Rick Warren's Blog, page 651

What It Takes To Change

“If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.” (1 John 1:8 NLT)

We’re all defective. None of us measure up to a standard of perfection. It is silly to pretend that you’ve got it all together when everybody knows you don’t. In fact, the Bible tells us it is self-deception.

Need God’s Help? Give Him Total Surrender

“We ... saw how powerless we were to help ourselves; but that was good, for then we put everything into the hands of God, who alone could save us, for he can even raise the dead.” (2 Corinthians 1:9 LB)

Once you admit that you need help, you can ask God for it! This is moving from confession to petition.

The Reality Choice: Admit You Need Help

“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” (James 4:6 NIV)

In Jesus’ most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount, he explains the choices that help us heal from our hurts and hang-ups, and the habits that mess up our lives. The first Beatitude, Matthew 5:3, says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (NIV).

Be Your Spouse’s Biggest Fan

“Encourage each other every day while it is ‘today.’” (Hebrews 3:13a NCV)

If you’re married, God has given you an incredibly important role: to be your spouse’s biggest fan. It’s a job only you can do in the way God desires, and your spouse desperately needs you to do it.

How to Rekindle Lost Love

“You have left the love you had in the beginning. So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first.” (Revelation 2:4-5 NCV)

At first glance you may not think the book of Revelation — with its images of beasts, lambs, and angels — has anything to do with romance and the kind of affection needed to sustain a growing marriage.

The Unselfish Marriage

“Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.” (Philippians 2:4 NLT)

Marriage gives you many opportunities to make adjustments in your life. Change happens all the time — from the changing stages of your children to moves to job changes to illnesses. When circumstances change in your lives, both you and your spouse will have to make adjustments to keep your marriage on track. In fact, simply being two imperfect people building a life together requires making adjustments for one another.

When You Give Attention, It Fans the Flame of Romance

“Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19b NIV)

When you give your spouse your attention and focus, it’s like you give them a piece of your life. Those focused moments of intimate sharing are time you’ll never get back again. They are little pieces of your life. That’s why the most loving act you can show your spouse is to pay attention to him or her. It’s one of the most important ways you say, “I love you.”

God Says You Are Forgiven

“I am the God who forgives your sins, and I do this because of who I am. I will not hold your sins against you.” (Isaiah 43:25 TEV)

Some of us, even though we’re believers, think that whenever we’re having problems, God is getting even with us, that he’s just trying to get back at us.

Choose Forgiveness, Not Gossip

“Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends.” (Proverbs 17:9 NLT)

Let’s just admit it: When you have some crazy-maker in your life, and she’s just done the craziest thing again, it’s almost impossible not to get in the car, pull out your phone, and call somebody and say, “You won’t believe what she just did!”

Let Go of Your Hurt

“Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” (Colossians 3:13 NLT)

Many of us have someone in our lives who has done some crazy, hurtful thing to us or, maybe even more importantly, to somebody that we love. In our minds we think, “I know the Christian thing to do is to forgive, so I will. I will forgive him as soon as he gives me an apology.”