thankfulness | Craig T. Owens

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4 Powerful Truths About Peacefulness

November 9, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

Have you ever noticed the importance the Apostle Paul gives to “peace”? Not just any kind of peace, but the peace that is linked with God’s grace.

Paul always puts grace and peace together. Every one of his letters opens with “grace and peace.” The only exceptions are his two personal letters to Timothy where he says “grace, mercy and peace.”

In his letter to the Colossians we get a clue to why this is, when he writes, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful” (Colossians 3:15).

Let me start at the end of the verse. The word “thankful” is the Greek word euchristos. It’s where we get our word Eucharist (or Communion). The root word (charizomai) means to (a) live gracefully, (b) forgive gracefully, (c) rescue gracefully, (d) restore gracefully. That’s just how Jesus—the Prince of Peace—lived on earth, and that’s what His broken body and spilled blood purchased for us: peace with God.

So a thankful Christian is a peaceful Christian. Or another way of saying this: a Christian’s peace-fullness comes from thank-fullness.

When we “let the peace of Christ rule” in our heats, it’s because we understand what His grace has purchased for us. And we want others to know this grace and peace as well!

Peacefulness is contagious—a peace-full person has plenty of peace to share.
Peacefulness is unifying—fear makes people run away, but peace brings them close to God and close to each other (Luke 2:14; John 14:27).
Peacefulness promotes worship—we don’t worship what we fear, but we worship what we are drawn to (Luke 19:38; Hebrews 10:22).
Peacefulness signals victory—the absence of conflict is peace (Romans 16:20).

If you don’t have peace in your life, can I suggest that you might want to start by looking at your thank-fulness level. When you are thankful for what the Prince of Peace did on the Cross for you, it’s so much easier to become thankful for all the other blessings that He gives as well. This thank-fullness will raise your level of peace-fullness!

On Sunday we are going to continue to look at the power and beauty of grace-filled gratitude. Please join us!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Calvary Assembly of God, Christian, Colossians, Cross, Gospel of John, Gospel of Luke, grace, gratitude, Jesus Christ, peace, Romans, thankfulness, victory, worship. 1 Comment »

Graceful Gratitude

November 3, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

As we approach Thanksgiving Day, it’s natural for people to think about thanking. This shouldn’t be the case for Christians though…

Christians should be so full of thanks that every day is a day of thanks-giving!

There is a power in thankfulness. There is something attractive about gracious people. There is a security and a peace that comes from knowing just how many blessings have been lavished on me by my Heavenly Father.

Beginning this Sunday, I am going to share a series of three messages from three verses in the book of Colossians. We are going to look at the power of being people of graceful gratitude.

If you don’t have a church home in Cedar Springs, I would be so honored if you would join us. If you cannot make it in person, check out our live broadcast on Periscope at 10:30am (search for user @craigtowens).

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Calvary Assembly of God, Christian, church, Colossians, God's blessing, gratitude, peace, security, thankfulness, thanksgiving. 2 Comments »

Links & Quotes

June 29, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“The marvelous thing about spiritual wealth is that when we take our part in that, everyone else is blessed; whereas if we refused to be partakers, we hinder others from entering into the riches of God.” —Oswald Chambers

“Gratitude gets us through the hard stuff. To reflect on your blessings is to rehearse God’s accomplishments. To rehearse His accomplishments is to discover His heart. Gratitude always leaves us looking at God and away from dread.” —Max Lucado

“We can choose to define ourselves (our smarts, our brand, our character) on who rejects us. Or we can choose to focus on those that care enough to think we matter. Carrying around a list of everyone who thinks you’re not good enough is exhausting.” —Seth Godin

U.S. Congressmen have already introduced a bill to protect our First Amendment rights in light of the latest Supreme Court ruling.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: blessing, Congress, criticism, First Amendment, freedom of speech, God's blessing, government, gratitude, Max Lucado, Oswald Chambers, quotes, rejection, religious freedom, Seth Godin, thankfulness, wealth. Leave a Comment »

C.S. Lewis On The Holy Spirit

June 1, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

I have been studying for my series on the Holy Spirit, and I came across this gem from C.S. Lewis.

“It is quite right that you should feel that ‘something terrific’ has happened to you (it has) and be ‘all glowy.’ Accept these sensations with thankfulness as birthday cards from God, but remember that they are only greetings, not the real gift. I mean, it is not the sensations that are the real thing. The real thing is the gift of the Holy Spirit which can’t usually be—perhaps not ever—experienced as a sensation or emotion. The sensations are merely the response of your nervous system. Don’t depend on them. Otherwise when they go and you are once more emotionally flat (as you certainly will be quite soon), you might think that the real thing had gone too. But it won’t. It will be there when you can’t feel it. May even be most operative when you can feel it least.” —C.S. Lewis

...Ever be filled and stimulated with the Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18, AMP).

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, C.S. Lewis, emotions, Ephesians, Holy Spirit, quotes, thankfulness. 3 Comments »

Links & Quotes

January 22, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“I have no business on the bed of sloth; I have no right to be wandering abroad after private business; I can claim no time which I may set apart for my own follies, or to my own aggrandizement. My true position as a Christian is to be always ministering to God, always standing before His altar. Do I hear you ask how this can be, with your farms and with your merchandise? Know you not, brethren, that whether you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, you may do it all to the glory of God?” —Charles Spurgeon

“It ill becomes a man of God to be ungrateful, or to sponge upon those that are generous.” ―Matthew Henry

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Charles Spurgeon, Christian, God's glory, gratitude, Matthew Henry, quotes, Sola Deo gloria, thankfulness. Leave a Comment »

William Law On Prayer

January 21, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

Some quotes from William Law on prayer …

“There is nothing that makes us love a man so much as praying for him.” —William Law

“He who has learned to pray has learned the greatest secret of a holy and happy life.” —William Law

“The greatest saint in the world is not he who prays most or fasts most; it is not he who gives alms, or is more eminent for temperance, chastity, or justice. It is he who is most thankful to God.” —William Law

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: holiness, love, prayer, saints, thankfulness, William Law. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

November 28, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Some good reading from the last couple of days …

“The blood of Jesus can cover your sins, but it does not make you dependent on Him. Miracles can deliver you from satan’s power, but they can’t make you dependent. You can be led by God and still not lean wholly upon the Lord. God has to strip us of all self-assurance and destroy all that remains of self-righteousness, spiritual pride and boasting. He must (and He does) humiliate all who are destined to inherit His great spiritual blessings.” —David Wilkerson

Fast Company shares why thankful people are happier and healthier. And Dr. Tim Elmore shares 5 ways leaders can show gratitude.

“May God grant that no doctrinal belief may ever dry up the milk of human kindness in our souls! … May we feel that no dogma can be scriptural which is not consistent with a sincere love to men.” —Charles Spurgeon

“The enemy never quite knows how to deal with a humble man; he is so used to dealing with proud, stubborn people that a meek man upsets his timetable. And furthermore, the man of true humility has God fighting on his side—who can win against God?” —A.W. Tozer

“The problem with problems is that they always keep us from focusing on opportunities.” Read more of Seth Godin’s post The Problem With Problems.

Thanksgiving History

November 26, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

I enjoy reading The American Patriot’s Daily Almanac by Bill Bennett and John T.E. Cribb. This entry reminds me to be thankful for the legacy of thankfulness we enjoy in the United States of America.

Our nation has inherited a long, rich tradition of thanking God for his blessings.

In 1541 Spanish explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado and his men conducted a service of thanksgiving for the abundant food and water they found along the Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas Panhandle.

In 1564 French Huguenot colonists settled in the area of Jacksonville, Florida, and “sang a psalm of Thanksgiving unto God.”

In 1607, when the Jamestown colonists arrived in Virginia, they immediately erected a wooden cross and gave thanks for their safe passage across the ocean.

In 1619, English colonists at Berkeley Hundred in Virginia decreed that the day of their arrival, December 4, “shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God.”

In the autumn of 1621, the Pilgrims at Plymouth, Massachusetts, held a feast to celebrate the harvest and thank the Lord for his goodness—the feast we now remember as the “First Thanksgiving.”

In 1777, during the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress designated December 18 of that year a day “for solemn Thanksgiving and praise” for the Patriot army’s victory at Saratoga—the first national day of thanksgiving.

In 1789 President George Washington proclaimed November 26 to be a day of thanksgiving for God’s blessings and for the new United States Constitution.

It wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that the country got a regular national Thanksgiving Day. Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November “a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father.” Succeeding presidents followed Lincoln’s example. In 1941, Congress passed a law officially declaring the fourth Thursday in November as America’s Thanksgiving Day.

Let’s make sure Thanksgiving is not just a day on the calendar, but a year-round lifestyle!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Abraham Lincoln, American history, George Washington, thankfulness, thanksgiving. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

August 26, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Some good reading from today…

“Moses’ aim in knowing God’s ways is so that he may know God Himself. ‘Let me know Your ways that I may know You’ [Exodus 33:13]. … This is the great passion of our lives: to know God Himself by grace, and to make Him known by grace.” —John Piper

“However deep the mystery, however many the paradoxes involved, it is still true that men become saints not at their own whim but by sovereign calling.” —A.W. Tozer

“A thousand years of remorse over a wrong act would not please God as much as a change of conduct and a reformed life.” —A.W. Tozer

“To think that before the hills were formed, or the channels of the sea were scooped out, God loved me; that from everlasting to everlasting His mercy is upon His people. Is not that a consolation?” —Charles Spurgeon

As our kids get ready to go back to school, Kevin Belmonte has a great reminder why teachers deserve our thanks.

“God is willing to let His name be mocked just to wake up the church and give one last trump to the world.” Read more in David Wilkerson’s post: Please Say It Isn’t So.

“It’s easy to forget who is the servant and who is to be served. The tool of distortion is one of satan’s slyest. When the focus is on yourself, you worry that your co-workers won’t appreciate you or your leaders will overwork you. With time, your agenda becomes more important than God’s. You’re more concerned with presenting self than pleasing Him. You may even find yourself doubting God’s judgment. … Guard your attitude. If you concern yourself with your neighbor’s talents, you’ll neglect your own. But if you concern yourself with yours, you could inspire both!” —Max Lucado

Watch out! It won’t be long until this is true in America: British Christians forced to hide beliefs.

Jonah Goldberg asks: If “evil” doesn’t apply to ISIS, then what does?

Links & Quotes

June 17, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

“A spirit of thankfulness is so at odds with a spirit of coarse jesting that when one rises, the other falls [Ephesians 5:4]. And a spirit that yearns to edify is so at odds with foul talk that when one rises, the other falls [Ephesians 4:29].” —John Piper

“Love for others is the overflow of God-given security for the good of others. It signifies that we have the resources to care about others because God cares for us.” —John Piper

British prime minister David Cameron said recently that “our religion is now the most persecuted religion around the world.” Read this post about The War On Christians.

The Assemblies of God has now shown membership growth for 24 consecutive years, and its attendance grew more in 2013 than the US population did! Check out these God-glorifying stats.

“Let anger be guarded against. If it cannot, however, be averted, let it be kept within bounds. For indignation is a terrible incentive to sin. It disorders the mind to such an extent as to leave no room for reason. The first thing, therefore, to aim at, if possible, is to make tranquility of character our natural disposition by constant practice, by desire for better things, by fixed determination.” —Ambrose of Milan

“There is no true comfort for anyone on this earth except that of the Holy Spirit. This is why you need Him abiding in you. He alone can lay you down at night, as in a warm bed, and fill your heart with perfect peace. He alone can truly comfort you in times of pain and sorrow. He is the one who will assure you, ‘This comfort is not just temporary—it is eternal!’” —David Wilkerson

Guess what? Being popular in high school may hurt you in the long run.

Surprise (or not)! The biggest tax delinquents are US government employees.