Day 1: "Find Comfort and Refuge In Him"

Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble."

Psalm 28:8 "The LORD is their strength, And He is the saving refuge of His anointed."

Proverb 18:10 "The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe."

Acts 9:31 "Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied."

2 Thessalonians 2:16, 17 "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work."

Insight: People take refuge in many different things. However, God is the best refuge. Nobody loves you like God does and nobody has higher hopes for you than Him. Furthermore, nobody has the ability to help you like God does.

Prayer: "Thank you for being our refuge and strength, Lord. There is no other God like You. Thank you for being there when we need You. Remind us that You are always everywhere. Praise You for being able to comfort and help us like nobody else can. Thank you for wanting to be with us like a loving father cares for a child. Let us confide in You. Praise You for always having what we need. Forgive us for forgetting to run to You and going to other sources of comfort and security. Strip away those things and help us keep returning to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Day 2: "Satisfaction For the Spiritually Thirsty"

John 4:10-14 "Jesus answered and said to her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, Give Me a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water. The woman said to Him, Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock? Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."

Insight: Jesus has the awesome, living water we need. This water is His Word and His truth. We need this more than anything else. Don’t forget to drink deeply!

Prayer: "Thank you for quenching the ones that are thirsty, Lord. Thank you for having the awesome kind of water that truly quenches our thirst. Help us understand how we need You and not the latest fad. Let us fully trust in You and not the things of this world. Praise You for having exactly what we need. Thank you for giving us something that transcends time and space. Let us reach to You for great things and accept what You give us. Thank you for giving us eternal life and opening our eyes to the truths in your Word! In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Day 3: "The Disciple’s Desires"

Luke 17:5 "And the apostles said to the Lord, Increase our faith."

Luke 11:1 "Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples."

Matthew 18:21, 22 "Then Peter came to Him and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times? Jesus said to him, I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven."

Insight: After you spend time with Jesus, you’ll see what you truly need. The disciples did this and found they needed more faith, to learn how to pray and to love and forgive people.

Prayer: "Increase our faith, Lord. Let us see things like You do. Forgive us for thinking too shallow or earthly. Help us to think about everything in light of your Word and eternity. Help us to pray better. Let us pray big and never put You in a box. Thank you for being able to do far beyond what we could imagine. Thank you for being such an awesome example of forgiveness. Help us to forgive others like You do. Let us forgive early and often. In Jesus’ name, amen."

Day 4: "Who Will Be the Greatest?"

Matthew 18:1-4 "At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

Matthew 23:11, 12 "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Mark 9:33-35 "Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road? But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all."

Matthew 19:29, 30 "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first."

Insight: God’s kingdom isn’t like an earthly kingdom. The greatest people in His kingdom are the ones who completely gave everything to Him on this Earth. This is why the ones who appear to be the least will be the greatest in Heaven.

Prayer: "Let us not worry about who will be the greatest, Lord. Thank you for keeping track of the good deeds we do in your name. Let us simply do them and forget about counting them. Praise You for being a God of covenants and promises. Thank you for promising to make poor people rich! Help us to invest in eternity. Help us to put your causes first. Let us remember the poor and starving people in this world. Forgive us for our apathy and selfishness. Help us to identify sin and call it what it is. Thank you for being the reason that we are great. In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Day 5: "The Son and Lord of David"

Matthew 22:41-46 "While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He? They said to Him, The Son of David. He said to them, How then does David in the Spirit call Him Lord, saying: The LORD said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool? If David then calls Him Lord, how is He his Son? And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore."

Psalm 110:1 "The LORD said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool."

Matthew 1:1 "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:"

Luke 1:32, 33 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

Insight: Jesus was both a descendant of David and David’s Lord. Only Jesus could have fulfilled this paradox. Incidentally, no post-Jesus "Savior" can ever prove they are the Messiah because in 70 A.D., the Jewish genealogical records were destroyed.

Prayer: "Praise You for being able to be the Son and Lord of David! There is no God like You, Lord. Thank you for fulfilling prophecies like nobody else every could. Praise You for being the only possible Messiah. Let us understand the Bible in it’s entirety. Thank you that we have such an awesome book! Thank you that Christianity isn’t simply an oral tradition or myth. Thank you for the ways that Jesus Christ answered the people who questioned Him. Help us to be wise and tactful. Thank you for his love for people. Let us emulate You, Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Day 6: "Listen Up!"

Proverbs 2:1-5 "My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my

commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply

your heart to understanding; yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up

your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver, and search for her

as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and

find the knowledge of God."

Proverbs 1:8 "My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not

forsake the law of your mother." Psalm 95:7,8a "For He is our God,vand we are the people of His pasture,

and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice: 'Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion...'"

Insight: How can you do God’s will if you do not listen to Him? In all successful relationships, there must be talking and listening. Don’t forget to do both!

Prayer: "Thank you for speaking to us, Lord. Thank you for using wise people to get your message through to us. Help us to listen to our family, to You, to your Holy Spirit and to the people who speak your words of truth. Praise You for knowing how to get through to us. Let us be sensitive to You. Help us to listen and obey before You have to repeat yourself. Thank you for wanting a relationship with us! There’s no other God like You. Praise You for being patient and devoted to us. Help us to understand what an awesome God You are. To You be all the glory, honor and praise. In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Day 7: "The Power of Love"

1 Corinthians 8:1 "... We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies."

1 John 4:18 "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love."

Proverbs 10:12 "Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins."

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away."

Song of Solomon 8:6 "... For love is as strong as death..."

Insight: Christians will be known by their love. Unlike the kind of love we see on television, love is a choice. Decide to love people, today. They will see Christ through you.

Prayer: "Thank you for the awesome power of love! Help us to understand what love is and what love isn’t. Thank you for loving us more than we understand or realize. Thank you for wanting us to love others deeply. Help us to be unselfish and love others like You would. Praise You for being our perfect example of love. Thank you for the people who love others. Bless them richly. Praise You for giving people awesome things when they simply let go and obey You. Help us to love deeply, over and over. Heal the people that find it hard to love. Let them understand what it truly means to love like You do. Forgive people for adopting a kind of love that emulates actors and actresses. Help people see the lies and find true love. Thank you for giving us your Word and defining love for us in the most awesome terms. In Jesus’ name, Amen."

Bring church to the people that don’t go to church.

Do you know someone who doesn’t attend church? Do you think they need to know Jesus?

There are many ways you can "bring Jesus" to someone. Pray and ask God for the right person and the best way. You could give someone a Bible, send them an email, write them a letter, give them a video, etc.

God bless you as you meet this week’s challenge!

hagios: holy

We all have a deep, spiritual thirst that can only be quenched by Jesus.

The answers to the problems of humankind are the same.

People are sinful and Jesus is the answer.

Jesus preached to the Samaritans even when the Jews would not talk to them or walk through their land.

The love of God knows no economic or racial boundaries.

Bring church to the people that don’t go to church.

Care about the people you speak to.

Every generation needs regeneration.

Jesus could have spoken a pizza and coke into existence.

Jesus had tact.

Don’t forget to listen to a person when you’re sharing the gospel with them.

Jesus told the Samaritan who He was, what He had and how she could have it.

When you share the gospel with someone, give them as much information about the Bible as they can handle.

If you drink from any well besides Jesus’ well, you’ll thirst again and look for more wells.

Loving someone isn’t based on excitement and emotion.

God has created people to desire companionship.

Your spouse cannot meet every need you have.

Jesus completely and permanently satisfies us.

When you can say, "the Lord is my shepherd", you’ll be able to say, "I will not want".

Everything you need is wrapped up in a relationship with God.

Before there can be conversion, there must be conviction.

These quotes came from God, me and Greg Laurie.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun. Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles. Some of my quotes are humorous or rhetorical. Some are written from sermons and Bible studies. Others are lyrics from songs. If you’d like me to go into more detail on any of them, please email me.

Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated. To use what I’ve written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way! Please don’t sell my quotes or publish them for profit. If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes. I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings. God bless you all!

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John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should have everlasting life."