dW 04.11.11

scripture

 

Colossians 1:15-20

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

 

En Espanol, Colosenses 1:15-20

 

quote

 

All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

Quote submitted by recipient SB.

dW 04.07.11

scripture

 

John 8:36

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

 

En Espanol, Juan 8:36

 

thoughts

 

I don’t know where your heart is for Muslims.  It is difficult for Americans, especially those closely effected by the war, and the rest of the world for that matter, to separate peaceful Muslims from violent Jihadist Muslims.  The enemy has used Muslim terrorists to further entrap the people of Islam because now we, who have the Good News of Salvation through Jesus Christ, are afraid to go and tell them.  Yet, there are some that go to tell them that God is passionately in love with them, so much so that He sent Jesus to die in order that they be free.  May we come behind and alongside of those willing to risk their lives to go and tell dying people that God offers them eternal life.  May we be obedient to go ourselves if God so puts that burden on our heart to be the feet that bring them Good News.  Amen.

 

share

 

My Heart Hurts, posted 4/1/11, by a fellow dailyWord recipient

  Last summer a "pastor" in Florida wanted to burn the Quran. It made us a little nervous. Didn't he realize that he was putting people in danger. Did he care? He set the date for Sept. 11, 2001. A television pastor even made it worse by stating on the air that it could get some of our "M's" hurt. They know better than to use that word!

  They put us on lock down as the time drew nearer. We went over our evac plans and bags. I made sure that I had the important stuff in a safe place. I made plans for our dog to be taken care of. We were as prepared as we could be. They were days when we could hear the hate messages over the mosque loudspeakers. There were people in the streets yelling "Kill the Americans". Afghan students came to school afraid to be by us. I can remember talking about what could and possibly would happen. It was during that time that God was preparing my heart to leave. I was not afraid of what could happen but I was grieving for what would come. And today it did.

  I left Afghanistan on Sept. 11. I can remember wondering if that was such a good plan. I was wondering if a plane coming to America would shake things up. I thanked God that I had a flight out of Germany and not Central Asia. I wondered about leaving my husband (who came to the states soon after), my students and fellow workers there while I got out. “Would I see them again?”, I could only leave it in His hands. My grief in leaving was too overwhelming and it was one less thing to think about on the flights.

  Last week, I saw on the news that the "pastor" indeed had burned the Quran. I talked with a few others and we agreed that it would not be as safe over there now. We talked about God and how we had to leave it up to Him now. I prayed for those I left behind. I prayed for those students who will be afraid that the school staff will leave. And the friends that love that country as much as I do. Those who won't run in fear but will continue to serve. I hold them up to Him.

  Pray for Afghanistan as you have never prayed before. Pray that they can separate this burning from the people who love them and live among them. Pray for the families of those who were killed today. Just pray...

The Blue Mosque in Mazar

 

dW 04.06.11

scripture

 

Matthew 6:26-28

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.

 

En Espanol, Mateo 6:26-28

 

excerpt

 

CAREFUL UNREASONABLENESS – May 18

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they simply are! Think of the sea, the air, the sun, the stars and the moon - all these are, and what a ministration they exert. So often we mar God's designed influence through us by our self-conscious effort to be consistent and useful. Jesus says that there is only one way to develop spiritually, and that is by concentration on God. "Do not bother about being of use to others; believe on Me" - pay attention to the Source, and out of you will flow rivers of living water. We cannot get at the springs of our natural life by common sense, and Jesus is teaching that growth in spiritual life does not depend on our watching it, but on concentration on our Father in heaven. Our heavenly Father knows the circumstances we are in, and if we keep concentrated on Him we will grow spiritually as the lilies.

The people who influence us most are not those who buttonhole us and talk to us, but those who live their lives like the stars in heaven and the lilies in the field, perfectly simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mould us.

If you want to be of use to God, get rightly related to Jesus Christ and He will make you of use unconsciously every minute you live.

 

Oswald Chambers

“My Utmost For His Highest”

www.myutmost.org/

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 04.04.11

scripture

 

Psalm 91:1-4

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

 

En Espanol, Salmos 91:1-4

 

fun

 

A fifth grade teacher in a Christian school asked her class to look at TV commercials and see if they could use them in 20 ways to communicate ideas about God. Here are some of the results:

 

God is like…

BAYER ASPIRIN

He works miracles.

 

God is like…

A FORD

He's got a better idea.

 

God is like…

COKE

He's the real thing.

 

God is like....

HALLMARK CARDS

He cares enough to send His very best.

 

God is like...

TIDE

He gets the stains out others leave behind.

 

God is like...

GENERAL ELECTRIC

He brings good things to life.

 

God is like...

WAL-MART

He has everything.

 

God is like...

ALKA-SELTZER

Try Him, you'll like Him.

 

God is like...

SCOTCH TAPE

You can't see Him, but you know He's there.

 

God is like....

DELTA

He's ready when you are.

 

God is like...

ALLSTATE

You're in good hands with Him.

 

God is like...

VO-5 HAIR SPRAY

He holds through all kinds of weather.

 

God is like...

DIAL SOAP

Aren't you glad you have Him? Don't you wish everybody did?

 

God is like…

THE POST OFFICE

Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet nor ice will keep Him from His appointed destination.

 

God is like...

CHEVROLET

…the heartbeat of America.

 

God is like…

MAXWELL HOUSE

Good to the very last drop.

 

God is like...

BOUNTY

He is the quicker picker upper, can handle the tough jobs, and He won't fall apart on you.

 

God is like...

THE ENERGIZER BUNNY

He Keeps going, going, and going

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 04.01.11

scripture

 

Psalm 104:31-35

May the glory of the LORD endure forever;  may the LORD rejoice in his works— he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke. I will sing to the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to him,  as I rejoice in the LORD. But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the LORD, my soul. Praise the LORD.

 

En Espanol, Salmos 104:31-35

 

illustration

 

A new minister was walking with an older, more seasoned minister in the garden one day. Feeling a bit insecure about what God had for him to do, he was asking the older preacher for some advice.

The older preacher walked up to a rosebush and handed the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing off any petals.

The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older preacher and was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting to know the will of God for his life and ministry. But because of his great respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to try to unfold the rose, while keeping every petal intact.It wasn't long before he realized how impossible this was to do.

Noticing the younger preacher's inability to unfold the rosebud without tearing it, the older preacher began to recite the following poem:

 

It is only a tiny rosebud,

A flower of God's design;

But I cannot unfold the petals

With these clumsy hands of mine.

 

The secret of unfolding flowers

Is not known to such as I.

God opens this flower so easily,

But in my hands they die.

 

If I cannot unfold a rosebud,

This flower of God's design,

Then how can I have the wisdom

To unfold this life of mine?

 

So I'll trust in God for leading

Each moment of my day.

I will look to God for guidance

In each step of the way.

 

The path that lies before me,

Only my Lord knows.

I'll trust God to unfold the moments,

Just as He unfolds the rose.

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 03.31.11

scripture

 

2 Corinthians 9:6-8

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

 

En Espanol, 2 Corintios 9:6-8

 

quote

 

God became man to turn creatures into sons: not simply to produce better men of the old kind but to produce a new kind of man.

C.S. Lewis

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 03.28.11

scripture

 

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

 

En Espanol, Efesios 2:10

 

quote

 

Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community.

Andrew Carnegie

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 03.25.11

scripture

 

Romans 3:19-26

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

 

En Espanol, Romanos 3:19-26

 

quote

 

No man ever enters heaven until he is first convinced that he deserves hell. 

John Everett

 

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com

dW 03.23.11

scripture

 

1 John 3:16-18

16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

 

En Espanol, 1 Juan 3:16-18

 

quote

 

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
Thomas Merton

 

respond

 

  (as of 8am, 03/23/11)

CRASH (Christian Relief, Assistance, Support and Hope) - http://www.c28.com/

C28 Christian Store - http://www.crashjapan.com/

dW 03.21.11

scripture

 

Acts 2:38-41

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”  With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”  Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

 

En Espanol, Hechos 2:38-41

 

quote

 

Law is nothing other than a certain ordinance of reason for the common good, promulgated by the person who has the care of the community.
Thomas Aquinas

 

thought

 

Think about the Law of God in light of Thomas Aquinas’ quote above.  Does this not illuminate, in the proper light, the existence of God’s Law as something beneficial to our existence instead of being something detrimental to our freedom?

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If you want to share your thoughts or ask a question, then go to today’s post and leave a comment.

www.the-daily-Word.blogspot.com