I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
God Gives Good Gifts
There are seasons in our lives when we are more discouraged than encouraged. It’s inevitable that all of us will experience these moments, often showing up during times of grief, uncertainty, or exhaustion.
Even in these moments, Romans 15:5 reminds us that there are three things that God offers to those who believe in Jesus.
The first thing God offers is endurance. When we begin to grow tired of doing good things, or living our life for God, it is often because we are living with the wrong motivation. True motivation comes from living for God, not ourselves. It is God who gives us the endurance through the Spirit to make good choices and live for Him.
The second thing God offers is encouragement. In seasons of discouragement when we feel let down by people, God gives us lasting encouragement. He reminds us that we are loved. He reminds us that we are being transformed. We don’t need to strive for approval or acceptance because we’re already sons and daughters of God.
The third thing God offers is unity of mind toward each other. This means that we consider others how Jesus would consider them. Instead of only seeing their flaws or mistakes, we see them as people loved and cared for by God.
All three of these things are worthy of spending time in prayer asking God for: endurance, encouragement, and unity with each other. If you’re feeling discouraged and down, ask God for the endurance and encouragement that only He can give and for unity of mind that reflects Jesus and His love.
What’s Inside?
Throughout God’s Word, we see a lot of attention paid to the human heart. In fact, in Scripture, the heart was thought to be the center of physical and spiritual life.
In our current culture, the heart is often a metaphor for our emotions. But in the Bible, the heart represents the soul and mind—it’s a way of displaying wisdom and character. The heart in the Bible is a lot like how we think about the brain today, or a combination of the head and the heart.
A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
Luke 6:45 NIV
When Jesus speaks of the heart being a source of good or bad, He means that the things that we think about have a way of showing up in our lives. Our thoughts influence our outward actions.
Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable.
...
