Nothing

Nothing can separate us from the love of God..
..not death
..not life
.. not angels
..not demons
..not fears for today
..not worries for tomorrow
..not great powers
..not the highest star
..not the deepest ocean
..nothing in all of creation.

The Apostle Paul in a letter to those in Rome.

A Renewal

O God, I have tasted Thy goodness,
and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more.
I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace.
I am ashamed of my lack of desire.

O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee;
I long to be filled with longing;
I thirst to be made more thirsty still.
Show me Thy glory, I pray, so that I may know Thee indeed.
Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Amen.

A Payer of A. W. Tozer

The Call of God

The call of God does what the call of man cannot. It raises the dead. - John Piper

A Vacation Prayer

Gracious God,
may I see the wonders of creation
this day.

May the simple gifts
that are so often buried
under the activities of my life
be revealed in glory.

May my heart that
is so often distracted
be clear and still.

May my soul,
hungry for peace,
be fed by your grace.

When I close my eyes in sleep
this night,
may I be filled with gratitude
for the blessing of this leisurely day.

I ask this for the sake of your love. Amen.

www.explorefaith.org

Twenty Reasons Your Church Might Not Be Growing

Twenty Reasons

I Am Resolved

I am resolved no longer to linger,
Charmed by the world’s delight,
Things that are higher, things that are nobler,
These have allured my sight.

I am resolved to go to the Savior,
Leaving my sin and strife;
He is the true One, He is the just One,
He hath the words of life.

I am resolved to follow the Savior,
Faithful and true each day;
Heed what He sayeth, do what He willeth,
He is the living Way.

I am resolved to enter the kingdom
Leaving the paths of sin;
Friends may oppose me, foes may beset me,
Still will I enter in.

I am resolved, and who will go with me
Come, friends, without delay
Taught by the Bible, led by the Spirit
We’ll walk the heav’nly way.

Prayer - Listen

“Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.” - Mother Teresa

Prayer - Stop Worrying and Start Praying

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. ⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ⁸ Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.     Philippians 4:4-8

Prayer - Serenity

God, give me grace to accept with serenity

the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the Wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time,

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it,

Trusting that You will make all things right,

If I surrender to Your will,

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

Prayer - 3 To Know

Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.  Psalm 147:5

When praying we can know:
1. Great is our Lord.
2. He is abundant in strength.
3. His understanding and knowledge is infinite.

Dwell on these a little in your prayer time and throughout the day while you are in line, waiting, stuck in traffic, concerned about something or someone, having a hard day, exhausted form work and other responsibilities, paying your bills, ill, wandering and wondering. Dwell on these.

Prayer - A Prayer To Live

The prayer below was a brief prayer that Jesus used to help His followers begin to grasp prayer, praying and living. This prayer was never intended to just be prayed in worship services or to just be used as an example. This prayer is life. This prayer is how we are to pray and live.

⁹ “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.¹⁰ ‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’

                                                                  Matthew 6:9-13

Prayer - Praying Together Is Vital For the Local Church

Prayer - Together

Ever major breakthrough for the church in the book of Acts came about as a direct result of prayer. God performed mighty works for the propagation of the gospel and the declaration of His glory in direct proportion to the prayers of His people.    Radical Together

Prayer - A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

7 Practices of Effective Ministries

1. Clarify the Win. Define what is important. What is the organization’s purpose. Leaders and people working/serving in the organization need to know what a “win” is.
2.Think Steps, Not Programs. Before you start anything, make sure it takes you where you want and need to go in order to “win”. Think process. Processes within programs.
3. Narrow the Focus. Do fewer things in order to make a greater impact. Less is more. Focus, focus, focus.
4. Teach Less for More. Say only what you need to say to the people who need to hear it. Not everyone has to be in the know. Not everyone has to give permission.
5. Listen to Outsiders. Focus on who you are trying to reach, not who you’re trying to keep. Information from those not yet in organization is needed and can be used to help make improvements.
6. Replace Yourself. Learn to hand of what you do. Develop people. Develop leaders. Train others. Give permission within perimeters of “win”.
7. Work On It. Take time to evaluate your work, and to celebrate your wins. Analyze and improve. Personal improvement and organizational improvement is a must. Allow Teams to evaluate and improve.

The above are taken from 7 Practices of Effective Ministry by Andy Stanley, Reggie Joiner, and Lane Jones.

The Symbol For Christianity



Prayer - Oneness With God

"Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him" (Matthew 6:8). Then why should we ask? The point of prayer is not to get answers from God, but to have perfect and complete oneness with Him. If we pray only because we want answers, we will become irritated and angry with God. We receive an answer every time we pray, but it does always come out in the way we expect... We are not here to prove that God answers prayer, but to be living trophies of God's grace. - Oswald Chambers

Say so

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.² Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary
³ And gathered from the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.

⁴ They wandered in the wilderness in a desert region;
They did not find a way to an inhabited city.
⁵ They were hungry and thirsty;
Their soul fainted within them.
⁶ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He delivered them out of their distresses.
⁷ He led them also by a straight way,
To go to an inhabited city.
⁸ Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His wonders to the sons of men!
⁹ For He has satisfied the thirsty soul,
And the hungry soul He has filled with what is good.

                                  Psalm 107:1-9

Christianity's Symbol

More Than Nets - Pray, Give, Go