tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11789592406271623382024-02-08T10:50:05.678-08:00Life is Short.Atlantichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18063254191839166924noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178959240627162338.post-56489604299728106992017-01-31T19:49:00.001-08:002017-01-31T19:52:19.335-08:00Trusting God's Wisdom & Guidance For What's Good in My Life<p dir="ltr">I am currently reading a book that was recommended by a friend. It's titled "<b><i>Good or God? </i></b><i>Why good without God isn't enough</i>" by John Bevere.</p>
<p dir="ltr">I'll share a few notes of what has hit me so far. :)</p>
<p dir="ltr">(<b>pg</b><b>. 23</b>) John Bevere writes, "<i>Eve's desire [for the apple] was justified the longer she believed there was something good for her in that tree.</i>"<br>
But was there something good for her in that tree? Appearances can be deceiving. Just because something seems good doesn't mean it is good.</p>
<p dir="ltr">"However, the enemy (Satan) is able to get you to turn against God <i>by perverting your perspective of God's character</i>."</p>
<p dir="ltr">There is a "good" that is not submitted to God and no matter how "good" it may appear, Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."<br>
God is not withholding what is best from us. (Psalm 84:11 says, "No good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless.")</p>
<p dir="ltr">John Bevere adds, "<i>The root of our hostility with God comes from our motive to evaluate "good", "right", (etc.) according to </i><b><i>our own</i></b><i> standards rather than those of God.</i><br>
<i>...The bottom line is, do I truly believe God's wisdom is perfect and trust Him for what's best in my life?</i>"<br>
Every human must solidify the answer to this question in his or her heart.<br>
"<i>And this core conviction cannot vary from one matter to another. Either God's wisdom is perfect in all cases, or it's flawed and we're better off making our own decisions independent of Him.</i>"</p>
Atlantichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18063254191839166924noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178959240627162338.post-76095902421937820292017-01-21T19:08:00.001-08:002017-01-31T19:54:33.212-08:00Speak Life<p dir="ltr">I've been listening to TobyMac a lot. His music is upbeat and his lyrics are challenging, plus full of hope and encouragement.</p>
<p dir="ltr">His song "<i><b>Speak Life</b></i>" is my favorite to play on the way to work.<br>
"<i>It's crazy to imagine</i><br>
<i>words from your lips as the arms of compassion.</i><br>
<i>Mountains crumble</i><br>
<i>with every syllable,</i><br>
<i>hope can live or die.</i>"</p>
<p dir="ltr">We have a choice what we do here on earth. They say "hurt people hurt people," but <i>hurt people don't have to hurt people</i>.</p>
<p dir="ltr">"<i>Speak life to the deadest, darkest night.</i><br>
<i>Speak life when the sun won't shine and you don't know why.</i><br>
<i>Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted,</i><br>
<i>watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope;</i><br>
<i>you speak love;</i><br>
<i>you speak life.</i>"</p>
<p dir="ltr">What we say has the potential to refresh, encourage, build up, repair, and more.<br>
Let's choose to speak life. (:</p>
<p dir="ltr"><i>"The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit." - Prov. 15:4</i></p>
Atlantichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18063254191839166924noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178959240627162338.post-24578097943524647562017-01-21T18:52:00.001-08:002017-01-21T18:52:33.887-08:00Purpose of this Blog<p dir="ltr">I want to make a difference for God. I don't know what to do with my life, but He has given me a spirit of hope and a desire to glorify Him.<br></p>
<p dir="ltr">I enjoy writing and although it has been private so far, I've been feeling a nudge to take it public.</p>
<p dir="ltr">So please pray that God will use these posts to help people; to teach others and myself; and to honor Him.<br>
Please also pray that I would stay humble in this journey and keep my eyes on Him. If it's not about Him, I've missed what really matters.</p>
Atlantichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18063254191839166924noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178959240627162338.post-29288264784629058612015-03-28T19:31:00.000-07:002017-01-21T18:26:06.975-08:00Never Make an Exception of Yourself<div class="article-content entry-content" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; margin: 10px auto 5px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"I'm a philosophy professor."</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"If you could give one piece of advice to a large group of people, what would it be?"</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"Never make an exception of yourself."</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"What does that mean?"</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"People like to make exceptions of themselves. They hold other people to moral codes that they aren't willing to follow themselves. For example, people tend to think that if they tell a lie, it's because it was absolutely necessary. But if someone else tells a lie, it means they're dishonest. So never make an exception of yourself. If you're a thief, don't complain about being robbed."</span><br><br>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: xx-small;">[Excerpt taken from "Humans of New York" on Facebook]</span></i></span></div>
Atlantichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18063254191839166924noreply@blogger.com0