Principles

Throwing this out there.

God Bless.

Today's Quotation:

When principles that run against your deepest convictions begin to win the day, then battle is your calling, and peace has become sin; you must, at the price of dearest peace, lay your convictions bare before friend and enemy, with all the fire of your faith.

Abraham Kuyper

Today's Meditation:

It can be hard to always follow what we know to be true. Sometimes it means being laughed at... sometimes it means financial loss... and sometimes it brings with it an unwanted form of hardship. But being true to our principles is what offers us our peace. Without doing so, our character and integrity will falter, and our peace in life will fail us. It is in these times, that Abraham implores us to go into battle, to fight for our beliefs, and to be true to ourselves "with all the fire of our faith."

However, the line between conviction and stubbornness seems to blur all the time. We often see someone standing for what they believe in less as a sign of strong character and more as a sign of close-mindedness. So how are we best able to discern the difference between the two? The answer lies in recognizing what is truly the truth, and what is merely something that we currently believe--something that is subject to change.

An inspirational story of personal conviction is that of Rachel Joy Scott--the first victim of the Columbine High School Massacre. Reports said that one of the gunmen, after having first shot Rachel in her leg, picked her up by her hair and asked her if she still believed in God, and that she had answered, "You know I do." Her response provoked a second, fatal shot to her head at point-blank range. The thing to note is that she stood up for what she knew was true in her heart--a quality of a person with conviction, and not a sign of close-mindedness or stubbornness.

Our convictions are strongest when we have doubt, yet overcome that doubt. I would even go further and say that they are strongest when we have fear, yet overcome the fear--for being afraid of the results of standing up for what you believe in, and doing so in spite of those results, is an absolute sign of fortitude, integrity, and strength of will.

What am I willing to stand up for? On the day I die, I have a feeling that I will be more concerned about the things that I stood up for than about the things that held little interest in.

Today's Challenge: Reclaim some internal peace today by standing up for your principles.

Questions to consider:

What are some of your personal truths that have changed over time?

In what ways can being a man of principle affect the peace in your life?

If you had a major ethical dilemma at work, could you leave your job even if it meant significant financial loss?

For further thought:

The relationship between commitment and doubt is by no means an antagonistic one. Commitment is healthiest when it is not without doubt, but in spite of doubt.

Rollo May

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Inspire Me Books (Amazon)

Inspire Me: Currents...

Inspire Me: The Swells...

https://amazon.com/author/clstarling

Series of daily inspirations revisited and revised for publication. Thank you for all the interest and support through the years.

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Don't Be Selfish

Some food for thought.

God Bless.

"Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. (NLT)" -Philippians 2:3

"Evaluate your motives. Where do you need to pivot from serving yourself to serving others? What lies have you entertained that have inflated your own status? God cares about our hearts, so take time to align your motives with God’s standard of humility."

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But The Lord

Putting this out there.

God Bless. 

"But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! (NLT)" -\nLuke 10:41\n

"We only need one thing, it’s a relationship with our Savior. It’s the only thing that gets us off this rock alive and well! While it’s easy to get preoccupied with our to-do lists, distracted by entertainment, or consumed by our own thoughts we have to remind ourselves that what trumps all of these things is knowing Jesus. Make time to be in his presence and word. He is the one thing that matters most. \n"

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God's Power

Some food for thought. 

God Bless.

Daily Affirmation Devotional

Christian Channel

God’s Power

Today : God’s Power

TODAY’S VERSE

“I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.” I Corinthians 2:4-5 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT

We like to move toward balance. Homeostasis, a relatively stable state of equilibrium, seems to work in many systems. But sometimes that is not the best move. Balance is good if you want to have normalcy. But many times, if you want to reach worthwhile goals, you have to unbalance a few things. Does the professional athlete balance his or her practice time to other activities? No, they are consumed with their sport and devote many hours to that single pursuit. Sooner or later, if you are going to excel at something, you must become a little unbalanced. Paul was trying to share Jesus with people groups that never heard of Christ before. He was starting churches from scratch and he learned that the spiritual life must not be balanced with worldly wisdom. You need to have a radical dependence on God for mighty things, if you are going to see His Kingdom come. Sure you need to ask for wisdom, but you should also ask for spiritual discernment. You need to move in faith and hope in the spiritual realm, not logic and theory in the earthly. Today, what are you depending on God’s power for? What are you trusting the Holy Spirit to accomplish in and through you? Paul trusted in the power of God, today, do the same.  

TODAY’S PRAYER

Father, I must confess that many times conventional wisdom tells me to move in one direction, when I know I should trust You for greater things. Lord, I want my life to make a difference. I want to see Your kingdom come as a result of Your Holy Spirit’s guidance in my life. Lead me, use me, I pray.

AMEN

TODAY’S MEDITATION & VISUALIZATION

I am trusting God for great things

Picture yourself called of God to be His disciple. See yourself on a mission to do His will. You sense that He wants you to trust Him. Feel faith build in your heart as you affirm, “I am trusting God for great things.”

A Sower

I found this little devotional interesting do I wanted to share.

God Bless.

Name of God Devotional

Name of God Devotional

Christian Channel

Bible Name of God : A SOWER

A SOWER

Matt 13:3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; — Matt 13:37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

The Seed is the Word of God. God’s Son sowed the Good Seed. He soweth the Word of Truth in the hearts of men. When we sow the Gospel we sow Good Seed. When we give out the Living-Word of God we are sowing Good Seed. Nothing is comparable to the Living-Word itself. It has potential power. It is a Living Seed and never fails. We are to imitate our Lord, the Sower, and see that the pure Seed of the Living-Word is scattered, Alive, wherever we go. “Sow beside all waters.” (Isa 32:20)

Lord, make me a Seed-sower this day, and hear my prayer for all the sowers in the world. Amen.

No Limit

Thought provoking. 

God Bless.

God's Calling devotional

God's Calling devotional

Christian Channel

No Limit

No Limit

Unlimited supply, that is My Law. Oh! the unlimited Supply, and oh! the poor, blocked channels! Will you feel this, that there is no limit to My Power?

But man asks, and blasphemes in asking, such poor mean things. Do you not see how you wrong Me? I desire to give you a gift, and if you are content with the poor, and the mean, and the sordid, then you are insulting Me, the Giver.

“Ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you.” How I can fulfill the promise is My Work, not yours, to consider … Have a big Faith, and expect big things, and you will get big things.Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. James 4:3

The Earth

Felt this in my bones and wanted to share.

God Bless.

"The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. (NLT)" -Psalm 24:1

"All the Earth is the Lord’s. He knows how many stars are in the Heavens, how many clouds fill the skies, and He also knows you too! Nothing that happens in our world comes as a surprise to the Lord. When we feel unsure about the future, be reminded that God cares for this world, and He will take care of you. "

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