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Cover or Expose?

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  Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. 1 Peter 4:8, NLT Cover or Expose? the Scripture says God will not promote gossips, faultfinders, or busybodies. It’s been said that every person carries a bucket of gasoline and a bucket of water. When you hear gossip, rumors, or juicy information about someone, you can either pour gasoline on it and cause the fire to spread or you can pour water on it and help put out the fire. Too many people use their gasoline. But even if it’s true and what they did was wrong, “love covers a person’s faults.” Love doesn’t expose them, doesn’t tell five friends and put it on social media. The mercy you show others is the mercy that’s going to be shown to you. If you’re harsh, judgmental, and expose people’s failures, magnify their mistakes, that same judgment is going to come back to you. You may know things that are true and could make someone look bad, but that’s a test. Can God trust you t...
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A New Way of Living!

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  A New Way of Living Scripture: Deuteronomy 17:16, NKJV “ But… the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’ ” (Deuteronomy 17:16, NKJV) After the wise men’s encounter with the newborn King, the Lord instructed them to return to their homeland by a different route. Things change when Jesus Christ assumes control of our lives.  We become new creations and are transformed into instruments for service to God. We abandon the old ways of doing things. We no longer try to earn our way to God through works. Instead of living the law of the flesh, we live by the law of faith. We become ambassadors for Christ. As we practice the concepts of  soak ,  sow ,  and  flow (explained in the book,  Kingdom  of God  our attitudes, thinking, and behavioral patterns change. The love of Christ compels us to live in harmony with the will of God. Even though we are wasting away outwardly, we discover we are being renewed inwardly daily. As we co...
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The Truth Struggles!

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  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Ephesians 6:11, NIV The Truth Struggle Some people say we’re in a power struggle with the enemy, but he was defeated by Jesus on the cross. You’re in a truth struggle. The only power the enemy has over you is the power you give him by believing his lies and deceptions. That’s why the Scripture says to recognize the enemy’s schemes. He starts with a little thought, a seed of doubt: “Your spouse doesn’t really love you.” “It’s okay to fudge on your taxes. It won’t hurt to do it one time.” The suggestions seem harmless, but if you dwell on them, they will lead to all kinds of detrimental things—brokenness, addictions, loneliness, lack. The enemy can be convincing, but you have the Spirit of God inside, the Spirit of truth who reveals the enemy’s lies, and you have the Word of God. When you ask God for wisdom and discernment, you’ll hear the still small voice inside alert you to things that are...
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Keep Moving!

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  Keep Moving! Scripture: Exodus 14:15, ESV “ The Lord said to Moses, ‘Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. ’” (Exodus 14:15, ESV) A paper weight on my desk has the inscription, “Don’t wait for your ship to come in. Swim out to it!” In practicing  Kindom  of God we aggressively look for ways to invest our talents for the advancement of the Kingdom of God. People often make the mistake of waiting for their ship to come in – hoping for something to come their way. Good intentions alone are not enough to accomplish any worthwhile objective. Perhaps the Lord is saying, “Stop waiting for your ship; start swimming!” Someone said it is a lot easier to steer a moving car than one that is standing still. As we participate in worthwhile Kingdom efforts, we can more easily see how the Lord is guiding us to the places where we can be the most productive. We need to be alert to areas in which the Spirit of God is moving and blessing the efforts being made on ...
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Does It Really Matter?

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  It matters very little to me what you think of me, even less where I rank in popular opinion. 1 Corinthians 4:3–4, MSG Does It Really Matter? It’s good to have a spouse who speaks faith into your life, a neighbor who cheers you on, a friend who encourages you. It’s healthy when you have people who make you feel valued and appreciated. But it becomes unhealthy if you start depending on them to make you feel good about who you are, if you lose your passion because someone’s not there to encourage you or someone doesn’t approve you and instead puts you down. We can become so dependent upon others’ approval that we base our value, our worth, on what they are telling us. That’s a codependent relationship. God didn’t create you to be dependent on someone else to keep you fixed. He uses people to bless and encourage you, but at some point they’ll let you down and can’t be there for you every time you have a difficulty or think you need them. As a child of God, you have His approval of w...
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Where’s Your Permanent Home?

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  Where’s Your Permanent Home? Scripture: Hebrews 11:16, NIV “ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. ” (Hebrews 11:16, NIV) Being heavenly minded, but earthly sensitive, is a core principle in practicing  Kingdom  of God What does that mean? It means that we know we’re passing through this temporary world on the way to our permanent home in heaven. With that in mind, we make choices in light of investing the three Ts –  time, talent, and treasure  – for the advancement of God’s kingdom. Those who came before us did the same thing. Hebrews 11 lists people of faith who, from the beginning of time, chose to listen to God and guided their lives accordingly. The list included Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abram, and Moses. They willingly exchanged many of the temporary pleasures of this world so they could inherit the promises made to them by God. In faith, they l...
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You Lack Nothing!

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  ...those who trust in the LORD will lack no good thing. Psalm 34:10, NLT You Lack Nothing Sometimes we see ourselves at a disadvantage. We think that if we just had more talent, more funds, more connections, or a better personality, we could accomplish greater things. As long as you see yourself as lacking, you’ll make excuses to settle where you are and be less than your best. But the psalmist says God has given you everything you need for your destiny—the wisdom, the confidence, the strength. He’s already lined up the right people, the good breaks, the resources. It’s already there. The question is, Are you discounting what He’s given you because it seems ordinary and you feel common? Here’s the key: You have to have faith in what God has given you. You don’t have to have great talent, a great education, or great resources to do something great. If you use what you have, God will breathe on it, and you’ll accomplish more than you thought possible. You can have an extraordinary ...
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