Tag: sin

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Three Steps Are Needed to Win a Victory Over Sin

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There are new things to look at on the site.

  1. The is a new trailer of the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” It is on the right side under the Amazon icon. Click on it to see what the book is all about.
  2. There is a new page forming called, “All About Writing.” That page will talk about publishing; have guest authors share, and discuss writing trends. It is in a baby stage, so bear with me as I slowly develop it to my and your liking.
  3. I have posted two 5 star reviews of my book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” on the “All About Writing” page. I will be add others as the days go by. Click on the All About Writing tab to also see all my other places you can connect with me.
  4. There is a new page called, “Publishing News.” This page will bring you news from around the world on trends, latest news on publishing, and any other things that may be interesting. Check it every time you come here. There is a new post there today that is very interesting. Just click on the “publishing,” tab above, to read the latest news on publishing.

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Another shocking announcement! ( That got your attention!) “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World, ” is now out in eBook form. I You can acquire it at all the eBook outlets. It is only $4.99. Help it climb the www.amazon.com best selling list.

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I have a podcast here that I did with John Kremer, the marketing guru. He invited me to share unusual places to sell books. Take a listen and hit those streets running: goo.gl/WGTF7

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Thoughts just for you….

There is a difference committing a sin and contributing to sin. Even the most faithful believers commit sins, but they do not cherish a particular sin and choose to commit it. A believer who commits a sin repents, confesses, and finds forgiveness. A person who continues to sin, by contrast, is not sorry for what he or she is doing. So the person never confesses and never receives forgiveness. Such a person is in opposition to God., not matter what religious claims he or she has.

As Christians we have areas where temptation is strong and habits are hard to conquer. Those weaknesses give Satan a foothold, so we must deal with our areas of vulnerability.

If we are struggling with a particular sins, we need to keep faithful to God, and ask for His help in overcoming them.

Three steps are need to win a victory over prevailing sin:

  1. Seek the power of the Holy Spirit and God’s Word.
  2. Stay away from tempting situations.
  3. Seek help from the body of Christ, the church, and be open to their willingness to hold you accountable and pray for you.

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

Above all…..never, ever, give up!

 

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The Christian Life is a Process of Becoming More Like Christ

Thanks to those of you who have been subscribing through the RSS feed. It helps us growing on the Google Search Rankings. Help us to continue to grow by signing up today if you haven’t already. Just click o the icon right after the title to do that.

____________________________________________________________

There are new things to look at on the site.

  1. The is a new trailer of the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” It is on the right side under the Amazon icon. Click on it to see what the book is all about.
  2. There is a new page forming called, “All About Writing.” That page will talk about publishing; have guest authors share, and discuss writing trends. It is in a baby stage, so bear with me as I slowly develop it to my and your liking.
  3. I have posted two 5 star reviews of my book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” on the “All About Writing” page. I will be add others as the days go by. Click on the All About Writing tab to also see all my other places you can connect with me.
  4. There is a new page called, “Publishing News.” This page will bring you news from around the world on trends, latest news on publishing, and any other things that may be interesting. Check it every time you come here. There is a new post there today that is very interesting. Just click on the “publishing,” tab above, to read the latest news on publishing.

__________________________________________________________

Another shocking announcement! ( That got your attention!) “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World, ” is now out in eBook form. I You can acquire it at all the eBook outlets. It is only $4.99. Help it climb the www.amazon.com best selling list.

____________________________________________________________

I have a podcast here that I did with John Kremer, the marketing guru. He invited me to share unusual places to sell books. Take a listen and hit those street running: goo.gl/WGTF7

________________________________________________________________

Thoughts just for you…

The Christian life is a process of becoming more and more like Christ. (Romans 8:29)

We need to purify ourselves. What does purify mean? It means to keep morally straight, free from the corruption of sin. God also purifies us, but there is action we must take to remain morally fit. (I Timothy 5:12) (James 4:8) (Ipeter 1:22.)

We need to also know the difference in commiting a sin and continuing to sin. Even the most faithful sometimes commit sins, but they don’t cherish a particular sins and choose to commit it. A believer who commits a sin repents, confesses and finds forgiveness. A person who continues to sin, is not sorry for what they are doing. Thus this person never confesses and never receives forgiveness. Such a person is in opposition to God no matter what religious claims they make.

Three steps are necessary to find victory over sin:

  1. Seek the power of the Holy Spirit and God’s word.
  2. Stay away from tempting situations.
  3. Seek the help of the body of Christ. Be open to their willingness to hold you accountable and pray for you.

So, live your life in a way that you can feel peace with your heavenly Father. Obey His ways, and believe that He sent His only Son down to this earth to die for you and me.

Remember:

You are not alone.

You are not forsaken.

You are not unloved.

Above all… never, ever, give up!

 

 

 

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Give Sin an Inch, and it will Become the Ruler

 I missed a few days. I was out of the area on a trip with my wife. Glad to be back, and in a good routine again.

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I would love it if you would sign-up for the RSS feed to this site. It helps the site move up in the Google Search Rankings. If you haven’t already, please sign-up now. Just click in the icon right after the title.

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Today’s free excerpt from the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,”  is about thinking that one sin won’t hurt us too much. The truth is that it is just a stepping stone to big problems.

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The book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” reaches out to those who may be suffering from anxiety, fear, depression, addictions, self-doubt, hopelessness, or the many other usual suspects.

There is a special sale going on right now, for this book, in the bookstore. You can go up to the top of this page, and click on “Bookstore,” to see the special deal. There is a $6.00 savings right now.

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Chapter 38

 

Give Sin an Inch, and It Will Become the Ruler

 

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

 

The boy had been a loyal member of his church, and he loved the Lord. One day he was with some of his school buddies, who offered him some marijuana. He said no. His friends said he should try it just once—it won’t hurt him. They told him people even use it for medicinal purposes. He decided it wouldn’t hurt just to try it once to impress his friends.

To shorten this story, in many cases, this young man goes on to try more marijuana and eventually experiments with much more dangerous drugs. He may also need to find ways to get the money he needs to keep his habit going. The story could end with his eternal death if he never has a close encounter with God along the way.

It is so easy to give in and just try one sin—just “one little one.” But one sin leads to another, and another, and another!

Inch by inch, anything can happen. We can be closer to the Lord, inch by inch, if we take a little time each day to read the Bible. If we also take time and pray to Him for strength, we’ll be much less prone to wander away from Him.

It’s sort of like lifting weights to get in shape. If we spend just twenty minutes a day working out, we will be in very good shape. Watch our diet as well and we’ll be healthy. We’ll be spiritually healthy if we spend time each day with the Lord, getting nourished by His Word and exercising our spiritual muscles in prayer.

Instead of giving sin an inch, our desire needs to be to “inch” toward what should be the most important goal in our lives: to be strong in our love for the Lord and to be in spiritual shape Him.

No one can say they are in perfect spiritual shape—not even the “best” Christian you know—at least, not this side of heaven. There will always be times when we have sinful desires. There will always be temptation. But we can make wise choices by avoiding unnecessary temptations. (Sort of like not stocking the cupboards with cookies and candy when you want to cut back on calories.) 

As long as we are in our earthly bodies, we will wrestle with Satan, who is fighting to control us. He lost ground when we accepted God’s salvation and he wants that territory back!

When we allow God to renew our minds because we constantly think about Him and His Word, our minds will eventually be renewed with the truth. However, it is a lifelong process—not a one-time, done deal.

Galatians5:16says, “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Notice it doesn’t say the desires aren’t there. It doesn’t say they will go away. We will always be battling the desires of our body—even as a believer. Even though Satan may be battling even harder to regain his lost turf, as believers, we have the Holy Spirit inside us to do battle with us.

To walk in the Spirit, we need to pray for the Holy Spirit to protect us 24/7. He is always there to comfort and give us strength.

Don’t let Satan have an inch. Measure (sorry for the pun) each thing you do and don’t lengthen (I did it again) your time spent in sin.

 

This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Jeremiah 6:16

 

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

James 1:5

 

Further Adventures

We see it in the news all the time: People who seemed wonderful to those around them have gone in the wrong direction. We hear so many times of a high school student everyone thought “had it all together” who takes his own life and/or the lives of others around him.

Use this to realize that it is so easy to “slide” away from reality—and into sin—without those around you aware of it. Stay with God; He will keep you on track.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny how it’s not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight; it’s those who obey the law that will be declared righteous?