…you are the light on the hill!
Ask fifty people to finish the statement "Live As If" and you are likely to get fifty different answers. For Christians it will mean something different than for non-Christians. Incorporated into the top graphic are the answers given by friends of mine. It is our desire that your answer will be different each time you visit.
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Making Everyday A New Year
'Inspiration For You' from Randy Mitchell
New Years is always special to me. It's looked upon by millions as a passage-of-the-baton, a new beginning, a time to remember events during the prior year, and a way of looking forward to making new memories. It's celebrated by virtually everyone on the planet, and is perhaps the one day which brings more people together as a human race than any other regardless of color, religion, or political affiliation. We all celebrate it differently, and it's by far, more than just a spot on the calendar.
New Year's resolutions fly through our minds at warp speed during this week.…
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Bible and Quote - October 29 - November 2
'Bible verse and quote' from Jan Couns
(David fled from King Saul’s renewed desire to kill him) and went to . Jonathan (who said) You shall not die! why should my father hide this thing from me? It is not so!" 1 Samuel 20:1,2
The prudence of the best heads is often defeated by tenderness of the best hearts.
Henry Fielding (1707 - 1754) English novelist
(David persuaded Jonathan of the possibility that his father, King Saul was trying to kill him and said) . deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. 1 Samuel 20:3-8
Friendship,…
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Comfort
'God's Words For US' from Cecelia Lester
Two families I know personally are in need of God’s comfort at this time. One family suddenly lost a father/grandfather this past weekend. The gentleman went to sleep and woke up in the arms of Jesus. Another family lost a daughter/a wife/and mother when a lady from our church received her call to go to heaven.
Both of these families are caught in the grieving process. The Bible tells us we are not to grieve as those without hope. As Christians, I know we should be relieved that these people’s struggles are behind them but we do miss…
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Perfect Faith
'Chip Shots from the Ruff of Life' from Tom Kelley
In the 1986 Masters, Jack Nicklaus sank a putt that served as a pivotal point in his victory. He said that he was able to see the line of the putt so plainly and rolled it at the perfect speed for it to go in. This past season, at Hoylake just outside Liverpool, England, Tiger Woods put on a performance for the ages as he won The British Open handily and hardly ever used his driver. Golf pundits were lauding his performance as perfect. Hmm. Perfectly putted ball, perfectly played tournament. Perfection.
Baseball and bowling both have their "perfect game." In baseball…
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Christians and Weed
''Winging It' from Stan Smith
I recently took a trip through Oregon and Washington, both states where recreational marijuana was "legal". (That's in quotes because it's still illegal by federal law, but I guess no one is looking.) In the lobby of the hotel we stayed in where they have all those brochures on things to do in the area, there was a brochure on where to find weed as well as enlightening information about cannabis in its various forms and effects. Coming from a state where it is NOT legal, of course, this was shocking.
For my entire life where I grew up in the era of the drug culture I've…
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Christian Towers of Babel
'The Way' from Kevin Pauley
…You will tell people about me everywhere…to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8
When man was first created, he was given a command intended for each succeeding generation. Men were to be fruitful and multiply and, while filling the earth, subdue it to the service of God (Genesis 1:28). After mankind’s depravity pushed God to destroy them with a cataclysmic flood, He reiterated to Noah His wish for us to fill the planet in Genesis 9:1. Instead, man decided in Genesis 11:4 to build a city and a tower whose top would reach the sky so that they would not be…
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Scoop IV (1-31-11)
'Today's Little Lift' from Jim Bullington
Scoop: Code Adam at Temple; Boy of 12Missing! Once again Dr. Luke scooped the other three gospel writers with this unique and interesting story. Whether you are familiar with this happening or not, you will find a blessing in reading it as our current installment of Today's Little Lift.
“His [Jesus'] parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast. When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and…
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Our God Does New Things Open Our Hearts and Minds
'Word from Scotland' from Sandy Shaw
We are reading in Isaiah Chapter 43 and we come to verse 5 – where God repeats – Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring you and gather you. We need to hear that again and again – that is why He repeats it so often. Do not be afraid. I am with you……
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Then there is Anna
'Refreshment in Refuge' from Gina Burgess
In Luke chapter 2, a woman by the name of Anna is a prophetess. She continued to speak/declare (laleo) to those who were searching for the Messiah. Laleo means to declare one's mind and disclose thoughts.
God considered Anna the perfect person to teach about His Son in the Temple. Yes, I know. The actual word for Teacher isn't there. However, consider what that word didasko (which is there) actually means.
a) to hold discourse with others in order to instruct them. b) intended to convey instruction and information as well as pleasure and entertainment; c) making…
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Repentance Lost?
''Christ in You...'' from Dale Krebbs
There is a book that was written many, many years ago entitle “Paradise Lost”. It endured many years. It was required reading in many colleges and universities, but seldom heard of today. Along with it, a companion book entitled “Paradise Regained” also became a classic. The future of Christianity and even nations may depend on a discovering and implementing of a word - repentance. Repentance, not only by those who hear the gospel and respond in faith, but by the repentance of those by who have already believed. But has repentance also been lost? Even…
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Psalms 91:1
'Voice of Inspiration' from Andy Castro
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. KJV Psalm 91:1
Strong's definition of the word Almighty.
Comes from the root word "shâdad."
A primitive root; properly to be burly, that is, (figuratively) powerful (passively impregnable); by implication to ravage: - dead, destroy (-er), oppress, robber, spoil (-er), X utterly, (lay) waste.
I love the definition of the word "Almighty."
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Sometimes the news can carry events that are deadly serious while other times they can have a hint of humor in them. Firefighters in Minot, North Dakota, received an emergency call that had them scrambling for their gas masks as they were told that a railroad car was leaking an unknown substance that could be strychnine, a deadly poisonous chemical. When they arrived and examined the leaking substance they could just as easily have used some spoons. The substance? Tapioca…
Daily Refractions
Words to Ponder
Hoping does not mean doing nothing. It is not fatalistic resignation. It means going about our assigned tasks, confident that God will provide the meaning and the conclusion. It is not compelled to work away at keeping up appearances with a bogus spirituality. It is the opposite of desperate and panicky manipulations, of scurrying and worrying. And hoping is not dreaming. It is not spinning an illusion or fantasy to protect us from our boredom or our pain. It means a confident, alert expectation that God will do what he said he will do. It is imagination put in the harness of faith. It is a willingness to let God do it in his way and in his time. It is the opposite of making plans that we demand that God put into effect, telling him both how and when to do it. - Eugene Peterson (20th century)
'Daily Reading Plan'
from StudyLight.org
Bible-in-a-Year — NAS
Esther 1; Psalms 105:1-25; Revelation 11:
in those days as King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne which was at the citadel in Susa, in the third year of his reign he held a banquet for all his officials and attendants, the army officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the officials of his provinces, in his presence. At that time he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days. When these days were finished, the king held a…
