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Friday, September 1, 2017

How to Let God Solve Your Problems | First Line Fridays

Happy Friday (and how is it already September?!)! I’m so excited to share another great read with you! Recently at a book sale, I picked up a few Charles Stanley books. I’ve only read one so far, and wow, it was a good one! As with other devotional books that I’ve shared, the first line isn’t always easy to understand without the whole context, so I’m picking out a quote to share. But there were too many good quotes. So scroll to the end of the post and read the dozens of amazing and thought-provoking quotes I copied, which I hope are an encouragement to you.


Once you’ve finished visiting everyone else’s FLF posts, I’d love to hear…
(feel free to pick just one to answer—I’m the question Queen ;) )
- What is one of the best devotional books that you’ve read?
- What book are you reading this weekend?
- What’s a first line of the book closest to you?

~*~*~
Be sure to hop along to all of these other blogs and see what First Lines they have to share!
Please note that I may not fully endorse all of the books that these bloggers read or the content in these blogs.

Rachel - Bookworm Mama
Andi - Radiant Light
Robin - Robin's Nest
Kathleen - Kathleen Denly
Trisha – Joy of Reading
Jeanette – CJane Read
Iola – Iola Golton


Quotes:


"In the aftermath of any storm, [God] is the only One we can turn to for encouragement." (Pg. 3)

"He knows when we face difficulties that are beyond our ability to handle..." (pg. 5)

"Do you realize that even if [a storm] has appeared as a result of something you have done, God is with you?" (Pg. 8)

"When I let go of my need to work something out, He handles all the details of my circumstances perfectly." (Pg. 12)

"Endurance means that I am willing to stay at my post—where God has placed me—until He tells me to move forward. It also means that no matter how hard life may become, I will follow wherever He leads." (Pg. 16)

"We are the ones who make sorrow and heartache even more difficult to bear. Many times, we believe Satan's lies." (Pg. 18)

"Anyone can quit and walk away from life. However, it takes courage to go on when it appears that every avenue has been blocked and every opportunity removed. The pathway to hope and victory often runs straight through the valley of adversity." (Pg. 19)

"True peace cannot come to the person who had not surrendered his or her life to the Lord." (Pg 27)

"God uses adversity to purify us and prepare us for greater service." (Pg 28)

"Most of the time, we know the way God wants us to go, but if it involves sacrifice or personal surrender, we can become resistant and even disobedient." (Pg 40)

"The brokenness of your life does not prevent the Savior from loving you." (Pg 42)

"When trouble hits, resist the urge to focus on yourself, your ambitions, and personal desires." (Pg 46)

"In time, and with God's help, that person understands that God's plan for his or her life is not over; it is just taking a different path than the one he or she thought would be traveling." (Pg 47)

"It is it in times of deep trial, when our faith is tested beyond our normal ability to endure, that we discover God’s loving hand is holding us up and reassuring us that He will never leave." (Pg 56)

"A person chooses to wait on God because he or she wants the best." (Pg 65)

"Prayer is a step of faith, not a pathway to anxiety." (Pg 76)

"Adversity trains you to worship God and to long for time alone in His presence." (Pg 87)

"Obey God and He will lead you *through* the stormy times to a place of great blessing." (Pg 96)

"Loneliness is not something only single people face. It is something that comes from not being at peace in God's presence and not being satisfied with what He has provided." (Pg 99)

"So often, problems that arise in our lives come as a result of our not obeying God." (Pg 104)

"Timing is everything to God. He knows exactly when to motivate us to move forward and when to hold us back." (Pg 108)

"[God] is our instructor, guide, and teacher. But sometimes we do not hear what He is saying because we are too wrapped up in our problems. We pray and think we are giving our burden to Him, but we continue to carry it around by talking about it and even frantically wondering what will happen next. When we ask God to take our burdens, He does. However, if we continue to cling to it and work on ways of solving it, we signal a lack of faith in His ability." (Pg 109)

"[God] never sees your burden as being insignificant. Therefore, no matter how large or small a difficulty may appear, make a habit of praying about it." (Pg 110)

"You have a sense of peace, not because of what you have, but because of who has you." (Pg 118)

"Sin causes a separation in our fellowship with God, and this sense of separation gives birth to fear." (Pg 142)



17 comments:

  1. I love Charles Stanley. He has such a heart for the Lord and provides good insight. I hope you enjoy the other books you found. Happy Friday!

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  2. Some great quotes there!

    I've got the first line from Ronie Kendig's "Crown of Souls" - Tox!šŸ˜ - on my blog today, but I'm going to share the first line from the book I just finished reading, Tamera Alexander's "To Wager Her Heart":

    Alexandra Jamison had always wanted a sister.

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  3. Sounds like a fantastic book that I need to read! Great quotes!

    I'm sharing about "The Day the Angels Fell" by Shawn Smucker on my blog today, but I'm going to share the first line from the book I'm currently reading, "Under Fire" by Linda Shenton Matchell.

    "Ruth Brown swiped the perspiration beads off her upper lip as her's sister's vacant coffin dropped into the ground with a dull thud."

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  4. My first line on my blog is from Lori Benton's newest release, 'Many Sparrows'. So as not to spoil the surprise of that line, I'll share a first line of a book my son is reading.
    "Loony Coon did not even wait for his baby eyes to open to get into his first batch of trouble."
    Loony Coon by Sam Campbell

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  5. Love the idea of sharing quotes. Just had a friend as for a recommendation for a good devotional. I'll have to share this one.

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  6. Happy Friday! My first line (sorry but actually two lines) is from Outlaw Angel by Miralee Ferrell:

    "Angel Ramirez woke with a start, her heart pounding a rolling beat in her chest. Someone was in her room."

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  7. I've read several Max Lucado Devotional books that I have loved.
    I also had several from Women of Faith that I have kept for years.

    My first line is from The Outlaw’s Second Chance by Angie Dicken
    The Cherokee Strip September 15, 1893
    Aubrey Huxley rushed over when her father shoved his bony finger against the customer’s shoulder.

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  8. The grandest adventure of her life waited on the other side of these tracks. That or the most humiliating debacle she'd ever created Either way, there was no going back. From Head in the Clouds by Karen Witemeyer.

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  9. Great quote by a great pastor. :) Probably one of the best devotionals I have studied is Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby.

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  10. Charles Stanley is such a godly encourager! I love listening to the sermons on the In Touch website while I clean.
    One of my favorite devotionals? My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers.
    Happy Friday, Amanda! Have a blessed weekend! <3

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  11. Looks like an uplifting read! Thanks for sharing it, Amanda!

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  12. @ Jessica - yes, he does!

    @ Fiction - I saw your post. :) It looks very interesting!

    @ Rebecca - thanks for sharing!

    @ Trisha - that sounds interesting!

    @ Tima - I hope your friend finds it helpful!

    @ Becky - that author is on my TBR pile!

    @ Andrea - sounds like neat books!

    @ Paula - Karen Witemeyer!! I've enjoyed the ones I've read!

    @ English - I think my mom has that book!

    @ Alicia - yes, I've enjoyed listening to his sermons as well. :) And "My Utmost" is such a great read!

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  13. Ooh, I have multiple devotional favorites! The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer, Journeys of Faithfulness by Sarah Clarkson, and Behold Your God: Rethinking God Biblically by John Snyder (though I haven't finished this one yet), are among the top. I'm also starting Knowing God by J.I. Packer, and I think it is going to be good.

    I'm still working through Laddie. I just LOVE Gene Stratton-Porter's books. I LovE her style of writing, as well as her engaging storylines. Laddie is set in the late 1800s, and is written from the perspective of Little Sister, who is probably 10. Her personality and childlike innocence is SO adorable and lovable and precious!

    Here is the first line of Uncle Tom's Cabin (which I am reading for school, finally!): 'Late in the afternoon of a chilly day in February, two gentlemen were sitting alone over their wine, in a well-furnished dining parlor, in the town of P---, in Kentucky.'

    I hope you have a great weekend!

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  14. Love your quote so much!

    I am currently reading Many Sparrows by Lori Benton. What an AMAZING book. My first line comes from chapter two:

    "Clare Margaret Inglesby, twenty-six years of age and eight months with child, wondered how she'd come to this: trapped in a jolting wagon advancing into perilous wilderness" (5).

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  15. Here's the first line of “Alice in Wonderland”—one of my absolute favs!! It's pure ridiculousness and no magic! Such LOLing!! Have you read it?

    “ Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, "and what is the use of a book," thought Alice, "without pictures or conversations?" ”

    And because I can't resist, here are some quotes that are just TOO funny.

    “ "I don't believe there's an atom of meaning in it." [. . .]
    "If there's no meaning in it," said the King, "that saves a world of trouble, you know, as we needn't try to find any.["] ”

    “it seems to be a letter, written by the prisoner to—to somebody."
    "It must have been that," said the King, "unless it was written to nobody, which isn't usual, you know."

    "Are [the verses] in the prisoner's handwriting?" asked another of the jurymen.
    "No, they're not," said the White Rabbit, "and that's the queerest thing about it."
    (The jury all looked puzzled.)
    "He must have imitated somebody else's hand," said the King.
    (The jury all brightened up again.)
    "Please your Majesty," said the Knave, "I didn't write it, and they can't prove that I did: there's no name signed at the end."
    "If you didn't sign it," said the King, "that only makes the matter worse. You must have meant some mischief, or else you'd have signed your name like an honest man."

    "Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?" he asked.
    "Begin at the beginning," the King said gravely, "and go on till you come to the end; then stop."

    ���������� I love the King. He's the best. ������������

    ~Katja L.

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  16. My first line on my blog is from Colleen Coble. But I grabbed a book beside me for here.
    "He'd found her." by The Texan's Courtship Lessons by Noelle Marchand. My mom gave this book to me and I haven't read it yet.

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  17. @ Jewels- those are some great ones!! :) Thanks for sharing!! And I *still* need to read Gene Stratton-Porter. :P Some books on my TBR pile are there forever...

    @ Nicole - I have wanted to read that book for some time. One day I may actually get it. ;) Thanks for commenting!

    @ Katja - you know, that's a book I've not read yet. One of my author-friends absolutely loves it, though. ;) Those are such fun quotes though!!

    @ Tima - thanks for sharing! :)

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Thank you for stopping by! I pray that you have found something that encourages you today. Thank you for taking the time to give me a little comment - they always brighten my day. :) I usually stop by and reply to as many comments as I can, but sometimes it takes me a week or so. But if you asked a question, be sure to check back!

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)