God’s blessing | Craig T. Owens

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Harsh Words

March 26, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

This is an interesting exchange between God and His people―

God says, “You have said harsh things[*] against Me.”

“What have we said against You,” the people asked.

“You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God…’” (Malachi 3:13-14).

We think we know better than God.

We tell God how we think it should be.

We complain that God is letting some people get away with bad stuff, and He’s not rewarding quickly enough those who are doing good stuff.

We think God doesn’t care if we do things our own way.

We think we can better manage our lives than He can.

We act like we’re in charge.

This is speaking harsh, arrogant, rude, terrible words against God. It’s really saying, “I know better, so I should be God.” This not only removes God’s blessing, but invites His punishment.

Ouch! It’s good to examine our thoughts and words to make sure we aren’t thinking or speaking harsh things against God.

[*] Some other translations say things like “You have spoken arrogantly against Me” and “You have said terrible things about Me” and “You have spoken rude words to Me.”

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: arrogance, Bible, God's blessing, Malachi, pride, punishment, reflection, rude, thought life, vocabulary, words. Leave a Comment »

21 Benefits From Doing Things God’s Way

March 12, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

I was reading Proverbs 3 this morning, and the opening words are, “My son, do not forget my teaching….” As if to emphasize why we shouldn’t forget how God tells us to live, Solomon lists at least 21 benefits that come from doing things God’s way―

A life worth living
Tranquility
Favor
Good reputation with God and people
God will keep you on track
Health and strength
Overflowing success
God’s discipline
Wisdom and understanding
Better return on investments
Riches and honor
Peace
Blessing
Safety
Sweet sleep
Fearlessness
Confidence
God’s friendship
A blessed home life
Grace
Honor

Now that’s a list worth having! And it’s all there for the one who will heed God’s Word and obediently live out what He says.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible study, confidence, discipline, friendship, God's blessing, God's favor, God's wisdom, God's Word, grace, health, home, honor, no fear, obedience, peace, reputation, return on investment, ROI, safety, sleep. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

February 12, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“How much owest thou unto my Lord? Has He ever done anything for thee? Has He forgiven thy sins? Has He covered thee with a robe of righteousness? Has He set thy feet upon a rock? Has He established thy goings? Has He prepared heaven for thee? Has He prepared thee for heaven? Has He written thy name in His book of life? Has He given thee countless blessings? Has He a store of mercies which eye hath not seen nor ear heard? Then do something for Christ worthy of His love. Wake up from natural sleepiness, and this very day, before the sun goes down, do something in some way by which you shall prove that you feel the power of that divine motive, ‘for Christ’s sake.’” —Charles Spurgeon

“Now the whole offer which Christianity makes is this: that we can, if we let God have His way, come to share in the life of Christ. If we do, we shall then be sharing a life which was begotten, not made, which always has existed and always will exist. Christ is the Son of God. If we share in this kind of life we also shall be sons of God. We shall love the Father as He does and the Holy Ghost will arise in us.” —C.S. Lewis

Jesus showed us the most loving thing we can do for our friends. Check out David Wilkerson’s post I Have Prayed For You.

“Not all sexual desire is lust. God made sexual desire. It has its good place and it can, in fact, become an act of worship in the temple of marriage. But lust is sexual desire gone wrong.” Read more from John Piper in You Can Say No To Porn.

Speaking of pornography, here’s another powerful reason to NOT SEE Fifty Shades Of Grey. “Amy Bonomi, professor and chairperson of Michigan State University’s Department of Human Development and Family studies, has made some disturbing findings. A thorough 2013 study of the book concludes that ‘emotional and sexual abuse is pervasive in the novel,’ appearing in almost every interaction between the protagonists…. Far from ‘empowering,’ Fifty Shades seeks to remove agency. Even though it’s supposed to seem ‘sexy,’ the book even includes several instances of rape, where Ana is coerced into or outright forced to have sex.” Read more in The Real Abuse At The Heart Of Fifty Shades Of Grey.

Links & Quotes

February 7, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“Because Jesus died in our place, He guaranteed that every good deed prospers in the end. ‘Blessed are you when others revile you. . . . Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven’ (Matthew 5:11-12). Reviled here. Rewarded there.” —John Piper

“‘For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river’ (Jeremiah 17:8). An amazing Hebrew word is used here for ‘planted’—it actually means ‘transplanted.’ Faith uproots the dry, fruitless desert-shrub that is scorched, lonely and ugly and transplants it by the living stream of the waters flowing from Lebanon.” —David Wilkerson

“So long as you are content with the world, and with the prince who governs it, you will go on, on, on, to your own destruction. satan does with men as the sirens are fabled to have done with mariners.” —Charles Spurgeon

Pornographers are so deceived and deceptive. Check out the most common word found in comments on porn websites.

Dave Barringer has some good counsel for couples about “brownie points.”

Daughter of a homosexual parent writes a letter promoting traditional marriage.

Seth Godin has some fabulous insight about getting and giving constructive feedback.

Fill-In-The-Blank Differently

January 26, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

How would you fill in this blank: “The Lord gives, and the Lord ________ _________.”

I had some misconceptions about God when I was a kid. I didn’t want to pray, “God, You can use me however You see best” because I just knew He would send me to do something gross. Or we would sing a song like I Have Decided To Follow Jesus and one of the verses said, “Though none go with me still I will follow.” I didn’t really like that because I liked my friends and family; I liked my life just as it was.

Job was a righteous man, and some really bad things happened to him. He’s the one who said things like, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21), and, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (Job 2:10).

But there was still another 40 chapters to go! In the very last chapter of his story we read this―

After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before. (Job 42:10)

In hindsight, I think Job might have said something different: “The Lord gives, and the Lord gives back!” But this insight would have come only after “Job had prayed.” Getting into God’s presence helps us capture the heart of God.

A grieving mother learned this when God gave her a son and gave back her resurrected son to her (2 Kings 4:8-37).
And then again when God gave her their family land and gave back the lost income (2 Kings 8:1-6).
The apostles learned this when Jesus gave them His presence and gave back a position of authority (Matthew 19:27-28).
We can also know that Jesus will give us a hundred times what we’ve given up for Him, and give us eternal life too (Matthew 19:29).

**God never takes anything from us unless He intends to give back something even greater, something eternal, something unbreakable, something un-losable!**

You will only begin to see this better when you get in His presence. “The object of secret prayer is to unite us to God that we may know His abiding presence with us” (Andrew Murray). It’s time to fill-in-the-blank differently!

I’ll be continuing our series on The Prayers Of Elisha this coming Sunday, and I would love to have you join me!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Andrew Murray, Calvary Assembly of God, Elisha, God's blessing, God's presence, Jesus Christ, job, prayer, sermon. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

January 19, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“Do not forget the close bond between the inner room and the outside world. The attitude of the inner prayer room must remain with us all day. The object of secret prayer is to unite us to God that we may know His abiding presence with us.” ―Andrew Murray

“There are two ways by which man might have been for ever blessed. The one was by works: ‘This do and thou shalt live; be obedient and receive the reward.’ The other plan was: ‘Receive grace and blessedness as the free gift of God; stand as a guilty sinner having no merit, and as a rebellious sinner deserving the very reverse of goodness, but stand there and receive all thy good things, simply, wholly, and alone of the free love and sovereign mercy of God.’ Now, the Lord has not chosen the system of works.” —Charles Spurgeon

It is appalling to me that people still try to defend abortion. This post talks about the pain that babies experience during the abortion procedure.

Interesting: 11 trends in American marriages and families.

[VIDEO] A very intriguing interview on Meet The Press with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1965―

Links & Quotes

January 15, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“Search the Scriptures. Do not merely read them—search them; look up the parallel passages; collate them; try to get the meaning of the Spirit upon any one truth by looking to all the texts which refer to it. Read the Bible consecutively: do not merely read a verse here and there—that is not fair.” —Charles Spurgeon

“How does the Lord reward His diligent ones? It has been my experience that when I walk arm in arm with Jesus, so in love with Him, rewards break out on all sides. Everything I do or have is blessed: my wife, children, friends, ministry. There comes a life of Christ within that flows like a mighty river. Yes, we’ll have trials and tribulations. But through it all He rewards us with manifestations of His presence. … Those who neglect the Lord soon spin out of control as the devil moves in and takes over. Such a person has a devastated self-image. His or her feelings and thoughts cannot be curbed, and their tongue wags and moves under the power of bitterness and anger.” —David Wilkerson

Small problems can become huge problems if they are not addressed early on. Max Lucado has a great reminder in his post Go After The Small Drips.

Here is a great way to check out lots of books. Frank Viola has a link to a special offer from Leaders Book Summaries.

“If the Holy Spirit is obeyed the stubbornness is blown out, the dynamite of the Holy Ghost blows it out.” ―Oswald Chambers

[VIDEO] John Maxwell reminds us that only mature people can compromise to make relationships successful. Check this out―

Links & Quotes

January 4, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

[VIDEO] I loved watching Stuart Scott on ESPN SportsCenter. This video is a great tribute to his life.

“When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live.” —Stuart Scott

“Hang this text up in your house; read it every day; take it before God in prayer every time you bend the knee, and you shall find it to be like the widow’s cruse, which failed not, and like her handful of meal, which wasted not: it shall be unto you till the last of December what now it is when we begin to feed upon it in January.” —Charles Spurgeon, commenting on Hebrews 2:18

“This verse is full of encouragement for imperfect sinners like us, and full of motivation for holiness. It means that you can have assurance that you stand perfected and completed in the eyes of your heavenly Father not because you are perfect now, but precisely because you are not perfect now but are ‘being sanctified,’ ‘being made holy’—that, by faith in God’s promises, you are moving away from your lingering imperfection toward more and more holiness.” —John Piper, commenting on Hebrews 10:14

Seth Godin has a great way to help anyone gain a huge advantage over his/her peers in his post Doing Calculus With Roman Numerals.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Charles Spurgeon, ESPN, God's blessing, God's holiness, God's provision, Hebrews, Jesus Christ, John Piper, lifelong learner, obituary, questions, quotes, sanctification, Seth Godin, Stuart Scott, video. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Light Shining Out Of Darkness

January 3, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

God moves in a mysterious way,

His wonders to perform;

He plants His footsteps in the sea,

And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines

Of never failing skill,

He treasures up His bright designs,

And works His Sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take,

The clouds ye so much dread

Are big with mercy, and shall break

In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,

But trust Him for His grace;

Behind a frowning Providence,

He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,

Unfolding every hour;

The bud may have a bitter taste,

But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err,

And scan His work in vain;

God is His own interpreter,

And He will make it plain. —William Cowper, Light Shining Out Of Darkness

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: courage, God's blessing, God's purpose, God's Sovereignty, God's will, God's wisdom, grace, mercy, poetry, saints, trust, William Cowper. Leave a Comment »

How Bad Guys Can Help You

December 11, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah never held back when God told him to speak up. As you might imagine, this didn’t make Jeremiah too popular among the people who weren’t doing things God’s way. In fact, many of them started a plot on how they could eliminate Jeremiah.

God gave Jeremiah the heads-up on the bad guys who were trying to take him out (Jeremiah 11:18), to which Jeremiah said, “Go get ‘em, God!” (11:20). God promised Jeremiah that He would indeed take care of them (11:21-22). So Jeremiah pulled up a chair to watch how God was going to punish them. I’m not sure exactly what Jeremiah thought would happen, but one thing I do know: he certainly thought it would happen right away.

“God? Hello! Are You going to take care of these bad guys? Didn’t You say You’d get ‘em? I’m waiting. Anytime now You can zap ‘em with lightning … or make them fat and ugly … or at least give them bad breath and make them lose their jobs. Anything? Hello? Hey, what is going on here?! Not only are you not punishing them, it looks like things are actually going better for them! What in the world are You doing?!?” (12:1-2)

Ever been there where it looks like the bad guys are not only getting away with their badness, but even being blessed in the process?

God told Jeremiah that He was using these bad guys to actually help Jeremiah. God had big plans for Jeremiah’s life, but He needed Jeremiah to be stronger and have greater endurance. God said it this way—

If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in a safe country, how will you manage in the thickets? (12:5)

God reassured Jeremiah that the evildoers would indeed be punished but—and this is the important thing—God would do it in His own time (12:13).

In the meantime, God was going to use these bad guys to bless Jeremiah with increased strength and endurance, if Jeremiah would allow God to mold him and teach him.

Do you have some bad guys in your life? Hang in there! God doesn’t waste a thing. He is using even these evil people to bless you and accomplish His plans (Romans 8:28).