We've All Fallen...

"Every person has fallen at some time in his life - most, many times. Peter's steps in denying Christ have since been traced by every human foot. Anyone can understand how he could have slept in the garden, when he should have watched and prayed. Most of us feel an almost unconscious sympathy for him. But there is something in Peter's life that is much greater than his sin. It is his repentance. We all too easily relate to Peter in his weakness, but few of us grasp the wonder of his change. Sinful Peter is one man, and repentant Peter another. That is the real lesson in his life." ~ Henry Drummond

Worship God ONLY

Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” ~ Matthew 4:10 (NIV 1984)

What Do You Live On?

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” ~ Matthew 4:4 (NIV 1984)

What is Prayer?

"What we are accustomed to calling prayer is only a part of it." ~ Origen

Get Liberated

‎"Our culture has promoted a 'double the pleasure, none of the guilt' sort of lifestyle. What’s the result? We’re slaves to lust, food, entertainment, work, toys, noise, activity, alcohol, drugs, busyness, and on and on. We’ve become dominated by the very 'pleasures' we thought would liberate us." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Close Communion

‎"It is not always those who have the most eminent gifts who are the most successful laborers for God. It is generally those who keep up closest communion with Christ and are most constant in prayer." ~ J.C. Ryle

Intercede for Others

"Crying out to God for our own needs during a fast is important, but our prayers will be incomplete if we fail to intercede for others." ~ Kristen Feola (The Ultimate Daniel Fast)

Sacred Calling

"The woman who makes a sweet, beautiful home, filling it with love and prayer and purity, is doing something better than anything else her hands could find to do beneath the skies. A true mother is one of the holiest secrets of home happiness. God sends many beautiful things to this world, many noble gifts; but no blessing is richer than that which He bestows in a mother who has learned love's lessons well, and has realized something of the meaning of her sacred calling." ~ J.R. Miller

Jumping to Conclusions

"Jumping to conclusions is a common form of exercise, and it frequently results in false accusations and damaged relationships." ~ McCumber

Is Your Labor In Vain

"I pity those who try to be holy without Christ! Your labor is all in vain. You are putting money in a bag with holes. You are pouring water into a sieve. You are rolling a huge round stone uphill. You are building up a wall with untempered mortar. Believe me, you are beginning at the wrong end. You must come to Christ first, and He shall give you His sanctifying Spirit. You must learn to say with Paul, 'I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.'” (Phil. 4:13) ~ J.C. Ryle

Surrender All

"Lord, here in your precious Word I give myself, my husband, my children, and all that I have or ever shall posses, all to you. I will follow your will, even to China. Lord, open doors, and I will go and tell the Chinese of your great love. In time of need, supply for us; in time of sorrow, give us peace; in times of joy, send someone to share. Help me to never murmur nor complain. I love you Lord Jesus."

~ Tanna Collins [This note comes from a page in Mrs. Collins" Bible that was found at the scene of the airline crash in Tibet in which the entire family perished in 1994].

Pray with Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is inseparable from true prayer; it is almost essentially connected with it. One who always prays is ever giving praise, whether in ease or pain, both for prosperity and for the greatest adversity. He blesses God for all things, looks on them as coming from Him, and receives them for His sake- not choosing nor refusing, liking or disliking,anything, but only as it is agreeable or disagreeable to His perfect will.” ~ John Wesley, How To Pray: The Best of John Wesley on Prayer

Consecrated to God

"Father, strengthen the hearts of your church and all your servants. Give us grace to consecrate ourselves faithfully and entirely to your service. Help us to encourage one another in love and grow together as your people, through the merits of our Lord and Savior Jesus Chris. Amen." ~ John Wesley

Wrestle for Their Souls

“Son, we taught you God’s Word; we wrestled for your soul; we lived a God-fearing example before you. You didn’t see in us a sinless piety but an unfeigned faith. You know we sought first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Your conscience will bear witness that Christ is the center of this home. We sang together, prayed together, and talked together. If you turn away from this light and these privileges, and insist on going your own way, we can only pray that all your Bible study, praying, and singing will not rise up against you in the Judgment Day—and that you will come to your senses before it is too late.” ~ Matthew Henry

For Evil to Triumph...

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” ~ Edmund Burke

Life's Greatest Certainty ~ Death

"If life’s greatest certainty is death, wouldn’t it be foolish not to prepare for what lies beyond this life? Any life that leaves us unprepared for death is a wasted life." ~ Randy Alcorn (from Money, Possessions and Eternity)

“O LORD, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!” (Psalm 39:4).

What Do You Want?

"Most people, if they had really learned to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want, and want acutely, something that cannot be had in this world. There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never quite keep their promise. …There was something we grasped at, in that first moment of longing, which just fades away in the reality." ~ C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)

Looking for a Good Man

"Women, unless and until you have found a man who is spiritually mature enough to disciple you and your kids, you haven’t found a man who is qualified to be your husband." ~ Voddie Baucham

Count the Cost

‎"It costs something to be a true Christian. Let that NEVER be forgotten. To be a mere nominal Christian, and go to church, is cheap and easy work. But to HEAR Christ’s voice, FOLLOW Christ, BELIEVE in Christ, and CONFESS Christ, requires MUCH self-denial. It will cost us our sins, our self-righteousness, our ease, and our worldliness." ~ J.C. Ryle

Insecurity Problems?

The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else's highlight reel. ~ S. Furtick

Training Children

"Some fathers exasperate their children by being overly strict and controlling. They need to remember that rearing children is like holding a wet bar of soap – too firm a grasp and it shoots from your hand, too loose a grip and it slides away. A gentle but firm hold keeps you in control." ~ Kent Hughes

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. ~ Ephesians 6:4 (NIV 1984)

Worship In Spirit and In Truth

"Worship that is not based on God's Word is but an emotional encounter with oneself" ~ Lutzer.

Mock Jesus?

From Adam Hamilton's Book ~ 24 Hours that Changed the World:

I asked a friend, "Have you ever mocked Jesus by your words or actions?" and he replied, "When do I not mock him? I feel like most of my life I struggle with mocking Jesus, with saying one thing about him when I'm in church but then often mocking him with my thoughts and actions the rest of the week. I don't live as though he is my King." ~ Adam Hamilton

Power of Sacrificial Love

"...the power of sacrificial love, and that is exactly what the cross of Christ is meant to inspire us to do. We are to look at the cross of Jesus and say, "I have to strive to live in such a way as to be worthy of that sacrifice." We are meant to be changed b y the Atonement and in turn to practice sacrificial love toward others. As each new follower of Jesus practices such love, the world will be changed and humanity transformed." ~ Adam Hamilton (from his book "24 Hours that Changed the World")

Imperfect Repentance

"Father, accept my imperfect repentance, have compassion on my infirmities, forgive my faults, purify my uncleanness, strengthen my weakness, fix my unstableness, and let your good Spirit watch over me forever, and your love ever rule in my heart, through the merits and sufferings and love of your Son, in whom you are always well pleased. Amen."

~ John Wesley, as quoted in Ashes to Fire, Year B

Happiest Children in the World

"The happiest and holiest children in the world are the children whose fathers succeed in winning both their tender affection and their reverential and loving fear. And they are the children who will come to understand most easily the mystery of the fatherhood of God." ~ John Piper

Start...

No matter what the ruin of any life may be there is always a place to start. There is a place where you must begin. You need to apologize to someone. You need to go to somebody and straighten something out. You need to stop some practice that is wrong. You need to open yourself up to counsel. You need to seek advice. You need to get some guidance. There is always a first step. That is where you must begin. And whatever you pray, pray that God will give you the grace, the strength and the determination to take that step. Then, the process of recovery has begun. ~ Ray C. Stedman

Children: Entrusted to Your Care

"Next to your wife are your children; immortal spirit whom God hath, for a time, entrusted to your care, that you may train them up in all holiness, and fit them for the enjoyment of God in eternity. This is a glorious and important trust; seeing a soul is of more value than all the world beside. Every child, therefore, you are to watch over with the utmost care, that, when you are called to give an account of each to the Father of Spirits, you may give your accounts with joy and not with grief." ~ John Wesley

Everything is a Decision

‎"Everything we do proceeds from a decision of will, involves our intelligence and perception, leads to emotional reactions or experiences, is approved or disapproved by the conscience, and is registered in the memory in complete perspective." ~ Gordon Olson

Faith Is...

“Faith is the gaze of the soul upon a saving God …. Faith is the least self-regarding of the virtues. It is by its very nature scarcely conscious of its own existence. Like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, faith is occupied with the Object upon which is rests and pays no attention to itself at all.” ~ A.W. Tozer

Worship

‎"No longer would worship be limited to a particular place or time; God was seeking those who would worship Him in spirit—worship could happen anytime and any place!" ~ Kimberly Wagner

Keep It Current!

‎"We cannot stay faithful in the race if we’re trying to live on past experiences with God. It’s the danger of service without devotion." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

A Child Needs...

“A child needs both to be hugged and unhugged. The hug lets her know she is valuable. The unhug lets her know that she is viable. If you’re always shoving your child away, they will cling to you for love. If you’re always holding them closer, they will cling to you for fear.” ~ Polly Berrien Berends

Am I Really What I Ought to Be?

"Am I really what I ought to be? Am I what, in the bottom of my heart, I honestly wish to be? Am I living a life at all like what I myself approve? My secret nature, the true complexion of my character, is hidden from all men, and only I know it. Is it such as I should be willing to show? Is my soul at all like what my kindest and most intimate friends believe? Is my heart at all such as I should wish the Searcher of Hearts to judge me by? Is every year adding to my devotion, to my unselfishness, to my conscientiousness, to my freedom from the hypocrisy of seeming so much better than I am? When I compare myself with last year, am I more ready to surrender myself at the call of duty? am I more alive to the commands of conscience? have I shaken off my besetting sins?" These are the questions which this season of Lent ought to find us putting fairly and honestly to our hearts." ~ Frederick Temple

If You Truly Love Them...

“Precious, no doubt, are these little ones in your eyes; but if you truly love them, then often think about their souls. Nothing should concern you as greatly as their eternal destiny. No part of them should be so dear to you as that part which will never die." ~ J.C. Ryle

To Love...

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung, and possibly broken. The only place outside of Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers of love is hell." ~ C.S. Lewis

The Family...

“The family should be a closely knit group. The home should be a self-contained shelter of security; a kind of school where life’s basic lessons are taught; and a kind of church where God is honored; a place where wholesome recreation and simple pleasures are enjoyed.” ~ Billy Graham

A Sinner Through and Through

"Christianity insists that everyone is a sinner through and through. Our minds, hearts, wills, and emotions are in rebellion against God. When it comes right down to it, the problem is not that there is only one way to God (through Christ). The real problem is that human beings will not follow God at all." ~ Philip Graham Ryken

Home

‎"Home is among the holiest of words. A true home is one of the most sacred of places. It is a sanctuary into which men flee from the world’s perils and alarms. It is a resting-place to which at close of day the weary retire to gather new strength for the battle and toils of tomorrow. It is the place where love learns its lessons, where life is schooled into discipline and strength, where character is molded." ~ JR Miller

Pray Without Ceasing

“And here it is, I say it with sorrow, here it is that men fall short so miserably. Few indeed are to be found who pray: there are many who go down on their knees, and say a form perhaps, but few who pray; few who cry out to God, few who call on the Lord, few who seek as if they wanted to find, few who knock as if they hungered and thirsted, few who wrestle, few who strive with God earnestly for an answer, few who give Him no rest, few who continue in prayer, few who pray always without ceasing and do not grow weak. Yes: few pray! It is just one of the things assumed as a matter of course, but seldom practiced; a thing which is everybody’s business, but in fact hardly anybody performs.” ~ J.C. Ryle

Be Careful...

“Be careful how you spend your time: Spend your time in nothing which you know must be repented of.” ~ Richard Baxter

Highest Priority: Prayer

"Common sense tells us that the highest priority must be given to prayer if we hope to enhance our children’s spiritual development… Effective intercession for our children requires that we pray with the mind engaged, in detail, with appropriate earnestness, and that both parents should often pray for their children together." ~ Kent & Barbara Hughes

SERIOUS DANGER!

"We are in serious danger of losing coming generations to shallowness, immorality, and heresy because they are not digging deep into Scripture and great books grounded in Scripture. Families and churches who are committed to building Christian character that will endure must address this problem head-on." ~ Randy Alcorn

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” ~ Psalm 119:11.

No Careless Charges

‎"Don’t let your home or heart become a breeding ground for criticism or careless charges about your church leaders." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss (1 Timothy 5:19)

Change of Address...

‎"You can't kill a Christian. You can only change his address." ~ Pastor Duke Downs

The Good Divorce

‎"There must be a divorce between you and sin, or there can be no marriage between you and Christ." ~ Charles Spurgeon

Imperfect...

"Father, accept my imperfect repentance, have compassion on my infirmities, forgive my faults, purify my uncleanness, strengthen my weakness, and let your good Spirit watch over me forever, and your love ever rule in my heart, through the merits and sufferings and love of your Son, in whom you are always well pleased." ~ John Wesley

John Wesley's Dying Words

John Wesley spoke his dying words “Best of all, God is with us,” on this day, March 2 1791 (Repost from Gary Thomas)

Individualized Education

‎"Remember God, not the state, owns your children. God’s ways and standards are in no way inferior to the state’s. God’s design for your children’s education is not only superior but also individualized. It will prepare your children, in their own time and way, to be and do what God has created and called them for. Your child is not a “third grader.” Your child is “Johnny Smith.” He is an individual with an individual pace and way of learning, for an individual purpose God created him for, placed in your individual family to nurture that in him." ~ from Quick Start Guide to Freedom & Simplicity™ through Lifestyle Education through Discipleship™.

Contrite Spirit

"O Lord, I want to offer an evening sacrifice, the sacrifice of a contrite spirit. Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great goodness and the multitude of your mercies. Cleanse me from all filthiness of flesh and spirit that I may follow you with a pure heart and mind. Amen." ~ John Wesley

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss

“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”


“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”


“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”


“A person's a person, no matter how small.”

“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!”


“Why fit in when you were born to stand out?”

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”
~ Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas

“We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.”

“Today I shall behave, as if this is the day I will be remembered.”


“It is better to know how to learn than to know.”


“Be who you are and say what you mean. Because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”

Read to a Child

‎"You're never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read to a child." ~ Dr. Seuss

Train Your Children to Pray

“Parents, if you love your children, do all that lies within your power to train them to have a habit of prayer. Show them how to begin. Tell them what to say. Encourage them to persevere. Remind them that if they become careless and slack about it. Let it not be your fault, if they never call on the name of the Lord." ~ J.C. Ryle

What Happens When Women Say Yes to God

‎"I am not a woman who should be labeled unable. I am a woman on a journey of learning how to make sure my reactions won't deny Christ's presence in me. I am a woman who says yes to God not because my emotions and reactions are always perfect. No, I say yes to God because He is perfectly able to forgive me, love me, remind me, challenge me and show me how to weather trials in ways that prove His Spirit resides in me. I remind myself often that people don't care to meet my Jesus until they meet the reality of Jesus in my life." ~ Lysa TerKeurst (Made to Crave: Chapter 4, What Happens When Women Say Yes to God)

Negligent?

When someone acts weak, negligent, or casual in a duty - performing it carelessly or lifelessly, without any genuine satisfaction, joy, or interest - he has already entered into the spirit that will lead him into trouble. How many we see today who have departed from warmhearted service and have become negligent, careless, and indifferent in their prayer life or in the reading of the Scriptures. For each one who escapes this peril, a hundred others will be ensnared. Then it may be too late to acknowledge, "I neglected private prayer," or "I did not meditate on God's Word," or "I did not hear what I should have listened to." ~ John Owen