It means a lot when you know people are praying for you. It’s encouraging; you feel loved and appreciated. We often ask people for their prayers just because it means so much. The apostle Paul wrote: With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on [...]
Archive for February, 2012
And Pray on My Behalf
Posted in Uncategorized on February 27, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
An Explanation of God
Posted in Uncategorized on February 26, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him (John 1:18). The apostle Paul wrote that the invisible attributes, eternal power and divine nature of God have been clearly seen since the beginning (Romans 1:20). However, just looking at the beauty [...]
Bill
Posted in Uncategorized on February 25, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
I want to talk a bit about Bill. I think I’ve written about him before in these notes several years ago, but I was reminded of him tonight while listening to a sermon. I don’t remember exactly how I met Bill. We were in a Bible study, but I don’t remember how we came to [...]
God Loves You
Posted in Uncategorized on February 19, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
A hallmark of these notes has been to point out that God loves you. The passages referred to are selected to demonstrate that love. However, I wonder sometimes if there are not those who still have trouble believing that God could love them. Discouragement is such a powerful emotion that sometimes it hangs on even [...]
Doing Good
Posted in Uncategorized on February 18, 2012 | 2 Comments »
“Virtue is its own reward,” said orator and philosopher Cisero. In our society we do not begrudge those who work in service industries for their livelihoods, but we frown on those who happen upon someone in need and offer to help “for a price.” The apostle Paul put it this way: Let us not lose [...]
Serving You Since…Eternity
Posted in Uncategorized on February 14, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
How does it make you feel to know that you are the focus of God’s attention? I suppose the answer to that question depends on the purpose and kind of attention, doesn’t it? If we’re describing God’s attention in judgment, that might not be such a good thing. However, think about God’s attention to His [...]
Smiling at the Future
Posted in Uncategorized on February 13, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
I don’t know about you, but sometimes the thought of the future concerns me…no, it scares me! I know that a Christian is supposed to have faith and not worry about tomorrow because today has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:33, 34). Still, sometimes it’s hard and, to tell the truth, while I don’t [...]
The Encouragement of Maturity
Posted in Uncategorized on February 12, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
We have noted before the suffering of the apostle Paul (see 2 Corinthians 11). It is not difficult to see the concern that his brethren had for him when reading through the epistles he wrote, especially those we call “the Prison Epistles” (i.e. Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon). Our word of encouragement comes from Paul’s [...]
What Really Matters
Posted in Uncategorized on February 11, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
In an earlier post we noted that we do not lose heart because we receive mercy (2 Corinthians 4:1). Later in that chapter, Paul says: Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16). By “outer man,” Paul [...]
As We Received Mercy
Posted in Uncategorized on February 10, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart (2 Corinthians 4:1). In the context of this passage, the apostle Paul is describing the difference between the glory of New Testament Christianity compared to Old Testament Judaism. It is a great passage, full of hope and encouragement. For our [...]
