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Life 1.0: God and our reasons why
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Is God for me?
About four years ago I was challenged as I reflected on the
lack of knowledge I had about what I really believed in. I would talk to people about God and at a
certain point I would hit walls in my conversations because I did not know the
answers to the questions that popped up from my conversations. I still do not have all of the answers and I
know that I am still growing daily but I can say with certainty that most of
the core questions on my own faith have been investigated and answered. I can’t say that these answers were an answer
to the question of my faith, but rather that it clarified and affirmed what was
already placed in my heart by the Holy Spirit.
I have talked to many people who have become hardened by the
adversities of life. Whether these
tribulations have come forth from bad decisions they have made in the past or
from very difficult circumstances of life, they have become, nevertheless, very
opinionated about the Gospel. I have
heard several people cite their reason for a non-active relationship with
Christ because of unanswered prayer. Common
conclusions include answers like God does not exist, or does not love them or
what the church preaches about God is not completely true.
When the subject of God comes forth, many people either want
to avoid the topic or they politely say, “That’s not for me.” These people do not get excited about this
topic on an objective level. On many
occasions, however, I have seen many people get excited when they feel like
there is proof that the Gospel message is not completely true or there is an
argument that there really is no clear “one right answer”.
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Life 1.0: Giving and Receiving
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Giving and Receiving in the Name is Christ.
This past year I have experienced both giving and receiving. As life goes on, I realize that it will never be a balanced situation where the exact amount of giving will be equaled out by the same amount of receiving. I must say that usually I had a more difficult time receiving than giving. Maybe it was because of my pride or deep down inside having an insecurity of being in a compromised position. A message I received from Christ was to continue to give, but learn also how to genuinely receive with gratitude towards Christ and those who give.
I thank God for all of the wonderful people who care about me and my family. I thank God that in the midst of all of our imperfections we can do life together. I thank God that during one of the toughest years in our life, He has shown his love through so many friends and family members.
I learned that giving and receiving should not involve entitlements, guilt, or a feeling that something is owed later on (unless of course it is a loan). As Christ is in focus as we give or receive, everything will make sense.
I learned that most of the people in this world are hurting either in resources or in relationships, if not both. Each of us has our set of gifts or relational strengths to make a difference each and every day.
I am blessed to be able to give. I am blessed to have received. I am blessed because I can share in Christ’s amazing love.
Thank you all and Merry Christmas.
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Posted by davidjo on Wednesday, December 19 @ 13:25:20 CST (1961 reads)
(comments? | Score: 5)
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Only One Life Twill Soon Be Past
Only What’s Done For Christ Will Last
Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life's
busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in 'that day' my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God's holy will to cleave;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory
score;
When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e'er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, "Thy will be done";
And when at last I'll hear the call, I know I'll say “‘twas worth it all";
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Author Unknown
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Life 1.0: When Bad Things Happen
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In the midst of hardship, we need to surrender to God.
In the midst of hardship, we should not have bitterness,
resentment, and rebellion.
In hard times, Satan will do what he can to make us turn
away from God. He will try to highlight
the bad and make us in turn blame God and others. Then he will tell us to reject God and God’s
ways, for if a loving and good God truly exists, He would not allow this to
happen. Satan will try to blind us from
the Sovereignty and Holiness of God and magnify the pain – all the while
pointing out to us how unfair life is.
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Life 1.0: Just Do It .....
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Just Do It …
The world sells us the lie that living for ourselves is the
best way to live. We choose what we
consider as the best choice, irregardless of whether this choice was derived
out of fear, laziness, or greed.
We watch years go by without the results we dreamed and hope
for. We hear the world tells us “Just Do
It” and we get into more things than we can handle. The world’s wisdom ends up being a pseudo
antidote for what we really need to hear.
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Where is your love energy going?
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Lovers of self - love the idea of Jesus but have a hard
time loving Him.
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Lovers of self - have lots to say about how church could be
better but have a hard time loving the church.
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Lovers of self - love the idea of what a spouse should be
like but have a hard time loving their spouse.
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Lovers of self - love the idea of friends and family but
have a hard time genuinely loving them for who they are.
How much disappointment do we hold against those we are
supposed to love and why is it we have such a hard time loving Jesus and loving
others?
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Life 1.0: Taking that next step
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Is Jesus Christ your ultimate goal in life? Is He the greatest thing you can attain in
life or is your faith in Him just a tool to get a better life for yourself here
on earth? Look at how many ‘Lord, fix my
situation prayers we pray’ vs. the ‘Lord, make me more like You doing my Father’s
will’ type prayers?
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Life 1.0: A Solution for a Better Life
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Do you have problems? Do these problems seem to linger and never go
away? Does your life feel unbearable
from time to time? Are you upset that
life cannot be better than what it is?
One possible reason is that
you are too self consumed or too self focused.
I deal with this struggle on
a daily basis, as well as most of the people around me. It seems that most of our anxiety, anger,
resentment, disappointment, sadness and whatever emotional or mental hang-ups
we have, stem from a sense of thinking about what we deserve in this life or
what we currently lack here.
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Life 1.0: It's Impossible
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It’s impossible. It’s
a waste of time. It won’t really make a
difference. Who do you think you
are? Your hypocrisy will be found
out. You are no good, so why bother
trying. You know you can never be like
that. The church has lots of
problems. You’re just like that person
in your family, you won’t amount to much.
Have you heard these words before? In moments of decision or perseverance, we
are bombarded by Satan with these phrases.
He gives you a mirror into your past and its failures and snuffs out any
hope of doing things that please God.
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Life is Hard, Where is My Joy
The High Periods
The high periods of my life include the time when I realized
that my sins were forgiven and God gave me a place in eternity. They also include times when God answered
prayers and revealed His blessings to me.
Another type of high period involves reconciliation and restored
relationships with love and forgiveness.
These are moments when I experience the love and the joy of my God.
Response: This
is a great beginning, but your high periods seem to be all about yourself. It has all been about what has happened to
you and how you were blessed. Love the
Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind. As you focus your
relationship with Christ to how you can love Him more each and every day, you
will experience the Love of God in a new and refreshing way. Life is not about you. Don’t get me wrong, God will take care of
your needs and bless you in ways you won’t understand, but life is about living
for God’s glory.
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Life 1.0: Life is Depressing
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Life is Depressing
I fail often. I don't measure up to my spouse's
expectations or that of my friends and family. I usually cover my weaknesses
with anger or a defensive attitude. I aspire to be good at arguing or good at
picking at other's faults so I can cover up mine. But instead of experiencing
change in my life, I feel like this is who I will always be and life will just
go on. I have many struggles and a ton load of shortcomings. I will never be
that person God wants me to be. Like a thorn in my side, I am constantly
dealing with many of the same problems day in and day out. I know I need to do
better but it feels impossible. My life is depressing and hopeless. Common
responses are things like, "well what about you" or "well that's who I am, why
can't you just accept me for who I am?" or "I am such a failure, I can't do this
anymore".
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Faith
What is true faith? What is true love for the Lord of your life who died for your sins? How much faith do you really have and is Jesus really the Lord of your life? Do you really believe that there is something better waiting for you after death on this earth?
Within a few decades after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, there were thousands of believers scattered throughout the Roman Empire. Nero, the Emperor of Rome, persecuted many Christians during the period of 64 A.D. to 67 A.D. In July of 64 A.D., a huge fire broke out in Rome which Nero falsely blamed the Christians of starting. The fire raged on for days and devastated a considerable portion of Rome. A historian by the name of Tacitus wrote the following as an eyewitness account of Nero's persecution of early Christians.
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Life 1.0: Do you really know what love is?
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Do you really know what love is?
Do you really know about love? As I am reading John Piper's 'Don't Waste Your Life', I came across a page that impacted me in a profound way. It deals with the topic of love. Here are two parts that God really spoke to me about on the topic of love.
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Truth
We must always embrace truth. This is a vital lesson in life that we must learn early on. Especially in today's age where we are bombarded by information, we must know what we are up against. Whether liberal or conservative, the source of information will come with some sort of a bias. We must be prepared to handle this information and know how to weed out the truth in a world of gossip, slander, bias, and lies.
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Posted by davidjo on Friday, August 08 @ 14:49:38 CDT (2170 reads)
(Read More... | 3773 bytes more | Score: 4)
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Life 1.0: Our Miracle Baby
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Our Miracle Baby.
No one really knows the joys of being a parent, until you yourself, become a parent. When God blesses you with your first child, you truly witness a special miracle. Babies are born every second, all around the world; but still, this child, this miracle is special. Because this child is your very own. I truly believe that we as Christians have a deeper understanding of birth, as we acknowledge God's hand at work, and as we see for the first time with our eyes the miracle God worked through the past nine months. As you hold your baby, you see the small hands and feet, and ponder on the details of those fragile nails and joints. One cannot express with words the joy, love, happiness, relief, gratitude, and over all awe we feel towards the whole situation. That day, I realized for the first time, 'I was a papa.'
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Life 1.0: Who can stop the Rain?
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An Instance of faith at work.
This is a true story that happened to me in my Senior year in high School. It was at a New Years eve worship service at our old church for our High School and Junior High School group. Back then our high school group met inside of a large tent set up outside next to the old tool shack and volleyball net. That night it was raining cats and dogs. It was raining so hard that we could barely hear our Youth Pastor speaking in front of our group. The rain was a loud and constant rippling pound on top of our tent.
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Ed posted this a while back, but I like it so much, I want to add it to our Life 1.0 project.
So, rate it guys!!
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Tutorial: Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand.
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for dinner. The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
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Humility and the fear of the LORD bring wealth and honor and life.
-- Proverbs 22:4
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