April 1, 2007
Put your will in neutral, so God can shift you.
“Let us step into the darkness and reach out for the hand of God. The path of faith and darkness is so much safer than the one we would choose by sight."
George MacDonald
“There are many who have a great deal of this life in their hands, but nothing of the other life in their hearts.” Matthew Henry
“Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.” P. J. O'Rourke
SOME WISDOM FROM LARRY THE CABLE GUY
1. A day without sunshine is like night.
2. On the other hand, you have different fingers.
3. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
4. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
5. Remember, half the people you know are below average.
6. He who laughs last, thinks slowest.
7. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
8. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese in the trap.
9. Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
10. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
11. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.
12. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.
13. How many of you believe in psycho-kinesis? Raise my hand.
14. OK, so what's the speed of dark?
15. When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
16. Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.
17. How much deeper would the ocean be without sponges?
18. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines
19. What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?
20. Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
21. Inside every older person is a younger person wondering, "What the hell happened?"
22. Just remember--if the world didn't suck, we would all fall off.
23. Light travels faster than sound. That's why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
24. Life isn't like a box of chocolates. It's more like a jar of jalapenos. What you do today, might burn your butt tomorrow.
The song says we're the "Easter People." We're the people of the empty tomb. (Perhaps instead of crosses, we should fashion for our neckwear a little golden stone beside a 14-karat hole.) Eugene Peterson says rather than holding firmly to the Resurrection, we've latched onto many other things to define our relationship to Christ and to the world. He calls it our current crisis—the loss of our true Christian identity. "Our basic connection to life is severed, and we begin borrowing our identities from therapists and entertainers, CEOs and politicians, pastors and teachers, men and women who appear to be on the frontlines and making a difference in the world. "So what I want to do is reaffirm this primary identity that we've been given by the resurrection of Jesus. This identity is nurtured and matured in our formation by resurrection."
Did you know that twenty years ago models weighed 5% less than the average woman, andthat today they weigh 23% less? Studies show that when women read a fashion magazine, 70% feel depressed, guilty, or ashamed.
"Answer the big question of eternity, and the little questions of life fall into perspective." - Max Lucado
"Just As I Am" is a very gracious hymn, but I want someone to write me another hymn: "Just where I am, O Lamb of God, you come." --George H. Morrison
THE TOP TEN PREDICTIONS FOR 2007
1. The Bible will still have the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.
6. There will still be singing of praise.
7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the Cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost.
God whispers in your soul and speaks to your mind. Sometimes when you don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at you. It's your choice: Listen to the whisper, or wait for the brick.
It may be the most difficult time in your life. You may be enduring your own whirlwind … or you may be the innocent bystander caught in the consequential backwash of another’s sin. You may feel desperately alone, and it may seem that it will never, ever end. But believe me, the whirlwind is a temporary experience. Your faithful, caring Lord will see you through it. --Charles Swindoll
The simple fact is no one can remain neutral on the issue of Jesus Christ. We must decide for or against him.
About the Donkey
People often speak of donkeys in belittling terms. You may have heard the expression, "I'm just someone who has to do all the donkey work." Or "So-and-so is as stubborn as a mule" (a mule is part donkey).
These sayings overlook the contributions of a truly valuable animal. Donkeys have served the human race for thousands of years. They were once prized as symbols of humility, gentleness, and peace.
In Bible days, donkeys that had never been ridden were regarded as especially suitable for religious purposes. So it was most fitting that Jesus sent for a colt to perform the royal task of carrying Him into Jerusalem. How enviable was that donkey's mission! How like our mission as Jesus' followers!
A missionary in China calls herself "the Lord's donkey." She's a humble believer, "carrying" her Lord faithfully into town after town and training others to do likewise. The Lord has need of many such "donkeys" in today's world, humble people who will carry Him into their Jerusalem and make Him known.
The donkey had to be untied before Jesus could use it. We too must be released from worldly attachments if we are to serve Christ. Are we willing to be the Lord's donkey? -- Our Daily Bread, March 24, 2001
On My Account
In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown and Linus are standing next to each other, staring at a star-filled sky. "Would you like to see a falling star?" Charlie Brown asks Linus.
"Sure..." Linus responds. "Then again, I don't know," he adds, after some thought. "I'd hate to have it fall just on my account."
In the book Parables of Peanuts, Robert Short uses this cartoon to make the point that a star did fall on our account. God came down to us as Jesus: like a lamb led to slaughter, He died on our account. What humility. What love and, oh, what he accomplished there.
WHY WE QUESTION THE RESURRECTION
The evidence for Jesus' resurrection is so strong that nobody would question it except for two things: First, it is a very unusual event. And second, if you believe it happened, you have to change the way you live. -Theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments that stand out, the moments when you have really lived, are the moments when you have done things
in a spirit of love...
The test of a man then is not, 'How have I believed?' but 'How have I loved?' The test of religion, the final test of religion, is not religiousness, but love.
Not what I have done, not what I have believed, not what I have achieved, but how I have discharged the common charities of life. Henry Drummond
He who provides for this life, but takes no care for eternity, is wise for a moment, but a fool forever.-- Tillotson
"May there be just enough clouds in your life to make a beautiful sunset"
Even though a mosquito beats its wings 600 times per second it only travels about one mile per hour. That's because stopping to annoy people tends to slow you down.
Guess Who? Wanted By:
the FDA for turning water into wine without a license,
he EPA for killing fig trees,
the AMA for practicing medicine without a license,
the Dept. of Health for asking people to open graves, for raising the dead and for feeding 5,000 people in the wilderness,
the NEA for teaching without a certificate,
OSHA for walking on water without a lifejacket and for flying without an airplane,
the SPCA for driving hogs into the sea,
the NATIONAL BOARD of PSYCHIATRISTS for giving advice on how to live a guilt-free life,
the NOW for not choosing a woman apostle,
the ABORTION RIGHTS LEAGUE for saying that whoever harms children, it is better that they had never been born,
the INTERFAITH MOVEMENT for condemning all other religions, and by the ZONING DEPT for building mansions without a permit. Guess Who?
Celebrity Jesus
Can you imagine if Jesus had been treated like a 20th-century celebrity as he rode into Jerusalem?
• Wolf Blitzer might have reported on rumors that Jesus planned to disrupt Temple business.
• Pundits would have argued about who he "really" was.
• Gail Sheehy would undoubtedly have written a psychological profile for Vanity Fair.
• Some tabloid would investigate Jesus' relationship with "the woman at the well."
• There would be in-depth analysis by cult specialists and modern-day Pharisees on MSNBC.
• A council of church officials would be in place to study the authenticity of Jesus' feeding the multitudes and walking on water.
• As he entered the dusty city, hundreds if not thousands would have snapped their throwaway Kodaks, and pointed their videocams while Katie Couric, along with Willard Scott, making a special appearance, would stand by to offer color commentary.
Still a Threat
Lest we be too critical of Jerusalem, ask yourself this question: What city even today would not be shaken by Jesus' entry into it? Imagine Jesus entering New York, Belgrade, Washington, or even Fountain Hills. Oh, I'm sure we'd welcome him with our hosannas - at first, anyway. We'd line the streets and strike up the band and have a grand parade right down Main Street. But I'm equally sure that, by the end of the week, we'd have him nailed to a cross, too. Why? Because the Kingdom Jesus came to establish still threatens the kingdoms of this world -- your kingdom and mine -- the kingdoms where greed, power, and lust rule instead of grace, mercy, and peace. And who among us really wants to surrender our lives to that Kingdom and that King?
A Sunday school teacher asked her class to write one sentence each on “What Easter Means to Me.” One pupil wrote: “Egg salad sandwiches for the next two weeks!”
A teardrop on earth summons the King of heaven. --Charles Swindoll
“Let us step into the darkness and reach out for the hand of God. The path of faith and darkness is so much safer than the one we would choose by sight."
George MacDonald
“There are many who have a great deal of this life in their hands, but nothing of the other life in their hearts.” Matthew Henry
“Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.” P. J. O'Rourke
SOME WISDOM FROM LARRY THE CABLE GUY
1. A day without sunshine is like night.
2. On the other hand, you have different fingers.
3. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
4. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
5. Remember, half the people you know are below average.
6. He who laughs last, thinks slowest.
7. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
8. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese in the trap.
9. Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
10. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
11. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.
12. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.
13. How many of you believe in psycho-kinesis? Raise my hand.
14. OK, so what's the speed of dark?
15. When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
16. Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.
17. How much deeper would the ocean be without sponges?
18. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines
19. What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?
20. Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
21. Inside every older person is a younger person wondering, "What the hell happened?"
22. Just remember--if the world didn't suck, we would all fall off.
23. Light travels faster than sound. That's why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
24. Life isn't like a box of chocolates. It's more like a jar of jalapenos. What you do today, might burn your butt tomorrow.
The song says we're the "Easter People." We're the people of the empty tomb. (Perhaps instead of crosses, we should fashion for our neckwear a little golden stone beside a 14-karat hole.) Eugene Peterson says rather than holding firmly to the Resurrection, we've latched onto many other things to define our relationship to Christ and to the world. He calls it our current crisis—the loss of our true Christian identity. "Our basic connection to life is severed, and we begin borrowing our identities from therapists and entertainers, CEOs and politicians, pastors and teachers, men and women who appear to be on the frontlines and making a difference in the world. "So what I want to do is reaffirm this primary identity that we've been given by the resurrection of Jesus. This identity is nurtured and matured in our formation by resurrection."
Did you know that twenty years ago models weighed 5% less than the average woman, andthat today they weigh 23% less? Studies show that when women read a fashion magazine, 70% feel depressed, guilty, or ashamed.
"Answer the big question of eternity, and the little questions of life fall into perspective." - Max Lucado
"Just As I Am" is a very gracious hymn, but I want someone to write me another hymn: "Just where I am, O Lamb of God, you come." --George H. Morrison
THE TOP TEN PREDICTIONS FOR 2007
1. The Bible will still have the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.
6. There will still be singing of praise.
7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the Cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost.
God whispers in your soul and speaks to your mind. Sometimes when you don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at you. It's your choice: Listen to the whisper, or wait for the brick.
It may be the most difficult time in your life. You may be enduring your own whirlwind … or you may be the innocent bystander caught in the consequential backwash of another’s sin. You may feel desperately alone, and it may seem that it will never, ever end. But believe me, the whirlwind is a temporary experience. Your faithful, caring Lord will see you through it. --Charles Swindoll
The simple fact is no one can remain neutral on the issue of Jesus Christ. We must decide for or against him.
About the Donkey
People often speak of donkeys in belittling terms. You may have heard the expression, "I'm just someone who has to do all the donkey work." Or "So-and-so is as stubborn as a mule" (a mule is part donkey).
These sayings overlook the contributions of a truly valuable animal. Donkeys have served the human race for thousands of years. They were once prized as symbols of humility, gentleness, and peace.
In Bible days, donkeys that had never been ridden were regarded as especially suitable for religious purposes. So it was most fitting that Jesus sent for a colt to perform the royal task of carrying Him into Jerusalem. How enviable was that donkey's mission! How like our mission as Jesus' followers!
A missionary in China calls herself "the Lord's donkey." She's a humble believer, "carrying" her Lord faithfully into town after town and training others to do likewise. The Lord has need of many such "donkeys" in today's world, humble people who will carry Him into their Jerusalem and make Him known.
The donkey had to be untied before Jesus could use it. We too must be released from worldly attachments if we are to serve Christ. Are we willing to be the Lord's donkey? -- Our Daily Bread, March 24, 2001
On My Account
In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown and Linus are standing next to each other, staring at a star-filled sky. "Would you like to see a falling star?" Charlie Brown asks Linus.
"Sure..." Linus responds. "Then again, I don't know," he adds, after some thought. "I'd hate to have it fall just on my account."
In the book Parables of Peanuts, Robert Short uses this cartoon to make the point that a star did fall on our account. God came down to us as Jesus: like a lamb led to slaughter, He died on our account. What humility. What love and, oh, what he accomplished there.
WHY WE QUESTION THE RESURRECTION
The evidence for Jesus' resurrection is so strong that nobody would question it except for two things: First, it is a very unusual event. And second, if you believe it happened, you have to change the way you live. -Theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments that stand out, the moments when you have really lived, are the moments when you have done things
in a spirit of love...
The test of a man then is not, 'How have I believed?' but 'How have I loved?' The test of religion, the final test of religion, is not religiousness, but love.
Not what I have done, not what I have believed, not what I have achieved, but how I have discharged the common charities of life. Henry Drummond
He who provides for this life, but takes no care for eternity, is wise for a moment, but a fool forever.-- Tillotson
"May there be just enough clouds in your life to make a beautiful sunset"
Even though a mosquito beats its wings 600 times per second it only travels about one mile per hour. That's because stopping to annoy people tends to slow you down.
Guess Who? Wanted By:
the FDA for turning water into wine without a license,
he EPA for killing fig trees,
the AMA for practicing medicine without a license,
the Dept. of Health for asking people to open graves, for raising the dead and for feeding 5,000 people in the wilderness,
the NEA for teaching without a certificate,
OSHA for walking on water without a lifejacket and for flying without an airplane,
the SPCA for driving hogs into the sea,
the NATIONAL BOARD of PSYCHIATRISTS for giving advice on how to live a guilt-free life,
the NOW for not choosing a woman apostle,
the ABORTION RIGHTS LEAGUE for saying that whoever harms children, it is better that they had never been born,
the INTERFAITH MOVEMENT for condemning all other religions, and by the ZONING DEPT for building mansions without a permit. Guess Who?
Celebrity Jesus
Can you imagine if Jesus had been treated like a 20th-century celebrity as he rode into Jerusalem?
• Wolf Blitzer might have reported on rumors that Jesus planned to disrupt Temple business.
• Pundits would have argued about who he "really" was.
• Gail Sheehy would undoubtedly have written a psychological profile for Vanity Fair.
• Some tabloid would investigate Jesus' relationship with "the woman at the well."
• There would be in-depth analysis by cult specialists and modern-day Pharisees on MSNBC.
• A council of church officials would be in place to study the authenticity of Jesus' feeding the multitudes and walking on water.
• As he entered the dusty city, hundreds if not thousands would have snapped their throwaway Kodaks, and pointed their videocams while Katie Couric, along with Willard Scott, making a special appearance, would stand by to offer color commentary.
Still a Threat
Lest we be too critical of Jerusalem, ask yourself this question: What city even today would not be shaken by Jesus' entry into it? Imagine Jesus entering New York, Belgrade, Washington, or even Fountain Hills. Oh, I'm sure we'd welcome him with our hosannas - at first, anyway. We'd line the streets and strike up the band and have a grand parade right down Main Street. But I'm equally sure that, by the end of the week, we'd have him nailed to a cross, too. Why? Because the Kingdom Jesus came to establish still threatens the kingdoms of this world -- your kingdom and mine -- the kingdoms where greed, power, and lust rule instead of grace, mercy, and peace. And who among us really wants to surrender our lives to that Kingdom and that King?
A Sunday school teacher asked her class to write one sentence each on “What Easter Means to Me.” One pupil wrote: “Egg salad sandwiches for the next two weeks!”
A teardrop on earth summons the King of heaven. --Charles Swindoll
posted by joypastordon at 10:27 PM
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