Monthly Archives: March 2009

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Practice Friendliness Today!

Take some time and make an effort to be friendly today!  Smile and make people think that you are up to something!  Say hello and wake people up!  You will cross paths with many different people today – make sure that you do more than cross paths!  Make a connection!  With your smile and hello you may just remind them that there is a God of LOVE and that He cares for all of us!

If each one of us would do just our little bit, it would be amazing what could be accomplished for the Kingdom!  Look at me – I am smiling at you!  Smile back!  Now doesn’t that make you feel better!  Have a blessed day!

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The Invitation Of Need!

Hope Has More than She Needs!

Hope Has More than She Needs!

I am currently in the process of re-reading a book by Craig Groeschel, pastor of  www.lifechurch.tv.  In this book he makes the following statement:  “Maybe you’ve heard the old adage, “Where God guides, ha always provides.”  We’ve made up a new saying:  “God often guides by what he doesn’t provide.”

So many times in life we catch ourselves thinking “if I just had this or that, then I could do something with my life!”  We think that there is something else that we need to complete the calling that God has given us.  The fact is:  God has aready given us what we need!  The problem is:  We fail to see it!

A need is an invitation to stop, look around and take in all that God has already blessed you with!  A need allows you to look with a different set of eyes and see things that ordinarily you would overlook!  So don’t get caught up and stuck in what you don’t have, instead take some time to appreciate what you do have and then get busy doing something with it for God and His glory!

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Are You Becoming More Like Jesus?

Gracie & Daddy!Are you growing?  Do you know and love Jesus more this week, than you did last week?  You can’t know victory without growth!  We are to move/grow toward maturity.  Did you know that you can be healthy and not mature?  You can be in a relationship with Jesus, but if you are not growing in that relationship, then you will not be mature.  Did you know that you can be gifted and not mature?  You might have the ability to do amazing things with the skills, talents and gifts that God has given you.  With your actions you might look like you are growing in your relationship with Jesus, but if you are not really growing, then you are not maturing!

I know that I am maturing when I am becoming more like Jesus!  The goal of the church should be to present every person mature in Christ!  Here’s the question for today:  Are you becoming more like Jesus?  Think about it and be honest!  Now, what do you need to do about it?

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The Secret To Getting!

“Give and it will be given to you.  They will pour into your lap a good measure – pressed down, shaken together and running over.  For by the standard of measure you use, it will be measured unto you in return.”  Luke 6:38

We spend so much of our energy and effort in life trying to get!  Jesus tells us that the real secret to getting is giving!  A lot of the stuff that we work so hard to get, is really not even worth having after we get it.  Have you ever worked hard for something that you wanted and then when you finally got it, discovered that it was not all that you thought it was?

When we give our life away – life gives back to us!  It is usually not in the ways that we would think, but it is almost always in the way that we need.  When I give of myself to others and for others, life just has it’s way of giving back to me in incredible and amazing ways.  You can’t out give God and when you are giving your life for His glory, you will always have more than enough blessings!

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God’s Love!

This morning as I was on my way to visit the hospital, I could not help but think about the amazing love of God!  When the sun first begins to come up – it is just an amazing picture of how much God loves us.  I mean just think about it:  He does not have to make everything so beautiful and amazing, but He does and I believe that He does it for us.  In the sunrise and the sunset we see the beauty of our God who loves us and has a plan and purpose for our lives.

Just walk outside today – can you feel it?  The warmth of His love is all around you!  Just walk outside today – can you hear it?  The gentle whispers of His love are all around you!  Just walk outside today – can you see it?  The new life of His love is popping up and out all around you!

No matter what you are going through or facing today – remember this:  God loves you and if you are paying attention you can feel it, hear it and see it everywhere!

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Life!

Have you been outside this morning?  It is an absolutely amazing and beautiful day here in the upstate!  The sun is shining an comforting warmness!  The breeze is blowing a gentle coolness!  The birds are singing and if you open you eyes and look around, you will notice that everything is beginning to come back to life!  I love this time of year, because you see Resurrection all around you!

Go outside today and enjoy some of the Resurrection reminders that God has placed all around you!  And don’t forget to set you clock forward tonight.  We are going to have a great day at church tomorrow and I can almost guarantee that there will be no snow this Sunday!  So the only thing to keep you from being here is the devil and I know that you want let Him win!

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Just A Reminder!

Remember that prayer that became popular a few years ago?  Still need a little help?  The Prayer of Jabez found in 1 Chronicles 4:10!  I thought about it today and it has always been a good prayer and still is today!  It goes:  “Bless me indeed, enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.”

Remember:  God wants to bless you!  Everything belongs to God and He has given you a great big universe to run around and serve Him in.  He wants His hand upon you – so stop running away from Him.  He is here to help you, not to hurt you!  He wants to keep you away from evil, but you have to remember to help yourself.  And when you do help yourself by obeying Him, you will free yourself, as well as others from a lot of pain!

I hope you have a blessed weekend!

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Sacrificial Love!

Do you like surprises?  I love surprises!  Well – let me rephrase that:  I like good surprises!  And as I was going through my mail this morning,  I got one of those good surprises!  No – it was not “Publishers Clearing House”!  It was a small package from one of my church members.  When I opened it, I found a little book for pastors.  And inside of the book was a hand written note that expressed encouragement, appreciation and love!  IT MADE MY DAY!

I think one of the reasons that this was such a special blessing to me was because of the sacrifice that I know that this person had to make!  First, they sacrificed their time to think about me and then go through the motions of buying, packaging and mailing their special gift.  Second, they sacrificed themselves by not just thinking about doing a nice thing, but actually doing it!  Third, they sacrificed their resources to buy and mail this gift!  They were not content with just saying “I love and appreciate you!”  they wanted to show it in a real and tangible way!

I could not help but to stop and think about the love of Jesus for you and me!  It was a sacrificial love!  Real love is a sacrificial love!  Real love is willing to sacrifice for the one that the love is being expressed toward!  Think about your love for Jesus – how can you sacrifice for Him today?  Jesus said:  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love one for another.  (John 13:35)  Think about the people that you love – what kinds of sacrifices can you make for them this week that will express your love in a real way?  Now, don’t just think about it – DO IT!

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A Sound Mind!

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind!”  II Timothy 1:7 

As a child of God, you have nothing to be afraid of, because He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world!  Whatever comes your way, know this:  God will use it for good as you trust and love him!  Remember today:  Your power is God in you!  Your power is His love flowing to and through your life!  If you believe this, then you will have a sound mind – a mind filled with the peace and quietness of God! 

Remember who and whose you are and have a blessed day!