“The fact that earth is not our ultimate home explains why, as followers of Jesus, we experience difficulty, sorrow, and rejection in this world.11 It also explains why some of God’s promises seem unfulfilled, some prayers seem unanswered, and some circumstances seem unfair. This is not the end of the story. In order to keep us from becoming too attached to earth, God allows us to feel a significant amount of discontent and dissatisfaction in life — longings that will never be fulfilled on this side of eternity. We’re not completely happy here because we’re not supposed to be! Earth is not our final home; we were created for something much better.”
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Rick Warren
“Resentment always hurts you more than it does the person you resent. While your offender has probably forgotten the offense and gone on with life, you continue to stew in your pain, perpetuating the past. Listen: those who hurt you in the past cannot continue to hurt you now unless you hold on to the pain through resentment. Your past is past! Nothing will change it. You are only hurting yourself with your bitterness. For your own sake, learn from it, and then let it go.”
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Rick Warren
“A second barrier to total surrender is our pride. We don’t want to admit that we’re just creatures and not in charge of everything. It is the oldest temptation: “You’ll be like God!”11 That desire — to have complete control — is the cause of so much stress in our lives. Life is a struggle, but what most people don’t realize is that our struggle, like Jacob’s, is really a struggle with God! We want to be God, and there’s no way we are going to win that struggle.”
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Rick Warren
“If you haven’t been baptized as an expression of your faith in Christ, do so as soon as possible, as Jesus commanded.”
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Rick Warren
“Why is this happening to me? Why am I having such a difficult time? One answer is that life is supposed to be difficult! It’s what enables us to grow. Remember, earth is not heaven!”
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Rick Warren
“the two biggest hindrances to living the life God designed you to live: Wanting to be like others (envy), and wanting to be liked by others (people-pleasing.) These traps are subtle, but they distract and detour millions of people from the purposes they were created to fulfill.”
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Rick Warren
“Get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to — the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness” (Ephesians 4:22 – 24”
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Rick Warren
“The first misconception is that we confuse fear with humility. We tend to say, “Oh, I could never do that,” and we think we’re being humble. But that is not humility. That is fear; that is a lack of faith. A truly humble person would say, “With God’s help, I can do it. With God’s blessing, I will do it. I may not be able to do it on my own, but with God’s help I will do it.” That’s real humility.”
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Rick Warren
“You are joined together with peace through the Spirit, so make every effort to continue together in this way. EPHESIANS 4:3 (NCV)”
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Rick Warren
“Todo parece nuevo si uno ignora la historia. Muchos de los métodos que marchan bajo el estandarte del “cambio” han sido utilizados en el pasado ligeramente modificados.”
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Rick Warren
“Our philosophy is that if it was grown on a plant, eat it. If it was made in a plant, leave it on the shelf.”
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Rick Warren
“If you have just been going through the motions spiritually, don’t be surprised when God allows pain in your life. Pain is the fuel of passion — it energizes us with an intensity to change that we don’t normally possess. C. S. Lewis said, “Pain is God’s megaphone.” It is God’s way of arousing us from spiritual lethargy. Your problems are not punishment; they are wake-up calls from a loving God. God is not mad at you; he’s mad about you, and he will do whatever it takes to bring you back into fellowship with him.”
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Rick Warren
“We are products of our past, but we don’t have to be prisoners of it. God’s purpose is not limited by your past.”
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Rick Warren
“The most difficult area to surrender for many people is their money.”
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Rick Warren
“Many people are driven by the need for approval. They allow the expectations of parents or spouses or children or teachers or friends to control their lives. Many adults are still trying to earn the approval of unpleasable parents. Others are driven by peer pressure, always worried by what others might think. Unfortunately, those who follow the crowd usually get lost in it.”
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Rick Warren
