By Author Unknown
An old farmer went to the city one weekend and attended the big city church. He came home and his wife asked him how it was.
“Well,” said the farmer. “It was good. They did something different, however. They sang praise choruses instead of hymns.”
“Praise choruses?” asked the wife. “What are those?”
Continue reading “A Funny Little Story About Hymns and Praise Songs”
Comfort and prosperity?
Persecution and trials?
Growth in wisdom and understanding? Satisfaction with what we already know?
God’s will?
Proverbs 4:7 NKJV
Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.
Who do I really love?
John 14:21 NKJV
He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.
Let me just preface that this is not particularly aimed at my church or any church that I visit – it is aimed at myself, all believers, and all churches equally – as it should be.
We are given warning about the last days –
God is so good.
Mandee and I had a long discussion about conviction and change in our lives last night. We talked about understanding the conviction that we encounter each day, not as a means of guilt and shame, but as a conscious reminder and encouragement to continue growing and changing.
Continue reading “Conviction leads to freedom – because we were already prisoners.”
I remember what wandering around without a purpose felt like – I called it carefree fun and freedom. Now that I realize what real freedom looks like, I laugh at how foolish and naive I was.
PSA 138:8 ESV
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord , endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.
God is asking, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”
Psalms 138:8 NLT
The Lord will work out his plans for my life— for your faithful love, O Lord , endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for you made me.
Continue reading “Are you playing to win? Or just playing around?”
How would we know something was cold if we had nothing warm to compare it to?
How would we know what God is like unless He revealed himself in ways that we could grasp?
Gardens.
Yes, for man, it all started in a garden.
And there are many lessons we can learn from God’s revelation through His creation around us. We can find that there are are plants and animals that are good for us to eat, and there are things that are poisonous as well.
And we can learn that things are either alive and growing or dead and rotting.
It was not that long ago that I avoided attending church. In fact, it seemed like it would be a sacrifice to have to get up early on Sunday mornings instead of getting to sleep in.
But oh how things can change drastically when the Lord grabs hold of our lives.
Psalms 122:1 NLT
I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord .”
Harold J. Ballinger 