August 19, 2008

newness of life

"Lord Jesus, we come to Thee now as little children.

Dress us again in clean pinafores;

make us tidy once more

with the tidiness of true remorse and confession.

Oh, wash our hearts,

that they may be clean again.

Make us to know the strengthening joys of the Spirit,

and the newness of life which only Thou can give.

Amen."

- Peter Marshall

August 18, 2008

Make me Yours

"Don't make me good, Lord.

Make me yours.

If all I am is good

And I give it,

Then I give myself only.

But if I'm yours

when I give myself,

I give you.

And those I love

don't need me, good or bad.

They need you.

So, make me yours."

- John B. Coburn

August 17, 2008

wilderness trek

photo by Erin Doyle

"God puts us into the wilderness to test us,

to stretch our spiritual muscles.

Our earthly wilderness experiences

are designed to develop us into

men and women of faith.

Let's face it, our spiritual roots

grow deep only when

the winds around us are strong.

Take away the tests,

and we become spiritual wimps.

But bring on the wilderness winds,

and it's remarkable how we grow,

as our roots dig firmly into faith."

- Charles R. Swindoll

August 16, 2008

Lord, help me

Have you ever felt like throwing in the towel

and giving up?

Not sure if others read or hear your message?

Not sure, even then, if they have taken the time

to reflect on what was said

or received any spiritual blessing?

Not sure if even God hears you

when you pray for understanding and wisdom?

DO NOT GIVE UP.

Think about the blessing you receive

every time you pray, every time you reflect,

every time you research,

and every time you compose a message.

God hears, God will continue to speak to your heart,

and God will inspire you for His purpose.

You have no idea the effect your message has on others

and upon yourself.

Keep the faith and trust in Him.

You do His will and plant the seed

leaving the harvest entirely to Him.

"Lord help me persist although I want to give up.

Lord help me to keep trying

although I can't see what good it does.

Lord, help me to keep praying

although I'm not sure you hear me.

Lord, help me to keep living

in ways that seek to please You.

Lord, help me to know when to lead

and when to follow.

Lord, help me to know when to speak

and when to remain silent.

Lord, help me to know

when to act and when to wait."

- Marian Wright Edelman

(American activist for the rights of children...

president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund)

August 15, 2008

add depth

"We are commanded to stop (literally)...

rest, relax, let go, and make time for Him.

The scene is one of stillness and quietness,

listening and waiting before Him.

Such foreign business in these busy times!

Nevertheless, knowing God deeply and intimately

requires such discipline.

Silence is indispensable

if we hope to add depth to our spiritual life."

- Chuck Swindoll

(Intimacy with the Almighty;

Encountering Christ in the secret places of your life

Word Publishing, 1996)

August 14, 2008

spread His Gospel

There's a pretty little legend
That I would like to tell
Of the birth and death of Jesus
Found in this lowly shell.

If you examine closely,
You'll see that you find here
Four nail holes and a fifth one
Made by a Roman's spear.

On one side the Easter lily,
Its center is the star
That appeared unto the shepherds
And led them from afar.

The Christmas poinsettia,
Etched on the other side
Reminds us of His birthday,
Our happy Christmastide.

Now break the center open,
And here you will release
The five white doves awaiting
To spread Good will and peace.

This simple little symbol,
Christ left for you and me
To help us spread His Gospel
Through all eternity.
- Legend of the sand dollar

August 13, 2008

mission on earth

"'Our citizenship is in heaven.'

But let's never forget that our involvement

is on earth."

- Charles Swindoll

"I would rather die a meaningful death

than to live a meaningless life."

- Corazon Aquino

11th President of the Philippines

(She is a world-renowned advocate of democracy,

peace, women's empowerment,

and religious piety.)

"Here is your test to find out if your mission on earth is finished:

if you are alive it isn't."

- Richard David Bach

August 12, 2008

those with pure hearts

"God of our life, through all the circling years,

We trust in Thee;

In all the past, through all our hopes and fears,

Thy hand we see.

With each new day, when morning lifts the veil,

We own Thy mercies, Lord, which never fail.

God of the past, our times are in Thy hand;

With us abide.

Lead us by faith to hope’s true promised land;

Be Thou our Guide.

With Thee to bless, the darkness shines as light,

And faith’s fair vision changes into sight.

God of the coming years, through paths unknown

We follow Thee;

When we are strong, Lord, leave us not alone;

Our Refuge be.

Be Thou for us in life our daily Bread,

Our heart’s true Home when all our years have sped."

- Hugh T. Kerr

(God of Our Life)

"The righteous will move onward and forward,

and those with pure hearts will become stronger and stronger."

- Job 17:9 (Life Recovery Bible NLT)

August 11, 2008

joy and gladness

"Yet we must admit that we spend more of our time

concentrating and fretting over the things

that can’t be changed

than we do giving attention

to the one that we can change,

our choice of attitude.

Let’s choose each day and every day

to keep an attitude of faith and joy

and belief and compassion."

- Charles Swindoll

"Do you wonder where you can go

for encouragement and motivation?

Run to Jesus."

- Max Lucado

"Make me to hear joy and gladness..."

- Psalm 51:8 NASB

August 10, 2008

each honest worker

"Thank God every morning when you get up

that you have something that must be done,

whether you like it or not.

Work breeds a hundred virtues that idleness never knows."

- Charles Kingsley

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task,

but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks

as though they were great and noble.

The world is moved along,

not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes,

but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes

of each honest worker."

- Helen Keller

August 9, 2008

the test of our faithfulness

"It is only a faithful person who truly believes

that God sovereignly controls his circumstances.

We take our circumstances for granted,

saying God is in control,

but not really believing it.

We act as if the things that happen were completely controlled by people.

To be faithful in every circumstance

means that we have only one loyalty,

or object of our faith—

the Lord Jesus Christ.

God may cause our circumstances to suddenly fall apart,

which may bring the realization of our unfaithfulness to Him

for not recognizing that He had ordained the situation.

We never saw what He was trying to accomplish,

and that exact event will never be repeated in our life.

This is where the test of our faithfulness comes.

If we will just learn to worship God

even during the difficult circumstances,

He will change them for the better very quickly

if He so chooses.

Being faithful to Jesus Christ

is the most difficult thing we try to do today.

We will be faithful to our work,

to serving others, or to anything else;

just don’t ask us to be faithful to Jesus Christ.

Many Christians become very impatient

when we talk about faithfulness to Jesus.

Our Lord is dethroned more deliberately by Christian workers

than by the world.

We treat God as if He were a machine

designed only to bless us,

and we think of Jesus as just another one of the workers.

The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God,

but that He will be free to do His work through us.

God calls us to His service

and places tremendous responsibilities on us.

He expects no complaining on our part

and offers no explanation on His part.

God wants to use us as He used His own Son."

- Oswald Chambers

(My Utmost For His Highest)

August 8, 2008

turtle hug

photo by Erin Doyle

It's hard to give a really good hug

while remaining sheltered and confined

within your self-made shell.

Sure your shell seems to provide you

some false sense of security

but it limits your understanding,

your spiritual growth, and your ability to love.

Much better to open up and allow God to use you,

following His way for His glory.

Trust in the Lord through His Holy Spirit

for your growth "and" your security.

This will lead to increased wisdom, understanding,

discernment and His everlasting peace.

"Your pain is the breaking of the shell

that encloses your understanding."

- Kahlil Gibran

"The jewel of the soul is priceless,

and yet it is being squandered like this,

in exchange for a mere shell."

- Sri Guru Granth Sahib

Come out of your shell.

August 7, 2008

hoped to hear

"You can't, in most things, get what you want

if you want it too desperately:

anyway you can't get the best out of it...

'Now! Let's have a real good talk' reduces everyone to silence...

And so, perhaps, with God.

I have gradually been coming to feel

that the door is no longer shut and bolted.

Was it my own frantic need that slammed it in my face?

The time when there is nothing at all in your soul

except a cry for help

may be just the time when God can't give it:

you are like the drowning man who can't be helped

because he clutches and grabs.

Perhaps your own reiterated cries

deafen you to the voice you hoped to hear."

- C. S. Lewis

(A Grief Observed)

stand by His cross

"This is the will of God which Christ both did and taught:

humility in conversation; steadfastness in faith;

modesty in words; justice in deeds;

mercy in works; discipline in morals;

inabilty to do a wrong, and ability to bear a wrong done;

to keep peace with the brethren; to love God with all our hearts;

to love Him as a Father; to fear Him as God;

to prefer nothing above Christ

(because He did not prefer anything above us);

to adhere inseparably to His love;

and to stand by His cross bravely and faithfully."

- St. Cyprian (c. 200-258)

Bishop of Carthage and Martyr

perfect contemplation

"True recollection has characteristics by which it can be easily recognized.
It produces a certain effect which I do not know how to explain,
but which is well understood by those who have experienced it. . . .
It is true that recollection has several degrees,
and that in the beginning these great effects are not felt,
because it is not yet profound enough.
But support the pain which you first feel in recollecting yourself,
despise the rebellion of nature,
overcome the resistance of the body, which loves a liberty which is its ruin,
learn self-conquest, persevere thus for a time,
and you will perceive very clearly the advantages which you gain from it.


As soon as you apply yourself to orison [prayer],
you will at once feel your senses gather themselves together:
they seem like bees which return to the hive
and there shut themselves up to work at the making of honey:
and this will take place without effort or care on your part.


God thus rewards the violence which your soul has been doing to itself;
and gives to it such a domination over the senses
that a sign is enough when it desires to recollect itself,
for them to obey and so gather themselves together.


At the first call of the will,
they come back more and more quickly.
At last, after countless exercises of this kind,
God disposes them to a state of utter rest
and of perfect contemplation."
-Teresa of Avila

August 4, 2008

fountains of His love

"Love is not premeditated— it is spontaneous;

that is, it bursts forth in extraordinary ways.

There is nothing of precise certainty in Paul’s description of love.

We cannot predetermine our thoughts and actions by saying,

'Now I will never think any evil thoughts,

and I will believe everything that Jesus would have me to believe.'

No, the characteristic of love is spontaneity.

We don’t deliberately set the statements of Jesus

before us as our standard,

but when His Spirit is having His way with us,

we live according to His standard without even realizing it.

And when we look back,

we are amazed at how unconcerned we have been over our emotions,

which is the very evidence that real spontaneous love was there.

The nature of everything involved in the life of God in us

is only discerned when we have been through it

and it is in our past.

The fountains from which love flows are in God, not in us.

It is absurd to think that the love of God is naturally in our hearts,

as a result of our own nature.

His love is there only because

it 'has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit . . .'

( Romans 5:5 ).

If we try to prove to God how much we love Him,

it is a sure sign that we really don’t love Him.

The evidence of our love for Him

is the absolute spontaneity of our love,

which flows naturally from His nature within us.

And when we look back,

we will not be able to determine why we did certain things,

but we can know that we did them

according to the spontaneous nature of His love in us.

The life of God exhibits itself in this spontaneous way

because the fountains of His love are in the Holy Spirit."

- Oswald Chambers

(My Utmost for His Highest)

August 3, 2008

keep the light

Let your faith be so deeply rooted in the Word of God

that your light shines even in the darkest of places

and the darkest of times.

"Deep in their roots all flowers keep the light."

- Theodore Roethke

August 2, 2008

he who believes

"The human spirit will not even begin

to try to surrender self-will

as long as all seems well with it.

Now error and sin both have this property,

that the deeper they are

the less their victim suspects their existence;

they are masked evil.

Pain is unmasked, unmistakeable evil;

every man knows something is wrong when he is being hurt...

And pain is not only immediately recognisable evil,

but evil impossible to ignore.

We can rest contentedly in our sins

and in our stupidities;

and anyone who has watched gluttons

shovelling down the most exquisite foods

as if they did not know what they were eating,

will admit that we can ignore even pleasure.

But pain insists upon being attended to.

God whispers to us in our pleasures,

speaks in our conscience,

but shouts in our pain:

it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

- C. S. Lewis

(The Problem of Pain)

"The troubles of my heart have multiplied;

free me from my anguish.

Look upon my affliction and my distress

and take away all my sins."

- Psalm 25: 17,18 NIV

"But thanks be to God!

He gives us the victory

through our Lord Jesus Christ."

- 1 Corinthians 15:57 NIV

"...for everyone born of God overcomes the world.

This is the victory that has overcome the world,

even our faith.

Who is it that overcomes the world?

Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God."

- 1 John 5:4,5 NIV

Thru belief comes submission.

When you die TO self

you are allowing God to fill you with the Holy Spirit.

The dying OF self is a continual process

as the Holy Spirit works within you,

refining and purifying your soul.

Throughout this process (dying OF self)

we starve self of those things

that are not good for it.

"I don’t mean to say

that I have already achieved these things

or that I have already reached perfection.

But I press on to possess that perfection

for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.

No, dear brothers and sisters,

I have not achieved it,

but I focus on this one thing:

Forgetting the past

and looking forward to what lies ahead,

I press on to reach the end of the race

and receive the heavenly prize for which God,

through Christ Jesus,is calling us."

- Philippians 3:12-14 NLT

August 1, 2008

take heart

photo by Erin Doyle

"We are pressed on every side by troubles,

but we are not crushed.

We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.

We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God.

We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

Through suffering,

our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus

so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies."

- 2 Corinthians 4:8-10 NLT

"I answer that suffering is not good in itself.

What is good in any painful experience is,

for the sufferer,

his submission to the will of God."

- C. S. Lewis

(The Problem of Pain)

"I have told you these things,

so that in me you may have peace.

In this world you will have trouble.

But take heart! I have overcome the world."

- John 16:33 NIV

July 31, 2008

every good deed

"Grant, O God, that we may wait patiently,

as servants standing before their Lord,

to know thy will;

that we may welcome all truth,

under whatever outward forms it may be uttered;

that we may bless every good deed,

by whomsoever it may be done;

that we may rise above all party strife

to the contemplation of the eternal Truth and Goodness;

through Jesus Christ our Saviour."

- Charles Kingsley

July 30, 2008

one flock, one shepherd

"O God, you are the light of the world,

the desire of all nations,

and the shepherd of our souls:

let your light shine in the darkness,

that all the ends of the earth

may see the salvation of our God.

By the lifting up of your Cross

gather the peoples to your obedience;

let your sheep hear your voice

and be brought home to your fold

so that there may be one flock,

one shepherd,

one holy kingdom of righteousness and peace,

one God and Father of all,

above all, in all, and through all."

- W. E. Orchard

July 29, 2008

different these days

photo by Erin Doyle

"Mainstream Christianity glosses over the fact

that it isn't just a question of giving up sin,

but of doing something far more difficult -

giving up our right to ourselves.

The sin life in us must be transformed

into the spiritual life....

through sacrifice and obedience.

"She laughed with delight.'You're so different these days.'

He laughed with her.'I pray so,' he said."

- Jan Karon

(At Home in Mitford)

July 28, 2008

down the drain

"If we confess our sins,

He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

- 1 John 1:9 NASB

Our sins are washed away forever.

"When the love of God is poured out to us

through the cross of Christ,

it empowers us to do

remarkable things in God's name."

- Michael Dubruiel

(The Power of the Cross)

July 27, 2008

Are You up there?

"I believe the question you want to ask is not,

'Are you up there?' but,

'Are you down here?'"

"God wouldn't be God if he were only up there.

In fact, another name for him is Immanuel,

which means 'God with us.'"

- Father Tim

(At Home in Mitford

by Jan Karon)

"Those who know your name will trust in you,

for you, LORD,

have never forsaken those who seek you."

- Psalm 9:10 NIV

"I know the Lord is always with me.

I will not be shaken,

for he is right beside me."

- Psalm 16:8 NLT

July 26, 2008

encourage your hearts

"Count the garden by the flowers,

never by the leaves that fall.

Count your life with smiles

and not the tears that roll."

- Author Unknown

"May our Lord Jesus Christ himself

and God our Father,

who loved us and by his grace

gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,

encourage your hearts and strengthen you

in every good deed and word."

- 2 Thessalonians 2:16,17 NIV

July 25, 2008

help me gain the victory

"Yesterday I dared to struggle.

Today I dare to win."

- Charles DuBois

"All serious daring starts from within."

- Harriet Beecher Stowe

"O Lord God,

ruler of the heaven and of the earth,

creator of things visible and invisible,

giver of eternal life,

and consoler of the sorrowful,

make me to stand firm

in confession of your name

that as with your aid

I have begun the good fight,

so with your aid I may be deemed worthy

to gain the victory."

- Margaret of Antioch

July 24, 2008

grow in His love

There are three central aspects of Christianity.

The first is the hope of eternal life,

which is the beginning and end of our faith.

The second is righteousness,

which is the beginning and end of judgment.

The third is joy,

which is the beginning and end of love.

Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

we have had a glimpse

of what is promised for all who are saved,

because he is the first fruits of the harvest of salvation.

Through the example of Jesus Christ in his life and work,

we understand righteousness,

and by following his example we can be sure

of favorable judgment.

Through the joy that Jesus mediates,

which originates in his perfect heart of love,

we want to share that joy and so grow in his love.

-The Epistle of Barnabas

July 23, 2008

curious but careful

"Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning."

- William Arthur Ward

BUT...

"Spend your time in nothing

which you know must be repented of."

- Richard Baxter

"Be careful how you live;

you will be the only Bible some people ever read."

- William J. Toms

"The important thing is not to stop questioning.

Curiosity has its own reason for existing.

One cannot help but be in awe

when he contemplates the mysteries

of eternity, of life,of the marvelous structure of reality.

It is enough if one tries merely to

comprehend a little of this mystery every day.

Never lose a holy curiosity."

- Albert Einstein

(bold print is mine)

July 22, 2008

a "good" tradition

photo by Erin Doyle

Every year my wife makes this glorious, heavenly

orange coffee ring for Christmas morning.

It is a tasty tradition worth keeping

as long as one does not indulge too much at one sitting.

Tradition can be a "good" thing.

What we must be aware of and very carefully consider

is not allowing tradition to keep us in bondage

to false doctrine and empty ceremonies.

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord,

continue to live in him,

rooted and built up in him,

strengthened in the faith as you were taught,

and overflowing with thankfulness.

See to it that no one takes you captive

through hollow and deceptive philosophy,

which depends on human tradition

and the basic principles of this world

rather than on Christ."

- Colossians 2:6-8 NIV

July 21, 2008

Doubt is a pain.

photo by Erin Doyle

Sometimes we just have to see it and prove it.

But the Lord expects us to believe in Him and His word

without having to see Him.

This is faith... trust in Him.

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for

and certain of what we do not see."

- Hebrews 11:1 NIV

"Doubt is a pain too lonely to know

that faith is his twin brother."

- Kahlil Gibran

July 20, 2008

security?

photo by Erin Doyle

"Then Jesus told them this parable:

"Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep

and loses one of them.

Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country

and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

And when he finds it,

he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home.

Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says,

'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'

I tell you that in the same way

there will be more rejoicing in heaven

over one sinner who repents

than over ninety-nine righteous persons

who do not need to repent."

- Luke 15:3-7 NIV

Notice that the 99 are not left in the

safety of the fold

but are left unattended in the open country.

"That is far more descriptive of our heavenly Father...

Only God, exhibiting his risky, careless love,

would leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness

to look for the one who is lost."

- Fred Craddock

(professor of preaching and New Testament

at Candler School of Theology)

"Security is not the absence of danger,

but the presence of God,

no matter what the danger."

- Author Unknown