July 13
"Church-goers are like coals in a fire. When they cling together, they keep the flame aglow; when they separate, they die out." - Billy Graham
Worship is giving God the best that he has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to him as a love gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard it for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded. God will never allow you to keep a spiritual blessing completely for yourself. It must be given back to him so that he can make it a blessing to others.--Oswald Chambers
An elderly gent was invited to an old friend's home for dinner one evening. He was impressed by the way his buddy preceded every request to his wife with endearing terms such as: Honey, My Love, Darling, Sweetheart, Pumpkin, etc. The couple had been married almost 70 years and, clearly, they were still very much in love.
While the wife was in the kitchen, the man leaned over to his host, 'I think it's wonderful that, after all these years, you still call your wife those loving pet names'. The old man hung his head. 'I have to tell you the truth,' he said, 'Her name slipped my mind about 10 years ago and I'm scared to death to ask her what it is!
A Wise Old Bird
There is a story about an old man who always had witty and wise answers for people who asked him anything. Once, a smart-alecky came to him with his hands covering something he was holding. He told the sage that he had a small, newly hatched bird in his hands. He challenged the old man to tell him whether the bird was alive or dead. He, of course, planned to prove the old man wrong, because if he said the bird was dead, he would simply open his hands to expose a perfectly healthy baby bird. But if he said the bird was alive, then he would crush the bird before opening his hands. The old man proved wiser than he thought, because he said, "The bird is whatever you choose him to be."
And that's the way it is with the kingdom of God. The choice for the kingdom to live or die is within your grasp. What do you chose?
Top Ten Things I Have Learned from Gardening
10. We really do "reap what we sow". Good seeds bear good fruit.
9. Without rains and storms there is no growth - no fruit is produced.
8. When weeding, be careful! We can't always tell the difference between a nasty weed and a beautiful flower.
7. Deep roots are a good thing. Without them, we'll wither and die.
6. Pruning and trimming, as painful as it seems, actually works to our advantage.
5. In gardening, as in life, cheating does not work. Short-cuts, slipshod efforts, and neglect always show up in the quality of our garden.
4. Like anything worthwhile, beautiful gardens require attention, hard work, and commitment.
3. We cannot rush the harvest. Bearing fruit takes time and patience. Premature fruit is almost always sour.
2. Gardening and growing is a lifetime experience. We can experience growth and beauty until the day we die.
1. Fertilizer happens! In fact, nothing much grows without it.
Interest vs. Commitment
In his book, The One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard says, "There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you are committed to something, you accept no excuses." Good soil represents the company of the committed " people who are determined to serve Christ to the best of their abilities, people who are willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to see Christ's kingdom come, people who by their work and their witness bear fruit that does not perish. What kind of soil are you?
Automatic Faith
There was a business consultant who decided to landscape his grounds. He hired a woman with a doctorate in horticulture who was extremely knowledgeable. Because the business consultant was very busy and traveled a lot, he kept emphasizing to her the need to create his garden in a way that would require little or no maintenance on his part. He insisted on automatic sprinklers and other labor-saving devices.
Finally she stopped and said, "There's one thing you need to deal with before we go any further. If there's no gardener, then there is no garden!"
There are no labor-saving devices for growing a garden of spiritual virtue. Becoming a person of spiritual fruitfulness requires time, attention and care. How many of us are like that business consultant? We're very busy during the week and get caught up in work and social activities and don't spend the time we need to work on our spiritual growth? Then we come into church on Sunday for an automatic sprinkling of holy water, feeding off the energy of those around us. How many times during the week are you running really low on your spiritual food by Wednesday or Thursday and do nothing about it?
"There is only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, and that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all." - Ogden Nash
Understanding Life
Remember the saying about people's understanding of life:
He who knows and knows that he knows is wise; follow him.
He who knows and knows not that he knows is asleep; awaken him.
He who knows not and knows that he knows not is ignorant; teach him.
He who knows not and knows not that he knows not is a fool; shun him.
Jesus also tells us how people respond to the Kingdom of God. There are four:
There are those who understand it and the kingdom grows and produces fruit; they are good soil.
There are those who receive it and the kingdom begins to grow but it is then choked by the worries of life; they are the soil covered by thorns.
There are those who hear it with joy and the kingdom begins again to grow but trouble and persecution kill the growth; they are the shallow soil on the rocky places.
There are those who never understand and growth never occurs; they are the paths, the hard soil where nothing ever grows.
So many are God's kindnesses to us, that, as drops of water, they run together; and it is not until we are borne up by the multitude of them, as by streams in deep channels, that we recognize them as coming from him. We have walked amid his mercies as in a forest where we are tangled among ten thousand growths and touched on every hand by leaves and buds which we notice not. We cannot recall all the things he has done for us. There are so many. --Henry Ward Beecher
"The flight attendant will always tell you the name of your pilot - like anyone goes, 'Oh, he's good. I like his work.'"
- David Spade
There are too many people praying for mountains of difficulty to be removed, when what they really need is courage to climb them.
--Author Unknown,
SIGNS DAD PACKED YOUR LUNCH
Mom usually takes the cellophane *off* the cheese.
You asked for a PB & J. You got pastrami, beef jerky, and
jalapenos.
Veggies and fruit? Potato chips and Orange soda, of course.
Nothing in the bag except a $20 bill and a note: "Don't tell
Mom and you can keep the change."
You made $40 by selling all the extra food he packed that
you didn't eat.
Two words: Cheez Whiz.
Mom's note: "Study hard! I love you!"
Dad's note: "Get a job!"
WORDS TO LIVE BY
It's not how much you accomplish in life
that really counts,
but how much you give to other.
It's not how high you build your dreams
that makes a difference,
but how high your faith can climb.
It's not how many goals you reach,
but how many lives you touch.
It's not who you know that matters,
but who you are inside.
Believe in the impossible,
hold tight to the incredible,
and live each day to its fullest potential.
You can make a difference
in your world.~ Rebecca Barlow Jordan ~
Worship is giving God the best that he has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to him as a love gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard it for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded. God will never allow you to keep a spiritual blessing completely for yourself. It must be given back to him so that he can make it a blessing to others.--Oswald Chambers
An elderly gent was invited to an old friend's home for dinner one evening. He was impressed by the way his buddy preceded every request to his wife with endearing terms such as: Honey, My Love, Darling, Sweetheart, Pumpkin, etc. The couple had been married almost 70 years and, clearly, they were still very much in love.
While the wife was in the kitchen, the man leaned over to his host, 'I think it's wonderful that, after all these years, you still call your wife those loving pet names'. The old man hung his head. 'I have to tell you the truth,' he said, 'Her name slipped my mind about 10 years ago and I'm scared to death to ask her what it is!
A Wise Old Bird
There is a story about an old man who always had witty and wise answers for people who asked him anything. Once, a smart-alecky came to him with his hands covering something he was holding. He told the sage that he had a small, newly hatched bird in his hands. He challenged the old man to tell him whether the bird was alive or dead. He, of course, planned to prove the old man wrong, because if he said the bird was dead, he would simply open his hands to expose a perfectly healthy baby bird. But if he said the bird was alive, then he would crush the bird before opening his hands. The old man proved wiser than he thought, because he said, "The bird is whatever you choose him to be."
And that's the way it is with the kingdom of God. The choice for the kingdom to live or die is within your grasp. What do you chose?
Top Ten Things I Have Learned from Gardening
10. We really do "reap what we sow". Good seeds bear good fruit.
9. Without rains and storms there is no growth - no fruit is produced.
8. When weeding, be careful! We can't always tell the difference between a nasty weed and a beautiful flower.
7. Deep roots are a good thing. Without them, we'll wither and die.
6. Pruning and trimming, as painful as it seems, actually works to our advantage.
5. In gardening, as in life, cheating does not work. Short-cuts, slipshod efforts, and neglect always show up in the quality of our garden.
4. Like anything worthwhile, beautiful gardens require attention, hard work, and commitment.
3. We cannot rush the harvest. Bearing fruit takes time and patience. Premature fruit is almost always sour.
2. Gardening and growing is a lifetime experience. We can experience growth and beauty until the day we die.
1. Fertilizer happens! In fact, nothing much grows without it.
Interest vs. Commitment
In his book, The One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard says, "There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you are committed to something, you accept no excuses." Good soil represents the company of the committed " people who are determined to serve Christ to the best of their abilities, people who are willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to see Christ's kingdom come, people who by their work and their witness bear fruit that does not perish. What kind of soil are you?
Automatic Faith
There was a business consultant who decided to landscape his grounds. He hired a woman with a doctorate in horticulture who was extremely knowledgeable. Because the business consultant was very busy and traveled a lot, he kept emphasizing to her the need to create his garden in a way that would require little or no maintenance on his part. He insisted on automatic sprinklers and other labor-saving devices.
Finally she stopped and said, "There's one thing you need to deal with before we go any further. If there's no gardener, then there is no garden!"
There are no labor-saving devices for growing a garden of spiritual virtue. Becoming a person of spiritual fruitfulness requires time, attention and care. How many of us are like that business consultant? We're very busy during the week and get caught up in work and social activities and don't spend the time we need to work on our spiritual growth? Then we come into church on Sunday for an automatic sprinkling of holy water, feeding off the energy of those around us. How many times during the week are you running really low on your spiritual food by Wednesday or Thursday and do nothing about it?
"There is only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, and that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all." - Ogden Nash
Understanding Life
Remember the saying about people's understanding of life:
He who knows and knows that he knows is wise; follow him.
He who knows and knows not that he knows is asleep; awaken him.
He who knows not and knows that he knows not is ignorant; teach him.
He who knows not and knows not that he knows not is a fool; shun him.
Jesus also tells us how people respond to the Kingdom of God. There are four:
There are those who understand it and the kingdom grows and produces fruit; they are good soil.
There are those who receive it and the kingdom begins to grow but it is then choked by the worries of life; they are the soil covered by thorns.
There are those who hear it with joy and the kingdom begins again to grow but trouble and persecution kill the growth; they are the shallow soil on the rocky places.
There are those who never understand and growth never occurs; they are the paths, the hard soil where nothing ever grows.
So many are God's kindnesses to us, that, as drops of water, they run together; and it is not until we are borne up by the multitude of them, as by streams in deep channels, that we recognize them as coming from him. We have walked amid his mercies as in a forest where we are tangled among ten thousand growths and touched on every hand by leaves and buds which we notice not. We cannot recall all the things he has done for us. There are so many. --Henry Ward Beecher
"The flight attendant will always tell you the name of your pilot - like anyone goes, 'Oh, he's good. I like his work.'"
- David Spade
There are too many people praying for mountains of difficulty to be removed, when what they really need is courage to climb them.
--Author Unknown,
SIGNS DAD PACKED YOUR LUNCH
Mom usually takes the cellophane *off* the cheese.
You asked for a PB & J. You got pastrami, beef jerky, and
jalapenos.
Veggies and fruit? Potato chips and Orange soda, of course.
Nothing in the bag except a $20 bill and a note: "Don't tell
Mom and you can keep the change."
You made $40 by selling all the extra food he packed that
you didn't eat.
Two words: Cheez Whiz.
Mom's note: "Study hard! I love you!"
Dad's note: "Get a job!"
WORDS TO LIVE BY
It's not how much you accomplish in life
that really counts,
but how much you give to other.
It's not how high you build your dreams
that makes a difference,
but how high your faith can climb.
It's not how many goals you reach,
but how many lives you touch.
It's not who you know that matters,
but who you are inside.
Believe in the impossible,
hold tight to the incredible,
and live each day to its fullest potential.
You can make a difference
in your world.~ Rebecca Barlow Jordan ~
posted by joypastordon at 7:59 PM
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