Encouraging Words for the day | Christian devotionals - Hopeful Heart

To Be Quiet And Still

30/6/2015

When work is pressing, there are many little things that will come and seem to need attention. it is a very blessed thing to be quiet and still, work on and entrust the little things to God. He answers such trust in a wonderful way.

The believer who has no time to fret and worry and harbor care has learned the secret of faith in God. A desperate desire to change some difficult circumstance may take our eyes off God and His glory. Some suffering Christians have been so anxious to get well and have spent so much time in trying to claim healing, that they have lost their faith. God sometimes has to teach such persons that there must be a willingness to be sick before they are yielded enough to receive His fullest blessing.The enemy keeps at this work. Sanballat came four times to Nehemiah, always receiving the same answer. How many fears we have stopped to fight which ultimately have proved to be nothing. Nehemiah recognized that fear is sin and did not dare to yield to it. "So I sent messengers to them with this reply: "I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?" - Nehemiah 6:3

- A.Simpson

Love Me Love My Dog

26/6/2015

The expression “Love me, love my dog” came to life when my wife and I got a puppy - a first for me. We adore Sophie and she adores us. Actually, she adores everyone. She is not only one of those hyperactive toy breeds, but also one that is sociable. She starts wagging her tail as soon as a new person enters her world, and within a second or two her tail is wagging the rest of her so hard that she nearly comes unglued. Sophie loves everyone that she sees but I had to learn to tolerate Sophie's behaviour at the beginning but now I have learned to love Sophie with all that comes in having her as our dog.

In that context, the connection between the two rules for life that Jesus said encompass all the rest - love God, and love others becomes clearer. “Love God, love those He loves,” which is everyone. When we truly love God and believe that He created us in His own image, we will love and respect each of His creations enough to try our best to understand and accept him or her—faults, foibles, and all.

Matthew 22:37-39 ESV
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

- Anonymous

Jesus Loves You Unconditionally

26/6/2015

David said, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered” (Ps 32:1). No matter how hard we work, we can never pay off our sin debt. And thank God we don’t have to, because “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Years ago a congregation decided to honor one of its retired pastors. He was ninety-two, and some people wondered why the church even asked the elderly man to speak.

After a warm welcome and introduction, he rose from his chair and walked with great dignity and effort to the pulpit. Leaning on the podium to steady himself, without notes of any kind he began to speak: “When your pastor invited me here, he asked me to talk about the greatest lesson I’ve learned in fifty-plus years of preaching. I’ve thought about it for a few days, and boiled it down to the one thing that has made the most difference in my life and sustained me through all my trials. The one thing I can rely on when tears, heartbreak, pain, fear, and sorrow paralyze me…the one thing that always comforts me: Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong. They are weak but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me. The Bible tells me so.”

You could hear a pin drop as the old man shuffled back to his seat. It’s something the congregation never forgot. And it’s something you should never forget either—Jesus loves you unconditionally. That’s so today, tomorrow, and forever!

For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life. (‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬ AMP)

- http://www.jentezenfranklin.org/jesus-loves-you-unconditionally/ -

Trust God will turn your bad to good

23/6/2015

God has the whole world to think about, yet somehow He manages to keep everything under perfect control and ultimately going the direction He wants it to go. Everything is planned; everything is ordered in “decency and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40), and nothing can happen without His will. Whatever happens is what ought to happen or what God allows to happen for a reason. Everything is in His hands and nothing happens without His will, especially to His children whom He loves and to whom He wants to be good.

God engineers every situation and has a good purpose for everything—even our troubles. “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God” (Romans 8:28). So the next time you find yourself in a situation that doesn’t look so good to you, take another look. It may not be immediately apparent, but sooner or later God will turn your “bad” to good!

Romans 8:28
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God

- Anonymous

Knowing the Love of God

19/6/2015

"The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing." (Zephaniah 3:17)

What a word is this! Jehovah God in the center of His people in all the majesty of His power! This presence alone suffices to inspire us with peace and hope. Treasures of boundless might are stored in our Jehovah, and He dwells in His church; therefore may His people shout for joy.

We not only have His presence, but He is engaged upon His choice work of salvation. "He will save." He is always saving: He takes His name of Jesus from it. Let us not fear any danger, for He is mighty to save.

Nor is this all. He abides evermore the same, He saves, He finds rest in loving, He will not cease to love. His love gives Him joy. He even finds a theme for song in His beloved. This is exceedingly wonderful. When God wrought creation He did not sing but simply said, "It is very good"; but when He came to redemption, then the sacred Trinity felt a joy to be expressed in song, Think of it, and be astonished! Jehovah Jesus sings a marriage song over His chosen bride. She is to Him His love, His joy, His rest, His song. O Lord Jesus, by Thine immeasurable love to us teach us to love Thee, to rejoice in Thee, and to sing unto Thee our life-psalm.

- By Charles Spurgeon -

Two things I remember

17/6/2015

If I may say, the Christian life is one of struggle with sin and growth to the likeness of Christ. The apostle Paul explains “For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want (Galatians 5: 17) yet we can take comfort that Jesus has delivered us from this “body of death” (Romans 7: 24 - 25).

Only God could lead us to the path of grace which makes us truly a good follower of Christ. He knows it full well despite every good intention we may have, we will fail time and time again. It is only the Lord who keeps us growing; He continues daily to lavish us the grace and strength for every struggle to put away every desire of the flesh and old ways.

John Newton, the songwriter of "Amazing Grace" battled with dementia in his final years yet he confidently declared, “I do remember two things: that I am a great sinner and Jesus is a great Saviour.” When it comes to assurance of salvation and the Lord’s goodness, let those words be your comfort.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His words my hope secures,
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures – Newton

Romans 7: 24 - 25
What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

- Irene Soon

The truth about God's Children

15/6/2015

Happy is the man who has learned the secret of coming to God in daily prayer. Fifteen minutes alone with God every morning before you start the day can change circumstances and remove mountains!

But all of this happiness and all of these unlimited benefits which flow from the storehouse of heaven are contingent upon our relationship to God. Absolute dependency and absolute yieldedness are the conditions of being His child.

Only His children are entitled to receive those things that lend themselves to happiness; and in order to be His child, there must be the surrender of the will to Him. Man does not come to know God through works; he comes to know God by faith, through grace. You cannot work your way toward happiness and heaven, you cannot moralize your way, you cannot reform your way, you cannot buy your way. It comes as a gift of God through Christ. Such beautiful truth for us, the children of God.

2 Peter 1: 3
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

- Anonymous

The Power of Vision

11/6/2015

Having a vision for your life gives you four things:

(1) Passion. It makes you wake up in the morning and bound out of bed because there’s something out there you love to do; something you believe in and are good at; something bigger than you; something you can hardly wait to get at.

(2) Motivation. Author Richard B. Edler said: “Safe living generally makes for regrets later on. We’re all given talents and dreams. Sometimes the two don’t match. But more often than not we compromise both before ever finding out. Later on, we find ourselves looking back longingly to that time when we should’ve chased our true dreams and talents for all they’re worth. Don’t be pressured into thinking your dreams or talents aren’t prudent. They were never meant to be…They were meant to bring joy and fulfillment to your life.”

(3) Direction. Vision simplifies decision-making. Anything that moves you closer to your vision gets a green light; everything else should be approached with caution. Vision brings what’s important to the surface, and weeds out anything that stands in your way. Without vision, good things will keep you from achieving great things. People without a clear vision are easily distracted. They’ve a tendency to drift aimlessly from one thing to another. They’ve no spiritual, relational, financial, or moral compass. Consequently, they make decisions that rob them of their dreams.

(4) Purpose. Having vision is like getting a sneak preview of things to come. It says, “If you don’t show up, something important won’t happen. Your life matters. Without you, what could be—won’t be.”

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. (‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5-6‬ NIV)

http://www.jentezenfranklin.org/the-power-of-vision-2/

Knowing God and yourself

10/6/2015

1 Samuel 17:45
You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.

1 Samuel 30:23b
He has protected us and delivered into our hands the raiding party that came against us.

Knowing God and myself are the two topics I am studying on this year. As I walk through this journey, the story of King David was one among others where God proved Himself to be Lord and David showed himself to be the man after God’s own heart.

The story of David fighting Goliath (1 Samuel 17) and the story of David pursuing the Amalekites (1 Samuel 30) serve as an important reminder for me of who God really is and who we are. David knew God is mightier than any of his enemies; he knew God had equipped him when he fought Goliath. David also knew the urgency of the issue when the Amalekites took captive his two wives and all the Israelites but he recognized the necessity to seek God’s first before he could take any action.

How many times in our lives we have to face the giant in front of us but our heart shrink within us? How many times we feel the urgency to do something and we just do it without consulting first to God our intention and our action? Do we really put God as Lord in our lives? God is always the same yesterday, today and tomorrow: He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and David and Paul. He is the Lord of our pastor, mentor and teacher. He is also our Lord and God and He will be God till the eternity. Though not all of us will be king or warrior or great apostle, we are all God’s children and His servant, called to fulfill His purpose and mission to love others and all will come to know Him.

- Jenni Wang

To learn strong faith

8/6/2015

For Abraham, when hope was gone, hoped on in faith. His faith never quailed – Romans 4:18-19

We shall never forget a remark that George Mueller once made to a gentleman who had asked him the best way to have strong faith.

“The only way,” replied the patriarch of faith, “to learn strong faith is to endure great trials. I have learned my faith by standing firm amid severe testings.” This is very true. The time to trust is when all else fails.

Dear friends, you scarcely realize the value of your present opportunity; if you are passing through great afflictions you are in the very soul of the strongest faith, and if you will only let go, the Lord will teach you in these hours the mightiest hold upon His throne which you can ever know.

“Be not afraid, only believe.” And if you are afraid, just look up and say, “When I am afraid I will trust in the Lord,” and you will yet thank God for the school of sorrow which was to you the school of faith.

- A. Simpson