Alive! Inside and Out by Larry Refsland
You can’t judge a book by its cover. Outside appearances may not really tell the true story. I remember seeing an article in one of the gossip magazines entitled, “How I Shot a Bear Blindfolded.” That was the title, but the story was more along the lines of, “How that bear got to be blindfolded, I’ll never know!” Sometimes it pays to look a little deeper than our first impressions. We’ve all seen fallen trees after a storm. Sometimes we’re surprised to see what we thought was a healthy tree broken in two by strong winds. Upon closer examination, the signs of disease and decay show why the tree couldn’t stand against the storm. Many of us are like that tree. We look good on the outside, we seem to have our lives together; but inside we are hurting or lonely or afraid. The Bible reminds us that even though we look on the outward appearance, God looks on the heart. You can’t fool God. He knows we need inner strength and peace. For me, it’s great to know I can be real with God. I don’t have to hide anything from Him. I can openly share my feelings and frustrations with Him. I find when I tell Him how I really am doing, He comes and gives me peace and hope. As it says in Psalm 30:11, he turns my mourning into dancing, and in Isaiah 61:3, He exchanges my spirit of heaviness for a feeling of praise. Be real with God today and let Him strengthen your inner being. An Unlimited Supply by Larry Refsland
How would you like to have a bank account you could never exhaust? Wouldn’t it be great to have an account where no matter how much you spend one day, the account is replenished by the next day? There is an account like that available to each of us. It’ not offered at any of the lending institutions in your town. It’s an account in Heaven! The depositor is Jesus Christ, and we make withdrawals everyday. The account is not a cash account; it’s a mercy account. We all need God’s mercy. Without it, we have no hope of forgiveness or love. God is rich in mercy, writes Paul in Ephesians 2:4. He has vast amounts of mercy that is obtainable by a verbal request. It comes to us as we confess our wrongdoings to God and ask for forgiveness. God extends to us forgiveness, not based on anything of value we have, but out of his great supply of mercy. Mercy is not earned or deserved; it is a gift from God. In case you feel you’ve exhausted God’s supply of mercy, consider this, Lamentations 3:22-23 says that His mercies are made new every morning! He has a fresh supply for us today, even if you have used up all that He had yesterday, which by the way, would be impossible. Make sure you make the necessary withdrawal from the mercy account of God today. Go to Him in prayer and make your request. His supply far exceeds your need! God Chose You by Larry Refsland
When kids decide to play ball, the first thing they have to do is choose sides. For many kids, this is one of life’s most dreaded moments. No one wants to be picked last, as kind of a leftover that neither team wants but one is going to get stuck with by default. Everyone wants to be chosen. Everyone wants to be noticed and accepted. We all want to make a contribution, not a liability. The Bible assures us that we have been chosen by God to be on his team. It says, “We have not chosen Him, but He chose us and appointed us to bear fruit—fruit that will last.” God doesn’t play favorites. He doesn’t pick us based on how good we are, but on how good he is! In fact, the more a person thinks he has to offer God; the less God can use that person. He likes to pick the smallest, the weakest person through whom he can do something great. He knows that kind of person will not rely on his own strength, but will depend totally on God to accomplish what he is called upon to do. God chose Gideon to lead the Israelites to victory, even though Gideon was from the smallest tribe, the least significant family in the tribe, and he was the least in his family. God chose David, a little shepherd boy, to defeat Goliath, a strong and experienced warrior. So it is no surprise that God would choose you and me to follow Him and serve Him. There is no limit to what God can do through a man, woman or child who is on God’s team. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” Why not make that your battle cry as you face the day? “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!” Have an awesome day! Are you the type of person who sees a glass half full or half empty? I don’t think we are born positive or negative; it’s just that life’s circumstances shape us into one or the other. I mean, when you have positive expectations that just don’t pan out, it can be very disappointing. And, let’s admit it, disappointment hurts! No one wants to experience that pain over and over again. So, instead of high hopes, a person who has gone through the pain of disappointment tends to settle for low or no expectations. After all, if you aren’t expecting much, you probably won’t be disappointed when nothing happens.
But is that the way to get the most out of life? I believe God is a positive force, not a negative one. When we think positively, positive things are more likely to happen. When we think negatively, negative things are more likely to happen. The Bible tells us in Philippians 4:8 to think of things that are pure and lovely, and true and noble, things that are excellent and praiseworthy. It also says in Proverbs 23:7 that whatever a person thinks in his heart, so is he. You become what you dwell on. You can be a negative person or a positive person. Believe me, it’s more pleasant to be with positive people. Even in a negative situation, a follower of Christ can hold to the promise of God in Romans 8:28, “…all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” Expect the best—God will not let you down. |
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