Live FORGIVEN

The Forgiveness of Christ

The dilemma was: “I know the Bible says I’m forgiven. But my conscience says I’m not!”

If this question hits home… If you haven’t accepted God’s forgiveness, you’re doomed to live in fear. And no pill or pep talk can set you at ease. Am I right? You may deaden the fear, but you can’t remove it. Only God’s grace can do that!

Have you accepted the forgiveness of Christ? If not, do it! The Bible says “if we confess our sins, God is faithful–not just to forgive us, but He cleanses us from all unrighteousness! I John 1:9″

Make it your simple prayer: Dear Father, I need forgiveness. I admit I’ve turned away from you. Forgive me, please. I place my soul in Your hands and I trust in your grace. Through Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Now! Live forgiven!

From Max on Life

He Makes a DIFFERENCE - Max Lucado

We get what sin is.  But, what we struggle with is how to make up for it?  

To put it simply—we’re not good enough!  If I lose my temper in traffic, can I make up for it by waving at the next four cars?  If I’m greedy one year, how many years should I be generous?

The truth is, I don’t know the answer to those questions. There’s no price list.  No rule sheet.   Is God some kind  of heavenly deal broker who sells packages of grace?  Is that the kind of God we have?  Is that the kind God we want?  Actually, God’s standard is much higher.

Romans 3:23 says, we fall short of the glory of God.  Way short!  We’re not good enough—but He is!  It’s Christ in us that makes the difference!

ASK....and it will be given

He’s the Real Deal

God’s not a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em kind of God! When I was 7, I ran away from home. I’d had it with my dad and his rules. With my clothes in a paper bag, I headed out. What do I need a father for? Well, I didn’t go far. When it came down to it, hunger won me over!

Did my dad know what I’d done—what I thought? I suspect he did—dads always seem to, don’t they? But you know—my dad called himself my father even when I didn’t call myself his son. His commitment to me was greater than my commitment to him.

You can count on God to be in your corner—no matter what–He cares!

Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7″

From Max On Life

Joys of the Feast

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The Thanksgiving meal is over. My legs are propped up on the hearth. I have every intention of dozing off very soon. The turkey’s been attacked. The giblet gravy has been gobbled. The table is clear. The kids are napping. And the family’s content. Yesterday’s challenges in the trip getting here were lost in today’s joy.

That’s what Paul meant in 2nd Corinthians when he talked of our light and momentary troubles. God never said the journey would be easy, but He did say the arrival would be worthwhile. Remember this: God may not do what you want, but He will do what is right—and best. He is the Father of forward motion.

Trust Him. He will get you home. And the trials of the trip will be lost in the joys of the feast. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m a bit tired from the journey and it feels good to rest.

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 2 Corinthians 4:17”

From In the Eye of the Storm



11.22.12.mp3
Thanksgiving Sale!

Nov 21, 2012 10:01 pm

“Give thanks to the LORD because he is good. His love continues forever. Psalm 136:1″

Worship by Max Lucado:

 We hear a lot about “worship”—but what is it exactly? Worship is when you’re aware that what you’ve been given is far greater than what you can give. Worship is the awareness that were it not for God’s touch, you’d still be hobbling and hurting, bitter and broken. Worship is the “thank you” that refuses to be silenced.
Oh we’ve tried to make a science out of worship. We can’t do that any more than we can “sell love” or negotiate peace.” Worship is a voluntary act of gratitude offered by the saved to the Savior, by the healed to the Healer, and by the delivered to the Deliverer.
If you and I can go days without feeling an urge to say “thank you” to the One who saved, healed, and delivered us, then we’d do well to remember what He did!
“All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 4:15”
From In the Eye of the Storm

Stay Close to the Vine

God says to you and me, “You can be fruitful, but I’m going to have to clip some diseased leaves.” Arrogance. Vain ambitions. Bad relationships. Dangerous opportunities. Revenge. Does God take this process lightly? I don’t think so. John 15:2 says, “He cuts off every branch of mine that does not produce fruit.”

So what are we to do? We branches on the vine– what is our response? An answer commonly given at this point is the imperative, “Bear fruit!” But is that the right response? If a branch is fruitless does it help if the gardener demands fruit? Please note, the branch cannot make fruit.

Jesus says, “remain in me. . .” Remain in my love. . . If any remain in me and I remain in them, they produce fruit. Our task? It’s clear. Stay close to the vine. Jesus said, “apart from Me, you can do nothing.” John 15:5

From A Gentle Thunder
Max Lucado

Just BELIEVE

Suppose you give me a gift.  Let’s say you present me with a new tie.  I take it out of the box, examine it and say thank you, and then reach for my wallet.  “Now, how much do I owe you?” I ask.  You think I’m kidding.

“It’s a gift,” you say.  “You don’t need to pay me.”

“I understand,” I respond, but then show I don’t by asking, “Could I write you a check?”

In trying to buy your gift, I’ve degraded your grace.  I’ve robbed you of the joy of giving.  How often we rob God.  Have you considered what an insult it is to God when we try to pay him for his goodness?  Sly is the scheme of Satan.  He causes us to question grace, to earn it.  What is it God wants us to do?  Just believe.  Believe the One he sent.  And receive the gift he gives.

“The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent. John 6:29”

From A Gentle Thunder

Develop the Three Traits of a Leader

John C. Maxwell is known around the world as an authority on leadership. Maxwell has more than 50 books on the topic and his organization has trained more than 2 million leaders worldwide. Whether it’s Barack Obama leading our nation, a quarterback trying to lead his team to the conference championship or a father trying to lead his family through these difficult economic times, Maxwell says there are three characteristics needed to become a successful leader.

1.     Consensus building: Abraham Lincoln was such a phenomenal leader because he understood the importance of consensus building and bringing together the people around him to help make up for his weaknesses. “The fallacy of leadership is thinking that if you can lead in one area you can lead in all areas, and you know all the answers.” Maxwell says. “This is simply not true. The new generation of leaders needs to be consensus builders by walking slowly through the crowd and valuing the opinions of others before making any decision.”

2.     Humility: “All great leaders are humble,” Maxwell says. “Instead of talking about their own accomplishments, leaders are looking to give the team the credit.”

3.     Risk taking: Leaders are not afraid to step out and say this is what needs to be done. Another of Maxwell’s favorite leaders was Winston Churchill, who stood alone against Parliament, maintaining Nazism’s threat to Europe when many people considered it a mere nuisance. “Churchill had the courage to go against the grain, against the trend, against the current,” Maxwell says. “He had the courage to do what he felt was right even in the midst of severe opposition.”

Read more about John C. Maxwell on SUCCESS.com

A NEW BIRTH

MaxLucado.com Weekday Email

God is often more patient with us than we are with ourselves. We assume if we fall, we aren’t born again. If we have the old desires, we must not be a new creation.

If you’re anxious please remember what Paul said in Philippians 1:6, “God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again.”

In many ways your new birth is like your first. In your new birth God provides what you need; someone else feels the pain, and someone else does the work. And just as parents are patient with their newborn, so God is patient with you. But there’s one difference. The first time you had no choice about being born. This time you do.

The power is God’s. The effort is God’s. The pain is God’s. But the choice is yours.

From A Gentle Thunder

GRACE by Max Lucado

Behold the fruit of grace: raised by God, saved by God, seated with God. Gifted, equipped and commissioned. Grace is the word God uses to describe his radical commitment to redeem and restore to himself a people with whom he will reign forever. Grace changes everything! We are spiritually alive. Heavenly positioned. Connected to God. A billboard of mercy. An honored child. This is the “aggressive forgiveness called grace” (Rom. 5:20 MSG).

Grace declares that God knew what he was doing when he made you and is dead serious about saving you for something out of this world. Grace goes where no government can. Grace speaks to the core questions: why are we here? Where are we headed? Does anyone care? Grace gets to the bottom of this thing called life.

Grace. This is the big message of the Christian hope, the unique idea we bring to the social conversation. Let’s major in this story. Let’s unleash our clearest thoughts on this question: How can we best articulate the greatest announcement in history? “And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” (John 1:16 ESV)

Let’s champion the cause of the pre-born. Let’s hold to deep-seated convictions about family and the practice of faith. But let’s begin and end with the highest of all hopes: “The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” (Titus 2:11)

Who is your HERO?

MaxLucado.com Weekday Email


Behold a hero of the west. A thousand head of cattle pass behind him. He needs no one. He’s a cowboy. The American hero.

Behold a hero in the Bible: the shepherd. He too is rugged. Like the cowboy he makes his roof the stars and the pasture his home.

But that’s where the similarities end. The shepherd loves his sheep. The cowboy leads the cow to slaughter. The cowboy drives the cattle. The shepherd leads the sheep. The shepherd calls each sheep by name. Aren’t we glad Christ didn’t call Himself the Good Cowboy?

Psalm 100:3 says, “Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”

We don’t need a cowboy to herd us. We need a shepherd. A shepherd to care for us and to guide us. And we have One. One who knows us by name.

From A Gentle Thunder

Keep praying for the USA…and exercise your privilege to vote!