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In: Bible and Theology, Idols, Lament, Prayer and Devotions

“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:25-26) Most of us can confidently say we only have one God in Heaven. I wonder if anyone besides Asaph can honestly say we desire nothing on the earth besides God. Of course, this is a lament, so he’s just dumped out before God all of his baggage, in his case a rather frustrated envy of the wicked who prosper while the innocent are stricken. So weRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology, Idols

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) Is God first in your heart? What is your deepest desire? What do you hunger for? What drives you? Are you willing to let him tell you the answers? What do you treasure on this earth? If he asked you to give it up in a clear voice, would you be willing? Lord, forgive us not giving you all of our hearts. If we’ve been holding anything back from you, weRead More →

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In: Book Reviews, Idols

It’s You Call (Victory Publishing-November 2008) by Lawrence Powell, pastor of Agape Family Worship Center in New Jersey, promises to give readers the tools they need to bring their lives into purposeful focus by helping them discover their own God-given assignment and how to follow God’s compass to success. The seven chapters seek to teach readers how to: Perceive, accept, and pursue the call of God Overcome the prison of the past Lose the weight. That is, to separate from the Old Boy’s network-the folks used to the old you who don’t like the You 2.0 that Jesus wants to upgrade to and seek toRead More →

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In: Idols

What do you think of Near Death Experiences such as the testimonies of Bishop Kelley, Mary K. Baxter, who was taken into the spirit to see Heaven and Hell, as well as Bill Weiss’s book 23 Minutes in Hell? –Blessed Dear Blessed, I would be guarded about NDEs. They’re not scripture. Don’t base your faith or doctrines on such testimonies, but on the Word of God alone. Take what can be backed up by scripture, be blessed by that, and leave the rest. In their right perspective, they can be encouraging–or a sharp rebuke, depending on the specific revelation. These testimonies are often the onlyRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology, Fatherhood, God's Character, Idols

 by Andrea J. Graham As a result of a potent combination of the attack on fatherhood and disintegrating families that we discussed last time, many Americans, true believer and secularist alike, operate under their personal variant of one of two popular understandings of who the God of our fathers is. The first views God as an inept namby-pamby who can be tricked and is quick to forgive—the sliver of truth all good lies have mixed in. Paul must not have known what he was talking about in Galatians 6:7-8, as the god we believe in would never think of allowing us to suffer the consequencesRead More →