Monthly Archives: March 2017

When you encounter unfortunate circumstances that are beyond your power to control, here’s a proven way to retain your sanity: accept those circumstances (no matter how unpleasant), and trust God. Most of us want life to unfold in accordance with our own wishes and timetables. But sometimes God has other plans, and if we are paying attention, we often come to understand that His plans are better than we had envisioned ourselves! When you trust God, you can be comforted…..

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I was recently reading a devotional by Billy Graham in which he reminds us, as followers of Christ, to be shining lights. Jesus told his disciples they could not make their light shine by sinking to the world’s low level. It was only by abiding in Christ and living under the ruling power of His Holy Spirit that they could rise above the world. Likewise, our influence on society depends upon our likeness to Jesus Christ. So what do others…..

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As you follow Jesus you will face moments of great distress. At times it will seem that events conspire to cause you to stumble in your relationship with Him. You do not initiate them, but they arise from opposition or the intensity of your circumstances. Nevertheless, failure is the end result. You may fear that your failure has caught God by surprise, but it has not. In fact, God has made provision to respond every time you stumble. God has…..

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  I highly recommend the attached article from Christianity Today for your thoughtful consideration. It points out how many Christian preachers, apologists, evangelists, and writers have taken heed of the declining numbers of Christians, but decades of pitting “Christian worldview” against “moral relativism” left habits that are hard to break. You’ll still hear Christians assume that the reason for so much rampant immorality in our culture is because people reject objective right and wrong. Many still assume that discussions over morals…..

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I’ve always believed that there is a close relationship between our mental and physical health and the health of our spiritual lives. Billy Graham once wrote that the “disease of sin” often brings about a host of problems such as guilt, fear, jealousy, bitterness, futility, and escapism. Fortunately, we have a Savior – Jesus Christ – who can come into our lives and remove our guilt and take away our fears. He can give us new purpose, and a new…..

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Many of us are asking where history is going. Will society get better and better – or will we end up destroying ourselves? Are the advances we are making globally helping more people live moral and spiritually fulfilling lives? Christ prayed, “Thy kingdom come. Thy Will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10). Some day that prayer – a prayer that many of us pray – is going to be answered. No human leader, however good…..

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Your relationship with God is largely determined by your faith. When you come to Him, you must believe that He exists and that He is exactly who He has revealed Himself to be in Scriptures. You must also believe that He will respond when you earnestly seek Him. Without this kind of faith, you cannot please God. Regardless of the morality of your life, the good works you perform, the words you speak, or the sacrifices you make for His…..

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As this article states, online communities present us with a noble temptation that stems from our inherent desire to actively love and share our lives with our neighbors. But our local congregations, however faulty and underwhelming they may be, remain the primary community that God calls us to invest ourselves in. This is the community where Christ in fullness dwells (Eph. 1:22–23), where we “become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13), so that…..

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There is a big difference between seeing your circumstances from a human perspective and seeing life through spiritual eyes. Non-Christians often see world events around them and become confused. Christians can look at the same events and recognize the activity and sovereignty of God. It is possible to hear God’s voice over the din of the world’s voices, and you can keep your bearings in the midst of the confusing times. Don’t be content with merely seeing with physical eyes…..

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