Month: August 2016

Weekly Word Of Encouragement – Eternal Encouragement

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“[The] Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father…loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope” II Thess 2:16 (NIV). Jesus and the Father loved us enough to give us encouragement that literally lasts forever. He will restore goodness to us and a new world; how good is this hope! Application: pick one or two words from the verse that help you and repeat it to yourself throughout the day or week. What Is A Mature Christian?February 21, 2025Loving The Beauty Of HolinessFebruary 17, 2025Correcting Fellow BelieversFebruary 14, 2025

Weekly Word of Encouragement – We Will Be With Jesus

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“[Jesus] died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.” I Thessalonians 5:10. (ESV) Who can measure how encouraging these two facts are? Jesus died for us, for our benefit, that we might escape the effects of sin. We will completely escape one day and be with Jesus, and even now we live with him. Application: pick one or two words from the verse that help you and repeat it to yourself throughout the day or week. What Is A Mature Christian?February 21, 2025Loving The Beauty Of HolinessFebruary 17, 2025Correcting Fellow BelieversFebruary 14, 2025

humility, shame

Love Humility – The Imitation of Christ: Chapter Two

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Imitation of Christ – Chapter Two It is natural to want knowledge but what good is knowledge if we aren’t surrendered to God? Someone who humbly serves God but lacks any education is higher in God’s eyes than a world-renowned scientist who doesn’t know that their own heart needs God. When we know our own heart we know how lowly we are. We don’t let complements puff us up. If we have all the knowledge in the world but don’t truly love others then is God impressed by our knowledge? He will judge our lives by our deeds not by our knowledge. Restrain your hunger for excessive knowledge because that only distracts and misleads us. Learned people are tempted to keep up an appearance of wisdom and hope they are recognized for it. Yet great knowledge is actually not much help to the soul. Dedicating our mind to knowledge outside Continue Reading →

Weekly Word of Encouragement – Jesus Is Coming To Make Things Right

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“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God.” I Thessalonians 4:16 (NLT) Jesus is coming to make things right and to transform us completely into his image. This is a cornerstone of the New Testament worldview; that we look forward to the restoration of all things, especially his people. This is why our sacrifice and sufferings feel lighter than they would without him. Application: pick one or two words from the verse that help you and repeat it to yourself throughout the day or week. What Is A Mature Christian?February 21, 2025Loving The Beauty Of HolinessFebruary 17, 2025Correcting Fellow BelieversFebruary 14, 2025

follow Jesus

Commitment To Follow – The Imitation of Christ: Chapter One

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Today’s post is an interpretation of the first chapter of the most popular devotional book in the history of Christianity, The Imitation of Christ. It was written by a monk (or possibly several monks) in the 15th century named Thomas a Kempis. The chapter has been clarified, condensed and changed in a few places, all with the hope that it will be easier to read without losing any of the power of the original. Notice how direct and challenging the author is; this style is not as popular today but does reflect the urgency found in scripture.   Imitation of Christ, Chapter One. Jesus said “Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness.” (John 8:12) He teaches us to follow his example if we want to see true light. Let us make it our highest priority to meditate on his life so we know how to follow his example. Those Continue Reading →