joy
Delight Yourself in the Lord
If you find yourself admiring the One who made our souls to run on Himself, what else would you find that would be more satisfactory to your soul? If you find yourself delighting in the one who made laughter, joy and happiness, what else do you think would bring you joy in this life? Once you have delighted yourself in the Lord, I believe your heart will want nothing else besides Him.
Thankfulness
Have you ever wondered the purpose in the Bible commanding us to give thanks? Let’s face it, does God really need our thanks? Why is it commanded? What’s the point of thankfulness? What does it accomplish in our lives? What purpose does it serve in the body of the Church? If we as Christians-the body of Christ were to be more thankful, I wonder, how would that make us different? What would change??
Our Desires are too Weak
It seems most of us are so fond of our small pleasures in life that we have developed stomachs that would rather munch on cheap candies even though we are offered the chance to eat at a rich and elegant gourmet feast. If you find yourself sitting in church thinking about the football game you’d like to be watching, or wondering when Bible study will be over so that you can watch that new movie you want to see…
The Great Divorce: A Window into Heaven
In it, C.S. Lewis paints a story about a bunch of people who are awaiting a bus in the dismal town of hell that will take them to the plains of heaven. Once arriving in a world more real then our own, these people find that the grass hurts their feet, and that they appear as shadowy ghosts and that the inhabitants of heaven are so bright and jovial that many of these ghostly visitors refuse to give up their selfish grudges, twisted loves, self righteousness and bitterness from their past to enjoy eternal joy. Here are some of my favorite quotes and thoughts from the book…
Come and See…
If you close your eyes, you can almost sense Philip’s excitement. He had just found the long-awaited Messiah. He had seen Him with his own eyes. In pure joyful anticipation he runs to find his friend, Nathaniel, and exclaims, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” (John 1:45) It had only been a little bit earlier when Philip had met Jesus and had heard the words from the Messiah’s mouth, “Come, and you will see.”