God Loves You Simply Because He Has Chosen To Do So. He Loves You When You Don't Feel Lovely. He Loves You When No One Else Loves You. Others May Abandon You, Divorce You, And Ignore You, But God Will Love You Always. No Matter What!

-Max Lucado

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God Loves You Simply

Max Lucado

Topic

Love You

Divorce

Lovely

More From Max Lucado

A Split Second Is Nothing Compared To Twenty-four Hours. On God's Clock You're In The Middle Of Your Millisecond. Compared To Eternity, What Is Seventy, Eighty, Ninety Years?

God

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I Know What I'll Be Preaching In The Spring, What I'll Be Preaching In The Summer, And What I'll Be Preaching Next Fall.

Summer

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Filter Your Pain Through The Brevity Of This Life And The Unending Beauty Of The Next.

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There Is Not A Hint Of One Person Who Was Afraid To Draw Near Him [jesus]. There Were Those Who Mocked Him. There Were Those Who Were Envious Of Him. There Were Those Who Misunderstood Him. There Were Those Who Revered Him. But There Was Not One Person Who Considered Him Too Holy, Too Divine, Or Too Celestial To Touch. There Was Not One Person Who Was Reluctant To Approach Him For Fear Of Being Rejected.

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God's Highest Desire Is Not To Make Us Rich, Successful Or Popular. His Goal Is To Make Us His

Successful

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Desire

Do You Understand What God Has Done? He Has Deposited A Christ Seed In You. As It Grows You Will Change. It's Not That Sin Has No More Presence In Your Life, But Rather That Sin Has No More Power Over Your Life.

Over You

Done

Sin

Don't See Yourself As A Product Of Your Parents Dna, But Rather As A Brand New Idea From Heaven.

Dna

Ideas

Parent

Vengeance Fixes Your Attention On Life's Ugliest Moments. Is This Where You Want To Look? Remember: God Dispenses Perfect Justice.

Perfect

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Be Quick To Pray. Stop Talking To Yourself. Talk To Christ.

Talking

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No One Wants Your Worries...not Even You. Anxiety Comes At A High Cost. Let Jesus Lead You Beside Still Waters.

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Demanding Respect Is Like Chasing A Butterfly. Chase It, And You'll Never Catch It. Sit Still, And It May Light On Your Shoulder.

Butterfly

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May

I Think Theres Just This Mystique Of Writing A Book That Appeals To People. A Person Has To Really Check Their Motives And Say, Am I Really Being Called By God To Do This? Or Is This Just Something That Would Look Neat In My Funeral? I Dont Mean To Be Harsh But I Think A Person Really Needs To, So They Wont Be Disappointed.

Book

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When We're In The Middle Of A Difficult Time, We Have To Speak Against That Lie That Says, "god Is Not Here." We Have To Draw Near To God.

Lying

Difficult Times

Speak

Reading The Bible Can Be Like Meeting Someone You Don't Know Who, Oddly, Somehow Seems To Know You Deeply. It's Uncanny.

Reading

Meeting Someone

Uncanny

God Does Uncommon Things Through Common People In Common Places.

People

Doe

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Each One Of Us Should Lead A Life Stirring Enough To Start A Movement.

Motivation

Inspiration

Volunteer

God Is Recruiting For Himself A People Who Will Populate Heaven.

People

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On The Eve Of The Cross, Jesus Made His Decision. He Would Rather Go To Hell For You Than Go To Heaven Without You.

Friday

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Mark It Down. You Will Never Go Where God Is Not.

Inspirational

Mark

How Can A Person Deal With Anxiety? You Might Try What One Fellow Did. He Worried So Much That He Decided To Hire Someone To Do His Worrying For Him. He Found A Man Who Agreed To Be His Hired Worrier For A Salary Of $200,000 Per Year. After The Man Accepted The Job, His First Question To His Boss Was, "where Are You Going To Get $200,000 Per Year?" To Which The Man Responded, "that's Your Worry.

Jobs

Men

Years

Well, I Think The Main Message Is There Is More To Your Story. There Is More Than What Happens Between The Crib And The Grave, And That Is What I Am Really Trying To Speak To, This Idea That All Of Life Is This Life And That There Is Nothing More Than What We See And Experience Right Here On This Earth.

Thinking

Ideas

Trying

When Grace Happens, We Receive Not A Nice Compliment From God But A New Heart. Give Your Heart To Christ, And He Returns The Favor.

Nice

Heart

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I Think The Current Book [for Christian Apologetics] Is By Lee Strobel, Its Called A Case For Christ.

Christian

Book

Thinking

When You Are In The Final Days Of Your Life, What Will You Want? Will You Hug That College Degree In The Walnut Frame? Will You Ask To Be Carried To The Garage So You Can Sit In Your Car? Will You Find Comfort In Rereading Your Financial Statement? Of Course Not. What Will Matter Then Will Be People. If Relationships Will Matter Most Then, Shouldn't They Matter Most Now?

Inspirational

College

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Jesus Came To Save Us, Not Just From Politics, Enemies, Challenges, Or Difficulties.

Jesus

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One Of The Greatest Gifts We Can Give People Is The Hope That Their Death Is Nothing To Fear - You Know, Not That It Has No Fear In It, But The Promise Of Scripture Is That God Will Lead Us Through The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death.

Shadow Of Death

People

Giving

God Has High Plans For You And Me.

Plans

You Change Your Life By Changing Your Heart.

Inspirational

Change

Uplifting

Let Your Failures Refine You, Not Define You.

Define You

No Distance Is Too Far.

Distance

Baptism Separates The Tire Kickers From The Car Buyers.

Car

Baptism

Kickers

You Don't Have Wisdom For Tomorrow's Problems. But You Will Tomorrow. You Don't Have Resources For Tomorrow's Needs. But You Will Tomorrow. You Don't Have Courage For Tomorrow's Challenges. But You Will When Tomorrow Comes.

Wisdom

Challenges

Needs

Want To Snatch A Day From The Manacles Of Boredom? Do Overgenerous Deeds, Acts Beyond Reimbursement. Kindness Without Compensation. Do A Deed For Which You Cannot Be Repaid.

Inspirational

Kindness

Boredom

We Live In The Most Multicultural, Multiracial, Multiethnic America Ever, And I Get The Sense That Because Of That Reality So Many Of Us Are Turning Nativist.

Reality

America

Multicultural

Don't You Need A Fountain Of Love That Won't Run Dry? You'll Find One On A Stone-cropped Hill Outside Jerusalem's Walls Where Jesus Hangs, Cross-nailed And Thorn-crowned. When You Feel Unloved, Ascend This Mount. Meditate Long And Hard On Heaven's Love For You.

Running

Jesus

Wall

God's Goal Is Not To Get What You Want; It Is To Get You What You Need.

God

Christian

Religious

Don't Measure The Size Of The Mountain; Talk To The One Who Can Move It.

Moving

Mountain

Size

God Has Work For You To Do.

Christianity Teaches Salvation By Grace Through Faith, Every Other Religion Teaches Salvation Through Works And Merit.

Grace

Merit

Christianity

God Has A Timeline. And Because Of Bethlehem, We Have An Idea Where We Stand On It.

Ideas

Bethlehem

Timelines

In This Post-modern Culture In Which We Live - Where People Question Absolute Truth - Stories Are Resistant To Platitudes; They're Resistant To Me Making Declarations Of Truth To Them. A Story Can Do That In Kind Of A Trojan-horse Fashion.

Fashion

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People

The Book On My Nightstand Right Now Isnt Anything That Inspired Me, But It Entertained Me. I Read A Book On Labor Day, It Was A Holiday, And I Have Three Daughters, And We All Went To The Shopping Mall And I Sat On The Bench And Read A Book While They Shopped, It Was Called The Greatest Golfer There Ever Was, It Was A Great Book, Easy To Read And Entertaining.

Daughter

Book

Holiday

I Think To Trust In The Sovereignty Of God Does Not Excuse My Personal Responsibility. Just The Opposite - It Equips Me To Be Personally Responsible.

Responsibility

Thinking

Opposites

How Does God Deal With Your Bitter Heart? He Reminds You That What You Have Is More Important Than What You Don't Have. You Still Have Your Relationship With God. No One Can Take That.

God

Christian

Religious

I Would Not Have Said Anything About Mr. Trump, Never - I Would Never Have Said Anything If He Didn't Call Himself A Christian. It'd Be None Of My Business Whatsoever To Make Any Comments About His Language, His Vulgarities, His Slander Of People, But I Was Deeply Troubled ... That Here's A Man Who Holds Up A Bible One Day, And Calls A Lady "bimbo" The Next.

Christian

Men

People

All Of My Sermons Become Books. I've Been Accused Of Having No Unpublished Thought. I Encourage Pastors To Do That. I Think There Are So Many Great Sermons That Never Really Get Circulation.

Book

Thinking

Pastor

I Co-pastor Now, So I Preach Six Months, Then Another Guy Preaches Six Months. So That's Really Why I'm Preparing For January, Because I'll Finish In June; Then I'll Be Writing And Doing Other Projects For The Rest Of The Year.

Writing

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Live In Such A Way That The World Will Be Glad You Did.

World

Way

Glad

Gratitude. More Aware Of What You Have Than What You Don't. Recognizing The Treasure In The Simple - A Child's Hug, Fertile Soil, A Golden Sunset. Relishing In The Comfort Of The Common.

Gratitude

Children

Sunset

If God Is Willing To Be Born In A Barnyard, Then Expect Him To Be At Work Anywhere - Bars, Bedrooms, Boardrooms, And Brothels.

Bars

Bedroom

Born

Jesus Took Your Punishment, And God Gave You Credit For Jesus' Perfection.

Jesus

Punishment

Perfection

I Don't Get The Impression That Most Sources Of Media - Like Television And Movies - Are Trying To Get Out A Positive Message, Necessarily. My Impression Is They're Trying To Get A Message Out That Promotes Their Personal Opinion, Position Or Belief And They're Trying To Do Something That Makes Money. They Want To Turn A Buck.

Media

Personal Opinions

Trying

For Those Who Never Pray, Maybe Now You Will. For Those Of Us Who Attempt To Pray, Maybe We Can Pray More.

Praying

I Don't Get Asked A Lot Of Questions About Science And The Bible, For Example. Probably People Just Know I'm Not Very Smart And I Don't Have An Answer To Those Anyway.

Smart

People

Answers

The Maker Of The Stars Would Rather Die For You Than Live Without You. And That Is A Fact. So If You Need To Brag, Brag About That.

Stars

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Facts

Your Challenge Is Not Your Challenge. Your Challenge Is The Way You Think About Your Challenge. Your Problem Is Not Your Problem; It Is The Way You Look At It.

Thinking

Challenges

Looks

Heaven Is God's Answer To Any Suffering You May Face.

Heaven

Suffering

Answers

I've Never Been Surprised By God's Judgment, But I'm Still Stunned By His Grace.

Grace

Judgment

Stills

God Gives Us People To Love And Things To Use, Not Things To Love And People To Use.

Christian

People

Giving

Seek First The Kingdom Of Wealth And You'll Worry Over Every Dollar. Seek First The Kingdom Of Health And You'll Sweat Every Blemish And Bump. Seek First The Kingdom Of Popularity, And You'll Relive Every Conflict. Seek First The Kingdom Of Safety, And You'll Jump At Every Crack Of The Twig. But Seek First His Kingdom And You Will Find It. On That, We Can Depend And Never Worry.

Sweat

Safety

Worry

We Are Jesus Christ's; We Belong To Him. But Even More, We Are Increasingly Him. He Moves In And Commandeers Our Hands And Feet, Requisitions Our Minds And Tongues. We Sense His Rearranging: Debris Into The Divine, Pig's Ear Into Silk Purse. He Repurposes Bad Decisions And Squalid Choices. Little By Little, A New Image Emerges.

Jesus

Moving

Pigs

Your Requests Change History Because Your Prayers Change God!

Prayer

Request

Change God

I'm First A Pastor And Then A Writer.

Firsts

Pastor

Sow Seeds Of Hope And Enjoy Optimism. Sow Seeds Of Doubt And Expect Insecurity

Optimism

Insecurity

Doubt

You Are Valuable Because You Exist. Not Because Of What You Do Or What You Have Done - But Simply Because You Are.

Life

Done

Valuable

I've Never Really Prided Myself As Being Quick On My Feet.

Feet

Where We Might Think Of Sin As Slip-ups Or Missteps, God Views Sin As A Godless Attitude That Leads To Godless Action.

Attitude

Thinking

Views

History Is Not An Endless Succession Of Meaningless Circles But A Directed Movement Toward A Great Event.

Circles

Events

Movement

Most People Have Settled For A Wimpy Grace. It's Something That Doesn't Change Their Lives. There Is A Difference Between Grace And Mercy. Mercy Is The Decision Of God Not To Punish Us. But Grace Is The Decision Of God To Save And Bless Us.

Grace And Mercy

Differences

People

We May Forget Him, But God Will Never Forget Us. We're Forever On His Mind And In His Plans.

Forever

Mind

May

No Place Is Too Common.

Common

You Are Saved, Not Because Of What You Do, But Because Of What Christ Did. And You Are Special, Not Because Of What You Do, But Because Of Whose You Are. And You Are His. And Because We Are His, Let's Forget The Shortcuts And Stay On The Main Road. He Knows The Way. He Drew The Map. He Knows The Way Home.

Home

Special

Maps

The Bible Is The Story Of Two Gardens: Eden And Gethsemane. In The First, Adam Took A Fall. In The Second, Jesus Took A Stand. In The First, God Sought Adam. In The Second, Jesus Sought God. In Eden, Adam Hid From God. In Gethsemane, Jesus Emerged From The Tomb. In Eden, Satan Led Adam To A Tree That Led To His Death. From Gethsemane, Jesus Went To A Tree That Led To Our Life.

Bible

Jesus

Fall

The Next Time You Find Yourself Alone In A Dark Alley Facing The Undeniables Of Life, Don't Cover Them With A Blanket, Or Ignore Them With A Nervous Grin. Don't Turn Up The Tv And Pretend They Aren't There. Instead, Stand Still, Whisper His Name, And Listen. He Is Nearer Than You Think.

Inspirational

Life

Faith

I Really Enjoy Making People Laugh; I've Discovered That's A Great Technique. That's As Powerful As Stirring Their Sorrow, Stirring Their Compassion, Because That Befriends You To Them. It Engages You With Them And Then You Can Come In; They Will Remember That Point.

Powerful

Compassion

People

Our Prayers May Be Awkward. Our Attempts May Be Feeble. But Since The Power Of Prayer Is In The One Who Hears It And Not In The One Who Says It, Our Prayers Do Make A Difference.

Prayer

Differences

Awkward

I Think I Could Do Better In My Approach To Application. I Think I Could Do Better In Preaching Practical Sermons.

Thinking

Preaching

Approach

There's No Person God Cannot Reach.

Persons

All I Know Is That The Stable Is Empty, And The Horse Is Gone. The Rest I Don't Know. Whether [in The Future] It Be A Curse Or A Blessing, I Can't Say. All We Can See Is A Fragment. Who Can Say What Will Come Next [and What Is Good Or Bad In The Long Run]?

Running

Horse

Blessing

Which Would You Prefer? To Be King Of The Mountain For A Day? Or To Be A Child Of God For Eternity?

Kings

Children

Mountain

Every Other Religion Is A Salvation By Self, Christianity Is A Salvation By Christ.

Self

Christianity

Christ

We Get A Lot Of Unsolicited Manuscripts Here. Im Not Even A Publisher, But We Get Several A Week. I Dont Read Them, But I Do Glance Through Some Of Them, And Some People Dont Need To Be Writing, They Have Something Else.

Writing

People

Needs

Compassion In Evangelical Churches Is Out Of Balance. When I Talk About It, I Get A Lot Of Glazed Expressions.

Compassion

Expression

Balance

God Must've Had A Blast. Painting The Stripes On The Zebra, Hanging The Stars In The Sky, Putting The Gold In The Sunset. What Creativity! Stretching The Neck Of The Giraffe, Putting The Flutter In The Mockingbird's Wings, Planting The Giggle In The Hyena. And Then, As A Finale To A Brilliant Performance, He Made A Human Who Had The Unique Honour To Bear The Stamp, In His Image.

Stars

Zebras

Sunset

When God Is All You Have, Then All You Have, Is All You Need.

Needs

You May Be Transferred, Enlisted, Commissioned, Reassigned, Or Hospitalized - But Brand This On Your Heart - You Can Never Go Where God Is Not.

Heart

May

Brands

Our Kids Were God's Kids First... We Tend To Forget This Fact, Regarding Our Children As "our" Children, As Though We Have The Final Say In Their Health And Welfare. We Don't. All People Are God's People, Including The Small People Who Sit At Our Tables.

God

Christian

Religious

When You Teach On A Familiar Text, You're Capitalizing On Common Knowledge. When You Teach On An Unfamiliar Text, You're Having To Build A Bridge Of Understanding, And We Need To Do That As Well.

Bridges

Understanding

Needs

Every Person Is Unique.

Unique

Persons

[ Christianity], In And Of Itself, Sets Itself Apart Inherently, And So, For Somebody To Say, Well It Just Seems To Me Like You Can Pick Between All These Religions And Still Have The Same Thing. Its Kind Of Like Somebody Saying, You Could Pick Between 80 Bananas And One Apple And Say You Have A Banana. You Cant Call That Apple A Banana.

Apples

Bananas

Kind

The Greater Your Cares, The More Genuine Your Prayers

Prayer

Care

Genuine

Have You Been Called To Go Out On A Limb For God? You Can Bet It Won't Be Easy. Limb-climbing Has Never Been Easy. Ask Joseph. Or, Better Yet, Ask Jesus. He Knows Better Than Anyone The Cost Of Hanging On A Tree.

Jesus

Climbing

Tree

Changing Directions In Life Is Not Tragic. Losing Passion In Life Is.

Passion

Losing

Life Is

To Live As God's Child Is To Know That You Are Loved By Your Maker Not Because You Try To Please Him And Succeed, Or Fail To Please Him And Apologize, But Because He Wants To Be Your Father. Nothing More.

Children

Father

Trying

Christ Lived The Life We Could Not Live And Took The Punishment We Could Not Take To Offer The Hope We Cannot Resist.

Punishment

Christ

Offers

Our God Is Abundant In Love And Steadfast In Mercy. He Saves Us, Not Because We Trust In A Symbol, But Because We Trust In A Savior.

Love

Trust

God

We Need To Remember That The First Disciples Were Ordinary Men Called To An Extraordinary Mission. Their Devotion To Jesus Outweighed- By Hair- Their Fears And Insecurities. As A Result God Change Them And Use Them To Accomplish Some Mind-boggling Things. Why Couldn't God - Why Wouldn't God Do The Same In Your Life?

Jesus

Men

Hair

I've Never Really Prided Myself As Being Quick On My Feet. Maybe You've Had The Experience Where Somebody's Asked You A Question And You Give An Answer, Then Later In The Day You Think, "oh, I Wish I'd Said That!" I Tend To Journal These Things And Put The Answers In Sermons.

Thinking

Feet

Giving

When We Submit To God's Plans, We Can Trust Our Desires. Our Assignment Is Found At The Intersection Of God's Plan And Our Pleasures.

God

Christian

Religious

I'd Like To Think I'm Going Upriver In Talking About World-view Topics Rather Than Particular Political Or Controversial Topics.

Thinking

Views

Controversial Topics

The Manger Dares Us To Believe The Best Is Yet To Be. And It Could All Begin Today.

Believe

Today

Dare

A Woman's Heart Should Be So Hidden In God That A Man Has To Seek Him Just To Find Her.

Love

Inspirational

Powerful

Look At The Bethlehem Birth. A King Ordered A Census. Joseph Was Forced To Travel. Mary, As Round As A Ladybug, Bounced On A Donkey's Back. The Hotel Was Full. The Hour Was Late. The Event Was One Big Hassle. Yet, Out Of The Hassle, Hope Was Born. It Still Is.

Kings

Ladybugs

Events

Fredrick Buechner Kind Of Loosened Up My Clerical Collar, You Might Say.

Might

Kind

Collars

I Don't Have Any Desire To Retire In The Sense Of Not Doing Anything. As Long As The Lord Gives Me Strength I Want To Keep Writing And Keep Preaching.

Writing

Long

Giving

When All Of Earth Turns Against You, All Of Heaven Turns Toward You.

Heaven

Earth

Turns

What Makes A Christian A Christian Is Not Perfection But Forgiveness.

Christian

Perfection

Not Perfect

It's Nothing Mystical, Necessarily. It's Nothing Secretive. It's Just What We Do With Our Body We Do With Our Soul.

Soul

Body

Mystical

If Hurts Were Hairs, We'd All Look Like Grizzlies.

Hurt

Hair

Looks

Be Kind To Yourself. God Thinks You're Worth His Kindness. And He's A Good Judge Of Character.

Kindness

Character

Thinking

Being Religious Without Knowing The Cross Is Like Owning A Mercedes With No Motor. Pretty Package, But Where Is Your Power?

Religious

Knowing

Crosses

To Me That's Always A Little Satisfying - To Find An Underdeveloped Topic And Start Developing It.

Littles

Topics

Developing

No Person [should] Walk Out Into The World To Begin The Day Until He Or She Has Stood Beneath The Cross To Receive God’s Love.

World

Crosses

Should

Worry Is Anti-trust. If You're Worried, You Don't Trust Something: Your Kids, Their Friends, Strangers, The Church, Even God. Can He Take Care Of Your Children? Certainly. Jesus Says, 'i Tell You, Stop Being Anxious And Worried About Your Life.' Pretty Blunt. Stop It! Easier Said Than Done, Huh? Worry Tests Your Trust, So Hand Your Children To God And Let Him Babysit Your Babies When You're Not Around. He's Pretty Good At It!

Baby

Jesus

Children

Fear Will Always Knock On Your Door. Just Don't Invite It In For Dinner. And For Heaven's Sake, Don't Offer It A Bed For The Night.

Inspirational

Night

Doors

Some People Find The Gift Of Salvation. For Others The Gifts Are Smaller: A Kind Word, A Good Deed. But All The Gifts Are From God.

People

Deeds

Kind

Are You On The Eve Of Change? Embrace It. Accept It. Don't Resist It. Change Is Not Only A Part Of Life, Change Is A Necessary Part Of God's Strategy. To Use Us To Change The World, He Alters Our Assignments.

Inspirational

Life Changing

Use

Praise Is The Highest Occupation Of Any Being

Christian

Occupation

Praise

God Is Using My Struggle. My Struggle Is The Answer To The Prayer.

Prayer

Struggle

Answers

You May Not Be Down To Your Final Heartbeat, But You May Be Down To Your Last Paycheck, Solution, Or Thimble Of Faith. Each Sunrise Seems To Bring Fresh Reasons For Fear.

Fear

Sunrise

Lasts

I've Found Great Virtue In Two-thirds Of The Way Into The Message; Right Before I'm Really Want To Nail Home A Point, Pausing To Tell A Joke Or To Tell A Light-hearted Story, Because I Know My Audience Has Been Working With Me Now For 20 Or 25 Minutes. And If I Can Get Them To Laugh, Get Oxygen Into Their System, It Wakes Up Those Who Might Be Sleeping, So There's Something About Using A Story To Draw People Back In Right Before You Drive Home Your Final Point. In That Case I Think It's Real Legitimate Just To Use A Story For Story's Sake.

Real

Sleep

Home

Is It Possible For An Unbaptized Believer To Be Saved? Yes, Definitely. Should Every Believer Be Baptized? Yes, Definitely.

Baptism

Should

Believer

There's A Great Place For Good Christian Children's Books. After The Upcoming Projects I'm Working On, I'd Like To Turn My Attention Back To Children's Books. Maybe With A Granddaughter I'll Have More Inspiration And New Ideas.

Christian

Children

Book

It's My Hope That As You Dip Your Toe Into The Bible's Story And Viewpoint, You'll Find Yourself Feeling That The Good Book Knows More About The World - And About You - Than Any Normal Book Does.

Book

Feelings

Finding Yourself

Fear Corrodes Our Confidence In God's Goodness.

Goodness

Confidence In God

Waiting Is A Sustained Effort To Stay Focused On God Through Prayer And Belief.

Prayer

Effort

Waiting

I Never Told Anybody I Wanted To Write, I Kind Of Fell Into It Backwards.

Writing

Kind

Backwards

The State Of Your Heart Dictates Whether You Harbor A Grudge Or Give Grace, Seek Self-pity Or Seek Christ, Drink Human Misery Or Taste God's Mercy.

Life

God

Christian

Were Studying In Philippians, And Im Trying To Figure Out This Passage, Paul Says I Want To Know Christ. What Does That Mean? See, Hes Fascinated By Jesus. I Think Thats A Desire Id Like To Have On My Heart, To Know More About Jesus.

Jesus

Heart

Mean

I Choose Goodness... I Will Go Without A Dollar Before I Take A Dishonest One. I Will Be Overlooked Before I Will Boast. I Will Confess Before I Will Accuse. I Choose Goodness.

Dollars

Goodness

Boast

You May Go Days Without Thinking Of God, But There's Never A Moment When He's Not Thinking Of You.

Christian

Thinking Of You

May

The Presence Of Anxiety Is Unavoidable, But The Prison Of Anxiety Is Optional. Anxiety Is Not A Sin; It's An Emotion. So Don't Be Anxious About Feeling Anxious. Anxiety Can, However, Lead To Sinful Behavior. When We Numb Our Fears With Six-packs Or Food Binges, When We Spew Anger Like Krakatau, When We Peddle Our Fears To Anyone Who Will Buy Them, We're Sinning.

Anxiety

Feelings

Emotion

As We Meditate On Christ's Life, We Find Strength For Our Own.

Christ

Finding Strength

I Was Raised In The Greatest Of Homes... Just A Really Great Dad, And I Miss Him So Much... He Was A Good Man, A Real Simple Man... Very Faithful, Always Loved My Mom, Always Provided For The Kids, And Just A Lot Of Fun.

Mom

Fun

Dad

Meet Your Fears With Faith.

Inspirational

December Is The Most Difficult Month. Medications For Insomnia Or Depression Go Up During The Month Of December. A Lot Of People Who Experience Loss Feel That Loss Magnified In December. Everybody Seems Happy And You Feel All Alone. You're Not All Alone.

Loss

Insomnia

People

First, God Does Not Send People To Hell. He Simply Honors Their Choice. Hell Is The Ultimate Expression Of God's High Regard For The Dignity Of Man. He Has Never Forced Us To Choose Him, Even When That Means We Would Choose Hell.

God

Christian

Mean

If You Knew That Only A Few Would Care That You Came, Would You Still Come? If You Knew That Those You Loved Would Laugh In Your Face, Would You Still Care? If You Knew That The Tongues You Made Would Mock You, The Mouths You Made Would Spit At You, The Hands You Made Would Crucify You, Would You Still Make Them? Christ Did.

Inspirational

Hands

Laughing

God Is Not Troubled By One Who Is Conservative Or Liberal, And He Certainly Never Inclines His Ear Toward A Donkey Or An Elephant.

Elephants

Ears

Conservative

To Call Yourself A Child Of God Is One Thing. To Be Called A Child Of God By Those Who Watch Your Life Is Another Thing Altogether.

Inspirational

Children

Watches

I Think You Could Say Every Pastor Is Writing This Book [ Max On Life]; For Many It Just Never Gets Published.

Book

Writing

Thinking

Can You Imagine A Life With No Fear? What If Faith, Not Fear, Was Your Default Reaction To Threats?

Motivational

Faith

What If

He Came, Not As A Flash Of Light Or As An Unapproachable Conqueror, But As One Whose First Cries Were Heard By A Peasant Girl And A Sleepy Carpenter. God Tapped Humanity On Its Collective Shoulder, "pardon Me," He Said, And Eternity Interrupted Time, Divinity Interrupted Carnality, And Heaven Interrupted The Earth In The Form Of A Baby. Christianity Was Born In One Big Heavenly Interruption.

Christmas

Girl

Baby

I Choose Gentleness... Nothing Is Won By Force. I Choose To Be Gentle. If I Raise My Voice May It Be Only In Praise. If I Clench My Fist, May It Be Only In Prayer. If I Make A Demand, May It Be Only Of Myself.

Prayer

Voice

Self Control

Gratitude Is A Mindful Awareness Of The Benefits Of Life. It's The Greatest Of Virtues. Studies Have Linked The Emotion With A Variety Of Positive Effects. Grateful People Tend To Be More Empathetic And Forgiving Of Others. People Who Keep A Gratitude Journal Are More Likely To Have A Positive Outlook On Life. Grateful Individuals Demonstrate Less Envy, Materialism, And Self-centeredness. Gratitude Improves Self-esteem And Enhances Relationships, Quality Of Sleep, And Longevity.

Gratitude

Grateful

Sleep

I Noticed People Would Read These Short Articles I Was Assigned To Write For Our Church Bulletin And They Would Say, Boy, Thats Good Stuff. I Got Letters From People Around The Country Saying, Thats Really Good. And I Thought, Is It Really?

Country

Writing

Boys

I Just Love Those [saying Of Christ ]: "father Forgive Them, They Know Not What They Do. I Thirst. It Is Finished. Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit. Today You Will Be With Me In Paradise." That Was Really The Heart Of The Second Book I Wrote Called No Wonder They Call Him Savior.

Father

Book

Heart

I Really Believe The Purpose Of Scripture Is To Give Us This Authoritative Handbook.

Believe

Giving

Purpose

I Think You Can Tilt Too Far To The Side Of The Story Where The Message Is Just Simply Entertainment. So I Think Your Goal Has To Be To Craft In One Sentence What The Truth Is You Are Trying To Convey. And Then You Find Or Create A Story That You Wrap Around That Truth.

Thinking

Goal

Trying

A Story Does That: It Will Reach Out And Hook Somebody And Hold Them For Just A Few Moments While You Unpack This Story In Their Presence.

Hook

Stories

Doe

God Is Able To Accomplish, Provide, Help, Save, Keep, Subdue... He Is Able To Do What You Can't. He Already Has A Plan. God's Not Bewildered. Go To Him.

Inspirational

God

Able

Prayer Is The Hand Of Faith On The Door Knob Of Your Heart, Inviting Jesus To Enter.

Jesus

Prayer

Heart

While We Appreciate Our Ancestry As Americans Or Even Our Ethnic Ancestry And Our Color Of Skin, We Believe That Our Real Citizenship Is In Heaven.

Real

Believe

Color

The Difference Between Mercy And Grace? Mercy Gave The Prodigal Son A Second Chance. Grace Gave Him A Feast.

Son

Second Chance

Differences

With God, Every Day Matters, Every Person Counts. And That Includes You.

Matter

Persons

Examine The Platforms Of Both Parties. Examine The Character Of Both Parties. Get Down On Your Knees. Say, Lord, Help Me Make This Decision. And Then Go Vote.

Party

Character

Decision

I'm Convinced That The Christian Claim Is Really True, That This Is Just A Warm Up To The Big Event. That This Is Just The Appetizer To The Feast, And If We Can Plug Into That And Understand That This Part Of Our Story Is Just The Introduction, It Is Not Even The First Line Of The First Paragraph, It's Just The First Letter Or First Word. We Are Just Getting Started.

Christian

Events

Stories

Fear Never Wrote A Symphony Or Poem, Negotiated A Peace Treaty, Or Cured A Disease. Fear Never Pulled A Family Out Of Poverty Or A Country Out Of Bigotry. Fear Never Saved A Marriage Or A Business. Courage Did That. Faith Did That. People Who Refused To Consult Or Cower To Their Timidities Did That. But Fear Itself? Fear Herds Us Into A Prison And Slams The Doors. Wouldn't It Be Great To Walk Out?

Inspirational

Faith

Country

There Is Nothing On Earth That Can Satisfy Our Deepest Longing. We Long To See God. The Leaves Of Life Are Rustling With The Rumor That We Will - And We Won't Be Satisfied Until We Do.

Long

Rumor

Earth

He Loves Each One Of Us Like There Is Only One Of Us To Love (when God Whisper Your Name)

Names

Focus On Giants - You Stumble. Focus On God - Giants Tumble.

Faith

Christian

Focus

In Our Grandparents' Generation News Of An Earthquake In Nepal Would Reach Around The World Some Days Later. In Our Parents' Day The Nightly News Communicated The Catastrophe. Now It's A Matter Of Minutes. We've Barely Processed One Crisis, And Then We Hear Of Another.

World

Crisis

Catastrophe

Be Less About Protecting Any Type Of Identity Affiliated To A Country Or Even Ethnic Background. Be More About The Fact That We're Here For A Short Time And Heaven Is Going To Be A Rainbow Of People, Multiculture, Every Generation.

Country

People

Rainbow

There Are Some Facts That Will Never Change. One Fact Is That You Are Forgiven. If You Are In Christ, When He Sees You, Your Sins Are Covered-he Doesn't See Them. He Sees You Better Than You See Yourself.

Forgiveness

Facts

Sin

Refusing To Forgive Is Like Ingesting A Lethal Dose Of Poison And Hoping It Kills My Enemy.

Forgiving

Enemy

Poison

I Have Some Friends Whose Sermons Are Extremely Practical - So Practical That I Can Put Them Right To Use. I'm Trying To Learn How To Do That Better; But I Don't Think My Approach Or Style Really Has Changed In These 30 Years. Whether That's Good Or Bad I Don't Know, But I Don't Think It Has.

Thinking

Years

Style

Matthew Loved The Magi. He Gave Their Story More Square Inches Of Text Than He Gave The Narrative Of The Birth Of Jesus. He Never Mentions The Shepherds Or The Manger, But He Didn't Want Us To Miss The Star And The Seekers. It's Easy To See Why. Their Story Is Our Story.

Jesus

Stars

Squares

Be Patient. God Is Using Today's Difficulties To Strengthen You For Tomorrow. He Is Equipping You. The God Who Makes Things Grow Will Help You Bear Fruit.

Christian

Today

Fruit

You'll Never Know Jesus Is All You Need Until Jesus Is All You Have. Are You In The Wilderness? Find Refuge In God's Presence. Find Comfort In His People.

Jesus

People

Comfort

The Strength Of A Story Is That It Stays With People And It Gives An Opportunity For That Story To Connect With People Where The Holy Spirit Intends For It To Do So.

Opportunity

Giving

People

I Would Love To Have A More Earnest Prayer Life! In My Life, Prayer Is The Single Most Difficult Discipline. I Love God And There's Something In Me That Would Rather Do Things For God Than Talk To God. I'm Not By Nature A Mystical, Devotional Person. I Like To Do Things. And So It's A Challenge For Me To Have A Faithful Prayer Life, But I Know God Loves Me And He's Not Mad At Me. He Just Wishes I Would Slow Down And Turn Things Over To Him. And That's What I Think You Achieve Through Prayer.

Prayer

Thinking

Discipline

I Don't Have A Lot Of Time In The Sermon Anyway. The Sermon Is Only 25 Minutes, Which To Me Is Frighteningly Short. So I Feel As If I Need To Get Into That Pretty Quickly And Make It As Practical And Accessible As Possible.

Needs

Minutes

Feels

A Christian In His Surroundings Should Encourage Everyone To Be Better, Instead Of Being The One Who Stoops To Be Like Everyone Else.

Christian

Surroundings

Should

Live In Such A Way That You Would Not Have To Change Your Plans.

Way

Plans

God Uses Every Possible Means To Communicate With You.

Mean

Use

Communicate

I Was Never Really Lead By [my Parents] And Didnt Sense Any Leading From The Lord To Go Into Writing.

Writing

Parent

Lord

I Try To Be Honest; I Really Do Try Not To Exaggerate The Story. I Try To Be Accurate.

Trying

Stories

Honest

If You Knew Jesus Was Coming Tomorrow, What Would You Do Today? Then Do It!

Jesus

Today

Tomorrow

There Was A Time I Wanted To Go Into Politics. And So All Of A Sudden, Here I Am, I Guess. I'm In The Thick Of It.

Here I Am

Thick Of It

Wanted

God Created Marriage. No Government Subcommittee Envisioned It. No Social Organization Developed It. Marriage Was Conceived And Born In The Mind Of God.

Marriage

God

Government

Though The Bible Was Written Over Sixteen Centuries By At Least Forty Authors, It Has One Central Theme-salvation Through Faith In Christ.

Inspirational

Sixteen

Christ

Here's What I Really Love: I Love A Funny Story That I Can Tag A Serious Line On The End Of.

Stories

Lines

Tag

To The Loved, A Word Of Affection Is A Morsel; But To The Love-starved, A Word Of Affection Can Be A Feast.

Affection

Bread Of Life? Jesus Lived Up To The Title. But An Unopened Loaf Does A Person No Good. Have You Received The Bread? Have You Received God's Forgiveness?

Jesus

Bread Of Life

Titles

What You And I Might Rate As An Absolute Disaster, God May Rate As A Pimple-level Problem That Will Pass. He Views Your Life The Way You View A Movie After You've Read The Book. When Something Bad Happens, You Feel The Air Sucked Out Of The Theater. Everyone Else Gasps At The Crisis On The Screen. Not You. Why? You've Read The Book. You Know How The Good Guy Gets Out Of The Tight Spot. God Views Your Life With The Same Confidence. He's Not Only Read Your Story...he Wrote It.

Inspirational

Book

Air

I Don't Know How To Answer The Problem Of Deep Pain Without A Deep Hope In Eternity.

Pain

Answers

Problem

Don't Equate The Presence Of God With A Good Mood Or A Pleasant Temperament. God Is Near Whether You Are Happy Or Not.

Good Mood

Presence Of God

Temperament

Nothing Fosters Courage Like A Clear Grasp Of Grace... & Nothing Fosters Fear Like An Ignorance Of Mercy

Ignorance

Grace

Mercy

One Of The Things I Discover A Lot In Marriage Counseling Is The Husband Or Wife Trying To Get Their Spiritual Thirst Quenched By Their Partner; I Think That's A Real Common Mistake That We Make.

Spiritual

Husband

Real

Jesus Spoke To Those Who Had Turned Their Backs On History. He Spoke To Those Who Had Blatantly Ignored Sign After Sign, Servant After Servant.

Jesus

Ignored

Spokes

Can Is 100 Times More Important Than Iq

Effort

Important

Pastoring The Flock With Words. I Love That. We Always Have A Prayer Time In The Middle Of Our Service. We Take About Eight Or Ten Minutes Before I Preach, After We've Sung, And Invite People To Come Forward For Prayer. That's A Tender Moment To Me. I Don't Preach Much In That, But I Like To Speak To The People.

Prayer

Eight

People

I Think The Hardest Questions Had To Do With Suffering. It Had To Do With All Of Our Church Members And Friends Passing Through Difficult Times. Sometimes It's The Global Climate: Tsunamis, Earthquakes, Radiation. I Think These Kinds Of Questions Are Absolutely The Most Difficult, Yet We Need To Be Ready To Respond To Them Because We Have To Be Able As Pastors To Walk People Through These Valleys, These Tough Times In Their Lives.

Thinking

Earthquakes

People

No Acts Are Random Or Wasted.

I Accepted The Forgiveness Of God. I Got Off Track As An Adult And Because I Believe In God's Grace, I Believe That Gave Me Strength Then To Get That Little Part Of My Life Realigned, To Not Play Games About It, To Confess It, To Ask For Forgiveness From God And Ask Others To Forgive Me As Well And Then Move On.

Believe

Moving

Play

Does God Understand You? Find The Answer In Bethlehem.

Doe

Answers

Bethlehem

God Loves People Just The Way They Are, But He Loves Them Too Much To Leave Them That Way!

People

Too Much

Way

The Book, Max On Life, Is Really Kind Of A Second Chance To Answer These Questions.

Book

Second Chance

Max

Baptism Is The Initial Step Of A Faithful Heart.

Heart

Baptism

Faithful

It Works Well For Me To Go Ahead And Prepare The Sermon With A Chapter In Mind. What That Does Is To Force Me To Be Very Thrifty In My Language, Tighten Up My Words And Not Ramble So Much. It Puts Some Fiber In The Sermon.

Mind

Fiber

Doe

Understanding Quotes: Their Essence and Application

Quotes, or quotations, are powerful tools in communication, encapsulating ideas, emotions, and wisdom in concise expressions. They serve various purposes across different contexts, from academic writing to everyday conversation.

1. Defining Quotes

A quote is a repetition of someone else's statement or thoughts. It can be a direct replication of words spoken or written by another individual, often used to support arguments, provide evidence, or convey profound insights.

2. The Importance of Quotes

2.1. Enhancing Credibility

Incorporating quotes from authoritative sources can bolster the credibility of your work. By referencing experts or primary sources, you demonstrate thorough research and a solid foundation for your arguments.

2.2. Providing Evidence

Quotes serve as concrete evidence to support claims. In academic and professional writing, they validate points made, offering readers a basis to trust the information presented.

2.3. Conveying Emotions and Perspectives

Quotes can encapsulate emotions and perspectives succinctly. They allow writers to express complex feelings or viewpoints through the words of others, often more eloquently than paraphrasing.

3. Types of Quotes

3.1. Direct Quotes

Direct quotes involve copying the exact words from a source, enclosed in quotation marks. They are used when the original wording is significant or particularly well-expressed.

3.2. Indirect Quotes (Paraphrasing)

Indirect quotes restate the original message in your own words. While not enclosed in quotation marks, they still require proper attribution to the original source.

3.3. Block Quotes

Block quotes are lengthy direct quotations, formatted as a separate block of text. They are typically used for quotes exceeding a certain length, varying by citation style. For instance, in APA style, quotes longer than 40 words are formatted as block quotes.

4. Proper Usage of Quotes

4.1. Contextual Relevance

Ensure that the quote you choose is relevant to the topic and adds value to your content. Avoid inserting quotes solely for decorative purposes.

4.2. Integration into Your Writing

Seamlessly integrate quotes into your writing. Introduce them appropriately and follow up with analysis or commentary to connect them to your main points.

4.3. Attribution and Citation

Always attribute quotes to their original authors and provide proper citations according to the required style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).

5. Common Mistakes to Avoid

5.1. Overusing Quotes

Relying too heavily on quotes can overshadow your voice. Use them sparingly to support your arguments, not replace them.

5.2. Lack of Analysis

Presenting a quote without analysis or explanation can leave readers questioning its relevance. Always follow up with your interpretation or discussion.

5.3. Misquoting or Taking Out of Context

Ensure that quotes are accurate and not taken out of context, as this can mislead readers and undermine your credibility.

6. Quotes in Different Contexts

6.1. Academic Writing

In academic writing, quotes are used to support arguments, provide evidence, and engage with existing literature. Proper citation is crucial to avoid plagiarism.

6.2. Journalism

Journalists use quotes to provide firsthand accounts, add authenticity, and present multiple perspectives within a story.

6.3. Literature and Creative Writing

In literature, quotes can be used to convey character voices, themes, and stylistic elements. They enrich narratives and provide depth to storytelling.

7. Punctuation and Formatting

Understanding the correct punctuation and formatting of quotes is essential:

Quotation Marks: Always enclose direct quotes within quotation marks.

Punctuation Placement: In American English, periods and commas are placed inside quotation marks, while colons and semicolons are placed outside.

Block Quotes: For longer quotes, format them as block quotes without quotation marks, and indent the entire block.

8. Ethical Considerations

Ethical use of quotes involves accurate representation, proper attribution, and respect for intellectual property. Misuse can lead to plagiarism, which carries serious academic and professional consequences.

9. Tools for Managing Quotes

Utilize tools like citation generators and plagiarism checkers to manage quotes effectively. These tools help ensure proper formatting and originality in your writing.

Conclusion

Quotes are invaluable in enriching content, providing evidence, and conveying complex ideas succinctly. When used appropriately, they enhance the quality and credibility of your writing. Always ensure relevance, proper integration, and ethical usage to maximize their impact.

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