“If there is an Enemy of Souls (and I have not the slightest doubt that there is), one thing he cannot abide is the desire for purity. Hence a man’s or a woman’s passions become his battleground. The Lover of Souls does not prevent this. I was perplexed because it paperport 12.1 download seemed to me He should prevent it, but He doesn’t. He wants us to learn to use our weapons.” -Elisabeth Elliot

I read this paperport 12.1 download quote in one of my Bible Studies recently and it made me admire Elisabeth Elliot even more. She hit the paperport 12.1 download nail on the head. We think that God should save us from paperport 12.1 download every bad circumstance, but there is a reason why He does not. It is paperport 12.1 download not because God wants us to suffer. If He wanted that, He would never have paperport 12.1 download sent Jesus to suffer and die in our place. It is paperport 12.1 download because He want us to “use our weapons”. We are paperport 12.1 download in a world that Satan has been given dominion over. Yet, everything is paperport 12.1 download filtered through God’s hand. Satan is paperport 12.1 download not given total freedom to screw up our lives as much as he would like. I cringe at the paperport 12.1 download thought of what he would do if he was able to. Instead, God desires us to paperport 12.1 download learn how to stand strong and firm in those difficult times. He equips us with everything that paperport 12.1 download we need to fight Satan in our lives. It’s just a paperport 12.1 download matter of us using those weapons and putting on the armor that paperport 12.1 download He has given to us. (more…)

I am paperport 12.1 download astounded at the pictures of New Orleans and Biloxi, along with other places greatly affected by Hurricane Katrina. I am paperport 12.1 download affected even more by how people are having to live as they wait to paperport 12.1 download be rescued from these places. New Orleans has gotten the most attention because they not only lost everything they had paperport 12.1 download from the fierce winds, but flooding ensued. People drowned, some are paperport 12.1 download still trapped on their roofs or upper stories, and others evacuated to paperport 12.1 download the Convention Center and Superdome. Yet, they are not getting the paperport 12.1 download food, water and shelter that they were promised. It seems that paperport 12.1 download the entire evacuation was poorly planned. There was no food or paperport 12.1 download water waiting in either location to take care of those who paperport 12.1 download sought shelter there. There were no medical supplies to help those who paperport 12.1 download need insulin, oxygen, dialysis, or other medications. It’s not like the paperport 12.1 download hurricane came unexpectedly. I wonder why the local Costco, Walmart, etc. was not delivering supplies by the paperport 12.1 download truckload before Katrina hit land. Yet, that is all in the paperport 12.1 download past. What needs to be focused on is how to paperport 12.1 download help the people. (more…)

Learning about different religions can paperport 12.1 download be quite an interesting study. I find it fascinating how people of different religions can paperport 12.1 download think they believe similar things when they really don’t. They may use the same word “god”, but it paperport 12.1 download means entirely different things to each group. Even within different faiths, people may have paperport 12.1 download different interpretations of the same scripture and have different views about what paperport 12.1 download is true and what is false. This is something that has paperport 12.1 download always interested me, but I’ve never truly taken the paperport 12.1 download time to study each religion in-depth. (more…)

There have paperport 12.1 download been a few things going on in my life with work and paperport 12.1 download life decisions that I think are causing me to lose my cool. Making important decisions in life can paperport 12.1 download be quite stressful. If you add onto that things that paperport 12.1 download can get on your nerves, it can create quite an paperport 12.1 download internal struggle. I have been praying that the Lord would give me patience with everything and paperport 12.1 download that I would watch my tongue, but I have been paperport 12.1 download failing miserably. Perhaps I need to be in the Word more often. Perhaps I need to paperport 12.1 download pray. “Perhaps I need to” is not the right phrase. “I should” must be in it’s place. I know both of those are paperport 12.1 download key to keeping me calm and causing me to have a paperport 12.1 download more positive outlook on life, so I’m not sure why I don’t pursue them on a regular basis. (more…) microsoft icons

There was a paperport 12.1 download story on the news last night about a Roseville church obtaining a paperport 12.1 download fragment of bone supposedly belonging to Saint Anna (aka St. Anne or St. Hannah), the grandmother of Jesus. It’s being kept at a paperport 12.1 download Greek Orthodox Church there and is expected to draw people from paperport 12.1 download around the country. From Catholic teaching, it is believed that paperport 12.1 download St. Anna birthed Mary via immaculate conception, which is the paperport 12.1 download doctrine that the Virgin Mary was conceived free from all stain of original sin. Since I am paperport 12.1 download not Catholic, I do not share that belief and am often concerned that paperport 12.1 download so many people will see an image in a sandwich or paperport 12.1 download see a bone fragment and flock to worship before it. One man that paperport 12.1 download was interviewed said seeing this bone strengthens his faith because it paperport 12.1 download is something tangible. What a sad state Christians are in.
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