Some great quotes from John Bunyan on prayer—
“Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the Spirit, for such things as God has promised.”
“The best prayers have often more groans than words.”
“Prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for satan.”
“When you pray, rather let your heart be without words than your words without heart.”
Pastor Saeed Abedini is an American citizen imprisoned in Iran for his Christian faith. This letter he has written from prison is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. After reading this letter I hope you will sign this petition to let your voice be added to those calling on Iran to release Pastor Saeed.
“Prayer is not a lazy substitute for work. It is not a short cut to skill or knowledge. And sometimes God delays the answer to our prayer in final form until we have time to build up the strength, accumulate the knowledge, or fashion the character that would make it possible for Him to say ‘yes’ to what we ask.” —Roy M. Pearson
“Whoever, therefore, thinks that he understands the divine Scriptures or any part of them so that it does not build the double love of God and of our neighbor does not understand it at all.” —Augustine
As you prepare for Christmas and celebrate Advent, check out these beautiful words from Max Lucado in What Love Does.
Fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit will like this post: Bilbo’s Last Goodbye.
What this so-called ethicist says about “post-natal abortion” is truly horrifying.
“Lord, show me just so much (neither more nor less) about myself as I need for doing Thy will now.” —C.S. Lewis personal prayer
“The whole problem of our life was neatly expressed by John the Baptist when he said (John 3:30) ‘He must increase, but I must decrease.’ This you have realised. But you are expecting it to happen suddenly: and also expecting that you should be clearly aware when it does. But neither of these is usual. We are doing well enough if the slow process of being more in Christ and less in ourselves has made a decent beginning in a long life (it will be completed only in the next world).” —C.S. Lewis
For my pastor friends: “Our preaching and teaching must endeavor to promote three kinds of love: a proper self-love, love for God, and love for our neighbors.” —T.M. Moore
“Among those who are able to enjoy God with us, we love some whom we help, some by whom we are helped, some whose help we need and whose wants we supply, and some on whom we bestow no benefits and from whom we await none ourselves. Be that as it may, we should desire that all enjoy God with us and that all the assistance we give them or get from them should be directed toward this end.” —Augustine
[VIDEO] John Maxwell on the value of exploring new things—
Some great quotes from Thomas á Kempis on prayer—
“He who aims at inward and spiritual things must, with Jesus, turn aside from the crowd.”
“Grant me, oh most merciful Jesus, Your grace, that it may be with me, and labor with me, and abide with me even to the end. … Let there be between You and me but one will, so that I may love what You love, and abhor what You hate; and let me not be able to will any thing which You do not will, nor to dislike any thing which You do will.”
“Let no pride or self-seeking, no impure motive or unworthy purpose, no little ends or low imagination stain my spirit, or profane any of my words and actions.”
I re-read C.S. Lewis′ book Miracles earlier this year (you can read my full book review by clicking here). As you may have noticed, after reading and reviewing books on this blog, I also like to share some quotes that caught my attention. This particular quote is fairly long in itself, but I think you will understand the context within the quote—
“When we are praying about the result, say, of a battle or a medical consultation the thought will often cross our minds that (if only we knew it) the event is already decided one way or the other. I believe this to be no good reason for ceasing our prayers. The event certainly has been decided—in a sense it was decided ‘before all worlds.’ But one of the things taken into account in deciding it, and therefore one of the things that really cause it to happen, may be this very prayer that we are now offering. Thus, shocking as it may sound, I conclude that we can at noon become part causes of an event occurring at ten a.m. (Some scientists would find this easier than popular thought does.) The imagination will, no doubt, try to play all sorts of tricks on us at this point. It will ask, ‘Then if I stop praying can God go back and alter what has already happened?’ No. The event has already happened and one of its causes has been the fact that you are asking such questions instead of praying. It will ask, ‘Then if I begin to pray can God go back and alter what has already happened?’ No. The event has already happened and one of its causes is your present prayer. Thus something does really depend on my choice. My free act contributes to the cosmic shape. That contribution is made in eternity or ‘before all worlds’; but my consciousness of contributing reaches me at a particular point in the time-series.”
For other quotes from this book see Miracle Or “Cheating”?, Miracles And Nature, Christianity And Pantheism, Correcting The Pantheist, Absolute Fact, The Central Miracle, The Miracle of Freewill, Checkmate and Doctors Don’t Heal.
Some powerful quotes from D.L. Moody on prayer—
“I firmly believe a great many prayers are not answered because we are not willing to forgive someone.”
“Use me, my Savior, for whatever purpose and in whatever way You may require. Here is my poor heart, an empty vessel: fill it with Your grace. Here is my sinful and troubled soul; quicken it and refresh it with Your love. Take my heart for Your abode; my mouth to spread abroad the glory of Your name; my love and all my powers for the advancement of Your believing people; and never allow the steadfastness and confidence of my faith to abate.”
“If we do not love one another, we certainly shall not have much power with God in prayer.”
Some good reading from today…
This is tough reading, but very vital: How the normalization of pornography fuels the rape culture.
“What a gracious thing for us that Jesus Christ never thinks about what we have been! He always thinks about what we are going to be.” —A.W. Tozer
“So seldom does God find a Christian whose only goal in life is to know and to do His will—as Jesus did—and who never says, ‘God, where are You?’ but instead prays, ‘God, where am I in this matter of obedience and dependence?’” —David Wilkerson
“Remember Luther, Knox, Calvin, Wycliffe, Bradford, Latimer, and many others! Under God these men owed their liberty of speech and liberty of conscience to the fact that the world thrust them out from all hope of its favor, and so loosed their bonds.” —Charles Spurgeon
“Lay not fast hold upon the things of earth. He who is but a lodger in an inn must not live as though he were at home.” —Charles Spurgeon
Desiring God has released an updated version of The Pilgrim’s Progress with some cool features. If you download the ebook version, it’s free!
Some good reading and watching from today…
“I set you down as nearer akin to a devil than to a saint, if you can go your way and look into the face of your friend or child, and know him to be on the downward road, and yet never pray for him nor use any means for his conversion.” —Charles Spurgeon
Truth: 5 reasons why church is good for your marriage.
“Surely you know that if a man can’t be cured of churchgoing, the next best thing is to send him all over the neighborhood looking for the church that ‘suits’ him until he becomes a taster or connoisseur of churches.” —C.S. Lewis, in The Screwtape Letters
When doctors given expectant parents about a health issue for their baby, that information may be misleading.
…but there is no mistaking this abortionist’s vile confession: “we let babies born alive ‘expire.’”
“A person morally incapable of doing evil would be, by the same token, morally incapable of doing good. A free human will is necessary to the concept of morality.” —A.W. Tozer
Yet again climatologists’ “models” of so-called global warming are destroyed.
I love Pastor Chilly’s list: 66 Expressions Of Love.
[VIDEO] John Piper on what it means to be Gospel-centered…
Some good reading from today…
“Remember that sin must be punished. Any theology which offers the pardon of sin without a punishment, ignores part of the character of God. God is love, but God is also just, as severely just as if He had no love, and yet as intensely loving as if He had no justice. To gain a just view of the character of God you must perceive all His attributes as infinitely developed; justice must have its infinity acknowledged as much as mercy. … Sin must be punished, or God must cease to be. The testimony of the gospel is not that the punishment has been mitigated or foregone, or that justice has had a sop given it to close its mouth. The consolation is far more sure and effectual. Christ has for His people borne all the punishment which they deserved; and now every soul for whom Christ died may read with exultation, ‘The punishment of her iniquity is accomplished’ [Lamentations 4:22].” —Charles Spurgeon
Very interesting reading: Has the war on poverty hurt American marriage rates? Check out this data.
“I think it wise, if possible, to move one’s main prayers from the last-thing-at-night position to some earlier time: give them a better chance to infiltrate one’s other thoughts.” —C.S. Lewis
“This Spirit-filled, last-days Church will not hide, but will be on the front lines, fighting a good fight and bringing in a harvest of souls.” Read more from David Wilkerson in his post On The Front Lines.
Some powerful quotes from Martin Luther on prayer—
“Behold, Lord, and empty vessel that needs to be filled. My Lord, fill it. I am weak in the faith; strengthen me. I am cold in love; warm me and make me fervent, that my love may go out to my neighbor. I do not have a strong and firm faith; at times I doubt and am unable to trust You altogether. O Lord, help me. Strengthen my faith and trust in You.”
“Almighty God, grant us grace to hear Jesus Christ, the Heavenly Bread, preached throughout the world and truly to understand Him. May all evil, heretical and human doctrines be cut off, while Your Word as the Living Bread be distributed.”
“Lord God, You have placed me in Your church. You know how unsuitable I am. Were not for Your guidance I would long since have brought everything to destruction. I wish to give my heart and mouth to Your service. I desire to teach your people, and long to be taught Your work. Use me as Your work man, dear Lord. Do not for sake me; for if I am alone I show bring all to naught.”
“I have to hurry all day to get time to pray.”
Craig T. Owens 