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CF has always been a site that welcomes people from different backgrounds and beliefs to participate in discussion and even debate. That is the nature of its ministry. In view of recent events emotions are running very high. We need to remind people of some basic principles in debating on this site. We need to be civil when we express differences in opinion. No personal attacks. Avoid you, your statements. Don't characterize an entire political party with comparisons to Fascism or Communism or other extreme movements that committed atrocities. CF is not the place for broad brush or blanket statements about groups and political parties. Put the broad brushes and blankets away when you come to CF, better yet, put them in the incinerator. Debate had no place for them. We need to remember that people that commit acts of violence represent themselves or a small extreme faction.
Devotion
- Thread starter ~InHisHands~
- Start date
Yes I realize that and I totally understand. However, if you knew for certain it was for something good...it would make it easier right? We can't learn patience if we already know the outcome. 
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~Pours her a fresh cup of coffee & ruffles her hair & smiles~ I have to go get ready for work now. Take care sweetheart! ~Hug~
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Abigayle's Legacy
Senior Contributor
Gabby pokes her head in ....Red oh Red...two men one little ole me join the party at my place.
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THANK you! I appreciate this! I really do! WISE advice, and I would be wise to heed it!
/me sips coffee.....
ah, this is heaven.
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James 1 {NIV}
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding
fault, and it will be given to him.
6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the
sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
First of all...we don't ask. We just assume that because God knows all of our needs he is supposed to just meet them. But, that's not the way it works. It's just like with people...if you don't ask, you can't just expect someone to do something. Even if you know that they know you need help. And sometimes there are some of us who figure God has other things to worry about.
We think that our needs seem trivial compared to (for example) the starving children around the globe. However, the small things are just as important as the bigger things. Something that may seem small to us, may be causing us untold grief. So why not ask for help?
Second, we may ask but, in our hearts we doubt that God will do anything. I don't know how many times I've mentioned to someone about asking God in prayer and I've heard, "Oh I could but, I don't think God hears my prayers" or "I would but, I don't think he's listening to me anymore." Or we simply think it's something he can't fix. The bible refers to this type of Christian
as being double-minded or unstable. God can fix anything. The key is, you have to believe and trust in the Lord.
The third reason may be that we're asking God to fix the symptom but, not the actual need. For example: we may ask God to heal us of an emotional pain and not the problem causing it. Therefore, it just continues to hurt. We have to talk to God about the whole problem. We have to address the root of the need and not just the symptom.
The Lord wants to meet our needs but, if we're not telling him the whole story and asking for the
solution to the problem, then fixing the symptom will only be temporary. Are you standing in the way of God's help?
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding
fault, and it will be given to him.
6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the
sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
First of all...we don't ask. We just assume that because God knows all of our needs he is supposed to just meet them. But, that's not the way it works. It's just like with people...if you don't ask, you can't just expect someone to do something. Even if you know that they know you need help. And sometimes there are some of us who figure God has other things to worry about.
We think that our needs seem trivial compared to (for example) the starving children around the globe. However, the small things are just as important as the bigger things. Something that may seem small to us, may be causing us untold grief. So why not ask for help?
Second, we may ask but, in our hearts we doubt that God will do anything. I don't know how many times I've mentioned to someone about asking God in prayer and I've heard, "Oh I could but, I don't think God hears my prayers" or "I would but, I don't think he's listening to me anymore." Or we simply think it's something he can't fix. The bible refers to this type of Christian
as being double-minded or unstable. God can fix anything. The key is, you have to believe and trust in the Lord.
The third reason may be that we're asking God to fix the symptom but, not the actual need. For example: we may ask God to heal us of an emotional pain and not the problem causing it. Therefore, it just continues to hurt. We have to talk to God about the whole problem. We have to address the root of the need and not just the symptom.
The Lord wants to meet our needs but, if we're not telling him the whole story and asking for the
solution to the problem, then fixing the symptom will only be temporary. Are you standing in the way of God's help?
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YAY!! Lord please give Red the strength to make it through today with no desire to smoke. Lord I pray a special blessing on her. Wrap her in Your arms, In Jesus Name! Amen!
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Thank you Mel. ~Warm hug~ I'm just thankful the patch is available to help aid in my progress.
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Ecclesiastes 3:6
a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away
a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away
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Awesome!
Ya know Red, I don't mind at all sharing my sand box with you.
Do you still have your PM's shut off?? I wanted to ask you something.
Have a good night.
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ForHisGlory
You're Invited To My Mansion In The Sky
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YAY I found the thread...I sent PM's but they were unavailable. But am here now and read the previous pages to catch up. I'll be reading Bible Study threads every morning now
One in Deeper Fellowship and the other here in Friendship court.
What a mega help!
Love and hugs and Good Morning
One in Deeper Fellowship and the other here in Friendship court.
What a mega help!
Love and hugs and Good Morning
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They're turned on Rachel.
Morning Tammy. I'm glad you gals are getting something out of this.
~Sips coffee & digs through study materials~
Morning Tammy. I'm glad you gals are getting something out of this.
~Sips coffee & digs through study materials~
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This morning I want to talk about humility. The act of humbling ourselves comes up in many of our daily situations. But, I think the toughest act of humbling ourselves comes through having to face something that we've done wrong and having the courage to apologize. This past week I let my anger get the better of me. I blew up at something petty and made 3 people feel very uncomfortable. I wasn't a very good witness for Christ at all. I had to sit down yesterday with my boss and explain what happened. This is the first time I didn't get wrote up. However, she did make one small request of me which for me was rather big. She simply requested that I apologize to those involved. We don't say the words "I'm sorry" much in our day to day lives. It's because it involves a certain humility that we often don't care to butt heads with. I kept trying to reason it away. I kept telling myself I wasn't really all that wrong but, the fact is this, regardless of whether I was wrong or not, the act was uncalled for. So, I started with the person whom I felt the most compassion and respect for. I had to swallow any pride I had to apologize because I know how my actions affect this woman. Having to humble ourselves enough to apologize takes us out of our comfort zone. And believe me...I was very uncomfortable. She thanked me and told me she always forgives me anyway. She's a peach. Then I apologized to the 2nd gal. She's pretty easy going but, nonetheless...I still have one more to go. One I don't know that well. She may not be as accepting of it as the others as she was the one most offended by my behavior. I could just let my prideful feelings keep telling me that I was "not all that wrong" but, the thing is, my reason for it may not have been all that wrong, the thoughts I had may not have been all that wrong, but, it was the actual act of my anger that was. It took me all day to figure that one out. But, God tells us in the bible what he expects from us.
"Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:4
Matthew 18:4
"Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted."
Matthew 23:12
Matthew 23:12
"It is better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud."
Proverbs 16:19
Proverbs 16:19
"But He gives us greater grace. Therefore it says, "God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace
to the humble."
James 4:6
to the humble."
James 4:6
"The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility."
Proverbs 15:33
Proverbs 15:33
"A man's pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor."
Proverbs 29:23
Proverbs 29:23
"Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper
time."
1 Peter 5:6
time."
1 Peter 5:6
While I don't feel any honor at the moment...it is promised that I will have honor for this. And the
first lady I had to apologize to informed me I would feel so much better when I do this. ~Shakes head and chuckles~ I don't at the moment but, I know that God will help me to see and understand later. We may not always see the hand of God at work but, when we allow the devil to darken our hearts even a little bit, we must feel the sting of the rod in order for correction to take
place.
first lady I had to apologize to informed me I would feel so much better when I do this. ~Shakes head and chuckles~ I don't at the moment but, I know that God will help me to see and understand later. We may not always see the hand of God at work but, when we allow the devil to darken our hearts even a little bit, we must feel the sting of the rod in order for correction to take
place.
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Jeremiah 17
7 "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.
8 He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit."
7 "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.
8 He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit."
People will fail us. Only the Lord is fully trustworthy and dependable.
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His master replied, "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!"
Matthew 25:21
Matthew 25:21
Testing a product allows us to see how well it will hold up under extreme stress. There is always a place where the product will fail under the pressure. As christians, it is under these times of great stress that we find out how well we've been trained to withstand the pressure and make the right choices regardless of what is going on around us. We lose our focus and concentration during times of tribulation because we are either worried about the outcome of our actions or we're not thinking about the outcome at all. This begins to rule our emotions and actions which results in failure under pressure. In our daily lives when we give in to the pressures we see problems such as these occur:
1. Compulsive behavior
2. Withdrawal
3. Anger
4. Abuse
5. Moral failure
6. Dishonesty
2. Withdrawal
3. Anger
4. Abuse
5. Moral failure
6. Dishonesty
Jesus never yielded to pressure. Regardless of the outcome, he was always obedient. He always performed the same no matter what the circumstance. How many of us can do that? As we grow and as God entrusts us with more responsibility, he brings more pressure into our lives to test us and make sure we can handle the responsibility. This helps us to see where we are in our spiritual maturity and determines the level of future responsibility. Can we perform the way we were designed to no matter what is going on around us? In order to perform the way we are supposed to we must continually keep a relationship with Christ. He has made us all to perform well under pressure if only we trust him.
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Abigayle's Legacy
Senior Contributor
Red there is such wisdom in your words that have been God given...it confirmed something I felt led to do today...thank you.
hugs sis
G
hugs sis
G
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