Guidelines For Living Devotional

5 Ways To Beat Procrastination

When you wait because you are uncertain as to whether or not you should do something, that's wisdom; but when you are certain of what you should do and don't do it, that is procrastination.

Why Waiting Isn’t Always Procrastinating

Procrastination is defined as putting off or delaying doing something until a later time.  Always a bad idea, right?  Well, not necessarily!  There are times when not dealing with a situation is a good choice.  But is that really procrastination, or is it simply the decision not to decide?

Why Atheism Is A Barren Choice For Suffering People

A friend purchased a book which, based on German liberalism of the past century, attacks the integrity of the Bible.  "Would you be interested in reading it?" he asked, adding, "It shows both sides of the issue."  "If I read it," I explained, "I would do so only to refute the logic because there are not two sides when it comes to truth."  Truth is truth, no matter how it is assailed, and its opposite will always be false.  When the premise is wrong, the conclusion has to be wrong as well.

The Nagging Questions Atheism Doesn’t Answer

Anselm was born in Italy in 1033.  At the age of 23, he had a quarrel with his father, left home and began wandering through France.  He ended up at the Benedictine abbey of Bec, which he entered and stayed in until he became abbot in 1078.  Anselm is remembered for deducing that there are valid reasons for believing in God, all of which have evolved around the premise that God is the only explanation for man's moral nature, the fact that design demands a designer in our world, and the cause and effect relationship of nature necessitates a master architect and builder who, in the words of Scripture, is God.

3 Guidelines To Connecting With God When You Pray

One of the great but seldom used sources of power for God's children is that of prayer.  It isn't that we don't believe in prayer or applaud those who do pray; it's that we seldom are convinced that it will work for us.  When we are in grave danger, we pray, thinking, "What have I got to lose?"  Like putting a coin in a slot machine, which might bring a big windfall, prayer, you think, might give you God's jackpot.

Do I Really Need To Memorize The Bible?

Did you ever hear the story of the U.S.S. Pueblo?  In 1968, when the American ship was sailing in international waters off North Korea, she was illegally captured by the North Koreans and the captain and crew arrested and imprisoned.  As the days began to drag by, the 83 men began to think of their wives and children; and as imprisoned people often do, they began to think of God as well.

How Hard Do I Need To Work, Anyway?

For 30 years a certain foreman worked for an employer who treated him honestly and fairly but never paid the man what he wanted.  The foreman griped and complained, "He always wants my best work, and he's never satisfied."  One day the owner of the company called in the foreman and said, "I'm going to retire next year, and I want you to build one more house for me.  Give it your best effort!  Use the finest materials and craftsmen, and when it's done, I'm retiring and going out of business." 

The Invitation You Don’t Want To Miss

Have you ever thrown a party and no one came?  Or maybe you planned a special celebration but the friends you wanted to celebrate with began sending their regrets saying, "Sorry, but I can't come...."  It happens.

3 Characteristics Of A Life Used By God

Webster defines the word anomaly as "a deviating from a general rule, method, or analogy; abnormal."  Yet I can't think of a better word to describe why God chose to use some individuals who have neither education, good family connections, nor are particularly intelligent; while the gifted, educated individuals with good background and connections get set aside in the economy of God.

Why We Need To Talk About Sexual Sin

In the Bible you will find an amazing array of …well, everything!  The good, the bad, the downright ugly.  The Bible portrays its heroes as truly human.  Perhaps you’ve seen one of those lists called “Messed Up Bible heroes” such as Abraham, the forefather of faith, who let other men walk off with his wife on two different occasions.  Or Abraham’s wife, Sarah, who let her husband sleep with another woman and later hated her for it.  Then there is David, called a “man after God’s own heart,” who concealed his adultery with a murder.