We don’t have to visit a temple to be in the presence of God. As Christ followers, we are the temple of God and He dwells within us. Isn’t that an amazing thought?
As I read about the building of the Temple, I was struck by the great wealth and incredible planning that went into it. It took Solomon seven years to build the temple. (See 1 Kings 5-8)
It is estimated that Solomon used over 8 million pounds of gold and 76 million pounds of silver. The gold and silver alone were worth a fortune! This does not include all the precious metals, bronze, iron, ivory, or cedar wood used in the temple. Extrapolating from the number, the total cost of Solomon’s temple including the labor costs (153,000 forced laborers) would have been well over half a billion dollars! Pure gold was everywhere! Even the wick trimmers were made of pure gold! No detail was overlooked.
Today, the Living God doesn’t live in a building. If you are a Christ Follower, He is literally living in you! Take a moment to let that soak in.
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV (emphasis mine)
You may think Solomon’s temple came at an incredible price, and it did. But God purchased you at an even greater cost, the precious, priceless blood of Jesus Christ. So what does that mean to us today?
We must recognize that we are the temple of God and that we belong to God. He has a plan for us. We have been commissioned to go out and make disciples. We are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart and love our neighbor as ourselves. This is obedience to the One who owns us, to love one another. We must examine ourselves to see if we are honoring the price He paid.
“. . . the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord’s people.To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27 NIV (emphasis mine)
“Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.” 2 Timothy 1:14 NLT (emphasis mine)
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” Ephesians 3: 14-17 NIV (emphasis mine)
Our bodies are no longer “our own” because we no longer belong to ourselves but wholly and completely to God. This is the single most important truth about our lives.”
David Jeremiah
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
“The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. Genesis 13:14-15 NIV (emphasis mine)
God blessed Abram with all of Canaan! I’m constantly amazed at how the Word of God speaks to us and informs us today.
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Like Daniel, we are here to love and show the truth of God’s salvation to all sinners, great and small. This includes those who vote differently, who are hostile to the church, who self-identify in ways that don’t mesh with Scripture, and who live only for themselves. I’m not saying we agree with their views or accept their sin. I’m saying that we love them with everything we have, because that’s how God loved us when we were lost in our own sins.” Amir Tsarfati, Discovering Daniel
I highly recommend Amir’s new book, Discovering Daniel. Available on Amazon.
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
“Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” Psalm 50:14-15 NIV
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Do you have a strong desire to write about Jesus, what He has done for you, and what you have learned from His Word? I do, too. But good intentions alone won’t make me an inspiring writer. I’ve studied writing since I started blogging in 2017, but that doesn’t mean I’ve reached success – yet.
I need lots of encouragement and guidance so I’ve collected some quotes and advice that encouraged me to keep working on my writing skills. I hope these insights and tips encourage and help you, too.
“In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well … If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging.” Romans 12: 4-8 NLT
He is at work on your behalf, not to make you a best-seller, but to make you the best tool for His work… It’s about obedience. About writing, because that’s the task He’s given us. It’s about seeking to serve Him and others through the gifts He’s given us.
~Karen Ball
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” 1 Thessalonians 5:11 ESV
When we set forth the truth plainly and simply through the example of human circumstances and how God works in the lives of everyone, we are leading our readers to a deeper, closer understanding of who Jesus is.
Author unknown
“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin…” Zechariah 4:10 NLT
“Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something—anything—down on paper. A friend of mine says that the first draft is the down draft—you just get it down. The second draft is the up draft—you fix it up. You try to say what you have to say more accurately. And the third draft is the dental draft, where you check every tooth, to see if it’s loose or cramped or decayed, or even, God help us, healthy.”
Anne Lamott
Some New (to me) Writing Tips
Get inspired through research.
Before you begin writing, do some reconnaissance reading. Take notes as you read up on your subject material. Ideas will form as you research. Once you’ve jumped into the writing process, don’t stop to do more research. Instead, add a placeholder like [RESEARCH] and keep rolling. You can come back to finalize facts and add references when your first draft is finished.
2. Empathize with the reader.
Empathy can improve all kinds of writing. Take the time to put yourself in your reader’s place. Are you preaching to them, or are you engaging them by showing that you relate to their feelings and experiences?
3. Be fascinated in order to be fascinating.
The more interested you are about the subject you’re writing about, the more intrigued your readers will be with what you’ve written.
4. Don’t use unnecessary words and phrases. (This is a biggie!)
Every word needs to have a purpose in your writing, and there are plenty that don’t contribute anything but clutter. Get rid of them!
Avoid These Words and Phrases:
At all times
Watch out for flabby phrases at all times.
Each and every
Look for filler words in your writing each and every day daily.
As yet
We don’t know as yet whether we’ll succeed.
In order
Eliminate excess verbiage in order to clean up your writing.
Basically, essentially
These words basically don’t add value. They’re essentially useless.
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” Luke 16:10 NIV
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
