Most Liked Religion & Spirituality Blogs (1,491)

A compilation Feb 17, 2015

“I need oil,” said an ancient monk; so he planted an olive sapling.

“Lord,” he prayed, “it needs rain that its tender roots may drink and swell. Send gentle showers.” And the Lord sent gentle showers.

“Lord,” prayed the monk, “my tree needs sun. Send sun, I pray Thee.” And the sun shone, gilding the dripping clouds.

“Now frost, my Lord, to brace its tissues,” cried the monk. And behold, the little tree stood sparkling with frost, but at evening it died.

Then the monk sought the cell of a brother monk, and told his strange experience.

“I, too, planted a little tree,” he said, “and see, it thrives well. But I entrust my tree to its God. He who made it knows better what it needs than a man like me. I laid no condition. I fixed no ways or means. ‘Lord, send what it needs,’ I prayed. ‘Storm or sunshine, wind, rain, or frost—Thou hast made it and Thou dost know.’”—Attributed to Linda Dillow

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The other evening I was riding home after a heavy day’s work. I felt very weary and depressed, when swiftly and suddenly that text came to me, “My grace is sufficient for thee.”1

I said, “I should think it is, Lord,” and burst out laughing. It seemed to make unbelief so absurd.

It was as though some little fish, being very thirsty, was troubled about drinking the river dry, and Father Thames said, “Drink away, little fish. My stream is sufficient for thee.”

Again, I imagined a man away up yonder, in a lofty mountain, saying to himself, “I breathe so many cubic feet of air every year, I fear I shall exhaust the oxygen in the atmosphere.” But the earth might say, “Breathe away, O man, and fill thy lungs. My atmosphere is sufficient for thee.”

Be great believers! Little faith will bring your souls to Heaven, but great faith will bring Heaven to your souls.—C. H. Spurgeon

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“Do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ … For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”—Matthew 6:31–332

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I cannot but God can
Oh, balm for all my care,
The burden that I drop
His hand will lift and bear.
Though eagle’s pinions tire,
I walk where once I ran,
This is my strength: to know
I cannot, but God can.

I know not, but God knows.
Oh, blessed rest from fear,
All my unfolding days
To Him are plain and clear.
Each anxious puzzled “Why?”
From doubt or dread that grows,
Finds answer in this thought:
I know not, but God knows!
—Annie Johnson Flint

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All we have to do is follow Jesus! … Even though we are faithless, yet He remains faithful. He cannot deny Himself, and He cannot break His word. He is going to see it through. God is going to carry us through. He has begun a good work in us, and He’s going to complete it to the end.

God alone can do it and God alone can show us what to do, how to do it, and protect us in doing it, supply the needs, and lead and guide us every step of the way. So don’t try to figure it out for yourself. … Cry out to God and ask God for the solution, and God will never fail.

Only God knows what to do, and only God knows what He wants done, and only God can do it. … God knows what He’s doing. So for God’s sake let Him do it, and just look to Him to find out what He’s doing, and what He wants you to do, and which way He’s going!

Don’t try to reason around with your own understanding, but get down in prayer and cry out to God with strong crying and tears and desperation, and look to Him alone for the answers. God alone has the answers and God alone can do it.—David Berg

1 2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV.
2 NKJV.




Anchor TFI Online

Spiritual Lesson #1 – Unconditional Love. The one lesson most pet owners agree upon is that our animals teach us to love unconditionally, and along with that, to forgive. They ask little from us but give us enormous rewards with sheer presence, demonstrating the consistency of love. They never retreat from us in anger.
Spiritual Lesson #2 – Selflessness. They teach us selflessness. The dog eats before we do. The dog gets vet care before we get medical care. We take days off work to nurse an ailing animal.
Spiritual Lesson #3 – Acceptance. They teach us to accept impermanence. While this life is temporary, Divine love lasts forever. We learn to exercise the greatest parts of ourselves
Spiritual Lesson #4 – Release. They make it impossible for us to hold grudges. Yes, we get annoyed if they chew up our shoe or prefer to urinate on the coffee table instead of the shrubbery.
Spiritual Lesson #5 – Guidance. They help us understand that we are not alone. They speak to the core of our total being with accompaniment that is way beyond the physical. In fact, we despite our trips to the animal shelter or a reputable breeder, we really have not chosen our dogs but they have chosen us.
Spiritual Lesson #6 – Sacrifice. They lead us to see the meaning of sacrifice: because the love we have for them is so pure, they become our first consideration when the end of physical life approaches.
Spiritual Lesson #7 – Renewal They allow us to heal from all forms of hurt: romantic, loss, anger. By the simple gift of their presence, a paw on our leg, a head on our shoulder, our vibration is raised and our capacity for love is expanded. Each time we bring a new animal into our lives, we are energetically mended.

During the sermon on the mount, one of the subjects Christ talked about was prayer. As He was instructing the people to not be like the heathen by using vain repetitions in prayer, He added in Matthew 6:8, “for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.”

So many seem to have a problem with the fact that God is omniscient. He knows everything. But when you’re down and hurting, His total knowledge often becomes a source of comfort. Especially when an answer comes quickly, even as fast as while you’re still praying.

That happened to Daniel once in Daniel 9:21. He said while he was still praying, God sent His angel, Gabriel, to him. “Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.”

It says in Isaiah 65:24 that this will be common in the life to come, “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” But even though God isn’t always pleased to answer immediately every time we pray today, it doesn’t mean He isn’t very aware of what we’re going through.

Sometimes the lessons are in the waiting itself—a testing of faith—but if you are truly one of His own, there will never be a time when your needs will go unsupplied, as David had written in Psalm 37:25, “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.”

Because He knows what you need. Before you ask.

Are you hungry? “Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?”3

Do you need clothing? “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?”4

No matter what your need is, God knows. And He will answer in His own way and in His own time.—Tammy5

3 Matthew 6:26 KJV.
4 Matthew 6:28–30 KJV.
5 keptbygrace-com/archive/god-knows-what-you-need-before-you-ask.
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FILL YOUR HEART AND MIND WITH GOD'S GOOD TRUTH!

The Lord has given you the best computer ever constructed--your own mind, but it's up to you how you fill it! It has to be filled with something, good or bad, and your reflexes are mentally conditioned to react in a certain way according to what you have learned or experienced. That's why you could hardly accomplish anything more important than to memorize the Word of God!

God Himself is like the Great Central Computer, and you can plug into Him and by His power, His Spirit, He can give you all the information, all the wisdom, and all the answers you need! If you'll be faithful to read, study and memorize His Word, then He can spiel it off by the Spirit when you need it! He will just pop it up in your little computer whenever you make the right connection in your programming!

Once you've saturated your heart and mind with God's Word, you just need to be a yielded instrument and then the Lord can sit down at the console and play at the keys to get out of your computer the information that He wants.--For your little chips off the old block right there in your head have got the whole story, as much as you've programmed it to contain!




Anchor Online TFI

Yes, GOD is still talking to many people today, just as HE did in the past.The same way GOD spoke to people in the past, as written in the HOLY BIBLE, GOD still talks with HIS people today.

But most people are using the name of GOD to spread lies, and deceive many people in the name of GOD.Thus breaking GOD'S commandment which says thou shalt not call the name of GOD in vain.

GOD IS STILL SPEAKING TO HIS PEOPLE TODAY! IF YOU HAVE NOT YET LISTEN TO THE WORDS AND THE INSTRUCTIONS OF GOD, THEN YOU ARE NOT HIS PEOPLE!

Some people say, life is too short, they wish to enjoy! Well guess what! one of the longest thing GOD created was life. Life only transfer, so life doesn't end, because there is a continuation in the KINGDOM OF JESUS CHRIST! or in dark hell full of heat and sufferings!

Obstacles block your path. Roads are barricaded. Doorways are padlocked. Do you know the frustration of a blocked door? You feel gridlocked, unable to escape.

In Max Lucado’s book, 3:16: The Numbers of Hope, he talks about the challenge of a blocked door. Lucado writes, “It’s not that our plans are bad but that God’s plans are better.”

God uses closed doors to advance his cause.

There is a familiar saying, “If you want to hear God laugh, then show him your plans.” It’s not that God doesn’t want you to try or dream big. He gives you the desires of your heart, but His plans are bigger than we can ever imagine.

People look to fortune tellers and psychics to get answers. They want to know their future and what to expect. God wants you to trust Him. You don’t need a crystal ball for that.

Possibly that traffic jam saved you from a horrible accident. Perhaps that job didn’t call you back because it’s really not the right place for you. Maybe if you wait a little longer, a better job opportunity is coming, and it is the right one.

When we struggle in life, our faith is tested. Learning to trust God is a lifelong journey. There will be days your faith will be challenged. When doors will be locked and you have to wait it out.

Psalm 37:3–4 says, “Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

God knows today, tomorrow, and all things that intertwine. We cannot see everything He sees and we cannot know everything He knows.

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”6

It’s not that our plans are bad, but that God’s plans are better. God knows what you need. He knows your heart and He knows what’s best. Just hold on; it will get better.—From FaithDream’s Inspiration blog7

6 Isaiah 55:8–9 NLT.
7 faith-dream-com/2012/03/01/god-knows-your-plans-and-your-needs-he-knows-your-heart.
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GOD IS FOR THEOCRACY! RULE BY GOD AND HIS PEOPLE, A DICTATORSHIP OF THE LORD!

The Lord has never been in favor of majority rule, because the majority are always wrong! As Jesus Himself taught: "Straight is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth to Salvation, but few there be that enter therein. Wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth unto destruction, and many there be which go in thereat!" (Mat.7:13,14).

He always wants the righteous to rule, but the righteous, the followers of God are in a very small minority in the world at all times. Only a few find the narrow way, the straight gate, the right way, Salvation, Jesus, God's Love! Many go through the wide gate down that broad way to destruction! Few are right, many are wrong!

The best governments God ever had were Godly kings and Godly prophets who governed the people by the Word of God. His whole governmental structure has always been an absolute totalitarian dictatorship from the family unit on up, and every time the world has gotten away from that they've gotten into trouble!

Help us, Lord, to be amongst the few who follow You along Your straight and narrow pathway!





Anchor TFI [Video enclosed-Synthetic People]

And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Matthew 6:29 KJV

By Peter Amsterdam Feb 23, 2015

I’ve been meditating recently on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. A disciple is defined as a follower of the teachings of another; someone who accepts those teachings and tries to act according to them, and who assists in spreading them. So a disciple of Jesus is a person who accepts and follows His teachings, meaning that person is an active adherent, applying the teachings to his life; and he assists in some manner in the spreading of the good news of salvation—the message of Jesus.

Believers accept Jesus’ teachings as true; they believe in Him, believe that He is their Savior, and they are saved. Jesus made it clear that belief in Him is sufficient for salvation when He said in John 3:16 that “whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It’s a wonderful thing to be a believer! It brings with it everlasting life, eternity with God.

Walking the path of discipleship means that someone makes the choice to add action to belief. It’s going beyond the acceptance of the teachings and involves choosing to follow the teachings, to apply them in daily living. That path leads to becoming active in spreading the teachings. The word disciple comes from the Greek word mathetes (pronounced ma-tay-teis), meaning a learner. In the New Testament the word disciple is only used in the Gospels and the book of Acts. It’s a word that shows the contrast between the teacher and the learner. It also implies that the learner is an adherent of the teachings of the teacher, that he accepts the teachings not only in belief but in life, by applying and following them.

Disciples are key to the spreading of Christianity, to fulfilling the commission Jesus gave to His first disciples, those originally tasked with bringing the good news to the world of their day. As disciples today, we are tasked with bringing the gospel to the world of our time.

Each instance of one person introducing Jesus into the life of another, who in turn reaches someone else, is a microcosm of the history of Christianity. Christianity continues because disciples assist in spreading the teachings of Jesus. The spiritual lineage or genealogy is carried on from person to person, generation to generation, because of those who believe, follow, and spread the teaching.

Every Christian is a distant spiritual relative of the first Christians, of those who knew Jesus, who were the first to preach the good news. They preached the gospel, they taught others, they grounded them in the faith, and then the process was repeated over and over again, century after century. Christianity exists today because those throughout history have done what Jesus taught the first disciples to do—to preach the gospel and make disciples. So the presence of disciples in the world is vital to Christianity’s continuation. Faithful witnesses can never fully know the fruit they may bear years, even generations, into the future.

A disciple is someone, famous or not, flamboyant or not, known or unknown, who believes the teachings of Jesus and strives to put them into practice in his or her life, which includes spreading and teaching the gospel in some manner. Disciples are incredibly important, as it’s through them that other people are introduced to Jesus and salvation. It’s through them that Christianity grows, that the gospel is preached in all the earth.
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The safest place in the world for you is in the center of God's Will. No matter where you are, or how you are, or what you are, or what's against you, the Lord will keep you if you are in the center of His Will. It's a charmed circle where you live a charmed life. "The Name of the Lord is a strong tower: The righteous runneth into it, and is safe" (Pro.18:10).



Anchor TFI

I just read that and even when I think is true I cant deny sometimes it seems so difficult to keep in faith. When life seems so difficult its so hard to continue. We can only hope it wouldnt be like that forever.
Blessings to all.

The path of discipleship

When Jesus says to forsake all that you have,1 or as it says in other English translations, “any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple” (ESV); or “any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple” (NIV); or “none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions” (NAU), He’s speaking of priorities.

Jesus isn’t recorded as asking everyone who wanted to follow Him to physically leave all of their worldly possessions. Joseph of Arimathea was both rich and a disciple. From his being called a disciple, one can conclude that he placed the right priority on his material goods in relation to God. It was this Joseph who supplied Jesus’ tomb, and who also used his position and influence to ask Pilate to release the body to him for burial.

On the other hand, the call He gave the rich young ruler was different:

“One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”2

Why? Because often when a person has wealth, it’s harder to prioritize it in relation to God, especially if He does ask you to give it up completely, or to share your wealth with others. The rich young ruler couldn’t let his wealth go and he was saddened by that realization. His possessions were his priority.

When Jesus says “Follow Me,” He’s speaking to you personally. The path He calls you to follow is your path of discipleship. It’s an individual path, and each follower of Jesus has a distinct path. With the rich young ruler, the path Jesus asked him to take was to sell all that He had. Someone else’s path would be to keep the material possessions and follow God’s lead in a different manner. The principle is that the disciple belongs to God, his first allegiance is to God, and he loves God enough to do what God asks of him.

A principle of discipleship is loving God in a manner that makes you willing to follow what He shows you, no matter how steep the cost. The cost may be different with different individuals. So when Jesus said, “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple,”3 He’s talking about your own cross, your individual cross that you must carry. The call He gives you is yours, and your willingness to carry it is reflected in your readiness to give your first allegiance to God and His call for you. When He says to you, “Follow Me,” He’s asking you to put yourself into His hands, to make Him your first priority, to give up ownership of yourself, to put yourself in the rightful place in relation to God, the sovereign of all. Jesus stated the proper priority when He said:

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.4

Understanding the principle of loving God, keeping His word, and the positional relationship that God deserves in relation to the loves of this life, and the possessions we have, provides a guiding principle which can help you in the life decisions you are regularly faced with. The basic principle being that God—our Creator, our Savior, and the Spirit that dwells within us—asks for and deserves our love and the proper allegiance and place in our lives. This is the starting place of discipleship. It’s in loving Him that we take the first step of discipleship.—Peter Amsterdam

1 Luke 14:33 KJV.
2 Luke 18:22–24.
3 Luke 14:27.
4 Mark 12:30.



Anchor TFI Online [Video Posted - The Messiah Revealed!]

Written by Marie Story January 2015

As the children of Israel were preparing to cross the Jordan River, Joshua sent the ark of the covenant ahead. He instructed the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before.”1

“Never been this way before”—I often feel that way! I run into a situation or a dilemma that’s all new to me, and I have no idea how to tackle it. Should I go or stay? Should I take this offer or turn it down?

Some decisions are easy to make. Sometimes the path ahead seems pretty straightforward, even if you’ve never taken it before. Other times, it can feel like there are potential dangers and pitfalls all around. Looking ahead can be exciting, but it can also be a little frightening because of the many unknowns.

As I write this, I’m facing a dilemma. I’ve been offered a job that seems pretty appealing. It’s work that I’d enjoy and the pay is good. But it would mean a major move to another city—when it feels like we’ve only just gotten settled where we are. It would mean putting other goals on hold and moving away from relatives and new friends. It’s exciting, in a way, but it’s also challenging, because I don’t know how things are going to turn out.

The children of Israel didn’t know how things were going to play out for them either. They knew there was a promised land ahead, but there was also the River Jordan blocking their way.

The Israelites hadn’t traveled that way before. That’s why they had to follow the ark, which represented God’s presence and His promises. By following the ark—by following God—they could walk confidently, knowing that they were headed in the right direction.

Sometimes, the way God leads doesn’t seem to make sense. Sometimes it can look downright crazy, like when He instructed Joshua to tell the priests who carried the ark of the covenant to “take a few steps into the river and stop there.”2

I imagine some of the people were more than a little anxious as they approached the flooded riverbanks. But we’re told that “as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away.”3 The priests stood in the middle of the dry riverbed while all the Israelites walked safely across.

I think this story offers a pretty awesome formula for making decisions. When you’re facing tough choices, when you “haven’t been this way before” and you’re dealing with brand-new challenges or seeming impossibilities, keep your eyes on Jesus. Only God knows what’s ahead, so it’s a good idea to follow His lead.

God cares about your problems and concerns and dilemmas just as much as He cared about His people stuck at the banks of the Jordan River. The Bible promises, “The Lord is kind, and as soon as he hears your cries for help, he will come … and he will guide you. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, you will hear a voice saying, ‘This is the road! Now follow it.’”4

God’s Word contains solid promises that you can stand on and claim in prayer whenever you’re desperate for His answers and direction in your life. Then as you keep your eyes on Jesus and follow His lead, you’ll be able to march confidently into the future God has in store for you.

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Some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity.—Gilda Radner (1946–1989)

1. Joshua 3:3–4 NIV
2. Joshua 3:8 NLT
3. Joshua 3:15–16 NIV
4. Isaiah 30:19–21 CEV


Activated TFI [Video Posted - WINGS OF A DOVE - Dolly Parton]

Some form of psychological security is vital to enable a person to cope with the uncertainties of life. Different persons may find their security in different things. Many find their security in some form of religious belief. The actual content of the religious belief is secondary. This content may vary among different religions, e.g.. Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, etc., but the act of belief is essential to all of them.
The psychological security of religious belief comes from the act, itself, of believing and not from the particular content of the belief.

No followers of a particular religion can ever present objective proof that they alone are right, based on the content of their religious teaching and belief, and all the others are wrong, despite what their religion may teach, and what they may want to believe. Followers of another religion, with a different belief content, can experience a similar psychological security from following their religion, based on their act of believing, and not on the content of the belief.

In this regard, all religions, whether Christianity, Islam, Hinduism or otherwise, are equal and should be respected as such.

Religious belief is based on faith. Faith itself goes beyond human sense experience. As the Christian bible says in Hebrews 11:1, “...faith is the evidence of things not seen”(in the present). It is also based on expectation as a projection into the future. The same verse also states, “(faith) is the substance of things hoped for...”. There is no way one can establish, here in the present, that what one hopes for, through faith, will actually be realized, despite the intensity of one's belief or faith.
This is illustrated quite effectively in the Lord's Prayer. One prays to God, asking for various things but part of the prayer also states: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. The message here is that whatever you have faith and pray for, regardless of the intensity of your faith, it would only be granted if it is God's will.

All religions, whether Christianity, Islam, Hinduism or otherwise, are equal and should be respected as such.