I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:14 Imagine trying to swim against the current in this picture. Impossible, if not for some force outside yourself. I sometimes think of the journey of faith as being on a river. We want to get upstream, to life, not downstream to death. Yet, the journey upstream is not easy. In fact, if we do …
Tag: Holy Spirit
It seems like more and more book titles these days offer 7 Steps to Success, 5 Secrets to Healthy Relationships or 10 Steps to Whatever. We humans thrive on certainty. We crave a numbered plan that doesn’t change and that, if followed, is sure to work. We also want control and if we can create a more controlled way to live that works, we want it. So, we read our 10 step books, grit our teeth, get our act together and get after …
Pride was the great sin that started in motion a sad state for Adam and Eve and the entire human race. Humility and dependance on God is the opposite of pride. Pride says, “I can do it”….humility toward God says “You can do it”. It was Saint Augustine who said, “Do you wish to rise? Begin by descending. You plan a tower that will pierce the clouds? Lay first the foundation of humility.” While reading a devotional on humility recently from My Utmost for His Highest (portion …
As you likely know, God has a significantly long and successful track record of starting things and sooner or later – maybe a day, a month, a decade or perhaps a century later – bringing them to completion. His sovereign purposes sometimes seem like circles to me. They start….they usually meander a bit…and then pretty soon…somehow…they seem to come back to square one and make perfect sense. On earth, with a limited view of God’s ways, I find myself scratching …
God wants us to grow. He does not want us to go through life just surviving with the bare nutrients and essentials. He wants us to thrive. Just look around at how He works. He gives flowers, shrubs and trees everything they need..... sunlight, water and soil. When all three are in balance plants give off a glory that only they can....they radiate beauty, create shade and produce sweet smells. Think if the intensely sweet smell of a rose. …
12Stone Church, based in Lawrenceville, GA, exists for you and your spiritual curiosity or long term spiritual journey. It’s why every week we invest in authentic worship experiences that honor God and share His truth in compelling and practical ways. It’s why every week we create opportunities that inspire you and that encourage you to share life with people on the journey just like you. At the core of who we are, we give ourselves away. It’s why maybe you …
Riverstone Church in Kennesaw, GA has special programs and events that emphasize healing of physical, emotional and spiritual needs. Jesus said, “My Father’s house will be a house of prayer.” At RiverStone we believe that prayer should be our first response, not our last resort. We desire everything we do to be bathed in prayer. To this end, we have a prayer room in the church building that is available for use and we also have activities centered on our …
By Billy Graham: Chapter by chapter, Graham leads us on a journey in faith. We learn about God and his purpose for our lives; who Jesus is and what he has done for us. We are reminded of the things God has given us to live successfully: the Bible, the privilege of prayer, fellowship and the church, and the Holy Spirit. We learn to deal with challenges along the way: temptation; wrong thoughts and motives; emotions that can defeat us; …
I left the military for the same reasons I left that little small town....I had the same darkness that followed me... …
One of my customers sells an email filtering service. An email filter’s purpose is to keep email threats on the Internet from harming your computer….things like viruses, fraudulent emails posing as your bank and time-wasting spam ads. Some of the malicious emails bound for your computer can cause great harm (like viruses) while others are just a source of frustration. When the filter company identifies a new threat, their technical team creates a software “filter rule” that effectively blocks that …