When you pray, how do you pray? It might be easy for all of us to start by confessing our sins to God and asking for forgiveness. But then again, if prayer is meant to be a time where we can speak with our Father in heaven, why would we start in this fashion?
No one would start every conversation with their friends by saying all the horrible things that they have done. Nor should anyone start every conversation by complaining about all the things that are wrong in their lives. If we know we shouldn't do this with our own friends and family, doesn't it only stand to reason, that we shouldn't do this with God as well.
Of the prayers that we see in the Bible, many of them start off by praising God, and giving glory to Him. When asked how to pray, Jesus told His disciples a prayer which is now known as the Lord's prayer. Joe Virgo encourages us to "Start with God and His Mission. Look to Him. That way you get know Him better too."
The whole purpose of prayer is to talk with God, so that we might get to know Him better. As we get to know God better, we begin to better understand what He wants in our lives. This is what it means to pray with perspective. We need to realize who God is. Among many things, God is faithful, but we will never understand this (or God's other attributes), if we can't take the time to listen to God, and what He would tell us.
Living Life
Monday, May 16, 2011
God Doesn't Make Empty Threats
It is easy to talk about how much God loves us, and what He wants to do in our lives. But there are some topics that we do not like to discuss. We do not like talking about God's wrath or what it means. We know that we were saved from it, but it is unpleasant to continue to dwell on the subject. Most people would prefer to think about heaven, rather than the doom of hell.
Nonetheless, hell is a reality, and it too, is a part of God's plan, not apart from it. He is serious when He says that we all deserve death, and that the wages of sin is death. Hell is not an empty threat. It is a reality of what will happen. While on Earth, everyone has the chance to escape the destiny of eternal damnation. After death, however, our fates are sealed. Whatever happens WILL happen. There are only two destinations: heaven and hell. You will either be a permanent resident of one or a permanent resident of the other. As James Hamilton writes, "It shows the enormity of what Jesus accomplished when He died to save all who would trust Him from the hell they deserved. If there were no hell, there would be no need for the cross."
God is faithful to all His promises, even the ones that we do not like. We may not like the idea of hell, but that should be all the more motivations to realize the plight of the earth. It should move us to realize the levity of the situation. Our friends, our family members, and even us. We need to learn to take God and His word more seriously, because God takes His word VERY seriously.
Living Life
Nonetheless, hell is a reality, and it too, is a part of God's plan, not apart from it. He is serious when He says that we all deserve death, and that the wages of sin is death. Hell is not an empty threat. It is a reality of what will happen. While on Earth, everyone has the chance to escape the destiny of eternal damnation. After death, however, our fates are sealed. Whatever happens WILL happen. There are only two destinations: heaven and hell. You will either be a permanent resident of one or a permanent resident of the other. As James Hamilton writes, "It shows the enormity of what Jesus accomplished when He died to save all who would trust Him from the hell they deserved. If there were no hell, there would be no need for the cross."
God is faithful to all His promises, even the ones that we do not like. We may not like the idea of hell, but that should be all the more motivations to realize the plight of the earth. It should move us to realize the levity of the situation. Our friends, our family members, and even us. We need to learn to take God and His word more seriously, because God takes His word VERY seriously.
Living Life
Called to Be Faithful
God has called us to many difficult challenges. Just because we are not perfect nor can we ever be perfect, does not mean that we should ever try to settle for anything else. He desires a people which worships Him and which is completely sold out to Him. We are incapable of being perfect, but with God, all things are possible. Through God's strength and victory, we can do all things. This is one of the benefits of coming to Christ.
We can be hard on ourselves, believing that it is not possible for us to succeed. We may even come to the belief that there is really no point to doing anything, but that couldn't be further from the truth. He has called us into His truth and His kingdom to be His servants. He asked us to be His messengers, so that is what we are. Now it's time to run.
As we continue to run our race, we realize more and more the importance of selling out to God. We discover that the rewards that come with being faithful far out weight the costs. John Piper shares these thoughts on faithfulness: "Faithfulness means finishing the race, and finishing the race means unimaginable joy forever and ever and ever."
Not everyone is called to set world records, not everyone is called to sprint full speed, and not everyone is called to the same race (though some are). We are, however, all called to run the race that God has given us, and to finish the race that we have been given.
Living Life
We can be hard on ourselves, believing that it is not possible for us to succeed. We may even come to the belief that there is really no point to doing anything, but that couldn't be further from the truth. He has called us into His truth and His kingdom to be His servants. He asked us to be His messengers, so that is what we are. Now it's time to run.
As we continue to run our race, we realize more and more the importance of selling out to God. We discover that the rewards that come with being faithful far out weight the costs. John Piper shares these thoughts on faithfulness: "Faithfulness means finishing the race, and finishing the race means unimaginable joy forever and ever and ever."
Not everyone is called to set world records, not everyone is called to sprint full speed, and not everyone is called to the same race (though some are). We are, however, all called to run the race that God has given us, and to finish the race that we have been given.
Living Life
“My most embarrassing date ever”
“My most embarrassing date ever”
By Kimberly Dawn Neumann
It comes with the territory: as a single person, you’ll rack up some bad dates, some really bad dates, and some totally mortifying dates — and those stories are the ones most of us love swapping later on. So listen in as some of our readers share their most, um, memorable rendezvous mistakes with you...
Awarding the Heimlich
“On a first date once, we were eating chips and salsa as an appetizer. He was telling some joke and when I laughed at the punchline, I inhaled the chip a bit too hard... and it lodged in my throat! Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe at all. There was salsa pouring out of my mouth, and I was doing that ‘choking’ signal towards him. So he came around and started beating on my back. After a few scary seconds, the chip finally dislodged itself. I don’t even want to think about what I looked like at that moment, all stained with salsa. It took me the whole night of apologizing to feel comfortable around him.”
— Stephanie, Atlanta, GA
Killing the mood
“One time I agreed to go to a haunted house for Halloween with a guy, despite the fact that I hate haunted houses. No matter how cheesy they are, I get irrationally afraid. This one was set up in the woods in Louisiana. It wasn’t so bad at first: they had the requisite bowls of stuff you put your hand in, the rocking chair with a witch rocking in it who lunges at you. Then, just when I thought we were coming out of the woods, I heard the rip-start of a chainsaw and ‘Jason’ from Friday the 13th, hockey mask and all, comes tearing toward us. I freaked. And I mean freaked! I started running full-speed through the woods, shrieking like a wounded animal. I could hear my date saying, ‘It's OK,’ but I kept running until I hit the parking lot... and a concrete parking bumper. I tripped, then skidded on my face and hands. It was terrible. We spent the rest of the evening picking gravel out of my skin.”
— Molly, Chicago, IL
Dropping the ball
“I was dating this guy and it was the first time I was meeting his family, so I was really trying to fit in. So when a game of football on the beach nearby started up, I jumped right into playing the game, even though I’m not really into sports. How hard could it be? Well, let’s just say I was terrible. I missed throw after throw. When my guy made a toss in my direction, I attempted to redeem myself with a brilliant catch — but instead felt the ball completely jam my fingers. Not wanting to appear weak, I tried to shake it off. But then we moved on to tennis. Not only was I terrible at that, too, every time the ball hit my racquet, I felt excruciating pain. Finally my fingers got so swollen I had to go to the hospital, where we discovered I’d shattered the bones in my fingers! It was really embarrassing to have my souvenir of the big date be a cast up to my elbow.”
— Regina, Fairfax, VA
Double-indemnity dating
“I was pals with this guy Chris, and it seemed our friendship might be developing into something more. So we decided to have an actual date, and I invited him to meet me at a dance music concert. But when I arrived, Chris showed up…with a date. He’d come straight from yoga and had brought along his instructor, who also thought he was on a date with Chris. When the instructor and I finally put the pieces together, we tried competing for Chris’ attention. I mean, that’s just plain weird! But the best part? By the end of the night, the instructor and I became friends and had a better time than Chris did.”
— Lance, New York, NY
Splitting your sides
“I felt like a sexy, powerful woman as I pushed my date down on the couch and gave him a passion-fueled stare. I felt sexy and powerful, too, when I leaped to plant a big kiss on him. Can’t say I felt particularly sexy or powerful, though, when my pants split right down the middle.”
— Caroline, Los Angeles, CA
Doing a spit-take
“I went to Philly for the weekend to see an old friend. We’d kept in touch and agreed to meet to see if maybe there was something more there. But while we were eating brunch, I ‘gleeked’ a stream of saliva into his orange juice while telling a story. It was so embarrassing. Adding insult to injury, he said, ‘Well, at least I can say I swapped spit with Carrie this weekend!’ Believe me, that was the only spit-swapping we did!”
— Carrie, Nashville, TN
Playing for the wrong team
“I became friends with this adorable guy who was very affectionate, always taking me out to dinner or on long romantic walks. We even talked about future plans, like how the next summer we hoped to have picnics, play frisbee, the works. I was so sure he loved me. He even said at one point, ‘Sorry, I just get kind of nervous because I'm trying to impress you.’ Finally, after many outings, I decided to go for it and leaned in for a kiss. Well, he was quite surprised and said, ‘Sweetie, I thought you knew: I’m gay.’ I was so mortified. Fortunately our friendship survived, but I definitely had to have my gaydar adjusted.”
— Jenny, New York, NY
Kimberly Dawn Neumann is a popular New York City-based freelance writer whose work has appeared in such publications as Cosmopolitan, Maxim, Health, Redbook and frequently online. A certified dating/relationship coach, she’s the author of The Real Reasons Men Commit and is the founder of www.DatingDivaDaily.com. For the record, she believes in love. For more, visit www.KDNeumann.com.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Article courtesy of Happen magazine, www.happenmag.com.
Quoted: http://yahoo.match.com/y/article.aspx?articleid=6128&TrackingID=526103&BannerID=722005
By Kimberly Dawn Neumann
It comes with the territory: as a single person, you’ll rack up some bad dates, some really bad dates, and some totally mortifying dates — and those stories are the ones most of us love swapping later on. So listen in as some of our readers share their most, um, memorable rendezvous mistakes with you...
Awarding the Heimlich
“On a first date once, we were eating chips and salsa as an appetizer. He was telling some joke and when I laughed at the punchline, I inhaled the chip a bit too hard... and it lodged in my throat! Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe at all. There was salsa pouring out of my mouth, and I was doing that ‘choking’ signal towards him. So he came around and started beating on my back. After a few scary seconds, the chip finally dislodged itself. I don’t even want to think about what I looked like at that moment, all stained with salsa. It took me the whole night of apologizing to feel comfortable around him.”
— Stephanie, Atlanta, GA
Killing the mood
“One time I agreed to go to a haunted house for Halloween with a guy, despite the fact that I hate haunted houses. No matter how cheesy they are, I get irrationally afraid. This one was set up in the woods in Louisiana. It wasn’t so bad at first: they had the requisite bowls of stuff you put your hand in, the rocking chair with a witch rocking in it who lunges at you. Then, just when I thought we were coming out of the woods, I heard the rip-start of a chainsaw and ‘Jason’ from Friday the 13th, hockey mask and all, comes tearing toward us. I freaked. And I mean freaked! I started running full-speed through the woods, shrieking like a wounded animal. I could hear my date saying, ‘It's OK,’ but I kept running until I hit the parking lot... and a concrete parking bumper. I tripped, then skidded on my face and hands. It was terrible. We spent the rest of the evening picking gravel out of my skin.”
— Molly, Chicago, IL
Dropping the ball
“I was dating this guy and it was the first time I was meeting his family, so I was really trying to fit in. So when a game of football on the beach nearby started up, I jumped right into playing the game, even though I’m not really into sports. How hard could it be? Well, let’s just say I was terrible. I missed throw after throw. When my guy made a toss in my direction, I attempted to redeem myself with a brilliant catch — but instead felt the ball completely jam my fingers. Not wanting to appear weak, I tried to shake it off. But then we moved on to tennis. Not only was I terrible at that, too, every time the ball hit my racquet, I felt excruciating pain. Finally my fingers got so swollen I had to go to the hospital, where we discovered I’d shattered the bones in my fingers! It was really embarrassing to have my souvenir of the big date be a cast up to my elbow.”
— Regina, Fairfax, VA
Double-indemnity dating
“I was pals with this guy Chris, and it seemed our friendship might be developing into something more. So we decided to have an actual date, and I invited him to meet me at a dance music concert. But when I arrived, Chris showed up…with a date. He’d come straight from yoga and had brought along his instructor, who also thought he was on a date with Chris. When the instructor and I finally put the pieces together, we tried competing for Chris’ attention. I mean, that’s just plain weird! But the best part? By the end of the night, the instructor and I became friends and had a better time than Chris did.”
— Lance, New York, NY
Splitting your sides
“I felt like a sexy, powerful woman as I pushed my date down on the couch and gave him a passion-fueled stare. I felt sexy and powerful, too, when I leaped to plant a big kiss on him. Can’t say I felt particularly sexy or powerful, though, when my pants split right down the middle.”
— Caroline, Los Angeles, CA
Doing a spit-take
“I went to Philly for the weekend to see an old friend. We’d kept in touch and agreed to meet to see if maybe there was something more there. But while we were eating brunch, I ‘gleeked’ a stream of saliva into his orange juice while telling a story. It was so embarrassing. Adding insult to injury, he said, ‘Well, at least I can say I swapped spit with Carrie this weekend!’ Believe me, that was the only spit-swapping we did!”
— Carrie, Nashville, TN
Playing for the wrong team
“I became friends with this adorable guy who was very affectionate, always taking me out to dinner or on long romantic walks. We even talked about future plans, like how the next summer we hoped to have picnics, play frisbee, the works. I was so sure he loved me. He even said at one point, ‘Sorry, I just get kind of nervous because I'm trying to impress you.’ Finally, after many outings, I decided to go for it and leaned in for a kiss. Well, he was quite surprised and said, ‘Sweetie, I thought you knew: I’m gay.’ I was so mortified. Fortunately our friendship survived, but I definitely had to have my gaydar adjusted.”
— Jenny, New York, NY
Kimberly Dawn Neumann is a popular New York City-based freelance writer whose work has appeared in such publications as Cosmopolitan, Maxim, Health, Redbook and frequently online. A certified dating/relationship coach, she’s the author of The Real Reasons Men Commit and is the founder of www.DatingDivaDaily.com. For the record, she believes in love. For more, visit www.KDNeumann.com.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Article courtesy of Happen magazine, www.happenmag.com.
Quoted: http://yahoo.match.com/y/article.aspx?articleid=6128&TrackingID=526103&BannerID=722005
The Faithful Witness
When was the last time you purposefully went out to go evangelizing? For that matter, what does it mean to go evangelizing? Is evangelism about shouting that everyone is going to go to hell? Is it going door to door asking people if they have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? Or is it simply in our everyday actions? Whether with words or actions, we are all called to bear witness to who Christ is, and what He has done. This is to say, we are all called to evangelize in some form or another.
Thankfully, God came to Earth to show us how He wanted to be represented. We do not have to try figure out exactly what it means to represent Christ, because Christ was His own witness.
Jesus Christ even says that He is His own witness. John 8:17-18 states, "In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. I am on who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me."
God will never cease to be a witness and testimony to Himself. He always seeks to show His Glory to the world. That is what God the Father wants: the world to know His glory. Revelation 1:5-6 says, "And from Jesus Christ , who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth." Why is Jesus the Faithful Witness? Because He will always testify to what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will continue to do. He simply asks us to join in this testimony.
Living Life
Thankfully, God came to Earth to show us how He wanted to be represented. We do not have to try figure out exactly what it means to represent Christ, because Christ was His own witness.
Jesus Christ even says that He is His own witness. John 8:17-18 states, "In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. I am on who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me."
God will never cease to be a witness and testimony to Himself. He always seeks to show His Glory to the world. That is what God the Father wants: the world to know His glory. Revelation 1:5-6 says, "And from Jesus Christ , who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth." Why is Jesus the Faithful Witness? Because He will always testify to what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will continue to do. He simply asks us to join in this testimony.
Living Life
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
Posts
