Thought For Today

" The devil tries to destroy our faith through our sin. He whispers, 'See, you are a failure. God could never love you. You have sinned your way out of His love. You promised you would never sin again, and you did. You let God down, and He is angry with You. It is best if you just run away.' The desire of the devil is to see us become estranged and alienated from God."
James Bryan Smith

Thought For Today

"[A lady] related that she didn't want to force or impose her views and beliefs on her kids. Where do people get this notion? I don't know who or what gets this idea into people's minds, other than some people who want nothing less than a society which has no morals, standards, or faith in anything other than 'Mother Earth!' What a sad position to hold onto...We definitely need to train up our kids." - Mark Peters in his book "Which Way is Up? (From Amongst All This Chaos!)"

Famous Quotes

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.~ Booker T. Washington

Thought For Today

People are waiting to see what we will do with our lives. If God could use a shepherd boy to witness to a king, and ex-convict to witness to prisoners, parents, and teens, surely He can use you. There is no limit to what He can do with an individual who is faithful and follows Him, wherever He may lead.

Are You Running From God?

'The word... came to Jonah the second time.' - Jnh 3:1 NKJV

Jonah did some serious praying in the whale's belly; he repented of his prejudice and learned to love people he despised. It was there he became willing to preach things people don't like to hear. And you'll notice something else. God didn't intervene until he repented. Most of us want God to move before we've moved. No, Jonah acted, then God responded; He commanded the fish and it vomited Jonah up onto dry land, whereupon the runaway prophet asked for directions to Ninevah. Sometimes because of our rebellious spirit we don't get it right until the next marriage. Sometimes because of our rebellious spirit we don't get it right until we're fifty. Sometimes because of our rebellious spirit we don't overcome our addiction until later, although we could have overcome it sooner. Like Jonah we have to go to the bottom. But whatever it takes, God will do it. You can go to Ninevah yourself, or God can take you there. But it's easier to obey the first time. Jonah's story proves that the Lord is a God of second chances. 'The word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time.' Good news: Even though you've run from God, made 'shipwreck' of your life and feel like you're drowning, God will redeem and restore you if you'll turn to Him. He will give you a second chance in your marriage, your ministry or your vocation. But there's one condition - God is not going to change His mind to accommodate what you want, so you need to change your mind and attitude and do what He says, okay?

Jentezen Franklin - Daily Devotionals

Thought For Today

Money will buy a bed but not sleep; books but not brains; food but not appetite; finery but not beauty; a house but not a home; medicine but not health; luxuries but not culture; amusements but not happiness; religion but not salvation--a passport to everywhere but heaven

Exodus 34:12-16

God describes idolatry as harlotry, playing around with someone else's spouse. It is a case of divided loyalties. God becomes angry, jealous, when this happens spiritually. In fact, in Deuteronomy 4:24, His anger becomes so hot that He describes Himself as being a consuming fire. Fire symbolizes God's radiant glory as an aspect of His holiness.
Jealousy and zeal are opposite sides of the same coin; both of them are driven by passion. One is positive, the other negative. One is for, one is against. Zeal is passionately for something or somebody, while jealousy is passionately against something or somebody. Similarly, fire is hot, and it is both positive and negative. It symbolizes both refining and purifying, on the one hand, and death and destruction on the other.
The pattern is in the way God depicts His feelings toward us. As a consuming fire, He will either purify or destroy with His passion. He is either for something with a great deal of ardor, or He is against something with a great deal of fury. He is for those who are with Him, and He is loyal to the nth degree to them. But He is against sin and disloyalty with just as much heat as He is for those who love Him and diligently seek Him. His attitude is not cool in any way, shape, or form, but hot. He wants us to respond in like manner.
In what way, are we seeking God? Diligently? Earnestly? Sincerely? With warmth, ardor, and affection? Is our seeking the ardent pursuit of one in love—one who wants to be around this personality and really desires to know Him because we are, after all, going to marry Him and spend all eternity with Him? Or is it a kind of a take-it-or-leave-it, distant, academic coolness because we do not want to make a fool of ourselves or offend others with our zeal? Think about it.

John W. Ritenbaugh - The Berean