FROM TODAY’S READING (12/3/2020)...
“Men (people) wrapped up In themselves make small packages.”
Skip Heitzig
Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT) Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
Proverbs 27:2 (NLT) Let someone else praise you, not your own mouth— a stranger, not your own lips.
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FROM TODAY’S READING (12/2/2020)...
“Paul lived in a crooked and perverse generation. Yet, he did not use that as an excuse to gripe. In my efforts to stop grumbling I realized something: it’s not enough to try to stop complaining. Nature abhors a vacuum. We must replace complaining with its opposite — praise and thanksgiving.”
Debbie W. Wilson
Philippians 2:14-18 (NLT) Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.
Apostle Paul
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FROM TODAY’S READING (12/1/2020)...
“The closer the people of all races get to Christ and His cross, the closer they will get to one another.”
Billy Graham
“Racism isn’t a bad habit. It isn’t a mistake. It is sin. The answer is not sociology, it’s theology.”
Tony Evans
James 2:8-9 (NLT) Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.
Galatians 3:28 (NLT) There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT) Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
Image: "Rosa Parks defies segregation on Alabama bus" by Chris Green is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
FROM TODAY’S READING (7/30/2020)...
“Go within every day and find the inner strength so that the world will not blow your candle out.”
Katherine Dunham
2 Timothy 1:6-7 (NLT) This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
Apostle Paul
Colossians 1:11-14 (NLT) We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.
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FROM TODAY’S READING (11/25/2020)...
THANKSGIVING THOT...Be thankful IN everything
“God says to give thanks in everything. That doesn’t mean you need to give thanks FOR everything. You don’t need to give thanks FOR that bad day. Or FOR that bad relationship. Or being passed over at work. Financial hardship. Whatever it is – you are not to give thanks FOR the difficulties, but rather IN the difficulties. That is a very important distinction, and one I think we often miss. Giving thanks IN everything shows a heart of faith that God is bigger than the difficulties and that He can use them, if you approach Him with the right heart and spirit, for your good and His glory.”
Tony Evans
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NLT) Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
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FROM TODAY’S READING (11/24/2020)...
THANKSGIVING THOT...Thank God for His grace
“Think about this for a minute. God shows His grace and kindness to us every moment of the day, even when we’re not aware of it (or we don’t even believe it). He gives us life; He provides us with everything we need; He blesses us in countless ways, even when we turn our backs on Him. We don’t deserve any of this, but He still showers His good gifts on us because of His mercy and grace. Have you ever paused to thank Him for this?”
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
Psalms 103:8-17 (NLT) The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here. But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear him.
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FROM TODAY’S READING (11/23/2020)...
THANKSGIVING THOT...Count Your Blessings
1 When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
2 Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, ev'ry doubt will fly,
And you will be singing as the days go by.
3 When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings, money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
4 So, amid the conflict, whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.
Baptist Hymnal, 1991 (hymnary.org)
Psalms 103:1-5 (NLT) Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!
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