A Squeal Of Delight!

God shows remarkable constraint. Though he is overwhelmingly in love with us, he nevertheless honors his choice to give each of us free will. God is like a loving parent with arms wide open encouraging a baby in his first faltering steps. As the child totters forward, the parent inches closer ready to help. When the child reaches the parent's outstretched arms both a squeal of delight and a joyous embrace ensue.

A Prayer begins . . .

Heavenly Father, we praise you with grateful hearts. You are so amazing. For us, performing good deeds is a natural expression of our faith in you. We find the thought of being drawn closer to you, delightful!

Smile! It is a good exercise for your soul!

When you find a book that intrigues you, you can buy it online. Right now! Each book cover graphic is always a live link to the book at an online bookseller. So is the title information next to the bookcover and there are more links at the bottom of each quotation. Clickle any one of the links.

Two selected book quotations begin . . .

God Is Not A Vending Machine

Bernard Bangley, If I'm Forgiven Why Do I Still Feel Guilty?, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1992, pp. 56, 57.    SoAmazing.com

Category: Christian Living
ISBN: 0877882819
Keywords: distorted, religion, legalistic, heart, brain, God, vending machine, Christ, critic, religiosity, religious professionals, hypocrites, Lord, New Testament, Harold Shaw Publishers, Bangley, Bernard Bangley

"Sadly, a distorted experience of 'religion' can also be a hindrance. If you have been nurtured by narrow, legalistic religious teaching, you will have an extremely difficult time believing in your heart what your brain knows is true. You may think of God as a kind of vending machine. Put a couple of quarters in and something comes out--most of the time. Put nothing in and you get nothing out. If you get a freebie, something must be broken.

Polite people say we should not criticize religion. But Christ never took that advice. In fact, Jesus was a devastating critic of the religiosity in his day. Few things annoyed him more than to see religious professionals interfering with the flow of God's love. Do you think it's wrong to be critical of religion? Jesus said, 'Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are' (Matthew 23:13-15 [NIV]).

Our Lord spoke in these sharp terms at some length. Some New Testament scholars have suggested that early Christians twisted his comments and made them stronger than when he originally spoke them. Whether or not that may be, it remains clear that Jesus has strong feelings about this. One of the things that infuriated his enemies most was his criticism of religious teaching. 'You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. . . . Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness' (Matthew 23:24, 27-28 [NIV])."

SoAmazing Review: If I'm Forgiven Why Do I Still Feel Guilty? points out that people coming from legalistic backgrounds struggle with grace. While acknowledging grace in their heads, they live without understanding it is meant to set them free.

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Have You Read God's Love Letters?

Don Cousins and Judson Poling, Leaders Guide 1, Walking With God Series, Zondervan Publishing House, 1992, p. 68. SoAmazing.com

Category: Christian Living
ISBN: 0310592038
Keywords: letter, friend, summer vacation, school, Christians, God, letters, messages, Bible, Christ, God's Word, speaking, Zondervan Publishing House, Cousins, Don Cousins, Poling, Judson Poling

"Think back to a time when you received a letter from a close friend or a special someone who was away on summer vacation or for the school year. How did you feel when you received the envelope? How long did you wait to read the letter inside?

It is puzzling, then, to consider that many Christians are interested in knowing what God is saying to them yet neglect to read the letters and messages God has prepared for them. The Bible is God's love letter to all those who trust in Christ. It makes sense, then, that we should learn all we can about God's Word, for it is his primary means of speaking to us."

SoAmazing Review: Leaders Guide 1, Walking With God Series, provides expert support for the Walking With God Series of the popular small discussion group Bible studies writen by Don Cousins and Judson Poling.

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