Tuesday 30 October 2007

Albert Einstein kept portraits of two scientists on his wall: Newton and Maxwell. Toward the end of his life he replaced those pictures with Gandhi and Albert Schweitzer. Said Einstein, "It is time to replace the image of success with the image of service."
"I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know, the only ones among you who will be truly happy are those who have sought and found how to serve." Albert Schweitzer

Monday 29 October 2007

Seek first the kingdom...

Sunday 28 October 2007

When I say, "I am a Christian" I'm not shouting "I'm clean livin'" I'm whispering "I was lost, Now I'm found and forgiven."

When I say, "I am a Christian" I don't speak of this with pride. I'm confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say, "I am a Christian" I'm not trying to be strong. I'm professing that I'm weak And need His strength to carry on.

When I say, "I am a Christian" I'm not bragging of success. I'm admitting I have failed And need God to clean my mess.

When I say, "I am a Christian" I'm not claiming to be perfect, My flaws are far too visible. But, God believes I am worth it.

When I say, "I am a Christian" I still feel the sting of pain. I have my share of heartaches. So I call upon His name.

When I say, "I am a Christian" I'm not holier than thou, I'm just a simple sinner, who received God's good grace, somehow. Maya Angelou

Friday 26 October 2007

Thursday 25 October 2007

2 Corinthians 7:10
Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Distress that drives us to God does that. It turns us around. It gets us back in the way of salvation. We never regret that kind of pain. But those who let distress drive them away from God are full of regrets, end up on a deathbed of regrets.

Sunday 21 October 2007

What fuels you up?

Life in the kingdom always points to peace.

Saturday 20 October 2007

1 Peter 3:8-16
Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, "Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."

Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.

Friday 19 October 2007

I think this is a beautiful picture. My hunting friends don't like it because there is no gun in sight. Is it sunrise or sunset?

Tuesday 16 October 2007

Resistance to the kingdom...

"You can't be connected with God until you're at peace with who you are. If you're still upset that God gave you this body or this life or this family or these circumstances, you will never be able to connect with God in a healthy, thriving, sustainable sort of way. You'll be at odds with your maker. And if you can't come to terms with who you are and the life you've been given, you'll never be able to accept others and how they were made and the lives they've been given. and until you're at peace with God and those around you, you'll continue to struggle with your role on the planet, your part to play in the ongoing creation of the universe. You will continue to struggle and resist and fail to connect." Rob Bell

Matthew 5:3-9
"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

You're blessed when you feel you've lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

You're blessed when you're content with just who you are—no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought.

You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat.

You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being 'care-full,' you find yourselves cared for.

You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.

You're blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That's when you discover who you really are, and your place in God's family."

Monday 15 October 2007

Romans 12:14-19
Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down. Get along with each other; don't be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody.

Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it."

Friday 12 October 2007

I need instant gratification...

Galatians 5:19-23
It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

This isn't the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God's kingdom.

But what happens when we live God's way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.

Thursday 11 October 2007

Choices

During his last lecture Randy Pausch asked, "Are you going to be a Tigger or an Eeyore?"

What do YOU say?

Mark 10:14-16
"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

Wednesday 10 October 2007

1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

Monday 8 October 2007

Luke 12:25
"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

I have spent most of my life worrying about things that never happened. Mark Twain

Sunday 7 October 2007

Malachi 4:1-3
"Count on it: The day is coming, raging like a forest fire. All the arrogant people who do evil things will be burned up like stove wood, burned to a crisp, nothing left but scorched earth and ash— a black day. But for you, sunrise! The sun of righteousness will dawn on those who honor my name, healing radiating from its wings. You will be bursting with energy, like colts frisky and frolicking. And you'll tromp on the wicked. They'll be nothing but ashes under your feet on that Day." God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so."

Friday 5 October 2007

A Prayer For The Family...

Our Father, who sets the solitary in families: we commend to your continual care the homes in which we, your people, dwell. Protect us, we ask you, from every root of bitterness, the desire for selfish gain, and the pride of life.

Fill our homes with faith, integrity, knowledge, self-discipline, patience, and godliness. Knit together in constant affection we who, through the covenant of marriage, have been made one flesh.

Turn the hearts of the parents to the children, and the hearts of the children to the parents, and so fan into flame a fervent charity among us all, that we may consistently demonstrate love to one another. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

Thursday 4 October 2007

What is tempting you today?

Temptations are as thick as the leaves of the forest, and no one can be out of the reach of temptation unless he is dead. The great thing is to make people intelligent enough and strong enough, not to keep away from temptation, but to resist it. Robert Ingersoll

James 1:2-4
Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

Wednesday 3 October 2007

"This life is therefore, not righteousness, but growth in righteousness, not health, but healing, not being, but becoming, not rest, but exercise. We are not yet what we shall be, but we are growing toward it, the process is not yet finished but it is going on, this is not the end, but it is the road. All does not yet gleam in glory, but all is being purified." Martin Luther, 1521

Tuesday 2 October 2007

If we want to hear God we have to listen, and yet the one deficiency epidemic among adults is listening. We don’t listen. We won’t listen. We are willing to do almost anything to keep ourselves from listening. Mike Yaconelli
Proverbs 2:1-5
Good friend, take to heart what I'm telling you; collect my counsels and guard them with your life. Tune your ears to the world of Wisdom; set your heart on a life of Understanding. That's right—if you make Insight your priority, and won't take no for an answer, Searching for it like a prospector panning for gold, like an adventurer on a treasure hunt,Believe me, before you know it Fear-of-God will be yours; you'll have come upon the Knowledge of God.

Ask yourself if your schedule, your time, and your life look like that of a person who wants to hear God's voice?

Monday 1 October 2007