Living the Bible

How many of us read the Bible? How many of us just hear a sermon on the Bible from time to time? And how many of us actually apply the word to our lives after reading it, thus showing it's a priority in our lives?

How many of us read the Word every day?

How many of us live the Word actively and consciusly daily?

This has become a goal of mine. I want to pray without ceasing and forever mediate on the word--and apply it to my life.

The two books I'm working on right now are about doing precisely that.

How do you live the Word? Send me your comments or emails about it.

How many of us are in a bible study group at the moment?

Are we Christian or Christ-Followers? For me, there is a difference. A Christian just believes in Christ. A Christ-Follower is someone who believes in Christ, follows Him, and actively tries to live the Word. Which one are you?

Stacy Duplease
of Stories by Stacy & Publishing by Stacy

The Renewal of Rain Part 2 by Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy & Publishing by Stacy

Please check out my blog called, "The Renewal of Rain" at: http://www.storiesbystacy.blogspot.com/

Then, proceed to read this one.

Rain offers us a symbol of renewal (restoration of life). Of cleansing. What in your life needs to be restored or renewed and what needs to be cleansed?

Christ is the only way we receive the true water of restoration. It's through Him we're freed and forgiven. He is the life.

What can Jesus help cleanse and restore in your life? Think on this today. It's freeing.

For me, I find that busyness tends to trap me. I get so busy that I forget to slow down. Therefore, I'm quite blessed by the rain today. I'm reminded to stop and take time. To be still and know that He is God. To pray. To draw near to Him.

Enjoy your day of rain--even if it's all in your mind. Enjoy the refreshment that only God can bring.

Stacy Duplease
of Stories by Stacy &Publishing by Stacy

Love Stories and Christianity

The greatest love story of all is how Christ died for us--willingly and to save us.

The greatest love story of all is how much God loves us. Ephesians 3: 16-19 gives us an idea, along with several other parts of the Bible.

How much does God loves us? Far more than we can comprehend.

Why don't we try to comprehend it today and bask in it?

Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy & Publishing by Stacy

The Problem of Inaction in Our Walk with Christ, News, Vacation by Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy and Publishing by Stacy

Check out my blog on this subject first at: http://www.storiesbystacy.blogspot.com. Then, read this blog, please.

Inaction: What is it?
Inaction is not moving. It's being still. It's complacency.

Stillness for God:
We are to be still for God. We need to keep our sabbath and quiet our minds and hearts. But, nowhere in the Bible are we told to stop progress in faith or in our relationship with Him. Yes, we are to be still for Him--when we've been too busy (in heart, mind, and/or body). We are to listen to Him. This is a must.

What Inaction?
What inaction am I referring to, then? Inaction. Not moving. Not being active in faith. Not keeping mind in Christ. Not running for the faith. Not growing in faith. I'm talking about being stagnate in faith. Lukewarm or cold.

If we are inactive in our faith, our faith is dead.

We are to actively try to follow Him.

We are to keep our minds and hearts focused on Him--even in the midst of doing other things. We must forever remain alert to Him and His call.

We need to be aware of where we are, how we are, and aware of Him and His instruction.

Our lives in Him are at stake.

We can live a warm, rich, nourishing life with Him or we can be inactive, dead in faith, and not live for Him. When we don't live for Him, our lives take on a downward turn. I don't know about you, but life is tough enough without relying on Him and being active in Him. I don't know how I could get by without Him.

How are you in your faith? Are you moving too fast or too slow? Find balance in Him--and listen. He'll tell you what's up.

News:
I'm working on writing a study on 1 Corinthians. Stay tuned.

I'm also debating on doing a couple of Christian living books.

Vacation:
My Dad is coming to town tonight. I'll be back next Monday.

God bless.

Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy and Publishing by Stacy

Nearer My God to Thee, Moving Away From God, Seeking Him First and Stories by Stacy and Publishing by Stacy

Ever feel far away from God? Like you've moved?

Is it just me or do you not realize it until later and then you wonder how you could have been so foolish to allow it to happen yet again? I always think I would have learned the lesson the last time I made the same mistake. However, it never seems to take hold. Ugh. When will it?

What Draws Us From God?
My biggest problem is busyness. I get busy. Time tends to fly when I'm busy; therefore, I lose track of time and focus. I lose sight of what's important and forget to be intentional about my faith. The funny thing is that the very things that keep me so busy would be even better, and more blessed, if I invested time in my Lord first and foremost.

How is it Feasible to Put God First?
How can it even be done to begin with in our age of busyness? Is it even feasible or realistic?

Seeking God first and above all simply means intentionality of focusing on Him.

Is it doable? Of course it is. We can talk, work, drive, and do anything else and keep our mind on Him at the exact same time. We just need to do it.

When we fail, we need to not beat one's self up about it, but refocus on doing it again.

Draw near to God. Be near to Him. There's too much at stake not to do so.

I'm going to start again. How about you?

Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy and Publishing by Stacy

Purpose of This Blog: Sacred Thoughts, A Call to Stand, To Create Waves, & Meditating on the Word by Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy

The Purpose of This Blog
The purpose of this blog is mostly five-fold:
1) To share sacred thoughts
2) A call to take a stand
3) To create waves
4) Stacy's Meditating on the Word
5) To talk about our struggles and faith wrestlings.

To Share Sacred Thoughts:
There is so much more to life than this. There's meaning in our lives, if we seek it out and try to live by it. We have purpose, in other words. But, who gives us purpose? What is our purpose? What gives us meaning?

A Call to Take a Stand
We need to stop being lazy in our faith. We need to be active in faith and never passive. But, in our times of busyness or through our hard times, it's much easier said than done. We need to stand for Christ, unite in Christ, and not be so quiet in our faith--internally and externally. We're called to be rebels in Christ and to go against the worldview, after all.

To Create Waves
Again, the rebel in Jesus theme. If we are truly followers of Jesus, we would stop following the world, and being politically incorrect, and would stop trying to bow down to every religion and anti-religion under the sun. They're sure not doing it with us. We need to not be afraid of saying we're Christian, or acting like a Christian, even if it gets us in trouble--as long as we follow the Bible and never force our beliefs down someone's throat. It's okay to be who you are--a Christian.

Stacy's Meditating on the Word: Word Stories by Stacy
I will read the Bible from cover to cover repeatedly and share my thoughts with you. I am NOT a theologian. I'm seeking merely to meditate on the Word and share my thoughts on what I think God is saying to me about the verses.

Faith Struggles and Faith Wrestlings
We all struggle in the faith and wrestle in the faith. I'll share my thoughts with you.

Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy and Publishing by Stacy