"Holiness: A Great Concept" - Heartlight Daily Verse

1 Peter 1:15-16
Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."

Thoughts on today's verse

"Holy" is one of those words we generally associate with the "stained glass ghetto" -- a word only "church folks" use. That may be true, but it's still a great concept. Every kid knows that you don't eat hot dogs and potato chips on china. Mom's china is reserved for "special company" or "special occasions." Hot dogs are for paper plates and every day, china is for special events. When God is calling us to be holy, he's calling us to be china -- something special just for him, and as Peter emphasizes, just like him.

Prayer:

Holy Lord, God Almighty, I come before you knowing how great the distance is between your holiness and my commonness. I thank you for making me holy through the sacrifice of Jesus and by sending your Holy Spirit to live inside of me. Please receive my life today as a holy offering to you! Through Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith I pray. Amen.'

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"Never Accept Spiritual Defeat" - Time with God - Jan. 8, 2010

1 Peter 5:8-10

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.

Never accept spiritual defeat in your life!

It is in the spiritual battle that you have an opportunity to take major steps forward in your spiritual life. The devil will attack you, yes. "But resist him!" As you do battle with him, look what God will do for you. He will "perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you."

Martin Luther once said, "Wherever the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved."

Whenever you sense that you are being attacked spiritually, remember that it is part of a much bigger spiritual battle that is being fought throughout the world for the glory of God. Do not accept defeat as inevitable, no matter how many times you have lost that battle before.

The Lord is assuring you today that He will enter into that battle as you make godly choices.

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Becoming Today BY: Amy Carroll

"Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."

Psalm 90:12 (NIV)



Devotion:

As my plane landed, I wondered if she'd be there. The retreat weekend simply wouldn't be the same without her. I would miss her encouraging looks as I spoke and the women of her church would certainly have hearts that ached with her absence. All year I had thought about the words that she had spoken the previous fall, and I needed to ask her more probing questions.



She had a secret that I longed to know. There were many women from the group who I wanted to ask about, but as the event coordinator and I waited at the luggage carousel, I started with my most important question, "Will Ruth Clark be coming?" My heart rejoiced as I heard the reply that was given with a smile, "Ruth has had a lot of health problems this year, but she'll be there!"



Entering the room at the retreat center, my eyes searched for Ruth among the small clusters of chatting women. I found her dear, smiling face quickly and headed to greet her. She opened her arms wide, hugged me and said, "I've been praying for you all year." After asking me to wait for a minute, Ruth opened her purse, took out a well-worn pink book full of small cards and began to leaf through it. Finally, she found the card for which she had been searching, and pulled it out. On it was a black-and-white photocopy of a picture of me with my name written underneath. She explained, "Each day I use this book to remember who to pray for. I put you in my book after the retreat last year, and I've prayed for you every day."



I looked at her face, creased with crows' feet and laugh lines, the product of many wide smiles and tender glances. I took in her white hair, the walker beside her and her comfortable shoes and had a single thought—"Beautiful!"



Ruth is the woman that I want to be when age has settled onto my features and slowed my steps. Her beauty is an internal light that has grown brighter with time and experience rather than being extinguished. Knowing Ruth has changed my life and set me on a journey. When we first met, I immediately knew she had something I wanted.



After listening to this delightful woman talk for a while, I asked her, "What is your secret? How have you continued to grow in the Lord, stay positive and exude joy?" She answered quickly and confidently, "Be today who you want to be tomorrow."



Profound!



So, how can you and I apply Ruth's advice in our lives while we're still younger women? We can ask to God to reveal our own sins and flaws, repent of them and ask for His mercy to start living differently today. He's given me a very personal and specific list of where to start! I can ask God's help to stop my tendency toward complaining about difficult circumstances and develop the habit of praising Him for molding my character through trials and tests. I can ask Him for the spiritual fruit of self-control so that I resist flying off the handle in a grumpy, hormone-fueled fit for no good reason. I can ask Him to stop my free-flowing river of words and help me listen to others compassionately before I speak. I could go on, but you're getting the picture. Are you starting to make a list of your own?



Although thinking about our own aging and watching loved ones age sometimes generates fear, we can face the future with tremendous hope and faith when we know that we can begin shaping our tomorrows today. I truly believe that becoming the woman today that we want to be tomorrow is the key to becoming the woman of grace, love and wisdom in our 70s and 80s that we so desire to be.



Dear Lord, I long to be a growing, godly older woman until my very last breath. Help me to begin today in developing the character and spiritual disciplines that I'll need to follow You victoriously throughout my life. In Jesus' Name, Amen.



Related Resources:

Do You Know Him?


The Woman I Am Becoming by T. Suzanne Eller

Find more encouragement from other "Ruths" with the P31 Woman magazine



Visit Amy's blog-Ponderings from the Pathway



Application Steps:

Imagine yourself in your 80s. Make a list of words that you would like others to use when they describe the 80 year old you.



Reflections:

Which of my personal character traits could become ugly when magnified by age?



Have I limited God by an "I'll work on that later" attitude?



Power Verses:

Isaiah 46:4, "Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." (NIV)



Psalm 71:18, "So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come." (ESV)





© 2010 by Amy Carroll. All rights reserved.

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The Friendship Project by: Whitney Capps

I am going to do a daily devotional for my blog this year! Hope something will speak to you as today's has me!! LOVE YA ALL!!!



"But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?'

Luke:10:29 (NIV)



Devotion:

It was a room full of nearly strangers, barely friends-until that day. I asked the ladies to stand as I read from a list of life experiences. If they had lived through one of the descriptions they stood up. One by one, sobbing women rose to their feet as I read the list. They were family in name only - a family of believers from the same church gathered together for a women's retreat where I was the guest speaker.



Twelve women stood together when I asked if anyone had had a miscarriage. One woman had buried a spouse. Five came from unbelieving homes. One had lived through marital infidelity. Three had escaped relationships where they had faced verbal, physical or sexual abuse. Three ladies had struggled with depression. The list went on and on. By the time I had finished, every woman in the room was standing.



We were knee-deep in one another's junk, and yet I had never felt closer to a group of women. As we closed the session I asked them to share more about their stories at their individual tables. As I surveyed the room, women who had been strangers only minutes before were huddled around one another, embracing, sharing and weeping. God was knitting hearts together. It was a moment I'll never forget.



I am realizing that women of all walks of life crave friendships. And yet so many of us feel that we are lacking meaningful, authentic relationships. How is it that a church full of women with a common thread of faith are not friends? Worse yet, if we aren't friends, can we hope to offer authentic relationships to those who enter the doors of our churches every week?



I fear the answer is "no, we can't" unless we change and make a few necessary sacrifices.



Recently I've gleaned some life lessons from the story of the Good Samaritan. In Luke 10:30, Jesus paints a not-so-favorable picture of the religious and respectable. I wonder if He would have the same indictment of our churches today? The priest was seemingly too busy to befriend the one in need.



Can I be honest? I am regularly guilty of this sin. Before and after church my husband and I busy ourselves with the work of tending to our children, and doing the business of church. I move past people who are hurting, but I don't stop with my busyness to see their needs. I rarely get off my horse. I am the priest.



The Levite rode past the hurting man too. Perhaps he felt he was too clean to get dirty in the messy business of grace and mercy. Helping the man in need would have made the Levite ceremonially unclean. He wanted to preserve his position and place.



Let me do a little more truth-telling. I don't usually want to get knee-deep in other people's junk. If I don't get into messy relationships I avoid having to deal not only with my own junk, but other's as well. So I don't get off my horse. I am the Levite.



Here is the problem. Real relationships require time and transparency. If we want to move from being casual acquaintances to genuine friends you and I will have to share pain and joy in an authentic, sacrificial way. I believe this, but for right now it's just theory.



I'm curious. What would happen if we covenanted together to get off our high horses and got into one another's junk? I wonder if our churches would explode. I wonder if lives would be forever changed. I wonder if the Church would shed a little bit of its reputation of hypocrisy.



Want to see what would happen? It's not too late to add a New Year's resolution. Let's resolve to change lives through friendship. Let's slow down. Let's share our stories. Let's get knee-deep.



Dear Lord, give me eyes to see those in need around me, and give me the courage to respond. Father, I want to be a part of life-changing friendships by offering grace and mercy. You call us to love others as ourselves. Help me obey this all-consuming command. In Jesus' Name, Amen.



Related Resources:

The Friends We Keep: A Woman's Quest for the Soul of Friendship by Sarah Zacharias Davis



Visit Whitney's blog today.



Traveling Together: Thoughts on Women, Friendship and the Journey of Faith by Karla Worley



Join Whitney's Facebook group The Friendship Project for more details about this campaign



Application Steps:

How can you simplify your Sunday routine to allow more time for building relationships?



With whom can you share part of your story in hopes of offering encouragement and hope?



Reflections:

Do you have genuine, edifying friendships? Why or why not?



Are you reaching out and developing new friendships with those in need around you?



Power Verses:

Luke 10:27, "He answered: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind"; and, "Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (NIV)

Luke 10:33-34, 36-37, "But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds...and took care of him... 'Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?' The expert in the law replied, 'The one who had mercy on him.' Jesus told him, 'Go and do likewise.' (NIV)


We as Christians, should be doing whatever it takes to make more meaningful relationships! Are you ready to take on this challenge? Are you ready to get off of your HIGH HORSE and befriend those around you? I am challenging you today and for 2010, to do just that! Make the CHURCH more like a FAMILY than just a place to attend! We are all guilty! We are all hesitant on stepping out of our comfort zones! Let's make the church a place to go to be able to share with anyone there, what is going on in life! Let the CHURCH be our extended family! Why is it so hard to reach out to everyone who walks through the front doors? Why is it that we IGNORE people? Is it because we feel that we are better than everyone else? Is it because we are too busy? Is it because we just don't want to bother with them? Are you ready to be that GOOD SAMARITAN? Are you ready to have a BIGGER FAMILY!! Take on this challenge and make a DIFFERENCE! YOU COULD BE THE ONE, THE CHRIST, that someone needs!!!

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CUPCAKES FOR LIFE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9TH!

I am a firm believer for LIFE!! Life begins at conception and there is no ifs, ands, or buts about it! OUR FATHER CREATED US IN HIS IMAGE!! It says in the BIBLE:

Psalm 139
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.

5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.

19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!

20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?

22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

As Christians, we need to help stand our ground on WHAT WE BELIEVE!! Please join me in CUPCAKES FOR LIFE!!!


http://cupcakesforlife.com/

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PRAYERS NEEDED FOR STELLAN AND ABBY!

PLEASE LIFT THESE FAMILIES UP IN PRAYER! Both of their little ones are not doing well! We need to get everyone praying for them!!! THANKS!!


http://www.mycharmingkids.net


http://www.riggsfamilyblog.com/

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I AM FEELING JIPPED!

I know that I don't really blog unless something is really on my heart. I am feeling jipped! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE MY GIRLS! I am so blessed to have such wonderful girls who show me that a child's love is unconditional just like our love should be. I feel jipped that I didn't get to have a boy! I know, I shouldn't be feeling this way but I don't know why I am! A lot has been going on in my life that I am feeling very overwhelmed and I guess my emotions are getting the best of me. I know there are people who aren't able to have children, so I should feel great, huh? I know there are people who were only able to have 1 child, I should feel great, huh? Seriously, don't get me wrong I LOVE MY GIRLS!! I LOVE THEM BEYOND ALL MEASURE! I wouldn't trade them in for a million dollars but I feel jipped. Those of you who have had a boy and a girl, won't understand where I am coming from. Those of you who have had only children of the same sex, I don't know if you have felt the way I am feeling right now. I feel like I shouldn't be feeling this way but I am. THAT IS THE TRUTH! WHY do I feel this way? Why do I feel like God overlooked me? Why do I feel that IT ISN'T FAIR? Why do I feel like Mike's namesake is finished here? There is no boy to carry on the name for HIS family! Why oh why? It is getting harder and harder for me to rejoice with those who tell me, "Oh I am having a girl and they already have a boy"? I just want to say SO! I don't want to hear about it! I don't want to be happy for them! I know that isn't the best attitude to have but it is how I am feeling! I just want to tell them, IT ISN'T FAIR! It isn't fair that God chose you to have one of each when you need help taking care of your kids! It isn't fair that God gives you the desires of your heard and He doesn't give me the desires of MY HEART! It isn't fair that I try to do my best and follow HIM and He doesn't HEAR ME! I am just being completely open and honest right now! I know I am not the best mom or housewife or even the best Child of God. I know that I feel like God doesn't hear me! Why do I feel like there are so many more important things in life than what I AM FEELING? Some days, I just want to say forget it all and RUN AWAY as fast as I can and never look back! I wish I could explain my feelings. Only God knows the answers and He may feel that I don't need to know. He wants me to just hold on to HIS promises and not worry about tomorrow or yesterday. He wants me to just focus on the PRESENT! It is so hard sometimes to walk this life! It is so hard sometimes to take persecution from people who you thought LOVED YOU! It is a rough road to walk for the LORD! I know He didn't have an easy, happy go lucky life! HE was ridiculed! He was persecuted! He was abandoned! He walked on this earth to save us! I know all of this but I FEEL LIKE HE OVERLOOKS ME!! Why can't I just feel like things are going my way? I know that I have jumped around with my thoughts but this is a blog, a journal, a diary! I can jump around all I want to! Thanks for letting me speak my mind and not judging how I am feeling! I PRAISE GOD for giving me TWO WONDERFUL GIRLS WHO LOVE ME UNCONDITIONALLY, even when I am having a bad day! I praise GOD for a wonderful husband who will buy me a little present for NO REASON AT ALL, not that I DON'T love him if he doesn't get me things! I praise GOD for getting me through these days that I FEEL JIPPED and unheard! I praise GOD when things are rough and when things are smooth! I PRAISE HIM!!!

Here is a song to listen to just because HE IS HOLY!!

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