More than You Can Imagine

"Prayer is not asking for what you think you want, but asking to be changed in ways you can’t imagine." ~ Norris

Who Can You Appreciate Today?

From author, Gary Thomas: “There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.” Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Who can we love/appreciate today?

Stop Listening

"Stop listening to the enemy. Setting our heart and mind on lies is like setting the radio dial to a trashy station. What feeds me, affects me." ~ Lysa TerKeurst

What Makes a Safe Environment?

"A safe environment is filled with powerful, free people; if it isn't, it will quickly become an unsafe place controlled by those who think they have all the power." ~ Danny Lee Silk

Action!

"Sympathy is no substitute for action." ~ David Livingstone, missionary to Africa

Sackcloth, Dust & Ashes

‎"I propose that we come down off our high horses, & that we get down before God in sackcloth & dust & ashes, & that we pray until we pray. That we preach until we preach with unction, & that we win the victory for God & souls." ~ J.B. Chapman 1946

Be Yourself

"Believing you are loved will set you free to be who God created you to be...Rest in His love and just be yourself." ~ Lisa Whelchel

Are You Powerful?

"Powerful people will not only take responsibility for today, but also for tomorrow. They know the decisions they make today will create the tomorrow they’re going to live in." ~ Danny Lee Silk

Satisfy HIS Desires

"The resources God gives us should be used to do his work and carry out his will, but too often we use them to satisfy our own desires." ~ Kristen Feola (from her Facebook Page)

Turn Off Your TV

‎"How can you pull down strongholds of Satan if you don’t even have the strength to turn off your TV?" ~ Leonard Ravenhill

Be Careful

‎"Let us be very careful that we never exalt any minister, or sermon, or book, or friend above the Word of God." ~ J.C. Ryle

Corporate Oneness in Christ

"Kingdom living embraces God in worship and mission in transnational, multilingual, cross-generational, and multicultural settings. How is this possible? The Spirit of God transforms our individual-oriented inwardness to a corporate oneness in Christ." ~ N.G. Gunter

God's Sanctifying Grace

"God’s sanctifying grace can free us from carnality. When we are consumed by love for God, we will value what glorifies him." ~ Jesse C. Middendorf

All Girls Are Princesses

I am a princess. All girls are. Even if they live in tiny old attics. Even if they dress in rags, even if they aren't pretty, or smart, or young. They're still princesses. ~ Frances Hodgson Burnett

Life & Death

"Life becomes different when we realize that death is a turnstile, not a wall, and that our funerals will mark a small end and a great beginning." ~ Randy Alcorn (from 50 Days of Heaven)

“…to live is Christ and to die is gain” ~ Philippians 1:21

Routine Is Necessary

‎"...routine is not idle. It is really necessary that we do the same tasks over and over, with scarcely a variation from year to year. The women find it so in their home life; their housekeeping duties are about the same every day. It cannot be other wise. To break up the routine would be to mar the completeness of the home life and work. To omit any of the little duties of the kitchen, the dining room, or the general housework would be to leave the work of the home less beautifully done." ~ JR Miller

Hard Days...

"Some days the realities of life cause us to step back and make decisions we weren’t expecting to make. God walks with us through that process." ~ C. Hosher

A Royal Wedding

If we truly understood our identity in Christ, every Christian wedding would be treated as a “royal wedding.” ~ Gary Thomas

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. ~ 1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)

H A L T

"There is a popular acronym known in the land of the lean as HALT. It means that when you feel like reaching for food, ask yourself first if you are hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. If you're hungry, then proceed, but if you are reaching for food in response to emotion, then halt your behavior immediately and deal with the problem at hand. There's nothing inherently wrong with putting food to your mouth, but if you're doing it to fill a void that should be handled another way." ~ Candace Cameron Bure (Reshaping It All pp. 60-61)

Simplicity

“In the West we have a tendency to be profit-oriented, where everything is measured according to the results and we get caught up in being more and more active to generate results. In the East -- especially in India -- I find that people are more content to just be, to just sit around under a banyan tree for half a day chatting to each other. We Westerners would probably call that wasting time. But there is value to it. Being with someone, listening without a clock and without anticipation of results, teaches us about love. The success of love is in the loving -- it is not in the result of loving.” ~ Mother Teresa (A Simple Path: Mother Teresa)

Small Courtesies

"Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the grateful and appreciating heart." ~ Henry Clay

Remember...

‎"It is a good thing for a man to remember his past sins when that memory brings a loathing for evil. It is still better when the memory brings gratitude for the cleansing, and a deeper dependence upon God for power to live a holy life. This ministry of memory is one of the blessed ways that the Holy Spirit works in us." ~ A.F. Harper (from his devotional book, Holiness and High Country)

It is Well

“If all be well within, nothing can hurt us from without.” ~ Jeremy Taylor

Train Them to Pray

“Oh, dear friend, if you love your children, I charge you, do not let the early impression of a habit of prayer slip by. If you train your children to do anything, train them, at least, to have a habit of prayer.” ~ J.C. Ryle

Be Reconciled

"Holiness requires that I love my neighbors and be reconciled to them." ~ D. Ward

Are You Comfortable?

“But God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn't come through.” ~ Francis Chan

Be Content

‎"Contentment is just the realization that God has already provided for me today all that I need for my present peace and happiness." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Hebrews 13:5-6

Let Go...

‎"...God wants people who can hold everything – their profession, their wealth, their status, their family – on an open palm. The only thing we are to clutch to our hearts is God himself. God wants us to allow him to give and to take away. We can only allow him this freedom if our security is not in our Isaac but in Christ. This is the job of the sanctifying Spirit. When our security is Christ, we can never be destroyed." ~ Dennis F. Kinlaw (from This Day with the Master – referencing Genesis 22: 1-19)

Surprise Endings

"The simple fact is that ours is a God of surprise endings, One who can move into our moments of pain and bring forth from them experiences of strength and grace." ~ Michael

Purpose of Life

"The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it." ~ James

Freedom in Rules

"Freedom lies in keeping the rules. Joy is there, too." ~ Elisabeth Elliot

Devoted to...

"Those who will follow Jesus in holy living will be devoted to living out the example of Jesus." ~ Jesse C. Middendorf

Grand Homecoming

"Someday, there will be a grand homecoming in heaven that will make every earthly homecoming pale in comparison." ~ Graves

What is the Source of Life?

‎"God's Word is the source of all life and health. It's what feeds, develops, and preserves a church's understanding of the gospel itself." ~ Mark Dever, "What is a Healthy Church?"

Be Transformed

"Satan intends your suffering for evil; God intends it for good. Satan attempts to destroy your faith, while God invites you to draw upon his sovereign grace to sustain you. If we truly recognize and believe God’s sovereignty even over Satan’s work, our perspective isn’t merely altered, it’s transformed." ~ Randy Alcorn

“You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” ~ Genesis 50:20

It Won't Fail

‎"I want people to fill their minds with passages of Scripture while they are well and strong, that they may have sure help in the day of need. I want them to be diligent in studying their Bibles, and becoming familiar with its contents, in order that the grand old Book may stand by them and talk with them when all earthly friends fail." ~ J.C. Ryle

Make Me a Servant

‎"We are never more like Jesus than when we are serving Him or others. There is no higher calling than to be a servant." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

The Bible's Purpose

"The Bible’s purpose is not so much to show you how to live a good life. The Bible’s purpose is to show you how God’s grace breaks into your life against your will and saves you from the sin and brokenness otherwise you would never be able to overcome… religion is ‘if you obey, then you will be accepted’. But the Gospel is, ‘if you are absolutely accepted, and sure you’re accepted, only then will you ever begin to obey’. Those are two utterly different things. Every page of the Bible shows the difference." ~ Tim Keller

In His Steps

‎"We must give up the vain idea of trying to please everybody. That is impossible, and the attempt is a mere waste of time. We must be content to walk in Christ's steps, and let the world say what it likes." ~ J.C. Ryle

Encounter God

"Any Bible Study, church involvement, prayer meeting, revelation, etc. that does not bring us into greater ENCOUNTER with the Father, only trains us to be more religious. Let nothing become bigger than God's presence in your life!" ~ Kevin Seymour

Be a Faithful Friend

"Thank God for faithful friends who share life’s journey with us, regardless of circumstance. Their support, humor, honesty, forgiveness, and encouragement are priceless." ~ C. Jean

Read It!

“God has condescended to become an author, and yet people will not read his writings. There are very few that ever gave this Book of God, the grand charter of salvation, one fair reading through.” ~ George Whitefield

What Matters Most? Relationship with God!

‎" the worth of a woman is not determined by her occupation or by her income or by her effort. Instead, the worth of a woman is determined by her relationship with God. He has created all people in his image, of equal value, and with different but worthwhile roles". ~ Rhonda H. Kelley (A Woman's Guide to True Contentment)

Forgiven & Forgiving

"He calls us to be a forgiven and forgiving people so saturated in grace that we can risk being honest with each other." ~ Troxler

Pray for Revivial

‎"Revival is nothing more than the release of God’s Spirit flowing through broken lives." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

First Love Christ

‎"The fear of punishment, the desire of reward, the sense of duty, are all useful arguments, in their way, to persuade people to holiness. But they are all weak and powerless, until a person loves Christ." ~ J.C. Ryle

Grieve Then Get a Grip

"When faced with disappointing events—grieve, get a grip, then get up. Being forced to go a new direction can make you wiser, stronger, and more in tune to hearing God’s voice in your life." ~ C. Jean

Will You Make it Safely Home?

From Randy Alcorn's book, Safely Home ~ Quan nodded. “And he added, ‘One day you will die. You must spend your life preparing for that day.’ I have often asked myself, ‘Is this the day?’ ”

Nourishment Needed

"Your body needs nourishment on a regular basis. So does your spirit. To thrive as a Christian, you must feed on God's Word each day." ~ Kristen Feola

Speak No Evil

"I met those of our society who had votes in the ensuring election, and advised them, 1. To vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most worthy: 2. To speak no evil of the person they voted against: And, 3. To take care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side." ~ John Wesley, October 6, 1774

Ultimate Accountant

"God is the ultimate forensic accountant. Everything we do, say, or think is under his watch." ~ Graves

Don't Ask Why

“We have no right to ask when a sorrow comes, ‘Why did this happen to me?’ unless we ask the same question for every joy that comes our way.” Philip Bernstein

Got Fruit?

"True faithfulness includes fruitfulness." ~ Jerry Porter

I Try & Fail, BUT...

“When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds.” ~ Corrie Ten Boom

Drink Deeply then Slosh

“Whatever fills your bucket is what will slosh out on others. Drink deeply from His Spirit, and you will refresh everyone you touch.” ~ Dr. Ed Young

Learn to Pray

‎"Real prayer is something we learn." ~ Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline

He Brought Me Through

‎'It is tempting to hide my emotional scars, but actually I should display them as a testament to how I have survived and how God has brought me through.' ~ Mark Brown

Love Is...

‎"Love that goes upward is worship; love that goes outward is affection; love that stoops is grace." ~ Donald Barnhouse

What Do You Leave Behind?

‎"Every living thing leaves a trail; a path of influence on the people and places it touches. For some, the legacy of their day will be kindness, forgiveness and generosity, for others; selfishness, conflict and negativity.

What kind of trail will YOU leave today?"

~ J. Pavlovitz

God's Plan for You...

‎"God's purpose is that we shall be like Him, and that we shall help others to be so. This was His purpose in creation. It is still His plan for our lives." ~ A.F. Harper

Be Thankful

proclaiming thanksgiving aloud, and telling all your wondrous deeds. ~ Psalm 26:7 (ESV)

Invitation Only

"God does not coerce us to follow Him. He invites us." ~ Elisabeth Elliot

Live Out Holiness

"The church has always been a place where vastly different people come together and try to live out this holiness we are called to live. We did not always do it in the same way, and often we had disagreements about one issue or another, yet we loved enough to realize the Kingdom is bigger than my little world." ~D. Ward

Denying...

"As his disciples, we are faced with the concept of denying self for an even greater purpose of loving God and loving others." ~ Jesse C. Middendorf

Reap What You Sow

‎"Every selfish, sinful, or indulgent choice I make today is sowing a seed that will reap a multiplied harvest. And every act of obedience is a seed that will produce a multiplied harvest of blessing in my life and in the lives of those I love." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Life Isn't Fair

"The assumption that life shouldn't be so hard leads to self-pity and endless finger pointing. We see life as unfair and ourselves as victims, and focus on the offenses others have done against us. We fail to realize these offenses pale in comparison to our own offenses against God, who not only forgives us, but requires and enables us to forgive others and move forward free from the past." ~ Randy Alcorn

Matthew 18:21-35

Matthew 20:16

Completely Surrender to Jesus

‎"Those who say in simple surrender 'Yes, Lord,' emerge from the experience spiritually rich, and become a source of grace and encouragement to others who are hurting." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Yes, Lord, Yes

Yes, Lord, yes, to Your will and to Your way
Yes, Lord, yes, I will trust You and obey
When Your Spirit speaks to me, with my whole heart I'll agree
And my answer will be yes, Lord, yes!

Everything or Nothing?

"The one who has Christ has everything. The one who has everything except for Christ really has nothing. And the one who has Christ plus everything else does not have any more than the one who has Christ alone." ~ Augustine

What Is Most Important?

"…is my desire in this conflict to prove that I am right, or is my desire to improve the relationship." ~ Lysa TerKeurst (Unglued)

I Surrender

‎"Whether the problem is earth-shattering or a mere blip on the radar screen of our lives, ultimately, the real issue is this: 'Will I surrender to God’s hand and purpose in my life?'"
~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss (from A Place of Quiet Rest)

What Is Wrong?

We should not ask, "What is wrong with the world?" for that diagnosis has already been given. Rather, we should ask, "What has happened to the salt and light?" ~ Stott


13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

~ Matthew 5:13-16 (NIV 1984)

Seek Holiness

"If you contend more for knowledge than a holy life, you’ll end up with neither." ~ Gary Thomas

Go After Souls

"The church that has gone after souls has been owned and blessed of God." ~ C. Warren Jones, September 14, 1942

The Obedient Response

"My job isn’t to fix the difficult people in my life or enable them to continue disrespectful or abusive behaviors. My job is to be obedient to God in the way I act and respond to those people." ~ Lysa TerKeurst (Unglued)

Resist Temptation

"The very thing that tempts me most passionately is the thing I must resist with the most passion." ~ Michael

Disciple-Makers

"The church is not an audience of spectators; we are a fellowship of disciple-makers." http://multiplymovement.com/

Moment of Conflict

"A moment of conflict handled the right way is hands down one of the greatest ways to shame Satan back to hell." ~ Lysa TerKeurst

Go Boldly to the Throne

"We do God...honor by believing what He has said about Himself and having the courage to come boldly to the throne of grace." ~ A.W. Tozer (The Knowledge of the Holy ~ 1961)

Friends Sustain Us

"The reason friendship sustains us, like nothing else, is because friends together are always more than the sum of their parts." ~ Jinkins

You Choose

"Don't forfeit the future for temporary satisfaction." ~ Me

Disciples Make Disciples

‎"Making disciples is the supernatural overflow of being a disciple." ~ David Platt

Who Is Lord of Your Life?

"The amount of power you experience to live a victorious, triumphant Christian life is directly proportional to the freedom you give the Spirit to be Lord of your life!" ~ Anne Graham Lotz

Calmness of Spirit

“I never undertake any more work than I can go through with perfect calmness of spirit.” ~ John Wesley

Hope Transforms

"The crazy thing about God is that he weaves hope into our losses, into our deepest pain, into our less than desired futures. And hope transforms." ~ A. Diaz

A song that speaks deeply to my soul in times of confusion and pain ~ The Reason for the World by Matthew West

Good Deeds Aren't Enough

‎"A lifetime of 'good deeds' is not sufficient to deal with the guilt of even one sin against a holy God." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." ~ Ephesians 2:8-9

Lay It Down

"Let us lay aside every weight and besetting sin. Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, and perfect holiness in the fear of God. Let us renew our covenant with our beloved Lord. Let us aim at the highest and best things. Let us resolve by God’s blessing to be more holy, and then I know and am persuaded we shall be more useful and more happy." ~ J.C. Ryle

Reaction or Reply?

"Whether we’re face-to-face or sending a written response, we do need to remember there is a big difference between a reaction and a reply." ~ Lysa TerKeurst (Unglued page 68)

Temptations Help Us...

"Remember that we actually need these tests. Yes, we need them because they help us demonstrate our love for Christ. Without the occasional test, how could we measure our growth in Christ? Why would we even need to depend on Him? Every one of us could run the perfect race, and what would it mean? Nothing at all. But when we have every possibility of stumbling, every possibility of choosing the wrong path, and when we stand tall and walk wisely JUST THE SAME, God is glorified in this world and in the next!" ~ Dr. David Jeremiah (Slaying the Giants in Your Life)

Routine or Revival

When God becomes routine rather than revival, it’s time to switch things up. Otherwise, I might start seeing this time as less important. It becomes the second or third thing I do. After other things. Seemingly more pressing things. Before I know it, it’s been days since I connected privately and personally with Truth." ~ Lysa TerKeurst

Pray for the Holy Spirit's Conviction

"If you lust for more recognition, pray for the Holy Spirit’s conviction. Anyone who truly knows himself is happy to be hidden." ~ Gary Thomas

Life is a Pure Gift

"Gratitude ... goes beyond the "mine" and "thine" and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy." ~ Henri J. M. Nouwen

A Compound Interest

"Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance." ~ C.S. Lewis

What Is Your Foundation?

‎"If the foundation of your happiness is your vocation, your relationships, or your money, then suffering takes your source of joy away from you. But if your ultimate value in life is God, then suffering drives you closer to your source of joy—God." ~ Tullian Tchividjian

Diluted Gospel?

"You don't water down the gospel because you care about people's souls, you do it because you want them to like you. Frankly, we need to get over ourselves!" ~ Andrew Rappaport

Freedom in Christ

‎"We talk about freedom in Christ but that freedom gives you the ability to say no to the things that take our attention from God." ~ Pastor Jeff Mills

Required for Marriage

"Successful marriage requires us to learn how to respond to a sinful human being in a holy way." ~ Gary Thomas

A Tangible Sign

"Our tithes and offerings are a tangible sign of our desire to live wholly for God. They are an expression of gratitude, worship, and praise. They demonstrate that we put God first in our lives. They are an investment in God’s work through the church. And, without a doubt, they please God." ~ Hamilton

God's Promises

‎"God can be trusted. He keeps His promises. He doesn't make any mistakes." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Extend Credit

"In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus said the wrongs committed against us were “debts.” In this sense, we have the ability to extend “credit” to those who have wronged us." ~ Jesse C. Middendorf

Thirsting for Holiness

"Too often, “holiness” is equated with stale antiquated legalism rather than thirsting for that which only the Holy Spirit can quench." ~ M.E. Anderson

For Jesus...

"You can’t hide in a hole or put your head in a bucket and think that you’re engaging the world for Christ. Find out what makes people tick. Be interested in them. Give of yourself, for Christ’s sake." ~ M. Ellen

You Have Issues, BUT...

"Whether issues are challenging or enriching, worrisome or wondrous, challenge us to do that which needs to be done, knowing You are in the moment with us." ~ Page

Deep Water

‎"If God is calling you into the deep waters, that is is a divine setup for you to know HIm." ~ Priscilla Shirer (from True Woman '12)

Our Savior Knows...

"A Savior who has looked suffering in the face, who has settled down into death for three days, who has experienced betrayal and loss and undeniable cruelty—this is a Savior who will not shy away from our pain but who can also help make a way through it." ~ D. Shroyer"

You Have Time

‎"There is time in every day to do everything that God wants me to do." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

15 Be very careful, then, how you live —not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ~ Ephesians 5:15-16 (NIV 1984)

Reframe the Impossibilities

"Do not get caught in the net of despair. Do not get trapped in the web of cynicism. Do not get swallowed up by all the impossibilities. Instead, be in Christ, where all impossibilities can be reframed by the hope of Jesus Christ." ~ Tennent

Are You Scared? Yes... Good...

"Courage is doing what you are afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you're scared." ~ Eddie Rickenbacker

Stop for Directions

"What sometimes looks like failure can actually be only failure to trust God to work in fresh and new ways and to embrace new directions offered to us now." ~ Rowe

Don't Wish for Something Else

"I have learned that I am not equipped to handle what others have—both good and bad. I am, on the other hand, completely equipped to handle what I’ve been given. And the more time I spend being thankful for my life, the less I look around wishing for something else." ~ Lysa TerKeurst

Hang On...

“The child, in danger of the fire, just clings to the fireman, and trusts to him alone. She raises no question about the strength of his limbs to carry her, or the zeal of his heart to rescue her; but she clings…and her deliverer quickly bears her to safety. In the same childlike confidence cling to Jesus, who can and will bear you out of danger from the flames of sin.” ~ Charles Spurgeon

Our Job is to Guide

"As a parent, it is our job to guide our children. But our guiding shouldn't have the ultimate goal in mind of them a success in the world’s eyes. Our guiding should be focused on leading them into a relationship with God where He'll make their path straight, no matter what their grades are." ~ Lysa TerKeurst

Read and Learn

"What I have learned from about 20 years of serious reading is this: It is sentences that change my life not books. What changes my life is some new glimpse of truth, some powerful challenge, some resolution to a long-standing dilemma, and these usually come concentrated in a sentence or two. I do not remember 99% of what I read, but if the 1% of each book or article I do remember is a life-changing insight, then I don't begrudge the 99%." ~ John Piper

Help Our Children Learn

How wonderful it would be if we could help our children and grandchildren to learn thanksgiving at an early age. Thanksgiving opens the doors. It changes a child's personality. A child is resentful, negative—or thankful. Thankful children want to give, they radiate happiness, they draw people. -- Sir John Templeton

In HIS Strength

“Trying to do the Lord's work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, and tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, then the ministry of Jesus just flows out of you.” ~ Corrie Ten Boom

Enabled by the Holy Spirit

‎"Holiness is not something we can manufacture on our own; it is motivated and enabled by the Holy Spirit who lives within us to make us holy." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Right on Time

‎"God will put all of the abandoned little pieces of you into the dish, pour some cream of the Holy Spirit on you, sprinkle on a little grace and mercy, and put you in the oven of trial for just a little bit. But just like a master chef, he’s going to pull you out right on time. He’s not going to leave you in there to burn." ~ Priscilla Shirer (True Woman '12)

Actions Speak Loudest

"Don't just say you care, show it: Visit a shut-in. Sponsor a needy child. Assist a caretaker. Volunteer. Sit with a visitor. Demonstrate love. Reach out. Develop new interests. Don’t assume. Follow through on your promises. Be an encourager. Don’t hide behind excuses." ~ M. Ellen

Give for the Glory of God

“It is not enough for the church to talk about generosity, nor is it enough for individual Christians simple to commit to being generous. What makes generosity a real and powerful witness to God’s love is our action. Generosity flows from an understanding that all that we have, are, and ever will become is not ours to possess, and it results in sharing what we’ve been given with others for the advancement of the kingdom and the glory of God." ~ Chris Willard & Jim Sheppard, Contagious Generosity, 2012, p.18

Parental Inventory

"Parents, take inventory in your own hearts. Do you thirst for God as the deer pants after the water?" ~ John MacArthur

Call Unto Holiness

‎"Am I prepared to let God grip me by His power and do a work in me that is worthy of Himself? Sanctification is not my idea of what I want God to do for me; sanctification is God's idea of what He wants to do for me, and He has to get me into the attitude of mind and spirit where at any cost I will let Him sanctify me wholly." ~ Oswald Chambers

Spiritual Maturation Involves

"We will begin to mature spiritually only when we realize that “goodness and wisdom make us happier than food and sex.” ~ Ellen Charry

God's Protection

"Christ changed the lives of countless warped personalities by the contagious assurance, illustrated in His own character, of the reality of God's protection." ~ Elton Trueblood

Prayer Means...

"Prayer means that the total you is praying. Your whole being reaches out to God, and God reaches down to you." ~ E.S. Jones

Love Vs. Lust

"Love is the desire to benefit others at the expense of self. Lust is the desire to benefit self at the expense of others." ~ Ed Cole

Looking for a Wife???

"Single men, take note: Proverbs 31:30 makes a woman’s faith the defining characteristic of her suitability to be an excellent wife." ~ Gary Thomas

Don't FAIL!

"If you fail, father, to teach your son to fear God, the devil will teach him to hate God. If you fail to teach your son to guard his mind, the devil will gladly teach him to have an open mind. If you fail to teach your son to obey his parents, the devil will teach him to rebel and break his parent’s heart. If you fail to teach your son to select his companions, the devil will gladly choose them for him. If you fail to teach your son to control his body, the devil will teach him to give it over completely to lust. If you fail to teach your son to enjoy the marriage partner that God has given him, the devil will teach him to destroy the marriage. If you fail to teach your son to watch his words, the devil will fill his mouth with filth. If you fail to teach your son to pursue his work, the devil will make his laziness a tool of hell. If you fail to teach your son to manage his money, the devil will teach him to waste it on riotous living. And if you fail to teach your son to love his neighbor, the devil will gladly teach him to love only himself." ~ John MacArthur, (Crucial Lessons for a Wise Father, Selected Proverbs)

Thank God for All Work

"Thank God every day when you get up that you have something to do that day which must be done whether you like it or not. Being forced to work and forced to do your best will breed in you temperance and self-control, diligence and strength of will, cheerfulness and content, and a hundred virtues which the idle will never know." ~ Basil Carpenter

The World Is Reading You

‎"We are the Bibles the world is reading; We are the creeds the world is needing; We are the sermons the world is heeding." ~ Billy Graham

Don't Lose Sight

"We lose ourselves when we lose sight of how God made us." ~ Mary Kassian (from True Woman '12)

Shortcuts...

‎"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going." ~ Beverly Sills.

Compound Interest...

"Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance." ~ C.S. Lewis

Looking Down?

As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people, and  of course, as long as you are looking down you cannot see something that is above you. ~ C.S. Lewis

Drawing Attention to...

‎"Our lives are not intended to draw attention to themselves. Rather, God intends that as His children, our lives should frame, compliment, and draw attention to the picture of God within us." ~ Nancy Leigh DeMoss