201:12-14&version=AMP" target="_blank">Philippians 1:12-14</a>). Even in Paul's imprisonment, his stability and
ability to be used of God was evident.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If we’re to minister to others, we too
must face some adverse circumstances. But if we stand in faith and confidence,
God will bring us through to victory, and we'll be a great encouragement to
others in the process.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#7:
Because of the Word<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Sometimes we suffer attacks from the
enemy simply because of our involvement with the Word of God.<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%204:17&version=AMP" target="_blank">Mark 4:17</a> speaks of those who hear the Word and endure it
for a while, ...then when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Word,
they immediately are offended (become displeased, indignant, resentful) and
they stumble and fall away. When someone receives the Word of God, Satan
delights in coming immediately to try to steal what’s been sown in their heart.
He knows the Word will strengthen us and help us live a victorious Christian
life, and he wants to stop it if he can. So it’s imperative to guard the Word
in your heart and resist the devil from stealing it away from you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">#8:
Because of Living in the World<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Christians may also face trials and
suffer simply because we live in a world full of sin. But Jesus said, “I
have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and
confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and
frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain,
undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm
you and have conquered it for you]” (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2016:33&version=AMP" target="_blank">John 16:33</a>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">What a promise! Understanding the reason
for our suffering and having the assurance of the final glory we'll share
should make it a little easier to enjoy our lives...even during the times of
sharing in suffering.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And if we are [His] children, then we
are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His
inheritance with Him]; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His
glory(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:17&version=AMP" target="_blank">Romans 8:17</a></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">).</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">ADs: </span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive" style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">https://www.facebook.com/ehdlive</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Eddie Heramiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14352315995305234460noreply@blogger.com0