What Is Charity?

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Excerpt from Christmas Charity by Susan G. Mathis: Mabel opened the door and noticed the darkening sky. “Come in, Susan. Looks like a Nor’easters a building. Might have snow by nightfall.” Susan entered the elderly woman’s abode. Neat and tidy with lots of memorabilia, just as Susan had imagined. Mabel led her into the kitchen. “I was just making tea. Care for some?” “Yes, please. How are you, Mabel?” “I’m just fine. Been praying for you and that girl of yours a fair bit. How’s it going?” Mabel stopped pouring the tea and stared into Susan’s eyes. “Tell me truthful-like,…

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Follow Your Dream

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  All of us have dreams of what we want to do with our lives. Sometimes those dreams get sidetracked by the reality of life. Sometimes they’re so long in coming that we tend to give up and think, “What’s the use?” How do we make those dreams come true? Whether the dream is about a career choice, a place you want to visit, or something you would really like to do, the dream can come true. Fulfillment depends on attitude and faith. By attitude, I mean surrounding ourselves with the resources or the tools and information we need to…

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Sunday Reflection: Pass the Baton of Faith

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We think that your marriage is a wonderful forum for instilling values, beliefs, principles and morals. Society sometimes just doesn’t know what to do with great men, great women, great dads, great moms, and people are often baffled by the wise, well spoken,  and well centered children focused parents produce. We were very proactive in our parenting. We share the details of how we raised our kids is in 10 Best Decisions a Parent Can Make. The main point is that all along the way we prayed specifically and planned intentionally. We developed a Learner and Leader Plan with a…

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Taking Obedience Seriously

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  The handmade collection of misshapen guitars, ukuleles, and banjos  made me wonder. Is the museum desperate for displays? About half of the instruments hanging on the walls were painted barn-red. Others had obviously been pieced together from two or three different types of wood. But the story of the man who crafted them changed my whole perspective. In the 1960s Arkansas farmer Ed Stilley had difficulty supporting his wife and five children. One day, while plowing his field behind a donkey, he thought he was having a heart attack. Lying on the ground with no one around to hear…

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You’ll Be Hacked!

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If hacking hasn’t happened to you, it will. Hackers are on the rampage. Facebook posts, emails, tweets are compromised. “Share” posts contain hidden lewd images. Links illegally access your profile. Banks, hospitals, even government entities are not immune. It seems there is no firewall strong enough. Our souls are not immune to being hacked. Call him what you will…the devil, the evil one, Satan, the father of lies. Trust me, as soon as you begin to do God’s will, this hacker will show up. Big time! Satan knows the places where our “firewall” is the weakest. He wiggles in with a…

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How Do You View Spiritual Growth?

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  Hello from Kathy Collard Miller in the Southern California desert near Palm Springs where our perfect weather has begun. How do you envision spiritual growth? Most of us think of it visually like a linear time line. On the left side of the line we make a step of progress and the temptation seems to be behind us and we won’t address it again. We have moved along that line to the right and we’ll only encounter new challenges—not old ones. But that’s not an accurate visual of change. Change is more like a spiral. Let’s call it a whirlpool. We’re…

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Amazing Faith on Perseverance Road

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Dianne Barker here with encouragement for your journey. Discouragement is a persistent enemy. That’s why I love offering others a sip of nourishment as they travel Perseverance Road. For most of us, hearing from God isn’t the problem. Our problem is continuing to believe God. We clearly heard his voice and gladly followed him. And then…the straight path grew narrow and tangled. Exhaustion turned our feet to lead and doubt set up camp. Lord, is this the road you chose? Did I miss a signpost?

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When the Flood’s up to Your Neck

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Dianne Barker here with encouragement. The Lord asked a penetrating question: “…who is he who will devote himself to be close to me?” (Jeremiah 30:21). He yearns for us to draw near, to know his heart, to walk with him in obedience, to put his teachings into practice.

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Believing God for the Impossible

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Dianne Barker here…just thinking about my biblical friend Abram. The Lord had given him huge promises. “I will make you into a great nation…To your offspring I will give this land” (see Gen. 12:2, 7). He kept talking about the future (Gen. 13:14-17), but nothing seemed to be happening.

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Filled with Fear or Firm in Faith?

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Sometimes it’s a pleasant surprise. In the midst of writing and heading to speaking engagements, God whispers a call to a different task. Mine was a mission trip to Bolivia and Peru. A special visit in many ways for me as Bolivia happens to be my birthplace. The weather was beautiful. A shower of blessing upon blessing poured upon me. And the folks whom I ministered to shined joy into my days. But in the middle of doing good work, a bad glitch appeared.

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