Pastor Steve shares these links to stimulate some Thursday Thoughts…
Pray Them Home … Sarah Walton at Desiring God writes of her own years of rebellion before God’s grace brought her home. The lessons she learned take shape in three prayers that parents should pray for their prodigals. She writes: “Parents, if you are raising a seemingly hard-hearted, rebellious son or daughter (whether outwardly or inwardly), I challenge you to take up your arms, fight the spiritual battle that rages over them with all of your God-given strength, and refuse to give up on their life. I encourage you to pray these three prayers over lost children.” You can read the rest HERE.
The Not So Simple Life … Jessica Pickowicz at Beautiful Thing, Biblical Strength for Women, writes a challenging article dealing with simplicity. It is directed at women but there is wisdom here aplenty for all. She writes: “But my question is, Are we, just maybe, seeking after something that can never really be obtained this side of Paradise? Maybe seeking simple is really just another way we are all chasing after the wind. Even simplification is a vain pursuit when it takes up so much room in our minds and our hearts. You see, ladies, frankly I think we’ve been duped. We’ve been hoodwinked! Had! Tricked and deceived! While every voice around us is snapping a snarky “simplify,” God himself is crying, “Glorify!” We have been suckered into striving after the simple life because it is deemed to be the happy life.” You can read the rest HERE.
True Zeal or False Zeal … Complacency is a genuine threat to Christians, but its opposite, zeal, carries its own dangers. Tim Challies writes: “Whatever happened to zeal? Whatever happened to Christians who are on fire to know and obey God, who have (in the words of John Reynolds) “an earnest desire and concern for all things pertaining to the glory of God and the kingdom of the Lord Jesus among men?” Yet while zeal is a noble trait, it must be properly directed, for not all zeal is good. Here are some pointers on distinguishing true from false zeal.” You can read the rest HERE.
