After we talked awhile, he asked, 'Won't God be insulted if I become a Christian this late in life?'
Tom's question wasn't a surprise. As a chaplain, I often hear it in varying forms from the elderly, from those who struggle with addictions, from former prisoners.
They think they have a legitimate reason to believe it's too late for them to know God or to be used by Him.
Tom and I spent time exploring people in Scripture who, because of their past, could have thought it was too late for them to know God.
But Rahab, a prostitute Josh. 2:12-14; Heb. 11:31, and Zacchaeus, a tax collector Luke 19:1-8, chose faith in God despite their past.
We also looked at Jesus' parable of workers in the vineyard Matt. 20:1-16.
The earlier the hire, the more labor they were able to give the vineyard owner vv. 2-7, but those hired later discovered they had equal value in the owner's eyes and would be rewarded equally vv 8-16.
The vineyard owner chose to be gracious to them all.
No matter our past or present, God longs to show us his grace and bring us into relationship with Him."
Let's pray: "Father, we are amazed at Your grace! Thank You that
we can come to You at any time for forgiveness and be
restored to relationship with You. Thank You that we can
now be used by You to touch the lives of others.
To give your life to Christ now is
to keep it forever."
Our Daily Bread 7/30/13
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Let’s pray:
Father, thank You for the answers we are given here, concerning if it's too late for us or someone else, in giving our lives and hearts to Christ.
May today's Faith Message be both a challenge and a comfort to those who read it.
Help me give concrete answers to those who ask me such questions.
Increase my own faith, so I can be ready to express the hope that I've found in You, through Christ Jesus, the Savior.
In His Name I ask this, amen.
Today’s Bible verse: Job 42:12 "So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning."
Today’s quote: Gwen Smith – “One practical way to build your faith is by remembrance. When David was just a shepherd boy, he had courage to face a giant partly because he remembered the previous victories the Lord allowed him to experience.
He approached King Saul with great confidence, saying: "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine" 1 Sam. 17:36, NIV. His past victories fueled his faith and helped him to trust God for his present deliverances. Ours do the same.
We can face our giants with equal confidence when we pause to remember how God has worked in our past."
Some thoughts today: God has many people involved in his efforts to bless his people, so no one can claim the glory, but Him. 1 Cor. 12:7-11
- God drops names into our hearts for us to pray for them.
- Develop a system to effectively pray for others. Learn from others' experiences.
11th- This evening's post: Crucifying the Resurrected Self Pastor Saeed
12th- Special post: Roses for Mama James Cagle
13th- Tuesday's post: #83 Intercessors Change Roles C. Peter Wagner
15th- Thursday's post: #84 Filtering Out the Flakes C. Peter Wagner
A popular post: God's Goodness Denise K. Loock shares with us, "I’ve been grappling with God’s goodness lately...Do I trust God to bring what's best for me?" Denise Loock is a freelance writer, editor, and speaker. She’s the author of two devotional books, Open Your Hymnal and Open Your Hymnal Again, and the founder of Dig Deeper Devotions, a website dedicated to encouraging and enabling Christians to dig deeper into God’s Word. She is also the editor of The Journey Christian Newspaper, www.journeychristiannews.com
5 Days to a Christ Centered Marriage - Young Wife's Guide
abiblicalmarriage.com/5-days-to-a-christ-centered-marriageOct 4, 2013 - Ideally Christian marriages should be laying their foundation on the Word of God. But often this doesn't happen and we turn to popular ...
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