Daily Signs of Hope

A place to find Hope

Category: God is near (Page 14 of 20)

Everything Looks Great. What Could go Wrong? Everything!

June 24, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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We are off to the Oregon Coast. Beautiful day, and tons of God’s beauty to see. What could go wrong??

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When I think about that I realize that many things could go wrong. We do not live in a perfect world:

  1. The Pandemic.
  2. Rioting.
  3. Storms that are hitting many states.
  4. Drought for the whole West Coast.
  5. This leads to many wildfires. (Already having one in Oregon.)

This is a short list and I am sure you could add many more.

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So, how do we face each day when so many bad things are coming our way?

  1. Face the storms of life.
  2. All storms end.
  3. God is there during your storms.
  4. Turn all your fears over to God.

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So simplistic yet so true. God has the power to build a fortress for you to protect you from evil and everyday hazards.

Never try to take on this world alone. Pray for God to give you the armor you need to survive.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Why Was David Love By God? Bad Father, Committed Adultery

June 21, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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I had a question come to my mind yesterday. Why was David so loved by God?

  1. He failed as a father. His own son was trying to kill him.
  2. He had a soldier murdered so he could have his wife.
  3. He committed adultery.

That doesn’t sound like someone God would ove. BUT love David he did. He said David was a man after his own heart,

Gives us hope right? He can do some pretty terrible things and still be forgiven by God? YES!

Then I wondered if I really lead a good life myself? Did I do enough to be acceptable to God? It is sometimes hard to think that. I am not always a goodie two shoes.

Then I did some more thinking. (Gave me a headache!)

I should really define my life by what God did for me and through me.

I am certainly not an angel. I am certainly not a perfect father or husband, but I know that God loves me the way I am. He just is trying to mold me into a better self.

I also thought of one verse that I love, Isaiah 40:8. The grass withers and flowers fade, but the word of our God will stand for ever.

We need to anchor our lives on His word. We need to look forward to the future He is bringing us.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Life Can be Very Straining, But God is There

June 18, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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It has been an interesting week for me. I go to physical therapy twice a week, and today my therapist did a mid term test on me. It was excruciating. She had me get up and sit back down as many times as I could in a minute. No help from your hands. I was worn out at the end, but she told I blew away my first test. YES!

Then she had me try to stoop down and pick up things on the floor. This is one of my tough problems. I was able to pick up what she had on the floor for me.

Then she took me outside and had me walk back and forth in a given area, and go back and forth as many times as I could in two minutes. I greatly improved in that as well.

Then she had me do a gruelling two minutes test on a stationary bicycle with the tension very high. I suffered through this test and she called it a day. She said she was very pleased with my progress.

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Have you been through grueling tests in life? Were they almost unbearable? Look at it this way. God is testing you. It may not be your midterms, but he is testing to see if your are faithful. He is testing to see if you are strong spiritually. He wants the best for you, and He feels He needs to prepare you for what live has for you.

Don’t get angry when things are hard. Just work hard to overcome them with God’s help.

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Remember:


You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Some Are Saying That The Christian Church is Collapsing

June 14, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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In an earlier post, I commented on the struggles that the churches are having. Less people coming. Turning their backs on the church. Many think this is because of the pandemic. Many were on lock down, and just lost the habit of going every Sunday.

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A true Christian would not accept those reasons. A friend told me, “If you have nothing to do with the church, then you have nothing to do with Jesus.” If you trust Jesus you are a member of a church.

Contrary to what people think, the power of the church is more powerful than anything else on earth.

I was on lock down for over a year because of the pandemic. I was “At Church,” every Sunday anyway. It is called online church.

It has been a true blessing for me. It is like I am sitting in my favorite pew, and listening.

Since my church is online, I invite you to come back and enjoy Sunday, with lots of singing, and worship.

http://www.mstar.church.com

I am there in the chat section to answer any questions the online people may have, plus throwing in encouraging thoughts from time to time. I will even pray with you.

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Has it been a while since you have been to church? The above link will you back in the groove. I guarantee you will be blessed, and will have found your own church home.

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Be sure to say hello when you see the name Doug in the chats.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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You Are Never Too Old to be a Parent. Be a Good Example

June 11, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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I have seven grandchildren. They are all Christians. All my children and their spouses are Christians as well. Can I retire from the world and sit in my rocking chair?

OF COURSE NOT!

You never stop being an example to others, no matter what your age may be. I am 81 years old, and feel I need to do much more than I did when I was a young dad. My family still looks to me for comfort and advice.

That is quite a responsibility.

As parent we need to nurture our children and raise them in the way God would want us to raise them. No, they don’t have to be perfect. You and I aren’t perfect. We just need to show them what is right and wrong, and keep reminding them of the important things in life.

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I saw some frightening news the other day. It showed people beating up defenseless people just for the fun of it. It also showed cops being attacked until they were unconscious.

What is happening to our country? Why are we heading in this direction? It seems it is OK to strike anyone you want and then get away with it.

The world is changing, and I am afraid it is changing in a very wrong way.

What can we do to stop the raging river of hatred?

  1. It starts at home. Your/my job is to instill into our children that it is not OK to show racism to anyone.
  2. We have to be the great example for them, because Monkey see and Monkey do. Whatever you do they will do. You take drugs. They will take drugs. If you drink alcohol, they will drink alcohol.
  3. It is hard, at best, to be a parent, but this is what we have chosen to do and we need to do it well.

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I was a teacher for 22 years. I loved my students, but some were a full load for me. It never failed…when I had parent conferences the parents of the trouble kids, were also trouble. They demand more. They expected special things for their children. They expect their child to excel in school.

I realize that most parents want these same goals, but the approach these parents used showed me why the children were they way they were.

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How do you think you are doing as a parent? No matter what your age you are still a parent. Do your children respect you and love you, or do they try to avoid you?

Lean on God to find the right path to being a good parent. The perfect example of love is Jesus Christ. I pray every night for Him to guide me on how I could be more like Him.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Are Fathers Really Needed to be in Children’s Lives

June 10, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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With Father’s Day just around the corner, I got to thinking how important a fathers are.

The questions are coming up more often about the need of fathers in a home. The leading newspapers in the world are questioning that. The New York Times, and many others challenge the need for fathers in the home.

I didn’t have a father in my life. He was in my home town and never saw me much.

What did I miss?

A boy needs his father to be an example for him. A boy needs a dad to tell him, “Way to go champ.” A boy needs his father to have someone to talk about boy things.

The majority of the hardened criminals in the penitentiaries didn’t have a father.

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How about a little girl?

They need to know how to choose a man. Girls without a father in the home tend to more sexually active in an earlier age.

In both girls and boys need a sense of security and love.

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So how do we help these children?

There are uncles, grandfathers, even friends, who need to step up to the plate and help these children.

In my teaching career the amount of broken homes kept growing every year, until over half of my students only had one parent.

So in reality, I became father to them. They would cling, and want to be near me during class time. I had to discourage this as much as I could, but I did a lot of hugging.

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How is your home going?

Are you divorced? Are you the only parent in your home?

I really understand. I was divorced once myself. However, I did everything in my power to love my children, and spend as much time with them as I could.

I have remarried and my children love her very much. They call her their second mom.

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Don’t let the past decide your future. Yes, you have so much work ahead of you, but you can do it!!

How? God is there to be your guiding light. Also, use Jesus as an example of how you should act and respond.

It won’t be easy, but who is more important in your life than your own children?

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Don’t be a Father Doing Drugs and Alcohol. Monkey See Monkey Do

June 7, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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I heard the story about King David from the Bible and his son, Asbolum. It is a story about a father not paying attention to his son, and the son plotting against him to try to be the king.

Where was David was the question. Why didn’t he see what was going on and correct his son?

This made me think that our lives as fathers. Since Father’s Day is coming up a good discussion would be, where are we with our children?

Satan can be a huge detriment when it comes to being fathers. He will say, you can stay and have beers with the guys after a round of gold, instead of being home and playing with the kids.

He lets people hear what they want to hear. “It’s OK to forget your family and have fun.”

What I came up with is a guide for father s as to how they can be a good father:

  1. Love the mother of your children.
  2. Let your children hear you pray for them.
  3. Bring your children to church.
  4. Get home from work on time to be with family.
  5. Do not work when off work.
  6. Spend the majority of your free time with family.
  7. Play with your kids often.
  8. Say, “I love you,” every day.
  9. Put yourself on “time out,” when you are angry.
  10. Quickly admit to your mistakes and say, “I’m sorry.”

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Here are some shocking results of a survey held recently:

  1. 22% of adults stopped going to church since the pandemic started.
  2. 50% of millennials have stopped going to church.
  3. Podcasts and Tik Tok, lead people away from the church.

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How do we guard our hearts from Satan?

  1. A serious pursuit of holiness.
  2. A serious pursuit of worship.

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So where do you stand in all of this? Do you go to the bar and forget about your family? Remember…Monkey see and monkey do. Your children will end up bars too.

Do you do drugs and alcohol too much? Monkey see monkey do.

Do you play golf every chance you can to get away your family? Monkey see monkey do.

Don’t be that kind of father. Put your family first, and love them with all your heart.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Exercise Can Change Life in a Very Positive Way

June 4, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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I am going to rant a little today. I have seen some shocking things happening from our National Leadership.

I read an article that stated that a marine was going to handed over to a foreign country so they can try him for attempting to help a citizen defect to the U. S.

This is a death sentence!

I think this Marine should be considered a hero not a criminal. Our president, once again, is turning his back n the military. Write your congressman to stop this death sentence.

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Sorry for the rant, but I am a veteran, and this Marine is my brother in arms.

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I have been going to physical therapy for a while now to help me with my balance. The young lady that is helping me is doing wonders for me. I am already feeling better, and gaing my balance back.

This is happening to prepare me for a trip to Hawaii the end of August and the first week of September. So excited to be going there. I love Hawaii.

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Have you had times that you wish you could be doing better with your health?Have you lost a few steps here and there?

You certainly are not alone. Many people seem to slow down as they get older.

So what can we do the fight back.

  1. Exercise…I diffidently diced that when I started therapy. The change is awesome for me.. Much stronger and more agile.
  2. Park far away from wherever you stop to shop or visit. You will be surprised how just that one little adjustment will give you more strength.
  3. Don’t take the elevator. Walk those stairs.
  4. Ride bikes, or go on walks. Lots to see as you are doing this.

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Trust me I am not your health expert. Just some thoughts on getting back the body you want.

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How are you days going? Are they long and tedious? Do you struggle to make it through them?

Time to lean on God. He has big shoulders, and loves you.

Allow God to do a change in your life for the better. He can do that in a moment.

Drop those burdens for relief from God.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Clean Up Your Sinful Cobwebs and Make Them Spiritual

May 31, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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Every year I go outside and clean the cobwebs from my eaves, and porch. This year I looked at them later and the cobwebs were all back. I didn’t kill the source which was the spiders.

I related that to our own lives.

We allow cobwebs to form in our lives. They overcome us and we are lost. We try to clear them up only to see them came back. We didn’t kill the source. The source is sin.

Sin can control us to the point that we want to give up. We are trapped in the web struggling and can’t break free.

How do we get out of there?

  1. We identify the lies/sins we have been living with.
  2. Confess the lies to God.
  3. We reject the lies.
  4. We replace the lies with God’s truth.

Think about that the next time you are cleaning cobwebs out of your eaves.

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I have been wondering what will happen in the near future to our world. there are wars going on. There is rioting everywhere. The murder rates are sky high in the big city. Portland, Oregon was up a staggering 200%.

This is, of course, is caused by the defunding the police actions. There are policemen and women who are quitting the force because of zero support from the mayors of these cities. BTW.. All of these big cities have democratic mayors.

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We need to become battle warriors for God. Not physical battles, but spiritual battles. We need to pray for our country. We need to come together in our churches, and pray as a group. Powerful prayers can move mountains.

Seems so simple, but it is powerful.

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How is your world spinning? Going too fast?

Always remember that God is with you on your every step. He will protect you from the evil around you. He loves you. He created you in His own image. You are His son/daughter.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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It’s Easy to be Saved, But Can we be Sanctified?

May 27, 2021 / / 0 Comments

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I was at a Christian Men’s Zoom call on Tuesday. It was very inspiring for me. Many things that were said gave me comfort and hope.

We can easily be saved, by the blood of Jesus, but can we be sanctified? That seemed to be the thoughts of all eight of us.

The dictionary says…….

Sanctify:

  1. To make holy; set apart as holy; consecrate.
  2. To be purified and free from sin.

That seems to be a problem with many of those who can’t asked to be saved. They don’t think that can be purified from sin for what they have done in the past.

God wants you to come as you are, but god doesn’t want you to stay that way. In other words, what ever you have done does not close the door on you.

Remember the other two men who were crucified with Jesus. Both of them deserved what they were getting. However, one of them asked Jesus to save him. Jesus did and said, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”

A criminal was saved and sanctified all in one day.

One of the Zoom guys mentioned that people need to come and see; go and be. Meaning we need to accept Christ into our heart, and then tell others.

As a Christian we should never think we are retired.

  1. We still a lot to learn from God.
  2. We are still a parent to our children, and we need to always lead by example.

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Are you thinking you are retired from the world? Do you feel you are done nurturing your children, family, and friends. God says otherwise. Never think you can sit back and let others save the world. God still has many plans for you no matter what your age is.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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