|
Posted on 06/01/2013 3:58:06 AM PDT by JustAmy
Goo0d Morning!
Cool Proverb!
:-)
Thank You!
;o)
|
(((((Hugs)))))
(((((Hugs!)))))
“In whatever a man does without God, he must fail miserably—or succeed more miserably,” wrote George MacDonald (1824–1905), a Scottish novelist, poet, and Christian minister. This intriguing statement is often cited by modern speakers and writers and appears in MacDonald’s book Unspoken Sermons.
MacDonald was dealing with the difficult subject of a Christian’s self-denial and how we are to apply this teaching of Jesus: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it” (Luke 9:23-24).
Rather than merely trying to suppress our natural desires, MacDonald said that true self-denial means “we must see things as [Christ] saw them, regard them as He regarded them; we must take the will of God as the very life of our being . . . . We are no more to think, ‘What should I like to do?’ but ‘What would the Living One have me do?’”
Getting only what we want is succeeding miserably. True success is found in “losing” our lives for Jesus’ sake and finding them again full and free in His will.
Read: Luke 9:18-27
|
In a popular children’s book, Winnie the Pooh watches Kanga bound away. I wish I could jump like that, he thinks. Some can and some can’t. That’s how it is.
We see younger or more able men and women doing extraordinary things that we cannot do. They can; we can’t. That’s how it is. It’s easy to feel useless when we can’t do the things we were once capable of doing.
It’s true that we may not be able to “jump” like we once did, but we can love and we can pray. These are the works that time and experience have prepared us to do well.
Love is the very best gift we have to give to God and to others. It is no small matter, for love is the means by which we fulfill our whole duty to God and our neighbor. Our love for one person may seem to be a small action, but love is the greatest gift of all (1 Cor. 13:13).
And we can pray. Paul encouraged the Colossians to “continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving” (Col. 4:2). Our prayers are a powerful force in the universe!
Love and prayer are mighty works indeed, the mightiest works for any of us. Why? Because our God, who wants to use us, is an all-loving and all-powerful God.
Read: Psalm 92
|
Wonderful message, Rus..Thank you!
Thanks Meg. Thank you for being here everyday.
Wishing Everyone a Wonderful Day Tomorrow.
|
Feel free to use at will.
One night when I visited a nursing home, a resident named Tom slipped out quietly from his room, hoping to catch me to chat. After we talked awhile, he asked, “Won’t God be insulted if I become a Christian this late in life?” Tom’s question wasn’t a surprise. As a chaplain, I often hear it in varying forms from the elderly, from those who struggle with addictions, from former prisoners. They think they have a legitimate reason to believe it’s too late for them to know God or to be used by Him.
Tom and I spent time exploring people in Scripture who, because of their past, could have thought it was too late for them to know God. But Rahab, a prostitute (Josh. 2:12-14; Heb. 11:31), and Zacchaeus, a tax collector (Luke 19:1-8), chose faith in God despite their past.
We also looked at Jesus’ parable of workers in the vineyard (Matt. 20:1-16). The earlier the hire, the more labor they were able to give the vineyard owner (vv.2-7), but those hired later discovered they had equal value in the owner’s eyes and would be rewarded equally (vv.8-16). The vineyard owner chose to be gracious to them all.
No matter our past or present, God longs to show us His grace and bring us into relationship with Him.
Thank you so much, Kitty for the sweet comment and kitten.
(((HUGS)))I wish you a blessed Lord’s Day.
I am so sorry. Praying you get relief, Gail.
Precious picture.
|
Darling picture, Gail.
Sorry about the terrible pain you’re going through and praying God will give you some relief real soon. May God Bless! ((((HUGS))))
Wonderful picture and scripture, Meg. Wishing you a peaceful Sunday!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
