Pocket Thoughts - 10/4/24
God * strengthens feeble hands and steadies knees that give way * provides a highway called the Way of Holiness for the rescued and redeemed * will uphold us by His mighty right hand.
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God is the Lord Most High. The pagan nations in David’s day worshiped idols made of wood and stone – worthless images that were powerless. All of mankind was created to worship. Today, rather than worship the God Who made them, people idolize all kinds of things. But true significance and rest are found in God alone. Those who know Him are secure, content, and full of joy. We experience His unfailing love and peace with His praise always on our lips when we fulfill our God-given purpose of worshiping Him. - TV
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Jesus Christ is the Light of the world. He illuminates our sin, our need for a Savior, and the path to forgiveness. Many deny what the Light clearly reveals. They refuse to recognize the One Who created them and Who has rightful claim to them. As it was in His day, many still don’t recognize Jesus for Who He is. But those who do and who welcome Him into their hearts become children of God. The Light leads us on the path of life. We then have the glorious and humbling responsibility to reflect His goodness to others – that some may be added to His family. Opposition to Him may be strong, but it can’t extinguish the Light. - TV
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We underestimate the importance of our faithfulness to discipleship of our children. Unborn generations of Christ followers will only ever hear the gospel and mature into leaders of the church if we are faithful. We must be committed to teaching our children about the Lord and His Word. The church is a helpful partner in this process, but we as parents and grandparents mustn’t abdicate this crucial responsibility to any other person or institution. Teach your children and grandchildren about the one true living God! - TV
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James 4:4 rebukes believers who nurture a “friendship with the world” because it translates into hatred and enmity toward God. He knows us. He knows that our appetite for dopamine- and adrenaline-fueled experiences and shiny, alluring objects ultimately leads to emptiness. Those pleasures are short-lived, but God’s gifts bring lasting peace and joy both now and into eternity. Trust Him when He leads you away from the cheap substitutes of this world and into the riches of His forever kingdom. - TV
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“To urge men and women to believe in a divided Christ is bad teaching, for no one can receive half of Christ, or a third of Christ, or a quarter of the Person of Christ! We are not saved by believing in an office nor in a work. He is Lord, and those who refuse Him as Lord cannot use Him as Savior. Everyone who receives Him must surrender to His authority, for to say we receive Christ when in fact we reject His right to reign over us is utter absurdity. It is a futile attempt to hold onto sin with one hand and take Jesus with the other. What kind of salvation is it if we are left in bondage to sin?” – A.W. Tozer
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“Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in His presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored His name. ‘They will be Mine,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘in the day when I make up My treasured possessions. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.’” – Malachi 3:16-18
