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I hope these quotes from Elizabeth Prentiss, (1818 – 1878), challenge, bless and encourage you, as they do for me.   The longer I live, the more conscious I am of my human frailty—and of the constant, overwhelming need I have of God's grace. Dying grace is not usually given until it is needed. Death, to the disciple of Jesus, is only stepping from one room to another and far better room of our Father's house. And how little all the sorrows of the way will seem to us, when we get to our home above. You never will be really happy—until Christ becomes your dearest and most intimate friend. Seek God—not joy. God delights to try our faith by the conditions in which He places us. What are trials, but angels to beckon us nearer to Him. What does it matter, after all, from what point of time or space, that we go to our eternal home. O how we shall smile after we get there—that we ever gave it one moment's thought. In proportion to your devotion to the Savior—will be the blessedness...

  The world's politics, pleasures, and pursuits! The world and the Church are essentially and eternally  distinct  — and they ought to be  distinguishable . The Church ought not to  mix  with the world — but to bear a practical testimony against it, that its  works  and  ways  are evil. All through our Lord's prayer, He keeps up the distinction, and twice over He asserts of His disciples,  "They are not of the world — even as I am not of the world!" Believers are not of the world. They are born from above, and possess a  nature  far superior to that of the world — which  unfits  them for its pleasures and pursuits, and  qualifies  them for the enjoyments and employments of the Heavenly world. They are delivered from the  thraldom  of the world — and are raised above its pursuits and its joys. They will not be  conquered  by the world — but overcome it by faith. They will not be ...

I searched some sites and found all these quotes from Alan Redpath. I know very little about him but nearly all of these greatly encouraged me in some way.  I hope you are also blessed, challenged and encouraged.  (This first one is abridged to make it more personal.)  "God expects nothing from (insert your name here) but failure. We are no different today from the day before we were converted. We would be capable of committing any sin imaginable but for the grace of God. We are no different as people from what we were as youngsters. And the sins that beset us then beset us now, were it not for a constant, continual dependence upon the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God, and the power of the Holy Ghost to keep us.  As long as I seek by His grace to maintain the attitude of committal and surrender to Him, then every demand, however unexpected or grim, hard, tough; every decision, however difficult; every temptation, every fierce dart of the Enemy of my soul is an at...

 Someone recently shared an account of how the Lord showed His faithfulness to one American Missionary to Indonesia who was imprisoned during World War Two. Here’s the blurb from the book “Evidence Not Seen”: “As a new bride, Darlene Deibler followed her veteran missionary husband to the jungles of New Guinea, where the two worked to spread the word of the gospel to tribes who had never before seen a white woman. When World War II erupted, Darlene and her husband, Russell, were forced to go to separate internment camps where both endured countless horrors and degradations. Never to see her husband again, Darlene’s faith never wavered despite test after test. “ (While she was in solitary confinement, Darlene found a small window overlooking the courtyard where other women were permitted to take air and exercise.) This is how events unfolded as told by Darlene herself: “The actions of one woman in particular fascinated me. Every time the sentry on duty turned his back to her and marc...

Years ago, I heard the Bible Alphabet song. I'm using some of those verses for this project, but some different ones too. I will be aiming to post one verse every few days going through the Alphabet. The X and Z verses are definitely stretching it, but it had to be done. :) I was challenged to learn this one at JAM club quite a lot of years ago! If you're up for a bit of a challenge too, you can memorise these with me. Ok? Or perhaps you already know all of the ones I'll share. In that case, find another starting with that letter and memorise that one instead. :)

“Come, warm your hearts, all intellectual capacities, at this fire; O come, all ye created faculties, and smell the precious ointments of Christ; O come, sit down under this shadow, taste and eat the apples of life. O that angels would come, and generations of men, and wonder, admire, adore, fall down before the unsearchable wisdom of this gospel art of the unsearchable riches of Christ!”  “I pray God that I may never find my will again. Oh, that Christ would subject my will to His, and trample it under His feet.” “Our fair morning is at hand, the day-star is near the rising, and we are not many miles from home; what matters the ill entertainment in the smoky inns of this miserable life? We are not to stay here, and we will be dearly welcome to him whom we go to.” “We may sing beforehand, even in our winter storm, in the expectation of a summer sun at the turn of the year; no created powers can mar our Lord Jesus' music, nor spill our song of joy. Let us then be glad a...

"Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. 1 Peter 1:8 The people of God ought to be the happiest people in all the wide world! People should be coming to us constantly and asking the source of our joy and delight -- redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, our yesterdays behind us, our sin under the blood forever and a day, to be remembered against us no more forever. God is our Father, Christ is our Brother, the Holy Spirit our Advocate and Comforter. Our Brother has gone to the Father's house to prepare a place for us, leaving us with the promise that He will come again!" Quite a challenge. Hopefully you find it encouraging too.

Yes, it is time for another little quote by Susan Warner from her book, "Nobody". A girl and her grandmother are discussing being separate from the world and I love the response here. "How can one be separate always, Grandma, in the midst of other people?" "Take care that you keep nearest God. Walk with Him; and you'll be pretty sure to be separate from the most o' folks." It's very simple, direct and to the point, and exactly what we need to do. How do we take care to keep nearest God? Spending time in prayer and reading the Bible would seem to be the obvious ones.

I attended a funeral today where the minister made a statement similar to the above, and it's been on my mind ever since. The world tells us everything matters; polar bears, global warming, pollution etc.,  But this is a refreshing challenge to have our priorities right.  It really is the most important decision you'll ever have to make. 

Attributed to Amy Carmichael (but I came across a couple of variations, so I don't know which one is most authentic.)

Written in the 20th century, but for today....??? Aiden Wilson Tozer 1897 - 1963 "This frightening hour calls aloud for men with the gift of prophetic insight. Instead we have men who conduct surveys, polls and panel discussions. We need men with the gift of knowledge. In their place we have men with scholarship---nothing more. If the church in the second half of this century is to recover from the injuries she suffered in the first half, there must appear a new type of preacher. The proper, ruler-of-the-synagogue type will never do. Neither will the priestly type of man who carries out his duties, takes his pay and asks no questions, nor the smooth-talking pastoral type who knows how to make the Christian religion acceptable to everyone. All these have been tried and found wanting. Another kind of religious leader must arise among us. He must be of the old prophet type, a man who has seen visions of God and has heard a voice from the Throne. When he comes (and I pray Go...

Last week, I was challenged by these words, spoken by a local preacher. I think they're a good reminder. Have I fully surrendered to Jesus? Has He cleansed and filled me so He can use me? Am I truly satisfied with Him? and is He satisfied with me?

The other day I was introduced to this challenging and encouraging hymn which was written by Horatio Richmond Palmer in 1868. Mr. Palmer said, ”This song was an inspiration. I was at work on the dry subject of ' Theory' when the complete idea flashed upon me, and I laid aside the theoretical work and hurriedly penned both words and music as fast as I could write them. I submitted them to the criticism of a friend afterward, and some changes were made in the third stanza, but the first two are exactly as they came to me. The music was first written in A flat; but I soon saw that B flat was better, and for many years it has appeared in that key. I am reverently thankful it has been a power for good." A friend contributes this incident: ”Twenty years ago, when the State prison at Sing Sing, New York, had women as well as men within its walls, a lady used to visit the women's department. Every Sunday afternoon the inmates were permitted to come out and sit ...

Last month, I attended this conference; I found it encouraging and challenging.

June 10 Power of the Tongue The tongue's power of  blessing  is simply incalculable. It can impart valuable knowledge, making others wiser. It can utter kindly words, which will comfort sorrow or cheer despondency. It can breathe thoughts which will arouse, inspire, and quicken heedless souls, and even call up dead souls to life. It can sing songs which will live forever in blessed influence and ministry. Such power we should consecrate to God, and hold ever pure for him. The lips which speak God's name in prayer and Christian song, and that utter vows of fidelity to Christ, should never defile themselves with any forms of corrupt speech. They should be kept only for Christ. (found here: http://gracegems.org/Miller/in_green_pastures2.htm) Quite a challenge isn't it! (Especially when you take it a step further like Jesus does when He judges the thoughts and intentions of our hearts, not just our words!!!)

Epicenter 2013 - Pastor Joe Focht | Epicenter Conference This is an amazingly challenging message!!!!!

Here is a poem I heard years ago, and then I read it again the other day. It's a challenging one. Make Me Thy Fuel From prayer that asks that I may be Sheltered from winds that beat on Thee, From fearing when I should aspire, From faltering when I should climb higher, From silken self, O Captain, free Thy soldier who would follow Thee. From subtle love of softening things, From easy choices, weakenings, (Not thus are spirits fortified, Not this way went the crucified) From all that dims Thy Calvary, O Lamb of God, deliver me. Give me the love that leads the way, The faith that nothing can dismay, The hope no disappointments tire, The passion that will burn like fire; Let me not sink to be a clod: Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.         by Amy Carmichael

Here's another challenging clip. I'd be interested to know your thoughts on this topic! I'm looking forward to watching the movie soon! (It is released on 26th!)

"Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world." Philippians 2:14+15 So as well as thinking of ways to encourage each other, lets try stopping ourselves complaining! (Well, that's a challenge to me even if it isn't to anyone else!) "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death, if by any mean...