"Does your view of God include a certain relief and a dramatic deliverance?"

A thought by Max Lucado, from his book, You Were Made for This Moment (p. 72). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.)

A very good and important question, isn't it?

Max says, "That is no small question. Indeed, that is the question. The vast majority of people see no pending relief. Their summary of life reads like a Shakespearean tragedy. 'We live in a beautiful but broken world. It cannot be fixed. Nothing can be done. We make the best of it and then die.' For many people that’s life in a nutshell. So it’s hardly any surprise that we live in a day marked by despair and suicide."

He continues, "The story God offers is, by comparison, a golden meadow. It begins like the other but ends in a far better place.

" 'We live in a beautiful but broken world. However, our Creator made this world and did not destine it or us for brokenness. He destined us for a wonderful life. His intentions for us are good. He cares so much for us that he became one of us. He took on our brokenness, even to the point of death. His death gave birth to our life—eternal life. He arose from the dead and is recreating our world and invites all of us to be a part of it. One day he will restore the world to its intended beauty and reclaim his family, and we will live with him forever.' "

He later says, "It had to be the straightforward message of Mordecai. Yes, the world is in a mess. Yes, we’ve fallen victim to a brutal Haman. But relief will come, and 'who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this? (Esther 4:14 NKJV). Mordecai opened a window and shed a divine light into Esther’s world. 'You are here for a reason,' he said. 'Your life is part of a plan. You were placed here on purpose for a purpose.' "

Max then says to us, "Deliverance will come. God will have his victory. He will rescue his people. He will right the wrongs of this world. The question is not, Will God prevail? The question is, Will you be part of the team?"

And that is also a great question, isn't it? Yes, yes! #continuethought

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"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book, Winning the War on Worry (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...

“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...

"To put it simply, worry isn’t just a bad habit."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book, Winning the War on Worry (p. 1). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Ok, that is interesting. Louie says, "Worry is an Enemy tactic—a strategy built on lies that are designed to rob you of peace and tear your mind to pieces. "That’s why it’s crucial that you are able to spot the lies worry tells." He goes on, "Not long ago while on safari in South Africa, Shelley and I were really wanting to see a leopard in the wild. Early and late on our game drives our eyes were set on every tree limb, bush, grassy hill, and river path in hopes of finding one of several leopards that were known to frequent this particular area. But here’s the thing: leopards aren’t bright orange with tall, sparkly antennae on their backs. They are designed to blend into the surroundings, like the bark of a baobab tree where they might be lounging on one of its mighty branches. "In the same way, ...

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