We all admire and adore the baby Jesus born in the manger, but what we must mainly admire and adore is the Man on the cross – the fact that Jesus was born ultimately to die. He didn’t die because the Jews and Romans finally we able to put an end to this supposed troublemaker. He didn’t die because God wanted to show us an example of commitment to a cause or how to pay the definitive sacrifice or how to demonstrate humility or show love that is willing to suffer for friends. In a sense these are all true, but the ultimate reason Jesus died on the cross is because that was His primary mission to take away the sins of the world. 1 Peter 2:24, “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross.”
Randy Smith

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Word for Today, Wed, 28 Jun 2000: Who do I Identify With?

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1,536 Posts
#1 · June 28, 2000, 10:59 am

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Do you find that your best friends are those whom you can
identify with, someone who shares one, many, or most of the kinds
of experiences that you have, and can understand what you are
going through?

Well, that's the way it is with me. My closest friends have gone
through trials, though different than mine, still similar in the
hurt and pain that they have faced. It has been our ability to
honestly share our mutual hurts, and then encourage one another,
that has helped our friendships grow strong.

Did you know that Jesus Christ is THE MAN OF GOD, the very God
who made all things, the one perfect in every way, yet who loves
us so much that He wanted to identify with every possible thing
we go through?

Some of us haven't had it easy. But what about Jesus? He was
born in a smelly animal stable. Any of you born in a barn? He
stooped even lower. Any of you been "picked on"? Jesus was
continually ridiculed. Even the people near Him used to say,
"What good ever came out of Nazareth"?

Jesus had many friends. But even they were looking for something
from Him, other than what He was really offering. Even when He
confided in His closest followers that He was being hunted down
to be murdered, they could not even stay awake to pray with Him.

Can you identify with being down and out like that? Well, Jesus
knows our every weakness. He knows everything we have faced.
He, too, has shed tears and experienced pain. Yet He IS God, and
He is still victorious over all of those things. He identifies
with me, and He knows me, just as He identifies with you and
knows you, too?

Do you want to know Him, too? I yearn to know Him more and
more. That is why I spend time studying about my Lord, why I
think about Him every day, take quiet moments of reflection to be
with Him - reading, thinking, meditating, praying, and
listening.

I can't ever tell you what to do. All I can offer is the chaos
my life has been like when I have ignored my Lord, and the peace
I have experienced as I have sought and found Him. What a world
of difference!

Brother Brian

From: Karen Weber
Subject: Christian Thought for the day

~~~CAREWARE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This newsletter is careware. All I ask is that you
do something kind for someone today. You could start
by sending a card to an aunt, uncle, cousin, niece,
nephew, or other relative you don't talk to very often.

~~~VISIT US~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We've got lots of postcards in addition to the quote
cards you'll find at MotivationalQuotes.Com. Check
out our original watercolors, beautiful desert blooms,
and fun photographic explorations at:
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~~~THE THOUGHT~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We have the need to be accepted and to be loved by
others, but we cannot accept and love ourselves. The
more self-love we have, the less we will experience
self-abuse. Self-abuse comes from self-rejection, and
self-rejection comes from having an image of what it
means to be perfect and never measuring up to that
ideal. Our image of perfection is the reason we reject
ourselves the way we are, and why we don't accept
others the way they are.
Don Miguel Ruiz

VERSE: 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.
1 John 4:18

PRAYER: Dear Lord, thank you for loving me with
a perfect love. Take away all fear from my heart
and fill me with your peace and love. Amen.

~~~KEYWORDS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
perfectionism self-love self-nurture self-abuse
judgementalism

Want to find more quotes about these keywords?
motivationalquotes.com/cgi-bin/s/db.cgi

~~~POSTCARDS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today's Bible verse can be sent as a postcard at:
prayer-warriors.net/Postcards/loveverses.shtml

Today's quote can be sent as a postcard at:
http://www.motivationalquotes.com/lovequotes.shtml

~~~AUTHOR AND SOURCE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Don Miguel Ruis was born into a family of healers
and raised in rural Mexico by a curandera (healer)
mother and nagual (shaman) grandfather. The family
anticipated don Miguel would embrace their centuries
old legacy of healing and teaching and as a nagual,
carry forward the esoteric Toltec knowledge.
Instead, distracted by modern life, don Miguel
chose to attend medical school and later teach
and practice as a surgeon. A near death experience
brought him back to his family calling.
http://www.miguelruiz.com/

Today's quote is from The Four Agreements: A
Practical Guide to Personal Freedom
by Don Miguel Ruiz
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1878424319/speriencecommaki
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1878424319/motivationalquot

~~~TODAY'S SPONSOR~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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~~~INVITATION~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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~~~FREE STUFF~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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~~~GREAT LINKS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Black History from Harper's Weekly 1857-1874 *
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~~~RECOMMENDED READINGS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Mastery of Love: A Practical Guide to the Art
of Relationship by Don Miguel Ruiz
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1878424424/speriencecommaki
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1878424424/motivationalquot

Beyond Fear: A Toltec Guide to Freedom and Joy:
The Teachings of Miguel Angel Ruiz
by Mary Carroll Nelson
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1571780386/motivationalquot

Soul Stories by Gary Zukav
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0743204077/motivationalquot

The Seat of the Soul by Gary Zukav
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/067169507X/speriencecommaki
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0712646744/motivationalquot

Thoughts from the Seat of the Soul: Meditations
for Souls in Process by Gary Zukav
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671887696/speriencecommaki
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671887696/motivationalquot

=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:[email protected]
Home page: http://www.geocities.com/masinick/
The Rules Have Changed...Get Paid to Surf the Web!
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