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  • The Secret That Unlocks The Season

    The Secret That Unlocks The Season
    2025/11/16
    Paul's life, as documented in scripture, is remarkable. His journey to Rome to appeal his case to Caesar was filled with challenges, including shipwrecks, storms, and hostile encounters. Despite losing the ships and cargo, all crew members survived. After a shipwreck, they ended up on an island, cold and lost, but protected. After three months on the island, they find another ship and set out again, and finally reach Rome. Paul, weary and fearful, was encouraged by groups of believers who came to meet him. Their presence alleviated his fear, and he thanked God, gaining the courage to face what lay ahead. This story emphasizes the importance of recognizing blessings and expressing gratitude, which can uplift and unlock God's blessings. Paul's journey shows that life is never too difficult for God to be present, and a spirit of thanksgiving is essential for peace, contentment, and joy. Life's imperfections and challenges do not prevent us from giving thanks.
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    53 分
  • Thankful for the Mud

    Thankful for the Mud
    2025/11/09
    In the United States, we are preparing to celebrate Thanksgiving. We are reminded to be grateful, even during challenging times. Gratitude is easy when life is good, but it is essential to remain thankful during hardships, as these experiences prepare us for future blessings. In our text, Jesus heals a man who has been blind since birth. The mud, though messy and symbolic of despair, was a transformative tool Jesus used to bring about healing. The man's obedience and cleansing, not the mud itself, led to his sight being restored. The mess is part of the message, and while we may not choose our trials, they are orchestrated for our benefit. Ultimately, God does not want us to remain in our struggles but to be cleansed and transformed through them.
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    47 分
  • When God Gets In Your Business

    When God Gets In Your Business
    2025/10/26
    There is a difference between feeling like a failure and being a failure. The men in our text were professional fishermen. They knew this lake and its peculiarities for fishing. They were skilled, trained, and experienced. But on that night, they were unsuccessful. Despite the work and effort, the nets are empty. Jesus boards the boat and begins to teach people on the shore. After ministering to the people, Jesus tells Simon to launch out into the deep. Simon responds: We have worked all night and caught nothing, but we will do as you say. Something shifted in Simon during his response, and he decided to trust Jesus. The net-breaking catch was not the miracle of this story. Jesus did all that to get Simon to the place where he called James and John to be disciples. They were tired, having fished all night. They were disappointed because their work had not yielded any results. Let the nets down one more time. God knows how to deal with our failures, our emptiness. He knows how to turn things around. He can answer our deepest needs and insecurities. Allow Him to reposition us to a place where He can work in our lives.
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    57 分
  • That's What Love Will Do To You

    That's What Love Will Do To You
    2025/10/19
    Love will make you do some crazy things. Love can change us. It can soften our hearts and change our priorities. Love is selfless. Love starts with a relationship and friendship. The hardships didn't matter because you love each other. Love will cause you to do things others would not understand. Jesus demonstrated His love by laying down. His life, while we were still sinners. In our text, Jacob is with Leben. He loved Rachel and submitted himself to the work for seven years because of his love. We like our payment up front, but Jacob agreed to work for 7 years before receiving Rachel as his wife, AND THEN to work for seven more after Laban tricked him. The bible says it only seemed like a few days because he loved Rachel so much. He was willing to do anything because he loved her. Is our relationship with Jesus like that? Do we view our relationship as a burden or a chore? Can we go back to the moment when we knew we loved Jesus? Can we remember what it felt like when we came up out of the water? Can we go back to when we received the Holy Ghost? Can we remember how we felt then? Does it still feel like that? When we serve, it is not an obligation or a duty; it is done out of love. Don't forget that feeling from the beginning when our love for Jesus was not a chore, but a privilege.
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    48 分
  • Confident In My Continual

    Confident In My Continual
    2025/10/12
    We all have specific ways and beliefs ingrained deep in us that we do without thinking. This is how deep Daniel's faith was. The enemy tried to trap him or find some fault to discredit him, but they could find none. Since they couldn't find anything, they began to plot a way to trap him using his faithfulness They devised a law that would prohibit people from praying to God rather than the King. They knew that Daniel would continue praying to Gad and therefore break the law. They were confident that he would be faithful. The King also knew that Daniel was faithful. He knew he had been tricked, but he had to go through the with the punishment. He encouraged Daniel, saying God would protect him. The real story here is not Daniel's faithfulness or that Darius recognized it. The real story is God's faithfulness. The message here is to be confident in our continual What do others see in us? Do they see a continual faith?
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    48 分
  • A Promise Bigger Than Your Problem

    A Promise Bigger Than Your Problem
    2025/09/28
    In scripture, the word therefore should cause us to stop and take notice. There is always a reason for the therefore. We need to hear whatever he says next. In this specific text, God's people were in captivity in Babylon. They found it too difficult to praise God. They were in a strange place and scattered across the land. They were in a place of little strength. Our text talks about little. However, this little is not insufficient. This little was more than enough. They were in a strange place and felt all alone. They wanted deliverance, but God promised them a little Sanctuary to get them through. He was going to be enough. They wanted more, but God was enough. We must learn how to praise God when we don't have enough. We must praise God in the times of trial and suffering. We may not have all we want, but we can praise Gad with what we have. We may not be as close to God as we should be, but we can praise Him where we are. We may not have what we used to have, but we can make it what we have left. We must praise God in our poverty to let the devil know he did not win. There is a biblical truth in scripture that if we do not use what God gives us, we will lose it. We must praise with what little hope we have, or we may lose what little hope we have. Our text gives us a promise amid the pain. He promised them He would be a little sanctuary right where they were. He was there and was all they needed.
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    48 分
  • The Divine Divide

    The Divine Divide
    2025/09/21
    We do not like being separated from the ones we love. However, sometimes it is necessary to allow for growth or development. Dad didn't let go of the bicycle to watch us fall. He let go so we could learn to ride on our own. God sometimes puts distance between Himself and us to push us toward something better or that is more than we think we can do. The psalmist bemoans his separation from God. But later, he realized that God was with him the whole time. Job felt that separation, but never lost faith. The distance is often real. But why is it there? Sin is one answer. God hates sin, and the bible says our sin separates us from God and causes Him to hide his face. The enemy uses this against us, telling us that our actions are too bad to be forgiven. But the Bible says NOTHING can separate us from the love of God. Given that, why does God put distance between us? He is trying to get us to grow. He has gone ahead to lead us to a higher place. He is leading; we must follow. His walking away is not leaving; it is leading. The divide is not a rejection. It is an invitation. There are times He shows up to where we are, but there are times we must move to where He is. In Matthew 14 the disciples are in a storm fighting against the wind. Jesus comes walking to them on the water. Peter says if it is you, bid me to come to you on the water. He wanted to overcome the divide. Jesus said Come.- That invitation was to all of them not just Peter. All we have to do is step out of the boat. Each step was a reward for believing in faith. God led Israel out of Egypt and gave them a pillar of cloud and fire by night to follow. They had to move with him, or be left behind. If we stay where He was, we will miss out on where He is taking us. We must get out of our comfort zone and close the divide. He cannot be the only one pursuing. We must close the gap and run Him. Our actions can create a divide, but so can our inaction. What feels like distance from God is His invitation to draw closer.
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    57 分
  • Too Much Or Not Enough

    Too Much Or Not Enough
    2025/09/14
    Deep down, all of us want to please God. To do that, we often give of ourselves: our time, our efforts, or our money. We can give all we have and more, but if what we give is not what God wants, what have we accomplished? Is it possible to give too much? When we try to impress God or outdo our neighbors, we may have given too much. The Old Testament is particular about sacrifices. It defines certain animals, in an exact condition, for each type of offering. The law also had allowances for those who could not afford a bull or a ram, to use a dove or a pigeon in place of the more expensive animal. God provided a way for each person to offer and accept an acceptable sacrifice for their sins. Sometimes we try to bargain with God by giving something else in place of the sacrifice He asks of us. It is not about the quantity. It is about the quality. God has no need for our wealth; He is asking a sacrifice from us to demonstrate our reliance on Him. God knows what we can bring. He is not asking us to outdo our neighbor; He is asking us to outdo ourselves. Whatever God is asking of us is what we should give. We should not question what He wants, or how He wants it. God is not trying to trick us. All we have to do is be pleasing to the Lord. Are we pleasing God when we do what he didn't ask us to do? What about the opposite situation? What if we won't give God what He asks? We offer too little when we only offer some. To obey is better than sacrifice. When we only obey part of what God asks, we have rejected all of God. God has shown what He wants from us. If we give more, it is not pleasing to Him, and if we give less, it is a sin. We must find a balance between giving too much and withholding what is required.
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    57 分