Tag: Christian perspective

Are You What You Were?

Are You What You Were?

Have you ever heard the expression:

“If you are what you were, then you ain’t.”

I like that one. 🙂

Granted, it’s rather slangy, but it leads right to the heart of Christianity.

Here it is, straight from the Bible.

*Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Cor 5:17, ESV

Change For The Good

Once we accept Christ, our hearts and attitudes begin to change.

We are a new creation in Christ, although not perfect and not sinless.

We are works in progress.

Consider the lovely butterfly.

Are you what you were?

If God cares about a creature as small as this, would He care any less about you and me, created in His image?

Watch this stunning 4-minute video, and you’ll see what I mean.

He Loves Us More Deeply Than We Could Ever Imagine

It took me many years to gain a Christian perspective, through various trials and in some very dramatic ways. God knew what it would take to get my attention. I praise Him for His continual mercy.

Every day is another opportunity to try and shine His light to the world.

quotation from Charles Spurgeon

Some days will go better than others. But, He sees us working at it, and that’s what matters.

In Christ, those things that seemed so important long ago pale in comparison to what lies ahead.

We will all continue to experience troubles and suffering in this world,  now for a little while. But remember dear brothers and sisters in Christ, our faith in Him is more precious than gold.

more precious than gold

The spiritual battles continue, and you will face tests of different kinds.

We must stay strong and persevere.

God bless!

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*Scripture quotations from the Holy Bible, ESV, English Standard Version, ® Permanent Text Edition®, copyright ©2001, Crossway Bibles.
**Charles Spurgeon quotation, public domain, as quoted from ChristianQuotes.info”

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Keep Your Eye on the Prize

Keep Your Eye on the Prize

Some of my fondest high school memories are from my years on the track team. I joined the team in my Sophomore year and qualified as a sprinter for the 2:20 and the 8:80 relay.keep your eye on the prize

Track was a big part of my life back then. I loved the sport and we had a great bunch of girls on the team.

The best part of it for me was winning a ribbon or a trophy that I could take home to show my Dad. He never hesitated to say he was proud of me.

Our team worked hard, practicing after school and spending our Saturdays running in meets at other high schools. Our goal was to get to State and compete against runners from all over Florida. Lucky me! I qualified.

I ended up placing sixth in the 2:20 at the State finals!!

The cool thing: I got to run against a soon-to-be Olympian, Chandra Cheeseborough. A quick note about Chandra, she smoked me pretty quickly and all I saw was her dirt fly as she sprinted past me! I still remember that. 🙂

Life in the Fast Lane

Those high school years have come and gone. Have things really changed for us now that we’re all grown up? We keep running and running towards something. In this upside-down world, do we know what or who we’re running towards?

Keep your eyes on ChristThere are so many distractions that can take our eyes off Christ. A job, a mortgage, frustrating people in our lives, health issues – all of it can overwhelm us at times. There are so many concerns in our lives and in our world, and yet, Jesus is there. He is unchanging. He is always ready to welcome us back when we realize that we’ve lost our focus on Him.

Don’t forget to keep your eye on the prize. There’s joy eternal up ahead and one path to get there – through Jesus Christ. In the midst of life’s distractions, if we put our trust in Him, we have the promise of complete happiness and eternal life.

A Christian Perspective From Minnesota

We asked a good friend of ours about which Bible verse is especially meaningful to him. Kevin H. from Minnesota chose Hebrews 12:1-2a.

*Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

Kevin explains why this verse speaks to his heart:the race marked out for me

“Hebrews 12:1-2, a favorite part of Scripture for me, uses the idea of a race or a journey to help focus me on what really matters – Jesus’ great love and sacrifice for me. I can find my personal identity in so many distressingly inadequate things, people, or activities. This verse always reminds me that my identity is held and centered on Jesus Christ. It’s just not about me.

This life or race that is marked out for me has me journeying through a fair share of dark times – but also the good. As a runner, races are that way as well. Yet, I find deep joy in the richness of this life. Knowing God loves and cares for me, that pressure is off. I can absorb the goodness of my life’s time – both in the good times and in the harder times. What a joy to know I can fix my eyes on Jesus. He deeply loves and holds me close.”

I couldn’t have said it better. Many thanks to Kevin for his share.

God bless you all and keep your eyes on the prize!

*Bible reference: New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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Christ Who Strengthens Me

All Praise And Honor To Christ Who Strengthens Me

Christ who strengthens meWhen I’m feeling sad, I know I have a Savior who never leaves my side and knows what I’m going through.

I grateful for the knowledge that, when I pray to God, He’s listening. There’s no “I’ll get back to her later” from my Lord and King.

He loves me AND you THAT much.

(Hold your arms open wide. Christian, He loves you even more than that!)

How great is our God.

Light Bulb Moment, No Replacement Needed

light bulb momentGod will see you and me through every challenge that life throws at us.

That truth alone is so encouraging and I hope it is for you as well.

It took many years before I was finally able to break free from old traditions. Once I realized that I didn’t need any other intercessor but Jesus Christ, the light bulb went off and I felt so much peace.

I am eternally in His grip.

He alone holds my (and your) eternal future in His hands.

No one else.

When Life Overwhelms

life hands you a curve ballAs a loving Father, God can bring us comfort in our despair and much needed strength when we’re feeling down.

We must trust Him, no matter what.

He can give us the courage to endure when we’re handed a curve ball.

 

A Christian Perspective From Wisconsin

A good friend of ours from Wisconsin, Tom G., shared one of his favorite Bible verses. It’s Philippians 4:13 –

*I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Here’s what Tom had to say about why he chose this verse:

“We have had some family trials that have left us feeling a little discouraged as parents. We should get our eyes off of the situation before us and put them on our Lord, Savior, Counselor, and Comforter.”

It’s a powerhouse verse, alright.

We can get so overwhelmed by the circumstances of our troubles that we forget to just be still with God.

I admit it. Being still is not one of my strong points.

But, I’m working on it.

It could be a life-long process, but He knows where I’m at and His patience with all of us sinners is nothing short of Grace.

God Bless!

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*Bible reference: New American Standard Bible (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

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Trust In The Lord Even When You Hurt

Trust in the Lord Even When You Hurt

It can be hard to trust in the Lord when you feel like your life is falling apart.

trust in the Lord even when it hurtsBad things happen.

  • A car plows into your vehicle and sends you to the hospital.
  • Your spouse says he or she has had an affair.
  • A friend is given a cancer diagnosis.
  • Your teenager is addicted to drugs.

These are huge wake-up calls and this small list doesn’t even cover what some of your friends and family may be going through.

It hurts a lot sometimes.

In my own family, there’s divorce, the loss of a child, the loss of a job, health concerns, and atheism.

Difficult questions come to mind when you wake up and get some bad news.

Where are you, God?

Don’t You care about me?

What did I do to deserve this?

When Did Life Get So Out of Control?

The hard fact is, no one ever promised us an easy life without cares and concerns. In the book of James 1:2-4, Scripture tells us that we’ll experience various trials.

Notice that the word “trials” is in its plural form.

And yet, we are still told to trust Him.

There was no exception to that command.

The Bible doesn’t say, “Trust in the Lord, except when __________(fill in the blanks with your particular circumstance.)

Is unshakeable trust in God an easy thing to have?

We’d like to think so, but not always. We’re not perfect. We have the very human, knee jerk, “fix it now” mentality and can rush headlong into finding a quick solution, all the while forgetting to pray and ask God for His strength and guidance to see us through.

God Loves usAlways Remember, He Loves Us

The wonderful truth is that God loves you. Nothing or no one can take that away from you. You are His child.

He knows your past, present, and future. For His reasons alone, He allows certain things to take place in our lives.

God may appear to be silent at times, but you and me have to trust Him and that means in good times and in bad. If we pray or even talk to Him quietly in our thoughts, He will listen.

A Christian Perspective From Georgia

I asked a good friend of mine about her favorite Bible verse. Kim M. from Georgia chose Proverbs 3:5-6.

*Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make straight your paths.

missing puzzle piecesHere’s what Kim had to say about why this verse means so much to her:

“Our understanding and logic is not the same as God’s. We work hard to put things in a way that seems logical to us, only to find that there is always that piece or something that is missing. With God, He can see the whole picture so there are no missing pieces. If we place God in charge instead of us trying to be in charge, all of the pieces will fall into place, in accordance to His will and His timing. Trust God completely.”

That is so true.

Learning to Cope

How can you learn endurance to get through the hard times? There are a lot of options.

  • Pray. God is listening.
  • You can read and memorize Scripture, especially the verses that encourage you the most.
  • You can listen to some great Christian music. I have links to some great contemporary artists on this website.
  • You can attend a Men or Women’s Bible study. Once there, you can meet some of the most amazing people who have struggles of their own. The friendships often become lifelong.
  • You can help someone less fortunate than yourself. As sad as you may feel about some of your own trials, there’s always someone who is worse off than you. That will help with your perspective.
  • Lastly, you can get together with some of your Christian friends. You can lift each other up with support and love. Some day, all Christians will be in Heaven together where there is no more suffering and sadness.

That will be a very happy day.

Do you feel this article may be helpful to someone?

Please feel free to share it with them.

*Bible reference: English Standard Version. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

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