dW 10.17.07

scripture

 

1 Corinthians 15:55-58

"Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" (Hosea 13:14)

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

 

quote

 

Death is not death if it kills no part of us, save that which hindered us from perfect life.
Death is not death if it raises us in a moment from darkness into light, from weakness into strength, from sinfulness into holiness.
Death is not death if it brings us nearer to Christ, who is the fount of life.
Death is not death if it perfects our faith by sight and lets us behold Him in whom we have believed.
Death is not death if it gives us to those whom we have loved and lost, for whom we have lived, for whom we long to live again.
Death is not death if it rids us of doubt and fear, of chance and change, of space and time, and all which space and time bring forth and then destroy.
Death is not death, for Christ has conquered Death for Himself and for those who trust in Him.

-Charles Kingsley

 

http://the-daily-word.blogspot.com/

dW Heaven and Hell

A man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, "Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like."

The Lord led the man to two doors.  He opened one of the doors and the man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the man's mouth water.

The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful.

 

But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.
 
The man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. 

The Lord said, "You have seen Hell."

They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The man said, "I don't understand."

“It is simple," said the Lord. "It requires but one skill. You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves."

 

-Bob

dW 10.15.07

scripture

 

Matthew 11:28-30

Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

 

thoughts

 

When I think of a yoke I think of the wood that presses in on an ox’s neck as it pulls the plow through the ground. It is an object that denotes submission to its master with a set of rules for it to follow. In the same way is this yoke which Jesus speaks of.

 

A Jewish teacher is called a rabbi. What a rabbi teaches is considered to be his yoke. If you wanted to be that rabbi’s disciple then you had to take on his yoke. You chose to submit to his teachings and to follow in his steps.

 

The yoke that the people knew was the law. It was a yoke that was so heavy no one could bear it. The more you tried to bear it the more you sank in its unquenchable demands for absolute perfection.

 

The yoke of Christ is one of liberation, not condemnation. The yoke of Christ is one of freedom, not bondage. The yoke of Christ is one that asks you for your obedience and brings you joy through that obedience.

 

quote

 

Worldly people imagine that the saints must find it difficult to live with so many restrictions, but the bondage is with the world, not with the saints.  There is no such thing as freedom in the world, and the higher we go in the social life the more bondage there is.

Oswald Chambers

dW blog entries

blog

 

LOVE

Everything Skit

Success

dW 10.12.07

scripture

 

Psalm 97:1-12

The LORD reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!  Clouds and thick darkness are round about him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory. All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols— worship him, all you gods! Zion hears and rejoices and the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments, O LORD. For you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods. Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name.

 

quote

 

God is as sternly and inflexibly just towards sin as if he never forgave iniquity, and yet he forgives sinners through Christ Jesus as freely and fully as if he never punished a transgression. 

C. H. Spurgeon

 

http://the-daily-word.blogspot.com/

Perspective

dW 10.11.07

scripture

 

Matthew 12:34
You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.

 

Luke 6:45
The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

 

quote

 

By swallowing evil words unsaid, no one has ever harmed his stomach.

Winston Churchill

dW 10.10.07

scripture

 

Phil.  4:5-7

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

 

thought

 

The term “the Lord is near” perhaps refers to a personal relationship with God, rather than the return of the Lord.  We all should have such a relationship with our Father.  With a close relationship to God there is no reason to be irritable or defensive, which are brought about by anxiety.  We need to stop worrying.  We need to let the power of God address or concerns.  Being anxious focuses us on us, therefore we tend to forget God.  Presenting our requests to God recognizes His blessing and controls over us.  Granting control to God provides us with something in return:  peace.  Peace that exceeds our expectations, peace beyond our desires, and peace beyond the plans of men.  Peace from God for a troubled individual or a troubled church.

 

-Pete

RE: dW 10.8.07

insight

 

If you take a coal out of a fire and set it by itself, it will soon burn up and die.   However when left in the fire with the other coals it lasts much longer.  Also the heat and light put out by many coals together in one place is much stronger than a bunch of single coals.  So it is with our faith.  We each must find a body of believers to join with and from whom we can learn and grow and be challenged and from whom we get spiritual nourishment and replenishment during worship time.  This is the time we get recharged from being beat up by the world all week long. – Pete

dW 10.08.07

scripture

 

1 John 2:15-17

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

 

thought

 

Speaking to a friend this weekend I learned that they had not been going to church, and had not done so for a few months. I asked why and this friend responded, “The fire died.” I said that there was this theory that to keep a fire going you must kindle it. After we hung up the phone I thought about what I had said and realized that I was wrong. This idea of continually kindling fire to keep it going is not a theory but it sounds that way because we hardly ever practice it. Kindle: to start, to stir up, to cause to glow. These are action words. To keep the fire burning we must actively kindle our fires. And if it dies we must hurry to get it started again. A life without fire is cold.