Awesome Book Community and Tracking Tool!!

I recently rediscovered the website goodreads.com and its phone app.

Want to keep an accurate digital log of the books you own? goodreads.

Want to keep a list of books you want to read? goodreads.

Want to record books you have read and rate them? goodreads.

Want to connect with your friends so you can share your books and find out what they are reading and recommend? goodreads.

Want to read lots of book reviews and ratings? goodreads.

Want to do it all on your phone? goodreads app

Want to be able to scan a book and then add it to your lists? goodreads app.

Love Gives Everything . . . and Never Runs Out

Love does not get. Love gives.
     Love gives everything . . . and never runs out.
     Love doesn't need anything because it is already full of Jesus.
     Love is joyfully consumed only with the good of another person.

Love is free.
     Love has no conditions and requires no payment.
     Love is not disturbed by circumstances.

Love risks rejection and get's rejected.
     Love doesn't seek acceptance.

"Love does not rejoice with evil, but rejoices with the truth."
     Love never has to compromise
              righteousness.
     Love never has to compromise truth.
     Love tells the truth.
     Love does not have to agree with lies or
                 put up with wickedness to be love.

Love is patient and kind.
     Love smiles.
     Love affirms.
     Love encourages.
     Love is not irritable.

Love is not offended.
     Love does not get run off.
     Love does not get offended when falsely accused.
     Love keeps trying, keeps reaching.

Love wants you to be happy, but doesn't always try to make you happy.
     Love weeps with those who weep.
     Love does not satisfy wrong desires in order to make you happy.
     Love does not enable wrongdoing.
     Love doesn't agree with you to make you happy.
     Love is not controlled by you. You can't get it to do what you want.
     Love says "no" sometimes.

Love does not love in order to "get results."
     Love wants you to change and have peace and joy and trust God. But love can't do
              it for  you and doesn't try.
     Love doesn't try to fix you.
     Love does not calculate outcomes.
     Love prays for you. Love hopes.

God is love.
     Love is full of Jesus.
     Jesus is love and shows us what love is.
     Love begins with and flows from love for Jesus.
     Love for Jesus begins with the love of Jesus.

Love is not prideful.
     Love is teachable.
     Love admits when it is wrong.

Love has an eternal perspective.

My Christmas Present to Jesus

Are you frustrated (again) that you have spent your Christmas time busy, stressed, and somehow still missing the point!?! If so, look no further for a simple, personal, totally achievable way to redeem it all!

Here is my idea: give a Christmas present to Jesus. (I guess in this case it would also be a birthday present.) “How can I give him a present? What does he want?”

Well, if you dare, ask him. Don’t we ask others what they want for Christmas? Ask Jesus to make a wish list of gifts he would like to receive from you. Of course, his first answer is this: “Everything!” Our goal is to give all that we are to our Lord Jesus. “Love the Lord your God with ALL” (Mark 12:30).

But let’s be more specific. Is there any part of your life that you have not surrendered to Jesus? Is there a sin of which you are not free? Is there a character quality God wants to build into your life? I have a feeling these will be on his Christmas list.

“Whoa, this is too deep. I think I’ll return to the mind-numbing busyness and stress of Christmas.” Well, OK, but that is your loss . . . big time! He came to bring us “peace and joy.” Don’t settle for the temporary and empty offerings of this world when you can have deep, untouchable, everlasting peace and joy from God.

Set aside a few minutes this Christmas and ask Jesus what gift he would like to receive from you. While I don’t think many of us will have to wait long for an answer, be patient. Wait on him and listen. Don’t move on until you know what he wants. If you think you don’t have time during Christmas week, don’t worry about it. You’ll have time after, and I have a feeling Jesus will still be taking presents after the holidays are over.

The Lord might put on your heart a sin of which you are not free. Here is what to do: confess your sin to God and receive his forgiveness, repent of your sin and take action on ways to remove it from your life. Confess your sin to a trusted friend and submit to accountability. (These end up being great material for New Year’s resolutions and goals!)

I have a little New Year’s tradition of selecting one or two words that represent my focus for the year. This is one way of giving your gift to Jesus. Set your heart and mind on what God is trying to build into your life.

So, what are my gifts to Jesus this year? Here are my two words for 2015: Self-control and Evangelism. (By the way, my words for 2014 were Intimacy (with Christ) and Finish.) Will you consider giving Jesus a gift this year? What will you give to him?

[PS: Here is another idea: Share this with your family and establish a Christmas tradition of having each person share what he or she is going to give to Jesus.]

How to Be Productive and Reduce Stress (at the same time)

Have you ever been doing something and had the heavy, frustrating feeling that you should be doing something else? Have you ever been talking with someone and wished you were talking with someone else? Not only do I think we all have this experience, I tend to believe many of us spend much of our lives in this state!

Two very costly things happen when we find ourselves often in this situation:

1)         The first cost is STRESS. It is so stressful to feel trapped doing something, when you know or wish you were doing something else. Our minds and bodies put up with a constant tension of trying to be in two places at once. Our mind and hearts are not where we are!

2)        The second cost is UNPRODUCTIVITY. Here are two examples:

I recently heard this statement: “Love is attention.” When someone is talking with you, and his or her heart is not there in the conversation, you can tell! The relationship is not growing and the conversation is not effective. What a waste of time!

Another example is the daily experience we have of trying to accomplish a task that requires attention and thought, and we are continually interrupted. This is frustrating! We lose much time and energy when we have to refocus ourselves on the task. We have to figure out where we were so we can begin again. We lose momentum! What a waste of time.

Paul tells the Ephesians, “Make the best use of the time, for the days are evil” (Eph 5:16 ESV).

One of the major ways we make the best use of time is FOCUS! The reason this is important is that “the days are evil.” There is a spiritual battle taking place and there is much at stake. We cannot afford to waste time!

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One of the keys to giving something your full attention is to be convinced you are doing the right thing. Here is the rest of the verse --->

So, here is what we should do:

1)         Carefully select what you are going to do, making sure it is the best and most important thing at the time to do. Be willing to say no to the many other things that you could do. When you find yourself doing something that is not the Lord’s will or best, STOP.

2)        Give yourself fully to what you are doing. This can be done because you have a conviction that it is the thing you should be doing. Give your whole mind and heart to it.

3)         Relentlessly resist distractions. Now there is the possibility, of course, that an interruption may trump the current activity in urgency and importance. A person who has clearly delineated his priorities and goals will quickly be able to assess whether an interruption should trump the current activity or not. MOST things can wait.

Ahhhhhhh! What peace to know I am doing what is best and give myself to it. And so much can be accomplished when I am focused! Have a peaceful and productive day.

Five Ingredients for a Dynamic Time with God

Bible study and prayer. Most every believer knows they should do it, but . . .

Why is it so hard to stick to it? Why does it seem so dry and unproductive? What am I missing?

I would like to suggest to you five important ingredients for a powerful, intimate, life changing time with God.

  1. Faith - Do you believe this simple promise: "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" (James 4:8a). Or how about this one: "When you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you" (Jer 29:13-14). When you meet God, are expecting him to show up? Faith is what pleases God; He responds to faith (Heb 11:6).
     
  2. Heart - The purpose of Bible study and prayer is not to check off our religious boxes. That is why I call it "time with God." I am spending time with someone who loves me. God is not interested in people who "draw near with their mouth . . . while their hearts are far from me" (Isa 29:13-14; see also Psalm 51:16-17).
     
  3. Submission - Many attempt to be a "Christian" without surrendering their lives to Christ. Many try to relate to God on their own terms, with their own agenda. If you are trying to relate to God, but you are still holding on to sin and refusing to give him every part of your life, then you cannot come to him. ALL of you for ALL of him. Those are his terms (James 4:6-10).
     
  4. Choice - A bumper sticker says, "If it feels good, do it." A concise summary of our cultural thinking. We are chained to our feelings. When something is hard and we "don't feel like it," then we don't do it. If we don't "feel" God's presence or "feel" like we had a good prayer time, we get discouraged. Faith is not a feeling, it is a choice. Choose to believe God exists and that he rewards those who seek him (Heb 11:6). Act on that faith; don't worry about your feelings.
     
  5. Steadfastness - How easily we are derailed! How quickly we are discouraged and give up. How often we settle for mediocrity. If I fail a thousand times in my attempt to meet God faithfully, I will not give up. I will never give up! (Heb 12:1-2)

Here is a teaching on spending time with God that includes a discussion of these five points.