O How He Loves Us! "He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross‚ so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed." – 1 Peter 2:24 The long-time pastor of First Baptist Church Dallas‚ W.A. Criswell‚ once recalled a vivid dream in which he watched Christ being beaten just before His crucifixion. As Criswell recounted... "I saw the Savior; His back was bare and there was a soldier lifting up his hand and bringing down that awful cat-o'-nine tails. In the dream‚ I rose and grasped his arm to hold it back. When I did‚ the soldier turned in astonishment and looked at me. And when I look at him‚ I recognized myself." For those of us who've been following Christ many years‚ it's easy to forget how the relationship started. It's easy to forget what great sacrifice Christ made on our behalf. It's easy to forget the agony He willingly suffered on the cross. And it's easy to forget that it was our sin that led Him there. But Jesus endured it all because He loves you with an everlasting love. Yes‚ we too shouted with the crowd that day‚ "Crucify Him!" But what Christ cried out then He cries out even now‚ "Father‚ forgive them‚ for they know not what they do." That's the love Jesus has for you. It's the love that built your faith‚ and it's the love you can enjoy for eternity if you're in Him!  Prayer Challenge: Ask God to give you a fresh and vivid sense of Christ's sacrifice on your behalf. Pray you'll grasp anew His great love for you. Questions for Thought: What are some ways you could respond in gratitude to Christ's love? How might Christ's love for you make you think differently about a situation you're facing today? Visit the Senior Living Ministries website The post O How He Loves Us! – Senior Living – February 19 appeared first on GodUpdates.

A Prayer against ComplainingBy Emma Danzey "Don't grumble against one another‚ brothers and sisters‚ or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!" – James 5:9 Here comes the nagging again. Have you ever been guilty of being a cloud of rain on a sunshine-filled day? In other words‚ have you been in a cycle of complaining? It is really easy to fall into the "glass half full" mentality. No‚ we are not supposed to be happy all of the time. However‚ as believers in Christ‚ we are called to be filled with the Holy Spirit‚ which means we live out His fruit in our lives. It just so happens that complaining is not on that list. Today‚ we will take time to pray against complaining in our own lives and press into gratitude by faith in Christ. Let’s pray: Dear Lord‚We come before You today‚ thanking You for another day of life and another day of being Yours. You have sealed us by Your Holy Spirit; we are always Your children. However‚ we confess that we do not always live like Your children. We fall short every day in different ways. Please forgive us for our attitudes of the heart and words of our mouths that are full of complaints against you and against others. Instead of throwing out negativity‚ we pray that You would empower us to filter our frustrations through prayer and petition to You. Thank You that You actually welcome our emotions. We recognize that You are a holy God. You are our only hope of having the right mentality and attitude throughout our days. Help us‚ Holy Spirit. We are crying out to You to enable us to live by Your Spirit and not by our flesh. We pray that You would help us to pick up our crosses and follow You. This means that even in our challenges‚ we desire that You would refine us into Your likeness. Forgive us for times when we have chosen to use our thoughts and our words for tearing down rather than building up. You say in Philippians 2:14-16 "Do everything without grumbling or arguing‚ so that we may become blameless and pure‚ "children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation." Then we will shine among them like stars in the sky as we hold firmly to the word of life. And then we will be able to boast on the day of Christ that we did not run or labor in vain." Lord‚ help us to work‚ live‚ and love without complaints. Help us to become pure and blameless. Help us to shine like stars in the sky. Would our gratitude‚ joy‚ and fullness of life be a bright light of intrigue where our neighbors around us would know that what we have is out of this world. Would they identify us as beautifully strange and abundantly loving. Would they not be able to say that we grumbled but that we were faithful. Help us to live out James 5:9‚ that we would "not grumble against one another or we will be judged." Forgive us for the struggles that we have to gossip or speak negatively of those around us. May our tongues be bridled for the sake of the gospel and those around us. When we are hurt or unhappy with the decisions of superiors‚ family members‚ or friends‚ may we have the utmost respect for them with our demeanor and our word choices. Father‚ forgive us for how easy it is to speak against rather than speak for. Help us to be advocates for You‚ not slanderers. We cannot do this on our own. This is only by Your grace flooded in us by the power of Your Spirit. We are leaning upon You and declaring in Your name‚ Jesus‚ that we will denounce all areas of complaining. We pray that we would walk away from them. We ask that we would break up with the bad and marry the good. We pray that we would be firmly established with Your Word and that we will stand by it as our foundation to live lives worthy of the calling of Your children. Help us to represent You better. Thank You for new mercies every morning. Thank You for the spirit of thanksgiving that You provide.In Jesus’ name‚ amen. Photo credit: ©Getty Images/fizkes Emma Danzey's mission in life stems from Ephesians 3:20-21‚ to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. She is wife to Drew and mom to Graham. Emma serves alongside her husband in ministry‚ she focuses most of her time in the home‚ but loves to provide articles on the Bible‚ life questions‚ and Christian lifestyle. Her article on Interracial Marriage was the number 1 on Crosswalk in 2021. Most recently‚ Emma released Treasures for Tots‚ (Scripture memory songs) for young children. During her ministry career‚ Emma has released Wildflower: Blooming Through Singleness‚ two worship EP albums‚ founded and led Polished Conference Ministries‚ and ran the Refined Magazine. You can view her articles on her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com and check out her Instagram @Emmadanzey. Teach Us to Pray is a FREE prayer podcast hosted by iBelieve writer Christina Patterson. Each week‚ she gives you practical‚ real-life tips on how to grow your faith and relationship with God through the power of prayer. To listen to her episode on What to Pray in the Morning for a Worry-Free Day‚ click below! Now that you’ve prayed‚ are you in need of someone to pray for YOU? Click the button below! Visit iBelieve.com for more inspiring prayer content. The post A Prayer against Complaining – Your Daily Prayer – February 19 appeared first on GodUpdates.

1574 - Spanish troops plunder Krommenie‚ Wormerveer and Jisp‚ Netherlands 1600 - Peruvian stratovolcano Huaynaputina explodes in the most violent eruption in South American recorded history 1900 - British troops occupy Hlangwane‚ Natal 1928 - II Winter Olympic Games close at St Moritz‚ Switzerland 1946 - New York Giants outfielder Danny Gardella is 1st major leaguer to announce he is jumping to the "outlaw" Mexican Baseball League for a fee of $10‚000 1950 - Groundbreaking ceremony held for Mississippi Vocational College (later Mississippi Valley State University) 1953 - William Inge's "Picnic" premieres in NYC 1985 - ADM of Amsterdam declares bankruptcy 1995 - Kenneth Koch wins Bollingen Prize for One Train (1994) and On The Great Atlantic Rainway: Selected Poems 1950-1988 (1994) 2023 - Brazilian state of Sao Paulo hit by flooding and landslides after heavy rain‚ with at least 44 killed and 800 homeless More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1594 - Having already inherited the throne of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth through his mother‚ Catherine Jagellonica of Poland‚ Sigismund III of the House of Vasa is crowned King of Sweden‚ succeeding his father John III of Sweden. 1897 - Inaugural meeting of the Women's Institute at Stoney Creek‚ Ontario‚ set at the suggestion of Adelaide Hoodless‚ the organization will rapidly spread around the world 1928 - World champion French team Andrée Joly and Pierre Brunet win the Olympic pairs figure skating gold medal at the St. Moritz Winter Games; the couple marry in 1929 and take 2nd straight gold in 1932 1943 - German tanks under Major General Karl Buelowius attack Kasserine Pass‚ Tunisia 1977 - France performs nuclear test at Mururoa atoll 1987 - Musical revue "Stardust - The Mitchell Parish Musical"‚ featuring songs of the Lithuanian-American lyricist‚ opens at Biltmore Theater‚ NYC; runs for 101 performances More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1755 - Pieter Gerardus van Overstraten‚ Dutch Governor-General of Dutch East Indies (1796-1801)‚ born in Bergen op Zoom (d. 1801) 1881 - Evert Gorter‚ Dutch children's pioneering paediatrician (founder of Dutch medical child care)‚ born in Utrecht‚ Netherlands (d. 1954) 1916 - Eddie Arcaro‚ American Racing Hall of Fame jockey (Triple Crown 1941 Whirlaway‚ 1948 Citation)‚ born in Cincinnati‚ Ohio (d. 1997) 1952 - Gaëtan Dugas‚ French Canadian flight attendant and HIV patient erroneously vilifed as "Patient Zero"‚ born in Quebec City‚ Quebec (d. 1984) 1970 - Ruwan Kalpage‚ Sri Lankan cricket off-spinner 1983 - Assunta De Rossi‚ Filipino actress More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1936 - Charles Harding Firth‚ British historian (b. 1857) 1994 - Vittorio Rieti‚ Jewish Italian-American composer‚ dies at 96 1995 - John Howard‚ American actor (The Philadelphia Story; My Three Sons)‚ dies of heart failure at 81 1996 - Brenda Bruce‚ actress (December Bride‚ Nightmare)‚ dies at 77 2016 - [Nelle] Harper Lee‚ American author (To Kill a Mockingbird)‚ dies at 89 2023 - Richard Belzer‚ American comedian‚ actor (Homicide: Life on the Street; Law and Order: SVU - both shows "Det. John Munch") and author (How To Be A Stand-Up; UFOs‚ JFK‚ and Elvis: Conspiracies You Don’t Have to Be Crazy to Believe)‚ dies at 78 More Famous Deaths »

February 19‚ 2024

"It's not hard to imagine how grey all our lives would be today if The Beatles had not paved the way for turning music into a kaleidoscope of colour explosions after the bland‚ sugar-sweet pop of the early sixties"

A group of truck drivers who support former President Trump have announced they will not be driving to New York City as a means of expressing their disappointment with the politically-motivated civil fraud judgment by a Trump-hating corrupt judge who fined Trump more than $350 million last week and barred him from doing business in […]

We mustn't say anything bad about the criminals. The post Kansas City Mayor Claims Calling Super Bowl Shooters “Thugs” is Racist appeared first on Frontpage Mag.

“Blood-stained currency from a Middle Eastern country” and a “torture ticket”. The post Email Shows Biden’s Brother Pitching Business Deal Based on Joe appeared first on Frontpage Mag.