Just Continue That Thought...

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed beforeYou an Open Door.  What Will You Do?    (p. 209). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) This is one truth that if we really, first of all, believed it about ourselves it would make all the difference in how we view ourselves and then in turned viewed others.  Then second of all if we really believed that other people, no matter who they are and what they look like and what they believe or stand for, really matter to God then we would quit writing all of that stuff that we do on social media about other people. People matter to God.  This is a truth that God proved by sending His Son to die on a cross.  And the truth is the people who killed His Son also mattered to Him.  John says, “People matter to God. Depressed people. Educated people. Divorced people. People with different pol

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed before You an Open Door.  What Will You Do?   (p. 187). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Now if you are afraid of snakes that may be a fear that you really don't want to overcome.  But if you have been hurt by someone and because of that you are afraid to get back into a relationship then that is probably a fear that you need to overcome.  That is a fear you really do need to overcome to have a fulfilling and enjoyable life.  Relationships are a high priority in our lives. John says, "We were born to be brave.  The consistent command to us is the command that came to a fearful leader named Joshua: “Be strong and courageous . . . for the LORD your God will be with you” (Joshua 1: 9)." In Psalm 68, the Psalm I read to start my day says that, "God puts the lonely in families.

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed beforeYou an Open Door.  What Will You Do?    (p. 153). Tyndale house publishers, inc.. Kindle edition. (p. 158). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) John says, “There was a study on lawsuits recently. What kind of doctor is least likely to be sued? The correct answer surprised me. The kind of doctor who gets sued least often is a doctor who is likable. The particular specialty or field is irrelevant. A lot of times in our legalistic world we don’t think this way. We forget about the nature of the human condition. But the number one determiner of who gets sued is not who is most or least brilliant. It’s not whether there’s genius; it’s whether there’s humanity, just simple humanity.” Do other people matter to you?  If you see an open door do you run as fast as you can to get through it knock

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed before You an Open Door.  What Will You Do?    (p. 153). Tyndale house publishers, inc.. Kindle edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) You might ask, why do I need to know myself?  What difference will that make in my life?  Well John tells us why.  He says, “By having a clear sense of your interests and strengths (those skills that you are good at and enjoy using most), aptitude, talents, personality, aspirations, and life experiences, you can begin to envision the type of work  — and life  — that would be appealing and meaningful to you.”  I think that would be helpful, don’t you? He continues, “By knowing yourself, you will develop a new set of valuable lenses to evaluate potential opportunities and to prioritize work that you could pursue and work that you probably shouldn’t.” And then, “A crucial aspect of knowing yourself

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed before You an Open Door.  What Will You Do?  (p. 137). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) How did you feel the night before you got married?  Were you having second thoughts?  I was 27 so I didn’t have second thoughts.  I was more worried that Margaret did but she didn’t and here we are 40 years later. But “having second thoughts or buyer’s remorse is an inevitable part of walking through open doors.”  But John then says, “It is not fatal. It is not final.” He then says, “Recognizing the angst of difficult decision making can help you avoid one of the worst, overspiritualized traps people fall into when faced with a daunting opportunity: the ‘I just don’t feel peace about it’ excuse for capitulating to fear or to laziness. In this scenario, we take the presence of internal anxiety as a

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How WillYou Know?: God Has Placed before You an Open Door.  What Will You Do? (p. 135). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) For some the fact that they made a decision is the important thing.  I mean, I finally decided. But that is just the first step.  I can make the decision and then relax and believe that is all it takes but it isn’t.  I’m sure you really realize that, don’t you? John says, “It’s good to choose your doors carefully. But when you go — go. I am not in charge of which doors will be presented to me through my life. I may not be able to force a closed door to open. I am not in charge of what’s behind the door. But I am in charge of one dynamic: when a door is opened, I get to choose how I will respond. Sometimes it’s what you do after the door opens that makes all the difference.” But so many times we stop

A thought by John Ortberg, (2015-02-24) from his book. All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?: God Has Placed before You an Open Door.  What Will You Do?  (p. 118). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) But I thought that if I give my life over to God then He would take away all my problems and He would take care of them all.  I’m afraid that if you believe that then you are wrong.  John says, “If you don’t have one, your current problem is you don’t have a problem. Life is facing and solving problems. When God calls people, he calls them to face a problem. The standard word for the condition of being truly problem-free is dead.” He quotes Ichak Adizes who writes, “Having fewer problems is not living. It’s dying. Addressing and being able to solve bigger and bigger problems means that our strengths and capacities are improving. We need to emancipate ourselves from small problems to free the energ