Weekly words of encouragement

Free From The Power Of Destructive Desires – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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The righteousness of the upright delivers them,but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires. Proverbs 11:6 (ESV) Sometimes we forget how blessed we are to be free of a sinful life. We no longer allow our evil and selfish desires to guide us; instead, we crucify them. We know that our old desires only damage and neutralize us; they do not lead to life. Jesus gave us his righteousness and the Father put a new self inside us so now we have desires for God and godliness. Consider how many dangers we have avoided by following the path of righteousness. Consider how many temptations we have resisted that could have harmed us. Even if we sometimes fall, we are free from the power of destructive desires; we can walk in the power of the Spirit and defeat our old desires. But those who have rejected Christ and chosen to be Continue Reading →

honesty

Living In God’s Reality

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Ultimately, truth should not be conceived of as a set of propositions, but rather as the reality of who God is, who Jesus is and what they created. Truth radiates from their nature, but the rays are not the ultimate truth; the nature of their divinity is the truth. Honesty is the virtue of living in God’s reality and his rays of truth. Dishonesty is particularly offensive to God. Colossians 3:9 instructs us: “Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self” (ESV). In 1 Timothy 4:2 some will depart from the faith because of the “insincerity of liars” (ESV). In John 8:44 the devil is “the father of lies” (ESV). In Revelation 21:8 liars are “consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur” (NIV). Honesty may seem like a basic virtue that even young Christians should be able to master in a short Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

God Delights In Us – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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He delights in those whose ways are blameless. Proverbs 11:20 (NIV) We all hope God delights in us. We want to know that our lives please him; that he is proud of us. Just like we wanted to know our earthly father approved us, even more, we want to know that our heavenly Father approves us. We know that he loves us, but there is also the issue of whether he is pleased with us, that he delights in us. This passage encourages us affirming that he does delight in us when we are blameless. Not that we have to be perfect in every detail, but that we avoid intentional sin, and choose to do good to others. If we are living an upright life, then we know that the God who made heaven and earth delights in us. To think that God delights in us seems too good to Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

Humility In Our Areas Of Strength – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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With humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2 (NIV) After years of following Jesus it is easy for spiritual pride to slip in and blind us to seeing our weaknesses. We may have some areas where we think we are mature so we become unteachable in those areas. Those blind spots are where we get sideswiped by the Enemy or circumstances and end up wondering where we went wrong. This is a sign we need to develop humility in our areas of strength. If we want to reach higher levels of wisdom and avoid unwise paths, isn’t it better to maintain a constant awareness of our need for grace and wisdom from God? If we unconsciously assume that we do not have needs in our areas of strength, then how are we going to grow in those areas? Are we forgetting how much higher God’s ways are than ours? Are we forgetting Continue Reading →

surrender

Surrender That Difficult Area to God

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Are you facing a difficult situation that is challenging your surrender to God’s will? Is there an area in your life where you are avoiding God’s will? Many believers will only go so far in their surrender to God’s will, for fear of loss of control or possible pain. Higher communion with God only comes if we learn to do deep crucifixion of our will, even if some of our desires are not sinful in themselves. This is a psychologically painful process because we prefer to live in comfort and spiritual sweetness. We forget that nothing could be better for us than God’s will; how could our will ever be better than God’s? Surrendering to God’s will may allow more harm to come to us in this life than if we did not surrender (for example, the lives of Jesus and his Apostles), but is it not better to allow Continue Reading →