1 Corinthians 15:33 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/30/2019)...

“Change the changeable, accept the unchangeable, and remove yourself from the unacceptable.”

Denis Waitley

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15:33‬ ‭(NIV‬‬) Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

Ephesians‬ ‭4:29‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

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Romans‬ ‭13:13-14‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.

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Deuteronomy 31:8 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/29/2019)...

“He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.”

Harold Wilson (1916-1995)

Deuteronomy‬ ‭31:8‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.

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Joshua 1:9 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/28/2019)...

“You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change.”

Les Brown

Joshua‬ ‭1:9‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

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Isaiah 40:29-31 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/27/2019)...

“A little boy was leading his sister up a mountain path and the way was not too easy. "Why this isn't a path at all," the little girl complained. "Its all rocky and bumpy." 

Her little brother kept on up the mountain, pausing just long enough to call out "Sure, but the bumps are what you climb on." 

Unknown 

Isaiah 40:29-31 (NLT) [God] gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

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1 Samuel 16:6-7 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/23/2019)...

You know about the mother who watched the parade when her son finished basic training. One of the officers asked her what she thought of it. 

“It was awful," said Mom. "Everybody was out of step except my Johnny!" 

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭16:6-7‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!” 

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Job‬ ‭34:21‬ ‭(NIV‬‬) [God’s] eyes are on the ways of mortals; he sees their every step.”

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Isaiah 40:8 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/22/2019)...

“...let us NOT find creative ways to shape God’s word into the image of our culture by stifling inconvenient truths. But rather let us hold on even tighter to the anchor of the living Word of God. For He changes NOT.”

John L. Cooper (Skillet)

Isaiah‬ ‭40:8‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.

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2 Corinthians 4:18 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/21/2019)...

“You may remember the city fellow who asked the farmer, "How come that cow over there doesn't have horns? I thought all cows had horns."

The farmer answered, "Well, there's some cows that don't have horns because they're born without horns. Then there's some cows we cut the horns off of. But the reason that particular cow over there doesn't have horns is that that particular cow is a horse!"

Rev. Dan Reuter

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:18‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

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1 Timothy 2:1-4 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/20/2019)...

A Franciscan Benediction

May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts.

May God bless us with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that we may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless us with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless us with enough foolishness to believe that we can make a difference in this world, so that we can do what others claim cannot be done.

Amen.

‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭2:1-4‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.

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1 Corinthians 15:51 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/19/2019)...

“You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.”

Winston Churchill  (Pre-WWII speech to The British Commons)

John‬ ‭16:33‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

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‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15:57‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans‬ ‭8:35-37‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.” ) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

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Proverbs 6:6-8 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/16/2019)...

“If you commit to your what and you’re consumed by the why, you will figure out the how.”

Craig Groeschel

Proverbs‬ ‭6:6-8‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.

Proverbs‬ ‭16:3‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.

Galatians‬ ‭6:9‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.

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Colossians 3:11-14 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/15/2019)...

“The opposite of prejudice is hospitality…Prejudice sees problems. Hospitality sees people.”

Krish Kandiah

‭‭John‬ ‭13:34-35‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.

Galatians‬ ‭3:26-28‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

 Colossians‬ ‭3:11-14‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. 

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

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FROM TODAY’S READING (8/14/2019)...

”Know the power of resilience. Because it really is the storms of life that make us strong.”

Bear Grylls

Matthew‬ ‭8:23-27‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 

Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. 

The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”

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Hebrews 4:14-16 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/13/2019)...

God has no iPhone but is my favorite contact... 

He does not have Facebook but is my best Friend... 

He does not have twitter but I still follow Him...

And even without internet, I am always in contact with Him.

Unknown

Hebrews‬ ‭4:14-16‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

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Romans 6:11-14 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/12/2019)...

“Sin is a monster of such awful mein

that to be hated needs but to be seen

but seen to oft familiar of face

we first endure, then pity, then embrace."

Alexander Pope

Romans‬ ‭6:11-14‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.

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Philippians 4:8-9 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/9/2019)...

 “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”

Mahatma Gandhi

Philippians‬ ‭4:8-9‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

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Ecclesiastes 9:10 (8/8/2019)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/8/2019)...

“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”

Leonardo da Vinci

Ecclesiastes‬ ‭9:10‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

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Proverbs‬ ‭24:30-34‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) I walked by the field of a lazy person, the vineyard of one with no common sense. I saw that it was overgrown with nettles. It was covered with weeds, and its walls were broken down. Then, as I looked and thought about it, I learned this lesson: A little extra sleep, a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.

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Philippians 4:12-13 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/7/2019)...

Nothing is impossible; the word itself says "I'm possible."

Audrey Hepburn

Philippians‬ ‭4:12-13‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

Ephesians‬ ‭3:20‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

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Titus 3:10 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (8/6//2019)...

“You can’t control who walks into your life, but you can choose which window to throw them out of.”

by davesworldofwisdom.com

Titus‬ ‭3:10‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) If people are causing divisions among you, give a first and second warning. After that, have nothing more to do with them.

Proverbs‬ ‭16:27-30‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Scoundrels create trouble; their words are a destructive blaze. A troublemaker plants seeds of strife; gossip separates the best of friends. Violent people mislead their companions, leading them down a harmful path. With narrowed eyes, people plot evil; with a smirk, they plan their mischief.

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Proverbs‬ ‭22:24-25‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul.

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Romans‬ ‭16:17-18‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) ...Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them. Such people are not serving Christ our Lord; they are serving their own personal interests. By smooth talk and glowing words they deceive innocent people.

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