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Showing posts from July, 2014

We can never truly arrive anywhere

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We all have a dream. For some people it might be finding the right mate and living happily in a nice house with a white picket fence. For another person it might be achieving a certain level of success in a career and getting that corner office in a high-rise building. But, whatever your dream, all our dreams have something in common — as we achieve one dream, another appears and we are on the move once again. This is because, as the saying goes, “Life’s a journey, not a destination.” We can never truly arrive anywhere. We will be forever traveling, forever on the journey of life. Money and prosperity not only have the ability to create conflict between family members and friends, they can also wreak havoc in the Christian community. In many ways, nothing has a greater ability to derail ministry work than a rich endowment. Some Christian leaders may balk at this statement, but the truth is not hard to discern. Many of America's universities were founded on Christian

No Matter How Hopeless

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I see people in pain, hurting, broken, and feeling as though they are without hope.  I’ve seen all of these things within just a few minutes of scrolling through the news feed of my Facebook page posted within the past 8 hours. I see broken people who need healing and restoration who are searching for real hope. God can heal a heart no matter how paralyzed, no matter how dead. And when I see the hopeless, and I feel I have nothing to bring relief, Do I believe that they can find comfort and peace and maybe even purpose again? I do. Isn’t that why I believe in a Savior? It’s the sick, it’s the hopeless that need one. It’s all of humanity really. It’s the worst thing watching someone you love in pain. But it’s this feeling that drives me to fight for their life. Because it makes me hurt a little less when I can bring a smile to their face. And I’m not the savior of the world but I can be a part in the healing process. I can be the hands and feet. As a Christian I kno

Change

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We all have a dream. For some people it might be finding the right mate and living happily in a nice house with a white picket fence. For another person it might be achieving a certain level of success in a career and getting that corner office in a high-rise building. But, whatever your dream, all our dreams have something in common — as we achieve one dream, another appears and we are on the move once again. This is because, as the saying goes, “Life’s a journey, not a destination.” We can never truly arrive anywhere. We will be forever traveling, forever on the journey of life. I was reading an interesting article - “Is Change Really a Problem?” By Dr.Jack Graham. He rightly says: Not only that, but look at the number of options we have today. When I was growing up, we had two channels we could watch on television. Today, we can turn to hundreds of channels without finding a single thing worth watching! One thing I’ve noticed over the past 40 years is just how much

Life is filled with Highs and Lows

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Life in general is filled with highs and lows, but it can especially be apparent for those in Christian ministry leadership positions. Just look at how many pastors, youth ministers, and worship directors eventually leave ministry. The work wears on a person. The constant complaints of doing too little of this or too much of that can drain anyone. As a leader, you are expected to be there for everyone at every moment of the day. No one is able to be there at all times. Still, guilt fills the mind and causes you to doubt your ministry and your effectiveness. Malachi preached after Haggai, Zechariah, and Nehemiah—about 430 B.C. The Temple had been rebuilt for almost a century, and the people were losing their enthusiasm for worship. Apathy and disillusionment had set in because the exciting messianic prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Micah had not been fulfilled. Many of the sins that had brought the downfall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. were still being practiced in Judah. Thi

The Law of Karma

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There is a lot of misunderstanding around this word. Karma simply means action. Every action has consequences. Conscious choice making is the most effective way of creating future consequences of karma. Karma creates the future, but it is also an echo from the past. Karma conditions our soul through memory, desire and imagination. Most people are prisoners of Karma, because it becomes a conditioned reflex and produces predictable outcomes in their lives. The goal of enlightenment is to break the in shackles of Karma. Every person is responsible for his or her acts and thoughts, so each person's karma is entirely his or her own. Occidentals see the operation of karma as fatalistic. But that is far from true since it is in the hands of an individual to shape his own future by schooling his present. Hindu philosophy, which believes in life after death, holds the doctrine that if the karma of an individual is good enough, the next birth will be rewarding, and if not, the

Kingdom First

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Another biography that has influenced my life is that of Hudson Taylor, the missionary to China. Taylor was on his knees before God, asking Him to provide for the work of the gospel in China. And God answered Taylor’s prayers by touching the hearts of Christians who had the wealth to give. Remarkably, God even touched George Mueller’s heart to become a prayer partner with Hudson Taylor. That’s another example of how one person’s obedience can affect many others. The Scripture teaches that your giving has kingdom-sized implications. It affects not only you and the people around you, but the whole worldwide kingdom of God. When you see your giving from God’s perspective, what a grand vision it is! I have always believed that as long as God knows where I am, He can cause anybody in the world to know where I am. That is the only way that people I have never met could feel compelled to give to my ministry. There is a much bigger picture than we are able to see. It is not just t