Daily Bible Verses And Religious Posts

[TakinMyLyfeBack]

[TakinMyLyfeBack]

Psalm 134:2
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.


It was weird. Jane had never been to a service like it before. All the people murmured the Lord's name during the prayers, raised their hands, and rocked back and forth in the pews. At first, she had been very uncomfortable, but as she got accustomed to the goings-on around her, she began to relax. Suddenly, she realized that everyone didn't have to express their faith the same way. Though she didn't feel comfortable displaying her faith with physical expressions, she found that she readily accepted others who did. The sincerity of the worship and the energy of the congregation excited Jane. A whole new aspect of her faith was opening up to her.
Open-mindedness is the greatest need in our churches today. Somehow we must learn to affirm and respect the other members of the body of Christ who don't choose to function as we do. There is room for any and all honest expressions of love and devotion to our Lord. Whether we approach Him on bended knees deep in the silence of our o wn hearts, or with hearts, hands, and heads lifted in jubilant praise, we can know beyond doubt that God accepts us and is honored by our expressions of worship.

Prayer:

Receive me as I am, Lord. I worship You in the best way I know how. Help me to be open to new and different expressions of faith, and teach me to grow. Amen.

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Matthew 25:44 - “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?” NIV

By 12:15AM five doctors had paraded up, and one by one confirmed his death. But I knew that the real Ernest Gaither still lived --- only his body was dead.

Earnest Gaither had much in common with the good thief on the cross. Neither expected to receive a second chance and both were saved shortly before their death sentences were carried out. Both put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of their souls.

In this story Earnest Gaither met a Christian volunteer --- Flora Jones --- who challenged him to receive Christ. And because of her faithfulness Earnest now walks the streets of gold.

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Hebrews 8:12 - “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more" NIV

The story is told of a much loved-minister of God who carried a secret burden of a past sin deep in his heart. He had committed this worst of sins many years before, during his Bible school training. No one knew what he had done, but they did know he had repented.

Even so, he had suffered years of remorse over the incident without any sense of God's forgiveness.

A woman in his church deeply loved God and claimed to have visions in which Jesus Christ spoke to her. The minister, skeptical of her claims, asked her, "The next time you speak to the Lord, would you please ask Him what sin your minister committed while he was in Bible school?"

The woman kindly agreed. When she came to the church a few days later the minister asked, "Did He visit you?"

She said, "Yes."

"And did you ask Him what sin I committed?"

"Yes, I asked Him," she replied

"Well, what did He say?"

"He said, 'I don't remember.'"

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Deuteronomy 30:15 - “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster” NLT

More than 100 years ago Henry P. Crowell contracted tuberculosis and was unable to attend school. He was told he could never achieve his ambition of becoming a preacher.

Soon after, Henry heard a sermon by Dwight L. Moody that inspired him to pray diligently. He prayed, "Lord, I can't be a preacher, but I can be a good businessman. If You will let me make money, I will use it in Your service."

A wise doctor advised young Crowell to work outdoors for his health. Henry followed his advice and after seven years regained his strength. He then bought the run-down Quaker Mill in Ravenna, Ohio.

Soon Henry’s little run-down oat mill began to prosper. His word to the Lord was his word and he paid a faithful tithe of 10% on his prosperity. Within ten years Quaker Oats was a household name throughout the United States. For the next 40 years Henry Crowell founder of the Quaker Oats Company faithfully gave from 60 to 70 percent of his income to the Lord’s work!

Yummy! Pass the Quaker Oatmeal!

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Psalm 23:6 - “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever” KJV

The story is told of a Shakespearean actor who was known throughout the world for his one-man show of readings and recitations from the classics. Every night he would end his performance with a dramatic reading of Twenty-third Psalm. Each night, without exception, as the actor began his recitation -- "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want" -- the crowd would listen attentively. And then, at the conclusion of the psalm, they would rise in thunderous applause in appreciation of the actor's incredible ability to bring the verse to life.

Then one night while on tour, just before the actor was to offer his customary recital of the Twenty-third Psalm 23 a young man from the audience spoke up. "excuse me sir, do you mind, if tonight, I recite the Twenty-third Psalm?"

The actor was stunned by the interruption and this unusual request. He allowed the young man to come forward and to stand front and center on the stage to recite the psalm, knowing that the ability of this unskilled youth would be no match for his own talent.

With a soft voice, the young man began to recite the words of the psalm. When he was finished, there was no applause. There was no standing ovation as on other nights. All that could be heard was the sound of weeping. The audience had been so moved by the young man's recitation that every eye was full of tears.

Amazed by what he had heard, the actor said to the youth, "I don't understand. I have been performing the Twenty-third Psalm for years. I have a lifetime of experience and training, but I have never been able to move an audience as you have tonight. Tell me prey, what is your secret?"

The young man humbly replied, "Well, sir, you know the psalm --- but I know the Shepherd." It makes all the difference.

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An unemployed graduate woke up one morning and checked his pocket. All he had left was $10. He decided to use it to buy food and then wait for death as he was too proud to go begging. He was frustrated as he could find no job, and nobody was ready to help him.

He bought food and as he sat down to eat, an old man and two little children came along and asked him to help them with food as they had not eaten for almost a week. He looked at them. They were so lean that he could see their bones coming out. Their eyes had gone into the socket. With the last bit of compassion he had, he gave them the food.. The old man and children prayed that God would bless and prosper him and then gave him a very old coin. The young graduate said to them "you need the prayer more than I do".

With no money, no job, no food, the young graduate went under the bridge to rest and wait for death. As he was about to sleep, he saw an old newspaper on the ground. He picked it up, and suddenly he saw an advertisement for people with old coins to come to a certain address.

He decided to go there with the old coin the old man gave him. On getting to the place, he gave the proprietor the coin. The proprietor screamed, brought out a big book and showed the young graduate a photograph. This same old coin was worth 3 million dollars. The young graduate was overjoyed as the proprietor gave him a bank draft for 3 million dollars within an hour. He collected the Bank Draft and went in search of the old man and little children.

By the time he got to where he left them eating, they had gone. He asked the owner of the canteen if he knew them. He said no but they left a note for you. He quickly opened the note thinking it would lead him to find them.

This is what the note said: "You gave us your all and we have rewarded you back with the coin" Signed God the Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost. 1 Kings 17:10-16; Matthew 11:28-30

I thank You now Lord for the recent blessings I have received and for the blessings yet to come Because I know You are not done with me yet.
In Jesus' name, I pray,
Amen

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A little something to put things in perspective.

An article in National Geographic.

After a forest fire in Yellowstone National Park , forest rangers began their trek up a mountain to access the inferno's damage. One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, perched statuesquely on the ground at the base of a tree. Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he knocked over the bird with a stick. When he gently struck it, three tiny chicks scurried from under their dead mother's wings. The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and had gathered them under her wings, instinctively knowing that the toxic Smoke would rise. She could have flown to safety but had refused to abandon her babies. Then when the blaze had arrived and the heat had scorched her small Body, the mother had remained steadfast because she had been willing to die, so those under the cover of her wings would live. "He will cover you with His feathers and under His wings you will find refuge." (Psalm 91:4) Being loved this much should make a difference in your life. Remember the One who loves you, and then be different because of it.

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The Secret
One day, one friend asked another,
"How is it that you are always so happy?
You have so much energy,
and you never seem to get down."

With her eyes smiling, she said,
"I know the Secret!"
"What secret is that?"
To which she replied,
"I'll tell you all about it,
but you have to promise to
share the Secret with others."

"The Secret is this:
I have learned there is little I can do
in my life that will make me truly happy
I must depend on God to make
me happy and to meet my needs
When a need arises in my life,
I have to trust God to supply
according to HIS riches
I have learned most of the time
I don't need half of what I think I do
He has never let me down
Since I learned that 'Secret', I am happy."

The questioner's first thought was,
"That's too simple!"
But upon reflecting over her own life
she recalled how she thought a bigger house
would make her happy, but it didn't!
She thought a better paying job
would make her happy, but it hadn't
When did she realize her greatest happiness?
Sitting on the floor with her grandchildren
playing games, eating pizza or reading a story
a simple gift from God

Now you know it too!
We can't depend on people to make us happy
Only GOD in His infinite wisdom can do that
Trust HIM!
GOD in His wisdom will take care of YOU!
But it's not really a secret ...
We just have to believe it and do it ...
Really trust God!

[TakinMyLyfeBack]

The Smell of God

A cold March wind danced around the dead of night in Dallas as the doctor walked into the small hospital room of Diana Blessing. Still groggy from surgery,her husband David held her hand as they braced themselves for the latest news.

That afternoon of March 10 , 1991, complications had forced Diana, only 24-weeks pregnant, to undergo an emergency Cesarean to deliver the couple's new daughter, Danae Lu Blessing. At 12 inches long and weighing only one pound and nine ounces, they already knew she was perilously premature. Still, the doctor's soft words dropped like bombs. "I don't think she is going to make it," he said, as kindly as he could. "There's only a 10% chance she will live through the night, and even then, if by some slim chance she does make it, her future could be a very cruel one."

Numb with disbelief, David and Diana listened as the doctor described the devastating problems Danae would likely face is she survived. She would never walk. She would never talk. She would probably be blind. She would certainly be prone to other catastrophic conditions from cerebral palsy to complete mental retardation and on and on.

"No! No!" was a Diana could say. She and David with their 5-year-old son Dustin, had long dreamed of the day that would have a daughter to become a family of four. Now, within a matter of hours, that dream was slipping away.

Through the dark hours of morning as Danae held onto life by the thinnest thread, Diana slipped in and out of drugged sleep, growing more and more determined that their tiny daughter would live-and live to be a happy, healthy young girl. But David, fully awake and listening to additional dire details of their daughter's chances of ever leaving the hospital alive, much less healthy, knew he must confront his wife with the inevitable.

"David walked in and said that we needed to talk about making funeral arrangements," Diana remembers. "I felt so bad for him because he was doing everything, trying to include me in what was going on, but I just wouldn't listen - I couldn't listen. I said, "No, that is not going to happen, no way! I don't care what the doctors say Danae is not going to die! One day she will be just fine, and she will be coming home with us!"

As if willed to live by Diana's determination, Danae clung to life - a marvel her miniature body could endure. But, as those first days passed, a new agony set in for David and Diana. Because Danae's underdeveloped nervous system was essentially "raw," the lightest kiss or caress only intensified her discomfort - so they couldn't even cradle their tiny baby girl against their chests to offer the strength of their love. All they could do, as Danae struggled alone beneath the ultra-violet light in the tangle of tubes and wires, was to pray that God would stay close to their precious little girl.

There was never a moment when Danae suddenly grew stronger. But, as the weeks went by, she did slowly gain an ounce of weight here and an ounce of strength there.

At last, when Danae turned two months old, her parents were able to hold her in their arms for the very first time. And two months later-though doctors continued to gently but grimly warn that her chances of surviving, much less living any kind of normal life, were next to zero

Danae went home from the hospital, just as he mother had predicted.

Today, five years later, Danae is a petite but feisty young girl with glittering gray eyes and an unquenchable zest for like. She shows no signs, whatsoever, of any mental or physical impairments. Simply, she is everything a little girl can be and more-but that happy ending is far from the end of her story.

One blistering afternoon in the summer of 1996 near her home in Irving, Texas, Danae was sitting in her mother's lap in the bleachers of a local ball park where her brother Dustin's baseball team was practicing. As always, Danae was chattering non-stop with her mother and several other adults sitting nearby when she suddenly fell silent.

Hugging her arms across her chest, Danae asked, "Do you smell that?" Smelling the air and detecting the approach of a thunderstorm, Diana replied, "Yes, it smells like rain."

Danae closed her eyes and again asked, "Do you smell that?" Once again her mother replied, "Yes, I think we're about to get wet. It smells like rain. "Still caught in the moment, Danae shook her head, patted her thin shoulders with her small hands and loudly announced, "No, it smells like Him. It smells like God when you lay your head on His chest."

Tears blurred Diana's eyes as Danae then happily hopped down to play with some other children. Thinking back on her daughter's word's it confirmed what Diana and all the members of the extended Blessing family had known, at least in their hearts, all along. During those long days and nights of her first two months of her life when her nerves were too sensitive for them to touch her, God was holding Danae on His chest - and it is His loving scent that she remembers so well.