trust Him with the outcome of my prayers and accept whatever He chooses for me. Understanding that God knows what’s best for me frees me up to pray, just as Jesus did, “Not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).
Once I’ve accepted God’s will, I can begin to submit to His plan, recognizing that His plans for me are superior to my own: “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’” (Is. 55:8).
As I submit to His plan, I can begin to relinquish more and more control over my life and surrender to God’s sovereignty and live by faith, just as Paul encouraged us to do in his letter to the Romans: (Rom. 12:1-2).

One of my favorite verses reminds me that God cares about me and has my best interests at heart: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jer. 29:11).
Being assured of God’s love for me enables me to:
It all comes full circle: Accepting God’s will allows me to submit to His plan; submitting to His plan enables me to surrender to His sovereignty; and when I surrender completely by offering my life as a holy sacrifice, I am able to “test and approve” His perfect will for me. But this process rarely happens all at once.
Do you struggle with that too? God’s “good, pleasing and perfect will” for your life. Accepting His will, submitting to His plan and surrendering to His sovereignty, allowing you to live by faith more and more each day.

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And below the images, if I stop long enough to read them, are the comments: teenage girls oohing and aahing over the beautiful celebrity, people expressing opinions about the political post — some using hate-filled language meant to humiliate anyone who disagrees with them, others showing their disdain for the movie by calling for a boycott of the production company, and perhaps a soulful cry for help from a mom who’s discovered porn on her son’s smartphone.

How do we, as Christians, engage with the world around us in such a way that will draw people to Christ rather than alienating our neighbors, both at home and in our virtual community?

Perhaps, first, by recognizing that we in America, and in most of the Western world, live in a post-Christian society. Most people in our country do not share our Christian worldview. That means we need to take a missional approach in our words and actions. When we speak to our neighbors, our children’s friends, that person on Facebook who really ticked us off, we are often speaking cross-culturally. We need to listen first and ask questions with the purpose of seeking to understand where that person is coming from. We need to look beyond the issues and see the person.

Does that mean compromising biblical truth or not standing up for issues that are clearly in line with God’s will? No, but it does mean we need to be winsome in how we voice our opinions and respond in love to those who disagree with us. That adamant pro-choice activist who attacked your pro-life Facebook post may be wounded from an abortion she had in college. The young man who’s picketing for equal housing rights for LGBT people may have been kicked out of his home as a young teen when he came out to his parents. 

Christianity offers hope to a hurting world. So we need to share our faith in a Christ-honoring way. As Paul writes to the Corinthians, “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:5) And remember that everyone, no matter their political persuasion, criminal record, sexual orientation, habits, addictions or lifestyle, was created by God, is loved by God and bears the image of God. 

Following the command in Rom. 13:8, “Owe no debt to anyone except the continuing debt to love one another,” we need to view the issues through the lens of what debt we owe to those who identify themselves as LGBTQ+. Whatever else comes from our words and actions, we need to love everyone, no matter their “sexual orientation.” 
Here is a short list on how we might live this out.
1.  We must love them.
Remember this is our reasonable service to the LGBTQ+ community. Love does no harm to a neighbor. Love must be, as Rom. 12:9 says, “…without hypocrisy.” Our private conversations about the LGBTQ+ community must match our public, genuine love shown for them. 
2.  We must live out the “grace and truth” of Jesus.
Jesus had amazing love and sensitivity for the outcasts of society and harsh critique for the self-righteous religious leaders. Grace is “undeserved favor.” We all need it; the LGBTQ+ world is no different. Truth, surprisingly, is scarce in the rhetoric surrounding how the Church should respond. 
3.  We must be “quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry” (Jas. 1:19).
Too often, Christians respond to the LGBTQ+ with such anger that it is no wonder that some call it “hate speech.” We must listen and enter into relationships that will build trust and demonstrate that we value people, period. God so loved the world – the whole of sinful humanity of which we are part.
4.  We must follow Jesus’ way of relating to our world.
Jesus entered into the places of brokenness and pain. He cared deeply for those scarred both by the sin of humanity and the mistreatment of others. We build relationships with people in the “LGBTQ+” and “straight” community for the sake of introducing them to Jesus.
~ By: ^{_{David P. Seemuth, Ph.D.}} 

the loss of our independence. Our responsibilities take hold of our rights and lead them to places we would not choose to go.

Jesus spoke of this to Peter. When we are truly His disciples, Jesus makes our choices for us.

The thing that matters most to us is freedom – to dress ourselves as we wish, to come and go when we please, and to use our hands to shape our own destiny. Yet in once sentence, Jesus told Peter that discipleship would cost him all these freedoms. Another will dress him; cruel men will force him to walk to a dreadful, inverted cross, where his hands will be stretched out and his freedom to hold his own destiny, crucified.

Not all of us will be called to glorify God by such a death. But we are certainly called to glorify God by our lives. Commitment costs. Yet we need to remember the cost will be rewarded with a crown. When Jesus had finished talking with Peter about this matter, He said to him, “Follow me” (John 21:19). Peter gave his choices into the hands of Jesus and obeyed. Will we?

PRAYER

Lord, I want my life to glorify You.  But I say this all too often, without realizing what I am saying. Give me strength and courage to follow You to places I would not choose to go. Help me to have an unwavering commitment to You, so that I give my choices to You freely, and obey You openly. Amen.

Like most women, I need to work, keep house, take care of family, and pay bills; my spam filter helps me focus on the emails that matter, making me more efficient so that I have time for things I enjoy, like Bible study, exercise, sending greeting cards, or having coffee with a friend. Every morning, I make my to-do list because I love checking things off. It feels so satisfying to see the number of action items decrease. I confess, some days I even add extra things that I got done, just for the joy of crossing them out!

But recently, as I checked off Bible one afternoon, I stopped. I realized if I really want to follow Jesus, he can’t be a four o’clock afterthought. Maybe I was getting a lot of “good things” done. But were they the right things? Were they essential? Were they eternal? These are the questions I’m asking myself. Now, I want to use my daily Scripture reading as a spam filter for life, by running every request through a holy filter, I hope to focus on the essential.

“So, if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up and be alert to what is going on around Christ” (Col. 3:1)

_{excerpts from Elizabeth Wilder’s “My Spam Filter}“

My father worked long hours, but he took his turn at night and on the weekends, usually after he had several drinks. My younger sister and I often hid in our “safe sanctuary,” our bedroom closet, writing “runaway letters” on the wall in the dark.

Whenever conversations came up about our families, I would avoid talking about mine. I did not have happy family stories to tell like everyone else. I wanted to be normal and accepted but, deep down inside, I believed I was different. And so I began to believe the lie that I was unworthy of love ─ that I was nothing. 

From that point on, I believed there was nothing I could do to prevent my parents from beating me. I was worthless. But deep inside, I thought there was something I could do to give me worth and purpose. Little did I know then that the Lord would provide. 

In God’s mercy, He gave me mature women of faith who zealously taught me the Word of God without compromise. He led me to Inspire Women to help me see myself as the daughter of the King with a mission God wants me to finish. Through Inspire Women, I have found healing and fortitude to finish God’s mission for my life.

~ By Name Withheld

hearts are pure, but how does that happen?

In a vision, Isaiah saw the holiness of God. Such a realization of the Lord’s holiness brought about a searing awareness of his own sinfulness.

The very “holiest” of Christian people sin. It will be so until we get to heaven. The woman who is ready for God to cleanse her, however, is the woman God can use (Isa. 6:8).

The only way to keep our heart seperate for God is to constantly turn to God for forgiveness and cleansing. That keeps us “holy” in His eyes. Being holy brings a holy happiness only God can offer. We need to take Him up on it.

Suggested Reading: Isaiah 6:1-13

PRAYER

Lord, I thank You for always cleaning me up when I look to You in all Your glory and holiness. Keep me daily in Your Word and in Your presence so that I see my sinfulness and come to You for forgiveness. I want to be a woman that You can use today. Amen.

you’re dealing with still exist and will be magnified once you start sharing life with this other person.

His sarcasm will not disappear. Her impatience will not magically eradicate itself. The same thing that is true of your sin before marriage is true afterwards. Because of this, we have to intentionally fight against it and put it to death. This means work. It means long, hard, lasting work.

Just because you find a great spouse who you love and adore doesn’t mean you’ve uncovered the one ingredient to trial-free marital happiness. Why? Because a marriage involves two people. Marriage to an earthly spouse will always increase the complexity of our sin. It’s only our marriage to Christ, our heavenly eternal spouse, that cleanses us of it.

Your spouse alone doesn’t generate marital bliss. You both fight for marital bliss by taking your shortcomings and your not-so-attractive proclivities to the chopping block of God’s Word through His Spirit. There’s this myth pervading the dating culture that all we need to do to lay hold of silver screen marital happiness is find the right person.

That may be a small part, but the larger, much more vital component to joy in marriage is wrestling with your own heart to effectively weed out your selfishness and your prideful tendencies. “You can’t run from your problem, you are married now. You and your spouse must face your problems together in honesty.

to learn more about Him. The key to getting to know someone, whether a spouse or your Savior, is to spend time with them. This means setting aside time to spend alone with that special person, but it also comes from living your day-to-day lives together—working side by side, sharing meals, doing chores together, and laying your heads on your pillows next to each other at night. The same can be said, I would suggest, of our relationship with God.

This ability doesn’t come naturally, though, which is where the “practice” comes in.

We, too, must practice the presence of God in order to get to know Him well. And this is His desire, too. As the Psalmist writes: “You have said, ‘Seek my face.’ My heart says to you, ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek’” (Ps. 27:, ESV). And in James’ epistle, he writes, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (Jas. 4:8a, ESV).

God wants you to get to know Him, and there are many ways of doing that. Through corporate worship, private devotions, studying His Word or practicing His presence while doing dishes, make it a priority to spend time with the Lover of your soul.

by: Jill Briscoe

Dwelling with God means I am aware of Him constantly. I consider Him in all I do. I am concerned about the things that concern Him. I converse with Him throughout the day, He lives within me, I’m home no matter where I am.

Dwelling with God means I need Him. I depend on the power and resources of the Holy Spirit. I cling to His promises. He steps in when I’m weak. He fights for me when I’m distracted. He knows the right words when I don’t know what to pray.

Dwelling with God means to listen—He has wisdom, He has something to say about where I go, how I spend my money, how I use my time, and the attitudes in my heart. He knows me as I truly am. Because He’s always with me.

PRAYER: Lord, I want to be like David in Psalm 27—to have a desire to walk with you all the days of my life. I want to dwell with You, to find refreshment in Your presence, to remember that everything I need in good times and bad is found in You. Amen

He was a Vietnam veteran, tattooed, tall and thin, and rode a loud Harley Davidson motorcycle. He’d share his stories of the horror of war, of how his group of eight was captured. He said the other men, his dear friends, were tortured and killed, but he and one other man survived. He never knew why his life was spared when his friends’ lives were cut short. He was searching for a reason to live. So, I would bring my Bible and share with him. He seemed receptive to the Bible and me, so I kept it up! I noticed that talking so much about the Scriptures and God also was making my walk with Him stronger.

Some time later, when he called to say my car was ready for pick-up, he also expressed the desire to go to church. It was a very small church with a tiny parking lot; so as he pulled in, you could hear and feel the motorcycle engine rattling the church walls. Then he came in wearing a chain length wallet that jingled as it swung back and forth. Even as he walked forward to the altar, he gave his heart and life to Jesus!

I couldn’t believe it! Such a wonderful decision prompted me to gift him with his own Bible. So I’m writing this article to encourage others to witness. You never know who you’ll be able to reach or whose life you will impact outside the walls of your church.

~ By Vanessa Vargo

Cultivate silence.  eliminating background noise turn off the radio, TV, unplugging from electronic devices for awhile.  If you listen, you can hear Him even when you’re doing the dishes, taking a shower, or waiting for your child to finish soccer practice.

Be in the Word: God reveals His divine will in the Bible. Through it, He speaks to all believers. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword”, (Heb. 4:12, ESV). Reading Scripture and meditating on it puts us in tune with God’s voice.

Journal: Writing down prayers, Scripture verses that speak to you, and quotes from books or devotionals you’re reading is another way of listening to God. You may be surprised to “hear God’s voice” in your own handwriting!

Make room for worship: Any time we contemplate who God is and what He has done for us, we worship Him, we open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit speaking to us. 

We hope you’ll take time in your busy day-to-day life to listen for God’s voice

The word for anointing that is used in the Old Testament means to “consecrate to service.” God anointed prophets, priests, and kings and set them apart for service. In the Old Testament only certain persons and objects were anointed for office, but in the New Testament all believers receive the anointing by the Holy Spirit.

 “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. (Jeremiah 31:33)

So when the Holy Spirit comes into a believer’s life, He comes to teach, guide, and empower. He teaches and guides us to the truth, saves us from error, and gives us strength to hold on to that truth. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would guide His people into all truth. He will help you read the Bible, understand it, and interpret it correctly.

Knowing that my dad stayed on the throne and was not swayed by emotional blackmail created a secure, safe place to explore my own identity. Within the carefully placed fences of personal safety and wise choices, and even risk failure to learn from errors.

TRANSFERRING MY LOYALTY TO MY HEAVENLY FATHER 

Throughout the growing up journey with my dad, his acceptance and delight in me was not altered by my reckless, ungrateful, and challenging behaviors and adolescent backtalk.

This unconditional favor, undeserved and often surprising, paved the way for me to choose to submit to God. From a young age, I believed the full gospel message. Just as I wanted to be close to my dad, I never wanted to be far from God, even as a child.

I surrendered my life to follow Jesus . I believed I would experience the same security I enjoyed under my dad’s leadership. I would be free to grow, to risk, to dream, and to be ambitious within the safe framework of the destiny written by my loving Creator and heavenly Father.