Welcome to my blog....a collection of Christian notes, thoughts, other words of wisdom and some general fun stuff from various sources.





Friday, January 7, 2011

Understanding God's Ways

God declared, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” (Isa. 55:8). And in fact, one of the biggest frustrations of the Christian life has to do with a lack of understanding about God’s ways. There are times when we could really use a miracle, and yet He does not come through for us. Unmet expectations lead to confusion, disappointment, and even anger. Why did God let me down?

There are two schools of thought regarding the miraculous. Some people don’t believe God works miracles at all, while others are convinced that if He’s not doing the miraculous every day, then something is wrong with their faith. We need a balanced perspective, which we find in the Bible.

God works in both supernatural and ordinary ways, and He determines the method. Elijah ate food miraculously delivered by ravens, but his water supply from a brook was completely natural. When the water dried up, the Lord could have made more spring from the ground, but He didn’t.

Sometimes God uses ordinary means to move us in a new direction. The curtailment of his water supply opened the door for Elijah’s next “assignment.” When the Lord withholds miraculous intervention and lets your brook dry up, He has something else planned for you.

Seeing the work of God in the miraculous is easy, but He’s just as involved in the commonplace aspects of life as He is in any supernatural event. Look for His “fingerprint” in the day’s mundane activities. He is there, opening and closing doors, drying up one opportunity but initiating another. -- Charles Stanley

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

True Success

Contrary to society's definition--which usually involves fame, fortune or power--true success means becoming the person God wants us to be, and reaching the goals He has set for our lives.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Dealing With Discouragement

How can we conquer discouragement? Let me suggest nine specific steps:

1. Look within. Prayerfully examine yourself for the underlying cause.
2. Admit that you are discouraged. It’s easy to avoid, ignore, or lie about it. But denial is deadly, and it guarantees failure.
3. Identify precisely what you are discouraged about. Name it; then face it.
4. Recall the nature of discouragement. Disappointments will come and go, but discouragement is a choice that you make.
5. Begin meditating frequently on God’s Word. This way, you can accurately judge what you feel by what is real (Psalm 3:2-4; 16:7-8; 63:6-8; 77:12; 119:15).
6. Take your area of discouragement to God in prayer. Ask Him to reveal what He wants to teach you in this area of your life.
7. Focus on God, not your situation. Ask Him to help you see this disappointment and its lessons from His perspective.
8. View the cause as coming from the Lord. If we understand that He allows disappointments, we can find an opportunity for growth, even in trouble.
9. Confess these three truths aloud: The Father is with me in the pain; He’s in control of my life and has allowed this for a reason; He is a good God, who will turn this disappointment into blessing.