The Deep, Dark Pit

I'd thought I'd send along something a little different today. You may have read this before, but if not, you should. It's interesting.

Luke 15:4

What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? (KJV)

Just like the sheep that gets lost in the wilderness, we too get lost at times, and only Christ can find us and save us from the darkness.

-AMR ;-)

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The Deep, Dark Pit

A man fell into a pit and couldn't get himself out.

• A subjective person came along and said, "I feel for you down there."
• An objective person walked by and said, "It's logical that someone would fall down there."
• A Pharisee said, "Only bad people fall into pits."
• A mathematician calculated how deep the pit was.
• A news reporter wanted the exclusive story on the pit.
• An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit.
• A self-pitying person said, "You haven't seen anything until you've seen my pit."
• A fire-and-brimstone preacher said, "You deserve your pit."
• A Christian Scientist observed, "The pit is just in your mind."
• A psychologist noted, "Your mother and father are to blame for your being in that pit."
• A self-esteem therapist said, "Believe in yourself and you can get out of that pit."
• An optimist said, "Things could be worse."
• A pessimist claimed, "Things will get worse."

Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.

Caught by the Current

Wow, this summer is definitely flying. Today's devotional hits on the subject of spiritual drifting. Read on for more details.

-AMR ;-)
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Continual Prayer

Just a little something I wanted to share...it's a verse I've been pondering for some time now so I thought it'd be nice to fill you in. Enjoy!

1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing. (KJV)

The Bible presents us with many "sayings," each of which is designed to instruct us in how to live our lives in a way that is pleasing to God. Paul closes his first letter to the Thessalonians with a series of exortations. One of these is to "pray without ceasing." Although it seems to be fairly straightforward, how do we put this in practice? What does it really mean with respect to the way that we live our daily lives? It's not one of "the big ten" that you can find in Exodus 20, but following this commandment is part of loving our Lord with all of our heart, mind, and soul (luke 10:27).

We need to think of the big picture. Although we aren't literally praying every moment, our thoughts, words, and actions should reflect this actitud of servitude/submission to Jesus Christ. We should strive to make everything be genuinely for his glory. Take a second to think about your life-- even just the past 24 hours......the Lord knows your heart and mind, and can tell when you're being selfish, even if you haven't yet recognized it for yourself. Pray that the Lord will show you new ways to serve him.

-AMR ;-)

Passing the Test

Today's message can be found in the Campus Journal. Just a little food for thought.....are you "passing" the multitude of tests that come your way each day?

-AMR ;-)
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Is He Really My Lord?

Here I am, back from yet another trip to NH. Two more to go and then I'm outta here! I love working with the kids though......

God Bless and enjoy
-AMR ;-)
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Don't Forget Monday

Okay...so it will probably be tuesday by the time that you get this but you get the point. I'm going out of town again so enjoy your next couple of days!

-AMR ;-)
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Look Again and Consecrate

I hope that you all were able ponder some good spiritual food today. I still can't chew so well so I feel like that's all that I've been subsisting on for the past 3 days. Fortunately, the word of God is more than sufficient to satisfy our needs. Even though I may be feeling some physical discomfort, I have been feeling very satisfied spiritually, perhaps even more so than before the surgery, as i've had a lot of time spent lying awake these past 2 nights....

-AMR ;-)
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A Quote A Day

Life has been really draining my energy these days (too many things to do!) so I'll just leave you with the devotional today. I'm sporting a chipmunk look that my mother seems to find highly amusing so i think i'm off for another night filled with ice and not so much sleep.....

"This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!"
-AMR ;-)

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Wrestling in Prayer

When was the last time that you "wrestled in prayer"? Life is not always easy and there are times when we just have to talk things out with God, and it can be tough. No one ever said that being a Christian was always easy. Maybe there's something you've been avoiding facing? Wrestle it out with God and let him show you the way.

-AMR

FYI: The surgery went without a hitch....it will be a few days until the swelling/pain abates but I thank God for being with me through the ordeal :-)

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The Daily Devo
By Pastor Steve Baney
Wrestling in Prayer

Colossians 4:12 "Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured." (NIV)

Wrestling as a sport is hard work. Paul says Epaphras wrestled in prayer. Woah! Sometimes when we pray, we say a few expected words and make a few shopping-list requests. If your prayer life is running a little dry, try having a conversation with God instead of a stereotypical prayer.

Lord, please build in me patience, consistency, and persistence in my prayer life.
Holy Bible, New International Version. Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1988.

Wise and Mighty

I'm back again (and wiped!). Pray for me as I'm having my wisdom teeth extracted in the morning. I hope that you're all having a wonderful, blessed summer. Until tomorrow....

-AMR ;-)

The Daily Devo
by Pastor Steve Baney
Wise and Mighty (1 Corinthians 1:25)

1 Corinthians 1:25 "The foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength." (NIV)

Sometimes we forget who God is. He is so much bigger and better than our biggest dreams. Even his weakest points are greater than our strongest strengths. Are you trusting him for who he is or second-guessing and hoping to get by? Let our wise and mighty God be your caretaker today.

Father, help me to trust in your wisdom and strength.

Holy Bible, New International Version. Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1988.

The First Step

Continuing on a theme from this semester, I suppose....I guess God's still trying to tell me something, so I hope that these messages are beneficial to all of y'all as well (gotta get my southern drawl ready for the big move!).

The fellow who gave the sermon this sunday at my church chose to focus on Exodus 14:8-21, and his talk was titled "You have to go God when God Tells you to." The Israelites were quick to forget all that God had done for them once they started to get tired and scared while walking through the dessert with the Egyptians in pursuit. Moses did not lose faith, however, and reminded the people of the same promise that we see time and time again...basically that God would deliver them from harm if they could just have faith (v.13-14).

If God is directing you to go somewhere, or to do something, don't be afraid because the great I AM (Ex 3:14) has sent you, and you are definitely more than a conqueror because of his love for us (Ro 8:37).

-AMR ;-)
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Think Again

From the daily devo. Enjoy!

-AMR ;-)

The Daily Devo
by Pastor Steve Baney
Think Again

Proverbs 1:5 "Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance." (NIV)

I remember from high school hearing a student say that he knew just about all there was to know about computers, only to find our during the course of our study that he had a lot to learn. Think you know it all about the Bible? Think again. Even those who are wise and discerning still need to listen, learn, and get guidance. That's one of the reasons why reading God's word is so important!

Father, help me to listen, learn, and get guidance.

Holy Bible, New International Version. Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1988.

Living in the Past

Living in the past can definitely hinder your walk with God. If you've confessed your sins to God then he's forgiven you, which basically means that he no longer holds you accountable for them. If repentance is good enough for God, it should be more than sufficient for you too....we're human, and because of that we screw up. I'm not saying that it's okay, but rather that God's grace keeps us from having to dwell on our mistakes. If you're still living in the past, then you haven't truly laid your sins on God...give them to him, and he will carry you.

-AMR ;-)
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The Contest

a long work week is finally over. praise god for another week of blessings (including my mother's safe return today from honduras). happy saturday!

-AMR ;-)
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The Spiritually Self-Seeking Church

unfortunately, i'm not feeling so hot today......

-AMR :-(
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You Are Important

I'm going out of town for a couple days (and for a couple days every week for the next 5 weeks) so just bear with me. I'll get these out when I can.

The trip to Honduras was so incredible, that's it's hard to even know where to start. One of the things I learned is that God will use you, even if you don't feel prepared. As a team we had a number of gifts that were unique to our particular group (eg the ability to easily communicate with the locals, since we were the first hispanic team to make the trip). We were able to minister in many different ways, including through song, as 3/4 of our team consisted of current and former members of the grupo de apoyo (praise and worship team). In spite of this, I had doubts going in about my own ability to contribute, since I have no medical or technical training, and therefore couldn't treat patients or try to get equipment working. My oral command of the spanish language is questionable at times, and I knew I was supposed to work with children so I was worried about that too. Just as this devotional points out, however, everyone is an important part of God's plan. He gives us gifts that we can use to glorify him in all sorts of ways...

-AMR ;-)

THE OLD TYPEWRITER

unknown author

(**there's nothing wrong with this message...just substitute the "x" for the letter "e" to read this)

Although my typxritxr is an old modxl, it works just finx, xxcept for a singlx missing kxy. Thxrx arx 45 kxys that work finx, but, as you can sxx, just onx that doxsn't work makxs a hugx diffxrxncx.

Thxrx arx many timxs whxn it sxxms that thxrx arx pxoplx in this world that act likx my typxwritxr and don't work as thxy should. Thxy say things likx: "I'm only onx pxrson...it's not likx God's work will not gxt donx without mx. No onx will noticx my lack of xffort and xnthusiasm."

Nxvxrthxlxss, in ordxr for a projxct to bx a succxss, the activx participation of XVXRY mxmbxr is rxquirxd. The nxxt timx that you think that you arx unxssxntial, remember thx typxwritxr and say: "I am onx of God's tools and am an xssxntial part of God's plan."

Dead or Alive?

Well, i'm back...and i can't even describe how amazing the trip was. i'm pretty wiped so you'll have to wait for more of my wit ;-).

-AMR
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