Loving you is never a time wasted...
Meg =)
Tuesday 28 February 2017
Don’t let yourself feel guilty for sins that Christ has already forgiven
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“The Accuser of Our Brethren”
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”
Revelation 12:9–10
One of the most powerful tools of modern political campaigns is what is referred to as “opposition research.” There are huge companies that do nothing but look into the lives of opposition candidates. For a price, they will hire employees to follow candidates to public events and record them in hopes of catching a mistake or something that can be used for negative ads. Huge files reaching thousands of pages are put together of past statements, business deals, personal lives, and failures. Anything that might be used to make a voter turn against a candidate is considered fair game in the world of opposition research.
As Christians we face a dedicated and persistent enemy who is continually throwing accusations against us. Because we still sin even after we are saved, he does not even have to make false accusations—the truth is bad enough. Satan makes these accusations against us to God, and he makes them to us as well, attempting to keep us from living in freedom and victory. Yet against every one of these charges, there is a defense, for Jesus Himself serves as our attorney. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). Satan cannot bring us into defeat and guilt over sins Christ has forgiven as long as we claim the protection and defense provided by our Saviour.
Revelation 12:9–10
One of the most powerful tools of modern political campaigns is what is referred to as “opposition research.” There are huge companies that do nothing but look into the lives of opposition candidates. For a price, they will hire employees to follow candidates to public events and record them in hopes of catching a mistake or something that can be used for negative ads. Huge files reaching thousands of pages are put together of past statements, business deals, personal lives, and failures. Anything that might be used to make a voter turn against a candidate is considered fair game in the world of opposition research.
As Christians we face a dedicated and persistent enemy who is continually throwing accusations against us. Because we still sin even after we are saved, he does not even have to make false accusations—the truth is bad enough. Satan makes these accusations against us to God, and he makes them to us as well, attempting to keep us from living in freedom and victory. Yet against every one of these charges, there is a defense, for Jesus Himself serves as our attorney. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). Satan cannot bring us into defeat and guilt over sins Christ has forgiven as long as we claim the protection and defense provided by our Saviour.
Today’s Growth Principle:
When Satan tries to bury you in guilt, rely on the defense offered you through the blood of Christ.
Monday 27 February 2017
I Quote =)
Formulating
an idea that boosts productivity and accomplishment makes me feel like “amazing”.
More
so, if this idea became one of the bases for performance bonus ---
is
another thing.
Meg =)
July 2016 – Feb 2017,
Trial and testing period
Salt + Pepper: I Quote =)
Salt + Pepper: I Quote =): “My Love for you is greater than your fear” Meg
No Condemnation
Getting Satan’s Attention
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?”
Zechariah 3:1–2
The prophet Zechariah was given a most unusual vision. He saw the spiritual leader of the Jewish people, the high priest Joshua, being directly resisted by Satan. There is constant spiritual warfare to discourage and defeat Christians who are trying to do something for God. Satan does not just sit back idly while we move forward in the Christian life. All those who are trying to reach the lost, grow in grace, and be a positive influence on others will face opposition.
Our goal should be to do so much for God, that we attract the attention of Satan. Luke records the story of seven young men, sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva, who decided to gain notoriety for themselves by trying to cast out demons. When they meet with a demon possessed man, the evil spirit was not impressed. “And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.” (Acts 19:15–16).
The devil does not need to resist those who are doing nothing. It is only those who are moving forward in God’s work who get his attention. But there is good news. Zechariah’s vision also showed that when Satan tried to resist Joshua, God was there standing up for His servant. When we face opposition from the devil, we can always count on God to defend and encourage us to keep on doing right.
Zechariah 3:1–2
The prophet Zechariah was given a most unusual vision. He saw the spiritual leader of the Jewish people, the high priest Joshua, being directly resisted by Satan. There is constant spiritual warfare to discourage and defeat Christians who are trying to do something for God. Satan does not just sit back idly while we move forward in the Christian life. All those who are trying to reach the lost, grow in grace, and be a positive influence on others will face opposition.
Our goal should be to do so much for God, that we attract the attention of Satan. Luke records the story of seven young men, sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva, who decided to gain notoriety for themselves by trying to cast out demons. When they meet with a demon possessed man, the evil spirit was not impressed. “And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.” (Acts 19:15–16).
The devil does not need to resist those who are doing nothing. It is only those who are moving forward in God’s work who get his attention. But there is good news. Zechariah’s vision also showed that when Satan tried to resist Joshua, God was there standing up for His servant. When we face opposition from the devil, we can always count on God to defend and encourage us to keep on doing right.
Today’s Growth Principle:
We should be active enough in God’s work that it is causing problems for Satan and his kingdom.
No Condemnation
by Joyce Meyer - posted February 26, 2017Therefore, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.
—Romans 8:1
I should have known better,” Cindy cried out to me. “All the signs were there that he wasn’t the man for me.” She had gone through two years of a painful marriage, of verbal and finally physical abuse. Then her husband left her for another woman. Now she felt doubly condemned—condemned for marrying him in the first place and condemned that she couldn’t hold the marriage together.
“If I had been a good Christian, I could have changed him,” she moaned.
I could have confronted her and said, “Yes, you did see the signs and you ignored them. You opened yourself up to this kind of treatment.” I didn’t say those words and wouldn’t. They would not have helped Cindy.
What she needed right then was for me to stretch out my hand and comfort her. She was so self-condemned that she finally asked, “Will God forgive me?”
At first, her words disturbed me. The Bible is clear that God forgives any sin. Cindy knew the Bible, so her question wasn’t due to a lack of knowledge; it was due to a lack of faith in a loving, caring God. She felt so dejected, and she didn’t know if God loved her enough to forgive her.
I assured Cindy of God’s forgiveness, but that wasn’t the real issue that troubled her. Satan had whispered in her mind for such a long time that she had failed God, that she had deliberately disobeyed, and that God was angry with her.
The devil tries to stop us every chance he gets. I often use the analogy of a baby learning to walk. We don’t expect that baby to stand the first day and walk across the room like an adult. Those little ones will fall often. Sometimes they cry, but they always get back up. That may be some inborn quality, but I suspect it’s because the parents are there saying, “You can do it. Come on, baby, get up and walk.”
The scene is much the same in the spiritual world. All of us fall, but when we’re encouraged, we get back up and try again. If we’re not encouraged, we tend to stay down, or at least wait a long, long time before trying to get up again.
Never underestimate Satan’s relentlessness. He will do whatever he can to trip you, and then make you feel so condemned that you won’t want to get up again. He knows that his control is finished once you choose right thoughts and reject wrong ones. He wants to hinder you from clear thinking. He will attempt to thwart you through discouragement and condemnation.
I want to tell you what Cindy did. She wrote Romans 8:1 on three 3x5 file cards and pasted one on her mirror, one on her computer, and one on her dashboard. Every time she looks at the verse, she repeats it aloud. Therefore, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.
The Message puts Romans 8:1-2 like this: With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.
We are free in Jesus Christ, and we don’t have to listen to Satan’s condemnation. When we fail—and we will—that doesn’t mean we are failures. It means we failed one time in one thing. It means we didn’t do everything right. That doesn’t make us a failure.
“Just let Christ be strong in your weaknesses; let Him be your strength on your weak days.”
Lord Jesus Christ, in Your name I pray for victory. When I fail, please remind me not only that You forgive, but that You also wipe away the guilt and condemnation. Please accept my gratitude. Amen.
Sunday 26 February 2017
Rebuilding the Temple
But when you pray, go into your [most] private room, and, closing the door, pray to your Father, Who is in secret; and your Father, Who sees in secret, will reward you in the open.
—Matthew 6:6
Jesus rose early to be alone with God, but Peter pursued Him to let Him know that everyone was looking for Him (see Mark 1:35-36). When you get alone to pray, it may seem that everybody tries to hunt you down. But Jesus sought time alone with God so He could focus on His purpose.
We see the scenario of Jesus praying alone and then meeting the needs of others again and again. Jesus went throughout Galilee preaching and driving out demons. When a leper begged to be clean, Jesus touched him, and the leprosy completely left him (see Mark 1:39-42). If Jesus needed to be alone with the Father before He ministered to others, so do we.
Rebuilding the Temple
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them. Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them.”
Ezra 5:1–2
When the children of Israel returned from the seventy years of captivity in Babylon, one of the first things they did was to build a new altar on the site of Solomon’s Temple which had been destroyed, and then lay the foundations for a new Temple. But it was not long before work on the Temple was abandoned as the people focused on their own homes. God sent prophets to rebuke the people, and remind them to complete the task that they had begun. “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?” (Haggai 1:4). Finally almost twenty years after work was begun, the second Temple was completed and dedicated.
In this story, there is a powerful reminder for us of the importance of maintaining proper priorities. There will always be competing claims and interests—more things to do than time and resources will allow. This reality forces all of us to make choices day after day. And those choices reveal what we value most.
It is not our words that declare our hearts, but our actions. When the people of Israel relaxed in their finished homes while the Temple still lay in ruins, they were showing that their declarations of love for God were not genuine. If you examine where you spend your time and your money, it will be clear what you value most. The things of God must come first if we are to please and honor Him with our lives.
Ezra 5:1–2
When the children of Israel returned from the seventy years of captivity in Babylon, one of the first things they did was to build a new altar on the site of Solomon’s Temple which had been destroyed, and then lay the foundations for a new Temple. But it was not long before work on the Temple was abandoned as the people focused on their own homes. God sent prophets to rebuke the people, and remind them to complete the task that they had begun. “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?” (Haggai 1:4). Finally almost twenty years after work was begun, the second Temple was completed and dedicated.
In this story, there is a powerful reminder for us of the importance of maintaining proper priorities. There will always be competing claims and interests—more things to do than time and resources will allow. This reality forces all of us to make choices day after day. And those choices reveal what we value most.
It is not our words that declare our hearts, but our actions. When the people of Israel relaxed in their finished homes while the Temple still lay in ruins, they were showing that their declarations of love for God were not genuine. If you examine where you spend your time and your money, it will be clear what you value most. The things of God must come first if we are to please and honor Him with our lives.
Today’s Growth Principle:
When we put the things of God first, our lives will remain in order.
Get Alone With God
by Joyce Meyer - posted February 25, 2017But when you pray, go into your [most] private room, and, closing the door, pray to your Father, Who is in secret; and your Father, Who sees in secret, will reward you in the open.
—Matthew 6:6
Jesus rose early to be alone with God, but Peter pursued Him to let Him know that everyone was looking for Him (see Mark 1:35-36). When you get alone to pray, it may seem that everybody tries to hunt you down. But Jesus sought time alone with God so He could focus on His purpose.
We see the scenario of Jesus praying alone and then meeting the needs of others again and again. Jesus went throughout Galilee preaching and driving out demons. When a leper begged to be clean, Jesus touched him, and the leprosy completely left him (see Mark 1:39-42). If Jesus needed to be alone with the Father before He ministered to others, so do we.
Saturday 25 February 2017
A Proper Assessment
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A Proper Assessment
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.”
Romans 12:3–5
The world around us is filled with voices that encourage us to put ourselves first. Advertising, entertainment, and even the news lift up those who promote themselves. In our day, it is common for people without any notable accomplishments to be famous for no other apparent reason than that they are famous. And this is held up as an achievement. The devil is delighted when we listen to any voice that promotes a message different than God does. Someone described the way the world’s advice conflicts with God’s commands this way:
Appetite says, “Be sensuous, enjoy yourself.”
Education says, “Be resourceful, expand yourself.”
Materialism says, “Be satisfied, please yourself.”
Psychology says, “Be confident, fulfill yourself.”
Humanism says, “Be capable, believe in yourself.”
Pride says, “Be superior, promote yourself.”
God says, “Be wise, humble yourself.”
The purpose of the Christian life is not self satisfaction. When we look around us and hold ourselves up as the standard of measurement, we are missing the point. Worse, we are falling into the trap of pride that inevitably leads to a downfall. Instead, we need to view ourselves the way God does—as valuable members of His work because of the gifts and abilities that He has given us. When we do that, we will not lift up ourselves, but instead will lift up the Lord. The view that we take of our role in God’s plan determines whether or not we will be found faithful and humble.
Romans 12:3–5
The world around us is filled with voices that encourage us to put ourselves first. Advertising, entertainment, and even the news lift up those who promote themselves. In our day, it is common for people without any notable accomplishments to be famous for no other apparent reason than that they are famous. And this is held up as an achievement. The devil is delighted when we listen to any voice that promotes a message different than God does. Someone described the way the world’s advice conflicts with God’s commands this way:
Appetite says, “Be sensuous, enjoy yourself.”
Education says, “Be resourceful, expand yourself.”
Materialism says, “Be satisfied, please yourself.”
Psychology says, “Be confident, fulfill yourself.”
Humanism says, “Be capable, believe in yourself.”
Pride says, “Be superior, promote yourself.”
God says, “Be wise, humble yourself.”
The purpose of the Christian life is not self satisfaction. When we look around us and hold ourselves up as the standard of measurement, we are missing the point. Worse, we are falling into the trap of pride that inevitably leads to a downfall. Instead, we need to view ourselves the way God does—as valuable members of His work because of the gifts and abilities that He has given us. When we do that, we will not lift up ourselves, but instead will lift up the Lord. The view that we take of our role in God’s plan determines whether or not we will be found faithful and humble.
Today’s Growth Principle:
When our focus is on God and His work rather than on ourselves, we will find it far easier to be humble.
Friday 24 February 2017
The Snare of Self-Reliance
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The Snare of Self-Reliance
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
1 Corinthians 10:11–13
Heavyweight boxer James “Quick” Tillis grew up in a poor family in Oklahoma. When he began his professional boxing career, he decided to move to Chicago where he would have better training and publicity opportunities. In the personal account of his life, Tillis wrote, “I got off the bus with two suitcases under my arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, ‘I am going to conquer Chicago.’ When I looked down, the suitcases were gone!”
All of us are tempted to rely on ourselves—to think that we have things together and can make it on our own. That is never true. In fact, it is when we are most self-confident and self-reliant that we are in the greatest danger of failure. The battles we face cannot be won in our own strength. Even the archangel Michael relied on God’s strength rather than his own when confronting Satan. “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee” (Jude 1:9).
God calls us to be victorious, but it is His power that wins the battles, not ours. When our focus is on ourselves and what we can do, we are in a dangerous place.
1 Corinthians 10:11–13
Heavyweight boxer James “Quick” Tillis grew up in a poor family in Oklahoma. When he began his professional boxing career, he decided to move to Chicago where he would have better training and publicity opportunities. In the personal account of his life, Tillis wrote, “I got off the bus with two suitcases under my arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, ‘I am going to conquer Chicago.’ When I looked down, the suitcases were gone!”
All of us are tempted to rely on ourselves—to think that we have things together and can make it on our own. That is never true. In fact, it is when we are most self-confident and self-reliant that we are in the greatest danger of failure. The battles we face cannot be won in our own strength. Even the archangel Michael relied on God’s strength rather than his own when confronting Satan. “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee” (Jude 1:9).
God calls us to be victorious, but it is His power that wins the battles, not ours. When our focus is on ourselves and what we can do, we are in a dangerous place.
Today’s Growth Principle:
The more thoroughly we humbly depend on God, the more protected we are from temptation and sin.
Thursday 23 February 2017
Why People Sin
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Wednesday 22 February 2017
Weapons that Work
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Weapons that Work
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail. And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.”
1 Samuel 17:38–40
If you read through the Bible and through the history of God’s work in the world, you quickly find that those who God chooses to do His work are not usually the most gifted or best equipped. David was so lightly regarded in his own family that when Samuel told Jesse one of his sons would be the next king, Jesse didn’t even bother to call David in from the fields to be considered. David did not have the military training to take on a soldier, and he found Saul’s armor a poor fit. But what David had was faith that the same God who had protected him and given him success fighting the animals that tried to harm his sheep would give him victory over the giant Goliath.
Too often when we are facing a battle, we focus on our resources, training, abilities, and skills when we should instead be focused on God. It is not up to us to be the source of victory, but instead to trust in the God who has all power. “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).
1 Samuel 17:38–40
If you read through the Bible and through the history of God’s work in the world, you quickly find that those who God chooses to do His work are not usually the most gifted or best equipped. David was so lightly regarded in his own family that when Samuel told Jesse one of his sons would be the next king, Jesse didn’t even bother to call David in from the fields to be considered. David did not have the military training to take on a soldier, and he found Saul’s armor a poor fit. But what David had was faith that the same God who had protected him and given him success fighting the animals that tried to harm his sheep would give him victory over the giant Goliath.
Too often when we are facing a battle, we focus on our resources, training, abilities, and skills when we should instead be focused on God. It is not up to us to be the source of victory, but instead to trust in the God who has all power. “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).
Today’s Growth Principle:
If we keep our eyes on God and our faith strong, we will find all we need to win the victory.
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