Pride

Posted on April 6, 2018 by Jennifer Van Allen

Me: Can you hit the target Prodigal?

Prodigal: I think I can but the person before me couldn’t knock a hole in the wind with a sackful of hammers.

Me: Don’t get to prideful Prodigal.

Prodigal: No, I probably should not.

This is from the book Overcoming Spiritual Blindness by James P. Gills M.D

The sin of our belief in freedom from God will never allow us to reach quiet rest and peace found in His arms. Just as surely, pride prevents our experiencing fulfilling relationships with others. Through pride, we seek to be seen as superior to our brother, our friends, our spouse. Yet, authentically, pride is mindless human horseplay.

The ministrations of a prideful spirit may whisper to us that our possessions or qualities, objects that we own, or talents we posses, make us greater and different from our neighbor. When we receive spiritual sight, God reveals that our possessions are only “treasure on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal Matthew 6:19

That pride ain’t going to help you today. That pride is going to bring you down. So get rid of it now or let God do the humbling.

Job 13:1-2

Lo, mine eye hath seen all this, mine ear hath heard and understood it. What ye know, the same do I know also: I am not inferior unto you.

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org

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Bible and Quran

Posted on April 4, 2018 by Jennifer Van Allen

Me: That was an interesting conversation with the neighbor.

Prodigal: She’s meaner than a mama wasp.

Me: Maybe, we should just pray for her.

This is from the book Beyond Opinion by Living the Faith We Defend by Ravi Zacharias

The Quran is composed of 114 chapters known as Suras. They are not chronologically organized. The Arabic language is intrinsically part of the revelation. Therefore, all its translations are regarded as commentaries and not text. Strange as it may sound, the Quran has no coherent message, lacks clarity, and is historically inaccurate and internally inconsistent.

Apologetically speaking, the Quran has serious fear of biblical teachings and so it distorts them through allusions and by falsification of the biblical truths. Its revelation through inspiration and its methodology are shrouded in secrecy. The original version of the Quran, having been preserved in the eternal tablet, was brought down to the atmospheric realm of our earth. Muslims believe that the whole of the Quran is an inspired word, with no human influence whatsoever. It has never been subjected to the acid tests that the Bible has been.

Romans 5:8

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org

Dark Power

Posted on April 2, 2018 by Jennifer Van Allen

Me: It is so beautiful out side right now.

Prodigal: I know, I wish everyone would focus on the beauty around us and God our creator.

Me: Me too, but sin has a way of distracting us.

This is from the book C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity

How did the Dark Power go wrong? Here, no doubt, we ask a question to which human beings cannot give an answer with any certainty. A reasonable (and traditional) guess, based on our experiences of going wrong, can, however, be offered. The moment you have a self at all, there is possibility of putting yourself first–wanting to be the center–wanting to be God, in fact. That was the sin of Satan: and that was the sin he taught the human race. Some people think the fall of man had something to do with sex, but that is a mistake (The story in the Book of Genesis rather suggests that some corruption in our nature followed the fall and was its result, not its cause.) What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could “be like gods”–could set up on their own as if they had created themselves–be their own masters–invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history–money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery–the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.

The reason why it can never succeed is this. God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.

Ezekiel 16:62

And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD:

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org

Sacrifice for God

Posted on April 1, 2018 by Jennifer Van Allen

Me: Howdy!

Prodigal: What have you been thinking about over yonder.

Me: Just what I have been seeing lately!

This is from the book The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer

This is the only real harbinger of revival which I have been able to detect anywhere on the religious horizon. It may be the cloud the size of a man’s hand for which a few saints here and there have been looking. It can result in a resurrection of life for many souls and a recapture of that radiant wonder which should accompany any faith in Christ, that wonder which has all but fled the Church of God in our day.

But this hunger must be recognized by our religious leaders. Current evangelicalism has (to change the figure) laid the altar and divided the sacrifice into parts, but now seems satisfied to count the stories and rearrange the pieces with never a care that there is not a sign of fire upon the top of lofty Carmel. But God be thanked that there are a few who care. They are those who, while they love the altar and delight in the sacrifice, are yet unable to reconcile themselves to the continued absence of fire. They desire God above all. They are athirst to taste for themselves the “piercing sweetness” of the love of Christ about. Whom all the holy prophets did write and the psalmists did sing.

Thank you that when I look at you. I know that you are focus on the Lord and you are a leader that has a hunger and that you do have sacrifice in your heart. Thank you Lord that He placed you in my life!

Romans 8:18

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org