Tag: forgiveness
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Thanksgiving
This week we celebrate Thanksgiving. Yet, I wonder how often we really have given thanks. I mean, it is one thing to utter the simple, “Thank you.” It is quite another to truly give thanks. Do we even understand how powerful thanksgiving is? God has said in His Word that refusing to give thanks is…
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Surviving Disappointment (Part 3, the one about bitterness)
Consider the alternative… When we feel disappointment sometimes we give ourselves permission to be angry for a while. That’s actually okay. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging how someone has hurt us. In fact, it is healthy to be honest about our feelings. However, there are enough scriptures that warn us about holding onto our…
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Surviving Disappointment (part 2… The One About Thriving)
Remember what we learned a week ago: God knows disappointment. He asked Hosea the prophet to be a living example of His disappointment. We too, know disappointment. Now, what will we do about it? That’s the question, isn’t it? This is where faith intersects life in our disappointments. Faith does not always protect us from…
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Grace & Forgiveness – Wow!
Words have power. They do not have the power of magic, but the meanings of words can change our lives. We see this any time we talk to someone and they say something that makes us happy or sad. We can do it for someone else as we give a word of encouragement or criticism.…
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Unity – Protect It
I saw a Peanuts cartoon recently and Lucy was demanding that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn’t. “What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?” Linus asked. “These five fingers,” said Lucy. “Individually they’re nothing but when I curl them together like this into…
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The Judgment Deception
Deception. When we read that word, we think of how wicked it sounds. No one wants to be deceived. It is a horrible feeling to realize that you have been deceived. Yet, there is a deception that is far too easy for us to do to ourselves. It is the deception that comes when we…
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Be Something. Then Do It.
Think with me for a moment about the rich young ruler in Mark 10. Notice that the man thought about what he could ‘do’ to be saved. He asked Jesus, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life.” I know that this is a grammatical nuance, but consider with me that so many…
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At Calvary – Episode 129 – Where We Came From – The Glory of Grace
Our fathers in the faith unapologetically reminded their people where they came from. They did not do it for guilt’s sake. They weren’t trying to make those Christians they loved feel guilty or simply relive the past. No, they did it for glory’s sake. Our past isn’t primarily about us. Like our present and our…
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The Path of Everyday Forgiveness
How are you at following the Master? Do you always succeed? Have you reached a level of perfection? I know… that is funny. It’s funny because only the very proud would claim such a thing. However, it is sometimes hard to admit that we stumble even when we are trying to follow Jesus with our…
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Everyday Grace
We talk about grace in the Christian life. We need it! Through grace we discover the amazing love of God. Through grace we have access to God in Jesus. Yet, have we thought about how much we need it from one another? Here are some thoughts about giving grace everyday. Let me introduce you to…
Pastor John D Jakes 