Guidelines For Living Devotional

You Can Beat The December Blues

It's December--the twelfth month of the Gregorian calendar.  If you live in the northern hemisphere, Jupiter and Saturn are visible at dusk in the eastern sky, and in the southwest sky a brilliant Venus soars from excellent to magnificent.  On the 22nd of this month, the axis of the North Pole points farthest away from the sun, making sunrise appear to be in the south.  It's called winter solstice.

Are You Sitting In Spiritual Darkness?

When the voltage drops, it is called a brownout, but when the power goes off it's a blackout.  While brownouts can do more damage to equipment than blackouts, it the latter which we really fear--sitting at home in the dark.  In business or industry, however, it means your productivity has gone to zero.  When the power goes off, you light a candle and get hot under the collar, both of which never really seem to eliminate the situation.

Here’s How To Spiritually Encourage Yourself

It's an official word.  You'll find the term brownout in your dictionary, but chances are you already know what one is.  You've been on the receiving end of the bad news.

Ingratitude Is A Sin!

The headmaster of New College in Edinburgh, Scotland used to ask the blessing at the noon meal by praying, "O Thou who has endowed us with so many gifts, now grant to us just one more--a grateful heart."  If there is one universal human failure, it is our habit of assuming credit for things which can properly be ascribed only to the great goodness of God.

Are You Living Your Thanksgiving?

In the event you take time to check the definition of the word "thanksgiving" in your dictionary, you will find the following:  Part of speech:  A noun.  Derivation:  From the Anglo‑Saxon word thanc, Meaning: 1.The act of rendering thanks, especially to God.  2. A prayer expressing gratitude.  3. A public acknowledgment or celebration of divine goodness or mercies, a day set apart for making this possible.

Here Is The Thing About Jesus

When he was asked who was the most influential person in his life, George Bush, who followed in his father's footsteps as President of the United States, quickly responded, "Jesus Christ!"  No, the answer wasn't designed to win friends and votes, because that answer also alienated him from some people who are avowed enemies of Jesus Christ.  Bush, who at one time drank too much and had too few goals for his life, was introduced to the claims of Jesus Christ through personal contact with Billy Graham.

Who Do You Say That Jesus Is?

A Japanese businessman was invited by his American host to attend church with him, and he quickly agreed.  At the end of the message, which was delivered by the Methodist clergyman Ralph Sockman, his host asked him what he thought of the message.  In his discreet, polite manner the Japanese friend commented, "To hear him tell it, Jesus was an American, a Methodist, and an Arminian," quickly adding, "But we know that is not true because Jesus was really a Japanese, a Baptist, and a Calvinist."

Find Out How To Face Discouragement

Of the thirteen letters that came from the pen of the theologian of the New Testament, Paul, formerly known as Saul of Tarsus, none is more personal and intimate than the letter in our Bibles known as 2 Corinthians.

Discover The One True Lighthouse

The Naval Institute's magazine carried the story of a battleship captain who was concerned about rough seas and fog when, quite suddenly, a bright light appeared on the horizon.  The captain immediately had the signalman send the message, "Change course immediately!"  But back came the reply, "It is you who must change course!"  Irritated that a battleship should give way to a lesser vessel, the captain ordered that the message be sent, "I am a battleship!"  And back came the reply, "I am the lighthouse!"  The captain changed course.

4 Reasons We Are Hesitant To Commit To Marriage

Watching the bears at the zoo is a favorite pastime in Bern, Switzerland.  John Phillips tells how that at one time there were two pits of brown bears with a male and female in each den.  He writes, "As I watched from above one day, the male below me climbed the tree to a point where he could look down over the wall into the other's pit.  Gazing with longing at the female on the other side, he curled his lips and uttered low plaintive sobs.  Meanwhile, the other male had climbed his tree to gaze mournfully across the wall at the first bear's mate."