Today's quote.

"The next time you are called to suffer, pay attention. It may be the closest you'll ever get to God."
- Max Lucado

Thoughts.

I really want to say

I’m very glad I know you;

I think of you each day.

..

...

....

Us gals.

This day.

Are You Armed to Suffer? #1 (continued by Courtney MacLellan)

8. Does this bother you that sufferings of many kinds await you as a believer?

Not at all, because I know there is always a hope set before me, which is greater than any suffering that might come my way. All the more, I do want to suffer for Christ’s sake…

Romans 8:16-21, 35-39
16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. 17Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that[i] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."[l] 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[m] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

You will know a Christian by how they react standing in the face of persecution.

Mark 4:17
“But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.”

If we lived in a perfect world, there would be no such need for hope. But it’s the things that trouble us, get us down, persecute us, disturb us, and discomfort us that cause us to hope for something better/greater. Therefore, without suffering in our Christian walk, there would be no need for hope- we would always be content where we are with Christ.


9. If you were to share the gospel with a friend of yours, would you warn them that trials, hardships and persecutions await them if they surrender to Christ? Why or why not?

Most definitely, never give up on that awesome opportunity to share that great joy of the persecution to come because you will find a much greater hope in the end and you will bring glory to your Father.

You cannot share the gospel with someone without mentioning the persecution and suffering to come. Otherwise you message to them would be absolutely incomplete. Without suffering, where would “the prize set before us” come into the picture?

Hebrews 12:2
“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross; despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”


Suffering brings hope. No suffering brings contentment; therefore there would be no need for hope because we wouldn’t long for anything more than happiness. Without suffering there would be no compassion.


CookieMac

New In You

Verse 1
Do I reflect who You are?
Not what I want to be?
I can’t fake this pain
The truth has come to me.
People I always knew.
I now know no more.
Because

Chorus
I am new
New in You
This is where you brought me
And I’m here to stay
I am new
And yes, I love you too
I want You in my life
Now and
Forevermore

Verse 2
Things all around me
I care for no more
Jesus now is life to me
For my salvation is why
He bore the sins of this world
Helplessly forgiven now

Bridge
No thing can take me from your love
I’m firm here in your arms and I trust
Your will be done
Tonight I am
New

Chorus
I am new
New in You
This is where you brought me
And I’m here to stay
I am new
And yes, I love you too
I want You in my life
Now and
Forevermore

~Courtney Mac

Points on Love:

(1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

o Love does not take satisfaction from sin.
o Love does not pleasure in the wrongs of others.
o Love rejoices in righteousness.
o Love rejoices in truth.
o Love is always in harmony with the doctrines of God.
o Love puts up with all irritations.
o True love rejoices when its right.
o Love knows no personality; it is perfectly conflict- compatible.
o Love never protects sin but is anxious to protect the sinner.
o Love believes the best for people; hopes for the best.
o Love believes in the best outcome for the one who has done wrong.
o Love hopes all things and never loses hope.
o Love sustains its quota in the face of violent sufferings and persecution.
o Love; Hope never accepts failure as final.
o Love turns its eyes to the future and hopes all things.
o Love is optimistic about progress that can come through spiritual growth and development.

Love bears but is otherwise unbearable.
Believes but is otherwise unbelievable.
Hopes but otherwise is hopeless.
And anything less than love would give up.

Pastor John Richard

Suddenly I Want You

Verse 1
Suddenly so suddenly
All my desires
All I've ever wanted
All these things fade
And suddenly so suddenly
Oh God, all i want is You

Verse 2
Suddenly so suddenly
Things i hope for tomorrow
The pleasures i wait for
Things, things of this world
So suddenly, suddenly they fade
When I'm standing next to You
Oh God, all i want is You

Chorus
Now Your glory falls------
Your glory falls like rain
To me You bring this sweet refrain
And suddenly---- So suddenly
Oh God, Oh God, Oh God

Bridge
All I want is You
You bring me back to You
All the honor, and glory
And power, and praises
It's all for You

Chorus
Your glory falls------
Your glory falls like rain
To me You bring this sweet refrain
And suddenly---- So suddenly
Oh God, Oh God, Oh God
All I want is You
So suddenly------

Courtney Mac <3

The Ministry and Work of the Holy Spirit

2 Approaches to the Holy Spirit:

• The phenomena approach.


• The paranoid approach.

1. The Holy spirit baptizes Believers.

Mark 1:7-8, "And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals i am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

2. The Holy spirit indwells Christians at conversion.

John 14:16-17 "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— 17the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."

3. The Holy Spirit enables us to speak for Christ.

Luke 12:11-12, "When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."

4. The Holy Spirit gives power for ministry and evangelism.

Acts 1:8, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

5. The Holy Spirit provides comfort for believers.

Acts 9:31, "Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord."

6. The Holy Spirit empowers holy living.

Romans 8:13, "13For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,"

7. The Holy Spirit will one day renew our fleshly bodies.

Romans 8:11, "And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."

8. The Holy Spirit guides His children.

Romans 8:14

9. The Holy spirit brings assurance of Salvation.

Romans 8:16

10. The Holy Spirit helps us in our weaknesses.

Romans 8:26

11. The Holy Spirit prays for believers.

Romans 8:27

12. The Holy Spirit brings joy.

Romans 14:17

13. The Holy Spirit empowers hope.

Romans 15:13

14. The Holy Spirit helps us understand the Word of God.

1 Cor 2:12 & 14

15. The Holy Spirit washes and justifies us.

1 Cor 6:11

16. The Holy Spirit brings freedom from the law.

2 Cor 3:5, 6 & 17

17. The Holy Spirit gives us direct access to the Father.

Ephesians 2:18

18. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in the life of a believer.

Galatians 5:22, 23

19. The Holy Spirit provides spiritual gifts to each believer.

1 Cor 12, 13 & 14

Courtney <3

Music is sound in time.

"Music is an art form that involves organized sounds and silence."

Do You Want to Be Sexy?

by Dannah Gresh

Girlfriends, we have to talk! Have you noticed that our society has become so obsessed with sex appeal that just about anything is fair game?
A recent animal rights ad suggests that pasta and vegetables can be “sexy.” (The definition of sexy is “to be sexually suggestive or stimulating; attractive.” If pasta and vegetables are creating that kind of reaction in people, then . . . well, let’s not go there!)

SEXY Hair brand shampoo promises a sexy look. (Does this apply if I happen to use their shampoo on my dog? Incidentally, 29 percent of InStyle magazine readers say dogs are sexy. Somehow, I think I’d feel more comfortable if they thought pasta and vegetables were sexy.)

Doritos sure seem sexy according to their famed Super Bowl commercials featuring a scantily-clad woman catching them between her teeth. (The last time I crunched down a bag, I only got bad breath and orange fingers!)

Please forgive my sarcasm, but if you stick with me for a few minutes, I think you’ll begin to see how silly “sexy” can be! But you can’t just read about it. This is no sleepover slumber party chitchat. No, Brio Sisses, you have to think about “sexy.” It’s time for women of God to analyze the issue with discernment.


What’s the World’s Reaction to All This Sexy Stuff?
Ironically, the world’s response to the most sensual stuff isn’t what you’d think. Take, for instance, all this sexy reality TV. The sexier the shows, the faster they tank.

ABC’s “Are You Hot?” featured scantily clad guys and girls whose bodies and sensuality were dissected on national television. Last March, the official ABC Web site politely announced it wouldn’t be producing another season of the show. Unofficial sites blatantly announced the show was “killed because of low ratings.”

The Real Cancun, MTV’s pioneering effort into reality movies, featured 16 college kids on spring break in Mexico. To say the least, the film was sexy. Press releases said it “flopped at the box office.”

In the midst of the lack of audience response to the most sensual reality programming was the strange skyrocketing success of reality television shows focused on courtship and marriage. Analysts were blown away by the success of “The Bachelor,” “The Bachelorette” and “Joe Millionaire.” Even though I find much of the content of these shows crass, they’re a reminder that in our hearts we desire romance and true love over cheap sexual thrills. v Still, many girls today are getting stuck in the rut believing that sexy is the road that leads to romance and love. Again, the world’s data prove otherwise.

The Journal of Advertising published a study of the effects of using overtly sexual content in mainstream consumer advertising. It reports that sexual appeal in ads increases the interest in the product. However, brand recognition was noticeably lower. In other words, if the makers of Kleenex brand tissues decided to use sexy models, they’d probably have more memorable commercials and consumers might even become consumed with tissues (PRODUCT) thinking that they might be sexier, but they’d be less likely to remember that it’s Kleenex (BRAND) tissues they’re supposed to be buying.

It makes me wonder. If you follow the trend of dressing sexy, acting sexy and talking sexy, won’t you also be creating a higher level of interest in the sexual appeal of women in general (PRODUCT) while at the same time making yourself (BRAND) more generic and uninteresting?

For all the hoopla about sexy, the actual response of the world seems to leave us still longing for something we just can’t find in sexy. As one author puts it, “Do people imagine men courted women in the past because they simply found it more fun than casual sex? No, it was because women’s modesty required it!”


What’s God’s Reaction to All This Sexy Stuff?
Don’t be surprised by this, but I believe God created you to be sexy. I just don’t think that the world’s casual use of sexy is the same as God’s definition.

The Bible’s Hebrew word for sex is yada which means, “known, recognized, understood, respected.” The word is used both in reference to a man and wife having sexual intercourse and, along with other usages, in reference to a person being in deep fellowship with God. Because sexy is the adjective form of sex, it can mean that in God’s eyes you’re known intimately, recognized to the core of your being for who are, understood perhaps without even the need to explain and deeply respected. Do you see that reflected in today’s cheap imitation of sexy?

Of course, God includes the physical appeal that the world defines as sexy within His precious Word. Proverbs 5:18-19 says, “May you rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful deer — may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by her love.”

That verse acknowledges that we have the power to be captivating. But take a look at how many women captivate the guy in Proverbs.

Did you get it?

One.

The wife of his youth.

When you put the definition of yada together with this verse, it says to me that there are deep secrets about us that only our husband is supposed to know. God did create you to be sexy, but not our world’s cheap compromise of sexy. When you choose to be sexy for only your husband, you live according to God’s purpose, and rather than losing respect, you gain it.


What’s Your Reaction to All This Sexy Stuff?
I’m sad to hear a lot of my sweet Christian sisters throwing the word sexy around as if it’s a cool thing. Some of them say, “It’s OK to be sexy.” Some of them just try to live out the definition of sexy by imitating the culture. Even some of our most fabulous Christian role models are falling for the lie.

Which will you choose — the world’s cheap imitation of sexy, or God’s plan for sexy? I know it’s a difficult choice given today’s casual guy/girl relationships, sexy clothes, sensual movies — and let’s not forget those very sexy Doritos!

But how’s a girl to rise above the sexy banter? First Peter 3:3-4 gives us what I like to call “The Reflection Test.” It reads, ”Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.”

Those verses are really saying, “Hey, don’t be more concerned with your outside beauty than you are with your internal beauty.” In other words, bag the obsession with sexy. But how? It starts with taking “The Reflection Test” each morning. Look in the mirror and ask yourself, “Did I spend more time with God grooming my heart and my mind than I did in front of this mirror today?” Only when your heart is filled with the confident humility of God will you be able to resist the pressure and pain of today’s sex-crazed culture.

Oh, and pass the Doritos. That’s sure to dampen down the allure!




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This article appeared in Brio magazine. Copyright © 2003 Dannah Gresh. All rights reserved. International copyright secured.