Warnings & Encouragement

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-ktzwq-165aad7

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” — John 15

 

There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God– having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. — 2 Timothy 3

 

Light for Our Path

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-mybvy-1649363

In this episode, i share quotes that have been meaningful and helpful as I have walked as a follower of Jesus.

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Let me say I am here by God’s appointment, in His keeping, under His training, for His time. — Andrew Murray

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Irish Prayer: 

Teach us good Lord, 
   to serve thee more faithfully,  
   to give and not to count the cost, 
   to fight and not to heed the wounds, 
   to toil and not to seek for rest, 
   to labor and not to ask for any reward save that of knowing that we do thy will, 
Oh Lord our God.  

What Do You Think?

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“What do you think, Simon?”

“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? “

“What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?”

“Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? “

“Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?”

What About: Myrrh?

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On the cross, they offered Jesus wine mixed with myrrh to drink, but he didn’t take it.

— Mark 15

I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride. I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, friends! Drink, yes, drink abundantly, beloved.

— Song of Songs 5

Bless Those Who . . .

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“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. . . .  love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

— Jesus, in Luke chapter 6

Transitions in Life

A friend is going through a transition in life, and I thought I’d share with you what I shared with him.


“I’ve been through a few big transitions, and I have learned to take comfort from the fact that at some point in the future I will not be doing what I’m doing now. There is always a transition ahead. When the time of change arrives, then I say, ‘well, here it is; I knew there would be a transition and now it’s here.’ The Bible promises that God has prepared good work in advance for you to do, so your future is secure as you abide in Him. The Lord already knows what’s coming your way. “


Those who wait on the Lord are never put to shame.

Wesley’s Covenant Service

Many years ago I attended a New Year’s Eve service at a small Methodist church near Athens, Georgia.  They were holding a Covenant Service, written by John Wesley in 1755 to encourage believers to regularly re-state their commitment to the Lord.

This service has been very important to me over the years.  When Olga and I started building our relationship, I told her about it. And on our wedding night, we went through this service together.  It is a foundation of our marriage, and as individual disciples of the Lord, it is a foundation of our walk with Him.

You can see and download the entire service below. I strongly encourage you to make it a part of your devotional life. I have used it as a base for Bible study.

The service begins with a prayer for purity, and continues with worship, thanksgiving, confession of sin, asking of forgiveness, and then the assurance that our sins are indeed forgiven, in Christ.  After this time of preparation, the service has a wonderful final prayer:

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