snuka12000
01-01-2008, 02:38 AM
"EXPECT YOUR 2008 TO BE GREAT!"
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The apostle Paul wrote to believers everywhere in, PHILIPPIANS 3: 13-14, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven."
We have all done things for which we are ashamed, and we live in the tension of what we have been and what we want to be. Because our hope is in Christ, however, we can let go of past guilt and look forward to what God will help us become. Don't dwell on your past. Instead, grow in the knowledge of God by concentrating on your relationship with Him NOW. Realize that you are forgiven, and then move on to a life of faith and obedience. Look forward to a fuller and more meaningful life because of your hope in Christ.
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The LORD said to the prophet Habakkuk in a vision in, HABAKKUK 2:3, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed."
Evil and injustice seem to have the upper hand in the world. Like Habakkuk, Christians often feel angry and discouraged as they see what goes on. Habakkuk complained vigorously to God about the situation. God's answer to Habakkuk is the same answer He would give us, "If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place." It isn't easy to be patient. As God told Habakkuk, "Wait patiently." We must trust God even when we don't understand why events occur as they do.
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This was written to all believers in Christ. HEBREWS 10: 35-36, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised."
Hebrews encourages believers to persevere in their Christian faith when facing pressure. We don't usually think of suffering as good for us, but it can build our character and our patience. During times of great stress, we may feel God's presence more clearly and find help from Christians we never thought would care. Knowing that Jesus is with us in our suffering and that He will return one day to put an end to all pain helps us grow in our faith and our relationship with Him. Don't abandon your faith in Christ in difficult times. Show by your endurance that your faith is real. Faith means resting in what Christ has done for us in the past, but is also means trusting Him for what He will do for us in the present and in the future.
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The LORD said to the prophet Isaiah in, ISAIAH 43: 15-19, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator and King. I am the Lord, who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses. I drew them beneath the waves, and they drowned, their lives snuffed out like a smoldering candlewick. “But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do a brand-new thing. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness for my people to come home. I will create rivers for them in the desert!"
The LORD is already doing a brand-new thing in your life! Receive it! The LORD will make a pathway! The LORD will create life in that which is dead.
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DEUTERONOMY 1: 20-21, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "I said to you, ‘You have now reached the land that the Lord our God is giving us. Look! He has placed it in front of you. Go and occupy it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you. Don’t be afraid! Don’t be discouraged!’"
In 2008, go and occupy the land that the LORD has already given to you! Take it! It's your's! It belongs to you! Don’t be afraid! Don’t be discouraged!
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In conclusion, bless other believers with this special blessing of the LORD which is found in, NUMBERS 6: 24-26, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "‘May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.’"
A blessing was one way of asking for God's divine favor to rest upon others. The ancient blessing in these verses helps us understand what a blessing was supposed to do. Its five parts conveyed hope that God would (1) bless and protect them; (2) smile on them (be pleased); (3) be gracious (merciful and compassionate); (4) show His favor toward them (give His approval); (5) give peace. When you ask God to bless others or yourself, you are asking Him to do these five things. The blessing you offer will not only help the one receiving it, it will also demonstrate love, encourage others, and provide a model of caring for others.
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Sincerely,
snuka12000
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The apostle Paul wrote to believers everywhere in, PHILIPPIANS 3: 13-14, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven."
We have all done things for which we are ashamed, and we live in the tension of what we have been and what we want to be. Because our hope is in Christ, however, we can let go of past guilt and look forward to what God will help us become. Don't dwell on your past. Instead, grow in the knowledge of God by concentrating on your relationship with Him NOW. Realize that you are forgiven, and then move on to a life of faith and obedience. Look forward to a fuller and more meaningful life because of your hope in Christ.
---------------------
The LORD said to the prophet Habakkuk in a vision in, HABAKKUK 2:3, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed."
Evil and injustice seem to have the upper hand in the world. Like Habakkuk, Christians often feel angry and discouraged as they see what goes on. Habakkuk complained vigorously to God about the situation. God's answer to Habakkuk is the same answer He would give us, "If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place." It isn't easy to be patient. As God told Habakkuk, "Wait patiently." We must trust God even when we don't understand why events occur as they do.
----------------------------
This was written to all believers in Christ. HEBREWS 10: 35-36, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised."
Hebrews encourages believers to persevere in their Christian faith when facing pressure. We don't usually think of suffering as good for us, but it can build our character and our patience. During times of great stress, we may feel God's presence more clearly and find help from Christians we never thought would care. Knowing that Jesus is with us in our suffering and that He will return one day to put an end to all pain helps us grow in our faith and our relationship with Him. Don't abandon your faith in Christ in difficult times. Show by your endurance that your faith is real. Faith means resting in what Christ has done for us in the past, but is also means trusting Him for what He will do for us in the present and in the future.
-------------------------
The LORD said to the prophet Isaiah in, ISAIAH 43: 15-19, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator and King. I am the Lord, who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses. I drew them beneath the waves, and they drowned, their lives snuffed out like a smoldering candlewick. “But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do a brand-new thing. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness for my people to come home. I will create rivers for them in the desert!"
The LORD is already doing a brand-new thing in your life! Receive it! The LORD will make a pathway! The LORD will create life in that which is dead.
---------------------------------
DEUTERONOMY 1: 20-21, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "I said to you, ‘You have now reached the land that the Lord our God is giving us. Look! He has placed it in front of you. Go and occupy it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you. Don’t be afraid! Don’t be discouraged!’"
In 2008, go and occupy the land that the LORD has already given to you! Take it! It's your's! It belongs to you! Don’t be afraid! Don’t be discouraged!
------------------------------------
In conclusion, bless other believers with this special blessing of the LORD which is found in, NUMBERS 6: 24-26, (New Living Translation Version of the Bible), "‘May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.’"
A blessing was one way of asking for God's divine favor to rest upon others. The ancient blessing in these verses helps us understand what a blessing was supposed to do. Its five parts conveyed hope that God would (1) bless and protect them; (2) smile on them (be pleased); (3) be gracious (merciful and compassionate); (4) show His favor toward them (give His approval); (5) give peace. When you ask God to bless others or yourself, you are asking Him to do these five things. The blessing you offer will not only help the one receiving it, it will also demonstrate love, encourage others, and provide a model of caring for others.
-----------
Sincerely,
snuka12000