The living God is not like us, that is all the more reason to seek Him. Tozer said: “what we think when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” What are we thinking? Isaiah 66:2: “But on this one will I look: On him who is of a poor and contrite spirit, and who trembles at My Word.” He is speaking of reverence. That is something I need to know. Listen to Pastor Dave’s message again. So many good lessons when we are in a valley with a shadow.
You and I were created to have an unbroken relationship with God and others. We were always meant to be in a loving functional relationship demonstrated by continuous and clear communication.
Have you ever found yourself in a mess and you can’t see a way out? There are relationship messes, a financial messes and legal messes to name a few. Sometimes we are in a mess because we “messed up”, other times we’re caught up in a world or turmoil or disarray that is beyond our control.
When it comes to your personal life are you a good planner? Do you enjoy making plans? In our family, we run the full spectrum. Some are meticulous planners and organize almost everything well in advance…
very great man and woman of God that we read about in the Bible has been confronted with the question of whether they are affecting culture or if the culture around them is affecting them. And in that question, a decision arises: Will you set a new trend, or simply follow along with society and what the culture of the day dictates?
I’ve got to be honest, this passage never really filled me with much joy or hope… I mean James paints a pretty bleak picture of how incapable we humans are at controlling such an unruly part of us. Reading this as a teenager hit pretty hard. Teenagers already have a hard enough time believing they’re good enough at doing stuff, here was another thing to add to the list. How many times did I crack a joke trying to fit in that really ended up being unkind? Why did I say that? It was frustrating to reflect on at the time, and then James went on to describe the tongue as a relentless evil full of deadly poison. Yikes. Was there any hope for any of us, I wondered?
What unites a family beyond genetics, could be faith, culture, hardship, hobbies, or a physical home. But one thing that is always true without fail, is how different every family member is. As every one gets older, the things that united the family, may not seem as significant anymore and differences may become much more apparent.
Have you ever felt as if your past mistakes, glaring flaws, and life circumstances have led you to a dark place limiting you from receiving something from God? Perhaps these have paralyzed you with inaction and wondered, “am I good enough to receive all that God has for me?”
Partiality based on appearances is wrong, it is not for the church. The Lord Jesus in John 7:24 began to speak to the multitude about John the Baptist: “What did you go out to see?” He was telling them not to judge by the way things look.
2020 will always be remembered as the year of the global COVID-19 pandemic. During this unprecedented year many dreams where shattered. Restaurants were closed, concerts cancelled, weddings shrunk, and holidays cancelled, just to name a few. Perhaps, you too, had a dream shattered in the last months. So how should the believer respond to a shattered dream?
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