Tag: God

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Every Temptation is an Opportunity to Trust God

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We have been sharing excerpts from the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.”  This book is a perfect book to give as a gift right now. Easter is only a couple of weeks away.

This book reaches out to those who may suffer from anxiety, fear, depression, addictions, self-doubt, hopelessness, and the many other usual suspects.

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The book is on sale right now, so check it out by clicking on the “Bookstore,” tab above.

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Today’s excerpt talks about how we as new Christians will face many temptations. It guides us through the process of how to remain strong.

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Chapter 54

 

Every Temptation Is an Opportunity to Trust God

 

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

1 Corinthians 10:13

 

When someone becomes a Christian, Satan starts working overtime to try to pull that person away from God. He hates it that one more person has accepted the love of God into their lives. He will do whatever he can to turn the new Christian around, and head him or her back into sin.

We have so much fun each day just trying to make it through the day fighting off temptations. I mean this as a challenge and not as a joke. We face temptations constantly to do what God would not want us to do. He allows a different close encounter to approach us in the form of many temptations going through our mind every day. It could be something small like telling an off-color joke to others in an effort to fit in, or something more serious like deciding to take home a business camera that no one will miss.

Being tempted is part of being human. God does not protect us from temptation. He allows it into our lives so we can learn to depend on Him. The verse above promises that He “will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” It is our chance to build on solid ground for our eternal blessings. We are never free of temptations. It doesn’t matter how long we have been a Christian—Satan will tempt us. When we fall for the temptation, it’s because we have turned our back on the “way out” God has promised.

Jesus was tempted by Satan for forty days. He was offered a great deal of power in the world. He was given a chance to be king over all the kings. He was offered all the land He could see in all directions from the high place He was standing. He was tempted in every way you could think possible. This man called Jesus, who is the embodiment of how we should live on this earth, turned His back on all of the temptations! The way of escape for Him was falling back on the promises of God from Scripture.

We have the same power to not be caught by temptation by calling to mind God’s promises to us.

            We face temptations every day. (I am a sucker for Snickers candy bars, every time I see one in the store.) We need to concentrate on doing what is right each time we face a temptation. There is a very simple way to approach each and every temptation we face. Just ask, “What would Jesus do in this situation?” I mean, we can really ask that question each and every time we are tempted.

Example: Guys, a female friend asks you to help her put up a fence. About halfway through, she invites you into the house for something to drink. When you get inside, you see by what she’s wearing that she has other intentions. She comes close to you, and says that it would be OK to have a little fun. “No one will know,” she promises. What would Jesus do?

There is one thing you should do right away. You should run out of there like Joseph ran from the wife of Potiphar. You should run like you are being chased by a rabid dog looking for someone to bite.

Potiphar’s wife had tried for several days to get Joseph to sleep with her, and he refused. Then when he was close, and no one was around, she grabbed his cloak and ordered him to sleep with her. He broke loose and ran out of the house. He resisted temptation even though Potiphar’s wife tried so hard to seduce him.

Why did he run? Why should you run? It didn’t turn out well for Joseph. Potiphar’s wife became angry because he wouldn’t sleep with her. She accused Joseph of trying to seduce her. Even though he hadn’t touched her, Potiphar put him in prison for several years. Not a good situation for a young man that did everything he could to please God.

But there is a happy ending to the story of Joseph. In Genesis 39–50 we see how God brought Joseph through temptation and made him instrumental in His plan for the nation of Israel, giving him a place of prominence Joseph never could have dreamed would be his. It is one of the most wonderful stories in the Bible and I often wonder if the story would have ended as it did had Joseph not taken the “way out” God provided. Probably not.

Sometimes the “way out” may be simply walking away from temptation. Other times we may have to run as fast as we can.

As a child, I used to go to a movie in the downtown area of Salem, Oregon. It was within walking distance of my home. It was all right going to the movie, because it was still light. But on the way home it was very dark, and bushes lined the sidewalk where I had to walk. I knew there was a monster in those bushes and he was ready to grab me! I think I set some kind of record as I ran by those bushes. I was not about to be caught be some evil demon. I stayed in the middle of the street so a monster couldn’t grab me from either side.

All of us have monsters—real or imagined—in the bushes. Temptations are the real ones that we all face at some time in life. What is important is that each and every time we are faced with some kind of temptation, we ask, “What would Jesus do? What is the ‘way out’ He is providing me?”

 

[God’s grace] teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions,

and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives.

Titus 2:12

 

Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Hebrews 2:18

 

Further Adventures

Think before you leap! Always be on alert. Think of life as a war between God and Satan. You are on the good guy’s side. You need to be careful of the attacks from the guy on the other side. He will do whatever he can to destroy you. He will try to convince you that what you are doing is OK just this one time. No one will know. Stop! That is not the good guy talking. That is the enemy! Trust God, and God only. Everything else is the enemy.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny how some of us never hear the music before the song is over?

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Do You Live on the Corner of Boredom and Dead End?

 Thank you so much to those who have been signing up for the RSS feed to this site. We have had 193 of you do it recently. That is wonderful and hope it will continue. When you sign-up, it moves us up in the Google Search Rankings. Help us climb even higher bu signing up today if you haven’t already. Just click on the icon right after the title to do that.

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We have been sharing excerpts from the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” This book is perfect for an Easter present, and Easter is only about two weeks away.

There is a special sale going on right now, so click on the “Bookstore,” tab above to check it out.

__________________________________________________________

The excerpt today talks about how easy it is to be a “back slider,” once we become Christians. It helps us to understand what we need to do to be strong.

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Chapter 53

 

Done There; Been That

 

If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for? So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:30–31

 

The first week of my weight-loss program was wonderful—I lost 13 pounds in one week! (That shows you how overweight I was.) I have gone on to lose a total of 58 pounds.

It was amazing what losing 58 pounds can do. I felt so much better, had more energy and began to sleep better. I even noticed that I had a better attitude. Must be something to this losing weight stuff, don’t you think?

I saw a bumper sticker that says, “Three square meals makes one round.” Or there’s the one that says, “He who stuffeth, fluffeth.” I know the truth of those sayings and have struggled with weight for many years. I am sure none of you have. (Oh! You have?)

Have you ever said on January 1st, “This is the year I’m going to lose weight and keep it off”? You commit to going down to the club at least three times a week to work out. You cut down on your food intake and watch your eating habits, and for a few weeks things go great. Statistics say that the health clubs are the busiest during the month of January, but everyone drops out of sight by March.

Why are we so excited when we start a diet, and then fall down a month or so later?

Do you live on the corner of Boredom and Dead End? Do your days seem like weeks when things don’t go well? Does the end of the money come before the end of the bills and the end of the month?

These are things that can tear at our initial excitement about dieting? Seem silly? Not according to many experts. Depression, illness, failure, and other negative issues can stop us in our tracks, driving us to our comfort zone. And for many of us our comfort zone involves food. We even have a category called “comfort foods”: pudding, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese—things that are smooth and soft and remind us of the comfort of childhood.

That is the way it is for new, born-again Christians. They feel wonderful at first, and everything goes well for a month. Then they start forgetting where they put their Bible. They mean to study the Bible every day, but they oversleep most days. Church seems to get in the way of the big game on TV.

All the while, the same old feelings they had before they became a Christian start coming back. They are easily angered when someone is late or not doing their part of the work. Their children drive them crazy, so they retreat to a spot in front of the TV or get engrossed in their favorite magazine.

Think that none of these seems sinful enough to draw us away from God? “Give Satan an inch and he will make it a mile.” (Hey! Another great bumper sticker!) Here are a couple more good ones:

One snowflake grows into an avalanche.

Every little molehill can grow intoMt.Everest.

Don’t let the small things fool you.

Satan is very clever. He will not tempt us to do things that seem out of place—at first. Instead, he likes to chip away at our heart, and slowly get us back into his realm.

We need to go on a spiritual diet! We need to lose all those weighty problems like depression, doubt, anger and failure that cause us to be exhausted even when we see the slightest sign of hope. We need the proper food to help us grow. Here’s a good diet to follow:

1 Bible

½ hour of prayer in the morning followed by ½ hour of studying God’s Word

Constant prayer throughout the day

A Bible or a Christian book to read after the evening meal

More prayer at bedtime

Stir these ingredients into your life every day for the rest of your life, and you will see and feel the difference. You will be a clean serene fighting machine—one that Satan will not be able to cope with.

The negative pounds will start coming off. You will feel stronger, have more energy, sleep better at night, and have a much better attitude. All the benefits of what you eat spiritually will make a difference as you turn to God and let Him be in your life. 

I have been on so many different diets I can’t even remember the names of some of them. There was the “Eat bananas all day” diet, but I started making strange noises, and jumping up and down. But my swinging on the chandelier did it forCharlotte.

One diet promised I could become a slender “animal” by eating only meats and poultry. I tried that for awhile, and the pounds did come off, but then whenever I looked at a live chicken or a cow, I felt tremendous guilt because I was eating their brothers and sisters!

A vegetarian diet led to other problems for me—one of them being too much time in the bathroom. I had better ways to spend my day!

This went on until I shifted to Weight Watchers. I could eat anything I wanted as long as I stayed within my point totals for the day.

There are so many ways (formulas, diets) we’ve devised to follow God that it’s no wonder so many of us go off spiritual diets.

I did some church-hopping in my earlier days in my search for the perfect church. I didn’t find one. I learned that there are pluses and minuses in every church.

That leads me to comment on the bumper sticker at the start of this chapter. I bet you’re waiting for me to finally straighten it out. You thought it should read, “Been there; done that.”

But what I put there is what I meant.

I grew tired of church-hunting. I wanted to settle into to a church so I could grow. Hence, I was done there. I was done looking for a church because I realized I was slipping away from God since I didn’t have a church home. I had been that person before. I had slipped away from God before.

So I was done there and been that!

I got on a good diet of Bible study, fellowship with other Christians, reading Christian books, and prayer. I started a journal of my hurts, good moments, and just remembering the day. It was a great way to look back at my growth—or lack of it.

We need to be done there with all the negative barriers. We cannot remain in the world of hurt; the world of worry, or the world of fear.

We have been that long enough. We can’t allow Satan to run our life. He has done it long enough. God needs to take over—and we need to let Him. He can carry us the rest of the way.

Yes, you have been that. You have been what you had hoped you would never be, but you will be done there. You never have to carry that heavy load again.

We can turn to God and say, “I am done there. I have been that for too many years, and I need Your love to be with me to keep me from going back.”

Like the loving Father He is, He will open His arms and take care of you.

 

We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power

is from God and not from us.

2 Corinthians 4:7

 

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that or your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.

1 Peter 3:3–4

 

Further Adventures

We all struggle. We all have failed at one time or another. We all have wished we would be strong and keep doing things that will make us healthy both physically and mentally. But you know what? We are humans! We can talk ourselves out of anything. It can be, “Oh that piece of cake won’t cause me too much trouble. I won’t be depressed if I fail. It is OK to not exercise to make me physically strong.” Wrong! Wrong! And wrong again.

We need both physical growth and spiritual growth. They go together hand in hand. When you’re at your proper weight and physically fit, you feel much better about yourself and want to go even further by cleaning out your polluted mind of all harmful thoughts that tear you down. Strong physically; strong mentally. You are a clean serene fighting machine.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny how some choose their friends by their outward appearance, and yet they don’t like themselves?

 

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Jesus is the Light That Knows no Power Failure

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Help us continue to rise by signing up today if you haven’t already. Just click on the icon right after the title to do that.

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The excerpt today lets us know that we always have a friend no matter what the circumstances may be.

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Chapter 46

 

Jesus Is the Light that Knows No Power Failure

 

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and

by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,

encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.

2 Thessalonians 2:16–17

 

Have you heard people say, “I have no one to turn to”? They feel all is lost. What a depressing feeling!

They need to know there is always someone to turn to! God sent us a person who will always listen to us. God loves close encounters with His children. God will listen, and Jesus will listen. Prayer is the way you can talk to them, and God answers prayer. It may not be on the timeline you want, but it is answered.

Your prayer also may be answered in a way that you didn’t expect. God knows what is best for you. He knows every hair on your head. He knows what is bothering you, and He knows what you need. And He will help you make it through whatever crises you may have.

 

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.

Psalm 46:1–2

 

Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust.

Psalm 40:4

 

We always have someone to turn to. We have someone who will always look after us. Jesus is a light that knows no power failure. You know that Thomas Edison invented the light bulb and what a wonderful invention it is. But light bulbs burn out and they have to be replaced.

Jesus does not burn out. He has eternal life. We need to take time each day to thank Him for His protective presence. He is with us wherever we are. In a dark alley. On top of a mountain. Scuba diving in the ocean. In a boat during a storm. When that storm comes in, and everything looks lost, we can find great comfort in knowing that the Lord is always with us.

The disciples thought they were doomed when a huge storm came up while they were out in a boat. (Most of these guys were fishermen and used to storms. So this must have been the “mother of all storms” for them to be so scared.) But Jesus wasn’t worrying much. He was asleep! They woke Him up and begged Him to save their lives. He simply told the sea to calm down, and it obeyed immediately!

Wouldn’t it make sense that if He can calm a sea with only His voice, He can certainly protect us from any harm, including the “storm” we find ourselves in right now. We simply need to turn our worries, fears and anxieties over to Him to enjoy the peace of mind He offers.

 

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

Psalm 55:22

 

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.

Lamentations 3:25–26

 

Further Adventures

Have you been walking in the darkness, running into walls, and not finding your way around? Jesus is the light to show you the way. And when you are a Christian, His light is inside you. He wants you to let His light shine through you. Sort of like the song many of us learned in Sunday school: “This little light of mine, I’m gonna’ let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.” Your light could help many people come out of the darkness.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny how we always search for a flashlight in the darkness but the light of Jesus’ love is all we need?