Not Idle Words

Making the right choices.

“I Choose Love...
No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves.

I Choose Joy...
I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.

I Choose Peace...
I will live forgiven. I will forgive so I may live.

I Choose Patience...
I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I'll invite him to do so, Rather complain that the wait is to long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clenching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage.

I Choose Kindness...
I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for that is how God has treated me.

I Choose Goodness...
I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I accuse. I choose goodness.

I Choose Faithfulness...
Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My friends will not question my word. And my family will not question my love.

I Choose Gentleness...
Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it only be in praise. If I clench my fist, may it only be in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.

I Choose Self-Control...
I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control.

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek His grace. And then when this day is done I will place my head on my pillow and rest.”
― Max Lucado

Thank you to Mrs. Gautreau's Sunday School Class, who has been busy posting our Bible Verse around the church as well as slipping notes into our bulletins!  The Word is all around us - it makes it easy to memorize it!
And many thanks to each member of the choir for blessing us with a melody to go along with our Bible verse.  Now, just as we are told in Ephesians, we can sing the Word all week!


Ephesians 5:18 - 20 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Do you know this by heart yet?

Your word is a ___________ unto my feet,  a _____________for my path.  Psalm 119:105

What a heart knows by heart...

This is for all of us, considering the habit of memorizing Scripture, but I would especially like to point it out to all of the women in the Sunday morning class....of course you'll know why : ) 

“What a heart knows by heart is what a heart really knows,” urges Dennis Lennon.
And what the heart knows by heart is all that can calm the heart.
Direct the heart.
Strengthen the heart.  
What do our hearts really know? 

~ Taken from www.aholyexperience.com

Ohhh these are good words.

Preparing for our first "Virtual Book Study"

 

Humility: True Greatness  by CJ Mahaney is well worth reading. I am so excited to read it with others and hear their thoughts as we go through it together!

In this book, humility is defined as "honestly assessing ourselves in light of God's holiness and our sinfulness". But,as CJ Mahaney says,it is not enough to "know" the definition of humility or greatness, or even to understand the perils of pride. To overcome our natural tendency toward promotion of self he offers some practical advice. One of the first practices he advises us to undertake is to "reflect on the wonder of the cross". "How can anyone be arrogant when he stands beside the cross?"
...and there's so much more... ~ Marlowe

We are still accepting requests to order Humility: True Greatness.  If you have your copy,  go ahead and start reading. It will help to have an overview before we work on it together.  Once we all have our books, the plan will be to coordinate our reading and then share our thoughts online.  A "Virtual Book Study", from the comfort of your own home!

The Value of Memorizing Scripture

Part 1 of Rick Warren's teaching on The Value of Memorizing Scripture

 (Click on the words above in white and you will be transported to the article.)