Awakening Grace

Want a boost of encouragement? Our God is working toward that end in all of His children. It is His constant pursuit, His daily agenda, as He points us toward our final destination, ”the Celestial City,” as Bunyan calls it.

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What’s Your Motive?

During my days in seminary, I formed a habit that helped me immensely throughout life. I had my artistic sister, Luci, print a simple, three-word question on a small rectangular card I placed on the wall.

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Determination

I love the apostle Paul’s attitude revealed in his words: “I press on toward the goal” (Philippians 3:14). Those men and women who refuse to get bogged down in and anchored to the past are those who pursue the objectives of the future.

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Humility

“I forget what is behind” is a statement that assures us Paul was not the type to live in the past. He says, in effect, “I disregard my own accomplishments as well as others’ offenses against me.

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Forgetting Your Own Good Deeds

Yesterday, we talked about what it means to “forget” when other people do bad deeds to us. Today, I want to address forgetting when we do good deeds to others. In other words, once our own good deeds are done, they’re done.

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The Servant as a Giver

I like the tongue-in-cheek definition of philosophers one of my seminary professors would occasionally use. It’s classic: Philosophers are people who talk about something they don’t understand and make you think it’s your fault!

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I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

There once lived a farmer who became jaded about Christmas and all things “Christian.” Late one raw winter night, he sat alone in the house, reading. In the quiet he heard an irregular thumping against the back porch door.

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The Antidote to Anxiety

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4–7)

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Fighting Against Self-Focus

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Philippians 2:3–4) Our Father, we who operate in such selfish realms often find ourselves preoccupied with stuff of our own.

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