The Message

The Message Luke 6:43-49

You don't get wormy apples off a healthy tree, nor good apples off a diseased tree. The health of the apple tells the health of the tree. You must begin with your own life-giving lives. It's who you are, not what you say and do that counts. Your true being brims over into true words and deeds.

Why are you so polite with me, always saying 'Yes, sir,' and "That's right, sir," but never doing a thing I tell you? These words I speak to you are not mere additions to you life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living.They are foundation words, words to build a life on.

If you work the words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who dug deep and laid the foundation of his house on a bedrock. When  the river burst its banks and crashed against the house, nothing could shake it; it was built to last. But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are a dumb carpenter who built a house but skipped the foundation. When the swollen river came crashing in, it collapsed like a house of cards. It was a total loss."

Obedience to the Word of God as God guides as daily. It is better to obey  then sacrifice. Remember it is better to fear God than to fear man. don't let the fear of man stop you from obeying God. When God has called you no man can take that away. The gifts and calling of God are without repentance.Believing God one step at a time.

1 Samuel 15:22 (The Message)

 ^22-23 Then Samuel said,
    Do you think all God wants are sacrifices—
      empty rituals just for show?
   He wants you to listen to him!
   Plain listening is the thing,
      not staging a lavish religious production.
   Not doing what God tells you
      is far worse than fooling around in the occult.
   Getting self-important around God
      is far worse than making deals with your dead ancestors.
   Because you said No to God's command,
      he says No to your kingship.

Check out Made to Crave Webcast - Replays

Check out Made to Crave Webcast - Replays

When the Hurt Runs Deep

Healing and Hope for Life's Desperate Moments

Written by Kay Arthur

About This Book

Where Can You Turn for Hope
When the Hurt Runs Deep?

At some point in life, every one of us will face the dark pain of heartache and despair, a hurt that pierces so deep we’re left gasping with questions:

Why me? Why now?

What have I done to deserve this?

Will the pain ever go away?

How can God just stand by and let this happen?

What do I have left to hope for?


Writing from insights she has gained, not only through her own valleys of deep hurt but also from years of study and counseling others through their pain, Kay Arthur points the way toward genuine healing. With candor, grace, and vulnerability, she invites you to join her on a journey toward wholeness as you exchange your fears and frustrations, hurts and disappointments for a hope that will never disappoint.

My Review:
The author discusses the various types of suffering we may experience. Such as suffering as a result of someone else's actions or our own. She shows through the scriptures why christian are not free from difficulties and how God uses those times to work His plans for our lives.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is suffering and wondering where God is in their situation.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book for free from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group as part of their blogging for books program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 225: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Slave The Hidden Truth About Your Identity in Christ

By John MacArthur
Published by Thomas Nelson 

Book Description

Best-selling author and pastor Dr. John MacArthur reveals one crucial word that revolutionizes what it means to follow Jesus.
Throughout the Bible, followers of Jesus are commanded to submit to Him as their King. They are told to obey and follow, faithfully and without hesitation. Every time Christians utter the word Lord, they make a subtle yet profound declaration—that God is their Master and that they belong to Him. In fact, the Bible describes believers as His slaves. They have been bought with a price and now live for Christ as a people for His own possession.
But go into most churches today, even flip through most Bible translations, and you won’t see or hear the word slave anywhere. That’s because it has been lost in translation. In this gripping book, Dr. John MacArthur uses deep Bible teaching and historical evaluation to expertly uncover the one forgotten word that restores the Bible’s definition of true Christian freedom.

My Review:
I think the belief that we are slaves of Christ not just servants is an important one. However, I did not really like the way the author choose to convey the concept to the reader. I felt that there was too much filler as the author goes about proving his case about the word "slave" being lost in our westernized translation. I believe that it would have been better had the author brought this significant subject to the reader through a series of articles rather than a book containing too much filler, which only takes away from the importance of the  subject matter..



The publisher provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through Booksneeze for the purpose of this review. 

HIS WORD

 

Romans 12 (The Message)

 ^1-2 So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

The Word

"Forget about what's happened; don't keep going over old history.
Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new. It's bursting out! Don't you see it? There it is! I'm making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands. Isaiah 43:18-19 The Message

Thirty-One Days of Drawing Near to God

Resting Securely in His Delight

Written by Ruth Myers

About This Book

Draw near…
He’ll answer your deepest longings. 

Do you enjoy the soul-satisfying intimacy with God you were created for? In this heartfelt devotional, beloved author Ruth Myers invites you to a personal, daily encounter with your first, last, and best love.

Each brief but deeply satisfying reading explores the riches of God’s passion for you and your true identity as one in whom He delights. As you engage your heart with His, you’ll discover anew the joy of hearing Him speak to you individually, tenderly, in life-changing ways that will root you firmly in relationship with Him.

Experience lavish love, astounding mercy—and an intimacy more satisfying than you’d ever imagined possible. Draw near to God, and He’ll draw near to you.

My Review:
This is a book that I would normally not pick out but glad I did.The book is about the Lord being our "first love" and how much God loves us. It encourages us  to look to God to fill the places in our heart and life that we often look to others to fill. The author shares from her personal life experiences and how God filled the places of her life with His love through His Word to her. This book is more of a love story that we all can have with the Lord when we remember who are first love is and should remain being in our life, the Lord Jesus Himself.


I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.