"I believe two of the most important words in the Bible are 'But God.'"

A thought by H. Norman Wright from his book, When the Past Won't Let You Go (p. 15). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.)

This thought is so true!

Norman says, "This phrase is used throughout Scripture as a turning point, a line of demarcation between peril and rescue, chaos and control, fall and redemption, hurt and healing.

"• The psalmist in Psalm 73:26 NLT: 'My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.'

"• Jesus in Matthew 19:26 NLT: 'Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.'

"• The apostle Paul in Acts 13:29-30 NLT: 'When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead!"

Norman continues, "Once we were dead in sin, but God made us alive. Once we were captive to our past, but God made us free. Once we were unworthy, but God promised to spend eternity unwrapping the riches of His grace in kindness toward us."

He then says, "There’s no way around the past. No matter how hard we try, we can’t erase it. Our goal is not to become a person who doesn’t have a history—that’s impossible and useless. 'The goal is to find a new way of working with the past so it doesn’t continue to negatively impact today and our future. The goal is to fight the inner urge we all have to return to the past.' (1)"

But God can and wants to be a part in working with our past. Will you let Him?

Yes, yes!

Wright, H. Norman. When the Past Won't Let You Go: Find the Healing That Helps You Move On (p. 15). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Comments

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life. It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed. Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life. Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you. You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good. Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...

“What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 35). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. Rick posed this question at the end of his chapter, You Are Not an Accident. In this chapter he deals with the fact that God created you the way you are with a purpose. In other words you are not an accident. I am also reading the Apostle John’s view of Jesus and what He said and did while He was here on earth. In the beginning of Chapter 9 there is a story about a blind man. And the disciples who were with Him asked Him a good question, “Who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? ” Have you ever asked the same thing about something in you that you don’t like? Like that characteristic is a curse or something. Society has set a standard that is not a standard of God. Remember, He created you and you are not an accident. Je...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog