What is your normal reaction to correction? When a friend confides, “I’m going to be very frank with you.” Do you grasp his hand and pull him to a chair so he can sit down and tell you your shortcoming? Do you shout for joy that he is about to get another glimpse of your…
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Most people wonder how there could really be a joy of repentance. I think that is why confession of sin seems to be common in our day, but repentance of sin is rare. In many ways, the Body of Christ has forsaken the biblical mandate to repent, defining the process as negative and burdensome. The…
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Trouble, perplexity, persecution, and rejection are all difficult to face. The Apostle Paul had all of these but understood that there is a power that will enable a person to face such treatment without distress, despair, self-pity, or ruin. It is the power of God. The end products of distress can definitely be bodily changes.…
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God’s faithfulness is beyond measure, yet, the sad fact is that many miss out on recognizing the faithfulness of God. The faithfulness of God is the most consistent thing on earth! You might have thought the Old Faithful geyser At Yellowstone National Park was the most consistent thing on earth. After all, the geyser was named in 1870 and…
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Though right living enhances joy, no person can attain perfect behavior all the time. We must find joy in a source other than our behavior. When would you be able to rejoice and have great joy if it depended on perfect behavior? Striving toward perfectionism you cannot attain, keep, control, or manage may push you…
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Pouting and sulking are people’s attempt to get their own way. Pouting is selfishness. Have you ever been around people who sulk or pout? Most of the people I counsel are adults and many are experts at pouting. If I say something in a counseling situation that they do not like, they show their displeasure…
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Forgiveness is a gift from heaven; it is not something you can create on your own. You cannot offer others what you do not possess. If you are a born again believer, then you have access to the Spirit of Christ at all times. You have access to forgiveness. If you are not experiencing forgiveness,…
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If you are unwilling to humble yourself, then God will humble you by whatever means necessary. Many believe that God would not humble them because He is a God of Love. But Love is precisely why He would do whatever it takes to set you free from the bondage of sin. God doesn’t desire to…
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And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17 To know…
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Potipher’s wife tempted Joseph in Potipher’s house. She took Joseph by the garment, saying, “Lie with me.” Joseph did not take the bait but ran out of the house instead. Unfortunately, he left his garment in her hand. Potipher’s wife lied and accused Joseph of coming to lie with her. She said she “cried out…
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