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d784b6f
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Rather than ask God to change your circumstances, ask him to use your circumstances to change you. Life is a required course. Might as well do your best to pass it.
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Max Lucado |
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a947300
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Money gone. Expectations dashed. Friends vanished. Who's left? God is.
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Max Lucado |
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566cf2b
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It does little good to make the trip and miss the journey!
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Max Lucado |
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5becffb
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A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks that he gets as much as he deserves."1 The grateful heart, on the other hand, sees each day as a gift."
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Max Lucado |
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a5e4d72
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We rest in him, find our nourishment in him. His roof of grace protects us from storms of guilt. His walls of providence secure us from destructive winds. His fireplace warms us during the lonely winters of life. We linger in the abode of Christ and never leave.
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Max Lucado |
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ae11808
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Gratitude gets us through the hard stuff...Gratitude always leaves us looking at God and away from dread.
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Max Lucado |
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681e160
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I am leaving you with a gift--peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid. --JOHN 14: 27 NLT
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Max Lucado |
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1814f4c
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Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret-riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid-to-die to ready-to-fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off.1
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Max Lucado |
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d742cd1
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God is unchanging. The weather changes. Fashion changes. Even change changes. God has not changed and cannot and will not ever change. He is always the same--yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Heb. 6:17-18).
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Max Lucado |
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3b4d8e2
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Be anxious for nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. Is this what he meant? Not exactly. He wrote the phrase in the present active tense, which implies an ongoing state. It's the life of perpetual anxiety that Paul wanted to address. The Lucado Revised Translation reads, "Don't let anything in life leave you perpetually breathless and in angst." The presence of anxiety is unavoidable, but the prison of anxiety is optional." --
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Max Lucado |
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23da9e6
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Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek his grace.
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Max Lucado |
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82bc093
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Gratitude is a mindful awareness of the benefits of life. It is the greatest of virtues. Studies have linked the emotion with a variety of positive effects. Grateful people tend to be more empathetic and forgiving of others. People who keep a gratitude journal are more likely to have a positive outlook on life. Grateful individuals demonstrate less envy, materialism, and self-centeredness. Gratitude improves self-esteem and enhances relatio..
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Max Lucado |
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de1d08a
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On the eve of the cross, Jesus made his decision. He would rather go to hell for you than go to heaven without you. And the Angles Were Silent
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Max Lucado |
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99e0429
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That God saw him as such gives hope to us all.
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Max Lucado |
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56d41d3
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Remember, disappointment is cured by revamped expectations.
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Max Lucado |
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ed2038c
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Next time a sunrise steals your breath or a meadow of flowers leaves you speechless, remain that way. Say nothing and listen as Heaven
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Max Lucado |
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911251e
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No wonder Chelsea's memory had become her greatest weapon, a sword she wielded, wounding others to protect herself. For decades she had waged this war, but at what cost? Now she stood alone on the battlefield, bleeding and bruised. There were no victors in this war, and Chelsea counted herself among the casualties.
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Max Lucado |
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f3cb2de
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In God's plan every life is long enough and every death is timely. And though you and I might wish for a longer life, God knows better. And--this is important--though you and I may wish a longer life for our loved ones, they don't. Ironically, the first to accept God's decision of death is the one who dies. While we are shaking heads in disbelief, they are lifting hands in worship. While we are mourning at a grave, they are marveling at hea..
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Max Lucado |
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917cae9
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Relationships don't thrive because the guilty are punished but because the innocent are merciful.
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Max Lucado |
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b73b341
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Think you have lost it all? You haven't. "God's gifts and God's call are under full warranty--never canceled, never rescinded" (Rom. 11:29 MSG)."
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Max Lucado |
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3d06a6a
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Like Joseph, you've been dumped into the pit. And, like Joseph, you choose to heed the call of God on your life. It's not easy. You're tempted to get even. But you choose instead to ponder your destiny.
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Max Lucado |
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65778d2
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But for me, I am anot afraid, because the worst thing that could happen is getting to see "my Father eye to eye."
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Max Lucado |
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f935623
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When he finally confessed his immorality, he made only one request of God: "Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me" (Ps. 51:11)."
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Max Lucado |
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461039d
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The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart.
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Max Lucado |
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5a741e2
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Just because you are idle, don't assume God is.
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Max Lucado |
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99b56b3
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In Matthew 24:8, Jesus called these challenges birth pangs. Birth pangs must occur before a new birth. During this time the mother keeps focused on the end result, the moment she gets to hold that beautiful baby in her arms. She knows birth pangs don't last forever and they signal a new beginning in her life. Calamities and catastrophes are the earthly pains that must occur before the birth of the new world. Hold on. Grit your teeth. The ne..
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Max Lucado |
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9c7f393
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Once you have seen his face you will forever long to see it again.
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Max Lucado |
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03913ba
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If you aren't you, we don't get you.
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Max Lucado |
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2b98bc9
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You want to make a difference in your world? Live a holy life: Be faithful to your spouse. Be the one at the office who refuses to cheat. Be the neighbor who acts neighborly. Be the employee who does the work and doesn't complain. Pay your bills. Do your part and enjoy life.
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Max Lucado |
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ecc2e01
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Bugs bug people, but they can kill sheep. Flies, mosquitoes, and gnats can turn the summer into a time of torture for the livestock. Consider nose flies, for example. If they succeed in depositing their eggs into the membrane of the sheep's nose, the eggs become worm-like larvae, which drive the sheep insane. One shepherd explains: "For relief from this agonizing annoyance, sheep will deliberately beat their heads against trees, rocks, post..
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Max Lucado |
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5650136
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Mark it down. God does not save us because of what we've done. Only a puny god could be bought with tithes. Only an egotistical god would be impressed with our pain. Only a temperamental god could be satisfied by sacrifices. Only a heartless god would sell salvation to the highest bidders.
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Max Lucado |
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fd3e8a4
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This is the loneliest point in history. The last moment of true abandonment. From here on, abandonment is nothing more than a myth. And loneliness? A choice.
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Max Lucado |
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b6beb32
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Beneath the hard, painful surface of her recollection were layers of healing truth. God had never left her side, not even for a moment.
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Max Lucado |
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41bb3b8
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Shame is a child of self-centeredness. Heaven's occupants are not self-centered, they are Christ-centered. You will be in your sinless state. The sinless don't protect a reputation or project an image. You won't be ashamed. You'll be happy to let God do in heaven what he did on earth--be honored in your weaknesses. Heads bowed in shame? No. Heads bowed in worship? No doubt.
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Max Lucado |
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40b3fe4
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Lay claim to the nearness of God. "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Heb. 13.5 NIV)."
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Max Lucado |
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7df3682
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It is finished!" What was finished? The history-long plan of redeeming man was finished. The message of God to man was finished. The works done by Jesus as a man on earth were finished. The task of selecting and training ambassadors was finished. The job was finished. The song had been sung. The blood had been poured. The sacrifice had been made. The sting of death had been removed. It was over. A cry of defeat? Hardly. Had his hands not be..
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Max Lucado |
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a8815a9
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She couldn't alter the past but this was her chance to change the future.
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Max Lucado |
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4512914
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I keep thinking of all the people who cast despairing eyes toward the dark heavens and cry "Why?" And I imagine him. I imagine him listening. I picture his eyes misting and a pierced hand brushing away a tear. And although he may offer no answer, although he may solve no dilemma, although the question may freeze painfully in midair, he who also was once alone, understands."
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Max Lucado |
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cb6c51b
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Reaching for the Bible on the end table.) There's an answer for every occasion in here. Like a map for life.
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Max Lucado |
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ea6479a
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She delighted in serving her guests a soothing cup of coffee, a slice of cake, and when the occasion called for it, a prayer of encouragement.
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Max Lucado |
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971ca18
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God dispenses his goodness not with an eyedropper but a fire hydrant. Your heart is a Dixie cup, and his grace is the Mediterranean Sea. You simply can't contain it all. So let it bubble over. Spill out. Pour forth. And enjoy the flood.
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Max Lucado |
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e0f771c
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Who has more reason to worship than the astronomer who has seen the stars? Than the surgeon who has held a heart? Than the oceanographer who has pondered the depths?
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Max Lucado |
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4872365
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Pits have no easy exits.
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Max Lucado |
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ffdbb04
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God never prefabs or mass-produces people. No slapdash shaping. "I make all things new," he declares (Rev. 21:5 NKJV). He didn't hand you your granddad's bag or your aunt's life; he personally and deliberately packed you. . ."
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Max Lucado |