Mindset For Success

Christ did not elect himself to the honor of being High Priest; no, he was chosen by God. God said to him, "My Son, today I have honored you." And another time, God said to him, "You have been chosen to be a priest forever, with the same rank as Melchizedek." Yet while Christ was here on earth, he pleaded with God, praying with tears and agony of soul to the only one who would save him from premature death. And God heard his prayers because of his strong desire to obey God at all times. And even though Jesus was God's Son, he had to learn from experience what it was like to obey when obeying meant suffering. It was after he had proved himself perfect in this experience that Jesus became the Giver of eternal salvation to all those who obey him. - Hebrews 5:5-9 (TLB) The following is an excerpt from Experiencing the Presence of God by AW Tozer. Christ has given eternal salvation to those who believe in Him and obey Him. Trust is on one side of the coin, and obey

Long ago, God spoke in many different ways to our fathers through the prophets, in visions, dreams, and even face to face, telling them little by little about his plans. But now, in these days, he has spoken to us through his Son to whom he has given everything and through whom he made the world and everything there is. God's Son shines out with God's glory, and all that God's Son is and does marks him as God. He regulates the universe by the mighty power of his command. He is the One who died to cleanse us and clear our record of all sin and then sat down in highest honor beside the great God of heaven. Thus he became far greater than the angels, as proved by the fact that his name "Son of God," which was passed on to him from his Father, is far greater than the names and titles of the angels. - Hebrews 1:1-4 (Living Bible) Is it possible that your great need is not for more understanding of the problems of life but rather for richer and more powerful wisdom abou

But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. - Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) The following excerpts are from the book Finding God by Dr. Larry Crabb. We can approach life in two ways: either live with confidence in an orderly world and try to manage things ourselves, or face life's tragedy and chaos and develop confidence in someone bigger than the chaos, someone whose goodness overwhelms tragedy, someone who cares about us. Trust in an orderly world dies hard. We are terrified of being vulnerable. So we demand control over those things that matter most: our children, our important relationships, our health, our bank accounts. We angrily refuse to believe that life is more chaotic than predictable; we don't want to believe that the only way to survive with joy is to trust someone stronger than ourselves. Responsible living, we assume, obligates God to keep blessing us. When

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. - Proverbs 3:5-8 The following excerpt is from the book Finding God by Dr. Larry Crabb. I encourage you to read through the text three times, pausing each time to write down a word, thought, or phrase that resonated with you while reading. Instead of feeling horrified at my impudence toward God, I sometimes feel smug, wondering how God might choose to defend himself against my well-supported charges that challenge his claim to goodness. I'm not the first to feel this way. After Job endured more suffering than I'll ever know, he said: If only I knew where to find him... I would state my case before Him and fill my mouth with arguments. I would find out what he would answer me, And consider what

In the beginning [before all time] was the Word ( Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God. All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him not even one thing was made that has come into being. - John 1:1-3 (Amplified Bible) When you pray to accept Jesus as your personal Savior, the Holy Spirit immediately establishes residence in you. His presence initiates a personal relationship with your Creator, the God of the Universe. That personal relationship, as with any relationship, will only thrive and grow as you purposefully invest time and energy into the relationship to better understand who He is and what He desires for your life. In that process, you become more acutely conscious of His presence in your life every day. Conversely,  if that relationship is not developed, His presence becomes a "ticket to Heaven" that is put on a shelf for use at a later t