Showing posts with label blessing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blessing. Show all posts

Friday 21 May 2010

Testify of the things heard

“who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.” (Re 1:2-3 NIV)

 “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” (2Ti 2:2 NIV)

 “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (Jas 1:22 NIV)

 “But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.” (Jas 1:25 NIV)

“For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.” (Isa 44:3 NIV)

 “"Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” (Isa 55:1 NIV)

 “Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. "If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” (Isa 58:9-11 NIV)

 “Whoever believes in me, as {Or If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me. And let him drink, 7:38 who believes in me. As} the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."” (Joh 7:38 NIV)


Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Getuig van het gehoorde

Monday 8 February 2010

God wants to be gracious to you

Ephesians 4:22-23 (39 kb)
Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!



ThoughtsPhil Ware
    God is slow to exercise his justice when that justice demands his people's punishment. "Gracious and slow to anger" is a phrase repeatedly used to describe God in the Old Testament. God longs to be gracious and bless his people. He extends time for us to repent and turn to him. In Jesus, God even gives us his own Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Let's hear the heart of God and respond by turning our lives and our hearts to the God who longs for us.
2 Timothy 1:9 (38 kb)
Prayer
    Almighty God and Abba Father, how can I ever thank you for your love and mercy demonstrated in the sacrifice of your Son for my sin. Please forgive me for those times that I have not intentionally and wholeheartedly shown my appreciation for your grace in the way I live my life. Please perfect me by your Spirit just as you have forgiven me and cleansed me by your grace. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > God wil u gunst betonen

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2016 linkupdate

Thursday 21 January 2010

Control your destiny or somebody else will


"Control your destiny or somebody else will."
- Jack Welch

There is no security on this earth; there is only opportunity.
- Douglas MacArthur

If you miss a chance it is if someone who lets a bird
fly away;
you will never get that change again.
- John of the Cross

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today,
that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse.
So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,
by loving the Lord Jehovah, your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him."
Deuteronomy 30:19-20

Lord, give me the skill to undertake the correct actions,
and let me always take the right decisions,
always taking into account your wishes and regulations.



Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Controleer uw lot of iemand anders zal het doen

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2016 linkupdate

Wednesday 20 January 2010

Be a ready giver

2 Corinthians 9:7 (26 kb)Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.



Thoughts
Phil Ware    God is working in us to conform our character and will to be like his own. God is a giver. God finds delight in generously blessing us. Now he asks us to do the same. Giving is not some arbitrary task given us to support our churches and ministries; no, giving is part of our character transformation to become more like God. It may be one of the truest ways we have placed our allegiance, dependence, and priorities in the gracious work of God.
Prayer
    Father, forgive me for the times I have been miserly with the abundance you have shared with me. Make me a conduit of blessings. I know that all I have is yours. Please help me use it as you would. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Wees een klaarstaande gever

Sunday 20 December 2009

Being of good courage running the race


“we are of good courage, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be at home with the Lord.” (2Co 5:8 ASV)

 “For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure is come.” (2Ti 4:6 ASV)

“But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!” (Lu 12:50 ASV)

 “And after my skin, [even] this [body], is destroyed, Then without my flesh shall I see God;” (Job 19:26 ASV)

 “But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol; For he will receive me. [[Selah Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, When the glory of his house is increased.” (Ps 49:15-16 ASV)

“And he said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To–day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.” (Lu 23:43 ASV)

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, [there] ye may be also.” (Joh 14:3 ASV)

“Father, I desire that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.” (Joh 17:24 ASV)

“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon [the Lord], and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” (Ac 7:59 ASV)

“wherefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1Co 5:8 ASV)

“For thou wilt not leave my soul to Sheol; Neither wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see corruption. Thou wilt show me the path of life: In thy presence is fulness of joy; In thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” (Ps 16:10-11 ASV)

“My steps have held fast to thy paths, My feet have not slipped.” (Ps 17:5 ASV)

“Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel, And afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven [but thee]? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. My flesh and my heart faileth; [But] God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.” (Ps 73:24-26 ASV)

“And I say unto him, My lord, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they that come out of the great tribulation, and they washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God; and they serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall spread his tabernacle over them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun strike upon them, nor any heat: for the Lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall be their shepherd, and shall guide them unto fountains of waters of life: and God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Re 7:14-17 ASV)

 “And I heard the voice from heaven saying, Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth: yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; for their works follow with them.” (Re 14:13 ASV)


Dutch version in Willibrord translation and a thought / Nederlandse Willibrord vertaling en een bezinning > Verlangen om ontbonden te worden
 (http://bijbelonderzoekers.multiply.com/journal/item/1072/Verlangen_om_ontbonden_te_worden)

Dutch version in New Bible Translation NBV / in de NBV vertaling: Van goede moed zijnde om de wedloop te voleindigen

Wednesday 16 December 2009

Thanking God by thinking of people

Philippians 1:3 (50 kb)
I thank my God every time I remember you.



Thoughts
Phil Ware    Certain people are blessings. It doesn't matter if we visit with them on the phone, get an encouraging email, or see them face-to-face. Any time we remember them, we thank God for them. So let's follow Paul's example and let them know they give us reasons to offer thanks to God.
Prayer
    Loving LORD, thank you for ... (place the name of several people who bless your life in here). They have blessed my life in so many ways, so I'm asking you now to bless their lives with your grace, power, and Spirit. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Friday 4 December 2009

Wisdom lies deep


"Wisdom lies deep.
You have to dig for it:
sweet when found."
- Robert Roberts

"But from there you will seek the LORD your God,
and you will find Him if you search for Him
with all your heart and all your soul."
Deuteronomy 4:29

“And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you shall call them to mind among all the nations, whither Jehovah your God has driven you, and shall return unto Jehovah your God, and shall obey his voice according to all that I command you this day, you and your children, with all your heart, and with all your soul; that then Jehovah your God will turn your captivity, and have compassion upon you, and will return and gather you from all the peoples, whither Jehovah your God hath scattered you.”
Deuteronomy 30:1-3

Everyday I look to you my God
and hope to find you
and to receive wisdom and advice.
Bless me in Christ Jesus name.
Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Wijsheid ligt diep

Friday 6 November 2009

Blessed are those who freely give


"Blessed are those who can give without questioning"
- Marcus Ampe

"Blessed are those that can give without remembering and receive without forgetting."
- Unknown

Though you can give without loving, you can’t love without giving.
- Tom Drout

This is all the inheritance I can give to my dear family.
The religion of Christ can give them one which will make them rich indeed.
- Patrick Henry

The world says, The more you take, the more you have.
Christ says, the more you give, the more you are.
- Frederick Buechner

If one first gives himself to the Lord, all other giving is easy.
- Robert Harris

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.
- Jim Elliot


"Now one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?" And He said to him, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well."
Luke 17:15-19

Jehovah, Lord of Lords, I am grateful for all the good that I get from you.
Give that I may share the many good things with others.
I ask you that I shall be able to give freely without expecting anything in its place.
Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Zalig diegenen die vrij kunnen geven
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2013 update:
Christ and the Samaritan
Christ and the Samaritan (Photo credit: Wikipedia)


Please do find to read:
  1. Walking in love by faith, not by sight
  2. Jesus and his God
  3. How is it that Christ pleased God so perfectly?
  4. Our relationship with God, Jesus and each other
  5. The high calling of God in Christ Jesus
  6. God receives us on the basis of our faith
  7. A Living Faith #1 Substance of things hoped for
  8. A Living Faith #2 State of your faith
  9. A Living Faith #3 Faith put into action
  10. A Living Faith #7 Prayer
  11. Praise and give thanks to God the Most Highest
  12. Some one or something to fear #6 Faith in the Most High
  13. Listening and Praying to the Father
  14. The LORD protects those of childlike faith
  15. God is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him
  16. Feed Your Faith Daily
  17. People who know how to pray to move God to take hold of our affairs in a mighty way
  18. Give your worries to God
  19. Does God hear prayer?
  20. Does God answer prayer?
  21. Prayer, important aspect in our life
  22. Communion and day of worship
  23. If you think you’re too small to be effective
  24. Sometimes we pray and pray and it seems like nothing happens.
  25. Prayer has the power to change mountains into highways
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Friday 30 October 2009

I Only hope we find GOD again before it is too late !

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday  Morning  Commentary.

  My confession:  I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish.  And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees.  I don't feel threatened.  I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.  It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me.  I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto.  In fact, I kind of like it.  It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu .  If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.  I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians.

  I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period.  I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country.  I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.  Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him?  I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too.  But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.  In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different:  This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

  Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).  Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response.  She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives..  And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out.  How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'  In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc..  I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.  Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school.  The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself.  And we said OK.  Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide).  We said an expert should know what he's talking about.  And we said okay.

  Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves..  Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out.  I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'  Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell.  Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.  Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.  Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

  Are you laughing yet?  Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.  Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.  Pass it on if you think it has merit.   If not, then just discard it... no one will know you did.  But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

      My Best Regards,  Honestly and respectfully,  Ben Stein

Thursday 8 October 2009

Your New Job Description — Bless!

BLESS!

"This goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that's your job, to bless. You'll be a blessing and also get a blessing." (1 Peter 3:9, The Message).
We have been called to live exemplary lives — the kind that inspire others to do the same. This is our assignment from Jesus. The challenge is that we have been placed in a world filled with un-exemplary conduct.
From Main Street to the Back Streets; from Broadway to the Belt-Way; from Wall Street to the Waysides — name calling, finger pointing, blame-fixing, sass and sarcasm are the standard fare. We are living in a grown up school yard — but no one seems to have grown up.
So the Lord has given us a job.
"BLESS," He says to each one of us, "That's your job — to bless." And then He adds this wonderful promise: "You will BE a blessing, and will also GET a blessing."
This reminds me of a very graphic dream I had a few years ago. Be sure to read tomorrow's post, for I'll pass the dream along to you. Then you can decide for yourself what kind of job performance you will commit to in this assignment the Lord has given us.

The man who blesses others will himself be blessed. Whatever measure you mete out will be measured back to you. In yet another text Jesus said "bless those who curse you!" (Matthew 5:44).
Could it be that the blessing we speak to those who are cursing us is for the purpose of keeping us from coming into the place of cursing ourselves? I think so. How solemn to think that cursing another postures you to receive that very curse upon yourself!
But then, how wonderful to believe that by blessing another you inevitably inherit the blessing yourself!

 - Rylisms

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Uw nieuwe werkopdracht: zegen!

Wednesday 30 September 2009

Humility and the Fear of the Lord

By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches and honour and life . . . with the humble is wisdom . . . The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.  (Pro 22:4; Pro 11:2; and Pro 9:10)Walking in humility is the pathway for living by the grace of God. "God . . . gives grace to the humble" (1Pe 5:5). In our present verses, we see that humility and the fear of the Lord are related. Humility and the fear of the Lord result in the same blessings. "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches and honor and life." The closing trio ("riches and honor and life") are an Old Testament description of a life that is fully blessed by God. The New Testament counterpart would be fullness of spiritual life. "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" (Joh 10:10). Humility and the fear of the Lord also result in wisdom. "With the humble is wisdom . . . The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom." Humility is the candid acknowledgement of our absolute need for the Lord to work comprehensively in our lives day by day. The fear of the Lord is respect and reverence toward our great God. It is not a fear involving terror or apprehension. Rather, it is based upon profound admiration and dependent devotion. Those who humbly fear the Lord (by placing their admiration and devotion in Him) also embrace His perspectives and values.  They develop a hatred for the things that He hates. "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate" (Pro 8:13). Correspondingly, those who have respect and reverence for the Lord develop a love for all that He loves. The Lord loves for His people to walk in righteousness and justice. "The LORD loves the righteous . . . the LORD loves justice" (Psa 146:8 and Psa 37:28). The Lord loves Israel, His chosen nation. "The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples" (Deu 7:7). The Lord loves His church, the children of God. "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" (1Jo 3:1). The Lord loves the world, those who need to know Him. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (Joh 3:16).

Lord God almighty, I humbly bow before You, acknowledging my absolute need for You to work comprehensively in my life day by day. I want to walk in the fear of the Lord, placing my admiration and devotion in You. I want to hate all that You hate and love all that You love, in Jesus name, Amen.

- Hoekstra


Sunday 27 September 2009

No fear in love


1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.


Thoughts
Phil Ware    There are many kinds of fear. Some of these are legitimate. Others are imagined. Still others are irrational. Thankfully, as Christians, we don't have to be afraid of the one crucial event in our lives -- judgment. God's love saves us, empowers us, blesses us, works in us, and touches others through us. Most of all, having experienced this love, we can cast fear out of our hearts because we know where we stand with God. He is our loving Father who longs to bring us home!
Prayer
    Holy, majestic, and awesome God, you are mighty in your strength. You are holy beyond comparison. You are righteous and fair in your dealings with your people. Most of all, dear Father, I thank you because you do not deal with me as my sins deserve. No, O God, you deal with me graciously, blessing me with your redeeming and transforming grace. Your love gives me confidence to live for you and to await the day I stand before you. Until that day I offer you my thanks and praise in Jesus' holy name. Amen.
Dutch translation / Nederlandse vertaling > Angst uitsluitende liefde

Friday 4 September 2009

If you want to go far in life


"If you want to go far in life, be …
Tender with the young,
Compassionate with the aged,
Sympathetic with the striving,
Tolerant of the weak and the strong.
Because someday you will have been all of these."
- George Washington Carver

"Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers,
be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling,
but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing."

1 Peter 3:8-9

God give that I can bring up patience for others
and can approach them with kindness.
Let me radiate the love of Christ.

Monday 6 July 2009

A secret to be reveiled

"And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, "If I touch even his garments, I shall be made well." And immediately the hemorrhage ceased; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone forth from him, immediately turned about in the crowd, and said, "Who touched my garments?" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, 'Who touched me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had been done to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease." (Mark 5:25-34 RSV)

We may wonder why Jesus did not let this poor woman escape with her precious secret untold. Matthew suggests the answer. She had said within herself, "If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole". That was an error which Jesus found it imperative to correct and so her secret had to be revealed. The power was not in his garment but in her faith. "Daughter, be of good comfort, thy faith hath made thee whole." Her faith was great, but her knowledge was imperfect. Without her confession, and the blessing of Jesus, she would have known of his power, but not of his love."
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A Life of Jesus - Melva Purkis

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2013 update:
English: Jesus Christ - detail from Deesis mos...
English: Jesus Christ - detail from Deesis mosaic, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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