Andy's Inspiration Box

"It is not the cares of today, but the cares of tomorrow, that weigh a man down. For the needs of today we have corresponding strength given. For the morrow we are told to trust. It is not ours yet. It is when tomorrow's burden is added to the burden of today that the weight is more than a man can bear." - George MacDonald

Trust in Him to deliver. He speaks to our hearts if we just open our ears and eyes wide enough...  And be still long enough.

Romans 12:2 ESV Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

"Many a tinker and weaver and stonecutter and hard worker has had open windows and a sky, and a mind with wings!" - Springs in the Valley (August 29)

"God only allows pain if He’s allowing something new to be born."  - Ann Voskamp www.aholyexperience.com

"An old Christian friend told me many years ago: never make any plans unless you are willing to have God change them, and never pray unless you are willing to accept God's answer. They are challenging words." - Selwyn Hughes

Psalm 4:3-5 New Living Translation (NLT) 3  You can be sure of this:      The  Lord  set apart the godly for himself.      The  Lord  will answer when I call to him. 4  Don’t sin by letting anger control you.      Think about it overnight and remain silent. Interlude 5  Offer sacrifices in the right spirit,      and trust the  Lord .

Isaiah 12:4-5 English Standard Version (ESV) 4 And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the Lord,     call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples,     proclaim that his name is exalted. 5 “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously;     let this be made known[a] in all the earth.

John 10:27 New Living Translation (NLT) 27  My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

Psalm 39:6-7 New Living Translation (NLT) 6  We are merely moving shadows,      and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth,      not knowing who will spend it. 7  And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?      My only hope is in you.

" Christianity is the only hope for this broken world because there’s no other way for the broken to get the Nails they need to rebuild." - Ann Voskamp

"God, who has lead you safely on so far, will lead you on to the end. Be altogether at rest in the loving holy confidence which you ought to have in His heavenly providence." - Francis De Sales

1 Corinthians 10:13 New Living Translation (NLT) 13  The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

"There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle." - Albert Einstein 

All these pieces Broken and scattered In mercy gathered Mended and whole Empty handed But not forsaken I've been set free I've been set free Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now I'm found Was blind but now I see Oh I can see it now Oh I can see the love in Your eyes Laying yourself down Raising up the broken to life You take our failure You take our weakness You set Your treasure In jars of clay So take this heart, Lord I'll be Your vessel The world to see Your love in me - Broken Vessels (Hillsong)

Romans 13:1 NKJV Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.

Galatians 4:4-7 English Standard Version (ESV) 4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

6  The words of the  Lord  are pure words, Like  silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times. 7  You shall keep them, O  Lord , You shall preserve them from this generation forever. - Psalm 12:6-7 New King James Version (NKJV)

"Gratitude consists in a watchful, minute attention to the particulars of our state, and to the multitude of God's gifts, taken one by one. It fills us with a consciousness that God loves and cares for us, even to the least event and smallest need of life." - Henry Edward Manning

1 Kings 8:23 New King James Version (NKJV) " Lord  God of Israel,  there is  no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, who keep  Your  covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts."

Jeremiah 33:6-9 ESV Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first. I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

Exodus 23:20 New King James Version (NKJV) The Angel and the Promises 20  “Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.

"God honours the person who trusts Him implicitly" - Springs in the Valley (August 19)

Psalm 37:7 (New King James Version) 7  Rest in the  Lord , and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret...

Matthew 1:22-23 New International Version (NIV) 22  All this took place to fulfill   what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23  “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” [ a ]   (which means “God with us”).

"When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as if you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and the time that the tide will turn." - Harriet Beecher Stowe

1 John 4:11-12 ESV Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

"Find your purpose and fling your life out into it; and the loftier your purpose is, the more sure you will be to make the world richer with every enrichment of yourself." - Phillip Brooks

1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

"...a fallen world keeps falling apart and even though we the Body can’t make things turn out — we can  turn up . Just keep turning  up ,  showing up ,  looking up .” - Ann Voskamp http://www.aholyexperience.com

"Does the thing He has promised to do for you look as if it might never happen? Remember God may delay His promises but He will never deny them. Perhaps to act with confidence is the very step of faith God is wanting you to take." - Selwyn Hughes

"Let go of the old grain of wheat if you want a harvest." - Springs in the Valley (August 15)

"Let Him do with me whatever He wants for  as long as He wants, if my darkness is light for some soul."  - Mother Teresa

"Many a time we pray and are prone to interpret God's silence as a denial of our petitions; whereas, in truth, He only defers their fulfillment until such time as we ourselves are ready to cooperate to the full in His purposes." - Dr Stuart Holden

Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.  

Psalm 1:1-6 English Standard Version (ESV) The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked 1 Blessed is the man[a]     who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners,     nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law[b] of the Lord,     and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree     planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season,     and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so,     but are like chaff that the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,     nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; 6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,     but the way of the wicked will perish.

“ Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.”  - Isaiah 1:17

"The pruned vine does not suggest an absent vine-dresser, and even if the vine be bleeding it does not mean that He has gone away." - Springs in the Valley (August 8)

Genesis 32:24-26 New King James Version (NKJV) 24  Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  25  Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him.  26  And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”

John 1:14-16 AMP And the Word (Christ) became flesh (human, incarnate) and tabernacled (fixed His tent of flesh, lived awhile) among us; and we [actually] saw His glory (His honor, His majesty), such glory as an only begotten son receives from his father, full of grace (favor, loving-kindness) and truth. [Isa. 40:5.] John testified about Him and cried out, This was He of Whom I said, He Who comes after me has priority over me, for He was before me. [He takes rank above me, for He existed before I did. He has advanced before me, because He is my Chief.] For out of His fullness (abundance) we have all received [all had a share and we were all supplied with] one grace after another and spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing and even favor upon favor and gift [heaped] upon gift.

"Life is too short to miss out on the harvest opportunity for which God has specifically blessed you for in the first place." - Ann Voskamp www.aholyexperience.com

"Love is the seed of all hope." - Gloria Gaither

Psalm 46:10 New International Version (NIV) 10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;     I will be exalted among the nations,     I will be exalted in the earth.” Jeremiah 29:11 New International Version (NIV) 11 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.

"It might sound dull and boring doing the same thing day after day but if God had commanded it, it is never the same thing. Nothing can be greater than to do whatever God wants us to do. We will never be bored by it." - Selwyn Hughes

"What if we are all only afraid because we’ve settled for being comfortable? What if we are all only afraid when where we’ve settled is not where the Comforter is — because where the Comforter meets you is  precisely  when you are  outside  of your comfort zone?" - Ann Voskamp www.aholyexperience.com

Hebrews 4:9-11 ESV So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.  Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

Deuteronomy 33:26-27 New King James Version 26  “ There is  no one like the God of Jeshurun, Who  rides the heavens to help you, And in His excellency on the clouds. 27  The eternal God  is your refuge , And underneath  are  the everlasting arms...

Matthew 19:19 New King James Version (NKJV) 'Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Psalms 4:8 NKJV I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord , make me dwell in safety.

In God's eternal plan, a month, a year, Is but an hour of some slow April day, Holding the germs of what we hope or fear, To blossom far away. The Almighty is tedious, but He's sure! - Springs in the Valley (August 4)

"Is it so long since we trod the road to our 'resting-place', that the path has become a jungle?" - Springs in the Valley (August 1)

Job 11:18 Having  hope  will give you courage. You will be protected and will rest in safety.

Hosea 10:12 New Living Translation (NLT) 12  I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness,      and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts,      for now is the time to seek the  Lord , that he may come      and shower righteousness upon you.’

2 Corinthians 9:11-12 NIV You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.   This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

“Sadness is one of the Beatitudes: ‘Blessed [or in some translations, ‘Happy’] are those who mourn, for they will be comforted’ . . . This suggests that sadness is very, very close to happiness . . . there is no true happiness without its wistful tint of divine sadness —   and no sadness that does not stand on the doorstep of happiness .”  - Mike Mason aholyexperience.com

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.

You are my refuge and my shield; your word is my source of hope. Psalm 119:114   NLT

"If we allow God's word to so live and take root within us, when our hurts and frustrations scream within, God's word will burn within us with His warming love, and we will hear his message above the storm." - Selwyn Hughes