From God’s Mouth to My Ear

Posted on August 24, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

Architect

 

Jeremiah 1:4 (NIV)
The Word of the LORD came to me
saying . . .

 

Lord, give me ears that hear (and a heart willing to study).
Amen.studying praying

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Bible Study Is Like Asparagus

Posted on August 22, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

blueprint

 

Jeremiah 15:16 (ESV)
Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart.

 

Is God’s Word “the delight of your heart”? Do you take joy in Bible study? No? What you need is more of it. It’s like asparagus–it’s an acquired taste.

When I was a child, I hated asparagus. Decades later, I have my own asparagus patch.

When I was a child, I wanted Bible stories, not Bible study. Now I write Bible studies. Start nibbling around the edges–you’ll learn to love it.bless willing

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Don’t Neglect the Whole Thing

Posted on August 21, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

thought

 

 

God speaks to us through the Bible. How often do you listen?

 

  • Every Sunday
  • Every day
  • When the Spirit moves me

Think food for a minute: you don’t eat just once a week. Nor would a daily kiddie meal keep you filled. So it is with our spiritual food.

A single verse in the morning is a start, not a whole (this from a gal who writes tons of single-verse devotions). Eat hearty. Do some serious Bible study.bless soul pic

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Just Whole-Hearted

Posted on August 19, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

discipline

 

Following up on yesterday’s half-throne . . .

 

 

. . . Seriously now, can you picture our “no-other-gods-before-me” Lord of the universe sharing your heart’s throne with anyone or anything?

Matthew 22:36-37 (TLB)
‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart . . .’
This is the first and greatest commandment.

Just do it.bless whole heart

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My Heart’s Throne

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

Rock solid

 

“Take my heart, it is Thine own,
  It shall be Thy royal throne.”
Frances R. Havergal, 1874

 

If I love God half-heartedly, he has only half a throne. bless whole hearted

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Divided Heart

Posted on August 17, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

Architect

 

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart” (Deuteronomy 6:5, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27). Scripture is clear. God wants me all-in, 100% for him.

 

How many times a day does my mind fixate on the sweet taste of a chocolate bar, the intrigue of a fantasy, the satisfaction of a put-down or the delight of an unnecessary purchase? It doesn’t take much for my heart to follow.

It doesn’t take much for my heart to run off and “have an affair” with the world.

Against you, O Lord God, I have sinned. Forgive me, I pray.amen

 

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After God’s Heart

Posted on August 16, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

blueprint

King David was a “man after God’s own heart”  (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22).

Seems an over-statement, since David slept with another man’s wife and covered it up by arranging that man’s death. Isn’t that a whole-heart breaker?

 

His sin found him out. Psalm 51 tells us how sorry David was.

Psalm 51:1,4
Have mercy on me, O God . . .
Against you, you only, have I sinned.

I wonder if the dead man would see it that way.

But for David, everything else paled in comparison to the break in his relationship with his Lord. That’s exactly the “after God’s own heart” part.bless heart

 

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Heart Condition

Posted on August 15, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

thought

A long-ago lesson on the first three kings of Israel sticks in my head: Saul=hard-hearted, David=whole-hearted, Solomon=half-hearted. Over-simplified? Absolutely, but easy to remember. And easy to apply to my own life.

So what about you? Which king are you most like?

  • Solomon, with one foot in faith and one in the world
  • David, 100% for God
  • “I did it my way” Saul

It’s never too late for a change of heart.bless heart

 

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What Do You Look for in a Church?

Posted on August 12, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

1 corinthians 12 7

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Worship Wisdom

Posted on August 11, 2016 by Shirlee Abbott

Rock solid

 

 

Some words of wisdom from C. S. Lewis:

 

“The perfect church service would be one
we were almost unaware of;
our attention would have been on God.”bless attentive

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