Work Hard

We are to work hard in all that we do, serving our masters as we signed on to do. They pay us an agreed upon wage for an agreed upon amount of work. Why do so many try to get away with less work than they agreed to? It is like they feel entitled to pay without performance. God's will is for us to be people of our word and to do it with all of our heart. As believers, we should always present ourselves as the sons and daughters of God the Father. Others are watching and our performance as believers affects their perception; what they see they believe applies to all who say they are believers. ~ DickEvans.org

Be Content

If we allow ourselves to be content with what we have, with what God has provided for us, the future will unfold with riches beyond our imagination. He has the plan for us and if we allow ourselves to follow it, we will not be disappointed. His plan leads us from temptation, transforming us more and more into His image. ~ DickEvans.org

Hidden Treasure

Many baby boomers still have one of the original cars they drove around in when they were teenagers; or a replica of one that they have picked up and restored. For others, it might be an older motorcycle. When the winter months begin in the north, they carefully hide their treasure away in a garage to protect it from the elements. When the warm weather rolls around once again, they shine them up and drive them around town for all to see. Everyone gets to see the treasure that has been carefully hidden for a season. As believers, we have the Holy Spirit inside shining brightly. We are full of His light. There is no winter season in Christ. Our behavior should be an example of all of our hidden treasures. His light can only produce good and others need to see it..~ DickEvans.org 

Choose The Right Friends

If we choose our friends from those that are doing the will of the Father, we will be on track. Now, I did not say those that are Christians. Not all who profess to be Christian are walking in His will. I want to be considered Jesus' brother, so I want to be with others that are in His will. This helps me to stay there myself. ~ DickEvans.org

Answer The Call

We must answer the call to salvation first. If we don't do that, we are not entitled to anything. The only way to heaven is through Jesus. He told us that, yet many don't believe. All it takes is little faith. The path is narrow, but it is open to all who will step forward in faith and believe. Many are called to salvation and those that receive it have an opportunity to go the next mile. In addition to their eternal inheritances, they have the opportunity to choose to walk with Him every day. They chose to walk in the light.~ DickEvans.org

Words Came Alive

As I opened myself up to a deeper relationship with God, the words I read came alive. They took on meaning for me and for those around me. They weren't just old stories written by men of yesterday. They were hot off the press; words of wisdom directly from God. Even as you read the same passages over, again and again, He will lead you into deeper wells of understanding. ~ DickEvans.org

Holy Spirit In Us

I can see God working in and through me. It is He that heals, He that inspires, and even He that writes these daily messages. He is there for each one of us, encouraging and inspiring us to the greatness He has for us. But the greatness for one is not the same as for another. We are each called to different tasks, but it is the same God working in each of us for the benefit of all. ~ DickEvans.org

Growing In Wisdom

Even watching a movie or a television show can help us grow in wisdom if we take the time to discuss what we learned or what God brought to our minds as we watched. Ask Him. He will show you how to get the most out of everything you are involved with. The Holy Spirit is listening right along with you, and He is ready and willing to guide you. ~ DickEvans.org

He Provides

We have the creator of the universe telling us that He will never fail us; never forsake us. It doesn't get better than that. As we rest in what He has already made available to us and stop pushing the envelope to get more on our own power, He provides that which we need to get to the next level. ~DickEvans.org

Money Focused

We are a society filled with players trying to get as much money as they can with the least amount of effort possible. Money becomes the focal point of their lives. For some, it is their job and they become what is called a job-a-holic. I was that way when I was first running my own business. Everything revolved around making a buck. I was 24x7 business. Real success comes from our relationship with God. Our focus needs to be on Him and not our circumstances or our quest for financial freedom. ~ DickEvans.org

Our Walk

Just because we accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior does not guarantee our success in our walk with God either. It takes more than saying the words to walk with His nature and live according to His character. That takes the pursuit of a godly life. In our earthly walk and in our walk with God, true success depends on a daily commitment. It takes making choices to walk on the other side of the street, away from evil, and follow what is right and good. ~ DickEvans.org

Humble

God wants us to be humble to Him. We expect Him to be a good listener when we have a lot on our minds. Well, He expects nothing less of us with others. He wants us to forget our own affairs and let others come first. Now that is the way to make a lasting impression. ~ DickEvans.org

Temptation

When we fall into a trap of temptation it is easy to try and place the blame on someone else or on circumstances. But the truth is we would never have been tempted in the first place had it not been for the desire in us. Remove the desire at its root and the temptation will never return. We have to be on guard to stop ourselves from falling into the trap. We do it on our own strength, using our own understanding. You can't just have one drink, one piece of candy, one donut, one piece of pie, and so forth. But with His help, you can remove the desire and eliminate the temptation's stronghold on your life. ~ DickEvans.org

He Built The Box

No matter how good we are in these earthen vessels, God is better. He built the box and knows how it works better than we do. Yet when we are good at something, we seem to forget who our maker is. We ignore the warnings Holy Spirit gives us because we think that we know it all. ~ DickEvans.org

Christ Like

No matter how much we try, the only way to become more Christ like is through a personal relationship with Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the light. Only He can direct our steps. It is by being in His company that we take on His character, and that is how we grow into the perfection He has for us. ~ DickEvans.org

Let Holy Spirit Lead

God sent His Son Jesus to die for us on that cross. He was sent to die so we could live forever. This body of ours is the temple of the Holy Spirit and we still don't take care of it! What we put into it should be good for it, and what we let it get involved in should be what Holy Spirit leads us to and not what the world has for it. We should honor God with our body and in all that we do! ~ DickEvans.org

Grow

God's generosity can flow through us when we are open to the opportunities that the Holy Spirit places in front of us. Then we must be willing to take that step of faith to try something new. Search out your gifts and then use them. They are like a muscle, if you don't use them you can lose them. As you use them, they grow and grow and grow. ~ DickEvans.org

Focus On Him

God would like us to be focused on Him our entire life, but He loves us even when we aren't quite there yet. His words seem to bounce off of us just like our parent's words did. But He waits. He waits for us to open our eyes and see all that He has prepared in advance for us. He expects us to be focused on Him, but to continue to live in the world. He expects us to have self-control, right conduct, and to remain in Him. ~ DickEvans.org

Consume Me

In the past, the things I became involved with seemed to consume me. It was all I thought about and dreamed about. Every waking hour was spent doing something involving it or thinking and planning about what I was going to do. There were a few years that I ate and slept sports car rallies. I participated in them on weekends, then I began to write and run them for others to do, and I even became so involved with the sports car club that I became president and newsletter editor and just about everything else. That is what God wants of us and our relationship with Him. Even though He chose us, we had to choose to believe. The decision had to be ours. Deep down we were searching for something. We just did not know what it was. We wanted that total involvement. It wasn't the club or the hobby that would fulfill that empty hole, it is Him. ~ DickEvans.org 

Challenges

Challenges are opportunities for change. How boring life would be without the challenges it brings. Holy Spirit is right there as we go through difficult times. So count every challenge as an opportunity for growth, and that is something to be joyful about. ~ DickEvans.org

The Proof

Here we are two thousand years after Jesus walked the earth. The only way to believe is to believe without seeing Him first. The only way to salvation is to step out in faith and believe. Once we do that, a whole new world of possibilities is presented to us. Yet there are many that won't take that step because they still have to see the proof. Perhaps the changes in us can become all the proof they need to see. ~ DickEvans.org

Comply

As much as we want to please those we love, we have to do so within the boundaries of our character and our standards. If what is asked of us does not fit, we will not comply with the request. The request has to be made abiding by our standards. God is no different. He will give us anything we ask for, as long as it is within His will. We cannot ask for anything that does not line up with His will. We can ask, but He will not comply. So check the Word before you get upset with God. Line up your wishes and desires with His word. ~ DickEvans.org

Ready For More

No matter how mature we think we are in the Spirit, there is always more for us to learn. As believers, Holy Spirit guides us each step of the way, but it is up to us to use what He gives us. It is when we put it into practice that we are ready to be given more. ~ DickEvans.org

Bondservants to Christ

We were all born into this life a slave to satan. We can blame the first Adam for that one. But we had a choice and we took it. We believed the Good News. We were slaves to the spiritual powers of this world; now we are bondservants to Christ. ~ DickEvans.org

Use It

When God reveals something new to us, I believe He expects us to use it. He expects us to take it and use it to get farther down the path He has for us. Some get all excited about the revelation they received and never go out and use it. There are some that get revelation and use it for the next sermon or the next book, but never go out and actually use it. We are only children for a little while and God expects us to be the same way in our walk with Him. He expects us to become mature Christians, not to stay in the mindset of new believers for our entire existence here on Earth. So let's get past the basics and use what we have learned. Let's take that revelation and use it to propel us in our walk as He intended it. ~ DickEvans.org

Called To Serve

When Jesus sat down to wash Peter's feet I bet He did not expect it and it went against all that he was brought up to believe. Jesus was the one to be served, not him, he probably thought. Jesus taught us all a lesson that day. If we are to follow Him, we must serve others. ~ DickEvans.org

The Right Words

We think that if we just have the right words, the right kind of music on Sunday, the perfect track to hand out, or the best advertising program that we will draw them in. But it is not us that draws them in, it is the Father. He opens the door and then all we have to do be there to let them in. ~ DickEvans.org

Business Relationship

How many of us have a business relationship with God? We turn to Him when we have a need for Him. Most of the time, we take care of business without Him. Yet we claim to belong to the Lord. But we are deceived. The Lord knows who are His. Casual acquaintances don't count. He wants a friendship, a permanent relationship with us. ~ DickEvans.org

Let Him Open Doors

We cannot defeat this evil world because Christ Jesus has already defeated it. We have to learn to trust Him to make a pathway for us. Too often we try to figure out what He is having us do and mark out our own way to get there. But He has the plan. We just have to trust Him to open up the doors for us to fulfill it. ~ DickEvans.org

Quiet Time

How can we have quiet time, time to be alone with God, when all these other things are competing for our time? We have to make a conscious decision to allow heaven to fill our thoughts. We make time to watch football. We also have to make it to be with Him. It is a matter of life and death. ~ DickEvans.org

The Good News

How many of us used to believe that as long as we were a good person we would go to heaven? Oh yes, you also need to believe in God. That was the Good News to us before we knew the Truth. And it was the Truth that set us free. The Good News is about the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. There is no other. It is in our belief in those three facts that set us apart as believers or not. We believe what God's Word says, that the only way to eternity with Him is through His Son, Jesus. ~ DickEvans.org