Faith|Fiction

sharecovers.com If you're avidly seeking God and you make a mistake...don't forget- you're human. No matter how much we love and want to please the Lord, we will make mistakes as long as we're here on earth, unfortunately. If I had it my way, I'd love it if I could please Jesus every time, but we both know I'm human and that's just not going to happen. My experience is this: If you make Jesus your life and you try to do everything to please Him and you make a mistake or a series of them, and even after repenting you've still got a nagging feeling pulling your heart down- that my friend is condemnation. It's something all believers are tempted to feel, but if you stand on Him and let Him strengthen you, you don't have to fall into that trap. Jesus told me this today: "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings." --Hosea 6:8 (NIV) I'm not that hard to please. If you're tr...

soverigngraceministries.org Out of all the courtship and purity books I've read (and hounded in my room, haha), this is one I didn't have a particular liking for. It was kind of...blah. Mr. Harris writes on a subject I fully support and am practicing in my own life, the principal of keeping yourself and letting God keep you clean in both your soul and your physical body, not only for marriage but for life. He writes on the importance of taking an interest in why you date and urges us as readers to take on a new attitude of selflessness and loving with Christ's love as we embark on a romantic relationship that starts first with friendship and then to marriage. I have no doubt in my mind that this book was written out of the Lord's will and the message spoken was His, but I felt in my spirit that this particular book was not for me. I could see his message but couldn't get into it, couldn't get connected to it. Although I identified greatly with the pur...

blogs.cisco.com Today, the word celebration  is on my heart. Think about it: how many times a year do we just take time to celebrate ourselves and where we are in our journey with Jesus? As I was thinking about it yesterday I realized the answer was a whopping no. I've never taken time to just celebrate where I am and where He's taken me and the things I've been able to do because of Him. How sad this was to discover that I wasn't taking the time to appreciate how far He's taken me from where I was and how He is changing me everyday. This summer I took a month-long trip to Switzerland and in spite of the beauty landscape and my welcoming family, Jesus held my hand as I walked through a trial. There was almost nothing I could do! I set out to protect my heart from anything that could wrench me from my Savior and into the hands of the world (read: avoiding secular music, television...etc.) and apart from reading the Bible and listening to Christian music and wa...

dougaddison.com Last month, I had an amazing experience at a Joan Hunter Ministries Conference. I'd gotten a letter in the mail concerning it, but do to scheduling, I didn't think I'd be able to attend. I prayed about it, begging God to open the schedule, but it didn't look like it would happen. Lo and behold, that very day there was a breach in my schedule that allowed me to go. Problem was, I didn't feel like it. I was in a nasty mood, didn't 'feel' like worshiping God, and I was letting all types of demonic thoughts rule me. "Oh well, we're already late." "What if God doesn't let me feel His love like He did before?" "I don't even feel like worshiping right now, my heart is too closed off." But as we drove into the 4 Corners Conference Center, a tiny seed of hope flared inside of me. Maybe this is where I'll feel that agape love [agape is a Hebrew word for strong love- it defines that overflowing...

"The headlights of your car going down a dark winding road on a dark night let you see only a few feet ahead. You cannot see the entire road, so you must respond to each corner and each curve as you come to it. On the side of each curve, there is a steel guardrail, placed their by you and your Savior to keep you from the real damage off the road. The Christian life is much the same. God rarely lets us see what He wants for our life- only what He wants us to do now. He asks us for obedience- and if, we happen to stray off the road, the guardrails you've established earlier will keep us from crashing. He asks for obedience for what He's asked of us today...and like a car's headlight...He'll show us where to go." -Life Change

 madouthere.files.wordpress.com Speaking to the Holy of Holies can be a little daunting at first, to say the least. For a new Christian, this can be one of the most dreaded things that comes with living the righteous life. What if He won't answer me? What if I can't hear anything? What if (haha)...I'm bored? Shh! Shh! I don't want to hear anymore 'what if questions'! In fact, I don't want to hear any doubtful questions right now. You just read. Let me tell you a secret- All spending time with God is this  talking to God and telling Him that you need Him in different ways. Then you listen for His response. It works just like a conversation. And just like a normal human friendship, it needs to be maintained everyday to be strong and continue thriving. What? You thought you could just talk to God on Tuesday and then not come back till the next Tuesday of next month? Doesn't work like that. Actually, the more you spend time with God and se...

thechristianmessage.org          June 24th, Liz's Journal: " I AM NOT TRUSTING GOD."    I say I am, but I'm not. I know the "theology" (God's Word, the head-knowledge), but I'm living like a Pharisee trying to live them all out at the same time! If I mess up, I make myself miserable over it. Yeah, yeah, I know, "No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus", but I should've obeyed what He said. "That puts me in a set-back in my relationship with Him...again." I say to this woman- STOP!!!!   Quit trying to live on your own understanding! You're not trusting Him! Are you the woman (or man) I'm speaking to today? I realized this today while on the way back from the doctor's on the freeway. I told God, "Keep me safe, please don't let this eighteen-wheeler hit us." Three seconds later I had my eyes laser-peeled on the road instead of focusing on soaking in God's truth t...