Thursday, June 30, 2011

063011

In his dying hours, Oscar Wilde, surrounded by friends , was said to have commented on his dislike for the wall paper in his room and  then osbseving,  "One of us is going to have to go"

(Ray Stedman) Job is the epic story of cosmic warfare that is waged within the mind, body, and spirit of a single human being

(Philip Yancey)   God will not test you beyond your endurance

(Philip Yancey) On suffering:" God is trying to teach you something. You should feel privileged, not bitter, about your opportunity to lean on Him in faith

(Yancey)  The book of Job plainly shows that " helpful advice" does nothing to answer the questions of the person in pain. It is the wrong medicine despensed at the wrong time

(Ray Stedman) Clearly, only a transcendent, superhuman mind could embrace, comprehend, and direct the full range of creation in all its variety, complexity, and power

(Stedman) On the book of Job:" The essence of God's argement is that life is too complicated for simple answers. If you are demanding that God come up with simple answers to these deep and complicated problems, you are asking Him  to do more than you can understand. Therefore, we finite human beings must take the position of trusting Him, not arguing with Him. Ultimately, we must accept the fact that God does not exist for people but people for God. We are God's instruments. We exist to carry put His purposes, some of which are so complicated and transcendent that we are hopelessly incapable of comprehending them

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

062911

(James Robison) Some ardent athiests make a religion out of hating religion

(A. Rogers) What the world calls wisdom God calls foolishness. What God calls wisdom, the world calls foolishness

062911

(Alfred Johnson) Our practice of religion is often powerful enough to make us hate one another but not powerful enough to make us love one another

(Anthony Trollope) Anyone who studies the religions of the world will quickly come to the conclusion that there is nothing more powerful, more dynamic, or more dangerous than faith apprehended wrongly

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

062811

(Gouverneur Morris) The constitution is not an instrument for government to restrain the people; it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government-lest it comes to dominate our lives and interests

(James Robison) The founders worked together to make sure that  government stayed in its place. They wanted to make sure it served so that it would never be tempted to enslave

(James Robison) One of the great fallacies of our time is that it is somehow the responsibility of the government to act as savior

(Bill Crowder)  God's love for us is as expensive as the open arms of Christ on the cross

(Dan Smoot) Government can give the people nothing which the government has not first taken away from them

(James Robison) Too often Christians become so focused on defending the faith that they fail to share the power of love

(James Robison) All over the world there are billions of people just waiting to be loved. We must show them Jesus before we tell them about Jesus

(James Robison) Where is the church, by and large? Rather than seeking to solve the dire problems we face in the world, far too many Christians are busy defending their theological positions, Either that or or they're living life as if they are oblivious to what's going on. How long are we going to fight  one another while people are in pain, many without shelter, many suffering from addiction, malnutrition, and fatherlessness. There is no substitute for compassionate action. We need people who are willing to act

(James Robison) Humanism invariably generates momentum toward rule by an elite class of supposedly superior individuals  and groups. This , in time, leads  to concentration of power in the central government

(Robison) Too many Christians have fallen for the notion that Chrisianity and politics don't mix. Whatever its source. I beleive the withdrawal syndrome that  prevails among Christians and other decent citizens is mistaken and dangerous. If we don't stand up for absolute principles, who will? If politics is a " dirty business", it is only because the " clean" perople have abandoned the process and let the " dirty" people take over

(Robison) As a general rule, only fifty percent of the American people vote in presidential elections, the lowest of any free country in the world

( Edmund Burke) All that is necessary for evil to triump is for goodmen to do nothing

(Our Daily Bread) Too often, when we  give someone a piece of our mind, we lose our own peace of mind

(Robison) Some people pride themselves on ebing members of the  " silent majority". How naive! A silent majority is a servile majority , blindly catering to the interests of the militant minorities to whom it has abdicated the responsibility of government. The silent majority needs to wake up and speak up

(Edward Everett Hale) I am only one - but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will mnot refuse to do  the something that I can do.

Monday, June 27, 2011

062711

(Dave Branon) Grudges are a burden too heavy to bear. A grudge is one thing that doesn't get better when it  is nursed

( Unknown source) If you aim at nothing you are sure to hit it

(Unknown source) Know what you stand for and stand for what you know

(Ronald Reagan) The most terrifying words in the English language are," I'm from the government and I'm here to help you "

(Abraham Lincoln) You cannot help man permanently by doing for them they would and should do for themselves

(James Robison) We must see each person as God sees them, as   a person of eternal value and significance

(James Robison) In its proper role, government is practically invisible

(George Will) Almost  nothing is as important in Washington as almost everything in Washington is made to appear. And the importance of a Washington event is apt to be  inversely proportional to the attention it receives

(James Robison) Our goal is not to enable government to provide; it is to enable government to enable people

( E J Dionne) Because the average voter believes that politics will do little to improve his life or that of his community, he votes defensively, if he votes at all

062711

(James Robison) No culture, society  or civilization has ever survived-much less prospered- when the family was not honored,protected, and firmly established as the basis of human relations. We will find no replacement for the family. There is no substitute. There is no alterntive. The family will always be the cornerstone of society

(James Robison) Commenting on Booker T. Washington: " His greatest legacy was not what he accomplished for himself, but in what he helped thousands of others- both black and white- to accomplish

(Robison) In order for us to treat all people as Jesus would have us do,, we must see people through the eyes of Jesus

(Robison) When we come to realize  hat our differences are valuable, we begin to see how diversity can be a powerful force for good in the world.

(Robison) defines true justice as the principle of right action in conformity to truth

(A. Rogers) Jesus is the greatest home builder. Satan is the greatest home wrecker

(Charles Stanley) It is an amazing thing that God promises to reward us richly for doing nothing but what we should do

(Charles Stanley) Paul never compromiosed his convictions, but he was more than willing to find common ground and meet people wherever they happened to be

(A. Rogers) It is more important to influence perople than to impress them

062711

(Charles Stanley) Our actions always have consequences, either good or bad. To think otherwise is to be deceived

(A. Rogers) If you come to God as a prince, He'll send you away as a beggar. But if you come to God as a beggar, He'll send you away as a prince

(Rogers) If you need encouragement, give it. If you need love, give it. Whatever you need, give it away

(Dennis Fisher) Enjoy your liberty in Christ. Yet balance sometimes calls the believer  to limit his or her liberties for the good of others

(Dennis Fisher) In retrospect, a painful experiences can be a  marvelous gateway to rich fellowship as we " bear one another's burdens"

(James Robison) The  home is a child's first classroom

(Robison) Those who know us best and love us  most will always be our greatest resource in times of trouble

(Robison) When something has to give, don't let it be your family

(Robison) Where are our children finding their role models for healthy marriages and family life today?

( Robison, writing in 2002) More than forty percent of first marriages and sixty percent of second marriages end in divorce

(William D. Watkins) Family is being redefined as whatever you want to call it-- Whatever you come home to. This is the  new emerging absolute

(James Robison) If we move away from the foundation of the nuclear family as it has been preserved since the beginning of humanity, we are building our houses on sand and they will not stand

(Robison) parents are a mirror, a model, and a mentor

(Robison) quoting a statement his daughter made to him: " You never made me think you were perfect---which made it easier to share my failures with you and grow from them"

(Philip Yancey) We should have a worship service asking ourselves not, " what did I  get out of it?" but rather, " was God pleased with what happened?". The goal of worship is nothing less than to meet and please our God. At the heart of worship is worship from the heart.

(James Robison) A full 75% of men, women, and children who live below the poverty line in this country live in broken homes

Saturday, June 25, 2011

062511

(James Robison) No amount of pain and damage is too great for the healing hand and heart of God

(A.  Rogers) God does business with those who mean business

(Rogers) We come to Christ heartfirst, not headfirst

(Gal 6:3/The Message)  Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others

(Gal 6:7/The Message) Don't be misled; no one makes a fool  of God

(Gal 6:7/ The Living Bible) You can't ignore God and get away with it

(Ray Stedman) The evidence that God is gradually sanctifying us and taking control of more and more of our lives is found in Gal 5 :22-23

(Ray Stedman) Frustration,fear, and failure---- the bondage of legalism

(Charles Stanley) Nowhere in the Scriptures are we told that our sin is something just between us and God

(Stanley) In an accountability relationship, you are not responsible for how the other person responds to you, but you are responsible to tell the truth and then continue to love that person

Friday, June 24, 2011

062411

(James Robison) In every situation character is the issue. It is the issue that underlies all other issues. When push comes to shove, what matters most is not so much what we do as who we are. Character is the issue that supercedes all others. Think of all the talented people whose lives and careers were runied by lack of character. You just cannot separate the fruit from the root

(Robert K Spradling) commenting on Luke 6:45: " What is in the  well of  the heart will come up on the bucket of the mouth "

(John Maxwell) Your character determines who you are. Who you are determines what you see. What you see determines what you do

(Steven Berglas) Successful people run the risk of falling prey to one or more of the " Four  A's"---   arrogance, aloneness, adventure-seeking, or adultery

(Chuck Swindoll) refers to the dangers to Christian leaders of the  ' Four S's:
self, sex, silver, sloth

(James Robison) Ultimately a leader's flaws will be revealed---either through success or adversity

(James Robison) When we confront others in their wrongdoing, it should always be in a spirit of redemption

(Josh Harris)  Lust is coveting the forbidden. Lust is not a one size fits all. Lust ensnares with false promises of satisfaction. Lust always has you in its sights and is relentless ( a  quote from his book  "STRONGER " )

(James Robison) I have seen very few people, even among the  godliest spiritual leaders, who have been able to survive the onslaught of success without some type of serious damage

(James Robison) Learn to seek out people who are courageous enough to confront and challenge you

(Robison) Again and again, history bears out the truth that those with great moral character drive the great moments of history. Leadership develops from the inside out

(James Robison) How do we deal with our past failures? It is not a quetion of whether or not we have failed --- everyone has failed. The question is , have we learned from our failures? Have they strengthed our lives and our character? Has failure caused us to refocus in a positive and meaningful way?

Thursday, June 23, 2011

062311

(Joe Stowell) In any given situation, we have a whole continuum of choices... God wants us to move across the continuum, past our natural impulses, all the way to the excellent choices of His perfect will

(James Robison) The antidote to greed is compassion

(Robison) I can't do it all but I can do something

(Theodore Roosevelt) Character is revealed in what we actually do, not merely by what we say or believe

(John Maxwell)  A crisis does not make character, but it certainly does reveal it

( Robison) Character will always make us or break us

(Peggy Noonan) A vision is worth little if a person does not have the character-- the courage and heart to see it through

(Edward Stratemeyer) The history of the world. the outcome of great events, and the establishment of true heroism will always depend upon moral character

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

062211

(James Robison) Greed is an  equal-opportunity destroyer

(Martin Sheen)  I never saw a satisfied rich man. They always wanted more

(Ray Stedman) You can tell a lot about a person by who their friends are and who their enemies are

(Ray Stedman) I don't know what God is going to do next but whatever it is, it will be interesting and exciting. That is what life in Christ means

(Chuck Swindoll)  Paul did not want to do great things for God. He wanted God to do great things in and through him

(Joe Stowell) Life is not made by the dreams that you dream but by the choices you make. Your life today is the sum total of all the choices you've made up to this point

Saturday, June 18, 2011

061811

(James Robison) It takes more faith not to believe in God than to acknowledge His existence

(Robison) People say to me, " How can you believe in a God you cannot see or prove exist?". My answer is that I do see Him in what He has designed and ,perhaps most of all, I can see Him in other people who have surrendered themeselves to Him and who allow His love to overflow in their lives

(Robison) A truly God-centered life, lived out with integrity, is the best theological argument you'll ever encounter

(Robison) Christians possess a source of power within them that is greater than any force in this world, seen or unseen

(Robison) I meet a lot of people who have abundance in life but don't have abundance of life

(Robison) Some of the wealthiest areas in America have more misery per square foot than any slum in America

(George Washington) It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible

(William Penn) If we will not be governed by God, then we will be ruled by tyrants

( Ronald Reagan) Speaking of his father, " I never really knew him"

(Emily Dickinson) Public opinion is a flitting thing, but the truth outlasts the sun

(Robison) Objective truth is neither subject to nor swayed by the extent of its opposition

(Robison) Lessons from history and from the Bible... illustrate that majority thinking is rarely an accurate barometer of what is right and true.

(Robison) Truth is  most often offensive when it clashes with tradition

( Leonardo Da Vinci) Do unto others as though you were the others

(Robison) Every life is worth honoring, protecting, and saving.There are no expendable or disposable people

(Robison) Every year in the United States more than one million of the most innocent and helpless lives in the world are terminated by abortion

(Thomas Jefferson) The chief purpose of government is to protect life. Abandon that and you have abandoned all

(Robison) Greed has an appetite that can never be satisfied and a thirst that can never be quenched;it's ambition  can never be exhausted.It makes demands that  can never be fulfilled and creates needs that can never be met. Greed always wants more

Friday, June 17, 2011

061711

(Our Daily Bread) True repentance means hating sin so much you're willing to turn from it

(James Robison) defines license as the attempt to have freedom without responsibility

(C S Lewis) If I find in  myself a desire which no experience is this world can satisfy, the most profitable explanation is that I was made for another world

(Robison) To deny the existence of God is to set our minds at war against our hearts

(Robison) We are on a journey toward eternity and the decisions we make in this life will determine our destiny

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

061511

(Source unknown) We are most like God when we forgive

(A Rogers) People say the church is on the way out. They don't know how right they are

(Ravi Z)  The relativists who argue for the absence of absolutes smuggles absolutes into their arguments all the time, while shouting loudly that all morality is private belief

(James Robison) In the name of civil liberty and cultural diversity, the conscience of the individual is elevated to the role of moral compass. What is good and true for me might not be good and true for anyone else

(Thomas Paine), The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph

( F Duane Lindsey) Holiness begins in the home

(Richard Weaver) Worldview is the most important thing we can know about a man. Discernment of worldview is therefore the most necessary of all the tasks of wisdom

(James Robison) All people, without exception, have a worldview , whether they realize it or not

(James Robison) Who would have thought we would see the day when a woman's freedom of choice would not be constrained by her unborn child's right to live? Who would have thought that  an individual's freedom to choose to have a sexual relationship with a person of the same sex would not only be defended as normal. but would become the basis of proposed changes in our laws governing marriage and the family?

(Robison) We should not  wish God's punitive judgment against those who engage in self-destructive behavior

(Robison) When the task of faith is limited merely to offering individuals inner peace and tranquility, then virtually all moral influence is removed from the world

(Robison) Christian faith, rightly understood, does not refer only to " life up there in the hereafter"; it also engages fully with life in the  "here and now." Evangelsim is not divorced from charity

Acrostic for others:
Offer
To
Help
Encourage
Restore
Serve

Acrostic for serve:

Selfless,sacrificial
Enable, empower, equip,edify
Redeem,restore,redeem
Visible validation of values
Enjoy

(Marvin Williams ) Medical studies show that ninety percent of those who have had bypass  heart surgery, though warned to change their lifestyle, would rather die than change

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

061411

(Cal Thomas) A too-close association between religion and politics rarely causes damage to the state. The damage is caused to the church

(Thomas) These days in America you are allowed to be " religious" as long as you do not take your faith too seriously

(Thomas) Each presidential election cycle allows us to hold a mirror up to ourselves. The image we see is not the leader's face, but our own

(Thomas) The credibility of repentance diminishes the closer one gets to being found out

(Thomas) If the man didn't have bad character, he would have no character at all

( Thomas) Isn't a comet a dying star?

(Thomas) Some people have an enormous hole in their moral ozone layer

( Unidentifed Middle East commentator) The maximum Israel  can give is less than  the minimum the Palestinians will take

( John MacArthur) The content of the heart is the litmus test of character

( A. Rogers) A joyless Christian is an oxymoron

(Cal Thomas) Surely America's moral water table has reached drought level

(Thomas) People are always asking me if there are any politicians in Washington with convictions. Yes, I tell them. They're all in federal prisons

(Thomas) We ask government to do too much and complain when it accomplishes too little

( Thomas) Freedom is not license

(Thomas) If a nation's values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom

(Thomas) Government will always seek new ways to invade our lives unless it is stopped

(Thomas) People are better than institutions

(Thomas) It's our money, not the government's. We make it. They take it!

(Thomas) The GAO reports that most federal agencies cannot determine the effectiveness of their programs

(Thomas) Government should not be telling us how much of our money it intends for us to keep

(Thomas) Many children of poverty live without fathers and without hope

(Thomas) Much of government's answer to poverty has been the equivalent of a topical solution to an internal disease

(Thomas) True compassion means fixing something that is broken so that it will benefit the people it was designed to serve

( James Robison)  Do opinion polls lead us to truth?

(Robison) Is a Christian ministry purpose-centered or personality-driven?

(Robison) Many Americans have come to agree with the proposition that the only absolute is that there are no absolutes

(Robison) Prayer is our ultimate recourse and resource

(Robison) The absolutes continue to stand, constant and true, undimished by our failures, as our compass to true north

(G K Chesterton)  When asked to submit an essay on the topic, " What's wrong with the world?" replied, " Dear sirs. I  am "

( James Robison) I am certainly not the standard  by which to measure

( JFK statement in his 1961 inaugural address:" We will pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty "

(James Robison) The existence of evil is self-evident. Its effects are the most basic observations of both anthropology and sociology. The gruesome results of evil clutter the pages of human history. In response to evil, the bankruptcy of relativism and appeasement are clearly evident

(Robison) The absolutes are the fixed points on the horizon by which we navigate the river of life. Moral relativists have recast certainty as tolerance. Orthodoxy was labeled as radical fundamentalism while heresy was praised for its honesty, courage, and ingenuity. Rebels were seen as heroes, whereas true heroes have either been forgotten altogether or have become the objects of cynicism. Judgment and discretion were abandoned for fear of being found guilty of judgmentalism and discrimination

061411

A lady gets into a cab and tells the driver her destination. Along the way, she changes her mind and taps him on the shoulder to get his attention. He is so startled he almost loses control of the cab and wrecks . He finally stops the cab just a few feet of the plate glass window of a department store. He regains his composure, checks to see that his passenger is  alright and apologizes. The lady, in turn, tries to apologize to him for tapping him on the shoulder. He then tells her this was all his fault   and that this was his first day driving a cab after having driven a hearse for  the previous twenty-five years

(Cal Thomas) Every conversion is a miracle

(Cal Thomas) Nothing is more fulfilling than witnessing  a changed life unless it is watching one's own life change as a result of helping transform the lives of others

(Thomas) If man is basically good, then Jesus died for nothing

(Thomas) Easter represents a siminale event in which there are only two choices. It is either the truth or a lie. There is no third choice on this one

(C S Lewis) If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were  those who thought the most of the next

Monday, June 13, 2011

061211

(Cindy Kasper) It is said that the people we love the most are often the target or our most hurtful words

( Our Daily Bread) Losing your temper is no way to get rid of it

(Cal Thomas) In areas of ethics and morals, where will the line be drawn, who will draw it, and on what basis will be be based?

(Cal Thomas) Insults reflect more on the character of the insulter than that of those being insulted

(Thomas) As we more and more find the past a relic unworthy of our attention, our short-term memory grows shorter and our ignorance grows larger

(Thomas) The consequences of rampant divorce are broken homes, broken children, and ultimately, a broken society

(Thomas) We live in an age where we are supposed to be dysfunctional victims of someone else's wrong doing

(Thomas) Our society is continually defining decency downward

(Thomas) If a person has a private character problem, it will eventually manifest itself in a public way

(Thomas) If the moral standards are no more that what an individual or public opinion decide is moral at the moment, how do we know anything to be objectively true or untrue?

(Thomas) Why not validate everything? Think of how the crime rate would plummet if the illegal was made legal!

( Thomas) Things were cheaper then, but life was valuable. Now life is cheap and things are valuable

(Thomas)  Ten years ago, I wrote a book called The Death of Ethics in America. What we are witnessing today is rigor mortis

(Thomas) Today's absurd is tomorrows's acceptable

( Thomas) A sign of a deteriorating culture is rampant materialism that springs from self-indulgence and an unwillimgness to consider anyone or anything more important than one's own comfort and desires

(Thomas) The diversity proselytizers seel to divide, not unite

(Thomas) How rich we are in things. How poor we are in the things that matter

(Thomas) If the church sees the poor as a burden and the state as primarily responsible for helping them, they are rejecting one of their fundamental mandates and opportunities.The response to poverty must be personal, not institutional

(Thomas) For many American Christians, the idea of persecution is when the sermon runs past noon

(Thomas) No power on earth is greater than a mind and soul reawakened

Sunday, June 12, 2011

061211

(Stowell) Our passions were never intended to focus on ourselves.They were designed to give us energy to contribute to God's glory. Passion, pride and pleasure are God-given and good in themselves. But unless they are submitted to God's control, they will flow in destructive channels that not only rob us of their God-intended enjoyment, but cause us to damage ourselves and others. Just as there is no significance outside of Christ, there is no fulfillment of these inner drives apart from Him  
                                                                                                          ( Westminster Short Catechism) The chief end of man is to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever

(Augustine) Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire or longing or ambition and try desparately to fulfill it without God

(Stowell) The world is the way it is because we are the way we are

(Stowell) Much of life consists of a choice between between short-term gain and long-term loss versus short-term loss and long-term gain

(Stowell) Pride is probably the greatest irony of our fallenness: the very thing we intended to catapult ourselves upward is the thing that brings us low

(Stowell) Humility does not mean passivity

(Stowell) defines career as " an avenue whereby we glorify Christ and  advance His kingdom by your influence "

(Stowell) Defines servanthood as our willingness to do whatever it takes to accomplish the best for another person. It is the priority of using what we have to enable, empower, and enhance the lives of others around us. The heart of the truly liberated is, " What can I do to help? How can I use my life and resources to serve you?"

(Stowell) The five S's of Phil 2:6-8: selfless, surrender, sacrifice, servanthood, suffering

( J L Packer) The Christian mission on earth is not unrelieved, heroic misery

(Stowell) God never wastes the sacrifice and suffering of His saints. His divinely ordained deep water are always on purpose and with purpose

(Stowell) Whatever or however, in time God will provide affirmation for faithful servants. For some it may mean waiting for the glorious affirmation of when Christ says, " Well done, good and faithful servant "  as we step across the threshhold to the other side

( J Allen Blair) Life is what  we allow Jesus Christ to make it

( Blair) It has been said  that absence makes the heart grow fonder. If that is true, there must be a lot of people who love the church

(Blair) Without the Blood, what is the Gospel"

( Cal Thomas) Political correctness is another name for censorship

(Cal Thomas) I read the NY Times and my Bible each day to know what each side is doing

( Mart De Haan) Failure to forgive is to forfeit the joy of being  in freedom because we choose to hide behind past failures. Who do we think we are? God Almighty? God forgives us, But we don't! Are we greater than God? It is as though we are saying in effect," I know You have forgiven me, Lord, but I have  higher standards than You do. "

( Mart De Haan)  commenting on 1 John 5:14-15: " He was saying that when our requests line up with His own heart and will, He will give us what we ask for. We are to leave with Him the " hows" and the " whens" of His answers

( Mart De Haan) God sometimes is lovingly saying something to us through the voices, accusations, and criticisms of others. The real truth about us is probably far worse than any of our human enemies could ever know.

( Cal Thomas) Commenting on abortion and euthanasis:" It isn't death that needs assistance,it's life . Why does a guilty murderer enjoy more protection under the law than an innocent unborn child?

(Thomas) Why are we so surprised when  so many kids turn to illegal substances, considering  many have been drugged since childhood?

(Cal Thomas, in 2001) Census data shows public schools have become the second likeliest place in Americ for violent crimes to occur

(Barbara Bush) Your success as a family, our success as a nation, depends not on what happens in the White House, but what happens in your house

( Cal Thomas) Did we really think that " no fault" divorce would bring no consequences to children who take their parents rejection personally?

( Cal Thomas) Which eulogy would you rather be said at your funeral- your boss extoling your dedication at the office or your child praising you for your dedication to their life?

( Cartoon by Wayne Stayskal) One child whispering to another, " there isn't a smut filter I can't override "

( Wiersbe) After stating he was not a good swimmer, he  told how he once asked a life guard  how his stroke was and the life guard  responded, " When did you have it?"

( Cal Thomas) Quality time with children is quantity time

( Dave Branon) Commenting on how to worship God: Meditate on His attributes, contemplate His names, and  dwell on His identity

Saturday, June 11, 2011

061111

(Stowell) The issue is not how much we have, but disciplining our hearts to remember that God is the One who has graciously provided what we have, will be there if we lose what we have, and remain of far greater value than anything we will ever have

(Stowell) When our faith becomes a system more than a Savior, a ritual more than a relationship, then our longings become legalized and our passion is frozen by meaningless practices

(Stowell) Beware lest we quickly come to a  place in our Christian life where service is not a passion, but a project. Have we forgotten when we used to do what we did because we loved Christ and wanted to express that love? When living for Him becomes list of chores, Christ becomes our burden and not our passion. The first priority love of my life is to Jesus Christ, and out of that love we are stimulated to do all that we do. Then He is no longer a function, but a friend; no longer a burden, but the blessing of our lives

( Stowell) Four fatal distractions: (1) willful sin in our lives;(2) the distraction of abundance;(3) our struggle with self;(4) allowing our walk with Christ to become ritualized and systematized

(Stowell) Are you a people pleaser? Who do you live to please? What are the accomplishments of life that you are most prounud of? What did God provide in your life that enabled you to accomplish these realities? Who deserves the credit?

(Stowell) God never wastes the sacrifice and suffering of His saints

(Stowell) In its purest form, significance is not something that we reach for, but something that is given by God in His time and in His way

(Stowell) Attaching our security to persons or possessions will only expose us to fears of rejection and loss

(Stowell) The issues of pleasure, pride and passion is not their existence but their management

061111

( Original source unknown) Life is not measured by the number of breathes you take but by the number of moments that take your breath away

(Stowell) Every person is built for  a relationship with God, giving us an intrinsic longing for Him

Everyone worships someone or something

(Oswald Chambers)  The one great passion of the saint is that the life of the Lord Jesus might be manifested in his mortal flesh

(Selected words from the hymn " Finally home" written by Don Wyrtzen)
Just think of stepping on shore
and finding it heaven!
Of touching a hand and finding it God's!
Of breathing new air and finding it celestial!
Of waking up in glory and finding it home!

(Joe Stowell) defines lust as legitimate longings that are mismanaged, that are allowed to go beyond the boundaries God has set

(Stowell) Are you longing for God or giving lip service to God?

(Stowell) Calls Gal 5:19-21  "the catalog of corruption"

(Stowell) Only when we succeed in the redemptive restructuring of our passions will we know true fulfillment in our longing for God. Having our deep thirst for God satisfied in Him should be the goal of our lives

Friday, June 10, 2011

061011

(Stowell) Pride gurgles like a boiling cauldron in the depths of our souls.Pride is first and foremost an affront to God. Pride is the instinct not to let God be God, so that self can be  god

(Stowell) The heresy of our day is that religion is purely a private matter

(Stowell)  Are you being conformed or transformed? Are you being changed by  the outside in or the inside out ?

(A.  Rogers)  As a little girl once said to her father,  " It looks to me like the clergy get paid for being good while the laity are good for nothing"

(Stowell) True humility is a proper attitude about ourselves that comes from understanding the greatness of God, our value before Him, and our inadequacy apart from Him

( Colin Powell) When asked to comment on   some controversial issues  and situations he had been involved in in the past, " I try to live my life through the front windshield and not the rearview mirror "

061011

People ---- our highest priority because only people are eternal

(Stowell) Do you live by kingdom or cosmos principles?

(Stowell) We do not make Jesus Lord. He is Lord

(Stowell) Sanctification is radical,redemptive, and restructuring

Maturity is attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ( (Eph 4:13)

(Stowell) The mirage or more is in reality always less

(Stowell) If someone asked you, " What is your purpose in life?", how would you answer?

C S Lewis tells about the schoolboy who was asked what he thought God was like. He replied that as far as he could make out, God was " the sort of person who is always snooping around to see if anyone is enjoying himself and then trying to stop it"

Thursday, June 9, 2011

060911

(Col 3:3/ The Living Bible)  You should have as little desire for the world as a dead person does

(Col 3:5/The Living Bible) Don't worship the good things  of life for that is idolatry

(C. Stanley) sanctification is spiritual metamorphasis

(A. Rogers) As a Chrisian, you have to learn to hate the things God hates

(Rogers) If Christ is preeminent in your life, He will captivate your ambitions, dominate your attention, and regulate your actions

(Our Daily Bread) Prejudice distorts what it sees, deceives when it talks, and destroys when it acts

(Joseph Stowell) Materialism is the madness of more

(Stowell) When it comets to trying to find significance and satisfaction apart from God, enough is never enough

(Stowell) The challenge is not in how much we have, but rather in finding God sufficient in the midst of what we have

(Stowell) When we seek our significance outside of Him, whatever we strive for can never be enough. We are built to find our significance in Him. There is no substitute

John Muir once claimed he was richer than railroad magnate E H Harriman because, " I have all the money I want and he doesn't"

(Stowell) Are you willing to live with what you have and where you are?

(Stowell) Life is a matter of values- a matter of who or what is worth most to you

(Stowell) One of the greatest tragedies of life is that so many are searching for significance where it cannot be found. Significance is not a search. It is a gift.

(Stowell) Sin is never an investment; it is always an expense

(Stanley) Keys to spiritual victory: recall past victories,reject  discouraging words,recognize the true nature of the battle,respond to the challenge with a positive confession, rely on the power of God, and reckon the victory

(Anon) Silence is golden at times;at other times, it is just plain yellow

(Rogers) God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things

(David Roper) Even though we cannot see them with our natural eyes, we can rest in the confidence that the Lord of Hosts is constantly watching over us. He
has an invisible army at His bidding to send where He pleases

( Dennis De Haan)  What ready help the Father gives
                                to struggling saints below
                                He sends his heavenly ministers
                                to thwart our ancient foe

( Our Daily Bread) The angels of God protect the people of God as they do the work of God

( Stowell) Everything we could wish for to complete our lives is available to us in Christ

( Words from the song " My tribute": All that I ever hope to be
                                                           I owe it all to God

060911

(Swindoll) Eight marks of maturity based o 1 Peter 3:8-12

unity, mutual interest, frendship/affection, compassion, humility, forgiveness, control of tongue, purity and peace

(Mt 7:1-2/The Message) A critical spirit has a way of boomeranging

(Mt 7:21/ The Message) Not all who sound religious are really godly people

(Joe Stowell) Few seductions are more powerful than the seduction of significance

(Col 3:14/Phillips) Love is the golden chain of all the virtues

060911

(Steven Davey) Satan accuses God before the believer and the believer before  God

(Joe Stowell) Pleasure, pride,and passion, apart from God, become dedicated servants of self, and, as such, can never fully satisfy. Just as there is no significance outside of Christ, there is no true fulfillment of the inner drives of pleasure, pride, and passion apart from Him

(Oswald Chambers) There is only one Being who can satisfy the last aching abyss of the human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ

(Joe Stowell) What people do is only the outward result of how they manage the forces that flow deep within them. What happens in the hidden world within us determines that actions that are plain for all to see

(Stowell) After Stalin's death, his daughter revealed that on his deathbed, he rose with his last breath to shake his fist at God

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

060811

(Joseph Stowell) We ar built for significance. Our problem is not that we search for it, but that we search for it in all the wrong places

(Thomas Sowell) His law of Bureaucracies: All power given to any bureaucracy for any purpose can be stretched beyond that purpose

(Thomas Sowell) His Law of Benefits/Cost Analysis: Weighing benefits against costs is the way most people make decisions- and the way most businesses make decisions if they want to say in business. Only in government is any business,  no matter how small, considered to be worth any costs, however large

(Charles Stanley) No one is so deep in sin, so ingrained in a wicked lifestyle, or  so steeped in evil, that he or she cannot be saved

(Ray Stedman) Practice His presence

(Charles Stanley) When evaluating any type of conduct, rather than ask, "What's wrong with it?", ask " what's right with it?"

(Adrian Rogers) The church is a society of sinners who finally admitted

(Rogers) Sin fascinates , and then it assassinates

(Rogers) We can't call ourselves desciples of Christ if we aren't disciplined

(Rogers) Hartdening of the attitudes is just as bad as hardening of the arteries

(Rogers) Our passions were never intended to focus on ourselves. They were designed to give us the energy to contribute to God's glory

( Muhammad Ali) In a convseration with Adrain Rogers, he stated to Pastor Rogers, " I had the world and it was nuthin"

(Joe Stowell) Do you find your  greatest joy in bringing pleasure to Christ?

(Stowell) It's tragic that so many pleasure palaces are in reality empty and boring once they've been experienced

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

060711

(Fiddler on the Roof) Sunrise, sunset...sun rise, sunset:
                                   Swiftly  fly the years.
                                   One season follows another
                                    Ladened with happiness and tears

(Swindoll)  Defines a friend as someone you can lean on, talk to, laugh with, cry with, learn from, and walk beside

(Swindoll) The best lessons are caught, not taught

(Swindoll) On the cross the  victim became the victor

(Swindoll) God never waste times of testing. Do we?

(Swindoll) Don't substitute the artificial for the authentic

(Swindoll) Where are you going? What's your game plan for the next ten years? A decade from now you will rip the December sheet off your calendar wondering, " How did ten years  go by so fast"?"

(Swindoll) Tact is avoiding unnecessary offense. It's basic function is a keen sense of what to say and do in order to maintain the truth and good relationships. It is incessantly appropriate, invariably attractive, inevitably appealing, but rare... or, so rare!

(Swindoll)  No God? All by chance? Who are you kidding?

(Swindoll) Reading sweeps the mental cobwebs away, increases our power of concentration, and makes us more interesting to be around

(Swindoll) The average American is exposed to over three hundred advertisements a day. Before you realize it, the Madison Avenue Pied Piper has led you into a world of exaggerated make-believe, convincing you that you simply cannot do without __________. And what is the message? In a word--discontentment. Dissatisfaction. It creates a restless drive for more...or better...or bigger

(Swindoll) Becoming a contented person is a process, never an instant decision

(Swindoll) Hold material things loosely. Refuse to leave Lake Contentment in search of some shallow stream that will surely dry up

(Tom Landry) I have a job to do that is not very complicated, but it is often difficult: to get  a group of men to do what they don't want to do so that they can achieve the one thing they have wanted all their lives

(Swindoll) So much of what results in a fulfilled life is really the product of contradiction. For example, the way to show yourself wise is not so much by speech as by silence. Forgiveness is the key to handling our enemies, not revenge

Story is told of  a fella who said that he and his wife had three children in three years. He said he was better off than a man who had three million dollars . Why? Because the rich man wants more.

(Swindoll) Many a soul starts priming the pump of worry before they get the morning paper. All sorts of energy is burned up and the mind runs up and down the dark alleys of imagining dread

(Swindoll) defines discontentment as " enough is just not enough"

(Swindoll)  Do you view change as a challenge, a fresh breeze that flows through the room of routine and blows away the stale air of sameness?

(Swindoll) God did not give us His Word to satisfy our curiosity. He gave it to change our lives

Monday, June 6, 2011

060611

 Today is the  67th anniversary of D Day

(Swindoll) To start over, you have to know where you are now

(Swindoll) When it comes right down to it, the great difference between one person and another lies largely in his or her use of time

(Swindoll) It is easy to forget time is our slave, not our sovereign, isn't it?

(Swindoll)  Pain humbles the proud. It softens the stubborn. It melts the hard. Silently and relentlessly it wins battles deep within the lonely soul. The heart alone knows its own sorrows and not another person can fully share it

(Samuel Rutherford) Praise God for the hammer, the file, and the furnace

(Swindoll) Those whom God uses most effectively have been hammered, filed and tempered in the furnace of trials and heartaches.

                                                                                                                            (Swindoll) If the ship is sinking and the storm is getting stronger, it's time to do something much more dramatic than dialogue

(C. Stanley)  Trusting God  means looking beyond what we can see to what God sees

( Julie Link) When we  cast our cares on the Lord, He will show us what we need to do and what only He can do

( J Allen Blair) Our appointment with death is as certain as the sunrise or the sunset

( Blair) Four solemn facts:(1) not everyone will be saved;(2) the majority of people will be lost;(3) many will perish in Hell, in spite of the fact they were religious;(4) today may be your last opportunity to personally receive Jesus Christ

(Swindoll) Take away conviction, discipline, and determination. and you have cut out the heart of real living

(Swindoll) Beware of extremes. Maintain a sensible balance on the tightrope of truth

(Swindoll) How unfinished and rebellious and proud and unconcerned we would be without suffering!

(Swindoll) You may live to see the day when your journey into the darkness is among your most cherished memories

(Swindoll) God is the one who builds trophies from scrap piles

(Phillipians 1:21/ the Message) Life versus more life! I can't lose

(C. Stanley) God has a delightful way of turning negatives into positives. He loves to take things that Satan means for our harm and use them instead for His glory and our benefit

(Stanley)  Believing in Christ is a gift of God, but so is suffering for Christ. If we would not refuse the first, neither should we the second

( Several sources) You are not really ready to live until you are first ready to die

Sunday, June 5, 2011

060511

Diets are for folks who are thick and tired  of it

(Charles Stanley) Let's label. That's a favorite parlor game of many Christians. The name really needs another name... like, let's judge

We think four to fives times faster than we talk

(Swindoll) Preaching has been called by one wag the fine art of talking in someone else's sleep

(Swindoll) Since none of us is a whole , independent, self-sufficient, super-capable, all-powerful hotshot, let's quit acting like we are. Life is lonely enough without our playing that silly role

(Swindoll) Christianity is completely credible, objective, honest, historically-documented evidence in favor of the  basics of our faith . The evidence is massive in fact and impressive in volume

(Psychologists Minirth and Meier)  If a person changes all their can't's  to won't's, they stop avoiding the truth, quit deceiving themselves, and start living in reality . Let's face it. We don't because we won't

Valium is the # 1 selling drug

(Swindoll) For every book published, ninety-five become dust-collecting manuscripts

Saturday, June 4, 2011

060411

(Wiersbe) It is unfortunte that the saints are at war with each other, leader against leader, church against church fellowship against fellowship. The world watches and says, " Behold, how they hate each other !"  Why are we at war against each other? We belong to the same family, we trust the same Savior, we are indwelt by the same Holy Spirit--- and yet we fight one another. The war in the heart is helping cause the war in the church .Often we veil our religious quarrels under the disguise of " spirituality"

(Wiersbe) The essence of sin is selfishness

(Wiersbe) When our praying is wrong, our whole Christian life is wrong

(Wiersbe) Selfish living and selfish praying always lead to war. If there is war on the inside, there will ultimately be war on the outside

(Wiersbe) Sometimes we use prayer as a cloak to hide our true desires. " But I prayed about it " can be one of the biggest excuses a Christian can use

(Wiersbe) The root cause of every war, internal and external, is rebellion against God, How does a believer declare war against God? By being friendly with God's enemies

(Wiersbe) Satan is the author of all " do it yourself" spiritual enterprises. He enjoys inflating the ego and encouraging the believer to do it his own way

(Wiersbe) One of the problems in our churches today is that we have too many celebrities and not enough servants. Christian workers are promoted so much that there is little place for God's glory

(Wiersbe) Unconditional surrender is the only way to complete victory

(Wiersbe)  Dr. A W Tozer has a profound essay in one of his books entitled, " Nearness is likeness". The more we are like God, the nearer we are to God

(Wiersbe) Put the government of your life on His shoulders, and let Him become the Prince of Peace in your life ( Is 9:6)

(Wiersbe) When a believer is out of the will of God, he becomes a troublemaker and not a peacemaker

(Wiersbe) Too many believers look on the will of God as bitter medicine  they must take instead of seeing it as the gracious evidence of the  love of God. The safest place in the world is right where God wants you. The will of God comes from the heart of God

(Wiersbe) Apart from the will of God, life is a mystery. Life is not uncertain to God, but it is uncertain  to us. To us, life seems long by the way we measure it in years;but  in comparison to eternity, life is but a vapor. We count our years at each birthday; but God tells us to number our days. Since life is so brief,we cannot afford merely to " spend our lives"; and we certainly do not want to " waste our lives". We must invest our lives in those things that are eternal

(Wiersbe) Man cannot control future events. He has neither the wisdom to see the future nor the power to control the future

(Wiersbe) To treat the Word of God lightly is to invite the chastening of God in our lives

(Wiersbe) Many people have the mistaken idea that the will of God is a formula for misery. Just the opposite is true! It is disobeying the Lord's will that will lead to misery

(Wiersbe) " If the Lord will" is not just a statement  on a believer's lips; it is the constant attitude of the heart

(Wiersbe) Paul did not consider the will of God as a chain that shackled him;rather it was a key that opened the doors and set him free

(Wiersbe)  God's will is specifically designed for each of us. No two lives are planned according to the same pattern. The will of God is " tailor-made" for each of us, The will of God is a living relationship between God and each believer

(Wiersbe) When God cannot rule, He overrules

(Wiersbe) The will of God is not difficult to discover. If we are willing to obey, He is willing to reveal it ( Joh 7:17) God does not reveal His will to the curious or the the careless, but to those who are ready and willing to obey Him

(Wiersbe) Everything in our lives is important to God, and He has a plan for each detail

( Wiersbe) People ask, " How do I determine God's will for my life?"  You start with the thing you ought to do, and you do that. Then God opens the way for the next step. The more we obey, the easier it is to discover what God wants us to do

(Wiersbe) The secret of a happy life is to delight in duty. When duty becomes delight, then burdens become blessings

(Wiersbe)  His outline of three responses to God's will: (1) Ignoring God's will ( James 4:13,14,16);(2) disobeying God's will( James 4:17); (3) obeying God's will ( James 4:15)

(Dave Branon)  His outline of James 4:7-10: Give in! Get close! Clean up! Get down!

(Our Daily Bread) The most powerful testimony is a godly life

(James Stalker) Excessive aversion to controversy may be an indication that a church has no keen sense of possessing truth which is of great worth-- and  that it has lost appreciation for the infinite difference in value between truth and error

(Wiersbe) Tells the story of a quaint old country preacher who preached a three-point sermon on Ps 40:2-3: God brought him up, God stood him up, and God tuned him up

(Wiersbe) When the heart delights in God's law, the will has no problem obeying

(Wiersbe) Worship is not an escape from life but the opportunity to honor God and be equipped to face life and live for His glory

(Mart De Haan) At a moment in time, the eternal God closed His eyes and stopped breathing. At that moment, God was dead--not just in the perception of others, but in real time and in an actual place. The Second Person of the Three-in- One God became a real man to die a real death for us-- a mystery that is beyond human comprehension

(Mart De Haan) Those who allow the Spirit of Christ to be seen in them are an antidote to the opinion that " God is dead"

( J. Oswald Sanders) Ultimately, loneliness stems from mankind's alientation from God, so no remedy that does not take this factor into account will afford more than superficial and temporary relief

Friday, June 3, 2011

060311

(Ray Stedman) The passage in James 4 is not saying we should not make plans or set goals for our lives. Of course we should. But we should never become arrogant or presumptuous. We should never think we own our own lives and that we control our destinies. God is the ultimate authority over our lives- not us. The more we respect his sovereignty over our lives, the better equipped we will be to adjust to the unforeseen circumstances that come our way. Time is in God's hands, not ours

(Charles Stanley) When God puts a burden on our hearts for someone, we dare not shove the inclination to the back of our minds

(Charles Stanley)  As much as you may desire real intimacy with your  Savior, remember he longs for it even more

(Stanley) On the importance of  a " quiet time": The more you honor that appointment with God, the greater your desire will be to protect it--and the greater your enrichment. Are you ready for  relationship with Jesus that knows no boundaries? Then open your time, your life, your heart-- and expect the Lord's involvement"

(A. Rogers) The greatest problem we face is not unanswered prayer but unoffered prayer

(Rogers) Have you ever thought of the devil fleeing from you? Most of us want to settle for s standoff. The devil cares nothing for your resolutions or your intentions, but he fears the blood of Jesus Christ. When Satan gets on your case, bring the blolod of Jesus and the Word of God against him, and he WILL flee

(Wiersbe) How tragic it is when  local churches  get their values confused and cater to the rich while they ignore, or even reject, the poor.If fellowship in a church depends on such external things as clothing and economic status, then the church is out of the will of God

(Wiersbe) Christians need to have discernment but they must not  to act like God in passing judgment. We never have all the facts in a case, and we certainly never know the  motives  that are at work in peoples hearts. To speak evil of a person and to judge a person in the basis of partial evidence and ( probably) unkind motives is to sin against them and against God

Thursday, June 2, 2011

060211

(James 4:12/ Phillips translation)   How can you be so silly as to imagine that you are your neighbor's judge?

( Thomas a Kempis) Man proposes, but God disposes

(James 4:4/ The Living Bible)  I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy the evil pleasures of the unsaved world, you cannot also be a friend of God

(James 4:14/ The Living Bible) How do you know what is going to happen tomorrow? For the length of your lives is as uncertain as the morning fog-now you see it, soon it is gone

( Ray Stedman)   These wars and fights among Christian brothers and sisters are the result of prayerlessness, which is itself a demonstration of faithlessness. When faith fails, prayer fails, then fighting, arguments, hatred, and distrust break out

(Ray Stedman) People who criticize others have put themselves above the Word of God and have assumed God's role as judge. Instead of letting the Word of God judge themselves, they become the judge of others

060211

(Wiersbe)  Commenting on the phrase " make you perfect" in Heb 13:21:" This phrase is the translation of one Greek word " kataridzo"  . The doctor knew it because it means to set a broken  bone. To fisherman it meant to mend a net. To sailors it meant to outfit a ship for voyage. To soldiers it meant to equip and arm for battle

(Wiersbe) Build your life on the things of heaven that will never shake

(Our Daily Bread) God's presence with us is one of His greatest presents to us

(Riddle) What gets wetter the more it dries? --A towel

(Riddle) What grows  larger the more you take away? -- a hole

(James 4:6/ The Message) God goes against the willful proud;God gives grace to the willing humble

(James 4:10/ The Message) Get down on your knees before the Master; it's the only way you'll get on your feet

(James 4:12/ The Message) God is in charge of deciding human destiny. Who do you think you are to meddle in the destiny of others?

(James 4:14/ The Message) You don't know the first thing about tomorrow. You're nothing but  wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing

060211

(Steven Davey) Prejudice is not a matter of color or class-it is a matter of character

(Wiersbe) quotes an east Eurepean believer," It is always harder to be a good Christian when you ae comfortable"

(Wiersbe)  Contented Christians are people with priorities, and material things are not high on their priority lists

(Wiersbe) Never build your life on any servant of God. Church leaders come and go. Build your life on Jesus Christ. He never changes

(Wiersbe) Every Christian should be on good speaking terms with his pastor

(Wiersbe) As the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ died for  the sheep( John 10:11). As the Great Shepherd, He lives for the sheep in heaven today, working on their behalf. As the Chief Shepherd, He will come again for the sheep on His return ( I Peter 5:4)

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

060111

(Harold Lindsell)  A growing number of people who claim to be evangelical have openly affirmed an inerrancy or infallibility limited to matters of faith and practice. The responses to my book The Battle for the Bible indicate that my basic claim was conservative.  There are more evidences of departure from inerrancy that I was aware of.

(Harold Lindsell) Beware of judgment on the heart of another for which there is no answer. God and God alone at last must judge the intentions of the heart

(Harold Lindsell) If to stand for the truth of the Scripture is divisive, then I am divisive. So be it. If a Christian must choose between theological   compromise, which will hurt both the  faith and believers who are subverted  by error, or silence, inaction and consent to error, then the answer is plain enough. Peace at the expense of theological purity means a denial of what is foundational to the existence of the body. If the issue is of signal importance, there is no choice. One must defend the purity of the body even though the peace of the body will be disturbed as a consequence

(Our Daily Bread) Judas-- so close and yet so far away!

(Flannery O'Connor) The truth does not change according  to our ability to stomach it

(Daniel Moynihan) Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts

(A. Rogers) Understand that the grace that is refused becomes the wrath that is given to those who say no to God's Son. To refuse to come to  Jesus Christ is a clinched fist in the face of Almight God

( A. Rogers) The devil would just as soon you go to hell from the pew as he would from the gutter

(Wiersbe) Nobody knows that crisis hour ( if there is one) when the Spirit stops dealing with the lost sinner

(Wiersbe) The Pharisees  had documented 613 commandments in the Law, 248 positive and 365 negative

(Joe Stowell) In essence, Jesus is telling us in Mt. 22:37-40 that the way God knows we love Him is by how we treat people

(Heb 13:4/The Message) Guard sacredness of sexual intimacy between wife and husband. God draws a firm line against casual and illicit sex

(Wiersbe) In the Bible, there is no division between doctrine and duty, revelation and responsibility. The two go together

(Wiersbe) A dedicated Christian home is the nearest thing to heaven on earth

060111

(Wiersbe)  No Christian believer has to trust the world for anything, because we have received in Christ every blessing we need ( Eph 1:3;2 Pet 1:1-4) We are in the world physically, but not of the world spiritually

(Wiersbe)  Solomon's compromise wasn't a sudden thing, for he gradually descended into idolatry. His sensual love for the many wives was more compelling than his separated love for the Lord, the God of Israel. Without a close walk with the Lord, his heart was empty, so he pursued pleasure, went through a period of cynicism and despair, and even questioned whether his life was worth living. At least thirty-eight times in Eccleiastes, Solomon wrote, "Vanity of vanities". First he was a friendly with the world( James 4:4), then spotted by the world((James 1:27), and then came to love the world( 1 John 2:15-17) and be conformed to the world( Rom 12:2)