From "The Greatest Love Story Ever Told":

And so is the miracle of this love story that is surpassed by no other, but as we said in the beginning what is love if it is not given a choice? For love cannot be truly expressed unless it is set free and allowed to choose. So choose wisely dear Princess, don't be a fool. There lives a Prince like no other whom you were created for. He finds you the fairest of them all and his desire is for you. He offers you his Heart to lead you by his love, and He will return for you on your wedding day. With life complete, two-as-one, your happily ever after awaits.

From "The HigherGround of the Simplicity of the Gospel":

The good news of the gospel is one of forgiveness of sins and reconciliation through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. It's not one of no sin, nor one of condemnation, but one of reconciliation. The gospel in its simplest form is the most powerful. We can trust it to accomplish its purpose.

From "Food Fight":

There are generally two sides to a story and all too often we are only equipped with our side, but if we take the time to open up and "honestly" communicate we will be given the view from the other side. If we go that route, let us also try to avoid making the discussion about a hurtful blame game. See, even though our neighbor plays a part and the Lord will allow our humanity to play out, we are all first and foremost responsible to Him. He is our answer and our Source and the One we are first accountable to. Know the higher view is the one seen from being connected to his heart.

From "The Song of the Heart":

But through the darkness, if we take time to listen, we can discover our song. Our song is not something that is learned and taught to us by another. It isn't an exercise of the mind, but the life of the heart that presses us to do away with learned etiquettes and give it a voice.

From "What's All The Worship About?":

Maybe it is time we stop trying to make something happen and simply ask the Lord to equip us with the knowledge of how wonderful He is so that we can enjoy the blessings of worshipping him in Spirit and truth. A worship that springs from a heart so awakened to his love and goodness that it cannot help but express its adoration of Him.

From"The Call From the Darkside":

The anatomy of temptation is not a new one. It is as ancient as the one presented to man in the Garden of Eden. At its basic level and stripped from all its elaborate dressings is the call to act apart from God and take matters into our own hands. To try and attain for ourselves what can only be found in Him.

From "The Call from the Darkside":

So if you don't know who's calling ask discernment from the Lord. He may have you check your I.D. Caller for help. Does the call flow from the love of God shed abroad in your heart? Or does it come from the lusts of the flesh with its focus on self?

From "Do We Really Have a Choice?":

I don't see the love of God as a choice but something that isgiven to us and happens to us. The heart doesn't choose. The heart is won over. It grows and flourishes as we grow in relationship. This was part of the lesson God's law would teach us, that we of ourselves cannot do it.

From "Do We Really Have a Choice?":

We cannot choose to desire or will the will of God. It is given to us through Christ. We don't work in but we do work out what has been worked in us.

From "Knowing God":

Our efforts to simplify God can often have the opposite effect of complicating Him for relationship itself is complex unless the two are fused as one. The simplicity of God is found inintimate relationship with Him and partaking of his life. God has communicated that simplicity in His Son, Jesus Christ.

From "The Progressive Journey:

Yes, spiritual maturity appears to progress from the smaller picture of me, to the larger picture of there is the whole of humanity at the Lord's heart. May we remember this as we are faced with the challenges in life and edify each other in love and comfort.

From "Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth":

We have three vital areas to prayerfully consider: Knowledge, Interpretation, and Application.

From "IsIt Really Not About Me?":

The individual journey and the corporate journey are both important to the Lord and both play an important role.The individual journey isjust the smaller picture that needs to be found "within" the larger corporate one. A life of self-sacrifice for the larger picture benefitting all,while resting in the assurance of the love of God and individual needs met.

From "The Invisible Woman":

It is one thing to take the credit and glory that belongs to our Lord and a whole other thing to understand how his body functions...We do also have a responsibility to our fellowman so express the love and spread the gratitude.

From "The Invisible Woman":

Furthermore, take time to check out the second-hand items being sold to you. Don't look to just blindly buy into it at heart. If something doesn't feel right, even here, take it to the Lord and let his Spirit reveal the truth to you.

From "The Mechanical Pencil":

At that moment I realized what I thought was odd was simply
God's way of showing me no matter how ahead of the ball game I tried to be, he is the one that hits the home runs and his timing is always perfect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From "Say What?":

The next time you find yourself conversing with someone and it appears that there is some miscommunication going on, you may want to ask them to elaborate on what they mean...As they share their perception, we may come to an awareness that the static on the phone may have been sparked by a difference in translation, and further fueled by the electrical currents running through the wires of our past associations.

From "Princess Jen's Story":

God gives us strength when we are weak. He can fill us when we are empty. And He can heal us when we are broken. All things are possible if we keep our eyes on God and never give up. Turn all your struggles over to God and ask for help.

From "Are Mars and Venus Really That Different?":

I may not agree with you regarding the dynamics of the surface details, but I have known joy and sorrow, love and hate. I have mourned and I have danced. I have laughed and I have cried. No matter how you spell it, pronounce it, or where it is derived from, pain is pain. What on surface manifests as differences, can find common ground in the waters of the deep. We may not all agree on how to stamp out hunger, but we can all grieve for the devastation it brings.

Am I advocating that we build our own"Tower of Babel"? A bridge to life, one of our own uniting and making? God forbid. With that said we can understand that this bridge helps to get beyond the differences between us and close the gap that divides us as we come to see ourselves in our fellowman. At core we are all broken and frail claypots in need of the Potter's Touch.

From "The Heart of the Matter is the Matter of the Heart":

True seeing and hearing is a matter of being connected to the heart of God found in Jesus. A heart awakened in Him. This is the difference between Spiritually seeing and hearing, and partaking of the knowledge of good and evil.

From "The Wounded Soldier":

Do you see me?
Are you sure you are seeing me clearly?
God sees the heart of man.
Are you seeing the heart clearly?

From "Our 'Rubber to Road' Experience and Equippings for Priestly Service":

We can also better understand why God would choose to allow our humanity to run its course when we realize that God intends to display his glory through us and unite us in his love in Jesus. Walking it out can be a tool God uses to break up the hard ground of our hearts.

In summary our "rubber to road" experience is a beneficial and viable part of what God is looking to accomplish in Jesus and through his body. In this way his Spirit does sweep humanity before the throne of God.

From "The Love of God and Change":

There is only one power able to bring true and lasting changes into our hearts. The life of Jesus who is the heart and love of God manifested in the flesh. He is the Love of God personified. It is the love of God alive in our hearts that tears down the idols therein.

From "Is Faith Blind?":

And remember that our faith needs to be in Him. Not on our limited knowledge, not in our circumstances, but in Him. When the changing landscapes seem to defy what we feel we know of his ways we can always trust in His love and goodness.

From "The Higher Ground of Bearing His Fruit":

The new way Jesus paved for us is a life joined to his where we now bear his fruit. The law does not apply to such a life. It is beyond its jurisdiction. Furthermore, the life of the Spirit is not a result of trying to accomplish it in our own efforts. We are called to bear his fruits and that comes from abiding in Him, not a result of our own works (John 15).

From "Cyber Wars":

So if you find yourself distracted and irritated from the simple devotion to our Lord, it is probably time clean out your hard-drive and return to the simplicity that is in Christ.

From "Walking in Your Shoes":

Sometimes we think we are better than others and find ourselves peering down our noses at them. Then like the sun searing down on a chunk of ice, we can almost see God's penetrating Sonlight start melting away the hardness of our hearts. Yes ladies and gentlemen, as much as we like to sing that lovely song about God's grace, the bible tells us it is distributed to the humble and sometimes we gotta eat some of that humble pie to get us a slice.

From "When Laughter Becomes Horrific":

It helps when we allow someone to see what may be going on inside of us. To help open the door to understanding and even empathy. And as they open up to us, we may find that as we connect closer to each other's situation, nature takes a different course.

From "The Child in Me":

The point is that I realize that ever since I was born God loved me and he was proud and designed a plan for my life and only wanted but the best for me, just like for you. The world corrupted God's plan and I was lost. But God never really left me.

From "My Run for Office":

2. Live and let live. Just don't do it in your neighbor's yard because he has the right to protect himself from any perceived danger.

From "My Run for Office":

On Special Interest Groups: Why are we so concerned about them anyway? I find it an insult to the office of the Presidency. Everyone knows that the President is the most powerful person in the United States. Haven't you heard? It is all our fault when the economy is sluggish, when Wall Street is being visited by Yoyo the bear, when inflation is at a high, when education is at a low, when it snows too much, when the sun doesn't shine, when Florida is visited by 5 consecutive hurricanes, and let's not forget "El Nino".

From "Holy Spirit Take the Wheel":

One thing is certain, we can all trust the Holy Spirit to lead us well. He is our trusted leader who leads us safely and most effectively by way of Jesus.

From "Points of View":

To avoid being duped we should consider what point of view we and others are coming from before buying into it as truth. It may be the truth as they have seen it, understood it, and experienced it, but that doesn't mean it is God's truth. If the truth as we know it doesn't line up with God's truth, it is actually deception. Being deceived indicates that at heart we have bought into a lie. This is important to understand because our genuine and auto-responses will flow from what we believe at heart. If we believe something bogus we will live a lie. In order for our lives to reflect the life ofJesus, our beliefs must be united to his.

From "Those Sensitive Years, You Are Not Alone":

Our homes should be a safe haven for our children during the precious time God entrusts them to our care. May we, by the grace and provision of God, be good stewards of these sweet gifts from him delivered into our hands. It is a special role our Heavenly Father has honored us with. A golden opportunity to display his guiding love. Not an opportunity to lord it over for the mere display of power. We can restrict their flight with power and fear but their hearts will be won over by his love.

From "Intimacy, Love, and Commitment":

Intimacy is sharing an attitude of openness and surrender. Intimacy is impossible unless sharing occurs on the deepest levels. More important than anything else is the sharing of our hearts through open and honest communication.

From "Intimacy, Love, and Commitment":

Another key element is trust, an environment of safety and security. True intimacy requires sharing the depths of ones soul as well as giving of one's life daily. This is only possible in an atmosphere of safety and security. To the degree that we create an atmosphere of trust is to the same degree we can open our hearts to one another. Trust is built through consistency, careful speech, kindness and humility.

From "Home Building, Phase Three":

The fruits of the Spirit will pass the test (1 Corinthians 13,Galatians 5:22). They are the lasting materials, those unseen essentials of the Lord's life by which a home is well established and endures.

From "Jo's Corner-Prayer, A Precious Gift Indeed":

I'm learning to ease up on myself knowing that the best thing I can give someone is an encounter with the living God, even as I know He does use us as his hands and feet.

From "Jo's Corner, In Touch with our Femininity":

So wanted to make a suggestion to the men out there. If it's been awhile since you did something that would remind your gal of her femininity, like buying her flowers or helping her out of the car, try it and watch her bloom. It's like adding water to the garden of her soul. You don't have to get real goofy about it (though goofy is nice too, I like goofy). I believe I speak for many of us when I say we are sentimental and can appreciate the simple, thoughtful gestures. Those gestures that say in their own way, "I thought of you today."

From "Jo's Corner, Signs of New Life":

We can live in continuous communion with God. We can expect to meet Him anywhere. The whole world is filled with hisglory and I know He wants to share it with us.

Share your life with him. In the big and in the small. He loves it. He does. Don't think He isn't interested because it gives him great joy when we share our lives with him and invite him into the picture. It is He that makes it all grand.

From "Lessons from Corporate America":

Church should be understood as first and foremost the Lord's body of which his beloved children are all part of. Then when we love or condemn her, well know we've loved or condemned Jesus and ourselves.

From "Lessons from Family Life":

The body of Christ is a family that is to be lived from a relationship of love rooted in Christ. To honor our parents is God's will. Our spiritual parents also deserve the love and honor for the positions entrusted to them and the labor of love that comes with it, even if mistakes are being made.

From "Crash Course":

As we journey through life and our paths cross with others, we should understand our personal view is limited and self-confidence is way overrated.

From "Home Building, Phase One":

From my observations I have noticed a good deal of the strains within a home come from members looking to change each other and / or bring unity where disunity exists...

As we are rightly related to Father, we will find His Spirit at work bringing our families together in Christ.

From "My Multi-Racial Complex":

So that's me, a speckled sheep that also needs to continue progressing in Jesus. I look forward to the day when the Lord brings us all closer together in Him. We can try and do that on our own, been there, done that. But we are all dealing with things and needing more growth so even as I still like to put myself out there and see how the Lord may connect us, I'm learning not to do more of his job and just do my part by loving and accepting others as they are and looking to find common ground in the deep waters of God's Heart of Love found in Jesus.

From "Equality at the Cross":

There is none that can see all the threads that make up the fabric of our lives except the Lord's Spirit Himself. In understanding the differing variables in our lives we need to understand the only place we intersect and find our commonality is in the cross of Jesus Christ. It is the only view that holds true and leaves no room for pride and prejudice.

From "In the Eye of the Beholder":

If anything, I think we can agree that the attitude of the heart speaks louder than words. I'm not sure how much I agree with all the finer details, or maybe just want to elaborate more on some things, yet I do solemnly agree with the overall picture regarding the bigger issue being the condition of our hearts. That may very well be what Jesus meant regarding "the beam".

From "Going Deeper, Addressing theNeed Beyond the Sin":

Father God did not send Jesus to condemn us but to heal us. It is his desire to go beyond sin, minister to our needs, and complete us...to overflowing.

From "Christian Stepfordville, Part XVI":

"So bro, back at you. Relaaax, feel the music and flow with it...sure you need the right moves but get out of your head and enjoy the dance."

From "Christian Stepfordville, Part XIX":

When we enter in through Christ how God specially designed each of us doesn't change but goes through a rebirthing as our old sinful nature meets with death and we are given God's nature in Christ, our new common denominator. It's trading the nature of death for the nature of life, that's what changes...

From "Christian Stepfordville, Part XXXIX:

When our hearts are pure, and we are at peace from not filtering things through our past associations, we can see others and God as they are, as the Lord reveals in his time and way, then if there is a need for God's fire or peace, we are in the favorable position of receiving it. It isn't enough to have the right intentions, but it's an admirable start,"