Martin Luther’s dramatic challenge to the Catholic Church in 1517 was a watershed event that brought rapid changes which still echo today.
Source: 10 Ways the Reformation Still Reverberates – Facts & Trends
Month: October 2017
The Drift into Distractions
Are you ever distracted while trying to pray? I am! One minute I’m deep into intercession for a friend, the next I suddenly think to purchase Christmas cards today (triggered by thoughts of friends, you see).
Why is it my thoughts can drift so easily? How is it possible to lose focus while in the presence of Almighty God? Such a frustration. Guilt-producing, too.
Perhaps strategies such as these will be helpful:
- Light a candle.
Let it symbolize the presence of Jesus, our Light of the world, with us as we pray.
- Picture a quiet place with Jesus.
For years my quiet time took place in the early morning hours before anyone else got up. For Bible study, I spread my books and papers across the kitchen table. For prayer time, I spread my arms across the table, visualizing Jesus sitting on the other side from me and holding my…
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One Missionary’s Thoughts on Short-Term Mission
If you are a parent, you’ve seen it at least a squillion times. You’re working in the kitchen and your tiny child’s cherub-like face looks up at you and says,
“I want to help.”
In the idyllic households, the parent looks upon the child, acknowledges his servant’s heart, cradles his cheeks, and invites him to the table. Bathed in filtered light and surrounded by flitting hummingbirds, you make a delicious pan of brownies together. You crack the eggs into the bowl. You delicately measure the ingredients. You taste the batter, licking the giant spoon simultaneously. And let’s not forget the giggles when you, the parent, dust some flour on the tip of your little angel’s nose.
Yes. It’s always the nose.
If your house is anything like mine, the scene above couldn’t be further from reality. When my kids say “I want to help,” my brain’s KIDSPEAK translator shouts back…
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There Are Times
There are times when, in the darkest moments of your life, the only comfort left for you is a word from God.
Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby
(Experiencing God Day By Day)
Experiencing God
Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. John 5:19-20
One of the spiritual markers in my relationship with the Lord is “Experiencing God” Bible study by Henry and Richard Blackaby. The study was such a blessing as we learned and experienced the Seven Realities for Experiencing God. God taught me principles for Kingdom living that all these years later still just rise up in my heart and mind. Here are a couple in regards to God always being at work.
- Watch to see where God is working and join Him in His work.
- You cannot stay where you are and go with God. You cannot continue doing…
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A Prayer For You
Originally posted on SisterwithVision:
Praying for somebody else is a humbling experience.Do you remember the last time you prayed for somebody who was not your close family member? Praying for others means we put others before us.It is a sacrificial act.The Lord Jesus Christ encouraged…
Expect Great Things!
Each time before you intercede,
be quiet first and worship God in his glory.
Think of what he can do
And how he delights to hear the prayers
of his redeemed people.
Think of your place and privilege in Christ
and expect great things!
We can EXPECT great things? That news gets my heart beating a little faster. How about you?
I also find Reverend Murray’s affirmations raising important questions–questions like:
How do I quiet myself?
My thoughts can jump from one thing to another until they’re on another continent from the subject of my prayer. What’s a scatterbrain like me to do?
I researched solutions for that problem a couple of years ago, and six suggestions became a blog post, “The Drift into Distractions.”
Since then I’ve encountered two more ways to still my mind:
1. One, shut the door.
Sounds a bit silly, I…
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Praying for the millennials 