May 22 Bible Reading
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Jesus often tells us we must do the opposite of human nature in order to follow Him.
We must do the opposite of human nature to find eternal life.
He uses things we understand to show us the nature of things we do not understand.
Times like today.
Jesus tells us that we must die to the world in order to receive true life while predicting His own death in John 12:24:
Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. (John 12:24 NIV)

The more we hold on to what is status quo we lose the opportunities to receive what God offers us. This is not just true in material things. It is true in material things but they were meant to be an example of something greater. This truth is most evident in spiritual things. Here’s what I mean plainly.

If you are holding on to bitterness you will only be able to hold onto bitterness. If you are holding on to unforgiveness or grief… you will on be able to have those things. As easy as it is to write, it is a multitude of times more difficult to do… but we must let go of these things.

What is holding you back?

If that question doesn’t cut you to the core I don’t know what question will. Take some time today and ask yourself this question… “What is holding me back from receiving a life filled with abundance of joy?” That is what God wants for us. For Pete’s sake He sent His only Son to die so you could have it. Don’t waste that! Make it count.

If this message blesses you, bless someone else with it.

God Bless…

May 21 Bible Reading
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Saul dies today. Just as Samuel told him. The irony in the story of Saul is remarkable. I mean here Saul is desperate to stay in control after Samuel told him the Kingdom would be ripped from him. Saul will do anything to guard against losing his Kingdom. But wait…

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May 20 Bible Reading
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A man finds out a friend has died. The man is so saddened at the death of His friend that He weeps. Weeps. This man stands outside of a tomb and calls to His dead friend…

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Hello Friends!

In this world you never know who will walk through your door sometimes, but when they do I always find it interesting where they’ve come from. This past week I sat down with a sales prospect that I had been talking to for at least a month or so. He wanted to meet me at my office and when I met him face to face I realized why. The man I had been talking to was an “old school business man,” the kind of guy that shakes a hand = signed, sealed, and delivered. After about 30 minutes of light hearted negotiating ( I knew I had him sold from the word go) we talked on a personal level, as the conversation started from the words on my business card. “Faithful Father, Hopeful American, Inspired Realist.” The conversation was centered around one simple question….. “Are you a Christian?”

During the conversation we shared where we went to church, our ideas on what contemporary churches offer that maybe traditional churches don’t, our involvement in our churches, etc. He never asked, but I certainly did not mind sharing my story on how I became this “Faithful Father.” It was at that moment that I realized that although this stranger and I had just met, that we come from maybe different tax brackets, we were born in different decades, and most likely we would have never interacted if it weren’t for his need of my company’s service here we were. At the close of our meeting I told my new customer that it was nice to meet a Christian business man in this town. He responded with something more promising than I expected. He said, “There’s more of US out than than we realize.” We shook hands = Signed, Sealed, and Delivered.

I read something interesting in a weekly devotional that I follow last week that urged me to share this story….. I read that as Christians, one of our greatest privileges and responsibilities is to extend Jesus’ invitation to everyone around us. The beautiful thing is, God doesn’t ask us to do this by preaching at people, but simply by sharing our own story of faith.

NOTE: I prayed a prayer the day before that asking for a sign from God, wondering if I was in the right position in my life. Either I got an answer, or a warning to be careful what I pray for.

John 7:37
On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.

May 19, 2013 Bible Reading

1 Samuel 24:1-25:44
John 10:22-42
Psalms 116:1-19
Proverbs 15:20-21

Listen to the Bible On Your Phone – Daily Audio Bible Podcast

May 16 Bible Reading
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I was asked today if I pray with my wife. I was at a Starbucks with a few guys I go to church with and this question popped up. It’s the weirdest thing because Amber and I were just talking about this. The coffee conversation went around the table and the answers from each of us guys was different. Some yeses. Some nos. Some… well… sometimes.

It got me wondering about how many of our readers pray with others. If you pray with someone at least a few times a week leave a comment and give us a little detail. The one thing I got out of the coffee house conversations is that there are many different ways to approach praying with others. Let’s face it… It can feel a little awkward if you haven’t done much let alone not at all.

You know the Psalms are beautiful prayers. From reading them we can gain insight to God’s own heart as most of them were written by King David (the man after God’s own heart). We get a glimpse at anger in prayer and where to place that anger (firmly in God’s hands). We also get a glimpse of lamentation, joy, praise, you name it. If David felt it, he shared it with God. Some have argued that learning to lead a prayerful life could and should begin in the Psalms.

When we discuss things among other believers like I did this morning we all grow from it. The growth happens far faster than if we went through life on our own. So I’m asking you… yes.. YOU to leave a comment here on the website and let’s get a little discussion started. Here’s the question:

DO YOU PRAY WITH SOMEONE AT LEAST A FEW TIMES A WEEK?
If so, tell us who and how.

If this message blesses you, please share… and please comment.

God Bless…

May 14 Bible Reading
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Today we meet King David. David is another one of my heroes. I mean kinda hard for him not to make the list. “A man after God’s own heart”, ya know? He’s new on the scene and that will soon cause Saul a little jealousy. That jealousy will get very ugly and you will be able to see the true contrast in a man willing to do anything to “appear” to have God’s own heart and a man that simply

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May 13 Bible Reading
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Sometimes it is difficult to believe some of the things found in the Bible are actually found in the Bible. I mean we all have this sweet and reverent idea about what’s in the Bible, right? Everything is supposed to be unimaginably fair and equitable. Everything the people in the Bible say to God is supposed to be, well… nice… right? Then what about Psalm 109 in our reading today?

I used to believe that Read more »