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Forgiveness
We should forgive others as the Bible says we should, but sometimes it isn’t easy. We need to forgive others if they have wronged just as God forgives us. When we forgive others it helps us to have a better relationship with them and with God. Colossians 3:13 says, “Make allowance for other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” This verse says a lot. We all have faults but we can’t hold it against them. We need to forgive just as God has forgiven us. We shouldn’t hold a grudge either because holding a grudge only leads to bitterness.…
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Speaking Truth in Love: Sometimes, we must begin small.
I struggle to speak the truth in love. Why? I want to please people and keep the peace. I have done this since I was a small child. I want the people I am around and love to feel accepted and supported. The problem with this is that sometimes my silence allows those that I love to sin. And, without correction from other believers, we will keep on sinning. Recently, I had an opportunity to practice speaking the truth in love in a small way. I was visiting with an elderly relative and several other family members. The elderly relative made a comment that I looked like I had really…
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Idols: Our focus determines our devotion.
Merriam-Websters online dictionary gives one definition of an idol as “an object of extreme devotion”. The online dictionary defines devotion as “religious fervor”, “the act of prayer or private worship”, and the “fact or state of being ardently dedicated and loyal”. I’m going to ask you a question and I want you to take a long moment to truly think about the answer. On a typical day, what do you spend most of your time devoted to doing or focusing on? If you answered God, good for you, you are in the minority. My guess is that most of us want to be able to honestly say that we devote…
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Do I have to wait?
The definition of patience is to stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or until something else happens. We live in a world where we always want the latest new things. The internet and cell phones allow us to always have access, and with two-day shipping, we don’t have to wait. We live in a society where a lot of things are on-demand and accessible 24/7. We often don’t have to wait or if we do it’s not for long. While some things are nice not to have to wait for, others it is perfectly ok to have to wait. We need to learn to wait…
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Oh Those Days
We have all had those days. The days when what we thought we were going to accomplish didn’t happen. Days where you are dog-tired at the end of the day. After all you have done, that to-do list never got completely finished. I can admit I used to make a lot of to-do lists. I was never able to completely check off everything on that list. At the end of the day, I felt overwhelmed that it didn’t get done. I was tired at the end of the day, thinking about what didn’t get done. I know God is watching us and looking at how we react or respond to…
