Thought of the Day !!

The LORD is my light and my salvation -- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life -- of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1

The LORD can and will be our light and salvation just as much today as He was in the days of King David. He wants to protect us and care for us. His ultimate act of caring is our salvation. With Him on our side, whom shall we fear?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

No, I will not unleash my fierce anger. I will not completely destroy Israel, for I am God and not a mere mortal. I am the Holy One living among you, and I will not come to destroy.
Hosea 11:9 (NLT)

God had gotten very angry with Israel. He had every right to unleash His fierce anger. But He didn't. This is because He has control over His emotions. Wouldn't it be great if we all could say that? Even though we're not in perfect control of our emotions as is our Father in Heaven, we have His power in us when we accept Christ as our Savior and allow the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. Let us tap into this power and exercise control when we're tempted to lose our patience with others and do something we wouldn't want our Father to see us do.

In the love of Christ,
greg

P.S. Something I forgot to mention last week was that I would be away this week. I am in Jacksonville at a conference on prayer and healing. This is probably the only "Thought of the Day !!" that I will get out this week. God bless. And I'll be back at it again next week.

Thought of the Day !!

Keep me safe, O God, for in you I take refuge. I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord. Apart from you I have no good thing."
Psalm 16:1-2 (NIV)

Apart from God, we would have nothing. Think about it. If you create something, God gave you the imagination and talents to be used. If you learn something, God gave you a brain to store intelligience. If you do anything, God gave you the body, the mind and the power.

I once used an illustration in a sermon about some scientists that believed that they had gotten so smart that they didn't need God anymore. God decided to have a little competition with them. He told them that He'd created man from dust, and since they were becoming so advanced in cloning and other such things, He would simply leave them alone if they could create a new human being from scratch like He did. They got together and discussed it and believed that they had the power to do just that. So they agreed. They went out to gather the dust of the earth, and God spoke down to them saying, "Hey, make your own dust. That's mine."

I wonder how many times a day I take for granted what's around me. Apart from God, I have NOTHING.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

The LORD said to Gideon, "You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength."
Judges 7:2 (NLT)

God had called Gideon to rise up against Israel's enemy, Midian. He had gathered 32,000 men to fight, but God saw that if they all went to battle, things wouldn't be so clear about who's power it was that won the battle. God knew that in their minds they would question whether it was really God or just a really good fighting contingent. So God told Gideon to send some home. Actually, all but 300 hundred were sent away so that there would be no doubt who's strength was being used.

Often times when God does something through us or works a miracle in our presence we can have the tendency to explain it away. But God wants us to understand that we cannot get through this life on our own without Him and His power. He is the one who helps us fend off the devil. He's the one that performs miracles around us (some small and some huge). He's the one that will lovingly guide us if we'll pay attention and acknowledge Him.

Today, ask yourself how God might be using your weakness to do something great in the world. The things you do may not seem great to you. But if you're listening and living by His guidance, you are a part of something so great that none of us may realize just how great until we meet Him face to face.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Sing for joy, O heavens! Rejoice, O earth! Burst into song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted his people and will have compassion on them in their sorrow.
Isaiah 49:13 (NLT)

Sorrow comes in this world that has been drastically changed by sin. We know that life won't always be a party. But God looks down on the human race...His children...and has compassion. He has comforted his people many times in the past and will do so many more times in the future.

Sing for joy because in the good times...well...things are good. And in the sorrowful times, we have a God who is there to comfort us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.
Romans 1:20-21 (NLT)

There is so much proof out there that there is a God. His qualities and power are seen in all creation. But there have always been people who've tried to make Him what they wanted Him to be instead of finding out for themselves just who He really is.

It's no different today. How many of us have our own concept of who and what God is like? How many of us make the determination that "my" God wouldn't do that, or "the God I know" is different? Could it be that our God cannot be put in a box and defined the way we want Him to be defined, to look like we desire Him to look?

None of us will ever truly know the totality of the divine nature of God in this lifetime. None of us can understand everything about Him. That's where faith comes in. I do believe that He makes it clear through Scripture that He wants us to get to know everything we can about Him though. He wants us to grow closer and closer to Him daily. He wants us to worship Him and give Him thanks for what He has made clear to us.

Let's not make God out to be what we want Him to be. Let's seek Him to learn as much about who He really is, worshiping Him and giving Him thanks for every new detail that comes alive to us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Show respect for everyone. Love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God. Show respect for the king.
1 Peter 2:17 (NLT)

I've heard before that respect is something that has to be earned. I've heard that respect comes with "the job". I've heard that I should respect my elders. But what exactly does it mean to respect someone?

It means to give special regard to someone or place them in high esteem. In my opinion this is a natural part of Christian love. So should people have to earn my respect? I imagine not if I'm trying to live a Christ-like life.

Sharing respect for everyone might also mean that we would treat them the way we'd like to be treated. It means not looking down on others. It means giving people the benefit of the doubt.

Does this mean sometimes we might be disappointed because someone we respected let us down? Of course it does. But love does not come without a cost. And we cannot control the actions of others...no matter how much we try. But of course we could always look at it from another side. Jesus showed us respect and we've let him down before. But it doesn't stop him from loving us.

So show respect to everyone because it's the Christian thing to do and because it's exactly what Christ did for you.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

God has called us to be holy, not to live impure lives. Anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human rules but is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 (NLT)

Think about your own life. What's in it that is impure? What would you not want your grandmother to know about you? What would you most like to hide? What is most detestable to God? Can you think of any habit or ways of thinking that you've allowed to go on even though deep down you know that they are wrong? Are there desires in your heart that are impure?

God has called us to live as holy people, who are righteous...or right with God. We are unholy, or unrighteous when we defile our lives with the things that the devil loves to see in us and that God hates.

Living impure lives means more than simply messing up from time to time or making mistakes or poor choices. Living impure lives means that we allow the ugliness in us to remain without lifting a finger to do anything about it.

So can you think of any ways you might be rejecting God by allowing impure thoughts, motives, words, actions or lifestyle choices to persist in your life?

If these remain, they can slowly rot away at you. But if you choose to ask for help, God will help you remove the rotteness from your life.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

Those who are guided by the Holy Spirit produce the fruits of the Spirit. Or you could say that they take on the characteristics of the Holy Spirit, or God. These fruits are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

These are the things that enrich our lives and make them worth living. They’re the things that sustain us for the long run, even when the money and other selfish desires run short. These are the things we were created for and that fulfill us. They are the things found in their completeness in Heaven.

Today allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in all aspects of your life and receive the fruits of the Spirit.

In the love of Christ,
greg