Month: August 2023

Weekly words of encouragement

You Participate In God’s Nature – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“He has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” II Pet. 1:4 (ESV) This is one of the most astonishing verses in the Bible and has been one of the cornerstones of spiritual growth since the earliest centuries of Christianity. The Greek-speaking fathers of the Church were devoted to the idea that we could regain the original image of God because we can actually participate in God’s nature now. God promises that we are forgiven, that we are united with Christ, that the Holy Spirit works to purify us and that we will be citizens of the New Earth in the next age. As we live according to these truths we mature, which means we are actually acquiring the traits of God’s Continue Reading →

humility, shame

Self-Rejection Keeps You From Connecting With Others

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Shame can be described as a sense of embarrassment, dishonor, disgrace or inadequacy. These feelings come from something you did or thought that contradicts what you believe to be good or valuable (this is essentially guilt which is a precursor to shame). Just the fact that we fall short of our own standards of good produces shame in all of us. We want to hide our weakness from others because we want them to value us. This is why it is normal for people to display their best self to others, which probably helps society stay civilized. But we also naturally display a false self in many situations, which keeps us from truly connecting with others. We use our false self to cover up our shame, for example, pretending that we have our life all together when actually we are broken or struggling. It takes time, but we need to Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

You Are A Spiritual Brick In God’s House – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” I Peter 2:5 (NIV) It is hard to picture what a living stone would look like but you are a living spiritual brick and God is carving all of us into perfect pieces of a magnificent spiritual temple of God’s presence. And, we have the Spirit of God dwelling inside us, as in the holy of holies in Solomon’s temple. So we are the higher fulfillment of the concept of God’s temple. God dwells in us and our whole lives are sacrifices, offerings, to God; this is all in the realm of living spiritual realities instead of a physical temple and physical sacrifices. Moreover, just as the Garden of Eden was a temple of God’s presence so now the collective of all believers is the Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

The Tremendous Rewards For Passing Tests Of Faith – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“You have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith . . . may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” I Pet 1:6b-7 (ESV) This passage encourages us with three closely-related blessings believers will have if they pass the tests of faith in their life. Some of us have difficult external trials, some of us have difficult internal trials and some of us have both, but I have never known anyone who didn’t have some trials. We all have the opportunity to grow our faith through trials. When we are in a trial it is important to keep in mind that we will have a blessing when it is over. First, our character will be more Christlike if we kept our focus on Jesus. Second, God will give us some surprising rewards. When Jesus returns Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

Your Faith Is Your Treasure – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“Your faith [is] more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire.” I Pet 1:7 (ESV) Consider how joyful many of us would be if we discovered a stash of gold in our yard. We could get pay off our mortgage, help the needy, do whatever we want in ministry and not need any income from it, give donations to other ministries we value and put our kids into the best schools. But as valuable as gold is, it will perish. People treasure their gold and use it to make jewelry or to decorate their belongings. And someone has to go to a lot of trouble to purify the gold with fire. Living things – like people, animals, plants – can not survive a fire. Gold can. And yet, as valuable and strong as gold is, our faith is more precious than that. In fact, gold will Continue Reading →